Developing Strategy for the Gospel
Developing Strategy - quotes fr Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Church
You need to do a frank analysis of who you are and the type of people to whom you relate best.
If God had called you to ministry then who and what you are must also be a part of that plan. You don't minister in spite of yourself but through the personality God gave you.
You'll best reach those you relate to. The easiest people for you to reach for Christ are those who are most like you. Your greatest contribution will occur when you match your target. Then you can have an impact by being yourself.
As a leaders you'll attract who you are not who you want.
Missionary gift:
the ability to minister cross-culturally requires a special gift an ability from the Holy Spirit to be able to communicate to people with backgrounds very different from your own.
But if the members and pastor don't match there will probably be just an explosion without the growth.
- Build on your strengths.
- Reinvent your congregation.
- Start new congregations.
The mark of a truly mature church is that it has babies: It starts other churches.
In the parable of the sower Jesus explained that there are hard hearts, shallow hearts, distracted hearts and receptive hearts.
No farmer in his right mind would waste seed, a precious commodity, on infertile ground that won't produce a crop. Careless, unplanned broadcasting of the Gospel is poor stewardship. The message of Christ is too important to waste time money and energy on non-productive methods and soil. Spiritual receptivity is something that comes and goes in people's lives like an ocean tide. Who are the most receptive people? I believe there are two broad categories: people in transition and people under tension. God uses both change and pain to get people's attention and make them receptive to the Gospel.
People in Transition
Any time someone experiences major change, whether positive or negative, it seems to create a hunger for spiritual stability. People look for "islands of stability" when changes becomes overwhelming.
Churches generally grow faster in new communities where residents are continually moving in than in stable older communities where people have lived for 40 years.
People Under Tension
God uses all kinds of emotional pain to get people's attention. Develop a specific program or outreach to each of the most receptive people groups in your community. It takes 5 times more energy to reactivate a disgruntled or carnal member than it does to win a receptive unbeliever. I believe God has called pastors to catch fish and feed sheep not to corral goats! If you want to grow focus on reaching receptive people.
Growing churches focus on reaching receptive people. Non-growing churches focus on reenlisting inactive people.
Jesus gave the disciples specific instructions about whom they were to spend their time with, whom they were to ignore ,what they were to say and how they were to share it.
Know what you are fishing for: Jesus defined the disciples' target so they'd be effective not in order to be exclusive.
Go where the fish are biting. Principle of receptivity: take advantage of responsive hearts that the Holy Spirit prepares.
We aren't supposed to pick green fruit but to find the ripe fruit and harvest it. We should not focus our efforts on those who aren't ready to listen.
The problem is the longer you are a believer the less you think like an unbeliever.
If you want to advertise your church to the unchurched you must learn to think and speak like they do.
How do you learn to think like unbelievers? Talk to them!
Complaints:
- Church is boring especially the sermons. The messages don't relate to my life.
- Church members are unfriendly to visitors. If I go to church I want to feel welcomed without being embarrassed. - fear - make visitors feel welcome and wanted without feeling watched.
- The church is more interested in my money than in me.
- We worry about the quality of the church's child care.
Most of the unchurched aren't atheists. They are misinformed, turned off or too busy.
We must be willing to catch fish on their own terms.
Serious fishermen, however, will go to any length to catch fish. How serious are you about the Great Commission? How serious is your church? Are you willing to go to any length and be uncomfortable in order to win people to Christ?
Understanding and adapting to their culture: Be sensitive to local culture. They were to adapt to local customs and culture when it didn't violate a biblical principle.
Too often we let cultural differences between believers and unbelievers become barriers to getting the message out. You must penetrate their culture. To penetrate any culture you must be willing to make small concessions in matters of style in order to gain a hearing.
Letting your target determine your approach. 1 Corinthians 9:22-23 "Yes, whatever a person is like I try to find common ground with him so that he will let me tell him about Christ and let Christ save him. I do this to get the Gospel to them and also for the blessing I myself receive when I see them come to Christ."
He simply started wherever people were.
Begin with the felt needs of the unchurched - If your church is serious about reaching the unchurched you must be willing to put up with people who have a lot of problems. Fishing is often smelly and messy. Many churches want the fish they catch to be already scaled, gutted, cleaned and cooked. That is why they never reach anyone.
Understand and respond to the hang-ups of the unchurched - At Saddleback we take the hang-ups of the unchurched very seriously even when they are based on ignorance. Unbelievers have hang-ups about churches asking them for money about churches that use guilt or fear to motivate about churches that expect them to attend every meeting the church holds and about churches that make visitors stand up and introduce themselves.
