Note: Shameless self-promotion follows.

I’ve collected a few more stories of how people are using and finding my book How To Welcome Church Visitors.

We have been giving church hospitality workshops for over 15 years and of the 25 or more books we have used in the past, yours is by far the best contribution to the field with all it’s nuts and bolts practicality.

We’ve been photocopying the cover and telling our client churches that if they want to start improving their first impressions, they should start here with How To Welcome Church Visitors.

Bill and Gail Royster
Church Hospitality Trainers
The Welcome & Hospitality People
Houston, TX

One who claimed the bonus coaching session with me after purchase had this to say:

How To Welcome Church Visitors is a well-written, thought-provoking resource that is going to be a blessing to anyone who reads and applies it’s content to their church needs.

This book is especially important to me, as I serve on my church evangelism board and recently volunteered to manage our greeter program.

I measure the worth of a book by the number of ideas I’m able to apply to real needs. I found no fewer than 25 great ideas that I can apply immediately!  I recommend this book without reservation.

Chris Walker’s coaching ability is wonderful. He’s a clear thinker with a way of cutting through the clutter and confusion surrounding a problem.  He focuses on the most practical path to a resolution and effectively communicates how to reach the intended goal.

Les Dahlstedt
St. Matthew Lutheran Church
Rocklin, CA

The Rev. Paul Stokes has published a review for GEAR (the Group for Evangelism and Renewal in the United Reformed Church).

Ron Crandall, connected with Asbury seminary, wrote about his take on this book.

One Presbytery in the Presbyterian Church (USA) bought and gave away copies of How To Welcome Church Visitors to over 50 of their church congregations.

Free Webinar on First Impressions – April 28, 2009.

Register Online

Order your copy: How To Welcome Church Visitors

(HT: Image pslim)

“I have no non-Christian relationships” confessed one of my evangelism coaching clients (shared with permission).

“I was taking an inventory of my personal relationships and discovered that I had surrounded myself entirely with Christians.”

In the Christian Cocoon

This is a common description of many Christians who have been walking with the Lord for many years.

I once asked a church where I was preaching: Where are the new believers? They realized they didn’t have any non-Christian relationships.

I recently did a evangelism workshop on personal evangelism with nearly 80 people in attendance and all had known the Lord for at least 15 or more years.

In my experience, I could easily guess that many of these, if not all, would confess the same lack of relationships with people who do not walk with the Lord.

A Christian without an unchurched friend is like a dash of salt in the ocean: it doesn’t do anyone any good and, frankly, no one even knows it’s there. — Bill Tenny-Brittian, Hitchhiker’s Guide To Evangelism

Practical Exercise

Let’s take a moment to look at your significant relationships.   Think of people you choose to spend time with on somewhat of a regular basis.

Make a list of friends who immediately come to mind.  Try to name as many as possible in the next 60 seconds.

Write those names down.

Now look over the list.

1. Who goes to church with you? Cross them off this list.
2. Who attends another church regularly? Cross them off.
3. Who shows evidence of a relationship with Christ? Cross them off.
4. Who is left?
5. Do you have anyone left on the list?

What now?

Where you surprised by the results quick little exercise?

What will you do about it?

If you have  plenty of non-Christian and unchurched friends, what do you do to maintain those relationships?

If you have few such relationships, what will you do this week that can start to change that?

Share your responses in the comments below.

Evangelism Dunamis Testimonies

• “I liked how the Holy Spirit was allowed to move.”
• “The scriptural foundation is very valuable.”
• “There was an atmosphere for healing prayer to take place.”
• “The ministry is so authentic. So helpful!”
• “The lessons built confidence in me as to how the Lord is leading me.”
• “The whole atmosphere was safe and loving. No pressure. Everything is explained and low-key .”
• “There is a good balance between teaching and lab time.”

Victory Bible Camp

In just a few weeks, I am scheduled to go to Victory Bible Camp in Palmer Alaska to help facilitate a workshop on personal evangelism, as part of the Dunamis Course series for Presbyterian Reformed Ministries International (www.prmi.org).

The Evangelism Dunamis in the Power of the Holy Spirit emphasizes learning God’s vision for evangelism, and motivations and skills on personal evangelism

The Evangelism Dunamis also seeks to develop practical evangelism  skills in cooperating with the Holy Spirit in doing the work of personal evangelism.

Dates for the conference

October 8-12, 2008

Location for the The Evangelism Dunamis

VICTORY BIBLE CAMP is located near Mile 94.8 of the Glenn Highway. A well placed sign points to the turn from the highway.

WHAT TO BRING: bedding, pillow, towels, Bible, notebook.

