Sunday, June 30, 2013
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Why Do Christians Leave the Faith?
Why Do Christians Leave the Faith?
by Rusty Ford
Want to take a minute to challenge your thinking and evaluate how you respond to those with doubts then this article may be what you need.
I found this article an interesting read. I am not sure that it reflects accurately the views of the average person who gives up on their Christian faith as the study was based on the written statements of 50 people who published why they left their faith online. I would think that people who make such a public statement might differ slightly from the average person. The published statements chosen seemed to be well thought out and the results of the study insightful.
The article is "Explaining Deconversion from Christianity" and is summed up in a 5 post blog series by the author .
by Rusty Ford
Want to take a minute to challenge your thinking and evaluate how you respond to those with doubts then this article may be what you need.
I found this article an interesting read. I am not sure that it reflects accurately the views of the average person who gives up on their Christian faith as the study was based on the written statements of 50 people who published why they left their faith online. I would think that people who make such a public statement might differ slightly from the average person. The published statements chosen seemed to be well thought out and the results of the study insightful.
The article is "Explaining Deconversion from Christianity" and is summed up in a 5 post blog series by the author .
For those of you who want to read the entire article "Explaining Deconversion from Christianity"
You can read the entire article here
http://moses.creighton.edu/jrs/2011/2011-21.pdfFriday, June 28, 2013
30 Simple Ways To Be Missional In Your Workplace
30 Simple Ways To Be Missional In Your Workplace
1. Instead of eating lunch alone, intentionally eat with other co-workers and learn their story.
2. Get to work early so you can spend some time praying for your co-workers and the day ahead.
3. Make it a daily priority to speak or write encouragement when someone does good work.
4. Bring extra snacks when you make your lunch to give away to others.
5. Bring breakfast (donuts, burritos, cereal, etc.) once a month for everyone in your department.
6. Organize a running/walking group in the before or after work.
7. Have your missional community/small group bring lunch to your workplace once a month.
8. Create a regular time to invite coworkers over or out for drinks.
9. Make a list of your co-workers birthdays and find a way to bless everyone on their birthday.
10. Organize and throw office parties as appropriate to your job.
11. Make every effort to avoid gossip in the office. Be a voice of thanksgiving not complaining.
12. Find others that live near you and create a car pool.
13. Offer to throw a shower for a co-worker who is having a baby.
14. Offer to cover for a co-worker who needs off for something.
15. Start a regular lunch out with co-workers (don’t be selective on the invites).
16. Organize a weekly/monthly pot luck to make lunch a bit more exciting.
17. Ask someone who others typically ignore if you can grab them a soda/coffee while you’re out.
18. Be the first person to greet and welcome new people.
19. Make every effort to know the names of co-workers and clients along with their families.
20. Visit coworkers when they are in the hospital.
21. Bring sodas or work appropriate drinks to keep in your break room for coworkers to enjoy. Know what your co-workers like.
22. Go out of your way to talk to your janitors and cleaning people who most people overlook.
23. Find out your co-workers favorite music and make a playlist that includes as much as you can (if suitable for work).
24. Invite your co-workers in to the service projects you are already involved in.
25. Start/join a city league team with your co-workers.
26. Organize a weekly co-working group for local entrepreneurs at a local coffee shop.
27. Start a small business that will bless your community and create space for mission.
28. Work hard to reconcile co-workers who are fighting with one another.
29. Keep small candy, gum, or little snacks around to offer to others during a long day.
30. Lead the charge in organizing others to help co-workers in need.
This was sent to me by a friend. It was originally posted by Josh Reeves Click Here to go to Josh Reeves original post. He has several other posts worth reading.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Co-ordinate to Reach Your City through live chat
Co-ordinate to Reach Your City through live chat
Below is an article on an initiative started in the UK. I think it would be a great idea for several churches to get together and do for their city. The more churches the better, it makes social marketing more effective. You could have thousands of people posting, tweeing and googling about the opportunity to ask spiritual questions in a safe and anonymous atmosphere. Of course there would be a lot of work to put into it such as training people, gathering materials to send (these materials would all be free to send over the internet) a quality website to connect through and provide many resources.
