Reaching Our Community For Christ Pt. 4

Good evening and I'm glad that you're here. It's been a hot day and it has been. It's been hot here lately happening. Appreciate you asking that John. I heard it was so hot in New York today that they asked the Statue of Liberty to lower her arm. You know, it's hot. When they asked the Statue of Liberty, to lower her arm out and, you know, it's hot. Oh that's right. So well it is good to be here tonight. There's a there's a lot of going on in the world in it. Don't it make you think that time is getting short. Just makes you think that doesn't just everything that's going on. I was reading the story the other day, you know, I told you sometime in, October, maybe late, September, or October. We going to do a series And that will be our big event for this year on, you know, his God, real questions that people have answers that they want. And one, the first sermons, I was going to preach is God is God? Real is heat. Does God exist. And I was reading the story. The other day said, the little boy, was in the classroom and they had to draw a picture in the teacher was walking around it and she looked at me, she said, Johnny what are you drawing? And he said, well, I'm drawing God and she said with Johnny you can't draw God, nobody knows what he looks like. He said well they'll know now you know, he wanted to draw God. So hopefully on that Sunday I'll be able to draw a pretty picture of God for people. And exactly what he's doing in this world. And I hope you can be here this Sunday, because this Sunday, I'm going to preach on. I'm going to preach on. The supremacy of Jesus and how awesome Jesus really is. You know, we think of him as Savior. And dying on the cross. But we don't go a whole lot further than that. And he is so much more than that, so much more than that. And we'll talk about that this Sunday. Well tonight, I want us to finish up our Let me get, I got so many up here, finish up this study on our Outreach system. And where did we leave off?

Vacation. Bible School Number 5. All right, let's see. And that's on.

Okay, vacation, bible school. So we talked about the Easter and, and how we can have big events at certain times of the year. And we went through the East door about 7 weeks, out and 654. And just kind of how we're going to do these events when we kind of plan on them and and go out and invite people. And we'll talk a little bit more about that next week. Vacation, bible school number 5 is have something for parents. You need to have something for parents so they won't, just drop their children off. So if you can have something for them especially if there's a lot of young children here parents want to know about parenting. So if that be a very good week, you know, if you could have like a parenting class for the adults while the children are here, share the gospel is be, we always want to do that.

Invite the family to church service weekend. So if you can get them in here during vacation bible school, then have something, you know, for them, you know maybe Sunday or something like that, maybe they can come back and you can recognize, you know, the children. Most time you do that on the last night of vacation bible school, but there's different things ways, you can plan it and then invite them back soon. So that's just another. Outreach opportunity would be Vacation, Bible School, Mother's Day, Easter Christmas, and then you can plan your own old-fashioned. A recognized teachers military law enforcement First Responders, just have your own special days that you want to have. All right, so let's turn on the last page and we will quickly go through this. This is kind of our overview of our evangelism. System. You do have that page, don't you? Okay? So, Number one. Pray like a w. What do you think that would be free like a w a warrior? That's good, that's not good. Oh that's good dude. That's not it. Pray like an evangelist will, how does an evangelist pray? Lord, give me and my church your heart for the loss. Nephew, been praying that these last 80 Days. You been praying like an evangelist. and I hope it's changed your heart and I hope you're looking at people different and I hope that you are praying for a couple of neighbors right now and have been good. I I did. I hope you have because those are the people that we're going to try to reach and I'm going to give you something tonight. That's really going to help you. I think I wouldn't even looking for and I come by at yesterday. And we'll hand that out in a minute. Pray like an evangelist invite your community to church so we need to get in our communities. You said, yeah. But we don't, we don't all live in the same Community. We live in different places. That's why you need to get in your community wherever you live. You may not live in a subdivision but you probably have neighbors that live close by maybe even family members or, you know, in your community Figure out a way to get the word out about our upcoming event. Now, I'll we going to get some invite cards that you can give the people We'll get some cards probably with the title of the series and a couple two or three of the messages. The questions that's going to be asked and answered. And we can hand those out. You can go to local businesses, and hand those out. Just just things like that. The people around in your community. Number three, inspiring, your members to be Salt and Light. Well, I kind of what we were just talking about number four. Make your church a place that people want to come back to. Make your church a place that people want to come back to. So what, what is that talking about? Well, that's the first system that we talked about this emulation system. They Come For the First Time. Most important thing is friendliness second most is cleanliness Being as friendly as we can do, we give him a gift, small little gift when they leave. We that that is the assimilation. I hope you haven't forgot about that. I hope you still have your paperwork so cuz we'll have to go back and look at that. And beginning next week we'll do that and we'll start planning next week. Some things that we need to do here around the grounds. I know because already mentioned about the steps and things doing some things here on the ground, we need to start planning that I need to get the guy over here to look and give a quote for the power wash and I'll do that. And then we're going to have to order our connect cards invite cards. We were going to have to do all that. And we'll have to put people in place to be in certain places on that first Sunday.

