The Power of Welcome and Websites

This morning after church, Nicole and I were both approached by women whom we didn't know. Jovonne, an American student at MIT and currently studying at Cambridge University in England, introduced herself to me. Dr. Trisha from Georgia introduced herself to Nicole. They both already knew about us and our work from discovering our web site and blog.

This was very encouraging to me, as it was evidence that these tools are helping people learn about some ministries in France and then helping them get involved through participation and prayer. I find it interesting to see the network that the Internet allows that wasn't possible when I began intercultural ministry in 1988.



Because our car was full, I had to take the bus. This allowed me to stay a little longer and observe and photograph the welcome that takes place outside the front doors of our church between the 2 morning services. In doing the power point presentation for the Ateliers d'Artistes de Belleville, I noticed that I didn't have photos of people entering in through the front doors.

Our church is large for a church in France. We average around 450 people in total attendance at the 2 Sunday morning services. We also have lots of new people each week. Making newcomers and long-termers feel welcome is an important and challening work for all churches, whether they be large or small. In our church, it's important to now allow people to slip through the cracks.

Another thing that struck me was the sign engraved in stone above the front door. It says, "La Sainte Bible, Sondez les Ecritures" ("the Holy Bible, examine the Scriptures." It's a good reminder of our foundation of the Scriptures. They are what give our welcome a specific sense.