I was a stranger
“I was a stranger and you did not welcome me” — Matt 25:43
It was uncomfortably chilly sitting in the car in the early fall morning. As I waited for the church to open for Sunday services it began to strike me as a little odd that the doors would be locked with only about 15 minutes to go until the start of services. That is calling it pretty close. I couldn’t see the church doors directly from where I sat, but I also had not seen any cars pull up or anyone walk along the sidewalk. Perhaps I had the time wrong.
Then a car pulled across the street from the church. A family got out and crossed the street towards the church. Curious, I left my car, walked to the street, and saw that they had disappeared. I walked up to the church doors. They were still locked. But from where I stood I now saw the doors into the parish hall. When I entered the hall I was warmly welcomed and learned that those doors had been open for some time.
This experience brought to mind a parallel with Advent. We are preparing to welcome the arriving Christ. While we go about doing Bible studies, preparing for Christmas services, rehearsing pageants, making plans to feed the underprivileged, and otherwise dealing with the busyness of the season, will we be adequately prepared to welcome our arriving Messiah? Perhaps it would be constructive to pause and consider the welcome we offer in our churches and in our functioning as church members.
For business clients, I sometimes do what is known as a cycle of service audit. This analyzes the entire experience a customer has with the client business, breaking it down into moments of truth; individual experiences that combine to form the customers’ conscious or subconscious feeling towards the business. Frequently the business will receive high marks in obvious areas, such as lighting and cleanliness, but will fail in the overall evaluation because of overlooking important basics.
It would serve us well to consider the entire experience a guest or a parish member has with our church; a cycle of welcome audit, if you will. As I have visited many churches around the country I have experienced examples of confusing or inadequate signs, lack of clarity as far as where to enter the church, ushers who provide order more than offer welcome and assistance, double entry doors with only one door unlocked, and telephone information messages that give outdated service information, to name a few. We are so used to our church home, that we are not very intentional about experiencing our churchs welcome through the eyes of a stranger.
What does this have to do with you? In the church, this cycle of welcome begins with the individual church member. Remember the basic courtesy lessons you received as a child: holding the door for the elderly, helping people with their packages, men opening doors for women. That’s where it starts. Ask yourself how you can offer a welcome? Look for opportunities to serve those around you. Is the person sitting next to you having some difficulty following the service? Is someone standing in the hallway looking confused? Help them. Its that simple.
Our church will be beautiful for Christmas Eve. The services will be magnificent. Let us work at offering a beautiful personal welcome to the strangers who will join us.
