FINDERS, KEEPERS… SOWERS, REAPERS!

"Tools to Radically Welcome and Grow"

The Rev. Jeunée Cunningham and The Rev. Vinnie Lainson

Finders "Where can I go then from your spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?" Psalm 139:7

God is always seeking us and a closer relationship with us. Every person has a "god-shaped hole." Each person, through the working of the Holy Spirit, is on spiritual journey. Our job is to break down barriers and facilitate the journey, by not only finding, but by being able to be found.

· First impressions - What does your church say to people - from your community presence, from the road, in the parking lot, at the door…? Invite non-church goers to evaluate your church and give you their first impressions. Often it is difficult to even find your way into a new church!

· Road Signage - Keep fresh, clean and in good repair. Large enough print to be read without slowing down. Clear worship times. Less information is better than more

· Advertising - Consistent image, message and look. Fresh Logo. Advertise events and programs (more than or in addition to worship services) in under community news in local papers (usually free)

· Web site - An absolute must in this age. A web-page "sign" at a minimum with worship times, information on Sunday School, and no "code" language.

· Yellow pages - What impression does your ad give? Is information clear and correct?

· Voice mail/reception - Always friendly and professional. Female voice on recording is proven more effective because women tend to make the church decisions for the family.

· Clear path in - Show people the best ways to get in with signs, paths, maps and greeters..

· Parking Lot -Reserve spots up front for visitors with special signs. Consider parking lot greeters, especially if parking is tight.

· Calling cards invitations - Equip parishioners with an easy way to invite friends. Make up business cards with basic church info on the front and directions / map and service times on back. Some churches make up cards with upcoming sermon series or special events.

· Greeters and Ushers - Warmly greet all who enter, newcomers and regular parishioners. Train greeters and ushers to notice newcomers and volunteer assistance for nursery. Have the people at the front door reflect the people you are trying to attract to the congregation: schedule for diversity in age, gender, culture. Have ushers warmly welcome newcomers, without being overbearing.

· Parishioners - 86% of people come to church because a friend or relative invited them.

· Have fun! - People want to enjoy themselves and make friends. If you communicate that you enjoy your church community, your enthusiasm will be contagious.

Keepers "So it is not the will of your father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost." (Matt.18:14)

Expanding the boundaries of our church communities means everyone is going to have to change. Practicing hospitality to the stranger, with the intention of including the stranger will mean barriers and boundaries will need to be constantly erased. "The way it's always been" has no place in the growing church.

· Clear directions around facilities - signs and arrows to indicate worship space, nursery, bathrooms, and class rooms. So obvious, yet so many of our churches don't do it.

· Greeters - important each Sunday, not just for newcomers. Train people carefully, remind them that talking with each other is not welcoming.

· Section greeters - Consider placing greeters in congregation who seek out anyone new in their section of the congregation after the service. This can be a standing expectation for all lay leaders.

· Five-minute rule - encourage the congregation in announcements and newsletter articles to spend the first 5 minutes after a service with a newcomer, or someone they don't know well. After that, they can go talk with old friends.

· Parishioners - Teach people how to introduce self, not make assumptions about the other. "Hi, I'm Mary. I've been here for 4 months. How about you?" rather than, "Are you new?"

· Avoid business on Sundays - Encourage vestry members and lay leaders to conduct church business at other times besides the Sunday coffee hour. Worship and fellowship, not work. Respect boundaries - Don't point out, make stand up, or otherwise embarrass anyone. Don't hug someone unless you know they want to. Watch language: "Where have you been?" puts guilt on other, makes one defensive. "I'm glad to see you!" is welcoming.

· Welcome o Name tags - Have everyone wear the same kind of name tag. (Use the stick-on kind. No permanent ones for members. No visitor ones) If nametags are used, EVERYONE uses them, even clergy. Consider having someone making name tags as people enter.

o Clergy - Be out front before worship, greeting people. Welcome newcomers in a general fashion during the announcements and invite them to fill out pew cards, sign guest book, recieve communion and join fellowship.

o Vestry - have each vestry person "hang out" with one new person for one month at church. That's 12 people a year, times the number of vestry members, who have felt warmly welcomed.

o Friendship - A newcomer who makes at least 7 friends within the six months is very unlikely to drop out. Offer opportunities for newcomers to get to know each other.

· Accessible worship o Service leaflet - Ideally print (or project) the whole service. Otherwise, verbally lead people through prayerbook.

o Responses - Anything the people say needs to be easy for them to find in bulletin or prayer book or hymnal. No secret responses (All things come of thee, oh lord…)

o Explanations - give appropriate directions during service and at peace for communion and offertory.

o Leave Back Row Empty - Teach regular parishioners to leave the back row empty for visitors who are likely to come late and want to observe from the back.

o Provide an escape hatch - for people who don't want to wait to greet clergy or others after the service, for introverts, for anyone needing to 'escape.'

· No inside language - Especially a problem during Announcements. If it's not a common word, explain. Identify abbreviations. Give clear information: Who, what, where, when, cost, contact information.

