Reconnect This Fall

Six Easy Ideas to Simply Reconnect with People Relationally this Fall

August 20, 20242 min read

It’s back to school season. How is your church using this season as a relaunch opportunity? As the cooler days set in, summer vacations come to an end, and people reset their schedules for a new fall routine, what has your church planned to take advantage of this moment? Connecting or reconnecting doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. Here are a few ideas to consider if your church would like to take advantage of this fall opportunity:

  1. 1:1 Contact - Let congregants know they were missed over the summer. Give them a call or text them. Provide a listing of the options for re-engagement.

  1. Something New - Offer something new and fresh to gain the attention of those who are looking for something exciting and different. Consider a new serving opportunity in the community or a new short-term small group experience with a meaningful topic.

  1. Gathering - Provide an opportunity for your congregation to gather and reconnect with one another.  Offer some intergenerational activities to engage all age levels that are fun and easy to participate in. 

  1. Community - Don’t forget about your neighbors! Offer opportunities to build relationships with the church’s neighbors.  Find connection points that meet the needs, gaps, or opportunities your neighbors would find value and meaning to participate in. If you don’t know what the potential connection points are, ask them!

  1. Serve - Find a community service project where everyone can participate. This would include congregants as well as neighbors. You could even come alongside existing projects such as Habitat for Humanity.

  1. School - Connect with the closest elementary school. Ask how you can be helpful that involves interaction with students, parents, and  faculty. Perhaps church members volunteer such opportunities as meet the teacher night (hospitality, finding rooms, handing out materials), monthly notes/small gifts for teachers, volunteer to work the school carnival so parents can participate with their children instead of running a booth, offer to be crossing guards, or offer to be readers in rooms for classes or individual students.

As individuals and families find themselves establishing a new routine this time of the year, be sure your church is on their radar for a space in their schedule. Without meaningful or valuable connection points, families will become too busy with other activities and not have the time or desire to engage in the life of the church. Which idea or two from the list might your church decide to try?


Kay’s purpose is to Equip and Empower Leaders of Faith Communities How to Engage in More Effective Ministry.
Kay Kotan is the founder of You Unlimited (coaching, consulting and training company) and The Greatest Expedition – a collaboration of more than twenty thought leaders providing resources and insights for a congregational journey to develop new MAPS (ministry action plans) to reach new people in your community.  Kay also launched Multipliers’ Movement – a gathering of kingdom multipliers for sharing, equipping, and encouraging.
She is a CoachU and Advanced CoachU Graduate, an accredited coach (PCC: Professional Certified Coach) with the ICF, International Coaching Federation, a Certified Path 1 Coach, and once served on the faculty at Coaching4Clergy.  As a passionate lay person, she has a banking background and has been a business owner for more than 25 years.  Kotan has served as a church developer for conferences and worked with churches, pastors, conferences, and judicatory leaders across the country for more than a decade.  She is most proud to be the wife of Bob for over 30 years and the mother of their adult son, Cameron.
Kay is the author of multiple books, workbooks, and resources including Gear Up:  Nine Essential Processes for the Optimized Church, Cry From the Pew, Full Schedules, Barren Souls, Being the Church in the Post Pandemic World, and Journey Preparation: Surveying Your Church’s Landscape,  as well as the co-author of the books titled:  IMPACT!:  Reclaiming the Call of Lay Ministry, Small Church Check-Up, Insights on Productivity, Renovate or Die – Ten Ways to Focus Your Church on Mission, Ministry 3.0 and Get Their Name , Ten Prescriptions for a Healthy Church, Necessary Nine – Nine Things Effective Pastors Do Differently, Launching Leaders:  Taking Leadership Development to New Heights, Strategy Matters:  Your Roadmap to Planning a Strategic Ministry Planning Retreat, Voices of Christmas: A Daily Devotional for Advent and Expanding the Expedition Reach Through Marketplace Multipliers. Mission Possible for the Small Church. Inside Out: Everting Ministry Models for the Postmodern Church, and more. Kotan and her co-author Bradford published their third version of the best-seller, Mission Possible:  Simple Structure for Missional Effectiveness.  

Mrs. Kotan spends her time investing in pastors, laity leaders, congregations, and judicatory leaders through equipping, coaching, and creating resources to help them discover and live into their fullest missional potential of effectiveness and fruitfulness to reach people for Jesus Christ.  Through her enthusiasm, truth-telling, and passion, she challenges those who encounter her in both their thinking and their doing.

Kay Kotan

Kay’s purpose is to Equip and Empower Leaders of Faith Communities How to Engage in More Effective Ministry. Kay Kotan is the founder of You Unlimited (coaching, consulting and training company) and The Greatest Expedition – a collaboration of more than twenty thought leaders providing resources and insights for a congregational journey to develop new MAPS (ministry action plans) to reach new people in your community.  Kay also launched Multipliers’ Movement – a gathering of kingdom multipliers for sharing, equipping, and encouraging. She is a CoachU and Advanced CoachU Graduate, an accredited coach (PCC: Professional Certified Coach) with the ICF, International Coaching Federation, a Certified Path 1 Coach, and once served on the faculty at Coaching4Clergy. As a passionate lay person, she has a banking background and has been a business owner for more than 25 years. Kotan has served as a church developer for conferences and worked with churches, pastors, conferences, and judicatory leaders across the country for more than a decade. She is most proud to be the wife of Bob for over 30 years and the mother of their adult son, Cameron. Kay is the author of multiple books, workbooks, and resources including Gear Up: Nine Essential Processes for the Optimized Church, Cry From the Pew, Full Schedules, Barren Souls, Being the Church in the Post Pandemic World, and Journey Preparation: Surveying Your Church’s Landscape, as well as the co-author of the books titled: IMPACT!: Reclaiming the Call of Lay Ministry, Small Church Check-Up, Insights on Productivity, Renovate or Die – Ten Ways to Focus Your Church on Mission, Ministry 3.0 and Get Their Name , Ten Prescriptions for a Healthy Church, Necessary Nine – Nine Things Effective Pastors Do Differently, Launching Leaders: Taking Leadership Development to New Heights, Strategy Matters: Your Roadmap to Planning a Strategic Ministry Planning Retreat, Voices of Christmas: A Daily Devotional for Advent and Expanding the Expedition Reach Through Marketplace Multipliers. Mission Possible for the Small Church. Inside Out: Everting Ministry Models for the Postmodern Church, and more. Kotan and her co-author Bradford published their third version of the best-seller, Mission Possible: Simple Structure for Missional Effectiveness. Mrs. Kotan spends her time investing in pastors, laity leaders, congregations, and judicatory leaders through equipping, coaching, and creating resources to help them discover and live into their fullest missional potential of effectiveness and fruitfulness to reach people for Jesus Christ. Through her enthusiasm, truth-telling, and passion, she challenges those who encounter her in both their thinking and their doing.

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