[Jesus said,] “When you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me”
(Matthew 25:40 NIV)
Do we have visitors to our church, or do we have guests? What’s the difference?
Visitors are people who may or may not be expected – bill collectors, salesmen, politicians, Jehovah’s Witnesses… The house may not be clean. It may be a bad time. Ben Franklin said, “Fish and visitors stink in three days.” Or three minutes…
Guests, on the other hand, we prepare for. Usually we’ve got a snack or a nice meal prepared. We clean the house and dress up the kids. Guests are friends and family. We expect guests will stay a while, and we hope they come back in the future.
As we look forward to Easter, a lot of people will be coming to Mosinee UMC. Some of them will come for the soup dinners during Lent. A huge number will come for the Easter Egg hunt, and many will attend Easter Sunday.
Will we treat these folks as visitors, or guests? Being able to find the restrooms and the nursery is important. Having enough bulletins and gifts is important. Coffee and cookies – we got ‘em.
But the big difference between visitors and guests is how we treat them. Visitors get a few “hellos” from the ushers, while other folks stare at them. Visitors might even be asked to move if they sit in a regular’s seat.
Guests we welcome warmly – lots of people say “hi!,” ask about their families and where they work. We scoot over so guests can sit with us. We are excited to show guests around. We make sure guests get a book or CD from the free gift rack in the lobby. At Mosinee UMC, guests are just God’s family members we are getting to know better.
Get ready for guests at Easter!
Pastor Park