This is a summary of the Plugged In presentation on the Greeter Ministry that Roy recently presented to the congregation.

What We Do As Greeters:

We distribute the bulletins and welcome everyone to the worship service. For first time visitors, we try to find out more information from them, such as their names and where they are from, how they heard about Calvary, and why they chose to worship with us.  We also let our visitors know how to get around in our church, the location of our kitchen, and nursery if they have young children.   And we encourage them to visit our dining area if they want coffee or something to eat.  We will also introduce them to our elders if they are nearby, and observe to see if perhaps our visitors have any special needs.

But in addition to welcoming our visitors, we try to insure that all of the needs of you in the congregation are taken care of, whether it is envelopes needed for the offering, assistance finding a pew when it’s crowded or assistance getting a child to the nursery.  So our job is to try to help in any way that will make the service for our members and visitors a pleasant experience.

We try to remember as greeters that whether you are a long-time member or a first-time visitor, your walking through the doors of our church is no accident.  Somewhere along the line, the Lord has drawn you to this church.   The circumstances that brought you here might seem ordinary, but the fact that you are here is not an accident.  The truth is that you were chosen to be a part of this body, and in that respect everyone in this church is special, because God called you here.

Goals of the Greeter Ministry:

One of our most important goals is to make sure that everyone who comes through our doors on a Sunday morning receives a genuinely warm welcome.  We want all of our visitors and members to know that we appreciate their attendance and that we care about them.  And we want to do everything we can to help our members and visitors grow in their relationship with God.

We also want our members and visitors to know that we are here to SERVE you with whatever your needs are when you come.  You know that the Lord took on the attitude of a servant, and so we want very much to do the same.  Serving the needs of our members and our visitors is important to us!

We especially want visitors to return, of course, because we want them to know the Lord and start living for Him.  One of our major goals as greeters is to make people feel welcome so that they will stay and hear the gospel. Seeing them come into a relationship with the Lord is one of our aims.

God’s Work in This Ministry:

One of the things I like about greeting is that we get to watch the Lord at work when He brings new people into the church.   As I mentioned earlier, many of our visitors come through those doors because the Lord has made them recognize their spiritual need.  And our greeters are the first ones to meet them.

It is interesting to watch the Lord work with some of them.  It is interesting to watch when they come back.   And then within several weeks I see them when they begin to make friends.   After several more weeks of hearing the Pastor preach, I notice that they are being ministered to spiritually. After several more weeks, I see their names on the new member’s sign-up sheet.   Things like this are just a part of how I have seen God work in this ministry and grow our church.

But what can you do as a congregation?  Even if you are not able to serve with us, one of the things you can do to help us when you see visitors is to introduce yourself and join with us in making them feel welcome.  Ask them how they came to visit with us, if they have met the elders of the church, or if they have any questions about the ministries we have here.   Another thing you can do when you see new people is to say a quick prayer for them.    Your prayers to open the hearts of our visitors make a difference in how the gospel impacts them.  So you can really be of help to the greeting team by continuing to welcome our visitors and saying a prayer for them before the preaching of God’s word.

If you have a heart that is willing to serve you are welcome to join us. This is a great way to get to know other people in the church and to give yourself the opportunity to use your spiritual gifts and serve with our greeter teams.  Contact me (Roy) or one of our other Greeter team members, and we will be happy to talk to you.