1st Time Guests and Cancer Centers

Back in February I read an article by Charles Arn, President of Church Growth, Inc. which studies trends in church growth. Dr. Arn tells the story of having been recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. He titled his article “Should you treat your church newcomers like cancer patients”. With a title like that how could I not at least scan the article? What I found were some great insights I wanted to share with you. He tells his story; the shock of hearing the word “cancer” in relation to his health, then the surgery 3 months later at the City of hope Medical Center in Duarte, Ca. Here is where he begins to connect what City of hope was like and how we should treat church guests the same way.

1.      They anticipated his uncertainty – They greeted him in the parking lot, when he entered the building someone escorted him to the welcome desk, where he was then introduced to another man who had fought and won the same battle 11 years prior. This man Bill took Charles exactly where he needed to go.

2.      “We are Family Here” – He said he heard this multiple times in multiple venues. From their lips to their literature this message of “family here” was understood.

3.      Someone to hold your hand – on his 2^nd visit he met someone they referred to as a “patient navigator”. This man gave Charles his name, phone number, and email address. He was told if he had any questions to contact this man and if he didn’t know the answer he’d find out and get right back with him.

4.      A connection center – In this large open area there was information available on the various support groups there at the hospital. They gave away free DVD’s of doctors lecturing on various topics.

5.      Great signage all over campus – There was signage everywhere helping people navigate the halls.

6.      His wife loved the creative and tasteful interior design – The appearance of a building, both inside and out, makes a statement about those who work there.

7.      The floors, windows, and walls were spotless – see #6

8.      They had literature available in multiple locations – He said down almost every hallway there was an opportunity to look for ‘information’ that might be helpful both while at the City of hope as well as in-between visits.  

9.      They had a website full of helpful information

10.  They communicated what they were about – There was a billboard near his house that read: “At City of Hope, we live to cure prostate cancer.” 

There are lessons here for us as a church. We need to anticipate that the 1^st Sunday someone comes to Eastwood they will be a little anxious. Many are new to the community and many are just new to church life. Some are bringing the pieces of a broken life looking for hope. Who can blame them for being a little anxious? A repeated theme in the article was the need to have adequate volunteers and greeters as well as signage and literature. We need to continually evaluate, from the perspective of someone new, how we greet, where we take, and how we help first time attendees. I think our campus both inside and out speaks well of who we are as a church family and I am confident the new campus building in Alvaton will as well. We must keep our website fresh, technologically up to date, with relevant pertinent information about who we are as a church. Whether at home, work, the mall, or wherever we need to be walking billboards communicating what it means to be a Christ-follower.