Does your church put out the “Welcome” mat or the “Do not disturb” sign?
Our church has been having a series of discussions based on the book Beyond the First Visit. Gary McIntosh invites readers to take a look at their church through the eyes of visitors and potential visitors. His starting point is that churches should see those who enter their doors as not merely visitors, but as guests, and themselves as gracious hosts. This book offers advice on assessing and improving the ways in which churches attract people, welcome them, do follow-up, and bring them into the church family.
Here a few great thoughts to reflect on that have come from just the first couple of chapters.
People stay in churches primarily because of relationships.
Research has demonstrated that newcomers who remain in a church more than six months have an average of seven friends in their church, while people who drop out of a church average only two friends
Not only do great hosts help their guests feel welcome, but they introduce new people to new friends and help them find a place of involvement in group settings.
A church keeps about 85% of its guests who come back for a second visit the week after their fist visit.
In most churches the social and service networks are closed to the natural addition of new people.
Helping guests feel welcome is the responsibility of the church not the guests.
What many of us in the church fail to realize is that our perception of friendliness can be different because we see things from an insiders perspective. To the outsider the impression of friendliness may be completely different. We need to learn how to walk in their shoes and see things from their perspective to get a more accurate idea of what is true about the culture around our church.
Can you remember a time when you were an outsider walking into a new group or environment for the very first time? Tell us about a time when you felt unwelcome.