When people come to visit your church for the very first time, your congregation makes an impression on them. Sometimes you are able to personally help them to bridge the gap between "visitor" and "member" of the congregation, but quite often you can't, especially if you are "busy" on Sunday morning getting ready for worship.
What that means is that the impression a newcomer gets on their very first visit will be influenced by many other factors.
Is your church a "newcomer friendly" place? What influences people when they visit your church for the very first time, especially if they are not attending with someone else who is already a member of the church?
What they see when they visit our churches may be quite different from what we see as active members of the church. In time they may come to really love coming to your church, but in the short run the impression they start out with may help or hinder them in deciding what they will do in the future. As advertisers like to say, "First impressions are lasting impressions."
Check out this survey found at archive.elca.org/evangelizingchurch/assessments/hospitality.html . If possible, gather a handful of friends from your church around a computer and do the survey together. Then discuss the implications of the survey. Print out the results and bring any discussion notes with you.
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With our newfound knowledge respecting the numbers indicating the mainstream Church in decline, I believe and agree it is imperative to be very aware of the "welcoming" means by which we welcome,greet and embrace the newcomer or stranger in our midst. We must certainly create an atmosphere that folks are desirous of returning to and live and practice the values we share about for that fleeting hour on Sunday morning. As a new member to a new congregation (coming up on five years) I do not always feel as much like a member as I did in my former congregation of 14 years. Given that, I examine the way in which I treat newcomers and try to reach out accordingly-oftentimes inviting men to our Saturday Mens Bible Study and subsequent trip across the street to the diner for food and fellowship. Nothing could be possibly more daunting than walking into a crowded fellowship hall after service and finding 20-30 groups of tightly circled groups (dare I say "cliques"?)engrossed in conversation and somewhat oblivious or unaware of the newcomer. Or how about walking into the Annual Meeting and finding all the tables already taken and places "reserved" only to have to take the quickly set up last resort table in the corner-alone. Often we sit engaged in worship and pensively reflect on the merit of the sermon only to dismiss and race out to our cars and get on with the business of that thing called "life". Maybe we need to stop and engage our church family, offer an encouraging word, a friendly smile or pat on the back. I've been trying to get outside my comfort level and respond as I have been taught in my Tres Dias experience, "Meet a friend, be a friend, bring a friend to Jesus!" Being that as Pastor states a first impression is lasting, are we smiling, do we share with others the idea that the Lutheran experience is happy and joyful? We might be the only face of the Church that a newcomer has ever experienced and I don't want that person to see me scowling as I reflect on the problems I am about to encounter during the week!!!Food for thought.
ReplyDeleteWhen Russ and I first came to Ascension it was the immediate recognition from the Pastor that we were new faces, the warm handshake, the welcoming smile and the fact that after our first meeting him, he never forgot our names brought us back week after week. Then people in the coffee hour introduced themselves to us and sat with us. We were very touched by that, so it is very important. I agree that after a while we do lose sight of that, we do get distracted by other things we have going on in our lives. We also get comfortable and fall into routines.
ReplyDeleteSo, I think we have to try and keep that awareness alive and step out of our comfort zones.