I am excited about the Meet Jesus Sundays starting on Sunday August 4th.
The Goodness of Meeting Jesus
Where we all have so much going on in our lives I am looking forward to a concentrated time when we can remember and talk about how good Jesus is. Just running through the titles of the talks reminds me of how good a Saviour Jesus is. [I have put them below and you can see them on the Meet Jesus page on the website]
- Sun 4th Aug Meet Jesus. Meet Grace and Truth. (John 1)
- Sun 11th Aug Meet Jesus. Be Born Again. (John 3)
- Sun 18th Aug Meet Jesus. Find Satisfaction. (John 4)
- Sun 25th Aug Meet Jesus. Find Hope.* (John 11)
- Sun 1st Sept Meet Jesus. The End of Darkness. (John 18-19)
- Sun 8th Sept Meet Jesus. The End of All Tears. (John 20)
In meeting Him He gives me what I so need – for example hope where all our lives end in death, satisfaction of my longing for love and meaning, grace and truth where I am surrounded by misinformation and condemnation, and I can find in myself self-deception and moral failure. All this and more we will hear again is found in the Lord Jesus, and it is wonderful to have an opportunity to share with others this good news of the eternal Son who came into the world to save, not to condemn [John 3:17, 12:47].
It is wonderful to have an opportunity to share with others this good news of the eternal Son who came into the world to save, not to condemn. That we have the freedom and opportunity to speak of Jesus is a gift of the kindness of our God who desires all people to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth.
That we have the freedom and opportunity to speak of Jesus is a gift of the kindness of our God who desires all people to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. And it is good to be able to work together in making Jesus known, good that these Meet Jesus Sundays are an activity of the whole church in which each of us can participate with our varied gifts, for sharing the witness of the apostles’ to Jesus is a task entrusted to the church, to all Jesus’ disciples, and the heart that longs for others to be saved should be the heart of all God’s children.
There are lots of ways for us all to participate.
We have been talking about praying for the Mission for months, and we can all pray. We can be praying for people to be saved, that the speakers would make the gospel clear, that all who speak and sing would do so from thankful and joyous hearts, that the treasure of the gospel would be visible in our earthen frames.
We can all invite, though not all of us will have people who accept our invitation. But whether the people we invite come or not we can all work together to make the experience of those guests who do come as welcoming as possible.
Making our guests welcome
It is a long time since I have felt like a stranger at church, but I have been trying to put myself in the shoes of someone who is unfamiliar, or even a little nervous, about coming to church. You might be able to identify with that more readily than me, but let me suggest some ways you can make our guests welcome. You will probably be able to think of more.
Parking
Let’s start with parking. If you are inviting people tell them about where they can park. At 11 especially let them know about the parking across the road if the car park is busy. If you come at 9 and have parked outside the church try and leave the spot vacant by about 10:50, and if you are regular at 11 consider parking across the road so your friends might be able to get a closer park.
Arrive on time
Try to be on time, so your friends, who are less relaxed than you about coming, will find you there, and see an auditorium that has people in it, not one that is filling up after the first song. And let’s try and keep the foyer unclogged, so its easy to greet and welcome people. If you are not expecting a guest, move on, or in, quickly. If leaving after 9 and its getting close to 11, try not to have those final conversations in the foyer. We don’t want our guests overwhelmed, or have to push through a crowd to get in to the auditorium.
Think about where you sit
When you come to sit down and you are on time or earlier, think about what makes it easier for those who come later to find a seat. It is always good to leave the ends of rows free if you can, and to sit further forward. You would not want your guest to have to walk right to the front while the service is on because they underestimated the time it took to find a car park and were ten minutes late, nor would you want them to stand at the back because they did not want to disturb people by trying to get to the seat in the middle of the row.
Model engagement
Sing wholeheartedly, and listen well to what is being preached. Think about the conversations you might want to have with those who are sitting around you afterward. To help with that, read the passage before you come, and pray about those conversations. Think of a question you could ask after about the talk that would give your guests an opportunity to talk further about the talk they have just heard and know what the options are if they want to know more – for example reading a gospel of John with them, or inviting them to Christianity Explored with Andy that will be starting on September 3rd.
If you are inviting a guest, think about what you will do after the service finishes. For some, having a cup of tea or coffee and experiencing a little of our common life afterwards will be helpful. Others might prefer to have a meal with you in a cosier setting. Some might prefer both.
Think about the time after the service
Think about how you can facilitate those after church conversations. For some of you that will mean thinking about your children and the children of your guests. If your friend wants to talk, you will want to be part of that conversation, so it might be a good idea to arrange with a member of your growth group who doesn’t have a guest there that Sunday to keep an eye on your children, and your guests’ children. Consider bringing enough food for your children and the children of your guests. As a child I was a rat bag if I was hungry, and while not angelic when fed I was a lot easier to live with. And if you feed your children it can alleviate some of the pressure at morning tea and make it easier for others to host their friends.
Think about your serving
If you are on one of our serving teams – whether in the service or welcoming, morning tea, cleaning – be there, prayerfully prepared, to serve. You may be the first face a visitor sees, or the first person they talk to, and first impressions matter. The love we show in our service of our brothers and sisters will be one of the things visitors will associate with being a follower of Jesus, and the thing our Lord said identifies us as His followers.
Every one of us can contribute to making church not just a welcoming experience, but a place where it is easy for others to hear and understand the gospel of our Lord Jesus
These are just some ideas to make our guests comfortable. As I said, I am sure you can think of more. But to help prepare yourself, think about these two questions.
If you were new to church, unfamiliar with what is going on, how would you like to be treated, what would make you feel at ease and help you to listen?
And if you had prayed for a long time for that friend or family member to come to church, how would you want others to treat and speak to them?
Every one of us can contribute to making church not just a welcoming experience, but a place where it is easy for others to hear and understand the gospel of our Lord Jesus, believing which will bring them to know the joy, hope and peace we know as followers of Jesus and which God in His grace gives to all who trust our Lord Jesus. Isn’t that a wonderful thing to be part of.
