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Jesus told us in his Parable of the Prodigal Son the kind of welcome people receive who come to the Father. So we "kill the fatted calf" and hold a celebration and welcome dinner for every new member.

When someone comes forward to be received into our church, we automatically schedule a celebration dinner the following Wednesday. All other Wednesday night programs are cancelled. If the new member failed to show up for the dinner (which has never happened), we would still celebrate this new life in our church family.

At the dinner we use china and glass, no paper plates. When the guests of honor, the new members arrive, they find a special seating area for them and their family. On the table in front of their plates are cards and letters from all of our members, welcoming them to our church. There's also a leather-bound Bible, with name engraved, for each new member.

Just before the blessing, the new members are invited to stand. We then have a short responsive reading honoring them:

Leader: Welcome! Why have you come here tonight?

People: We have come to celebrate our joy.

Leader: Why do you celebrate? What is your joy?

People: We have a new brother and sister in our family.

Leader: Name these new family members.

People: They are ____________________.

Leader: Let us all welcome them and sing praise to God.

All: Welcome, ________________. We love you.

Following the dinner there is a candlelight baptismal service and Communion together. The response to this dinner is great. One family wrote, "This church has made us feel so wanted, needed, and loved, and we shall never forget it."

Charles Yarborough

1996 by Christianity Today International/LEADERSHIP journal

Last Updated: September 17, 1996

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