At our church we decided to start a program to encourage our members to reach out and bless people with random acts of kindness. We made up some cards with a little message and information about the church. Then we challenged church members to do little things for strangers as they go about life, like paying for someone's coffee, raking a neighbor's leaves, offering some free babysitting to a neighbor you know well, etc., and then give people they help one of the cards. It doesn't have to be anything to do with money, just something special, nice, and unexpected. Then we asked them to share stories of these experiences with us. It has really been a blessing to see our members in action with this idea. Here's one of the best stories from one of our members. Maybe you could try this at your church?
"A Grandmother was at the bakery counter in Kroger, with her 2 grandchildren, one of which was having a birthday party at school. She announced to her Grandmother that she wanted the full dozen cupcakes so she could have some to take home, and she would also like a balloon to make her birthday really special.
The children were probably 7 & 8 or so in age; and I watched as she viewed her cash. The look on her face was a “what am I going to say to them” kind of look. I told her granddaughter that “I just love birthdays, and I wondered which balloon she would pick”. As she and her brother moved toward the balloons I handed the Grandmother our card, and a $20 bill, saying birthdays should always be wonderful for the little ones.
Tears came to her eyes as she thanked me. I told her that was the way Christians should always treat others. On a lighter note, her Grandson saw her tears and told his sister “Grandma always cries when she’s happy, she must like birthdays as much as we do”.
I believe this was my greatest experience with the cards so far.
- Betty"
Monday, November 17, 2008
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
How Do You Do The Evangelism Thing If You Hang Out With Xtns All The Time?
And that's part of our problem in the church. However you wish to put it, once we get into the swing of church we spend more and more time with Xtns. Why? Why is church so consuming?
Well, there is a lot to learn about what Xtns are supposed to believe and do. There is a lot to pray about re: what Xtns are supposed to believe and do. There are a lot of activities to plan for the youth so they will stay around and learn about what Xtn youth are supposed to believe and do. There is a lot of preparation for the hour-long weekly worship service, especially if you sing or play an instrument. And there are lots of meeting with one another to make sure all the forgoing is happenning plus a good plan is being developed to attract more people (we hope Xtns) into the church. And somebody has to make enough food to keep these lots of meetings going so that the important stuff of the church keeps happenning. The building requires a lot of attention because it is God's house, after all, and it's our house too, in a way, and we've got to make sure it is at least as nice as local sport and museum and restaurant venues, and that takes a lot of time and money, and we need a few more meetings to figure out how to raise the money required. The preacher gives an occasional shout-out to the Biblical projects of evangelism and missions, but frankly, no one's got the time or energy because it is exhausting just to keep the whole operation running. As Presbyterians we believe that God is sovereign, and so God will just have to, in a sovereignly way of course, work on those extra things if he wants to see them done and done right.
Even if you knew what to do or what to say (the church does have classes on evangelism and missions, but they're not well attended), where would you, as a committed-to-the-church Xtn, even find a non-Xtn? It's a problem!
So here is what I do. As I look at where I spend my time in a month, I realize there are places I visit or groups of people with whom I interact on a somewhat regular basis. When my son was a pre-driver I spent lots of time at the stables (he would ride dressage six times a week). Who is at the stables? Other riders and horse lovers, parents waiting for their pre-driver sons and daughters to finish their chores and lessons, dressage instructors. I would pray that God would help me get to know these folks and help me be sensitive to their concerns. I would pray that God would help me discuss movies, the news, my own personal challenges with them, looking for points of contact and interest. Some would respond and begin to open up. I would ask questions about what they began sharing, I would listen. On occasion and over the course of time, we would talk about their history, past or present, with church (kind of a boring topic, see first paragraph) and Jesus' agenda (never boring!). If you ever find yourself in a conversation with someone with some kind of church history, here are some fun questions to ask: "Would Jesus go to your church? Where would he sit? How would he handle the busyness of your church? If your church took prayer requests, what would his be?"