The website can be simple as with GroundWire.org.uk or it can offer many other resources such as downloadable information, links to local churches a prominent link to a local suicide hotline, educational and or evangelistic Christan videos and more.
I used to run a regular chat room in AOL. It was centered around Christian business but we had many peole come into the room asking questions about Christianity. I invited many of those to one on one chat and several of those were meaningful and we chatted regularly for weeks.The unfortunate part of it is that these people were from all over the world and not part of the community I was in. I my self would love to participate in something like this in my city.
The UK-based Internet Mission has just launched GroundWire UK, a new initiative providing 1-to-1 chat 24/7, offering people online the opportunity to chat to a Spiritual Coach at any time of day or night!
GroundWire’s aim is to help the church to connect with people online, they are seeking to help those with spiritual questions to find Jesus and find a local church that can help them more. The emphasis is evangelism rather than counseling although pastoral advice and care is a natural part of the help they give.
GroundWire is looking to recruit new volunteer Spiritual Coaches so that the work can grow in the UK. They are also looking to partner with churches and Christian organizations who will promote the “opportunity to chat with someone who cares” facility from their website or on other literature that they give to those they are seeking to reach out to.
“It is so important that we are found where people are going looking for answers! At some point during nearly every day there are people in need having to wait to talk with a Spiritual Coach, we really don’t want them going away without finding someone who cares to chat with!”
Below is an article on an initiative started in the UK. I think it would be a great idea for several churches to get together and do for their city. The more churches the better, it makes social marketing more effective. You could have thousands of people posting, tweeing and googling about the opportunity to ask spiritual questions in a safe and anonymous atmosphere. Of course there would be a lot of work to put into it such as training people, gathering materials to send (these materials would all be free to send over the internet) a quality website to connect through and provide many resources.
The website can be simple as with GroundWire.org.uk or it can offer many other resources such as downloadable information, links to local churches a prominent link to a local suicide hotline, educational and or evangelistic Christan videos and more.
I used to run a regular chat room in AOL. It was centered around Christian business but we had many peole come into the room asking questions about Christianity. I invited many of those to one on one chat and several of those were meaningful and we chatted regularly for weeks.The unfortunate part of it is that these people were from all over the world and not part of the community I was in. I my self would love to participate in something like this in my city.
New online evangelism initiative launched
The UK-based Internet Mission has just launched GroundWire UK, a new initiative providing 1-to-1 chat 24/7, offering people online the opportunity to chat to a Spiritual Coach at any time of day or night!
GroundWire’s aim is to help the church to connect with people online, they are seeking to help those with spiritual questions to find Jesus and find a local church that can help them more. The emphasis is evangelism rather than counseling although pastoral advice and care is a natural part of the help they give.
GroundWire is looking to recruit new volunteer Spiritual Coaches so that the work can grow in the UK. They are also looking to partner with churches and Christian organizations who will promote the “opportunity to chat with someone who cares” facility from their website or on other literature that they give to those they are seeking to reach out to.
“It is so important that we are found where people are going looking for answers! At some point during nearly every day there are people in need having to wait to talk with a Spiritual Coach, we really don’t want them going away without finding someone who cares to chat with!”
THE SEISMIC SHIFT IN OUTREACH
note: The last paragraph may be the most important.
The Seismic Shift in Outreach
There has been a seismic shift in outreach that few church leaders are understanding, much less pursuing.
From the 1950’s to
the 1980’s, the vanguard of evangelistic outreach was direct
proclamation of the gospel. Whether the crusades of Billy Graham or the
creative approaches of Willow Creek Community Church, presentation led
the way.
This led to joining a community, and eventually, being discipled into participation with the cause.
From the 1990’s
thru the 2000’s, community took the lead. People wanted to belong
before they believed. Skepticism was rampant, and trust had to be
earned. Once enfolded, Christ was often met in the midst of that
community.
Cause, again, was the last to take hold.
From the 2010’s
forward, “cause” has become the leading edge of our connection with a
lost world, and specifically the “nones” (and it is increasingly best to
replace the term “unchurched” with the “nones”). Consider the recent
Passion Conference in Georgia. What arrested outside media attention
was the commitment to eradicate modern-day slavery, not the 60,000
students in attendance much less the messages related to the Christian
faith.
In a word, “cause.”
