Purpose

To create a climate of enthusiasm that will provide a natural opportunity for people in your church to reach out to their friends in a ministry of faith-sharing. This provides spiritual growth for everyone involved in the process.

Goals

1. To involve the entire congregation in inviting unchurched persons to a Sunday worship service, which is followed by a brunch, lunch, or reception.

2. To increase attendance that will expand the possibilities of future contacts and in turn increase membership.

3. To help your guests become acquainted with other people, increasing the social interaction of the unchurched with other Christians.

4. To demonstrate to those who may have little faith in their church’s outreach potential that the unchurched will come when kindly invited and when they are recipients of gracious Christian hospitality.

Components
1. A concentrated effort to involve most of the members and constituents of your church in inviting guests to worship.

2. A friendship outreach: the giving of the gift of bread or cookies with an invitation to Invite a Friend Sunday.

3. A worship experience.

4. A time of fellowship through a brunch, luncheon, or reception following the worship service.

5. A follow-up contact for each guest who attends.

6. An evaluation of the event by the planning committee and the setting of the date for next year’s event.

Timing
While any time of year can be an effective time to have an Invite a Friend Sunday, people who do not regularly attend church may be more open to an invitation at certain times of the year. We have chosen Sunday, November 2, All Soul’s Day, which in conjunction with All Saints’ Day is a celebration day for the church. This date also provides you with time for follow-up contact with visitors before Thanksgiving and your Advent programs start, thus providing a natural opportunity for subsequent invitations for those without a faith community to become involved with yours.

Timeline
Give special attention to the detailed timeline. While you're free to adapt the timeline to your church’s situation, do be sure to allow ample time to prepare for the Invite a Friend Sunday.

Helpful Hints
In churches where there are multiple services of worship, careful planning is necessary regarding the time of fellowship so no one is excluded. The fellowship meal or reception can be held at a time when people from more than one service can attend, or separate events can be scheduled for each service.

It is very important to wrap this entire event in prayer. From the very beginning, have your leaders and prayer ministry group organize a prayer timeline for the congregation.

Return to the Invite a Friend Sunday home page

S. Joan Hershey, A Guide to an Effective Invite a Friend Sunday: Sharing Hospitality with New People.
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