And so that you know this quite a bit to do but we have time to do it so make your church a place that people want to come back to going back to the other one falled in life. Don't y'all have on your hand out the random acts of kindness that you okay, just look for those that may give you some ideas or some things that you could do. But that's being Salt and Light, number 5, follow up with new Believers. So if there's someone comes in and gets a, we're going to have to follow up, we're going to have to have a next step class. Someone's going to have to kind of Mentor them, whether it's a child where there's a teenager or whether it's an adult, we're going to have to Mentor them. So we're going to have to I'm going to have to come up with a like a new members class. Something that you tell people about our church and what we expect, what they can expect. You just don't want people walking down the aisle. That you don't even know, is that? Okay? Well, I want to join your church. Well, I appreciate that. I appreciate people that wants to join the church, but we need to talk to him first. I need to know. If are you saved or are this is what we are about? This is what we teach. This is what we believe that. I save you a lot of trouble if you'll have a new member class and people go to that first, then you bring them back up before the congregation and you say so in. So, like to join the church and and then vote on them at that time. So, but we're going to have to have that number 6, plan to help new Believers grow up spiritually. Again, that's that would be the next episode of class or whatever you want to call it. Number 7, Preach every weekend on there are people in the audience who don't know Jesus. So maybe when we you know how our weekend or main event maybe we'll have some people here. That usually don't come. So I'm going to have to remember to preach in a way that will speak to hearts. That don't know anything about the Bible. Maybe don't understand anything. And so I'm not going to dumb down the gospel but I'll probably be a little more Elementary than I am when I preach when it's just us here. You know, number eight percent. The gospel reggae in your children and youth Ministries. We don't have any yet, hopefully, we will. But surely when we do, that's what we will want to do and also teach them to share their faith. And remember when a parent brings a small child, And I drop them off in a room. What is the number one thing that the parents care about or my children's safe? And what's the next thing? Did you have fun, did you have fun? Yes, they want. They want them to learn to, of course, but if a child has fun and they go running and meeting their mom and daddy, I want to come back. That's exactly what you want. So you want him to learn something but you want them to do it in a fun way. The donut Church. Yeah, if he wants to come back because we give them a doughnut. Then that that'll be, that'll be a good thing. So, but we don't have those Ministries yet. Hopefully, we'll be able to crank those up. Number nine, have a Ministry in your church that teaches people to share the gospel themselves. You know, I think I've gone over a couple of things who's your one year or two ago. We went over another way to share your fate. Can you remember the name of it now? But I gave you these little pamphlets and things like that. I remember doing that. What I want to hand you tonight. Has a way to do it as well so that's one of the one of the things that we need to do. Every church needs to do is at some point during the year once or twice a year just have a refresher Two or three-week course, on sharing your face and how to do it. Young people who have just gotten saved, they need to understand how to share their fate. I mean, that's one of the first things that the Lord would ask us to do in the number 10. Provide mission trips for individuals on a trip, share the gospel. So Austin has gone on a trip to where Czech Republic so it'd be nice. That one day that we could offer a mission trips and and things like that as well. I guess you could partner with other churches and and do that as well, but it would be nice and it wouldn't be bad if we wanted to at some point. I know we give money to the association and they give money to the international North American Mission board. But it wouldn't be bad if we wanted to. If we wanted to sponsor a Michigan missionary or to ourselves, and they can come by and give reports and talk about what they do. So that's down the road and and maybe we'll be able to do that as well. So that's kind of the evangelism system that we're going to use. And basically is friendship evangelism, getting to know your neighbors or people around you build in a relationship with them and then picking those opportunities that you can share the gospel. That that's the way it is. And I think I think that that will work now, sometimes it may take time to do that but still, I think, in the long run, it will work. So Martha is going to hand. You this hand out that I found. This is not original with me. But I just thought it was so good. That I wanted you to have a copy and I'll just briefly go over it with you. And then we will close it down early, and we'll have our business meeting. The next week when we come back. We thinking about some things, maybe that you can do. And and I'll, I'll probably talk more about other ways that we're going to reach people. You know, I've been talkin about the Facebook ads and all like that. But I need some people that's familiar with Facebook. To help not just with the Facebook ads but just some things that we as individuals can do on our own. All right. Everybody got one. Did I not make enough copies? You felt left out.

Alright, so

you going to get one for me.

