As we were starting The Connection Church, we wanted to position ourselves as a church that wants to give to our city. We did this through service evangelism projects, sometimes called kindness evangelism. For a long time I wanted to try out an idea I had heard about that I believed would get noticed and hit people in a place of their felt need: their gas tanks. Just this week, the news reported that America’s biggest crude oil pipeline will be shut down for months, driving gas prices even higher! What better way to find a need and meet it than to lead your church to conduct a gas buy-down?
The Idea
Here’s the idea. Cooperate with one of the local gas stations and buy down the price of gas per gallon by a quarter to 50 cents per gallon. For example, if the current gas price is $3.00 (heaven help us), then lower it to $2.50 per gallon. My granddad will drive 30 miles to save a nickel per gallon! Just make sure you lower it enough to catch people’s attention.
Why do a gas buy-down? When you lead your church to be involved in a servant evangelism project, attitude is key. You want to remember that this is not simply a clever marketing technique for your church. It is a practical way to get your hands dirty being the hands and feet of Jesus for your community and demonstrate God’s love. It’s been said, people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
How much does it cost? Surprisingly, a gas buy-down is a very inexpensive way to serve your community. It doesn’t cost as much as you might think. We spent around $350 on our first one. We lowered the price per gallon by $0.25. That meant that we were able to pump 1400 gallons of gasoline.
When’s the best time? We chose to do ours when people were coming home from work on a Friday afternoon. Others have done it on a Saturday morning. In the pre-launch stage of your church, you might even consider doing it on Sunday morning during the 11:00 hour. That way, you’re sure to meet people who are not already attending a church.
How long should it last? We have found its best not to set a time limit. Instead decide on the best start time and go until the money is gone. In your print promotions, you might just say something like: “Beginning at 4, we will begin pumping 1500 gallons of gasoline.” Just make sure it’s clear that it will be available for a limited time.
Do we limit the number of gallons? NO! Some people have thought it would be best to set a per person limit of 10 gallons per customer in order to touch more people. We recommend that you don’t set a limit. This becomes a logistical problem of keeping up with how much people have received and takes away from the spirit of the project. We had people come through the line, go home and get another car and come back through. We were glad they wanted to come back.
Do we check fluids under the hood, or check tire pressure? NO. I would stay away from any technical mechanic-type work at this event. This might open up some liability issues and complicates the effort. You can fill their tank and wash their windshields. Just KISS it, that’s Keep It Simple Stupid.
Preparation
What stations are best? Choose a local station in a location that will allow for good traffic flow. Many times, corporate run stations have too much red tape to cut through and they are more concerned with regulations and liabilities. Find a station that is locally owned and operated.
How do I get it set up? I simply went into the store and got the name and number of the station manager. When I called him, I explained that we were a new church in the area that wanted to buy down the gas of gasoline per gallon. I told him we wanted to do something to serve our community. I also explained the benefit of this to his station. During the time of the gas buy-down, he was sure to have a line of customers who would also be buying other items from his store.
How should we get the word out? One of the great aspects of this project is that it will advertise itself. It’s got the buzz factor. When people find out about it, they will naturally tell others what’s happening. We simply contacted the local papers and asked them to run a short announcement in the community events section of the paper. Ours just happened to run right next to an article about the high price of gas.
You can prepare a media blitz to send to the local TV, radio, and newspapers. Some of them will be interested in this event. We have even heard of some events where a helicopter flew overhead and announced what was happening during the radio traffic report.
How do I get the church involved? The best way we have found to get people involved is through our weekend messages. When you raise the Biblical value of service and evangelism, people will want to do something about it. Have them respond by committing to be a part of this project.
Implementation
I was surprised when I showed up 30 minutes early to the station only to find that no one was pumping gas. The lines were already starting to form.
At the site, you will want to have some people holding large signs that announce the special deal on gas prices. Avoid the term “cheap gas,” people may think you’re protesting the station! Our station actually changed the prices on their road signage.
To roll the prices down, all the pumps must be turned off. This will also be a challenge when you try to raise them back up again.
As you start, simply have your crew begin filling up the tanks, wash the windshields, and hand out a business card that says, “This is our simple way of saying God loves you.” On the back, it’s perfectly fine to include the name of your church, service times, and a map. However, it’s not an expectation that they must come to the church because you have served them. Also, avoid being preachy. If someone asks why you are doing this, let them know that it’s to demonstrate God’s love in a practical way. This is a time to sow seeds of the gospel.
Sometimes, people will be so suspicious or so grateful, that they will offer you money. Don’t take it. This ruins the illustration that you are providing of God’s free gift to us. If they really want to give, perhaps they’ll show up at your church at a later date.
Challenges
Traffic Control. We had a police officer show up wanting to know who was in charge. I spoke with him and he told me I needed to get the traffic under control. When I asked for his help, he said he was too busy, so I responded that I would do my best. We begin looking for ways to keep the side streets clear of traffic.
Handling Money. Don’t take the money from people to pay for their gas. Allow them to do it themselves, either through pay at the pump or by going inside. We did experience one or two drive offs that we ended up paying for ourselves.
Giving away water or snacks. If you choose to give something else away to the customers, be sure to purchase those items from the station you are cooperating with. You don’t want to cut into their sales.
Shutting it down. This was the biggest challenge we faced. We had orange traffic cones that we placed in front of the cars when it came time to stop. Several people just drove over the cones. We had to have all the pumps stopped in order to change the prices back to normal.
Results
As a young church just starting out, this event brought big results. One guy that came through the line got a card from us and passed it on to his brother, saying, “You like church, check this one out.” He did and became the leader of our site team. His son has played drums for us ever since. Another guy came whose college-aged daughter I was able to baptize. Looking at it from this perspective, the gas buy-down was priceless for us.
Most recently, the event has received airplay on radio stations across the country. This has proven to me that when we take small steps of demonstrating God’s love, he will magnify our efforts and use them for His glory.
