Themes...

There are themes that resonate with my heart. Themes that come up over and over again in my preaching as I, like most preachers, gravitate to those texts that speak to me and the community of faith that I serve. One of those themes is the power of God to change the world, and the power of a congregation to impact its community. In the words of Craig Groeschel in order to "reach the people nobody else is reaching we have to do things nobody else is doing." Here is a video where he challenges us in the church to get "IT."

This is good stuff for the leaders of St. Paul United Methodist Church!

St. Paul United Methodist Host Plan

Host Plan

General Host/Greeter Duties
• Remain flexible and treat every situation with a positive attitude
• Arrive a minimum of twenty minutes prior to scheduled service
• Greet guests and members before they enter the door
• Assist with any activity or task that will enhance the worship experience
• Remember that helping people is more important than passing out bulletins

Duties by Area

Front Door/Welcome Center Host: Stands between entry door and welcome center
• First contact for guest who use front door
• Greets guests as they arrive
• Holds door for guests when available
• Hosts hospitality/information area
• Provides inquiring first time guests with guest packets
• Directs guests to ministry areas as needed
• Directs guests to auditorium when worship is beginning

Kitchen/Coffee Host – Stands near information/hospitality table
• Greets guests as they arrive
• Invites guests to have coffee and snack
• Directs guests to ministry areas as needed
• Directs guests to auditorium when worship is beginning

Carport/Parking Host – sits at table midway between lobby and auditorium
• First contact for guests and regular attendees
• Greets guests as they arrive
• Holds door for guests
• Directs guests toward lobby and hospitality/information area
• Directs guests to ministry areas as needed


Sanctuary Host (2) – stand at entry to auditorium
• Hands out bulletins
• Directs people into worship space (NOT usher to seats)
• Collects offering by passing up the side aisles
• Following 9:00 am service, mark a line under the last person on pew pad
• Following 11:00 am service, collect all used pew pads

General thoughts on Welcome Ministry
• You never get a second chance to make a first impression
• All these positions should be in place by 20 minutes before worship time
• Music sound checks, warm up, etc. should stop at 8:45 am

Personal Requirements
• Must be open, friendly, and personable
• Must have a servants heart
• Must support the vision and purpose of St. Paul United Methodist Church
• Must accept and offer direction courteously and willingly
• Remains effective despite changes in position and location
• Listens and responds to guests and members with concern and empathy

Contents of the Guest Packet
• Contact card: to gather name, address, email, etc from first time guests.
• Campus map
• Letter from the pastor: a brief note of welcome on St. Paul stationary
• Current newsletter: provides calendar and ministry opportunities
• Church brochure: outlines ministries, activities, and staff information
• Pencil or pen: to facilitate completion of contact card
• Piece of candy: everybody loves a surprise!

Len Sweet: A Lighted World Costs More...

Len Sweet is an excellent teacher. In this video he explains how Jesus is our primary navigational point for our lives and the lives of our church. How Christianity is a relationship faith, not a faith to be lived out alone. He also talks about how being salt and light in this world will cost you something. Take a few moments and watch! I remain:

Consumed by the Call,
Dr. Marty Cauley

The Ministry of Hospitality

What’s the big deal?

You’ve seen them. They are often a little late, a little harried and don’t know where to go. It may be the first time they’ve been on a church campus in years, but for some reason they decided that this morning they would give church another chance. They are frantically trying to discover where the restrooms are and which door to enter. Within five minutes from the car door slamming they will decide whether they will return again to worship with us. These are the “golden minutes of guest relations.” Before the first prayer is prayed, before the first song is played, before the Scripture is read, and the message given, most people decide whether they will return. This is why the Hospitality ministry of ushers and greeters is so vital to the life of St. Paul UMC.

Each week St. Paul receives a visit from at least one new guest family. Growing, thriving churches retain approximately two out of every ten first-time guests, while churches that are at a plateau or declining retain only one out of every ten first-time guests. Therefore, it is important to realize that every family who chooses to attend St. Paul for the first time is important. As the old adage goes, “you never get a second chance to make a first impression.” Your mission is to make our worship experience as worthwhile as possible by connecting with people and giving them ample opportunity to ask questions, gain information, and feel comfortable.


Guest Relations

Language is important. That is why we at St. Paul call those who share worship for the first time “guests” and not “visitors.” A visitor is one who comes with no intention on staying. A guest is defined as “a person welcomed into one’s house; a person to whom hospitality is extended; a person held in honor who is due special courtesies.” Essentially, language reflects attitude. If people are treated like intruders that inconvenience our patterns and disrupt our status quo they will not return. We have all had experiences where the service in a restaurant or store was so bad, where the people were so rude, that we vowed never to return. The same is true of churches. Most people have attended a worship service where they felt alone in a crowd. Where everyone was friendly to each other, but the first-time guest was left standing alone and unwelcome. Your primary task is to be open and welcoming to everyone who enters our doors. We want to insure that everyone who walks the doors of St. Paul Church knows that they are loved by God and embraced by His followers.

