Have you ever been so entrenched in getting something done to the point that you forget the main reason you started your project in the first place? Last year I was planning our dodgeball tournament as an outreach to the teenagers in the community. I was signing up teams, planning out the setup, and getting food and volunteers in place when I finally had to step back and ask myself, "What is the point of all this?" I reset and got focused on the goal. I reminded myself on how this event will be a place where everyone will get to hear a clear presentation of the gospel. I remembered how we had been encouraging our volunteers to intentionally engage and show love to everyone who showed up with the hope of talking to them about Jesus. I thought about how we were promoting small group discipleship and this would give us a platform to encourage the students to get plugged in. Finally, we would get contact cards and be able to follow up to figure out how to serve these teens and help them build relationships where they could learn about Christ! Thinking about those things makes you realize that these events are great things and worth every ounce of planning and effort you put in!
The challenge, however, is that these type of events do take a lot of planning and work. The sheer labor it takes to produce an outreach event limits the amount of things you can do. So what can we do to have a more continual approach to outreach and evangelism without it being too much? The answer is engaging people where they already are.
One of the hardest yet most important aspects of an outreach event is attracting an audience. You want to be able to meet people you don't normally meet. Also, one of the most effective ways to do outreach/evangelism at events is simply to engage in one on one conversations. The large group message is great and God uses it, but personal informal conversations also have a great impact. The wonderful part about an outreach event, much like a mission trip, is that every volunteer knows their task and therefore they are intentional about how they spend their time. So based on these components, what can we do?
The answer is simple. Let's find the things that already attract an audience of people we may not see or know. In youth ministry the majority of your mission field in your community will all be at a Friday night football game. Let's be intentional in our conversations, show a crazy amount of love to everyone, and pray for opportunities to share what we believe. And let's just care for the souls of people and see that there are so many opportunities to do this. Missionaries do this. They look for opportunities to share Christ with people in their communities and they meet them there. As we all have been called on a mission to make disciples, we all ought to think this way.
So my application is simply this. Let's encourage one another to use our time wisely and make the most of the opportunities in front of us. Let's equip one another to get more comfortable boldly talking about our faith. Let's pray for one another and be strategic. Plan on going to a game with fellow church members with this in mind. Think about who you might can build a relationship with at the gym or grocery store or community center. And let's do what God called us to do and make disciples. I still think we should put together outreach events, but they will only be better if outreach/evangelism is already a consistent part of our lives. And all this is said knowing that we need to be in prayer for others and ask the Lord to use us on a daily basis.
The challenge, however, is that these type of events do take a lot of planning and work. The sheer labor it takes to produce an outreach event limits the amount of things you can do. So what can we do to have a more continual approach to outreach and evangelism without it being too much? The answer is engaging people where they already are.
One of the hardest yet most important aspects of an outreach event is attracting an audience. You want to be able to meet people you don't normally meet. Also, one of the most effective ways to do outreach/evangelism at events is simply to engage in one on one conversations. The large group message is great and God uses it, but personal informal conversations also have a great impact. The wonderful part about an outreach event, much like a mission trip, is that every volunteer knows their task and therefore they are intentional about how they spend their time. So based on these components, what can we do?
The answer is simple. Let's find the things that already attract an audience of people we may not see or know. In youth ministry the majority of your mission field in your community will all be at a Friday night football game. Let's be intentional in our conversations, show a crazy amount of love to everyone, and pray for opportunities to share what we believe. And let's just care for the souls of people and see that there are so many opportunities to do this. Missionaries do this. They look for opportunities to share Christ with people in their communities and they meet them there. As we all have been called on a mission to make disciples, we all ought to think this way.
So my application is simply this. Let's encourage one another to use our time wisely and make the most of the opportunities in front of us. Let's equip one another to get more comfortable boldly talking about our faith. Let's pray for one another and be strategic. Plan on going to a game with fellow church members with this in mind. Think about who you might can build a relationship with at the gym or grocery store or community center. And let's do what God called us to do and make disciples. I still think we should put together outreach events, but they will only be better if outreach/evangelism is already a consistent part of our lives. And all this is said knowing that we need to be in prayer for others and ask the Lord to use us on a daily basis.