The Welcome Class as a Means of Outreach
by Ronald W. Waters
The Welcome Class is a pastor's class for adults. I prefer the title
"Welcome Class" because I think it sounds more inviting and friendly
than some of the other titles used, such as "Inquirer's Class" or
"Membership Class."
The Welcome Class can fulfill several roles in the growth of the church:
outreach, assimilation, and discipleship. Here we examine the first of these
roles: outreach.
Often we wait for others to come to us to indicate their desire to become a
Christian and a part of our church. Instead, consider scheduling a Welcome
Class, then make a special effort to invite the following to participate:
1. Obviously, you want to include new
members in the class who have joined the church but have not yet taken a
class. Be sure to send each one a personal invitation. And a phone call or
personal visit may improve the chances of these people attending.
2. Also invite those who have said they
would like to join your church.
3. New members offer an excellent
opportunity to bridge or network to others in your community—persons who
do not know Christ as saving Lord or who are not actively involved in
another church. Ask each new member/new attendee to give you the names and
addresses of prospective members: family members, friends, neighbors,
work associates, hobby friends, club members, and so forth, who are not yet
Christians or who are unchurched. Send each of these a personal letter or pay
them a visit. Even better: encourage the person who supplied the name to
invite them to join them in attending the Welcome Class.
4. Answer this question: who attends your
church every Sunday but has not yet joined your congregation? These may be new
families who have begun to attend . . . or a spouse of a member who has
attended (maybe for years!) but has never joined your church (and perhaps
never publicly professed Jesus as saving Lord) . . . or the parents of
children who have joined your church. Regular attending non-members may
just be waiting for someone to ask them to consider joining your church. Make
a list of these folks and send them a letter of invitation. [Note:
It is helpful to invite both a husband and wife to attend together, even if
one is already a member. This is less threatening to the non-member, and the
"already-member" also benefits from exposure to information about
the church.]
5. Are there people in your community who
have not yet attended your church who might be prospects? Of course
there are! Possibilities include people you as pastor or members of your
congregation know—other parents in the PTA, your bowling league,
parents of children who have attended your vacation Bible school or
after-school children's club. Often they are open to an invitation. Ask them—by
letter, by phone, or in person.
6. What about those for whom you have
recently performed a service—a wedding or a funeral (family and
friends of the deceased, that is!)? If they are unchurched, they are
prospects. Those who has undergone a major change in their lives are
likely prospects. Invite them to the Welcome Class!
In surveys of unchurched people, George Barna and George Gallup have
discovered that anywhere from 25-60% are open to an invitation to a church. Many
of these are also open to an invitation to make Jesus Christ the Lord of their
lives and to become an active member of your church.
The key: often, we have not because we ask not! Offer that
invitation before your next Welcome Class!
Other Ideas for
Inviting and Welcoming New People