This made the gathering of 60,000 college students in the Georgia Dome for
that cause become attractional. In other words, then and only then did
“community” come into play. Then, after exploring that community,
Christ could be – and was – introduced.
Think of this shift in terms of moving people through stages of introduction:
1950’s-1980’s:
Unchurched >>> Christ >>> Community >>> Cause
1990’s-2000’s
Unchurched >>> Community >>> Christ >>> Cause
2010’s -
Nones >>> Cause >>> Community >>> Christ
It is important to
note how far the message of Christ is from the mind and sentiment of
the average “none.” It’s not that the church should “bury the lead” in
terms of putting Christ at the end of the line – remember, we’re talking
strategy. It’s just that leading with Billy Graham’s simple “The Bible
says” was a strategy designed for people in a different place
spiritually than many are today.
The more
post-Christian a person is, the more evangelism must embrace not only
“event/proclamation”, but “process” and “event/proclamation.” Earlier
models were almost entirely “event/proclamation” oriented, such as
revivals, crusades, or door-to-door visitation. As I’ve written about
in other places, this is only effective in an Acts 2, God-fearing Jews
of Jerusalem context.
“Process” models are needed in Acts 17, Mars Hill, nones/skeptical contexts.
Like the one we live in today.
The presentation
of Christ must remain central to our thinking, to be sure. That is the
only reason we are even talking about strategy; the goal is to present
Christ and Him crucified. But is that where we start? On Mars Hill,
the spiritual illiteracy was so deep that Paul had to begin with
cultural touchstones, lead in to creation, and work his way forward.
It took him a while to get to Christ.
And community? It
matters, but the average person has tastes of that already. Maybe not
functional, but they don’t seem as drawn to it as they used to be.
Perhaps it is because of the lure and illusion of social media, or
because they’ve simply given up on it, but it’s not the great “search”
it once was.
So there has been a great, seismic shift. Today, it is cause that arrests the attention of the world.
Which brings us to the challenge.
First, to recognize the seismic shift, and begin to strategize accordingly.
Second, to realize
how difficult this will be. If cause is in the lead, and community
close behind, the church is at a deficit. In the minds of many, our
causes have been mundane (let’s raise money for a fellowship hall!) or
alienating (Moral Majority!). And the close second of community? Our
reputation for dysfunction in that area is legendary.
But there is great
irony in the challenge. Jesus wed mission and message together
seamlessly, proclaiming the Kingdom that had come while healing the
leper and feeding the hungry. He mandated concern for the widow and the
orphan, the homeless and naked, the imprisoned and hungry, while
speaking of the bread of life and a home in heaven.
In other words, we should have been nailing this all along.
And if community
is lurking in the back of the minds of people as a felt need, that
should be a calling card as well. Jesus challenged his followers about
the importance of observable love toward one another as the ultimate
apologetic for His life and ministry and message.
And even if it
takes a while to get to Christ, He should be presented raw and
unfiltered in all of His scandalous specificity. As Moltmann
proclaimed, “the crucified God.”
So as we ponder the rise of “cause” as the cultural bridge over which to walk, perhaps the greater truth is more elemental:
Do all three.
Imagine a church that had community, cause and the undiluted message of Christ in the vanguard of its efforts.
It might just become the church Jesus had in mind all along that would reach the world.
James Emery White
Editor’s Note
James Emery White
is the founding and senior pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in
Charlotte, NC, and the ranked adjunctive professor of theology and
culture at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, which he also served as
their fourth president. His newly released book is The Church in an Age of Crisis: 25 New Realities Facing Christianity (Baker Press). To enjoy a free subscription to the Church and Culture blog, log-on to www.churchandculture.org,
where you can post your comments on this blog, view past blogs in our
archive and read the latest church and culture news from around the
world. Follow Dr. White on twitter @JamesEmeryWhite.
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Creating a digital outreach training day in your church
Creating a digital outreach training day in your church
Internet Evangelism Day encourages churches and other groups to create a focus spot or discussion time to consider how be effective in digital evangelism and integrate it with the rest of their ministry. Although the actual designated Day – usually the third or fourth Sunday in April – is a good time for this, there is no reason why you should not create a focus day at any time of the year.
Why digital?
