One of the greatest difficulties we face here at Blackwelder Park when it comes to welcoming our guests is the layout of our campus. Our worship center is a 50 year-old structure designed around how church was done 2 generations ago. It faces Summit Avenue and identifies itself as a Blackwelder Park Community Church. That was and ideal situation 50 years ago because that is exactly what the church was designed to be, but with the introduction of a high commuter workforce our congregation travels as much as 30 miles to attend church here today.
When we were a community church, all visitors had some connect ability to the membership before they ever attended the first service. They lived next door to each other, their kids played together, or they worked in the mill together. The world was much smaller then.
Today things are different. We still desire to stay connected as Blackwelder Park’s community church, but the people who live in this community are not as familiar with their neighbors as they once were. Today we drive home from work, press a button in our car that opens the garage door, park inside the house, close the door behind us and go into our air conditioned homes until the next morning when we press the button again and head off to work. 50 years ago, most everyone walked to work, and sat on their front porches in the evenings to stay cool. “Howdy neighbor!” was a commonly heard phrase and, as a result, neighbors became acquainted with each other. The reality is, most of our guests are not acquainted with any one when they arrive for the first time.
So, with that said, our campus layout is problematic for welcoming guests in the 21st century. Why? Because our foyer is too small and can only serve as a room where you receive a warm handshake and bulletin given in passing as you take five steps into the worship center where you find yourself “on your own.” These people who have absolutely no connection with anybody in our church receive less than a 5 second welcome greeting before they take a seat in our big, intimidating meeting place (intimidating to them, not us).
One solution to this problem would be to build an atrium on the front of our building, but the high cost of materials and labor, in conjunction with the debt we already have incurred through our last building project prohibits us from going in that direction.
We have, however, made some strides toward helping people to become better acquainted. We now offer the “Central Park” time in between Sunday School and our 11:00 service time in the Family Life Center. This is a great ministry and whoever makes it over to Central Park finds it to be a very warm and inviting place to be.
The question before us is, how do we get our first-time guests to wander over to the FLC? Truthfully speaking, they will NEVER wander over there on their own, so Central Park becomes a “Members Only Club” (not by design, but by location). For that reason, we are offering these techniques that we feel will assist you in helping first-time guests to feel welcome here at The Park.
1. Be committed to the ministry of helps. Helping people feel at home is a service to the Lord, not a service to the church, staff, pastor, or any other individual or organization. Be faithful to the calling. Arrive EARLY, not on-time. Welcoming guests happens 30 minutes prior to the beginning of service. Arriving on time is like showing up for a 1st shift job at 5:00 – the opportunity to work has passed.
2. Be aware of what is going on. As a helper your job is to assist people in feeling welcome at our church. Do not get caught up in small talk with church members to the point that when a guest enters the room you cannot break away to do your job. You are on duty and must be prepared to do what you are called to do when duty presents itself.
3. Take the time to get to know the guests on a personal level. People today see right through superficial greetings. Politeness is no substitute for friendliness in today’s world. Guests do not care how polite you are, they are more interested in how real you are. They want to see you as a real person trying to get to know them as real people. They value time spent with them far more than pleasant words in passing. They want you to try to get to know them as a person.
4. Be aware of your posture. Relax. Don’t hover over them while they are sitting in a pew. Sit in the pew in front of them and turn and talk with them. Sitting down always gives the impression that you value their company and want to offer your time to them without limitations. Lean into the conversation. By doing so you will present yourself as a warm, friendly person that is truly interested in who they are as a person.
5. Ask questions. The best way to show somebody that you value them as a person is to ask questions about who they are and what they do. Women love to talk about their families and men love to talk about their jobs. If you remember that, you will never lack for something to talk about. When you have finished asking questions, ask a few more. By doing this you will make a friend and earn the right to introduce them to other people.
6. Ask them to do you a favor. This can only be done after you have earned the right through spending time getting to know them personally. Say something like, “Hey, would you do me a favor and follow me for a second? I have something I would really like to show you.” It is best to do this while communicating some form of body language that says, “Hey, I’m fixin to go somewhere.” Do not tell them where you are going to take them until after they answer the question. When they stand up and start to walk with you, then you should tell them about this wonderful place called Central Park where we all gather together and have a great time getting to know one another. Be very mindful that this person is trusting you to protect them as they step outside their comfort zone and follow you to a very scary place. Do not leave them alone until they have met somebody new and are comfortable with your leaving.
7. Take them to the Welcome Center. This is the first place a guest should be taken and it is imperative that they feel welcomed when they arrive there. Introduce them to the Welcome Center attendants, and if they are not offered a gift by the attendant ask the attendant for one. We offer a copy of The Purpose Driven Life, a small Prayer Journal, and a Christian Music CD to all our guests.
8. Offer to get them a cup of coffee. While standing at the Welcome Center say something like, “Hey, let me get you a cup of coffee.” They might say yes, and if they do, take them over to the coffee maker and introduce them to the kitchen staff. When you walk up to the counter say something like, “Hey Gary, let me introduce you to Bob and Sarah, they are visiting with us today and I wanted them to meet you guys. While they are making small talk ask what they take in their coffee and make a cup for them. If the say something like, “no thanks, I don’t drink coffee,” don’t let that throw you off. Just respond by saying, “Oh, o.k., well let me introduce you to a few folks then,” and start walking over to the food table. Show them what is available and make the transition into step 9.
9. Hand them off to a new friend. By this time you should have a pretty good feel for their personality. Keep an eye open for someone in the crowd that would be a good hand-off person. Somebody that understands hospitality and will go the extra mile to see that the guest will feel welcome and secure. Once you have identified a hand-off person, say something like, “Oh, there’s Dave and Lisa! Come on, let me introduce you, your gonna love these guys. “ Take them over and introduce them. When you feel the handoff was successful and the guest feels secure, say something like, “Hey guys, Its been great meeting you but I’ve gotta run back over to the worship center. Hope you enjoy your coffee, and just keep an eye on that count-down clock over there. It will let you know when the service is about to start. Let me know if I can be any help in the future. See ya!
If you can successfully run a guest through all 9 of these steps you will have ensured that they feel welcome and a part of this wonderful experience we call worship.
