How can the church best welcome newcomers?

Welcome to Theology Thursday! Theology is the study of God, his relation to the world, and our relation to him; it is "faith seeking understanding." I hope these newsletters help enhance your faith and deepen your love for God and his people, the church.

Today's question:
How can the church best welcome newcomers?

Pastor Brady's thoughts:
“Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.” — Romans 15:7

Every church wants to be a welcoming church. We want visitors to feel comfortable, noticed, and glad they came. But good intentions are not enough. A church can sincerely want to welcome people and still make a first-time guest feel unformfortable, or like an outsider.

That is why it helps to make hospitality simple and intentional. This is the way we communicate the goal to our MCC Connections team: Greet them, meet them, seat them, and treat them.

This is a fairly ordinary approach that can produce extraordinary results. If done well, they communicate: We are glad you are here, and we want you to know Jesus.

Greet Them
The first step is the simplest: say hello.

A new guest walks through the doors carrying a certain amount of uncertainty. Where do I go? Where are the bathrooms? Is this where my kids should be? Am I sitting in someone else's seat? Will anyone talk to me?

A warm greeting can begin to answer those questions.

Don't underestimate the ministry of a genuine smile, a handshake, or a simple, “We're glad you're here.” But don't turn the greeting into an interrogation. Guests don't need to answer twenty questions before they've found their seat.

Look for people who appear unfamiliar. Make eye contact. Introduce yourself. If they seem unsure where to go, don't just point. Walk with them.

Hospitality begins when we notice people.

Meet Them
After we greet guests, we should meet them. That means moving beyond a passing hello and making a personal connection.

Learn their name. Introduce them to someone else. If they're visiting with children, help them understand how children's ministry works. If they're new to the community, perhaps ask how they found the church.

But remember: hospitality isn't collecting information, it's building relationships.

One of the easiest ways to help a guest is to introduce them to someone with whom they might naturally connect. “Hey, this is Mark. He's new to town too.” Or, “This is Sarah. Her kids are about the same age as yours.”

Sometimes the most welcoming thing we can do is make sure a newcomer doesn't have to walk into a room full of strangers twice.

Seat Them
Then comes the practical question: Where do I sit?

Most regular attenders don't think twice about this. We have our spot. We know where our Discipleship Group meets. We know where our children go. We know which door to use.
Guests don't know any of that.

So, help them.

Don't merely tell them where something is - show them. If appropriate, walk them to the nursery or children's classroom. Help them find a seat. Ask regular MCCers to scoot in or move up a row if there’s not enough room. Explain anything they need to know about the service.

And, if you’re a regular MCCer, select your seats with newcomers in mind. We don’t want our guests to feel like they're intruding on someone else's territory. Sit close enough to the front to make room in the back. Move toward the middle of a row. Be willing to surrender your preferred seat for someone who doesn't have one. And have a great attitude about it!

The goal isn't to protect our routine. The goal is to make room for people.

Treat Them
Invite them to coffee and donuts after service and tell them how it works. Introduce them to your friends. Invite them to lunch. Tell them about an upcoming church event. If they have children, help them connect with other families.

But perhaps most importantly, treat them like people rather than projects.

We aren't trying to get another name on the attendance sheet; we're trying to love our neighbor. We’re trying to know God and make God known!

Jesus didn't welcome people because they could contribute to his ministry. He welcomed them because they needed him. That's the heart of Christian hospitality: we welcome people because Christ has welcomed us.

None of us came to Jesus because we had everything figured out. None of us arrived spiritually impressive, socially polished, or perfectly put together. We came as needy people, and Christ received us with grace.

So when someone walks through our church doors, we should remember that we are not the insiders deciding whether they belong. We were once outsiders whom Christ brought near.

Greet them. Meet them. Seat them. Treat them.

And in all four, show them something of the welcome we have already received from Jesus.

TO KNOW GOD AND TO MAKE HIM KNOWN!
- Pastor Brady

Have a question for Theology Thursday? Send an email to office@minierchristian.org and we'll respond, or we'll include in a future Theology Thursday Buffet.