It is almost always appropriate to open with a prayer. If you’re suffering from writer’s block, consider leading the congregation in a prayer that reflects on the occasion in some way. You can also read an excerpt from the Bible or another religious document.
Give a Warm Greeting
Your welcome speech should always begin with an introduction of yourself. “My name is…” is all you need to say, though you can add other details. If you are a pastor or priest at another church, you should say that, so people don’t confuse you with other staffers.
After your introduction, you can transition into the body of your speech. A remark like, “I am so happy to welcome all of you,” is a good transition. It serves as a greeting to your audience and lets you move on.
Try to avoid using cliches like, “I welcome you on behalf of…” Many people have heard remarks like these, and they have lost their power. You should also avoid introducing someone else unless you are requested to do so.
While you are giving your greeting, put a smile on your face and raise the pitch of your voice slightly. You can gesture with an open palm, which signifies openness and hospitality.
You can also greet anyone coming onto the stage after you. Make sure to say their name and rank and give a brief summary of what they are about to say. Don’t ask for applause, as your audience will likely clap as they come up.
Create Emotions in Your Audience
Smiling and shifting your tone up is a good way to make your audience happy. You can also use creative diction and action verbs to inspire your audience and encourage them to listen to you.
Try to avoid using adverbs or adjectives, and instead find verbs with similar meanings. If you want to say, “We’ll get through that quickly,” you should say, “We’ll speed through that.”
Many people tell jokes to satisfy their audience, which can be risky. A joke can be inappropriate during a formal or somber occasion, and the joke may not land correctly.
If you are going to tell a joke, try doing a pun or wordplay. Never make a joke at someone else’s expense, unless you are being self-deprecating, but that can also be risky. Instead, try something like rhyming. It may not be funny, but it can catch your audience’s attention and connect two ideas together.
Be Brief
Welcome speech examples are rarely more than 150 words long. Your speech is not the time for an exegesis of the Bible or an introduction for a guest. Say what you need to say to start the occasion and then move on.
Consider writing out your speech word for word and seeing what details you can cut out. Besides adverbs and adjectives, you can cut out any details that the priest or pastor will say later.
Save church announcements and in-house business for another occasion. You can send out reminders about upcoming events in emails and text messages.
Accommodate First-Time Church Visitors
Words of welcome before worship should be appealing to first-time visitors to your church. Don’t say, “Welcome members of my church,” as a greeting. You can say something like, “Welcome brothers and sisters,” instead.
You can also say something like, “If you are visiting us for the first time today, we’re happy you are here.” Don’t point out first-time visitors in the audience because this can make them self-conscious. Feel free to give visitors directions to your welcome center or the bathrooms, especially if you have a large church.
You can say something to put your first-time visitors at ease. “We won’t ask you to stand up or participate during songs” can be comforting for some people.
Though you shouldn’t promote upcoming events, you can point out that you meet every week and the visitors are welcome to return to your next service. You can also mention a newcomers’ gathering.
Introduce Your Church
Your speech should serve as an introduction to your church as a whole, not just your service. You can include your church’s mission statement if it is one or two sentences long. If it’s longer than that, you can condense it into a brief description.
You can also mention any unique features of your church, like the year it was founded. Highlight only one detail in your speech so you don’t spend too much time talking about your church’s history. You can discuss any other relevant details in a sermon later in the program.
Accompany Your Speech with Visuals and Handouts
Visuals can underscore what you are talking about and entertain your audience. You can put a simple graphic behind you that welcomes guests to your church. You can find stock art online for free with welcome messages, or you can make your own.
If you have guests who may not hear you properly, you should have a transcription of your words on the screen. Make sure you select an appropriate font like Times New Roman that is easy for people to read.
You can also put flowers around the lectern or on stage. Try to find flowers associated with Christ that are reflective of your service. White lilies and orchids are extremely popular in churches because they signify purity and faith.
Another effective way to put guests at ease is to give them something. At a minimum, they should have a Bible and songbook so they can follow along with the service. You can also hand out bottles of water and snacks that they can consume during the occasion.
Church welcome materials can include church connection cards and fliers. You can leave them at the front of the room for first-time visitors to collect, or you can have someone hand them out.
Practice How to Give a Welcome Speech in Church
Practicing welcome speeches takes time. You should write a draft of your speech and then read it out loud to see if the sentences flow together. If anything seems choppy, you should rewrite your speech until everything feels fluid.
Once you have a workable draft, you should stand up and rehearse how you will gesture with your hands. You can look into the mirror while you do this so you can make the right facial expressions as well.
You can then make a recording of your speech. Listen for any stutters, mispronounced words or pauses. Take a note of when they occur during your speech, then rehearse those sections over again until they are perfect.
