Jesus: One cup at a time

Recently there have been a number of conversations I’ve had with people about how to invite people to Church. It seems that this can become quite an issue for some folks. And while there is perhaps a science or method to welcoming people to Church and some best practices to follow, at its very root it is quite simple:
 

Just invite them!

We evangelize about things we find value in all the time and don’t even realize it. For example, a colleague of mine invited me to try some coffee she really likes. Not being one to pass up a free cup of coffee, I gave it a try and WOW! It was so good; I immediately took the coffee to another colleague and poured a little into her cup. A few minutes later, she came back to my office and asked if there was any more. It turns out, other people in the office have also tried this coffee and really like it too. It seems that everyone is drinking this coffee and new followers are born every day. And we do this kind of thing all the time, whether it is coffee, a new movie, or a new restaurant to check out.

It is the kind of advertising that marketing pros around the world hope to stir up with their flashy marketing campaigns in print and media. It’s called word-of-mouth advertising among friends. Sound familiar? Was this not one way in which the early Church evangelized the known civilized world within 300 years after Christ’s death and resurrection from the dead? “I’ve encountered Jesus of Nazareth and it is the best thing that has ever happened to me and I would like you to get to know him too!” (cf. John1: 40-46) Sometimes, we can over think it too much. It can be as simple as an invitation to come and see. “I really love going to this Church on Sunday, would you like to come with me? And maybe we could grab a cup of coffee afterward?” Oh, and if you need some pointers on good coffee, I can help you with that too!



Rev. Alexander C. Wroblicky, Associate Director for Evangelization and Missionary Outreach