Greeting Guests

A greeter is “one who meets or extends welcome in a specified manner; one who gives a formal salutation at a meeting.” Perhaps a better name for greeters and ushers then would be “host.” A host is “one who takes particular care and concern that guests are well accommodated.” Research indicates that the primary question most guests ask about a church is not related to theology, doctrine, or even the quality of its pastor (gasp!). The first question is: “Is this a friendly place?” The second question, relating closely to the first is: “Do these people really want me here?” As hosts, your job is to be available to answer both of these questions in the affirmative with your actions, not just your words.
The opportunity for first impressions begins before our guests get out of their cars. Be on the lookout for people struggling with baby carriers and diaper bags. Watch for seniors how may be unsteady on their feet, or those who look lost or confused. On rainy days, and Rocky Mount has a few rainy days, grab an oversized golf umbrella and walk people in. This is a wonderful time to make connections! Once they make it under the canopy, make sure you ask if they need a guest packet (which includes things such as a campus map with classrooms, restrooms, and nursery clearly marked) or any other assistance. If needed, escort the guest or attendee all the way to the sanctuary.
Once they have successfully negotiated the parking lot, stopped by the ministry table to pick up a copy of the newsletter and a guest packet, and found a seat, make sure welcoming contact does not stop. During the welcoming time in worship, make sure to introduce them to the people seated around them. Our goal is for every guest to receive five touches before they leave worship:

1. Canopy/Parking area greeting
2. Worship space greeting when receiving a worship folder and being seated
3. Greeting by at least one other family seated around them as they are seated
4. Greeting by another family during the “passing of the peace”
5. Greeted as they exit by the pastor

The key to this contact plan is number five. The second ten-minute period during which people are won or lost is on their way out the door. If they are allowed to leave without anyone offering hospitality, they leave with a bad impression overall. Just like when a choir sings a song, if the first few bars and the last few bars are off key, the rest of the song suffers. If the first few minutes and the last few minutes are unpleasant, then the lasting impression of unfriendliness sticks. The key is to be just as friendly when you are “off duty” as well as when you are “on duty.” Look for people who are off by themselves, and welcome them.

What Newcomers are Looking For: A Place to Belong

Newcomers are looking for five things:

1. The friendliness and warmth of the church. Environment is everything. A United Methodist poll found that people visiting a church were looking to “feel at home.”
2. The character of the worship service. People want to experience God. They desire to leave uplifted and equipped to handle life.
3. A place for children. Most churches underestimate the importance of quality childcare and children’s church. More people attend a church where their children will be happy than where they are happy. Churches that provide opportunities for children will be effective in attracting people.
4. Community engagement. Newcomers are looking to find a place that is making a difference in their local community and around the world.
5. The church facilities. While facilities don’t cause a church to grow, they can prevent growth. Newcomers are looking for modern and well-kept facilities that are easy to navigate and welcoming.

Please realize that you have a very important job in at St. Paul. Hospitality is often assumed to be natural; it is not. It requires effort to be intentionally welcoming to dozens of strange faces each week. Then to reach out and offer them welcome and assistance requires even more of you. Every aspect of your job affects the attitude our guests will carry away about St. Paul. Walt Disney World spends billions of dollars annually training its “cast members” to go above and beyond the call of duty to make their guests feel important. The fastest growing department store chain in the United States, Nordstrom, also invests heavily in employees who give 100%. While St. Paul can’t give you a six-figure salary for your efforts, we can assure you that your retirement plan will be out of this world! Thank you for your willingness to help and to serve.

Dr. Marty Cauley

Back To Church Sunday, Sept. 13

Don't forget Back To Church Sunday this Sunday at St. Paul United Methodist Church! Invite a friend to either 9 am or 11 am worship!!

Lewis Center for Church Leadership

Lewis Center for Church Leadership

Fall 2009 Message Plan for St. Paul UMC, Rocky Mount

Message Plan
September-December 2009

Each week in worship we hear a message. The message is one of the ways that God speaks to us through the truth of the Scripture. God also teaches us lessons through the challenges, struggles, and victories of our lives. As we gather for worship, we need to hear each other’s stories. This message plan is a tool for you to find where you might want to share a piece of your story.

Sitting beside you each week are those who need to hear what God is doing in your life, things that you have come across that have witnessed to your soul about key biblical truths that you need to share with others who may be going through a similar situation, facing a similar difficulty, or weighing similar decision. The goal behind the Message Plan is for you to look ahead to the key themes of upcoming worship services and determine if you might have something to offer. Perhaps you have come across a powerful story, perhaps you want to share a three-minute glimpse of your life called a “portrait of faith” that illustrates a key truth, or maybe you just have a friend you need to invite for that one Sunday where we will struggle with the issues that they are facing. Either way, take a few moments and look ahead and see what your part of the upcoming messages might be.

If you think you might have an illustration, story, or picture that provides clarity to an upcoming theme, send it to messages@martycauley.org or leave it in the church office. If you have a life experience that you would like to share in your “portrait of faith,” email Dr. Cauley and schedule an appointment to discuss it with him. We want to hear from you!
September 13: A Well Balanced Life
How can we find balance? Is balance even possible? The demands of twenty-first century living are so extreme that it seems impossible to find time to do everything. What can the Bible teach us about living a well-balanced life?