I am not ashamed of my Southern Baptist heritage and we clearly explain in our membership class that Saddleback is affiliated both doctrinally and financially with the Southern Baptist Convention. But when we asked unchurched southern Californians, What does the term Southern Baptist mean to you? I was amazed at the widespread misperceptions. Many unbelievers, particularly those with Catholic backgrounds, told me they would never even consider visiting a Southern Baptist congregation.
Choosing a neutral name was an evangelism strategy not a theological compromise.
Today's generation has very little "brand" loyalty. For most people value is a greater draw. Few people choose a church on the basis of the denominational label. They choose the church that best ministers to their needs.
Change methods whenever necessary
The greatest enemy to our success in the future is often the success of our past.
It is not pandering to consumerism to offer multiple services or even multiple styles of worship. It is strategic and unselfish and it says we will do whatever it takes to reach more people for Christ. The goal is not to make it as difficult as possible but to make it as easy as possible for the unchurched to hear about Christ.
Saturation evangelism : using every available means to reach every available person at every available time.
It cost to Reach Your Community.
When finances get tight in a church often the first thing cut is the evangelism and advertising budget. That is the last thing you should cut.
Check out your vision. Is it clear? Is it being communicated effectively? Money flows to God-given, Holy Spirit-inspired ideas.
If you'll focus on fishing (evangelism) God will pay your bills.
"God's work done God's way will not lack God's support."
Fishing is Serious Business - It's not a hobby for Christians; it is to be our lifestyle!
Who is Your Target
Jesus said I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel. Matthew 15:24
Paul had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles just as Peter had been to the Jews. Galatians 2:7
Little strategy and planning behind our evangelistic efforts - we don't aim at any specific target.
No single church can reach everyone. It takes all kinds of churches to reach all kinds of people.
Different kinds of bait catch different kinds of fish.
For your church to be most effective in evangelism you must decide on a target. Discover what types of people live in your area decide which of those groups your church is best equipped to reach and then discover which styles of evangelism best match your target. While your church may never be able to reach everyone it is especially suited to reaching certain types of people.
The Bible determines our message but our target determines when where and how we communicate it.
Knowing who you're trying to reach makes evangelism much easier.
Defining our evangelistic target has been the second most important factor behind Saddleback's growth.
It is imperative that you not even think about who your target may be until you've clarified the purposes of your church.
Jesus targeted his ministry in order to be effective not to be exclusive.
All nations - All people groups. Each of these unique people groups needs an evangelistic strategy that communicates in the Gospel in terms that their specific culture can understand.
Saddleback started with one target: young unchurched white-collar couples. They were the largest group in the Saddleback Valley.
Targeting for evangelism begins with finding out all you can about your community:
- Geographically
- Demographically
- Culturally and
- Spiritually.
I need to "exegete" my own community! I must pay as much attention to the geography customs culture and religious background of my community as I do to those who lived in Bible times if I am to faithfully communicate God's Word.
How many people live within a reasonable driving distance of your church?
People choose churches today primarily on the basis of relationships and programs not location.
Not only do you need to find out how many people live in your area you need to know what type of people live there.
Age, marital status, income, education, occupation
f you're serious about having your church make an impact become an expert on your community.
Understanding the culture of your community is even more important.
culture: lifestyle and mind-set of those who live around your church - people's values, interests, hurts and fears.
We don't have to agree with our culture but we must understand it.
To reach each of these groups you need to discover how they think.
- What are their interests?
- What do they value?
- Where do they hurt?
- What are they afraid of?
- What are the most prominent features of the way they live?
- What are their most popular radio stations?
The more you know about these people the easier it will be to reach them.
One of the major barriers to church growth is "people blindness" - being unaware of social and cultural differences.
The best way to find out the culture mindset and lifestyle of people is to talk to them personally. You don't need to hire a marketing firm; just go out and meet with the people in your community face to face.
Ask them what they feel are their greatest needs. Listen for their hurts, interests and fears. You must personally spend time with people getting a feel for your community through one-on-one interaction.
Discover the spiritual background of the people in your community.
The term unchurched doesn't refer to only people who have never been inside a church. It also includes those who have a church background but no personal relationship to Christ and those who haven't been in a church for some time usually years.
Once you've collected all the information on your community - create a composite profile on the typical unchurched person your church wants to reach.
Personalize Your Target
Without a target our efforts at evangelism are often only wishful thinking. Of course it takes time to focus and aim but it also pays off.