I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, Amen. (Ephesians 1:17-20 NIV)
This Sunday our church celebrated Laity Sunday (I know we are a couple of weeks later, but the wait was well worth it). I had the privilege of sitting on the “other” side for Saturday night and Sunday morning. I was impressed with our co-Lay Leaders! The two worship experiences are quite different – Saturday night is emergent and Sunday morning traditional. Rich and Diane did wonderfully adjusting to the different environments. Saturday night I was kids free for the message, so I really enjoyed Diane’s discussion about gifts. Sunday morning I was able to relieve my wife of our 1 year old, so off to the Narthex I went and worshiped from outside the Sanctuary.
It has been awhile since I sat on the other side as a worshiper (not a pastor off for the weekend or critiquing the worship service and message). I was genuinely just part of the grand story God was unfolding in the midst of the church. Both were great experiences that stirred something inside me. The depth of Diane’s message was powerful, as she led the congregation on a journey through realization to implementation of gifts in the church. I felt refreshed as I finished off the weekend (maybe more than I was supposed to be because we canceled the Youth Outing to the Corn Maze).
I also felt a little disappointed for the first time because I was not giving a message. I took advantage of last week and this week to finalize Advent and Christmas. But not being a channel for God in the same way became a little melancholy.
Pray
For God to open peoples hearts; for God to bring skilled people; for God to provide the revenue or means for the equipment; for God to direct the direction.
Study
Gather people together for a Bible study focused on evangelism and ancient communication. Study together the different ways that Jesus and the early church communicated the Good News. How would Jesus communicate today?
Fast
Fasting is one of the most powerful spiritual disciplines. Fast from technology or media.
Listen
Listen to God. Listen to the needs of your congregation. Listen to the needs of your community.
Fellowship
Ask to be a presenter, speaker, or devotion leader at some of the church’s fellowship events and focus on finding out who uses/knows/enjoys media/technology in what capacity.
Evangelism
Teach, preach, eat, sleep, but don’t idolize technology – instead share about your relationship with God and how technology has enhanced and deepened that relationship in different ways.
Worship
Worship with the congregation can be a great opportunity to share different technologies in sermon illustrations, stewardship moments, etc. Plus, you can make it practical by using or showing different technologies during worship, just make sure you’re not beta testing in front of a crowd who might already be technologically resistant.
Christmas is the season churches see the most visitors. What can a church do to ensure the highest effectiveness from a holiday visit? Resolve to:
Be Clear About the Goal
Ready the church to participate in the goal or mission of the church. Pray specifically for the people who will be coming. Be clear about the church’s goal in the bulletin, in the announcements, in the sermon, and in the follow-up. Teach the mission statement of the church. Plus, know Matthew 28:19-20 and the mission of The United Methodist Church from The Book of Discipline, “to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” The goal cannot ever be for increased attendance numbers; to get more money to pay the bills; to have their children enrolled to ensure the future of the church; to get the bishop of our backs; or to get people in so that we can use their expertise in one area or another (“oh, if we only had a lawyer in the congregation”).
Don’t Be a Martha (Luke 10:38-42)
The first moments are crucial to shaping the impression of visitors. Start the preparations for the worship service(s) earlier, so that the leaders have time to welcome instead of making last minute making preparations. Encourage leaders to set aside time dedicated to greeting visitors. Welcoming Strategies and Tips is a resource to help, especially pages 9-11.
Form Teams
Teams create positive momentum in creativity, speed, support, and accountability. Resolve to strategically build teams centering on the visitors. Prayer teams to pray before, during and after visitors come. Welcoming teams offer visitors a great first impression. Follow-up teams care beyond the first visit with phone calls, visits, prayers, and surveys. Invitational teams invite visitors to programs and activities that will nurture them into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. Get creative and form teams that will best meet the needs of your situation. (More resources: UMCOM Welcoming; Church Marketing Overview: Marketing Plan Team)
Commit To Collect More Than Contact Information
Develop relationships by finding out pertinent information. Get beyond, “Have any kids?” or “What do you do for a living?” Move beyond by sharing some of your faith story and inquiring about their spiritual journey. People come to church because of faith or an encounter with God, so ask them! Find out what they are looking for in a church. Be prepared for questions at Teaching the who, what and why of The UMC? Be prepared for different types of visitors at 5 types of church visitors: Are you ready for them?
Follow Through
A poorly executed plan can be the death blow to new relationship with our holiday visitors. A challenging plan is prayed through and crafted to accommodate the size and ability of the church. In Leading Beyond The Walls, Rev. Adam Hamilton shares some of Church of the Resurrection’s evangelistic ideas and how their implementation changed to accommodate their size. Jesus reminds us in Matthew 5:33-37 that when we say “yes” to something we follow through. So be resolved to create a challenging plan committed to nurturing the visitors this Christmas season that can be followed through on with the utmost excellence.
“Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full.’” Luke 14:22 (NIV)
This morning I read the parable of the Great Banquet in Luke 14. It got me thinking about invites and parties.
When someone has a party and you’re not invite how does that make you feel? I know overall it is a bad feeling. As a sophisticated adult, I now have the tools to gauge the importance of things like parties versus other things in life. So, I decline parties often because other things are more pressing like work or soccer games. – Yeah right. When I am not invited I feel sad and when I am invited I do everything in my power to get to that party.
My children are the same way. When they get an invite to a birthday party, there is no way my kids would say no to a birthday party. We rearrange our schedules to make sure they make the party.
So, what’s with Jesus’ parable? People have excuses not to come. I have had some parties that have been that way. Many were too busy with other things and just couldn’t fit it in. Sometimes I need a break too and it needs to be one of those solo desert getaways. But that is another post about Sabbath and time stewardship… back to the invite.
So, everyone wants the invite. It is someone putting themselves out there – being vulnerable, open, hospitable. But, then we get all funny, like is it going to be fun; who is going to be there; what do I need to bring; etc. In the beginning of the parable, Jesus is clear that God just wants a full house.
What’s holding you back from attending the party?