As never before, there is an incredible potential of digital media to share the good news of Jesus, in an intentional but appropriate way. In the last eight years, the Internet has changed dramatically:- the vast growth in digital access via mobile phones, including in the Majority World
- the advent of social networking, through Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and many other niche networks
- growth of the video short on YouTube and elsewhere, to communicate visually, and often by storytelling
It is now simple and practical for any online Jesus-follower to engage in opt-in permission conversations across existing relationships with friends and indirectly to friends-of-friends, using perhaps all three platforms – social, mobile and video short. No longer is digital evangelism a specialism, needing writing or technical skills.
Video shorts
The outsider-friendly video short has growing significance. It can be used to start a conversation, or enhance an existing discussion, by posting to Facebook, Twitter etc. Valuable ready-made sources of video shorts, which can be dropped into Facebook with a single click, include:- YesHeIs.com (varied categories of shorts in several languages)
- GlobalShortFilmNetwork.com (often story-based and parable-like)
- Focus.org.uk (God: New Evidence apologetics for outsiders)
- Damaris.org (parallels and lessons from movies)
- the Falling Plates video is a valuable explanation of the good news in a visual style
Also very significant are mobile phone apps which enable and enhance one-to-one faith-sharing. Sadly, there are very few. Mensajes de Fe is a new release (in Spanish). The JESUS Film is available in multiple languages as an app.
Phone users can also choose and download to their phones a small selection of video shorts to use in the same way. With growing mobile ownership across the Majority World, these opportunities are worldwide and strategic. MobileAdvance.org is one resource to learn more. The Mobile Ministry Forum connects groups working in this area.
Digital advocates
There is a big need for churches to encourage members to understand these possibilities. A strategic way to do this is to appoint a ‘digital advocate’ in the fellowship to inform, educate and encourage members about effective and appropriate use of the ‘three-fold cord’ – read more at IEDay.net/advocate.php
When Christians in a community choose a range of social networking friends that includes many who are not yet Jesus-followers, it becomes likely that a majority of people in the community could be digitally connected to at least one believer.
Churches and digital
Churches can also use social media corporately, and many are finding this an incredibly effective voice in the community, rather than just as an internal communication system to members. It is possible to be outsider-friendly, but sadly, many churches only use social media as an internal communication tool. InternetToolboxforChurches.com is a key initiative to learn more about this.
In the last year, a number of Christian books ieday.net/books.php have been published on Christian use of social media, some of them free: ieday.net/eb. We have never been better resourced!
How to create a focus day in your church or group
- Reproduce (or link to) this short news item in your church announcement sheet, church newsletter, blog or website, or any other media: ieday.net/shortannouncement.php
- Create a short focus spot in a meeting, or even theme an entire service around digital evangelism opportunities. A very short focus spot might be little more than a verbal announcement. If more time is available, then you could add components such as a video short (for example the YesHEIs cartoon), PowerPoint slides, an interview with a church member involved in digital ministry, or an explanation of the ‘three-fold cord’ – perhaps with a live projected demonstration of posting video clips into Facebook.
- Build on this awareness to plan a ministry or church digital strategy if you do not already have one.
- Consider appointing a ‘digital advocate’ to resource your fellowship or team.
Read more: http://www.internetevangelismday.com/blog/archives/10519#ixzz2Wy0Wj3yn
at Internet Evangelism Day
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
by Rusty Ford
It is one thing to preach about discipleship. It is another to live it, model it and mentor it. Check out this article on that subject. I found this article both intriguing and challenging. One of the things that I am concerned about today's church is that many are not even preaching discipleship much less practicing it.
It is one thing to preach about discipleship. It is another to live it, model it and mentor it. Check out this article on that subject. I found this article both intriguing and challenging. One of the things that I am concerned about today's church is that many are not even preaching discipleship much less practicing it.
Have a Life Worth Imitating and Be Prepared to Pay the Price, Says Discipleship Expert
Monday, June 10, 2013
Get your community involved with your mission through Causes.com
Get your community involved with your mission through
Causes.com
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Outreach Evangelism and Discipleship
NewsHelping you reach your community for
Christ
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June 29. 2013
Sign up for this newsletter for free at News Paper and Newsletter
Outreach.
