I remember the first time Jim and I visited Lafayette Park UMC. We were active members at another church and I guess someone from Lafayette Park just asked us to come one Sunday and worship with them. I was working in corporate America at the time, never dreaming that one day I might be a pastor serving at Lafayette Park. I remember walking in the door at the front of the church and seeing two people standing in the area by the sanctuary door. There was a big sign that had a bunch of name tags on it, and the two people had name tags as well. They were smiling at us and greeted us warmly when they handed us a bulletin. I thought wow, these people have their stuff together.
We found a seat towards the back and before we could really sit down, someone came up and talked with us. They let us know where the bathrooms were just in case we needed it at some point in time. They also introduced us to someone else and we had several lovely conversations before worship began.
The service began and then there was the passing of the peace and we watched as the whole church jumped up and starting walking around and hugging each other. People walked from one side of the sanctuary to the other and there was such a great energy in the room. I remember thinking how great it was to be greeted so warmly. I left that day thinking, you know if I were looking for a church to be part of, Lafayette Park would be a great church.
Sometimes we can get busy on Sunday taking care of the various ministries we are involved in. Dare we confess that sometimes the passing of the peace is the time that we connect with various people on our ministry teams to work out logistics of the next activity? Dare we confess that we might just miss the opportunity of greeting that new visitor who is looking for a place to belong, a place where they can plug in and make a difference in the world?
We have been having new visitors each Sunday and I anticipate that as we draw closer to Easter we will continue to have more and more visitors. Easter Sunday I hope and pray that we will be a full church with people who want to connect with God but really haven’t had an opportunity to find a community where they feel welcomed and wanted.
I invite you in the next several weeks to be intentional about praying for God to draw new people to worship with us during the week. I ask you to be sensitive to new faces and ask that you be intentional about connecting with them. Who knows, what might look like a new face to you might be someone that has been worshipping here for a few months! Perhaps you might consider volunteering to be one of those smiling faces at the door who greet people and welcome them. Or perhaps you might be intentional about greeting the new folks who are visiting each week.
Lafayette Park UMC is a great church and we can extend God’s grace to people by how we greet them. Let’s be intentional to reaching out on Sunday mornings and welcoming people so that when they leave us they say, “Wow, it was great to connect with God today. If I were looking for a church, Lafayette Park UMC would be a great church.”
~Pastor Kathleen