· Offering - One of the biggest complaints of unchurched people is that churches only want their money. Invite visitors not to give. Consider saying or printing information to teach on what the offering is, and how the money is to be used. Teaching about giving is good, and helps the parish grow. Don't 'beg' money for maintenance. Cast a vision.

· Music - Very important to most people. Whatever style you use, do it well. Simple and good is better than complex but mediocre. Rate the "singability" factor of music. If the congregation is going to sing it, is it easy to follow? Words may be great, but is the tune dirge-like? What radio stations does your target listen to?

· Integration of Children vs. "handling children" - Is the reason you don't have many children really the demographics of your area? How are you welcoming children to participate? How do clergy and lay leaders interact with children? If you have children's chapel or Sunday School during worship, is it an important way to minister to children, or is it babysitting?

· Sermons - Avoid "Christian-ese". Explain religious terms (sanctification, justification, grace) Use everyday language and relative examples for your congregation. Think of 3 different people in the parish - How does this message relate to them? How is your message Good News? Watch "we" language. I'm not a "we" until I decide so. Does a "we" in the sermon pertain to a seeker or visitor?

· Facilities - especially Nursery: Clean, cared for? · Coffee Hour - Good coffee and good food lift the spirits! If possible, make the coffee hour close to worship space, so that it's on the way to the parking lot.

· Follow up - Help new people make the next steps by having a system in place.

· Education/ Spiritual formation - What opportunities do you offer besides worship? For adults? For children? For teens? Does the visitor know s/he is invited?

· Lay leadership - Seeing a lot of different people involved in parish life shows a newcomer that people are valued and that perhaps, they too, might find a spot to belong.

· Have fun!

Sowers "Listen! A sower went out to sow… Let any one with ears to hear, listen!" (Mat. 13; Luke 8)

The seeds of the Good News are sown on all different kinds of soils in our hearts. As we are sown, we are being prepared to sow. If I flower, the seed gets scattered and there are more seeds to sow. The fruit of our own spiritual growth gives seed / birth to new growth elsewhere. Each of us, including clergy and lay leadership, need to be open and always learning and listening to God and to each other. Just as Jesus became most fully the person God imagined him to be, we are called to become who God imagines us to be.

· Clergy and Lay leaders model spiritual growth - Share your stories. Share how God has touched you.

· Levels of discipleship - Offer classes and small group studies at various "levels". Alpha and membership classes are a start. What's next? How do you help people grow in Christ-likeness? Have you moved your newcomer class into a small group?

· Small groups - Make small group membership of some sort an expectation and norm for the church. Each Small group, whether a discipleship group, support/recovery group, or ministry task group, or fellowship group are places people can begin to share their lives, grow in their understanding of the biblical story, find places to serve, and pray together.

· Spiritual formation - Teach and practice spiritual disciplines.

· Hear the voices of our children and youth - These are often our prophets.

· Gifts for ministry - Help people discover their spiritual gifts, in conjunction with their personality and passions, then, get them using and growing in their gifts. Don't do a gifts inventory and not follow up! It rejects the offering people have made of themselves.

· Training and mentoring - As people begin to serve, don't leave them high and dry. Train well, continue to have others mentor. Begin each new ministry or small group with the understanding that the leader/mentor will servie for about two years and will then mentor someone to replace them.

· Have fun!

Reapers "She said to the people, 'Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done.'" (John 4:29)

Just as the woman at the well's life was transformed and she became the person who invites, so do we become transformed by Christ and the ones who invite. The joy and love received by God cannot be contained and must be shared. It is in this right relationship with God and each other that the kingdom of God is made present - here and now.

· Questions to ask yourself every time you do anything: Will this form a small group? Will it facilitate new leadership?

· Create places and times for people to share their stories. Sharing stories in the church community helps them share their stories in the world.

· Start each meeting / gathering with a Bible passage reflection - offering people a change to share where they are and how their lives connect with the biblical story.

· Mentor and train people to facilitate every small group, every committee, every meeting so that in every gathering people have the opportunity to share, reflect and be formed. · Apprentice/mentor mentality - Each leader needs an apprentice, who in turn gets an apprentice once they begin a new ministry.

· No power plays. The kingdom is about abundance, not scarcity. It's God's work, not mine. · Give away self and opportunities for God's work.

· No secrets! Clean the skeletons out of the closets. Clear expectations,

· Celebrate mission, not maintenance, even celebrate mission-oriented failures.

· Embrace change - "Every new beginning comes from another beginning's end"- Don't fear the death of old programs, old leadership, or old ways.

· Have fun !

Just a small smattering of other resources: www.churchtoolbox.org - The Diocese of Virginia's Commission on Congregational Development has compiled a variety of articles on Church Growth and Congregational Development. Making Your Church More Inviting, by Roy Oswald (Alban Institute) This is a workbook for in-church training in fifteen sessions. The Inviting Church, by Roy Oswald and Speed B. Leas (Alban Instit\ute) Deals not only with welcoming, but the ongoing assimilation process for several years.

Other Messages from Vinnie

Luke 18: 9-14
The Divine Sigh (John 20:19-23)