September 20: Well Balanced Relationships
Our relationships are in trouble. We know that there are no magic formulas to a “good relationship,” no “five easy steps to balanced relationships.” How can we have relationships that are blessed by God and can endure difficulty and struggle? What can the Bible teach us about having well-balanced relationships?


September 27: A Well Balanced Family
Somebody once told me that insanity is inherited, you get it from your family! With today’s stresses upon our families, can we really find any balance? What can the Bible teach us about the value of our family and its importance in helping us be more balanced?


October 4: A Well Balanced Checkbook
We are panicked about money. God provides some basic precepts that have worked for thousand of years related to how we handle possessions and money. Like an acquaintance of mine says often, “you have to live like nobody else today, so you can live like nobody else will tomorrow.” Can we really have a well balanced financial plan based upon biblical teaching?


October 11: A Well Balanced Spiritual Life (Homecoming—one service at 10:30 am)
100,000 people each week “quit church” and most say it is because they are “too busy.” When your calendar gets full, is the first thing you cross off your list your relationship with God? Is worship and spiritual formation really important to live a balanced life?

October 18: Laity Sunday with Tom Walden
The most important person in the church is sitting right beside you. Tom Walden, former N.C. Conference Lay Leader, full-time volunteer, and leading Lay Witness Mission coordinator for the southeast will be with us to discuss our Lay Empowerment Weekend scheduled for this spring. Learn how you can make a difference!

October 25: Vision Word—Friendly or Loving (Dining Room Environments)
“Who is your neighbor?” God calls us to openly express Christ’s love to everyone we come into contact with, sometimes sacrificially. Have there been people in your life who have opened the doors to their lives, and maybe even their homes, to show you Christ’s love when you thought all hope was lost? Being loving/friendly goes far beyond a simple handshake to include a life of radical hospitality.

November 1: Vision Word—Accepting (Dining Room Environments)
“For God so love the world…” Our world usually includes only people who look like us, drive the same cars we do, live in similar houses, have the same skin color and about the same checkbook balance. Jesus spent as much time with “church people” as he did with those who were far from God and who were outside of His culture. Being accepting goes far beyond being pleasant, it is actively opening ourselves up to real relationship with people who are different than we are.

November 8: Vision Word—Growing (Living Room Environments)
Is spiritual formation really important? Isn’t just accepting Christ and being “Christian” enough? God calls us to continually invest in our personal spiritual lives and to embrace growth as a means of getting closer to God and each other.


November 15: Vision Word— Committed (Living Room & Kitchen Environments)
What does it mean to make a commitment? It goes far beyond simply making a promise, it means making a decision and then setting a determined course of action to insure the fulfillment of a covenant. How can the right commitments change your life?

November 22: Vision Word— Servants (Kitchen Environments)
Our culture does not value those who serve. We reward the powerful and look down upon those who do the things we consider unclean or menial. Yet, Christ teaches that it is the servant who shall be the master, the least who shall inherit God’s kingdom. What does it mean to serve with a Christ-like attitude and how does our willingness to serve reflect the presence of Christ in our lives?

November 29: Advent 1—Worship Fully
Mary was pregnant, and Joseph didn’t know what to do with a cultural situation that proscribed shunning and pain to the woman he loved. God shows up and demands from us everything. In worship, we are called to come to God opened handed, reminded that everything is a gift from God and that we can give Him nothing He has not first given us.


December 6: Advent 2—Spend Less
Our culture spends a lot of time convincing us of what we “must have” to be happy. This stands in stark contrast to the Savior of the world who came to earth in poverty. Jesus did not come to the rich and powerful, but to the poor and searching. When God came in Christ, God ignored Herod, the king, and came to the carpenter. What message is God sending us when God chooses less over more?


December 13: Advent 3—Give More
God gave. God comes into the world to give to us more than we can imagine. God gives to us salvation, God gives to us peace, God gives to us love. What do we give back? What if this year you were to give to God as much as you give under the Christmas tree?

December 20: Advent 4—Love All
Christmas is not your birthday. I heard those words last year and it took my breath away, but it is absolutely true. Christmas is not my birthday, it is Jesus’ birthday. Christ told us that whatever we do for “the least of these” we do for Him. This year, as we seek to show love to all, we are challenged to love those in our world who for many have no value.

5 Things We Can Learn from This Doc's Swine Flu Prevention Video

Here is a great "rap" video of a doctor providing basic information about preventing the spread of H1N1, or swine flu. I am sure all of the information is stuff we have heard before but I think he does a great job at teaching us how to communicate stuff we "already know" but often forget.

1. He makes it fun! Who wouldn't want to watch a doctor try to rap?
2. He makes it clear, you can understand what he is saying and why he is saying it.
3. He makes it real, he tells you action steps and why they are important.
4. He makes it brief, lets face it we live in a culture that where 2 minutes is too long.
5. He provides a place for additional information. He references www.flu.gov so that if you want you can get additional information.

These are lessons that all of us who communicate for a living should learn. Take a look, its only two minutes! I remain:

Consumed by the Call,
Dr. Marty Cauley