10 Ideas for Building Relationships at Church

This list was originally designed for people working in children's ministry, but it is certainly applicable to small groups as well. Here are 10 ways to build relationships with those around you:

1. Recognize birthdays.

2. Take time to get to know people.

3. Invite people to a Small Group. .

4. Meet outside the 4 walls of the church.

5. Send personal notes.

6. Invite people over to your home.

7. Remember people’s names and call them by name. Start with a handful of people and keep adding to the list. Learn techniques for remembering names.

8. Find things you have in common with people.

9. Spend time talking with people. During the weekend is not the time to be stuck in an office over a computer. Get out and get to know people personally.

10. Remember the 200 rule. The 200 rules says that you can only personally know about 200 people in a church no matter the size of the church. Sometimes you will have people say they like a “small church” feel. What they are saying is they want to be known personally.

I've modified this list a bit. You can read the original in its entirity at Christian Mesh.

More resources for building community: Creating Community Anywhere, Organic Community: Creating a Place Where People Naturally Connect (mersion: Emergent Village resources for communities of faith)

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