Don’t Let The Economy Limit Your Evangelism – CLI Newsletter Rewind

Did you get this month’s Church Leader Insights Newsletter?

Each month I send out the latest and best thinking on Church Growth, Evangelism, Leadership, Church Planting, and more – the best church leadership content I can find - designed to help you lead your church to greater health and growth.

And the best part…. It’s absolutely FREE! (click here to sign-up now).

Just in case you missed this month’s edition, here’s a sneak peek at a great article from my friend and former boss Rick Warren:

DON’T LET THE ECONOMY SHORT CHANGE YOUR EVANGELISM EFFORTS

“Despite a tough economy, we need to keep asking the right question when it comes to evangelism; rather than ask, “How much will it cost?” we must ask, “Who will it reach?” . . . money spent on evangelism is an investment. Rather than seeing your evangelism budget as an expense, see it as an investment. The people you reach will more than repay the cost you invested to reach them.”
Read More…

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Don’t Be the (Evangelism) Bottleneck

by Nelson Searcy and Tommy Duke

Evangelism is one of the purposes of the church that we recognize as a high priority – I rarely hear from a Pastor who isn’t trying to reach more people for Christ.

But sometimes, Pastors and their churches appear to be doing and saying all the right things, but they’re seeing little (if any) fruit.

Their frustration is often voiced in questions like:

• What are we doing wrong?
• How can I get my people to invite their friends to church?
• Why can’t we seem to reach the people of this community?

To check for one (unfortunately common) bottleneck, I’ve learned to ask a few key questions of Senior Pastors who are struggling with this situation:

• What are the names of 3-5 unchurched friends that you are praying will come to know Christ?
• Who have you personally invited to come to your church this week?
• When was the last time you prayerwalked through your own neighborhood?

See, in Coaching over 800 Pastors, I have observed this truth:

Evangelistic Churches are Led by Evangelistic Pastors

The Pastor is a huge piece of the Evangelism puzzle (and more important than we often realize).

It’s true across the board – evangelism has to flow down from leadership if the people of your church are ever going to reach out effectively.

Notice, I didn’t say “Evangelistic Churches are Led by Pastors with the Gift of Evangelism” – because that’s not always the case.

In fact, some of the healthiest, most fruitful churches I know are led by Godly Pastors who understand that Evangelism is a vital function of every believer – and just preaching about it on Sunday doesn’t exempt them from living it out the rest of the week.

So, how about you Pastor…

• Who’s on your “needs to know Christ” list?
• What are you going to do this week to reach out to them?

P.S. To learn more about the essential pieces of your church’s Evangelism System and a proven strategy to Double Your Church in a Day, check out The Ignite Seminar.

How to Reap the Fruit of Your Vacation Bible School

Most of you long-time readers know that I am a contrarian when it comes to summer.  I happen to believe that summer is a great time to grow your church.

And one of the best things about summer-time is that it offers you opportunities that aren’t available during the rest of the year.

One great example of a “summer-only” outreach opportunity is Vacation Bible School (VBS).

The danger when talking about outreach activities like VBS is to focus more on the program than you do on your goal – which should be reaching people and make disciples.

I recently read a great article about VBS Strategy from my friend Hal Seed, and he gave me permission to share it here for you today:

Eight Ideas for Reaping the Fruit of Your Vacation Bible School
By Hal Seed

How do you measure the success of your children’s ministry outreach events?

Lots of churches sponsor programs that are at least partly designed to attract children who are not currently part of their fellowship. Vacation Bible School is a prime example. Churches put herculean efforts into drawing unchurched kids to their VBS programs. If that’s one of the purposes of your VBS, how do you measure whether you accomplished the goal?

At New Song, we have four distinct goals for our summer Bible camp:
1. Disciple the children of our church in an intensive, week-long program.
2. Develop leadership and ministry skills in our youth and adult volunteers.
3. Deepen our unity by asking members of every generation to serve together that week.
4. Attract unchurched families and enfold them into the family of God.

We accomplish our discipleship goal by holding a great VBS. We accomplish our leadership development goal through a good VBS staff training program, coupled with the on-the-job experience gained during the week of camp.