Today both of my children are drivers. We in fact have four cars on our insurance policy (help me Geiko!). Where do you think I am at least once a month? Who is there? A man from a country in the Middle East owns the car repair shop. His two brothers and another countryman work with him (in addition to other nationalities). Now it so happens my daughter spent last summer in the owner's home country. This fascinates them and establishes a point of contact. When I told them she was getting married this summer and a local Middle Eastern restaurant would be catering, their eyes got big. When I told them she and her husband-to-be hope to move to their country to work, well, they are more than intrigued. One of them is a devout Muslim. If one of my fleet requires several hours of work, he drives me to my office. He asks me questions about the Bible, I ask him questions about the Koran. He is very open to talking about these things. And so now it doesn't bother me so much when I have to take a visit to the car repair shop. I pray and get ready for more adventure!
So figure out where you are and who you see in any given month. Be prayerfully intentional about these regular contacts. Find points of common interest or experience and build relationships. Ask questions. Don't be afraid to ask them about their religious history or current practice. And as it relates in a genuine way to your conversation, connect your conversation to Jesus. Which means you have to know the Gospels to know how to introduce Jesus into the conversation. It also helps to be on a first-name basis with Jesus yourself.
Moral of the story: You are in touch with non-Xtns if you stop and think about it. The question is, are you willing to be intentional about listening to and sharing with them things that matter, things which eventually connect with Jesus?
And stop being so busy in church!
Well, there is a lot to learn about what Xtns are supposed to believe and do. There is a lot to pray about re: what Xtns are supposed to believe and do. There are a lot of activities to plan for the youth so they will stay around and learn about what Xtn youth are supposed to believe and do. There is a lot of preparation for the hour-long weekly worship service, especially if you sing or play an instrument. And there are lots of meeting with one another to make sure all the forgoing is happenning plus a good plan is being developed to attract more people (we hope Xtns) into the church. And somebody has to make enough food to keep these lots of meetings going so that the important stuff of the church keeps happenning. The building requires a lot of attention because it is God's house, after all, and it's our house too, in a way, and we've got to make sure it is at least as nice as local sport and museum and restaurant venues, and that takes a lot of time and money, and we need a few more meetings to figure out how to raise the money required. The preacher gives an occasional shout-out to the Biblical projects of evangelism and missions, but frankly, no one's got the time or energy because it is exhausting just to keep the whole operation running. As Presbyterians we believe that God is sovereign, and so God will just have to, in a sovereignly way of course, work on those extra things if he wants to see them done and done right.
Even if you knew what to do or what to say (the church does have classes on evangelism and missions, but they're not well attended), where would you, as a committed-to-the-church Xtn, even find a non-Xtn? It's a problem!
So here is what I do. As I look at where I spend my time in a month, I realize there are places I visit or groups of people with whom I interact on a somewhat regular basis. When my son was a pre-driver I spent lots of time at the stables (he would ride dressage six times a week). Who is at the stables? Other riders and horse lovers, parents waiting for their pre-driver sons and daughters to finish their chores and lessons, dressage instructors. I would pray that God would help me get to know these folks and help me be sensitive to their concerns. I would pray that God would help me discuss movies, the news, my own personal challenges with them, looking for points of contact and interest. Some would respond and begin to open up. I would ask questions about what they began sharing, I would listen. On occasion and over the course of time, we would talk about their history, past or present, with church (kind of a boring topic, see first paragraph) and Jesus' agenda (never boring!). If you ever find yourself in a conversation with someone with some kind of church history, here are some fun questions to ask: "Would Jesus go to your church? Where would he sit? How would he handle the busyness of your church? If your church took prayer requests, what would his be?"
Today both of my children are drivers. We in fact have four cars on our insurance policy (help me Geiko!). Where do you think I am at least once a month? Who is there? A man from a country in the Middle East owns the car repair shop. His two brothers and another countryman work with him (in addition to other nationalities). Now it so happens my daughter spent last summer in the owner's home country. This fascinates them and establishes a point of contact. When I told them she was getting married this summer and a local Middle Eastern restaurant would be catering, their eyes got big. When I told them she and her husband-to-be hope to move to their country to work, well, they are more than intrigued. One of them is a devout Muslim. If one of my fleet requires several hours of work, he drives me to my office. He asks me questions about the Bible, I ask him questions about the Koran. He is very open to talking about these things. And so now it doesn't bother me so much when I have to take a visit to the car repair shop. I pray and get ready for more adventure!
