You never get a second chance at a first impression.
When picking up a date in high school, I remember my older brother telling me to be on time, go to the door and greet the parents/family, smile, ask about their interests, and be grateful. You never get a second chance at a first impression.
When going to an interview, others advised that I arrive early, dress professionally, be familiar with the company and position for which I am applying, prepare questions ahead of time, give a firm handshake, make eye contact, and smile. You never get a second chance at a first impression.
The same is true at church. Often, when I have a conversation with someone who recently visited Lord of Life for the first time, they talk about their first impressions using phrases like “What a friendly place. I felt welcomed.”, “There’s so much natural light in the worship space.”, and “It felt like coming home.” For those who visit in the summer, they are stunned that we have a permanent outdoor space under the canopy of trees. “Wow! What a joy and delight to worship in creation!” You never get a second chance at a first impression.
Think back to your first impressions of Lord of Life. What were they? Maybe you sent a child to the preschool or attended a 12-step meeting on a Sunday evening. Perhaps you were looking for a place to land for worship during COVID and stumbled on a worship service in your social media feed. You might live in the area and heard about the connection to the community.
My first impression of Lord of Life came while reading paperwork about the congregation from five states away in Wichita, KS. I had an overwhelming sense that this congregation rooted themselves in God’s promises and sought a life of faithfulness in worship, learning, and serving. Even in the midst of pastoral transition, this community played to their strengths and continued to move forward in intentional discipleship and mission. What a first impression!
Together, we’re working on some first impression projects right now. You may have noticed that our unrepairable road sign was recently removed. Thanks to a generous $15,000 designated gift, a new welcome sign has been created and is expected to be installed in the coming weeks. Lord of Life Christian Preschool is paying for an accompanying sign to be part of the project, too.
In addition, our church council recently approved a plan to move forward with repairing our parking lot and replacing our sanctuary sound system. Both of these directly connect to the first impressions people have of our faith community. The parking lot is not only visually a mess right now, but even has some hazardous areas where walking and driving are not safe. The sound system is essential not only to onsite worship and other events held in the sanctuary, but also impacts the outdoor and online worship moments. Can the Spirit of God work in spite of a crumbling parking lot and crackling sound system? Yes, absolutely. But these two projects will help our congregation make the best first impression possible.
This weekend, we are launching Sound Footing, a month-long campaign inviting you to help us tackle the cost of these two projects before we hit the summer months. Please prayerfully consider a special gift to help us bring renewal to the parking lot and sound system. See page three of the April Lifeline newsletter for more details, and be sure to catch worship this weekend when we’ll share more about the growing momentum for these plans.
Thank you for helping us make a good first impression and not only welcome people to the Lord of Life campus, but also invite them into abundant life in this community as we live, share, and celebrate the all-encompassing love of Jesus for all.
Sharing life together,
Pastor Lowell