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Contents
Press
ReleasesNews Paper and Newsletter Outreach. Local events in the newspaper Guest articles in the newspaper Newsletter Evangelism Canvassing or Outreach Newsletter Community Entertainment Newspaper Community Paper Community Welcome Newsletter Visitor Follow-Up Newsletter Things to newsletters More Effective Newspaper resources
From the Blog
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I will not always have a theme to the newsletter. But this month
the theme is on Newspaper and Newsletter outreach. This topic is one of the more
powerful ways I know to reach your community so I pulled some of the stuff from
my blog and books in hopes that it will help you with your ministry.
Newspaper and Newsletter Outreach.
Press Releases
This is one of the best ways of making your church known in the
community. This is especially true if you live in a smaller town or your
community or suburban community has a newspaper. Most newspapers today are short
on staff and they look forward to people turning them on to local news events or
stories. I wish I would have known this when I was planting churches. After I
retired I managed a senior center. I called the paper or sent a press release
for every event we had. It was not long before I knew the two reporters and the
editor of the paper. No matter what we did at the senior center it was covered
by the paper. Of course I never sent trivial things to the paper as to not wear
out my welcome.
So whenever you have something special or newsworthy you are
doing in the community let the local paper know. Not everything you do is news
worthy or deserves a press release. Some events should be in the local events or
calendar section. Here are some examples of things for a press release
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Milestone events such as a new building dedication, a major anniversary or something like opening a new daycare facility or shelter.
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Events that you may you may do such as a bicycle fix up day, fix up a local park day or building a wheel chair ramp. These are best when the paper sees that there is a benefit for the general public.
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Humanitarian things your church does. Sending a press release or calling and asking them to cover an event that is designed to help the disadvantaged in some way is one of the easier sells. If you are having a fundraiser for a sick child, teaming up with other organizations to raise money for the local food bank or any such endeavor then you have a winner on your hands.
-
Major recognition of pastor, staff or church is also news worthy. If one of these wins or is nominated for something like humanitarian of the year award, or becomes the regional representative for the denomination or is recognized by any local group such as the Chamber of Commerce or a local civic group.
Local events in the newspaper
Almost every paper has a local events section. This section can go
by many names but they are all basically the same. They are a calendar of when
things are going to happen in the area that the paper serves. If you make the
deadline then almost any event that you have will get listed.
Some papers have a
religious section. This is an easy place to get things your church is doing
listed as well.
Guest articles in the newspaper
Many papers love to have guest articles. They especially like
whimsical, heart-warming and encouraging articles. I have a friend that had a
long serious of articles published in the local paper about how she worked her
faith out in day to day situations. I told you about the editor I got to
know, in one conversation he told me that it was easy to find bad news to print
and that he needed all the help he could to find
Some papers publish guest commentaries. I know a lot of pastors
who publish commentaries about events in the community in their local papers.
Newsletter Evangelism
Many churches are beginning to engage their communities by
providing local newspapers or newsletters. This can be one of the most effective
ways of reaching out into your community. There are three basic ways of doing
this:
- Having a series of newsletters that you canvas around the community
- A community newspaper
- An entertaining newspaper delivered to restaurants, coffee houses and other community gathering places
- A newcomer newsletter
Canvassing or Outreach Newsletter
There are many churches that are being successful in leading
people to Christ through this method. The newsletter is designed to be of
interest to the unchurched. The goal is to create a positive impression of your
church in the community and to provide an opportunity to share the gospel with
them.
The idea of a canvassing newsletter is simple. You start with
4 to 8 newsletters on topics that people are interested in; such as teen
difficulty, finances, handling illness and other topics people would be willing
to take and read the newsletter. Then you take teams of people from your church
and once a week canvas the same houses. Each time you progress through the
number of newsletters. After the last week the papers are delivered, you do a
follow up by contacting each of these homes. Newsletterevangelism.com is
centered on this idea. It can be helpful to visit their site whether or not you
want to use their service. http://newsletterevangelism.com/
The outreach newsletter is similar but not necessarily
followed up by a home visit. Many times this is sent to the community three to
six times a year. This can be done by canvassing a neighborhood, using a mailing
list or a general mailing that goes to every home in an area. This is usually a
short newsletter with one to four short articles of interest, some interesting
or fun stuff like trivia or humor and a short article from the pastor of the
church. Many times all of the articles deal with a theme such as overcoming
depression, surviving the holidays or how to make the most of summer vacations.