TRANSPORTATION: If you need help between Anchorage and Victory Bible Camp or can HELP TRANSPORT, please contact Pat Cook (local coordinator — I can put you in touch).

DIETARY: Meals served at VBC can not accommodate dietary restriction. There are kitchens available in some of the dorms for personal food preparation.

Training Seminar Fees:

Early Registration, $172.00, To Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Late Registration, $182.00,  From Thursday, September 25, 2008

To Register

Fill out the form below to register for The Evangelism Dunamis in Palmer Alaksa.  You will receive a conference registration link via email.  You’ll also be added to our newsletter list to receive monthly news about our website.  You can unsubscribe at any time.

Registration is now closed.

• After school tutoring
• Shut in or Prisoner Visitation
• Habitat for Humanity work projects
• Medical outreaches for the community
• Participating in Crop Walks for Hunger Relief
• Food pantries, clinics, shelters for the homeless

These are just examples, and I am sure you can add hundreds more from your local community.

The questions I ask and we kick around in friendly discussion:

• Is that outreach?
• Is that evangelism?
• Is that home missions?
• Is that simply good deeds?
• Is that missional outreach?
• Is that marketing in disguise?
• Is that a demonstration of God’s love?

A cup of cold water

What is clear is that we have blurred the line between evangelism and outreach.  Discussions I’ve had bounce all over the map.

In some corners of the church, this is evangelism because it demonstrates the gospel.  No explanation needed.

Other corners argue this not evangelism because the gospel is not verbally shared.  It’s simply social action.

Depends on how you define your terms.

Acts of Christian service and charity, social outreach to your community are good and noble efforts.  Many are propelled theologically by the parable of the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-46), giving a cup of cold water to the least of these.

Yet what is it that separates your Christian service from that of the local Rotary club?

What makes your acts of compassion different from my atheist friend who does community service through the Peace Corps?

How does the recipient know the difference?

How do the recipients of your outreach interpret or give meaning to your outreach?

Meaning is not always clear

My friends in Panama tell me this story.

Panama Olympian Irving Saladino won the first ever gold medal for this country during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Bejing.

The last medal won was 60 years ago and it was bronze.  Irving Saladino won the gold in the Long Jump competition.

During his jumps, nationally televised in Panama around 6.30 am,  the nation was at a virtual standstill.  People were watching it in groups at friend’s houses.  Taxi drivers had pulled over to side of the road to listen to the radio.  Everyone it seemed, went to work late.

On his two or three jumps, he wore one red shoe and one blue shoe, reflecting the national team colors.  However, on his next to last jump, he changed his shoes to a gold color.

The commentators and “man on the street” interviews all got excited:

• “He’s going for the gold”
• “He’s put on his lucky shoes”
• “He’s telling us this will be the gold medal jump.”

They were applying meaning to the color change of shoes.

That jump turned out to be the gold medal winning jump.

The country erupted in celebration.  Facebook photos from my friends show lots of celebrations, cheering, and national happiness.  People on the street celebrated by blowing their car horns in celebration.  Crowds formed spontaneously on the street.  National productivity of the workforce shut down for the day as Panama won its first ever gold medal.

The meaning of the shoes?

When asked by a reporter about what he was trying to communicate with his shoes, Saladino mentioned

that the laces in his red and blue pair got tangled up and he didn’t have the time to fix it.

He put on his gold colored backup shoes so he wouldn’t be disqualified for being late to the starting line.

Very different meaning than what the nation watching on live television thought.

People gave it meaning based on their hopes, dreams, and worldview.

Meaning is given if not provided

Bring that back to your church’s outreach.

What might your recipients think about your outreach?

How can they tell that it is a “Cup of Cold Water given in My Name?”

In a post Wrestling with the Definition of Evangelism I mention:

Just this week, the dental assistant told me that it feels good to help people.

I asked her “Why?”  No immediate answer, but enough to have her reflect.

She’s unchurched. She didn’t know why people had black spots on their heads last Wednesday [for Ash Wednesday].

She could serve the poor, work for the Peace Corp, or any of the national volunteer mobilization organizations.  She simply feels good.  that altruistic motive propels many people.

But to the recipient, what separates her good service from that of the church?  How does the recipient know it is “In My Name?”

In my experience, meaning is naturally given if not supplied by the giver.

Outreach in partnership with Evangelism

John Stott asks the question in Christian Mission in the Modern World.

Is social action (thanks to Timmy Brister for summary)

• A Means to evangelism
• A Manifestation of evangelism
• A Partner of Evangelism

Mark Dever has an interesting piece in Christianity Today, also points out what  “What Evangelism Isn’t.”  (adapted from his book The Gospel and Personal Evangelism).  Evangelism is not social action or public involvement (”They commend the gospel, but they share it with no one.”)