So figure out where you are and who you see in any given month. Be prayerfully intentional about these regular contacts. Find points of common interest or experience and build relationships. Ask questions. Don't be afraid to ask them about their religious history or current practice. And as it relates in a genuine way to your conversation, connect your conversation to Jesus. Which means you have to know the Gospels to know how to introduce Jesus into the conversation. It also helps to be on a first-name basis with Jesus yourself.
Moral of the story: You are in touch with non-Xtns if you stop and think about it. The question is, are you willing to be intentional about listening to and sharing with them things that matter, things which eventually connect with Jesus?
And stop being so busy in church!
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
A New Vision: Be the Friendliest Church in Town!
Does your church struggle with how to make guests feel welcome in your church Sunday after Sunday? Are you having trouble getting guests to come back after just one Sunday morning visit? Maybe you need a vision shift. At First Presbyterian Church of Conroe we’ve struggled with those same questions in our Inviting Ministry Team. Thankfully, God has given us a message that has inspired us to adopt a new vision: we want to be the friendliest church in town! Maybe God wants your church to do the same! We were inspired to completely revamp how we greet our guests each Sunday based on an article written by Jim Hollis, the Executive Director of an ecumenical evangelism organization called PEM, or Proactive Evangelism Ministry. You can learn more about this organization, including how to get some great evangelism training, by going to http://www.proactive-evangelism.org/. I put the inspirational article in my last post. One of our church members saw this article and passed it on to our Inviting Ministry Team. We read the article in one of our meetings and we decided to make some changes. So we decided to create three new & specific job descriptions for our greeters, recruit them, train them, and send them to a new ministry experience. Our program consists of parking lot greeters who make a terrific first impression as guests arrive, inside connectors who escort guests wherever they need to go in the church before worship and then seat them with a seated greeter, and seated greeters who make conversation and then invite guests out to coffee or lunch afterward. Studies have shown that the moments after a worship service while regular attenders are visiting with friends are the most influential in determining whether or not a guest will return. With seated greeters assigned to guests those moments after worship become just as welcoming as the formal greeting period in the service. We’re still working out the kinks, but we’ve already had some great stories from greeters who have had great success. Since I serve on the Evangelism & Renewal Committee of our Presbytery these new ideas came up the other day and they asked me to share our new greeter job descriptions. I've had some requests for our job descriptions based on this article being published in the Presbytery's Connections newsletter, so I thought I'd go ahead and post the job descriptions below, though they do make for a really long post! Please make sure whoever it is at your church responsible for your greeters reads the article and job descriptions. Perhaps God is calling you to adopt a new vision for greeting guests! God bless you in your ministry!
In Christ,
Rev. S. Scott Cummings, Associate Pastor, FPC Conroe
First Presbyterian Church of Conroe Inviting Ministry Team
New Greeter Job Descriptions
We’re doing something new at FPC! We no longer have greeters who ONLY stand at the doors and open them for people. We have three new jobs for greeters. Maybe you are called to take on one of those jobs! If you want to ONLY stand at the door and open it for guests you can still do that on your own! That would be great! But please don’t sign up as a greeter, since our greeters do one of the jobs below.
First off, let me say how important this ministry to our guests really is. Without you it would be very hard for us to experience the same kind of growth that our overall community is experiencing and that God desires. If you decide to be a greeter you will have the opportunity to impact lives forever. If people become a part of our community in part because of your warm and friendly greeting they might even come to faith in Christ because of it. This truly is a ministry.