We accomplish our intergenerational goal by recruiting teens, twenties, thirties, parents and retirees to serve. But how do we retain the unchurched families who attend our VBS? This requires multiple capture strategies.

The Key: Building Relationships
In my experience, many churches put on stellar VBS weeks and hope that the fourth goal (of retaining the unchurched) will take care of itself. The truth is, most unchurched families aren’t thinking about attending your church when they enroll their kids in VBS. They’re either looking for an enriching place to send their kids during a busy summer, or they’re letting their kids hang out with their friends at your church for the week.

Church attendance may not be the last thing on their minds, but it’s close to the bottom for most of them. So wooing the unchurched back after the VBS is over will take more than a great summer program. Here’s the key: The majority of your unchurched VBS attendees will only return if you build a relationship with them.

Building relationships requires multiple contacts. Here are eight strategies we use to capture as many unchurched visitors as possible:

1. Greet parents every morning.
As parents arrive to drop off and pick up their children each morning, we station staff members in the lobby to casually introduce themselves and make parents feel welcome.

2. Give them an excuse to stick around.
We set up coffee carts and refreshment tables out front, so parents who want to linger can do so.

3. Give them a reason to attend your church.
We combine one of our weekend services with the final session of VBS. At this session (which, for us, is our Saturday night service), we have the children perform songs they learned during the week. Then as I get up to speak, the children are dismissed for one last “special time” with their VBS leaders.

The kids receive a camp picture, a big hug, personal prayer, and encouragement to return for church the following week. (Note: Be sure to have the kids return and perform one more song at the end of the service. Otherwise, some of your unchurched parents will grab their kids after the performance and leave, and you’ll miss the opportunity to bring them the Word of God and fully sample your service.)

4. Preach a relevant message.
While the kids are with their VBS leaders, I preach a biblical message on parenting. I want our visiting parents to know that God, the Bible, and the church can provide them with practical help. Make sure to have everyone in the service complete your “Connection Card”; this will help you gain contact information for your guests without making them feel singled out.

5. Exceed their expectations.
At the end of the service, we offer a free copy of The God Questions Gift Edition to all newcomers as a way of saying “thank you” for coming and trusting their children to us. The God Questions Gift Edition is a simple, 45-minute read that answers the questions they may have about God.

The book is valuable to them, and at $1.99 per copy, it’s inexpensive for us. Since it’s a gift book, I offer to sign it on the gift page for them at the end of the service. This gives me a chance to meet each parent, get their name, look them in the eye and ask, “So, do you have questions about God?” I then say, “This is a really good place to get your questions answered. I hope you’ll come back next weekend.”

6. Exceed their expectations again.
Immediately following this service, we hold a party in the lobby. The tables full of finger-food slow the guests down and entice them to munch and mingle. We make sure plenty of staff and volunteers are there, graciously introducing themselves.

7. Add them to your newcomers list.
Since these new guests have filled out a Connection Card during the service, we are able to send them our usual first-time-guest letter and follow-up with them like we would our other weekend guests. Being part of our database means they’ll begin receiving weekly emails from me about what God is up to in our church—another step in helping them feel like part of the church family.

8. Provide a reason to return.
We offer an incentive to return a second time by scheduling a family-oriented event a few weeks after VBS ends. Then we’ll promote the event during the service and send them a personal invitation ten days ahead of time.

None of these steps happen by accident. They require thought, prayer and planning. VBS is such a fruitful harvesting opportunity for us that we ask our whole staff to participate in some way. We try to refine this process every year, and every time we do, we see a higher percentage of unchurched families return, give their lives to Christ and join the church.

A few guests begin attending the very next week. A larger number return two to four weeks later. Most unchurched people can’t fathom attending church every weekend, so this pattern is normal. Still others come the first time I do a series on family, marriage or parenting, which can be months later.

This spring, a family walked up to my wife and said, “We came for VBS last summer. Now we’re back for church!” It took them nine months, but today they are now fully engaged Christ-followers, growing in their faith and looking forward to inviting friends to this year’s VBS.