In What is Evangelism? – Part 3, which focuses on the “sharing” part of our Evangelism Definition, I mention:

During a health outreach our church did for its neighborhood, one unchurched person commented, “I don’t like to listen to sermons, today I saw one.”

Our service to the community was interpreted as we wanted – a tangible demonstration of the love of Christ that we have for our neighborhood.

It’s a witness to the world thru actions.

Yet that interpretation came about because we gathered all the volunteers at the beginning and I explained to them why we as a church are doing this outreach.

We are serving because God first loved us and we want to demonstrate that to the community.

Good works demonstrate our faith.

Yet without any overt or clear explanation that our actions are propelled by God’s grace, what makes our good deed any different than what the local Lions club does or what good corporate citizens provide through their charitable foundations?

It’s not an either/or proposition for me.  Both social action and explanation via words are necessary forms of sharing.

Deeds are love demonstrated, but a further explanation of the gospel is necessary to give meaning to our actions.  Otherwise, our actions are ripe for misinterpretation.

Practically what does this mean?

Many churches are actively engaged in good works in their community.

Yet can their members explain their personal faith along the way?

Can churches train their members to grow comfortable talking about their faith with the people they are serving?

What if, as part of the planning for outreach events, the church provided a training opportunity about talking about your faith?

What if, as part of praying for the outreaches, the church also prayed that conversations about Jesus would happen?

What if, as part of serving the community, the people were able to provide meaning of their service by talking about their personal relationship with Christ?

Let me ask you this?

Think about your church’s outreach.

In what ways can your church provide meaning to the recipients through the verbal sharing of your faith?

I invite your comments and reflections below.

• Extremely important: 71%
• Somewhat important: 21%

Based on a national telephone survey of 1,015 people 18 or older; sampling error of plus/minus 3 percent. Citation: Moody (Jan/ Feb 2002);

Add that up and for 9 out of 10 visitors, the friendliness of your congregation is important.

What each church needs to do is develop a strategy to be friendly, but not overly friendly or smothering.

Ask yourself: How can I help my church welcome church visitors? What role can I play?

Here are 5 of 10 common practices to consider — (the next five come tomorrow).

1. Recruit a greeting ministry team

This team is would be responsible for recruiting greeters to serve regularly, and provide ongoing training to new greeters.

Some churches are large enough and have multiple points of entry into the building, and this requires a little more administrative planning to manage.

One could make the point that all members are responsible for greeting, and while that is true, what often happens is that a greeting may never get done. It’s easy to slip into the mentality that we are a friendly church and therefore visitors will be welcomed. But there exist too many stories of “No One Said Hello”

2. Regularly Train New Greeters

Some churches provide regular training sessions for new greeters.

Extroverts may find this ministry easy to do, but introverts may need a little help or guidance in how to break the ice welcome visitors.

For example

• The Presbyterian Church in Canada gives guidelines to greeters/ushers.
• First Presbyterian Greenville created these guidelines for entrance greeters.

One could also read

• Serving as a Church Greeter, Leslie Parrott. (Review).
• Church Greeters 101 Instant Download.
• The Work of the Greeter, Paige Lanier Chargois

3. Hospitality or Welcome Center

Some churches have a large enough lobby to have a table or booth that is staffed by greeters.

This is a central information area about the church and it’s ministries.

It can also be a place where visitors can leave their contact information for future conversations.

Many churches will give away a small gift for those who visit the table. Coffee mug, pens, free book, etc. Here is where one could place Church Welcome Folder.

One church, Glen Burnie Baptist features the church welcome center on a webpage for visitors, along with a map of the facility.

4. Church Welcome Folder or Packet

We have been in churches that distribute a church welcome folder or church visitor packet.  For more information see: Ideas for Church Visitor Welcome Packets

During our visits in different churches, these visitor packets have come to us in a variety of ways:

• We have found them ourselves.
• The members that have invited us will see we get one.
• Told to get one from the Welcome Center on the way out.
• Greeters that have recognized us as visitors give them to us.
• We have raised our hands when asked and ushers gave one to us.

Some churches will have a coupon to turn in at the welcome center for a free book or some such token of appreciation.

Usually inside the visitor packet, we will find

• a letter from the pastor,
• an audio recording of a pastor’s greeting or a recent popular sermon, and
• informational brochures on various ministries and programs of the church.

