Friendly churches

Church members consistently tell me they attend the friendliest church in town.  In fact, as I often tell people attending one of my workshops, I have yet to meet the second friendliest church in any community!  There are two things I want to say about this.

One, many of these churches are friendly...to one another.  However, someone new who might drop in on Sunday morning might question just how friendly they are to outsiders.  In my role as a judicatory minister I attend a different service almost every Sunday, and I can tell you that some of these friendly churches seemed rather cold to me the first time I went there.  Many times I, an obvious newcomer to the church, would be completely ignored while members carried on coversations with one another.  Our churches need to become better aware of when they have guests, and it's important that we train our members how to welcome and connect with those guests.  If we don't do that we should not be surprised when these folks do not return.

The second thing I would mention is that many unchurched people are not necessarily looking for a friendly church; they are looking for a place where they can make friends.  That doesn't mean that it's not important that a church be a friendly place, but it does mean that it's more important that it be a place that can offer genuine community to people wanting to connect with others.  Many times their ability to build relationships with Christians directly impacts their ability to build a relationship with Jesus Christ.  I am convinced that a church that can offer genuine community to people will be a growing church.

I would encourage your church to begin taking some intentional steps to connect with your first time guests and begin to create opportunities for people to develop genuine friendships with one another.