Acts 21:17 (HCSB)
17 When we reached Jerusalem, the brothers welcomed us gladly.
I remember years ago, before we were in our church building, Christine and I were sitting with a college girl at the Rangers game on a church outing. In the course of our conversation she told us that our church wasn’t a very friendly church.
I was shocked and sad to hear this. I thought we were friendly. But as we began to observe Sunday mornings, we discovered we were friendly – with our friends. We weren’t mean to newcomers and visitors, but it was hard for us to pull away from our friends to give these visitors any attention.
So we started talking about it in staff and in leadership meetings and determined that we would change that about us. Now I hear from visitors that ours is a friendly and welcoming church. But it is very easy to slide back into old habits.
So God gives us little reminders like this one. Luke thought so much of their welcome that he wrote about it.
We want you to love your friends and hang out in the café before and after church. But I also want us to be aware that it is our job as leaders in the church to welcome outsiders gladly into the service, then into our church family, and into our hearts.