Note: We recently received a cassette tape and then discovered that we don’t have a cassette player any more – not in the car, not in our house.   We haven’t used a cassette is several years and forgot that we didn’t own a player.  All our stereo systems have gone to CD or MP3.   Consider a offering a choice: cassette, CD, DVD, or a link to a free MP3 download on the church’s website.

For more information see: Ideas for Church Visitor Welcome Packets

5. “Go and Greet someone” or “Pass the Peace”

When I am the leader of the service (emcee, moderator, director, liturgist, worship leader, pick the term for your tradition), here is what I do:

At an appropriate moment I say

Get up, turn and greet someone that you’ve not met yet. Shake their hand, introduce yourself, and take a few moments to welcome them to God’s house.

I don’t say the same thing every time, but they usually contain four commands.

1. Get Up.
2. Go Meet.
3. Give Your Name.
4. Greet.

I particularly mention “someone you have not met.”

I want to encourage people to make new connections that could lead to significant relationships, and I want the congregation to learn to look for people they don’t know.

Next Steps

• Read  part II of 10 Practices to Welcome Church Visitors.
• Consider a Virtual church hospitality training for your team via private webinar.
• If you haven’t already done so, receive a free download PDF of “Avoiding First Time Visitor Nightmares” by signing up for our monthly evangelism newsletter with exclusive personal evangelism and church hospitality tips.

Update: If you’d like to have a local Evangelism Training Seminar for your church or area, see our various options at our Evangelism Training page. 

On April 5, I’ll be presenting “How Presbyterians do Evangelism” at a workshop for the Presbytery of the James in Richmond VA.    It will be at Chester Presbyterian Church.

My workshop is mislabeled as “ETS Workshop”, but the real title is “How Presbyterians Do Evangelism.”

I’ll have the privilege of sharing the morning with Eric Hoey, the Evangelism Director of the PC USA and Gustavo Vasquez who will be sharing a workshop on Hispanic Ministry.

It promises to be a good morning.  If you are in the Richmond area, consider registering and sending a team from your church. 

It’s not just for Presbyterians, so feel free to come no matter what part of the Body of Christ you are in.

Other workshops include:

• Introduction to Presbyterian Pilgrimage
• Congregational Evangelism in the Missional Church
• Becoming a Contagious Christian
• Moving church outside of Church.

If you’d like to have a local Evangelism Training Seminar for your church or area, see our various options at our Evangelism Training page. 

Sometimes the question is asked of me

• “how to start an evangelism committee?” or
• “what does an evangelism committee do?” or
• “where does a evangelism committee start?”

There can be evangelism committees at a judicatory level (such as the Presbytery) or at the local church level.

Evangelism Committees: Judicatory Level

I have served on the evangelism committee for several years, and have been the moderator of it.

We saw our role as helping the local church with their evangelism efforts.

Our evangelism committee would

• sponsor Evangelism Training conferences and workshops about evangelism,
• talk with churches that are doing successful outreach,
• help serve as a network of information about what is working and where.
• Connected presenters with various Evangelism Training workshops on evangelism methods.
• Organized conferences about evangelism and all the various breakouts.

Evangelism Committees: Local Church Level

In my work, I have met with several church evangelism committees as a consultant to help them think through what they might want to do.  I’ve seen evangelism committees who’s purposes were

• new visitor follow up.
• doing the servant ministries like food pantry or homeless shelters.
• training on the welcoming of visitors.

I have not personally encountered an evangelism committee at the local church that actually does evangelism through sharing their faith as part of their purpose.  I’m sure they exist, I’ve just not run into it.

Is the evangelism committee simply a hospitality committee?  Surely hospitality is a vital function of church life (thus all the articles here on welcoming visitors).  Yet, it’s not evangelism.

So what can a local church evangelism committee do?

I suggest the following, perhaps you have ones to add:

• Get familiar with books on evangelism.
• Find an evangelism program that fits with your Church’s DNA and implement it (Just Walk Across the Room Video Curriculum, Alpha).
• Gather testimonies of recent stories and share them in the newsletter
• Be the champion for evangelism themes in sermons and small groups.
• Pray for the evangelistic work of your congregation (do you actually pray in your committee, more than open a meeting with prayer?)
• Help shape outreach events, and remind the congregation that such events are meant for bring a friend type stuff.
• Get creative — think how your church can have a local impact.
• Organize a local Evangelism Training Seminar for your church or area.  We can do those for you.  See our various options at our Evangelism Training page.

There are lots of ways a church evangelism committee can do more than just sit around and drink coffee and remember how it used to be in the old days.

Let me ask you this?

Does your church have an evangelism committee?

What does it do?

I invite you to share your comments here.

Have you set measurable evangelism goals?