You don’t have to memorize your speech. But when you are not looking at notes, you should be making eye contact with your audience. Sweep across the room so you can look at everyone without focusing on a particular person.
You should run your speech by the person leading the service. You should also run it by anyone who is speaking later in the program. This will help you avoid repetitive details and let you make a proper introduction.
Welcome Speech for Church Examples
A few methods to capture your audience’s attentiveness are to acknowledge newcomers and include the core points of your speech in the introduction. You should also warmly invite the participants to connect with the church through prayer.
You must give a clear speech for your church program by identifying the reason why everyone is gathered.
Your welcome address for church program not only creates a connection with the congregation but also honors your guests by thanking them for serving you and the church.
Finding the perfect words of welcome before worship is a challenge for many. You want people to be inspired and welcomed, but how can you tell what will be effective? Unfortunately, there’s no crystal ball to see what will work, but you can borrow from others to get the inspiration you need.
If you are looking for some inspiration to craft a well-worded and elegant welcome address for a church program, then you must check out these examples!
General Welcome Speech Examples
- Sunday Services
Good morning and welcome to [CHURCH NAME]. We are so glad that you have chosen this place of worship to honor the Lord’s name with us.
If you are new to this church, we would like to thank you for worshiping with us and we warmly welcome you into [CHURCH NAME] as our brothers and our sisters.
Let us reflect on this day and give thanks to the Lord our God with the passage Psalm 100:4-5, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His court with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.”
- Church Speech
Good morning/ afternoon. It is so nice to see all that have gathered here today. Thank you for coming to our church to take part in the celebration of our Sunday mass.
We are so blessed for our short time together and thank God for uniting us as one. We give thanks to God for both our regular churchgoers and the visitors to [CHURCH NAME] today.
Each one of you is special to us and we want you to feel the love of Jesus as we worship together.
- Church Welcomes
Church Welcome Sample #1
Welcome to all as we celebrate the glory of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It is my pleasure to welcome all the brothers and sisters of the church.
We want to thank everyone for taking time out of their days to give praise to the Lord for continuing to bless their lives day in and day out. Your sacrifices have allowed you to be fruitful and abundant.
We would also like to extend a warm welcome to any newcomers. The Lord brought you here as a stranger but will make sure that you leave as family.
Please join me as we pray.
Church Welcome Sample #2
Good morning and happy Sunday! Thank you for taking time out of your Sabbath to gather with me in the house of our Lord.
Today, I see many familiar faces of those whom I’ve grown to love and cherish. And, today, I thank the Lord, for I also see a few new faces of people who I can get the opportunity to meet.
Please look around the room with me and see how blessed we are to be gathered with all these beautiful people! Now turn to your neighbor for a peace offering, for we are all loved by the same God, and he wants us to love each other.
Hello everyone and welcome. We would like to thank you on behalf of [CHURCH NAME] for coming out to celebrate with us.
- Welcome Address for Church Program
My name is [INSERT NAME] and I would like to welcome you on behalf of the church as we gather here today to honor our heavenly Father. We all embody the image and likeness of God, as we are his humble servants.
Let us take time to recognize the significance of Christ’s resurrection into the kingdom of Heaven. For God sacrificed his only son to save us.
We are overjoyed with love as we celebrate this holy Sunday. May our journeys be filled with happiness and gratitude. May we overcome every obstacle we may face and resist all temptation with the grace of God.
Thanks be to God.
- Welcome Speech for Church
Good morning. I would like to extend a few words of welcome before worship. Thank you all for gathering here for this occasion.
We have been blessed by God with another beautiful day, let us rejoice in his sovereignty and give thanks.
Let us quote from 1 Romans 6:4, “We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in the newness of life.”
We are all family here at [CHURCH NAME] and through the grace of God, let us join in communion and give thanks for the ability to worship.
- Church Anniversary Welcome
Hello, we are so happy that you have chosen to celebrate with us at our place of worship. This is a very exciting time for [CHURCH NAME] as we welcome another anniversary of our church program.
Let us take this precious moment to thank our heavenly Father for granting us yet another successful year. We are truly blessed by the Lord and with him by our side, we can do anything.
A hundred thanks to you, the people, because we would not have a church without its worshipers.
We have been righteously guided by our wonderful pastor to carry out the works of God.
May we continue to be blessed with abundance and opportunity in the years to come.
In God’s name, we pray.
Get more ideas for anniversary speeches here.
Welcome Speech for a Good Friday Service
Do you need a welcome speech for a Good Friday service?
For the day that commemorates Jesus dying on the cross for our sins, you cannot simply throw something together last minute. This welcome deserves thoughtful words and a stellar deliverance.