Thursday, April 25, 2019
So What Are These Hope for Life Campaigns
So as most of you know, I travel 15-20 weekends/weeks per year doing campaigns and seminars for Herald of Truth. Occasionally I do blog about the various campaigns but I thought today I would give a quick overview of what they actually involve.
We only do campaigns where the local congregations "buy-in" to an all-out effort to reach the lost among their friends, family, and communities. Our preference is for multiple congregations in a given area to work together in partnership with Herald of Truth. The local congregations form a steering committee and make most of the decisions about the campaign.
After an initial interest meeting to see how many congregations will commit to the effort, Christians begin to pray for God to connect them to non-believers. We will conduct a seminar/seminars to inspire, equip, and motivate Christians to share their faith. I do the Followers Making Followers seminar to help believers live as disciple makers. Living as forgiven people, serving in the name of Jesus, and speaking boldly about Jesus. I also do Can I Tell You a Story. This focuses on starting Jesus conversations, telling your Jesus story, and what stories to use to share Jesus. Often we will also have Tim Archer conduct his Church Inside Out seminar, especially for leaders. This helps a church's leadership guide their congregation into healthy practices and outlooks to be welcoming to outsiders.
These are followed by an evangelistic capstone event where I share Jesus stories designed to communicate with non-believers. Often held at a central location -- rarely in a church building -- this is designed to invite friends to hear about Jesus, or to spark conversation, to move non-Christians toward Jesus, or to persuade them to make a decision to become a disciple.
I am often asked how we get congregations to actually work together in a major effort like this. The main reason is that this is about making disciples in our world. These campaigns are about Jesus, his death and resurrection. We emphasize Christian living as loving God and loving your neighbor. We believe those that want to follow Jesus will be baptized and that they will live forgiven among a community of believers. If a church can agree to those convictions, they are welcome to participate. The discipling of new believers we leave to individual congregations.
And here is what happens: non-believers are introduced to Jesus, conversations are started, stories are shared, and souls are saved. Congregations work together, encourage each other, share conversion stories, and trade ideas for continued evangelism.
And these campaigns do not end. They continue. Making disciples who make disciples who make disciples.
So that is what I am currently doing in Princeton, NJ, Concord, NH, and Morro Bay, CA area. Just finished in Wichita, KS and the Dexter/Chelsea area of Michigan.
So if you are in an area where you think this would fit your church, contact me and we will go from there.
What a great job.
Thanks God.
We only do campaigns where the local congregations "buy-in" to an all-out effort to reach the lost among their friends, family, and communities. Our preference is for multiple congregations in a given area to work together in partnership with Herald of Truth. The local congregations form a steering committee and make most of the decisions about the campaign.
After an initial interest meeting to see how many congregations will commit to the effort, Christians begin to pray for God to connect them to non-believers. We will conduct a seminar/seminars to inspire, equip, and motivate Christians to share their faith. I do the Followers Making Followers seminar to help believers live as disciple makers. Living as forgiven people, serving in the name of Jesus, and speaking boldly about Jesus. I also do Can I Tell You a Story. This focuses on starting Jesus conversations, telling your Jesus story, and what stories to use to share Jesus. Often we will also have Tim Archer conduct his Church Inside Out seminar, especially for leaders. This helps a church's leadership guide their congregation into healthy practices and outlooks to be welcoming to outsiders.
These are followed by an evangelistic capstone event where I share Jesus stories designed to communicate with non-believers. Often held at a central location -- rarely in a church building -- this is designed to invite friends to hear about Jesus, or to spark conversation, to move non-Christians toward Jesus, or to persuade them to make a decision to become a disciple.
I am often asked how we get congregations to actually work together in a major effort like this. The main reason is that this is about making disciples in our world. These campaigns are about Jesus, his death and resurrection. We emphasize Christian living as loving God and loving your neighbor. We believe those that want to follow Jesus will be baptized and that they will live forgiven among a community of believers. If a church can agree to those convictions, they are welcome to participate. The discipling of new believers we leave to individual congregations.
And here is what happens: non-believers are introduced to Jesus, conversations are started, stories are shared, and souls are saved. Congregations work together, encourage each other, share conversion stories, and trade ideas for continued evangelism.
And these campaigns do not end. They continue. Making disciples who make disciples who make disciples.
So that is what I am currently doing in Princeton, NJ, Concord, NH, and Morro Bay, CA area. Just finished in Wichita, KS and the Dexter/Chelsea area of Michigan.
So if you are in an area where you think this would fit your church, contact me and we will go from there.
What a great job.
Thanks God.
