Is your's a welcoming congregation?
Do you invite people to your home when its dirty? How about when your grumpy uncle is living in the guest room, there is no food in the fridge to offer them, and your family has occasional arguments around the dinner table?
If the comparison can be drawn to the behavior of some at your church you may not want to, or already don’t, invite people to church. Obviously we shouldn’t stop inviting people and turn all our attention to making our faith communities better before we can resume outreach again. As a very wise woman once said, “church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints,” Abigail ‘Dear Abby’ Van Buren. Outreach is a process that includes attracting new people while simultaneously making disciples by teaching current members of the body “to obey all that I have commanded you.” – Jesus’ Great Commission.
Attracting new people is difficult though when some people’s actions are perceived as unwelcoming, or when people fail to understand that the command to reach out to others applies to them. Some people think its the pastor’s job to do evangelism, and their job to warm a pew.
If you are looking for ways to change the culture within your faith community, and restructure your communications to present a unified front against the evils of bad grammar and poor graphics, we can help. Coming soon: more about making communications at your church more effective, and how to impact church culture to grow up.
For now, check out a poll conducted by ChurchMarketingSucks.com – their results were posted on October 14, 2009 and reveal some interesting truths about outreach among people who do communications and marketing for their church.
