| We're a cell-based church, so that affects how we do this.
Every "welcome messenger" (our service flyer) has a welcome card in it. We encourage all members, sponsorees (folks who attend regularly but are not in a cell group) and visitors to fill them out and place them in the offering. The welcome card includes name address and contact info, demographic information, boxes to check for requests, or to note they have made a spiritual decision, and space to write in prayers and praises.
After four weeks of regular attendance, a visitor becomes a sponsoree and is assigned a sponsoring community group leader and section pastor. We send them a note in the mail introducing ourselves to them.
The welcome cards are collected every Sunday and sorted by zone, section and group. Every member is in a community group. All sponsorees have a community (cell) group leader and section pastor assigned for them. Welcome cards with any written praise or prayer requests are then, by community group, scanned into the copier and e-mailed to the community group leaders. In this way we can quickly respond if need be. All the physical welcome cards for the group leader are made available by Monday morning.
If someone doesn't take their name tag or leave a welcome card for four weeks, we contact them to make sure all is well. After ten weeks, if they have not taken their name tag, left a welcome card or responded to our attempts to contact them, we drop them from the name tag list. They remain in the Excellerate database for much longer, though, in case they return.
It is not a perfect system, and it requires time and effort, but works well to keep us connected. We don't watch the numbers except to determine what we will require to meet needs. Our focus is connecting to people first. I figure since the Lord said He would build His church, we'll focus on the things we can do to lift up and support others as He does His work.
We say it this way: it's not about building a church. It's about connecting folks with Jesus and changing lives.
The Lord is doing the church-building part for us, just like He said He would!   |