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 Greeters make sure everyone—whether a member, visitor, or guest preacher—gets welcomed at Trinity Christian Reformed Church in Rock Valley, Iowa.
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How to Welcome Guest Preachers
Text by Joan Huyser-Honig
Photography by Steve Huyser-Honig
The way your church welcomes (or fails to welcome) a guest preacher also says something about how visitors experience your church. And if you’re the pulpit supply, the way you prepare makes a big difference.
Sad but true. A guest preacher agreed to preach at a church more than an hour’s drive away. The church leader who’d phoned replied, “We’ll pay you $100—the easiest $100 you’ve ever made”…as if the time and study that go into good sermons aren’t worth much.
A visiting preacher arrived at a church at the agreed-on time, but there was no one to greet him, and when he finally found the nursery for his toddler, the attendants acted miffed that he didn’t know the sign-in policies.
A seminarian preached in another church—only to be accosted in the narthex by someone who criticized a section of the sermon and blamed it on “what those people at the seminary are teaching.”
It was Mother’s Day, so a guest preacher brought along his wife and kids. During the service, the women received small potted plants. All, that is, except for the guest preacher’s wife.
Here’s hoping your congregation is more sensitive. But even if you’ve assumed you do a pretty good job of welcoming guest preachers, it’s worth thinking through how you do it. After all, much of what a visiting pastor experiences at your church is what any visitor would experience.
 Unless you explain, a visiting preacher won’t know whether to feel responsible for every part of the service or just certain parts. |
Howard Vanderwell, a retired pastor who preaches often in other churches, has compiled a list of guidelines for hosting guest preachers.
Vanderwell suggests informing the visiting preacher about church life or program issues that will help him or her choose a sermon theme, especially if the service is part of a mission emphasis week or will include a special event or Lord’s Supper celebration.
Send a liturgy or service order, clearly marked with which parts the guest preacher will lead. And invite questions. Vanderwell says, “If the preacher has not been to your congregation before, he or she will likely have questions you might not think of. Where should I sit? What type of microphone will I use?”
Scott Hoezee, director of the Center for Excellence in Preaching, notes that the church office should clearly communicate all service details and responsibilities far enough ahead “so the guest pastor can, if need be, prepare a prayer of confession, children’s sermon, congregational prayer, and so on.”
An essential way to make a guest preacher feel welcome is to state a time and place in the church where he or she will meet a designated person. That person should be wearing a name tag and know where the guest needs to go first.
“Immediately orient the guest preacher to the timeline, such as, ‘Ten minutes before worship, the elders will pray with you. Elder Smith will introduce you at the beginning of worship. Elder Jones will lead the prayer of intercession. Meanwhile, here’s a quiet room where you can gather your thoughts,' ” says Ed Eubanks. A Christian school administrator in Wildwood, Missouri, Eubanks is also a Covenant Theological Seminary graduate and frequent pulpit supply minister.
Vanderwell adds, “Worship leaders who serve together in a service will serve more comfortably if they meet face to face.” That gives everyone a chance to ask questions, clarify roles, and pray together before the service.
 Every congregation has its own mindset about young children in worship. Let the guest preacher know what’s expected or accepted in your sanctuary. |
Double check your visitor protocol
“Some congregations are just warmer and friendlier than others. Walking through the narthex as a guest pastor, I find congregations where members stop me frequently to say hello or comment on the sermon. In other congregations, I breeze through with few, or any, people greeting me.
“Doubtless, that would be the experience of any guest in their midst, not just the guest preacher,” Hoezee says.
