Thinking about back doors

I've been thinking about back doors recently.You know, those ignominious things most houses have often somewhere near the laundry. In our house the back door is so marginalised it has a refrigerator in front of it blocking it off entirely. In it's place we have French doors out onto the back deck - we are in a kind of back door denial.I'm sure back doors are a planning requirement. Where else would you leave all those shoes and boots and buckets and mops and evil chemicals and pets if you didn't have a back door?The best thing about the back door is you can make your escape quietly. I know people who, on arriving at others houses, case the joint to plan their escape if it all becomes too much for them.Just like houses, churches have back doors too; literal and metaphorical back doors. Just look for the mops and buckets, they both prefer the literal back door at St Philips.Others case the metaphorical back door.Coming into church is a brave and risky thing to do. To consider staying and joining is a miraculous work of courage and grace. Church people are no less dangerous and unknown than any other people. Even worse they all seem to know everyone else and those people circles look impregnable. To add insult to potential injury they have to walk right through everyone to get a cup of tea to hide behind! At least at the mega church you can be anonymous and invisible.Some dear folk slip in to church and look for the back door and stand there just to see if anyone will stop them leaving or try and coax them to stay. It's a test. Most churches fail.At St Philips we have a big enough back door for folk to slip in and out without too much notice. This is unfortunate. We want to be better at welcoming. We need everyone to have a, "can I help?" outlook.Some people naturally welcome the strangers and guard the silver at the same time. To be truly welcoming beyond just saying "hi" is a real commitment. Welcoming is a major ministry and needs a very savvy, committed overseer who just hates seeing people who have been brave enough to wander in the front door slip anonymously out the back door. A welcoming overseer thinks pastorally, strategically and administratively.If you are interested to know how important and multifaceted welcoming is, try going to another church one Sunday and see how you are welcomed or not. Understandably, visitors don't complain, they just disappear out the back door.A commitment to being a welcoming person - the authenticity of our Christian love depends on it.In Jesus' AdventureMalcolm