What do visitors think when they visit your church?
I read this post in Relevant Magazine where a writer leaves the country and returns to America. While back, she visits some churches and addressed some common issues regarding the way Churches treat guests.
Here are the main issues she points out.
- Please don’t set up a visitor welcome center and then not welcome guests when they show up there.
- Wisely pick the people who staff that welcome center.
- Please don’t offer me cheesy gifts for coming to visit your church. Your gifts feel like bribery to me.
- Please talk to me. Don’t give me an inquisitive glance and then just walk away. Don’t forget that visitors don’t know anyone.
- Please include on your website what to expect if I come to your church.
- Please don’t force me to fill out a visitor’s card. The truth is that I’m not going to fill out anything until I am sure that your church might be a real option for me.
I believe there is good insight here. Do you agree with anything. Disagree? I’d love to read your comments.
You can read the full article here.
Great job this weekend. Love your energy!
Not alot to add to this exchange of thoughts. I totally agree with everything.
Another thought – What role, if any, should a minister/pastor/clergyman have with regard to speaking out publicly beyond his/her four walls. Does that change when he/she starts to address politics? If so, is there a danger that people will start to attend a church that is more in line with their political views vs. attending a church the feeds them spiritually?
I have a friend who is a pastor of a small church in TN., and feels the government should be doing more to help the homeless and underserved. Is that what we want – mandating that we help through our government instead of doing with conviction what Christ instructed me to do? I cannot help but wonder why the church is not stepping up in a bigger way. I know that Westside is, but there are a lot that are not. Then again there are a lot that are doing even more than we are. There are so many good examples out there why isn’t more being done? Is the problem so huge that it feels like we are bucking against a tidal wave?
I guess I am asking a lot of things without really having an answer, but to start it all off, what is the voice that should be shared? …Sorry for the dump….