It is also good to include basic information about your church; list of upcoming
events that may be of interest, community resources that may have to do with the
topic and any ministry you may have at the church that can help people with the
topic. Do not make the newsletter too long, one page front and back is probably
enough. Add links to other resources on your website. This is another way for
them to become familiar with you.
Community Entertainment Newspaper
These are usually called café or restaurant newsletters.
There are two major companies that provide these. There is a good chance you
have seen them in a coffee house or restaurant. They are usually an 11x14 inch,
one page newspaper with advertising down both sides and content in the middle.
The content is light and entertaining to read. It includes things like jokes,
trivia, poetry and interesting stories. The providers of these papers contact
restaurants, cafes, libraries, doctor’s offices and anywhere you can put a local
free newspaper. Both companies provide a weekly newspaper.
The big companies produce a one size fits all publication.
This is because they use the same or similar content in cities all over the
world. I would suggest giving yours a more local flavor with local events,
inspirational content about local hero’s, poetry from local authors, book
reviews of local artists, news from local charities and listings for local art
events. When you give it a local feel, any place that carries the other papers
will probably take yours and maybe some who do not eccept the others. You can
probably get copies distributed to local civic groups, the Chamber of Commerce
and maybe even in local government buildings.
Unless you want to make it really profitable, I would suggest
keeping it at a non-profit level of advertisements. This would mean having
advertisements down one side of the page instead of both. This gives you more
room for content. There is also the option of having ads down one side and
across the bottom.
Of course you want to promote your church in the process. If
you want it to be acceptable in most places, then this cannot be the main focus
of the newspaper. I would suggest a “sponsored by” under the name of the
publication, a major ad spot and maybe a short word of encouragement from the
pastor.
While the big guys provide new copies each week, you have the
option of making it a bi- weekly publication if providing content is too
difficult to do weekly.
The two major publications are Coffee News and
Tidbits Weekly. I mention these as an example. Make sure your paper is
significantly different than theirs. This means not just a name change but topic
categories and various styling changes. Of course if you want to make it easy,
you can buy a franchise from either of these companies. If so, you would want to
give your church the top advertising spot.
Community Paper
A community paper is a small publication that provides
stories of interest to smaller communities. You might call it a community
newsletter because of its size. In contrast to a newspaper it is very small,
usually just one page printed on both sides. The difference between this and the
café news is the nature of the content. The content is specifically about the
community. Many small towns or communities do not have a newspaper simply
because they are so small that they do not produce enough news to justify one.
That does not mean that nothing happens worth mentioning. I know of many small
communities in my area that have such a paper. It is easy to get local sponsors
to place ads. It takes a little work to find stories of interest but is not that
hard.
Community Welcome Newsletter
This is one of my favorites. A community welcome newsletter
is sent to everyone who moves into your community. There are many companies that
provide new move-in mailing lists. The prices vary depending on the services you
want them to provide. They can be very affordable. Many will provide you with a
weekly, bi-weekly, monthly or quarterly list. In smaller communities a realtor
can probably supply you with this information. Search the internet for new
move-in lists.
The idea is to provide a short newsletter once a week for 4
to 8 weeks. You want to provide interesting, helpful and inspirational
information about your community. If you do so, then the newsletter will stand
out from all the marketing mailings they receive. Here are some of the things
that you can include:
- Inspirational articles, especially if they are about your community.
- Helpful resources in your community; such as libraries, parks, government services and any other helpful service you can find in your community.
- Fun things to do in your community; such as festivals, farmers markets, kids play areas and anything else that is interesting to do in your community.
- Art showings and museums
- A list of civic organizations
- Historical landmarks or a short history of the city. Many times the city website or Chamber of Commerce will have a short history of the city. If you ask them, they will likely give you permission to use it.
- A list of local charities
If done right, people will look forward to these newsletters.
I would suggest that, other than mentioning that the newsletter comes from your
church, not to spend much time talking about your church until the later issues;
except when something you do matches the content; such as sponsoring a art fair
at your church or any other activity that correlates with the content of the
newsletter. Also you can include a short word of information in each issue from
the pastor of the church.