You really are doing much more than just being friendly. But don’t worry. You won’t have to go out and preach to people, or even give up attending the worship service you like best. We need greeters in all three services. However, you might want to greet at more than one service, since you are probably in the building anyway. God bless you in this new adventure! If you decide to be a greeter in one of the areas please feel free to visit with Scott to get more training if you would like it. And sign up on the new sign-up sheet at the Welcome Center desk. Now check out where God might want to use you below!
Parking Lot Greeter
The primary purpose of this greeter is to make a warm and friendly very first impression on our guests. Stationed in the parking lot, this person looks for unfamiliar faces and directs them to our row of visitor parking spots. If those are full or if they are not sure if someone is a guest or not, Parking Lot Greeters show cars to other parking spots. Once guests exit their vehicles and start moving toward building this greeter welcomes them and walks with them up to the Welcome Center and opens the door for the guests. Then their job is pretty much done. The Parking Lot Greeter then returns to their post in the parking lot. If it is raining or particularly hot and sunny, this greeter carries a FPC umbrella to walk guests up to the building.
Inside Connector
The primary purpose of this greeter is to get guests connected to Seated Greeters in the sanctuary. Stationed in the Welcome center, this person looks for people who may be guests. After the Parking Lot Greeters get guests into the building, the Inside Connectors greet them and ask, “Have you been with us before or is this your first time?” Then they offer to show the guests to the nursery if they have small children, or to the restrooms, or to get some coffee. They stay with the guests, also showing them to the nametags and Welcome Center counter. During this escorting time this greeter notices the approximate age of the guests, whether they have children or not and their ages, are they a couple, individual, or family, and then this greeter thinks of who at that worship service might naturally connect with the guest. Hopefully there is a Seated Greeter who might naturally connect with the guest. For example, if the guests are a young couple with a child in the nursery, take them to a Seated Greeter that is younger and maybe has a child in the nursery. The idea is to facilitate connections between church members and guests. If there is no Seated Greeter that is similar to the guests, then take them to another Seated Greeter. Introduce them to each other and thank the guests for coming. Then return to the Welcome Center and look for more guests to connect!
Seated Greeter
The primary purpose of this greeter is to make sure that the guests have a wonderful and warm lasting impression of our church and its people. Your job is to arrive at your worship service a little bit early so you can be ready to greet any guests that are brought to you by the Inside Connectors. Once a guest is brought to you, be very friendly. If no one is brought to you just sit yourself next to someone you don't recognize. Ask if there is anything the guest might need. Visit warmly with the guests before the service starts, asking gentle questions and looking for things you may have in common with the guests. After the service be sure to offer to escort the guest to the nursery or Sunday School room if they have children. Go ahead and thank the guest for coming, tell them that you hope to see them again soon, and offer to take them to lunch. If you are a single person then find a friend to go with you. Or invite a couple of guests at the same time. If you are greeting at the 8:30 or 9:45 service you might invite them to breakfast or brunch, or even just to grab a cup of coffee. Also, don’t forget to make sure that they have received the first time guest gift. Be sure you show a great interest in the guest when you are with them by asking nice polite questions about them. Then you will be able to highlight relevant aspects of our church. Either you can pay for them and consider it a donation to the church, or you can get reimbursed for their meal. If they decline then wish them a blessed day and say goodbye. Then you’re done!
May God inspire you to new depths of faith as you minister with and for the guests God has brought to your doors!
In Christ,
Rev. S. Scott Cummings, Associate Pastor, FPC Conroe
First Presbyterian Church of Conroe Inviting Ministry Team
New Greeter Job Descriptions
We’re doing something new at FPC! We no longer have greeters who ONLY stand at the doors and open them for people. We have three new jobs for greeters. Maybe you are called to take on one of those jobs! If you want to ONLY stand at the door and open it for guests you can still do that on your own! That would be great! But please don’t sign up as a greeter, since our greeters do one of the jobs below.
First off, let me say how important this ministry to our guests really is. Without you it would be very hard for us to experience the same kind of growth that our overall community is experiencing and that God desires. If you decide to be a greeter you will have the opportunity to impact lives forever. If people become a part of our community in part because of your warm and friendly greeting they might even come to faith in Christ because of it. This truly is a ministry.
