Rick Ezell has written a great article called 5 Must-Know Facts about First-Time Guests. Church leaders need to be aware of these five significant facts about first-time guests looking for a church home. It has been my experience that churches that are growing pay lots of attention to folks who…
Charles Arn is the president of Church Growth Inc. and has done extensive research to discover why people come back to a church after visiting. He says that the number one reason people return for a second time is because the church was friendly. Most of us would assume that…
Assimilation is all about the process of helping people find your church, join your church, and get involved using their gifts and talents for the kingdom. Of course, experiencing salvation in Christ would be the number one goal as you reach out to people with the Gospel. In a recent…
Survey: Church, Ministers Not the Friendliest in Town Maybe you have seen the survey…Less than 18 percent of Americans say the church is the friendliest place in town. Whoa! Though the church is ranked second behind “my home,” which 35 percent of Americans listed, Group Publishing – which commissioned this…
One of the most important things a church does is to follow up on guests who visit the church or any activity sponsored by the church. It is a key to church growth. Each church must customize what works best in their particular setting. Churches today are rethinking the follow…
Churches spend lots of energy, money, and time enhancing the worship experience. We spend some really big bucks on sound, video projecting, lighting, banners, worship music, etc. That is a good thing, but is it enough? For that matter if a pastor spends 20 hours preparing for his message on Sunday,…
The average church could learn a lot from Chick-fil-A. Last night my family dropped by for a casual dinner. As usual, we had a wonderful experience. Good food, great service, fair prices! Their mission statement is simple, “Be America’s Best Quick-Service Restaurant!” The founder, Truett Cathy, may well have fulfilled…
Last night, we were hosted by the Mt. Washington First Baptist Church where the new International Mission Board chairman, Dr. Paul Chitwood, serves as pastor. Darryl Wilson of The Sunday School Revolutionary, Alan Witham, and I, led an assimilation conference as a part of our tour around Kentucky. During one of…
In my last post, I pointed out that the “C” in C.L.O.S.I.N.G. the Back Door stands for Creating A Welcoming Environment. Creating a welcoming environment involves OPENING the front door of your church in order to increase the number of first-time guests. A church cannot grow without visitors. The “L” in C.L.O.S.I.N.G. the…
Two encounters are critical. First, the leader encounters God in His Word and is changed. Second, the leader guides the group to have a life-changing encounter.