Eubanks and other visiting preachers who bring their families note several things that help make guests feel welcome:
- Parking spaces set aside for visitors
- Clearly-marked exterior entrances
- Clear signage or helpful greeters who explain what’s available for children and whether to keep crying babies in worship or bring them to a “cry room”
- Well-organized nursery and church school spaces, along with friendly attendants
- Greeters who offer help with wheelchairs, large-print liturgies, or hearing loop technology
- Explanations for practices unique to a congregation, such as multiple songbooks or distribution methods for the Lord’s Supper
 At Cambodian Fellowship in Holland, Michigan, members know that a one-to-one invitation makes visitors feel welcome to join a post-worship potluck. |
Offer post-worship hospitality
If your guest preacher is coming from out of town or preaching for morning and evening services, discuss meal arrangements ahead of time. “If the preacher (and family) must travel for more than 30 to 45 minutes after worship, they’ll probably need to stop for lunch or bring one along. An advance invitation assuages concerns,” Ed Eubanks says.
For visiting preachers who need a place to stay, you might assume it’s most welcoming to put them up at a church member’s home. But it’s better to offer the option of a home stay or hotel room.
“Preaching and leading worship take a lot of energy, no matter where you are. If the guest pastor also needs to feel like he or she is ‘on’ for hours on end while staying with other people, the energy drain is more pronounced,” Hoezee explains.
When worship ends, make sure there are people who will introduce themselves to the guest pastor and family, thank the preacher, and welcome them to any post-worship fellowship, whether coffee and donuts or a potluck. “I’ve had individuals in a congregation give me a few dollars ‘to cover gas.’ What a nice gesture!” Eubanks says.
PROFILE: HOW TO PREPARE WHEN YOU’RE THE PULPIT SUPPLY
There’s no need to sit back and wait for a congregation to clue you in about your upcoming guest sermon arrangements. Take the initiative to find information that will help you enter a new church feeling confident, prepared, and on time to bring God’s Word.
Your sense of ease will help worshipers switch from “Who’s the new preacher?” to “Let’s worship together.”
 It’s wiser for a visiting preacher to encourage or inspire than to admonish. |
Ed Eubanks says one of the best ways to approach the pulpit supply ministry is to be “ministry minded. You’re not there for your benefit, so don’t focus on preaching experience, theological experience, or money. Instead, focus on meeting the needs, felt or otherwise, of your temporary congregation.”
Besides asking ahead of time about congregational events and prayer requests, you can peruse the church website or ask the church secretary to send you recent bulletins.
Communicate your sermon text and theme far enough ahead so others—worship leaders, musicians, PowerPoint team, and church secretary—have time to plan their parts.
Being ministry minded also means, Eubanks says, “being on time to preach, ready to pray, ready to lead, and ready to be challenged, whether through a congregant whose toes got stepped on in the sermon or through a companion who offers honest critique.”
Sermon selection can be tricky for guest preachers, according to Duane Kelderman, who teaches preaching at Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Given a choice between “sermons that comfort the disturbed and sermons that disturb the comfortable,” he advises guest preachers to choose the former.
“Sermons that have a strong word of judgment are best preached where the pastor has earned the right in terms of a deep relationship of love and trust developed over time. It’s hard to overdo sermons filled with grace, hope, joy, encouragement, or inspiration,” Kelderman says.
 People experienced in pulpit supply advise nailing down details ahead of time and arriving early enough to gather your thoughts. |
Thank the church secretary or worship leader who offers advance details that help you prepare to preach and lead worship. Then ask about what hasn’t been covered, like what to wear. If the church is used to a Hawaiian-shirted pastor, you don’t want to show up in your robe and Trinity Season stole.
Sometimes a congregation doesn’t clue you in on something ahead of time, and you won’t think to ask…until there’s a surprise.
Scott Hoezee recalls a congregation that had asked him to give the benediction. “I was using a particularly poignant and lovely benediction that tied back to the sermon. About four words into the blessing, however, the man on the electric guitar began strumming. I was irritated by this musical intrusion—and if there’s one thing you don’t want to be when pronouncing a blessing, it’s irritated!”
He’s since noticed that pianists or musicians ask ahead of time whether it’s okay to play during prayers or other spoken parts. If not, he knows to address the issue before worship.