You really are doing much more than just being friendly. But don’t worry. You won’t have to go out and preach to people, or even give up attending the worship service you like best. We need greeters in all three services. However, you might want to greet at more than one service, since you are probably in the building anyway. God bless you in this new adventure! If you decide to be a greeter in one of the areas please feel free to visit with Scott to get more training if you would like it. And sign up on the new sign-up sheet at the Welcome Center desk. Now check out where God might want to use you below!
Parking Lot Greeter
The primary purpose of this greeter is to make a warm and friendly very first impression on our guests. Stationed in the parking lot, this person looks for unfamiliar faces and directs them to our row of visitor parking spots. If those are full or if they are not sure if someone is a guest or not, Parking Lot Greeters show cars to other parking spots. Once guests exit their vehicles and start moving toward building this greeter welcomes them and walks with them up to the Welcome Center and opens the door for the guests. Then their job is pretty much done. The Parking Lot Greeter then returns to their post in the parking lot. If it is raining or particularly hot and sunny, this greeter carries a FPC umbrella to walk guests up to the building.
Inside Connector
The primary purpose of this greeter is to get guests connected to Seated Greeters in the sanctuary. Stationed in the Welcome center, this person looks for people who may be guests. After the Parking Lot Greeters get guests into the building, the Inside Connectors greet them and ask, “Have you been with us before or is this your first time?” Then they offer to show the guests to the nursery if they have small children, or to the restrooms, or to get some coffee. They stay with the guests, also showing them to the nametags and Welcome Center counter. During this escorting time this greeter notices the approximate age of the guests, whether they have children or not and their ages, are they a couple, individual, or family, and then this greeter thinks of who at that worship service might naturally connect with the guest. Hopefully there is a Seated Greeter who might naturally connect with the guest. For example, if the guests are a young couple with a child in the nursery, take them to a Seated Greeter that is younger and maybe has a child in the nursery. The idea is to facilitate connections between church members and guests. If there is no Seated Greeter that is similar to the guests, then take them to another Seated Greeter. Introduce them to each other and thank the guests for coming. Then return to the Welcome Center and look for more guests to connect!
Seated Greeter
The primary purpose of this greeter is to make sure that the guests have a wonderful and warm lasting impression of our church and its people. Your job is to arrive at your worship service a little bit early so you can be ready to greet any guests that are brought to you by the Inside Connectors. Once a guest is brought to you, be very friendly. If no one is brought to you just sit yourself next to someone you don't recognize. Ask if there is anything the guest might need. Visit warmly with the guests before the service starts, asking gentle questions and looking for things you may have in common with the guests. After the service be sure to offer to escort the guest to the nursery or Sunday School room if they have children. Go ahead and thank the guest for coming, tell them that you hope to see them again soon, and offer to take them to lunch. If you are a single person then find a friend to go with you. Or invite a couple of guests at the same time. If you are greeting at the 8:30 or 9:45 service you might invite them to breakfast or brunch, or even just to grab a cup of coffee. Also, don’t forget to make sure that they have received the first time guest gift. Be sure you show a great interest in the guest when you are with them by asking nice polite questions about them. Then you will be able to highlight relevant aspects of our church. Either you can pay for them and consider it a donation to the church, or you can get reimbursed for their meal. If they decline then wish them a blessed day and say goodbye. Then you’re done!
May God inspire you to new depths of faith as you minister with and for the guests God has brought to your doors!
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Thanks & Inspiration!
Thanks so much for inviting me to be part of this blog! Below is an inspiring story of greeting guests at church in a new way.
Scott
Keeping Your Catch
From Visitors to Fully Engaged Disciple in Ministry
(Reprinted from The Proactive Pulse, Rev. Jim Hollis, Executive Director, Proactive Evangelism Ministry)
The Sunday We Fell in Love With Our New Church Family…
The first Sunday we visited, we recall seeing the very visible signs out front pointing us to the “Visitors Parking.” We followed them and found an open space. We were immediately impressed that this church cared about its visitors – after all – these spaces were close to the main entrance!
