In some churches, there is a little booth called, “The Welcome Center.” It’s a place where people can get information about church activities and get to know church members and staff.
Well of course, when I first heard the term, I wondered what would happen if you placed someone there that wasn’t very welcoming. Maybe a volunteer had a rough start to the morning. Or perhaps there is one guest that is a little annoying like this cartoon and the host just wasn’t in the mood to handle it.
There are ways to make a welcoming center more welcoming. As this post suggests, staffing it well is important. It mentions four mistakes in staffing a welcome center. Is having no one at the welcome center better than having Ms. Grumpy? I’m sure some churches have to face that dilemma on some Sundays.
I drew this cartoon for the November 2022 CHOGNews.