Marketing people will tell you that a person does not become
familiar with a product or service until they have heard about it 6 to 8 times.
By the end of the series you will be the best known church in the area for those
who do not have a church.
You can also invite them to a quarterly gathering with
community leaders and others at your church. It gives them a chance to meet
community leaders in person and give them the opportunity to get to know you on
a more personal level.
Visitor Follow-Up Newsletter
Many churches ask for an address when a visitor comes and
sends a thank you letter. Would it not be better to send four newsletters with
an encouraging or inspirational article from the pastor, testimonies and
information about ministries at your church?
Things to Make Newsletters More Effective
The first thing is to make sure the first article is a hook.
A hook is something very interesting that catches their attention so that they
want to read the newsletter.
The newsletter can be put in an envelope or folded and sent
as is. I suggest the latter. In this way the back page is half content while the
bottom half is where you put the mailing information. I would do this in full
color to catch their attention. The hook article would be on the top part of
this page since it will be the first thing they see.
Include in each newsletter links for more information on your
website. This would include other community services, more articles of
inspiration, poetry from local authors, and longer descriptions of fun things
and any other pertinent information. Visiting your website gives them a chance
to get to know you better and provides one more contact.
Provide in each newsletter a link to where people can submit
information. This is especially good for a community newsletter or entertainment
newsletter.
Some of these take time to do. You can consider asking
homeschoolers to help produce a community newspaper. Producing a newsletter can
be a great learning project for them. You can also join with another church. You
would not want to do this with canvassing newsletters or newcomer
newsletters.
For advertising, contact all businesses listed in Christian
business listings.
- Here is a short booklet that may be helpful
http://www.elca.org/~/media/Files/Evangelizing%20church/resources/Developing%20an%20Outreach%20Newsletter%20for%20Your%20Neighboring%20Community.pdf - Here is an example of a longer newsletter published monthly
by Papa’s Pantry. It may be a little long and over advertized but the
advertizing may be enough to mail it to every home.
http://papaspantry.org/ccn/ - Contact schools, non-profits and community organizations to let them know that they can submit information as well as civic groups such as Kiwanis and Lions clubs.
- http://www.useful-community-development.org/homeowner-newsletter.html
- http://myezcondo.com/producing-an-effective-community-newsletter/
- http://www.freenewsletterideas.com/newsletter-layouts.htm Has tons of ideas but a lot of advertisements. Stick with the free stuff as the paid stuff is not that good.
Get your community involved with your mission through Causes.com
If you do not already know about Causes.com then you may be
missing out. It can be a powerful tool to help reach into your community for
common causes. You can use it as a tool for raising money from outside your
church for ministry you are doing in your community. It is an easy way for
members of your church to share with friends outreach campaigns that your church
is participating in.
The Causes.com page is integrated with Facebook's custom
open graph, which means that it is easy for all members of your causes page to
post via Timeline and newsfeed. This includes both members of your church and
anyone else who joins because they agree with the specific campaign you are
running. The ability for supporters to tweet, email, and post a Facebook status
update is a click away on every campaign page. With a click of a button the
members of your church and others who are interested in what you are doing can
let all their friends know.
Causes.com has a safe a secure way to collect donations for
any project you may have. Both members of the cause and non-members can both
make donations. These donations are action-specific meaning that you can have
multiple fundraisers going for different outreaches at the same time. Your organization has
to be a non-profit to collect donations.
Here are a few examples of ways you can build goodwill and
get people in your community helping you in your community outreach. You can do
this with any cause you are interested in. You can use it to either raise
awareness of an issue or need, raise money for and issue or need or do both.
- Helping raise money for a local food bank (this could be one that you run).
- Raising money for a cancer patient or accident victim.
- Raising money to fix up a park in a low income area
- Building a homeless or battered women's shelter (this could be one you are building).
- Building awareness of any need in your community
- Working with your local PTA in raising money for a school (preferably one you have adopted and are working regularly with).
- Raising money for the arts. This could be coordinated with arts related outreaches you are doing in the community.
- Joining with any local charity in raising money. When you do this everyone involved in the charity knows that your church cares about them.
