Who Broke My Church?

7 Proven Strategies for Renewal & Revival

How to Become a Missionary: Becoming a Christian Witness on a Mission (Part 40 of 40)

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You have now introduced your friends, Paul and Cindy, to your Outreach Cluster members, at a picnic gathering of Radiate.

  • You invite Paul and Cindy to your next gathering of Radiate, a progressive dinner that moves from one home to another among the Radiate members.
  • Paul and Cindy have not attended worship or shown interest in your church, but the relationships with Radiate continue to grow.

When Paul and Cindy raise the issue about attending worship at your church, you pick them up and bring them to your church.

  • You prearrange for those in your Outreach Cluster, Radiate, to sit together.
  • You bring Paul and Cindy and sit with Radiate.
  • Paul and Cindy, at their first worship service, sit with people they’ve already come to know. They are already somewhat assimilated into your church during their first visit to worship!
  • It isn’t important that Paul and Cindy know everyone at your church. It is vitally important to know some of those at your church and to sit with them.

Paul and Cindy decide they want to be baptized.

  • The group from Radiate stands around them as they are baptized.
  • It is a public witness and a demonstration that they are already somewhat assimilated into your church. They already have a Christian family within the context of the bigger Christian family, your church.
  • At the same time, Paul and Cindy are ready for “spiritual steak.”
  • You don’t invite, but bring them to a Bible study led by one of your Radiate friends.
  • Over time, Paul and Cindy catch the culture of sharing God stories. Where? From their friends in Radiate!
  • They begin to share their own new God stories with those in their social networks.
  • As former non-Christians, many of those in Paul and Cindy’s social networks are likely not believers yet.
  • Now your church begins to grow exponentially! Are you ready for revival?

If you would like to know more, you can also subscribe to my podcast on Apple Podcast and Google Play. We will expand on this theme further in our series beginning on March 6, 2018.

How to Become a Missionary: Becoming a Christian Witness on a Mission (Part 39 of 40)

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Outreach Clusters are a midway stepping mechanism for those who are responsive to your God stories and babies in the faith.

Outreach Clusters provide an assimilation mechanism for those who show interest in faith but would be intimidated by attending a worship service at your church—for now.

Every Outreach Cluster has a leader who organizes and communicates to the 15-20 people who participate in the cluster.

How does it work?

  • Let’s say you have been sharing God stories with your colleague, Paul, at work.
  • Paul is open to Christianity and has introduced you to his wife Cindy, who is also receptive.
  • You recognize that Paul and Cindy may be overwhelmed by attending your church right now. So you invite them instead to join you for a fun time with your Outreach Cluster.
  • You tell them a little bit about your cluster, called “Radiate.” This cluster is made up of people from your church who also work in the medical field. Since Cindy is a nurse, you think that might be a good fit for them.
  • Those in Radiate include doctors, nurses, a janitor at a hospital, a couple who are pharmacists, and a man who works for a medical supply company and his wife.
  • Radiate is having a picnic next month at North Ridge Park. You invite Paul and Cindy to come with you to this group. You pick them up and take them to the gathering.

In the course of your time at the Radiate picnic, you introduce Paul and Cindy to other people from your church. This is when they begin to meet other Christians and they see that other Christians have fun. They also may meet a few other guests, brought by others who are part of Radiate.

  • The leader welcomes everyone. You publicly introduce Paul and Cindy to the group but later, you intentionally introduce them to many of the people one on one.
  • Paul and Cindy begin to develop relationships with others from your church during this picnic.
  • The leader asks one of the church members to pray for the meal.
  • Before people begin leaving, the leader asks those in Radiate to share anything God has done in their lives lately.
  • Now Paul and Cindy learn that there are others, besides you, who have God stories.

We’ll catch up with Radiate tomorrow.

If you would like to know more, you can also subscribe to my podcast on Apple Podcast and Google Play. We will expand on this theme further in our series beginning on March 6, 2018.

How to Become a Missionary: Becoming a Christian Witness on a Mission (Part 38 of 40)

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When you share your “God stories” with others, and they respond, you become a guide to help them cross the bridge of the world to the world of faith.

We first learned this great “next step mechanism” during one of our visits to England.

  • Each year, we take a small group of no more than twenty North Americans to England.
  • England is about 20 to 24 years ahead of North America in spiritual renewal.
  • It is an outstanding “classroom of the future” to see what God will likely do next on this west side of the Atlantic Ocean.
  • We have connected with key leaders in England who give us personal time and insights to prepare those in our groups for what God will do here next.
  • It is a life-changing experience for anyone who visits these leaders in England.

One of the mechanism developed by some of the churches in the renewal movement in England is what we have come to call Outreach Clusters.

  • An Outreach Cluster includes about 15-20 people from the same church.
  • An Outreach Cluster may gather once or twice a month.
  • The primary purpose of an Outreach Cluster is to have fun and fellowship.
  • An Outreach Cluster may see a movie together and then go to a home or restaurant to eat and discuss it.
  • Some Outreach Clusters have a meal at someone’s house or at a restaurant.
  • Some Outreach Clusters meet for a picnic in a park.
  • The Outreach Cluster leader organizes the group and communicates to the members of the group when and where they will meet.
  • The group usually has a name. For example, one that I have visited in England is called “Radiate.”
  • The Outreach Clusters often do some unique ministry out in the community, where they serve on some regular basis.

Tomorrow, we’ll look at why you would invite a person to an Outreach Cluster.

If you would like to know more, you can also subscribe to my podcast on Apple Podcast and Google Play. We will expand on this theme further in our series beginning on March 6, 2018.

Turn Your Faith Inside Out: Learn the Art of Assimilation

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Most Christians want to rush a new Christian into a worship service at church. That’s like feeding a steak to a 2-month-old baby!

Ever hear of “baby steps”? What does that look like for my friend Fred at work, who just started to show interest in spiritual matters?

  • DON’T invite Fred and his wife to worship! Invite them to coffee, or lunch, or a ball game.
  • Continue the faith conversation. Share what God has done in your life in other instances. Be sensitive, go slow.
  • If Fred and his wife continue to show interest, invite them to what we officially call an Outreach Cluster: a group of Christians from the same church who (1) have fun together, and, (2) invite unchurched people like Fred and his wife to the gathering of your Outreach Cluster once or twice a month.
  • Introduce Fred and his wife to the group, and, while your group is partying, introduce them to each person/couple one at a time, personally.
  • At the end of the gathering, the leader of the Outreach Cluster says, “Anyone want to share what God has done in your life since we were together last month?” Fred and his wife learn that others have stories about how God has worked in their lives.
  • If and when Fred and his wife keep coming, they will become friends with the others in the Outreach Cluster.
  • If and when they inquire about your church, you bring them, with you, and sit with the group from your Outreach Cluster. Fred and his wife are already assimilated, to a degree, through the relationships they have developed in the Outreach Cluster, even before they first visit the church.

Turn your faith inside out!