They are now he can get over there and sit right up under Peggy so he can, yeah, that's right. Are you going to get close to that? You can't see it there. All right. I want you to look at this. This is let me tell you where I got this from. I got this from the website of David. Jeremiah I got it from his website. Now I'm what they call a Bible strong partner. I give $25 a month to his ministry and they got this special website and I just happen to be browsing through there. And I saw something that said, evangelism and I clicked on it and I found this right here and this is just wonderful. So I want you to look at it. This is plans for reaching out to others. Now what I want you to notice is he goes through different people of things that we can do to reach out to him. So if you're kind of stuck and don't exactly know where to start well let's look at this. How about if you have your trying to reach an unsafe parent? Plans for reaching a parent and I just look at what some of these say. Number one, pray Faithfully that God would cause your parents Hearts to turn toward Eternal issues as they grow older. Look for ways to sacrificially on and serve your parents with the love of Christ meals home, repairs, help with finances. Invite your parents to events in your home where Christian themes might be there in evidence prayer Fellowship. Bible study whatever number 5 find birthday Christmas. Another occasional gifts that have a spiritual theme, this is for if you have a parent that is unsafe. Look at the next one plans for reaching a spouse. so if you're, you know, there's a lot of specially women who come to church but their husbands won't and there's a lot of women who are Christian women and their husbands aren't and I would like for their spouse or their husbands could be white, but we'll just use husband's they would like for their husbands become. What, how do you reach a spouse? Well, you pray Faithfully that the unsafe spouse would receive salvation. You know, that's like your 90-day prayer. Look for ways to influence your husband for Christ more by your Godly life than by your words. Sometimes it gets very frustrating if you come to church by yourself and your husband wants to watch TV or lay in bed, it gets frustrating. And then when you're up and you're going and he snaps at you and you say something, I would need your sorry, I wish you would you won't even go that, you know, that's not going to do it. But I understand how people feel when it's like that, but that's just not going to do it. So, So, any white be a good witness is what he's saying here, husband's look for ways to love your wife. As Christ loved the church, honor, respect her, do the best maintain spiritual disciplines and practice is this is having to reach and then, on the next page because unsafe spouse is often feel, they have taken a backseat to Christ work, diligent making your marriage relationship. The priority introduce your spouse socially to Christian friends who will respect their spiritual condition.

be willing to accompany your spouse to events that are meaningful to him and her, if you're not careful, You'll go to all the church events and he'll go to all the other events, and you got both go separate all the time, if you're not careful. Use birthdays anniversary, holidays is opportunity to demonstrate the love of Christ. So be quick to apologize and ask for forgiveness of your spouse when you are in the wrong, that's just ways. You have an unsaved spouse. Look at plans for reaching your children, You ever thought about where my children are young? How do I talk to them about the gospel? What do I say? How can I do it? Well, this right here will tell you number 3 model of consistent. Walk children believe more of what they see than what they hear.

Number 7 allow your older children especially teens divorce. Legitimate questions about Christianity in the face by I wonder if God exists is God. Really real allow them to ask those questions that gives you the opportunity to answer it. And so that's okay. If they have questions like that, don't number eight, don't put off, inviting your children to receive Christ and don't let their negative response or hesitant diminish. Your unconditional love, continue to pray. Look at the neck from plans for reaching and extended family member. Maybe you have a family member that you know, the son say but they don't live in the state of North Carolina. Things like that.

Number three, on that would make a list of areas of Common Ground are is through which you can begin to develop a spiritual relationship. Make a calendar of dates that are important to that person birthday and things like that. The anniversary graduations. Number 5, look at that one set aside funds in your personal or family budget to use for reaching out to the extended family members by building a relationship funds, for travel gift cards, and things like that. Look at the next one plans for reaching a friend where we all know how friends that are unsafe. This is just a friend. Well, it tells you how did look at number to be a file weather, as well as a fair-weather friend, stick close by with a mature perspective. When your friend is going through times of trouble and understand, and if they're on say, they're not going to handle it the same way you would. So if they're in trouble, and if there were in and if they're upset and anxious, don't go to him and beat him over the head. See if you were saved, you wouldn't be this way. You'd have the peace of God in your life. See that's what I've got. You can't do that. You just have to listen to him and go along with them and give them some spiritual advice ever. So often, if you can But you probably shouldn't say what this is, what the Bible says, no, just paraphrase it because if you say, that's why I don't care about the Bob. I don't want to hear about that. I'm not a Christian, I don't care. You just going to lose it right there but plans for reaching a friend.

Number five, protect your friend's privacy when interacting with your Christian friend. Don't make your friend, an object of discussion or special prayer. Don't say why I got a special prayer request for this friend here or whatever, ask your Christian friends to accept your friend. As worthy of respect, regardless of his spiritual convictions, you know, you ever been around people, you thought everybody was looking at you and talking about you, you don't, you don't want to have an atmosphere like that. So that's plans on reaching friend, your children, extended family member turn to page and look, here's one plans for reaching a co-worker. I mean if you work still and you probably have co-workers that you know this unsafe well you can just read this right here. And it will, maybe in this is, you know, this is not everything, it just may get you to thinking about some things, maybe that you'll think of is not even on here.

