Every single one of us, without exception, can be a greeter. You do not have to be a member of a greeting team to welcome people to your church.
As a matter of fact, your greeting in the pews or chairs is quite often more effective than “Susie” at the door saying good morning and handing the visitor a bulletin. You are a friendly member of the congregation. You can carry on a brief conversation from your seat easier than Susie can.
Let me give you an example that really happened to me. It not only happened, it changed my life in many ways. There are two churches side by side near where I lived at the time. One of the churches was the denomination I grew up with so I decided to give it a try. I attended services there for three straight weeks, and no one there other than the pastor spoke to me. Not one single member of the church spoke to me, much less greeted me. After the third service, I made a decision to try the church next door the following Sunday.
The second church had just started a contemporary service early on Sunday morning, and on the fourth Sunday I attended that service. The greeter introduced himself by name, welcomed me, and then he introduced me to the president of the congregation who was also very friendly. Both of them insisted that I join them for coffee and donuts after the service.
There were between twenty and twenty five people at that service, and during the coffee and donuts after the service every single man and woman at that service came up to me and introduced themselves to me and actually asked questions and showed an interest in me. I was amazed, surprised, and slightly overwhelmed, but I knew I had found a new church home. It was light years ahead and above my experiences with the church next door, and it became my new church home on the very first visit.
I say this event changed my life because it gave me a perspective on how important greeting can be to the life and growth of a church. In time this came to be an important part of my church life.
Never underestimate your ability to have an impact on guests at your church!
While everyone is a greeter at the Center for Spiritual Living, we always need members who would like to contribute a little bit of time and be of service. Please visit our volunteer page on our website for a list of volunteer roles you can sign up for or call us at 1-818-386-8136. And, yes, Greeter is one of our volunteer roles!
Photo by McKay Savage on Flickr. Some Rights Reserved.