The last task of Len Sweet’s EPIC worship gathering as outlined in Postmodern Pilgrims is to be connective. Establishing community in a worship gathering is really the most difficult task to me, but it seems to be the most important as well. We know this subconsciously, which is why almost every gathering has a time of meet & greet even though almost NO ONE enjoys it. Visitors usually find it awkward. Members find it pointless or awkward as well; after all, they’re talking to their church friends before and after service, they don’t need the two minutes to make it “official.” And yet, we know this is an important connection and needed… because this is where we try to establish community (yes, most churches or ministries try to do community by small groups or bible studies, but most of those same churches and ministries would say worship is the front door to what they’re about – shouldn’t visitors be welcomed into the community as part of their first experience??).
I think most of us would agree meet & greets are an ineffective practice, but a “necessary evil.” I can’t help but wonder if there’s a better way to draw people together. At The Lab, we’ve been experimenting with this in different ways. We designate time within the gathering to share stories, to let others know what God is up to in our lives. We have taken a particular week or two to just share a meal and experience community together in deep conversation in place of the traditional gatherings. While these ideas fit our gatherings because we’re not meeting in a group of thousands, I think there may be ways to do this for larger groups as well, regardless of size. For someone to plug in to the community of a church gathering, they’ve got to feel like a part of the story. They need to hear the narrative and share that. Some larger churches have used worship gatherings to share the stories of members, or ministries. Whether by personal testimonies or by using videos, these stories connect members and visitors alike to the larger narrative of the church.
So. How are you being connective? How are you drawing people into the larger narrative of the Church?
We’ve seen this video before, but what truly makes it powerful is how it draws us into connection and relationship with this church and these people.