The Principle: Thinking on Two Levels
A gifted speaker can get dozens of children to raise their hands and pray a prayer at the end of a good week of camp, but that shouldn’t be the goal. Jesus desires fruit that remains. Therefore, whenever possible, build systems that attract people to not just attend your programs but to become fully participating members of your church.

To do this, you’ll need to think on two levels about your outreach events. Level One is coordinating and presenting the event itself; Level Two is capturing the unchurched who attend the event. You will change the paradigm and approach of all your church’s event-planning if you measure an event’s success not by how many pre-believers show up for it, but by how many of them become regularly attending members of your church six to nine months afterward.

Hal Seed
PastorMentor.com
HalSeed.typepad.com

That’s great stuff Hal!

So how about you?

What’s your plan to engage, build relationships with, and follow up on the unchurched people your church connects with this summer?

P.S. To learn more about harnessing the power of Big Days to reach more people and grow your church, check out The Ignite Seminar.

New Sermon Series – Ignite Your People for Evangelism

“I wish my people would invite their friends to church”

“We just need something to jump-start our evangelism”

“I want to mobilize the people in my church to reach their friends”

If you’ve ever let any of these sentences (or something similar) slip out of your lips, then welcome to church leadership.

In fact, all of us have – at one time or another – felt this same way.

I have good news for you today!

Over in the Church Leader Insights store today, we’re releasing a Brand New Sermon Series that’s designed to help you mobilize your people to reach others for Christ.

Here are the messages included in the Ignite Sermon Series:

• My Story Can Change the World
• My Worship Can Change the World
• My Readiness Can Change the World
• My Invitation Can Change the World

We originally taught this series at The Journey, and it’s proven to help teach and equip your church to be missional AND attractional.

You can order this new series in one of two ways:

Click here to Download this Full Church Resource Immediately

or

Click here to Secure Your 5 CD Set (four message CD’s + one resource CD)

Talking Servant Evangelism with Steve Sjogren

I recently got to speak with my friend Steve Sjogren about something that we’re both passionate about – the positive effect that Servant Evangelism can have on a church and a community.

One of the most enjoyable parts of what God has called me to do is being able to pour into other pastors and church leaders – through coaching, resources, events, books, and all of the other opportunities at our disposal.

Just observing the results and seeing how God is working in and through the leaders & churches that we work with is a powerful motivator to keep on coaching, speaking, writing and teaching.

That’s why it’s such an honor to get to speak with Steve and share with his network of leaders about something that’s made a huge impact on The Journey – Servant Evangelism!

Click Here to listen to an excerpt of my interview with Steve Sjogren at ServeCoach.com.

P.S. If you’re looking for something to do this summer to engage and make a difference in your community, sharing God’s love in practical ways, check out “Reaching Your Community Through Servant Evangelism.”

“I’m Not Being Fed…” – CLI Newsletter Rewind

One of the best parts of being a member of the “Church Leader Insights Family” is that each month you receive the CLI Newsletter, packed with the best church leadership content I can find.

Here’s an article from Steve Mathewson that was included in this month’s newsletter (in case you missed it):

WHAT “I’M NOT BEING FED” REALLY MEANS

“When we hear people complain about not being fed, we tend to think in terms of sermon content. We wonder how people can say that when we have done our exegetical homework. … Then, when we stand up to preach, we provide solid content. … The end, however, is not content but challenge or encouragement. People want help with the escalating conflict in their marriages. People want hope to get them through difficult economic times. People want help coping with cancer. If people do not see how the gospel relates to the struggles they face, we will hear them say, ‘I’m not being fed.’” — Read More…

The Church Leader Insights Newsletter is designed to bring the best and latest thinking on Church Growth, Evangelism, Leadership and Church Planting directly to your inbox every month!

If you’re not already subscribed, you can click this link to sign up right now.

How to Grow Your Church this Summer (Free E-Book)

Have you bought into the idea that summer is a time for you and your church to crouch in a corner and pray for an early fall?

I doubt you’ve gone that far, but that’s essentially what thousands of churches do every summer – writing off the summer as a time when churches just don’t grow!

After listening to and believing that lie for years (and suffering the consequences), I began to try a different approach…

I’ve found in many cases that Summer can be the best time to grow your church and, at a minimum, it’s the perfect season to plant the seeds that will bring growth in the fall.

