Loving the Church Visitor
by Jim DeGolyer (from the GO Report [Gospel Outreach, Box 1022, Eureka, CA 95502, (707) 445-2135] Jim DeGolyer oversees the Verbo Church in Quito, Ecuador, which has grown to over 3000.)
When a non-Christian first attends a church he is usually uncomfortable. He is among people that he doesn’t know, with customs and attitudes toward life that he finds somewhat strange. A new person’s discomfort is especially heightened if the people of the church are not accustomed to welcoming new people with love and acceptance. The beginning of evangelizing is often the personal contact of a friend or a relative. But its continuation involves the new person becoming a part of the fellowship. The church must be a place where the new person feels at home and accepted.
How do you tell if a church is open or closed, especially toward new members? One warning signal is the length of time the church has been in existence. The older the group, the easier it is to become closed. As people develop closer relationships within the group, they lose the desire to get to know new people. They find satisfaction in their existing relationships. While they don’t outright reject a new person, they are so happy in their current friendships that they don’t realize that the new person is there.
As a result, the visiting new person finds himself alone in a very happy group. Few new people will be interested in continuing to come to a closed group. This is fatal for the growth of a church. It is very common for all of us to become bottled up in our own interests. To really walk in the love of Jesus, we have to learn not just to follow what comes easiest for us. We need to make the decision to do the Lord’s will in each situation. This requires sensitivity to the needs of others, especially in the group setting. It is especially important to love and befriend people we are not naturally attracted to or who are just different from us.
Some people have customs we don’t like, or their appearance is repulsive. They might come to a home group with five unmanageable children. Many Christians wish that the people who come to their church would arrive with clean and ordered lives. It would be like a fisherman expecting the fish that he is catching to be cleaned, prepared, and ready to be cooked.
We are called to love and extend ourselves to those who are difficult to love, to bear with them, and to help them enter the kingdom of heaven, in the same way we would help someone we naturally liked. By learning to be more conscious of the needs of every person in the church, we can discover many ways to help them to feel at home. Eventually, with our help, they will make the transition from being visitors to becoming family.
For example, in a home group, helping a new person during worship by finding him a song book and showing him the song that is being sung will make him feel welcome. Discuss with your church or home group how each one felt when they first attended a church. Did they feel well received? What problems were there? What made them want to become a part of the group? How could we change so that all new people feel welcome and want to stay?
Studies show that friendship between Christians and non-Christians is a very important element in evangelism. One study showed that of the people involved in the church, 70-80% were invited by friends or relatives! The relationships we have with relatives, neighbors, friends and people on the job–and especially with the new people who come to our churches or home groups–are bridges that help these people to take the step of entering into a relationship with Jesus and His family.
It is important that Christians develop and maintain good relationships with people who do not know Jesus. And nothing could be more important than loving and befriending the stranger who walks into our midst. They came in looking for something. And we know the One they need.
Coming Events
EVERY FRIDAY 7 PM. Witnessing in various S.F. neighborhoods. Meet at Vineyard, 7th St. and Harrison, San Francisco. Call (510) 531- 5325 for more information.
Saturday December 6 Christmas Outreach, 6th St. and Market (1 block from Powell St. BART station), San Francisco 12-6 PM.
Saturday December 13 Christmas Outreach, Berkeley. 12-5:30 PM. Call (510) 531-5325 for more information.
Saturday December 20 Christmas Outreach, Powell St. and Market (Cable Car Turnaround above Powell St. BART station), San Francisco 12-6 PM.
Ministry News
From October 1 to 3, a film crew from the 700 Club TV show was here to do a story on our ministry. They interviewed Eric Livingston and me and filmed one of our outreaches in San Francisco. (The show should be aired early in 1998, but I don’t have a date. You should be able to find out by calling the 700 Club at 757-420-0700). Please pray that this program will stir up many Christians to witness for Jesus in their own communities.
We held three outdoor rallies in San Francisco in October. Thousands of people heard the gospel and we prayed with several people each day. We also ministered in Berkeley, at Fisherman’s Wharf, in the Tenderloin and on Polk Street. Please pray for Ian (who prayed with us on Haight Street on Sept. 26), Marvin (who prayed with us on Market St. the next day and gave out tracts with us all afternoon), Ricardo (who prayed at Market and Powell, Oct. 4), and Susan and Calvin (who prayed at 6th and Market, Oct. 18).
Joe received one of our tracts on Haight St. The next day he was in Golden Gate Park when someone told him, “Mary at the Ashbury St. house wants to talk with you.” He found the Prodigal Project house on Ashbury St. Mary was no longer there, but the people at the house led him to Christ. Today he is in their discipleship program in Mendocino County, growing in the Lord. The Prodigal Project (415-431-4028) currently has 18 youth in their program. They need mature Christians to help disciple these new believers, both in San Francisco and in Mendocino County.
As you probably know, Billy Graham just completed a major Bay Area crusade–three days in San Jose, three days in San Francisco and two days in Oakland. Close to 150,000 people attended the meetings. Over 1100 Bay Area churches from 70 denominations participated in the outreach. Thousands of people volunteered including 8500 counselors. About 5000 people came forward in response to his invitations in San Jose. Thousands more responded in San Francisco and Oakland. Only God knows how many were truly converted, but we praise God for each new believer. Please pray for these new converts that they will grow in Christ and become true disciples of our Lord. Please pray that Bay Area churches will continue to join together to pray for souls and preach the gospel.
Please pray for those who have written and phoned us this past month in response to tracts, including Emilio and Desiderio (SF), Sabrina (Napa), Maria (Chino), Richard (Watsonville), Curtis (San Rafael), Sandi (Hayward), and Minnie (Stockton).
We continue to pursue our lawsuit to end the arrests and permit denials to Christians in San Francisco. The process of getting information to prove our case is expensive. We expect it will cost about $7000, of which we have received $4000. Our attorney is representing us for free. Most of this cost is for court reporters. We appreciate whatever you can do to help us with this need. A victory in this this lawsuit will help Christians every where to preach the gospel freely. We are presently getting permits at excellent locations, such as the Cable Car Turnaround at Powell and Market, the busiest place in the city. We believe the lawsuit is one reason we are getting these permits. They could start denying them at any time. Please pray for our lawyer, Russell Davis, and for us as we fight this battle.
Once again, we are offering a special book: Street Smarts: A Survival Guide to Personal Evangelism and the Law by Steve Levicoff. This 228 page book has chapters on witnessing on the street, in shopping malls, at school and work, at stadiums and concerts, at airports, prisons and at home. It covers court cases regarding our rights and gives practical advice in handling problems. Our Tape of the Month is “Praise, Worship and Spiritual Warfare” by Chuck Girard. This tape outlines a strategy for reaching our cities through concerted prayer, worship and evangelism.
Christmas is the time of year when people are most receptive to the gospel. Sadly, we get so busy doing our Christmas shopping that we miss this wonderful opportunity to bring others to Christ. Consider buying an evangelistic book for your unsaved friends and relatives, such as Mere Christianity by C.S.Lewis or More than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell. Consider giving some of your time as well as your money to bring God’s Christmas Gift to the lost. Come join us for one of our special Christmas outreaches on Saturday December 6, 13, or 20 (see information above). We have printed thousands of special Christmas tracts (a sample is enclosed). We invite you to bring coats, blankets and toys for those who live on the streets. I pray that each of you will have a wonderful Christmas and New Year.
Yours in His love,
Larry Rosenbaum
