By Jennifer Johnson
Like many churches, Compass Christian Church in Colleyville, TX, has a new members class””theirs is called “Discover Compass”””to share information about the church, its mission, and its ministries. Unlike most churches, Compass follows this up with a behind-the-scenes tour to help each person find a way to serve.
To facilitate serving, Compass Christian Church has a new members class called “Discover Compass” followed a week later by a behind-the-scenes tour.
“We hold the Discover Compass class one week and invite people to come back the following week for Serve Tour,” says Rich Green, serve pastor at Compass. “We begin with a short overview of the importance of serving and why it”s part of the Christian life; then we walk through the building during a weekend worship service so they can see current volunteers in action.”
The tour gives participants a backstage look at everything from working with children to greeting visitors, with information on what each volunteer role involves.
“This helps people picture themselves trying things they might otherwise feel unsure about,” Green says. “The whole time you”re calling people not to a task but to a greater vision of how they can make a difference for the kingdom. It”s about being part of the evangelism and discipleship of the local church, not just doing a job.”
Green says the idea can work for any size church; Compass now offers Serve Tours at its new Roanoke campus, which averages 250 and needs volunteers for tasks like setup and teardown of the worship space. The tours also help people discover serving opportunities they may not have considered before, like Communion preparation or data entry.
“It surprises me how much people enjoy the tours,” Green says. “And the success rate is amazing, far better than asking people to go online or fill out a card to volunteer. Ninety-nine percent of the time, if they go on a Serve Tour, they”re going to serve.”
Excellent.