I asked David to briefly comment on challenges that we faced regarding hospitality and fellowship. “It’s the challenges of a big church,” he said. “A prominent one is knowing how long everyone has been here. This takes some asking, and this can be awkward.” As David is a graduate of Virginia Theological Seminary, I mentioned that I had recently heard our VTS Dean, Dr. Ian Markham, speak at Saint James Parish in Wilmington on this very topic. Dr. Markham had essentially advised us not to worry if we didn’t fully remember a fellow church member, or how long they had been attending the church. The important thing was to robustly speak to people, to welcome them, to be genuinely glad to see them. David continued, “Space, of course, is also a challenge, and parking is and will continue to be a challenge.” David added that, “Newcomers often find the way to the nursery to be a challenge. Do I go upstairs or down, take the elevator or walk, and where is the signage all along the way?” We discussed the fact that we continue to work on this issue since “the nursery is one of the most important welcome features for parents with a baby.” David left for his next assignment; I saw him again that night around 7:00 when he finished officiating at the evening service in the chapel. I was in the midst of interviewing a “returning newcomer,” one who had been to our church as a graduate student at UNC and had returned to Chapel Hill to live with her husband and young son, Preston. David warmly welcomed her and chatted with her about his seeing Preston in Children’s Chapel the previous Sunday—another sign again of warm welcome and Christian hospitality.
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