This is a heads-up: It’s time to invite someone to church.
Next Sunday is National Back to Church Sunday. Beginning in 2009, churches across this nation and in other countries have celebrated it on the third Sunday in September as an initiative to invite people back to church.
National Back to Church Sunday is a cross-denominational movement to help reverse declining church attendance and encourage people to attend church. According to backtochurch.com, for this year’s sixth annual event, 30,000 churches are expected to participate across Christian denominations. Leaders estimate that more than 3.34 million people around the world could be involved.
Since the initiative began in 2009, National Back to Church Sunday has caught on within thousands of churches.
Each year, the number of churches participating in the movement has increased.
Next Sunday, churches again will open their doors and welcome everyone who would like to rediscover church. Liberty County has over 200 churches, with plenty of empty pews that need to be filled. Therefore, National Back to Church Sunday is an opportune time to invite family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and even strangers to come and participate in the worship service.
Members can take advantage of social-media outlets like Facebook and Twitter to extend invitations.
Sending a text to your circle of family and friends is another way of inviting people to come to your church or to a church in their community. Get your young people (the millennials) involved — they love social media.   
Then, make it a habit to invite people to join you for worship service every Sunday.
Often times, they are waiting for you to extend an invitation.
According to Dr. Thom Rainer in “The Unchurched Next Door,” “Eighty-two percent of the unchurched are at least somewhat likely to attend church if invited. Yet only 2 percent of Christians ever invite someone to church.”
With only one week left, every church in Liberty County can be filled to capacity next Sunday. When people come to church, show them love and kindness. Have greeters and ushers at the door welcoming them with a smile, hug or handshake, and they just might come back again.