I’ve put together a Free MAXIMIZING SUMMER E-Book ($23.95 Value) just to help you and your church make the most of the Kingdom Opportunities that Summer provides.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD YOUR MAXIMIZING SUMMER E-BOOK NOW!

Ignite Webinar Tomorrow – Can You Join Me?

Can you join me tomorrow at 1:00pm EDT for a 110 minute training based on my new book – Ignite: Sparking immediate Growth In Your Church?

This “no-fluff all nuts-and-bolts” webinar is about how you can ‘DOUBLE YOUR CHURCH IN A DAY’ using a proven strategy called The Big Day.

It’s also about how you can move a church from stagnation to growth or from some growth to maximum growth.

This new webinar is based on my new book of the same title, but during this seminar, which is really more of a workshop, I’ll actually walk you through how to plan your big days and evangelism efforts for 2010 (perfect timing for Mothers Day too).

On tomorrow’s Ignite Webinar I’ll cover:

• How to DOUBLE your church in a day (it can be done)
• How to immediately raise the evangelism effectiveness of your church
• How to mobilize your congregation to reach their friends
• How to spark growth in a stalled church
• How to keep momentum year after year in a growing church
• How to excite your people, even if they’ve not been motivated in the past
• How to influence your leaders to reach out to the community
• How to plan and implement a proven BIG DAY process
• Plus much more!

There’s still time for you to sign-up and join us.  I know it will be with your time and investment.

Here’s the link to register online right now:

https://nelsonsearcy.infusionsoft.com/cart/store.jsp?view=4&i=p1300

But you’ll need to register now . . . the webinar is tomorrow and we have a limited number of spots – I don’t want you to miss out.

Oh, and you only need to purchase one webinar ticket per church (you can actually share this experience with your staff or key lay leaders by gathering more than one person around your speaker phone and computer).

See you on tomorrow’s webinar!

Nelson

P.S. You can Register Now for tomorrow’s Ignite Webinar by CLICKING HERE.

Can You Join Me in Texas? Two Live Ignite Events

I’m excited to be heading out to the Lone Star State next week for Two BIG (everything’s bigger in Texas, you know) Live Ignite Events!

Here’s the information:

The LIVE Ignite Seminar – HOUSTON
Tuesday, April 27
9:00am – 12:00 noon

Hosted By:
Crossbridge Christian Church
15415 West Road
Houston, TX 77344

The LIVE Ignite Seminar – DALLAS
Wednesday, April 28
9:00am – 12:00 noon

Hosted By:
Lake Pointe Church
701 Interstate 30
Rockwall, TX 75087

So, can you join me?

Here’s what I’ll be teaching you:

• How to DOUBLE your church in a day (it can be done)
• How to immediately raise the evangelism effectiveness of your church
• How to mobilize your congregation to reach their friends
• How to spark growth in a stalled church
• How to keep momentum year after year in a growing church
• How to excite your people, even if they’ve not been motivated in the past
• How to influence your leaders to reach out to the community
• How to plan and implement a proven BIG DAY process
• And much more . . .

To Register now (hurry – there are only a few seats left at each venue):

Click Here for the Houston Event on Tuesday

Click Here for the Dallas Event on Wednesday

I hope to see you there!

How Teaching God’s Truth Can Get Your Church Noticed

I got an email recently from Freddy Villarreal, Tele-Coaching Participant and Lead Pastor of Freedom Life Church in Virginia, about how their local news (and then CNN) ran a story about the Desperate Sex Lives sermon series they did in February.  Here’s the video:

Freddy – great job representing your church and the Church on-camera!

I’m not a fan of doing things with the sole purpose of gaining publicity – that’s the wrong motivation (and a recipe for disaster, too).

However, there are so many pure, God-honoring reasons to teach on what the Bible says about tough topics like sex and money that you’d be missing out (and quite possibly disobedient) not to.

Everyone is talking about it… why should the church remain silent?  After all, we can teach them God’s plan – and He created sex in the first place!

P.S. If you’re interested in teaching the “Desperate Sex Lives” Sermon Series at your church, CLICK HERE.