I met a pastor last week who was telling me that their church will be focused on Evangelism as one of their top priorities in 2008.  He has invited me to come in my role as a evangelism consultant and help them develop their evangelism strategy.

People often complain about lack of time when the lack of direction is the real problem.
- Zig Ziglar

Most of us know this true.  If we don’t plan ahead, we will miss the opportunities that present themselves.   Allow me to throw out some ideas for an evangelism strategy.  This list should help you brainstorm what you can do in your local context.

Church Evangelism Strategy

• Send your leaders to an evangelism training seminar.
• Host an Evangelism Training Seminar.
• Find an evangelism program like the Alpha course and implement it.
• Conduct a church hospitality assessment and seek ways to improve the welcoming of visitors.
• Set a goal for the number of professions of faith, conversions, or baptisms (whatever statistic is an important measure of growth for your church or denomination).
• Host a regional Evangelism training event.
• Invite speakers on Evangelism to share a passion.
• Set your outreach events that are intentionally geared towards your target audience.
• Host “Invite a friend” Sundays.
• Develop your holiday sermon series (Easter, Christmas, Mother’s day, etc)?
• Develop an Evangelism Coaching Group in your church to nurture the passionate.  (See Evangelism Training in the Local Church)

The International Mission Board has developed some evangelism software that can help a church plan its evangelism strategy.  It’s called the Evangelism Planner.  I’ve not used it, so I can’t offer a review of it.  The software claims to have:

• Proven evangelistic resources
• Interactive planning calendar
• Project management capability
• Strategy recommendations
• Timelines

Personal Evangelism Strategy

• Read at least 3 books on personal evangelism (see our Evangelism Books Page for some ideas).
• Or read one evangelism book each month.
• Participate in a group like the one described in Evangelism Training in the Local Church
• Work with me to receive 1-1 Evangelism Coaching.
• Pray daily for those who do not know Christ.
• Look for the daily opportunities to have a conversation about your faith.
• Think through your witnessing conversations and consider what you might have done differently. (1-1 Evangelism Coaching is helpful with this).
• Journal your evangelism conversations to reflect and learn.
• Learn a default setting — a basic evangelism gospel script.
• Instead of counting conversions, count the number of conversations you have.
• Review your day to see if you missed an opportunity to share your faith.
• Spend time “doing life” with people apart from the church.  Quit doing Bible Studies all the time. (See: 10 Ideas to Reach Out To Your Neighborhood)
• Build genuine relationships with your neighbors.

At Evangelism Coach, we want to help you in practical ways to help you overcome your fears, increase your passion, and encourage your attempts at sharing your faith.  Check out all our Live Training Options in the Right Side bar:

If we can be of service to you or your church simply let us know.

It is modeled after Phillip and the Ethiopian Eunuch.

The basic premise is that we ask God to show us in whom he is working to draw unto Himself and then ask God how to participate in that work.

Phillip was sensitive to the Lord’s leading to “Go stand next to that Chariot.”

Likewise, we listen for those promptings.

The conversation that follows develops out of the context and the direction that the Lord gives.

“On the way to Gaza”

So we spend time in prayer and then give about 5 hours for people to find their “desert road on the way to Gaza” to see who they will encounter.

“Go stand next to that chariot”

When the people go out with a simple task of asking God to point out where he is working, I’m always personally amazed at the ease of conversation.  Sometimes we plant, we water, or we harvest.

We always find people who are easily talkative about spiritual things, about their life, and in some cases, have pretty open questions.  Conversations that follow are not forced, but natural.

Lab time

Its a great exercise and over the years, the stories that have come back have been encouraging to see God at work.

So how can one provide effective practice sessions in a local evangelism training session?

1. Provide time for practical evangelism experience.
2. Build in time for feedback after each evangelism activity.
3. Include positive and constructive feedback for each encounter.
4. Help groups monitor their time (some feedback discussions chase theological rabbit trails)
5. Do it again.

When the people return from their outing, we have a debriefing time.  We allow people to share their stories and we ask questions to help evaluate each encounter.

Some questions I like to ask are:

1. “How did God point out that person to you?”
2. “Where did you notice God was already at work?”
3. “What was their spiritual thirst?”
4. “What would you do differently?”
5. “What did you share about Christ?”

Let me ask you this?

Think about your last encounter where you engaged a person in a spiritual conversation.  Answer the questions above.

If you would like help discussing your encounters, we provide 1-1Evangelism Coaching

If you’d like to have Evangelism Training, workshops or seminars locally, see our various options at our Live Evangelism Training page.

Evangelism Training Study Course

For a home study course on personal evangelism, consider my course: