Growing Churches # 4

Idea # 4 - Open to all

One family tells the story of looking for a new church. On Sunday they entered the front door and discovered a church greeter before them. The woman looked at them for a moment, and then a bright smile came over her face, as she reached by them to greet some people entering the church she knew. Needless to say, the family never returned to that church.

The problem is not just with greeters in our churches, although there is need of improvement, it's a congregational problem. Warm, welcoming churches are that way by intention. They have chosen to be open to newcomers, and are interested in growing. And it can't be just a few. The whole congregation needs to see that it has a part in being a welcoming congregation.