New Appointment? 30 people you should meet during your honeymoon
The anticipation is building in some United Methodist congregations. A new pastor is coming to town in July!
If the person that everyone is excited about is you, congratulations. You are about to experience the coveted honeymoon phase. And who doesn’t love a good honeymoon? Oh, you may not be headed off to some exotic locale, but you’ll be surrounded by love and good wishes. All the attention will be on you. Use this time to your advantage.
Your congregants are going to want to meet the new pastor. That’s a given.
But who should you make it a priority to meet?
Get to know 10 people from each of these groups to find out who and what makes your congregation tick:
1. Your best pray-ers. These are the folk that others look to for spiritual guidance and leadership. They might be on your prayer team. They might be the quiet ones that don’t say much but are deeply rooted in faith. These folk may not be on leadership lists – as pray-ers anyway – but you’ll want to get to know them. Ask around. People will tell you who they are.
Find out what motivates them to be a person of prayer.
Ask them to pray for you and the future of the congregation.
Thank them for their ministry.
2. Your best volunteers. These are the people who can be counted on to be the do-ers. When they say they are going to do something, guess what…they do it. They are the backbone of lay ministry. The church would be lost if something happened to them. Look at your leadership list and ask others who they think is "all in."
Find out why they are so dedicated.
Discover their very favorite thing to do for the church.
Thank them for their ministry.
3. Your best givers. These are the people who financially support your congregation. When a need is expressed, they are the first to answer the call. They can be counted on to give and give generously from their means. You will need to get this list from your Financial Secretary. It’s up to you whether or not you want to find out the amount folks are giving (I think it’s helpful).
Ask them about their relationship to the church and why they give.
See what ministries they would like to see grow and what role they would like to play in making that happen.
Thank them for their ministry.
Here's the cool part. It’s likely that there’s cross-over in each of these groups. Maybe you’ll only need to meet with 20 people because your most faithful giver is also an amazing prayer. Or your great volunteer is also a dedicated giver. Or maybe they’re the magic unicorn…pray-er, volunteer, and giver. Hallelujah for them! The thing is, unless you make it your business to find out and start meeting people, you’ll never know.
Lean into your honeymoon. You’ll never have another one in this place or time.
Enjoy it, even if there’s no pool or drink with a little umbrella involved.
Related posts:
Six Ways to Stop Burning Out Your Volunteers
4 Ways to Thank Volunteers
Should You Know Who Gives What?
Photo credit: 4in @pixabay.com
Cesie Delve Scheuermann (pronounced “CC Delv Sherman,” yes, really) is a Stewardship Consultant for the OR-ID Annual Conference. She is also a Senior Ministry Strategist with Horizons Stewardship. For 25 years, while working as a volunteer and part-time consultant, she has helped raise over three million dollars for numerous churches and non-profit organizations. Here’s a clip from “Young Sheldon” as Sheldon’s church brings in a new youth pastor. He makes quite the impression.
You can reach Cesie at inspiringgenerosity@gmail.com, at CesieScheuermann.com, or at cesieds@horizons.net. Want to schedule a meeting? She’s got you covered!
Schedule a meeting now.
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