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Greeting
newcomers and visitors is a continuing ministry for most congregations.
Here are three examples of how churches structure their informal
contacts with first-timers: 1)
The first church uses gift certificates from a popular ice cream
parlor encourage newcomers to join the Sunday evening singles group for
an after-meeting treat. Gift
certificates are also enclosed in personal letters written to visitors. 2)
The second church greets twenty to fifty visitors from all over
the city. Within 48 hours
someone from the church will deliver a batch of homemade cookies to
those visitors'
homes. The
church=s
membership list is computer sorted by Zip Code. Each Monday evening the
minister and one volunteer take the visitor list from the previous day
and locate church members living in the same Zip Code areas as the
visitors. One of those
members is asked to deliver cookies, so the goodies arrive in the hand
of a neighbor who attends the church. A
side benefit has been the opportunity to contact inactive members who
live in the Zip Code of the visitor.
This nonthreatening call gives inactives a chance to be involved
in the church once again. 3)
After the sermon at a third church while the congregation sings a
hymn and the offering is taken, visitors are invited to follow the
pastor out the door to a reception area for refreshments and getting
acquainted. Elders,
greeters, visitors, and their family members leave with the pastor. At
the reception the pastor greets visitors, tells them about the church,
and invites them to special weekly discussion groups and Bible studies.
Arrangements are made for children to attend Sunday school and
parents are invited to be a part of a Bible class.
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