We had not walked more than ten feet past our car before a friendly voice, with a smile and an extended hand, greeted us, “Good morning! Welcome to First Church. We are so glad you are here today. Have you all been with us before or is this your first time?”
We shared that it was our first time and were not just given a quick list of directions to remember, but John, the Greeter, escorted us into the building with the nursery, introduced us to Kathy, the Nursery Coordinator, and then took us for coffee and doughnuts before introducing us to two other couples standing in line.
John then took us into the narthex and introduced us to Angie, an usher, who enthusiastically greeted us. After chatting with us for a minute, she gave us a bulletin and said she had someone who she would like to introduce us to. We said, “Fine.” She led us into the sanctuary and introduced us to Ken and Vicki, who had some space on their pew and also made us feel right at home. The service was wonderful with great music, inspiring preaching and after the benediction; Ken and Vicki asked us about our family. We told them we had one daughter in the nursery. They said they did also and offered to walk us back over to get the children.
As we picked up the children, we felt like we had made fast friends with Ken and Vicki. Ken said to us, “Don’t know what you guys have planned for lunch, but we’d love to take you guys out with us to Gray’s Restaurant, a great local place with all kinds of home-cooked specialties.
After an incredible meal together, we got back in the car. We looked at each other, smiled, and said what both of us were thinking. “We have found our new church home! That’s the friendliest bunch of people we have ever seen. There’s no need to visit anywhere else.”
The testimony of the family above did not happen by accident or coincidence. It took place by definite design, careful organization and excellent ministry execution by a number of trained laity. Would this happen in your church? The good news is that with effective training, IT CAN.
The Lord sends worship visitors to our churches as
“God’s Guests Entrusted to Our Care” and expects us to work hard to
KEEP THE CATCH!
Scott
Keeping Your Catch
From Visitors to Fully Engaged Disciple in Ministry
(Reprinted from The Proactive Pulse, Rev. Jim Hollis, Executive Director, Proactive Evangelism Ministry)
The Sunday We Fell in Love With Our New Church Family…
The first Sunday we visited, we recall seeing the very visible signs out front pointing us to the “Visitors Parking.” We followed them and found an open space. We were immediately impressed that this church cared about its visitors – after all – these spaces were close to the main entrance!
We had not walked more than ten feet past our car before a friendly voice, with a smile and an extended hand, greeted us, “Good morning! Welcome to First Church. We are so glad you are here today. Have you all been with us before or is this your first time?”
We shared that it was our first time and were not just given a quick list of directions to remember, but John, the Greeter, escorted us into the building with the nursery, introduced us to Kathy, the Nursery Coordinator, and then took us for coffee and doughnuts before introducing us to two other couples standing in line.
John then took us into the narthex and introduced us to Angie, an usher, who enthusiastically greeted us. After chatting with us for a minute, she gave us a bulletin and said she had someone who she would like to introduce us to. We said, “Fine.” She led us into the sanctuary and introduced us to Ken and Vicki, who had some space on their pew and also made us feel right at home. The service was wonderful with great music, inspiring preaching and after the benediction; Ken and Vicki asked us about our family. We told them we had one daughter in the nursery. They said they did also and offered to walk us back over to get the children.
As we picked up the children, we felt like we had made fast friends with Ken and Vicki. Ken said to us, “Don’t know what you guys have planned for lunch, but we’d love to take you guys out with us to Gray’s Restaurant, a great local place with all kinds of home-cooked specialties.
After an incredible meal together, we got back in the car. We looked at each other, smiled, and said what both of us were thinking. “We have found our new church home! That’s the friendliest bunch of people we have ever seen. There’s no need to visit anywhere else.”
The testimony of the family above did not happen by accident or coincidence. It took place by definite design, careful organization and excellent ministry execution by a number of trained laity. Would this happen in your church? The good news is that with effective training, IT CAN.
The Lord sends worship visitors to our churches as
“God’s Guests Entrusted to Our Care” and expects us to work hard to
KEEP THE CATCH!
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
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