But you know that there's one plan for reaching the neighbor. What, who are we talkin about inviting? The church was specifically our neighbors. Okay, so how do you reach your neighbor where you pray for? Be a good neighbor to them? Don't like, don't let Petty issues like property lines, lost tools stand in the way of the spiritual goals. You know, if your neighbor has a pen full of beagle dogs, when they bark all night. You don't have to get mad at it. I do, but you don't have to But anyway that's what I mean. That's fine. Reflect God's generosity by being a generous neighbor, make your skills and possessions available to your neighbor when needed. Look at number for. This is one, I didn't think up under your neighbor by calling on him or her for assistance and advice in areas where you lack skills. Maybe he can work on your car, I can't work on my car. Maybe my lost neighbor, cutting, where I can go there and ask you, what would you do here? What do I need to do? Is making this sound here. Remember how Gomer on Andy Griffith? Says making this sign here waiting why? I mean you can you could that's the way you can honor a loss neighbor. If you host a Bible study number six or home fellowship, be sure to invite your neighbors. Make sure the rest of your group knows us to extend extend respect and love to them. And then when the time is right, number 8, B, your neighbors to share the most valuable possession you have, which is the gospel. And then it's got one here on plans, on reaching people who are grieving, how do you reach them with the gospel on the next page plans for reaching the sick?

And then at the bottom of that page how to lead your whosoever, whoever it is to the Lord. This is what I was talking about. This is kind of like the Romans road, if you will salvation plan, but you can just say God loves you. There's John 3:16, God has a plan and a purpose for your life. A lot of people don't understand that. He is God real. OK. If he's real What is myself? What does he think about me? What? He has a plan and purpose for your life. So you guys just logically the next question you ask will if not is real. What does he think? What does he say about me? What's my self-worth? Here it is right here. He's got a plan for your life. John 10:10 been talked. About a course of sin separates us. The penalty of sin is death, Jesus, Paid that debt and when we repent, we're saved, it's just that simple. And if you already know the person and it's a friend, or your neighbor or a family member or something like that, you ought to be able to talk to him about this with e, you not going to be nervous. I don't know where to find what bird will just write them in You by Turn to You Bible. So Katie and 10:13, just let me know, it's all you have to do.

And then, even they put on here leading a child to Christ. How to do that. And if you have children, pray for their salvation everyday. Don't mean just the ones that living at home? You may have a child 40 years. Old is unsafe. Well, if you do, y'all be praying for him everyday their salvation.

and then, on the back of that,

That just goes down through and talks about leading a child and then a new beginning that good, though. I mean, that is good there. So you can use this as you're handing, out to invite cards, or are you praying for your neighbors? Just keep this and use that. Well, you know, these are some things you can do, if I want to reach a parent or spouse, a neighbor extended family member, a friend, a co-worker, a child, I just all of that. It is really, I thought it was really good. That's why I printed it out and use nine pages on for about eight or nine people. So. But anyway, I did print on both sides of so, so that's kind of where will stop at tonight that will end the The Outreach system. And so, I don't know which system. I don't know exactly which one to do next, but we need to just take a pause here and we need to start implementing this right here. For the better part of the rest of when we have our van in September of October. Inside when we come on Wednesday nights from. Now on, we'll talk about that event and we'll talk about the things that we need to do. And who's going to do what? To make that, you know, a big a big day for us. So anybody have any questions so far about anything that I said the last nine or ten weeks since we've been doing this? Now, I'll just tell you the truth.

I would rather be up here, teaching the book of Romans. On Wednesday night. I mean, that's just because that's what I enjoy. And that's but I feel like God has gifted me with but as a pastor, you have to do more than preach. And so a church needs to be healthy. And if it's not healthy, Then God's going to look at the shepherd. so, I'm learning as I'm going through this cuz I've never done this for church. I've always worked in the ministry in the church. I've never worked on the ministry that much. So we're working on the ministry and I've done a lot of research. I've talked to a lot of people called, a lot of people, I've texted a lot of people and hopefully this is making sent to you. Is it it is okay. Alright. Well, let's pray. We'll have a businessman. Father, we thank you tonight. We love you. We praise you for what you doing. In our midst Lord, we just want to be a healthy church and we want to be healthy, Christians Lord, to be healthy. We know that we're going to have to reach out. Going to have to reach in first and get your heart for the loss and then we're going to have to reach out. But Lord, we love you and we know that this is what you want to do and we also know that if we will put our Foot forward that you will equip and enable us to do exactly what we need to do. Lord, we thank you for that. We have confidence in you because you are an awesome God in Christ name, I pray. Amen. All right.