ryan russell

It’s weird and fun being on the other side of local church leadership… it is making for some helpful and new insights. Through my new experiences being an attender at local churches I have been able to identify a few basic items that make a for a healthy and successful church. Of these, probably one of the most basic and controllable aspects is friendliness.

It doesn’t matter what size the church. Big or Small, it is easy to be friendly. However, most churches fail this simple test. Leaders and regular attenders are too concerned about their needs, jobs, and preparations to stop and connect relationally with people… the very people they so desire to reach and have stay at their churches.

If you attend a church or lead a church, here is something VERY SIMPLE that you can do to help your church grow (spiritually, communally, numerically)…. Take the 15 minutes before the service starts and walk/talk through the worship center. Say ‘hi’ to people. Engage them in 3-5 min. conversations. Look for faces you don’t recognize or don’t know very well (don’t talk with your regular ‘friends’). If you could just get just 2% of your congregation to lead on this level I am confident you would experience a whole new attitude in your church within 2 months.