Hoezee also suggests asking for any directions that might augment what you’d find on Mapquest or Google Maps. And allow plenty of time so you can arrive at least a half hour before worship begins. “Arriving late ensures that someone on the other end will be nervous as a cat and wondering what to do without a pastor for the day,” he says.
 The first few minutes of the service often set the tone for the rest of worship. |
In his list of acquired tips on how to be a guest preacher, Howard Vanderwell urges, “Be sensitive to local customs. Since I am entering into their community, I will need to abide by their customs.” That’s why he advises asking ahead of time about what the congregation is used to regarding Bible translations, sermon length, and worship practices uniquely theirs.
Hoezee says that, for guest preachers, using humor or highlighting differences often makes worshipers feel uncomfortable. They don’t know whether chuckling at a remark is okay or would offend their guest. “You won’t get off to a good start if you begin a service saying something like ‘Hoo-boy. It was a long drive out here this morning. I’m not used to being out in the sticks like this!’
“Smile, be warm, be friendly, thank them for having you there, and then lead the service with due reverence and decorum. And don’t rush out the door after church,” he adds.
Eubanks agrees. “Whether or not it feels that way, being a guest preacher is an honor and privilege. Show appreciation for this chance for ministry and the hospitality shown—and you’ll be all the more appreciated.”
For even more tips on welcoming guest preachers and being a good guest preacher, see these guidelines from Howard Vanderwell and Placement Reflections blog posts by Ed Eubanks:
- Vanderwell guidelines for hosting guest preachers
- Vanderwell acquired tips on how to be a guest preacher
- Eubanks pulpit supply lessons, part one
- Eubanks pulpit supply lessons, part two
- Eubanks top 10 questions to ask when invited to preach
Visiting preachers aren’t always seminarians or seminary graduates. The Episcopal, United Church of Christ, and United Methodist denominations, for example, have processes for certifying or licensing lay preachers.
Consider inviting your church staff, council, outreach committee, or any study group to go through the course Making Your Church More Inviting: A Step-by-Step Guide for In-Church Training.
You’ve probably heard of mystery shoppers, those anonymous but purposeful visitors who help banks, stores, and restaurants evaluate themselves. Now check out reports from mystery worshipers. You might recognize your own congregation.
Read Reformed Worship articles on welcoming people from other cultures and taking the first steps toward church hospitality. Jane Fisler Hoffman, a United Church of Christ minister, offers helpful tips on welcoming church visitors.
Browse related stories on using commentaries to write sermons, pastoral renewal, sermon helps, and accessibility in worship architecture.
Feel free to print and distribute these stories at your next council, staff, worship, or outreach committee meeting. These questions will get members talking about how to welcome guest preachers and any other church visitors.
- Think back on the last few times your church had a guest preacher. What went well? What could have gone better? What checklists or policies or practices would you like to develop?
- Who in your church is responsible for making guest preacher contacts—weeks ahead, on the day of, and immediately after worship? How does this person know what he or she should do? Is anything written down in case the responsibility gets shifted to someone new?
- Which aspects of church worship do you assume “everyone knows”? Have you noticed visitors who don’t know or been surprised while visiting churches with different worship practices?
- What is your congregation’s self perception about friendliness or hospitality to church visitors? Do you tend to err by smothering and embarrassing visitors or by ignoring them?
What is the best way you’ve found to be more welcoming to guest preachers and other visitors? Please write to us so we can identify trends and share your great ideas. Whether you do these or any other things, we’d love to learn what works for you:
- Whether you’ve invited mystery worshipers, surveyed guest preachers, or sent out teams to visit other churches, what’s the best way you’ve found to identify your church’s blind spots regarding hospitality?
- If your congregation sees itself as shy or reserved, what resources or strategies have helped you move toward being more welcoming?
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This article was first published by the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, http://www.calvin.edu/worship/stories/.