One of the
features I like is that any member of your cause page can click a link and ask
that instead of giving you a birthday gift they give to a campaign they support
on your Cause.com page. After retiring from ministry I ran a senior center for
three years. We had a Causes.com page. Every year on my birthday on Facebook
where it said on all my friends pages that it was my birthday it gave them the
option of giving to the senior center instead of giving me a gift. People I
barely knew who would never think of giving me a gift gave to the senior center.
Each year I raised from $300 to $500 dollars. Your members may not average that
much but multiply that times half your members participating and you could raise
a lot of money through out the years.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Seven (Hopefully) Helpful Hints after Seven Months of Visiting Churches
Here are the highlights of an article by
1. Please have plentiful signage on the outside and inside.
2. Many of your websites are terrible
3. Show me where guests park
4. Most of us will need to find a restroom.
5. Show me how to follow along in the Bible
6. Help me to know how to connect to a small group
7. Help me know how to join the church
1. Please have plentiful signage on the outside and inside.
2. Many of your websites are terrible
3. Show me where guests park
4. Most of us will need to find a restroom.
5. Show me how to follow along in the Bible
6. Help me to know how to connect to a small group
7. Help me know how to join the church
The best free Bible Software
Best free Bible software
Many of you are familiar with some of the Bible software packages you can buy. I would like to share with you one that is free and is as good as most of the ones you can buy and is actually better than some. Of course it is not as good as the Logos software but it also does not start at $295. There are hundreds of add-on modules including nearly 100 commentaries, every Bible you can think of, Bible dictionaries and encyclopedias and more. The nice thing is that all the commentaries are connected to the Bible translations and when you are reading a verse you can click on any commentary you have and you are at that section. It is a resource I use every day.Here is a link to the website.
http://www.e-sword.net/
Here is where you download all Bible, commentaries and other resources
http://www.biblesupport.com/
Friday, June 7, 2013
Top 5 Churches That Use Social Media Best Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/top-5-churches-that-use-social-media-best-97492/#Kl4GVaJVGCj6mCB1.99
Christian Post's pick of the Top 5 Churches That Use Social Media Best
Check out the whole article and the links at the bottom.
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/top-5-churches-that-use-social-media-best-97492/#Kl4GVaJVGCj6mCB1.99
Mars Hill Seattle (marshill.com) – Beyond the sometimes polarizingly, yet magnetic personality of teaching pastor Mark Driscoll (@pastormark), the church has a very sizeable audience engagement on not just Facebook and Twitter, but also podcasting, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube, said Chuang. The private church-based social network The City (http://www.onthecity.org) traces its origins to Mars Hill.
LifeChurch.tv based in Edmond, Okla. – The church is recognized as one of the most innovative churches in the country. LifeChurch.tv was one of the first churches with an "Internet campus" (they call theirs Church Online). Senior Pastor Craig Groeschel (@craiggroeschel) and Innovation Leader Bobby Gruenewald (@bobbygwald) have harnessed the talents of some of the most successful techies around. The church is one of the very few that invests staff and resources to build tech tools for use by other churches, including the Bible app YouVersion, and Church Online platform, churchmetrics.com. LifeChurch.tv gives most, if not all, its resources away for free via http://open.lifechurch.tv.
Cross Point Church in Nashville, Tenn. (crosspoint.tv) – Most of its church leaders are actively engaged online via blogging and social media, including lead pastor Pete Wilson (@pwilson), Jenny Catron, Kyle Reed, Stephen Brewster, Brent Hodge, and more – exemplifying how to make an impact through personal touch while being a large church, said Chuang.
Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas (gatewaypeople.com) – Gateway's recent purchase of the Table Project (a Christian social network platform) http://tableproject.org is a hint of their strategy to more deeply integrate social media with spiritual life. Chuang adds, "Of course, they have strong engagement on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Community Bible Church in San Antonio, Texas (communitybible.com) – Nils Smith serves as the Social Media Pastor (first one with that title I knew of) and recently launched a new version of their Internet Campus that has 30-minute messages delivered just for their Internet Campus – with a great web address http://onlinechurch.com.
Chuang's full list of churches with livestreaming and internet campuses can be found at http://djchuang.com/church-online/.
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/top-5-churches-that-use-social-media-best-97492/#Kl4GVaJVGCj6mCB1.99
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