Drawing people into the life of the church
Practical ways to reach out to others within the church walls.
Pray for perception. Pray for spiritual eyesight to notice the people on the sidelines, the lonely, or those not “plugged in” to the life of the church for whatever reasons. Pray for the heart of a shepherd.
At church on Sunday, instead of making a beeline for your friends and remaining in a huddle talking with them – make an effort to look around the sanctuary. Be observant. If you’ve never done this, you may want to “observe” for 2 or 3 weeks. You’d be surprised at how much you can notice simply through observation! Not only will you begin to notice people who sit all alone or just look nervous, you’ll also notice how cliquey the sanctuary can appear – lots of people in groups talking.
Take some action. Approach some of the people that you’ve noticed on the sidelines. Just sit down next to them and say something like: “Hi! I don’t think we’ve met. My name is Laura. What is your name?”. You could do this on your own or with your spouse. Hopefully this will naturally get a conversation going. Make an effort to remember their name and any other details you learn about them. Yes, I know, remembering names can be hard! It is okay to write things down. After your conversation when you are back at your seat, jot down their name and any other details on a piece of paper.
Now…Be on the lookout for them the following week! Approach them again and address them by name, and ask them about something you’d learned about them the week before. “How’s your college class going?” or “Did you get through your tough week at work?” Etc.
