Church Welcome Speech

Are you nervous about delivering a church welcome speech? Well, here are some church welcome speech ideas that will help you to prepare for your welcome speech.
Addressing the people assembled at church is far different from addressing people at any other social gathering. Delivering the welcome speech is particularly difficult as you have to set the tone for what is to follow. A welcome speech is the first glimpse of the entire program for the audience, hence the success of the entire function greatly depends upon the success of a welcome speech. Identifying the mood of your audience and striking the right cord are the two things one must remember while delivering a church welcome speech. You need a fair amount of practice and preparation to successfully deliver a church welcome address speech. Given below are some ideas for preparing a church welcome speech and a sample church welcome speech.

Church Welcome Speech Ideas

Know the Occasion
Occasional welcome speeches are different from the service speeches on Sunday. You have to deliver the speech as per the type of occasion. Sometimes, a gathering may be called to celebrate a birth in the family, whereas, sometimes a service may be called to lament the death of a fellow church member. Oftentimes, the gathering may be called to celebrate an event or festival, or even parties like potluck. Needless to say, you have to adopt a different tone for your speech according to the occasion.

Greet Warmly
Always find a unique and warm way to greet your audience. Avoid cliché like 'I welcome you on behalf of..'. Instead go for something that truly shows how glad you are to welcome your church members. 'I am glad to welcome you all' or 'we have all been eagerly waiting for this gathering' can be good opening statements. The whole emphasis should be on communicating your joy and welcoming your guests without actually saying it.

Set the Tone
Once you greet your audience appropriately, the next step is to set the tone for the rest of the program. You should strike an emotional connection with your audience by relating to their joy or grief. Gently set the tone for the rest of the program by briefing your audience regarding what is to follow. This is the reason you cannot afford to make a boring welcome speech, as people might anticipate the following program to be equally boring.

Practice
Once you are done with the drafting of your speech you should start memorizing it. It is alright to carry notes while delivering long speeches, but since church welcome speeches are likely to be brief you would rather memorize them. Memorizing the speech allows you to coordinate your speech and gestures and also helps you to modulate your voice.

Sample Church Welcome Speech

Given below is an extract from Pastor Robert Whitley's welcome speech on the occasion of confirmation at Good Hope Church.
"We greet each of you in the mighty name of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is of the utmost importance that you know how elated we are that God has guided you our way.
As you make yourself available to come and worship with us, we hope that you will feel the presence of the Lord in the sanctuary of this great church. Praise is definitely what we do to an Awesome God who is worthy of all honor and glory.
The Good Hope Church Family feels honored to serve, and our prayer is that you would love to come and be a part of this fellowship as we move forward in the things of God. This church has a list of ministries that are centered on our mission statement. In all we do, we strive to educate on God's Word, edify one another, and evangelize.
My wife, myself, and the entire church family are here with open arms, a loving heart, and a giving spirit. If you are without a church home or seeking salvation, please know that our doors and our hearts are always open to you. Today, any day, anytime, ....just come!"

Hope the church welcome speech ideas given in this article help you to prepare an effective and warm welcome speech for your audience.
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Last Updated: 2/17/2012
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