Every month we are bringing you concrete tips and ideas around a particular outreach theme. Every month we are bringing you concrete tips and ideas around a particular outreach theme.
30 Seconds
by Pastor Jason Taber, Pastor of Outreach
Worship is not, and probably shouldn’t be, our primary method of connecting with people outside of our congregation, although we do see several guests and visitors in most of our worship services. A challenge for many of us is that we have many friends in the church and when we’re in worship we like to catch up with them. That’s great! I like it, too. But that can make it hard for people who are new among us to try and connect with someone.
If you read this regularly, you know I feel strongly that building relationships doesn’t have to mean making radical changes to our lives or routines. Often, a small shift will do. Here is one for worship—specifically before or after a service: Before you focus in on a conversation with a friend, take 30 seconds to scan the room (or your section of it) looking for people who might be new—people you don’t recognize.
When you find someone, a really easy and straightforward way to start a conversation is to say “I don’t think we’ve met before, I’m _______.” Often I follow that with a question along the lines of “what brings you here today?”
It’s possible you’ll come across someone who is a Cornerstone disciple. Good news: You just made a new connection! In other words, there’s no downside to introducing yourself to someone, even if they’ve been with us for a long time. And if they haven’t there’s huge upside because you will have just helped someone come closer to connecting with Cornerstone and, therefore, with Jesus. And there will still be plenty of time for chatting with friends!
