- Sep 29, 2022
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I'd like to hear what your church does or what you think churches should be doing to welcome
and keep visitors to return to your church.
Here's what I wrestle with:
Is it God that builds his church or do we build the church? Is it up to me and my human ability to
welcome visitors, make them feel comfortable, accepted, loved that will keep them coming back and
eventually stay and become committed members in the church? Or is it purely based on God's
doing of drawing people to his church and bringing them here?
The popular answer is it's always 50/50 job. God will bring people to your church if he wants to.
Once they come, it is our part to do the best we can to accommodate them and make them feel part
of the church so they would stay and commit to be long-time members.
But I wrestle with this because part of me thinks it's not up to me at all. It's all God. He is the one who
builds a church, not the people in it because we are so charismatic or have such admirable qualities
that makes ppl want to stay. But at the same time, if the retention rate is very low, it must mean something!
If 10 new visitors are coming to our church each month and only 1 ends up staying, that a 10% retention rate.
Is it because we failed to do a better job at getting that rate higher? Something we are not doing right to
welcome them and make them feel welcomed? Maybe we don't offer what they are looking for?
But the other side of me says, to not worry about such strategies and ideas of coming up with ways to
keep them. Ultimately it's in God's hands. If he draws them to Him, they will come and will seek God and
they will be carried by the Holy Spirit to stay in the church and be a part of it building and contributing to it.
But if 50% of it is on us, then we do need to strategize and come up with creative ways to try and get that
retention rate up?
and keep visitors to return to your church.
Here's what I wrestle with:
Is it God that builds his church or do we build the church? Is it up to me and my human ability to
welcome visitors, make them feel comfortable, accepted, loved that will keep them coming back and
eventually stay and become committed members in the church? Or is it purely based on God's
doing of drawing people to his church and bringing them here?
The popular answer is it's always 50/50 job. God will bring people to your church if he wants to.
Once they come, it is our part to do the best we can to accommodate them and make them feel part
of the church so they would stay and commit to be long-time members.
But I wrestle with this because part of me thinks it's not up to me at all. It's all God. He is the one who
builds a church, not the people in it because we are so charismatic or have such admirable qualities
that makes ppl want to stay. But at the same time, if the retention rate is very low, it must mean something!
If 10 new visitors are coming to our church each month and only 1 ends up staying, that a 10% retention rate.
Is it because we failed to do a better job at getting that rate higher? Something we are not doing right to
welcome them and make them feel welcomed? Maybe we don't offer what they are looking for?
But the other side of me says, to not worry about such strategies and ideas of coming up with ways to
keep them. Ultimately it's in God's hands. If he draws them to Him, they will come and will seek God and
they will be carried by the Holy Spirit to stay in the church and be a part of it building and contributing to it.
But if 50% of it is on us, then we do need to strategize and come up with creative ways to try and get that
retention rate up?