In a past blog, I shared God's call to reach unbelievers. I concluded that God was leading me in two directions. One direction was through an Outreach Team at the church where I serve as the Associate Pastor. The second would be to explore planting a Global Methodist Church. This blog continues the conversation with updates on what is happening at my church.
Means of Outreach Requested
The last few months have been busy as I have been working with lay people in our church to develop an Outreach Team. Last summer, several members of St. Mark's approached our senior pastor and me, asking for a meeting to discuss outreach. At our first meeting, we decided to read The Great Dechurching, then come together in a month to discuss what we learned and determine how to proceed.
At that second meeting, we decided to learn more about the Alpha Program. I would go to MissionInsite, study our community demographics, and report my findings. The following month, when we met, I proposed two directions we should explore. First, I suggested we ask the church council for permission to set up the Alpha program at our church, and I asked that we create a Worship Design Team to explore offering a second worship service.
Outreach through Alpha
Alpha is a program that creates a space for honest conversations about some of life’s biggest questions. It allows guests to connect while sharing thoughts, ideas, and opinions in a safe and caring environment. Alpha is designed to bring people together while providing the chance to encounter Jesus. The meetings are held weekly for 11 weeks.
Each week, the group gathers for a meal. Following the meal, a 30-minute video on topics such as “Is there more to life?” “Who is Jesus?” and “Does God heal today?” is shown. That is followed up with a 30 to 45-minute discussion time, during which all questions are allowed. I’ve watched one of the videos and found it clear, appropriate, and engaging. The topic is explained so that people who have never been in church would understand the subject. After the first of the year, we will begin lining up volunteers and training them. We will determine the venue and how we will provide food for the meal. We hope to launch Alpha in April. You can find out more information about Alpha here.
Second Worship Service
There is interest in a second, more contemporary worship service. Currently, the one worship service offered at St. Mark's is very traditional. It consists of 40 minutes of liturgy, a pastoral prayer, and a 30-minute sermon. Much of the language is directed at people who have a background in worship and are familiar with theological concepts and vocabulary. New believers would have a difficult time assimilating.
The desire is to create a seeker-sensitive worship service that teaches new believers how to be Christians. It would be a more informal service, with teaching and direction on how and why we worship as we do. This service would also include several prayer opportunities, benefiting new converts and more mature believers. The service would also be offered on Saturday night for those who can't attend a worship service on Sunday morning.
Multiplication
Last week, core Outreach Team members gathered to watch a webinar on church multiplication, which River Network International put on. Most of the webinar focused on how churches, individually or as a group, could plant a new church. During break-out times, the conversation focused on how St. Mark's could participate in this process. We wondered if there would be interest from area churches or our congregation. I want to explore this in the coming months.
As I have pondered this idea over the last few days, I have wondered if the role God wants me to play in planting a church is to lead a group of local churches to support a new church plant. According to those leading the webinar, planting churches is the single most evangelistic method. Churches less than three years old witness ten new converts for every one hundred people. While churches that are 3- 15 years old only have an average of 5 per year per 100 people. Churches that are older than 15 years have even less success in reaching unbelievers.
When current congregations commit to planting new churches, they benefit as well. Churches that plant become healthier and more vital through the process. It can lead passive members to become active and deploy staff into new leadership. It is a win-win proposition.
The final outreach activity we are currently undertaking is creating and distributing door hangers. With Christmas Eve services coming up, we have door hangers that tell the times of our services. The hope is that people who pass out these door hangers will have conversations with those who are receiving them and that they will pray for them before they leave.
These are the activities and plans to reach out to unbelievers and believers who have left the church. I hope these ideas have inspired you, and I would love to hear what you are doing in your churches to reach out to your communities.
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