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Blogging NOC07: Alan Nelson
By Jeremy | November 8, 2007
What's Hot (and Not) in Outreach
Alan Nelson, editor-in-chief Rev! magazine GOAL: Examine outreach methods and their relevance in today's culture. What are the trends and how can they influence outreach strategies over the next five years? + A Dozen Dysfunctions & Myths About Outreach and What To Do About Them 1. It’s the “organized†church’s job to evangelize a community. 2. When people say, “outreach,†they’re talking about the same thing. 3. Canned approaches still work. 4. Armed with ample apologetics, we can convince people to believe in Christ. 5. Church mission statements including “evangelism/outreach†components are effective. 6. Revival services are productive means of outreach. 7. Church marketing with slick ads and postcards are sufficient to gain new members. 8. A growing church is a sign of effective evangelism. 9. Attraction events are sufficient to introduce people to Christ. 10. Confrontational evangelism is effective if more Christians would just implement it. 11. Altar calls (invitations) at the end of church services are the primary way that people make decisions for Christ. 12. It’s fair to assume that people attending church have a personal relationship with Christ. + Approaches to Outreach Go .............................. Come [Download PowerPoint for graphic chart] + Role of Church Evangelism .................. Discipleship [Download PowerPoint for graphic chart] + What's cold Turn or burn preaching and street corner evangelism Confrontational approaches (Evangelism Explosion, surveys) Canned plans (4 Spiritual Laws, tracts, EE) + What's cool Stadium events / Crusades (Graham, Harvest, PK) Apologetics (convincing facts and arguments, McDowell, Bible Answer Man) Altar calls / invitations for decisions at the end of sermons + What's warm Attraction events (family fun days, comedy night, Big Days) Quality seeker services (i.e. North Point, Willow, Saddleback, Fellowship) Friendship evangelism (Outflow, Contagious Christian, Just Walk Across the Room) Experiential worship (i.e. worship evangelism) + What's hot Service evangelism (let me serve you- no strings, Outflow, Sjogren) Incarnational evangelism / green house effect (let’s serve others together; I.e. Bono, Habitat, Africa, HIV) Co-journey / agenda-less friendships / “us†(Beliefnet.com) + Motivations (Move from modern to post-modern) Confrontational: Face your sins (cold) Educational: Face your folly (cool) Informational/Inspirational: Face your purpose (warm) Incarnational: Face your spirit (hot) + Nelson's picks 1. Listening shouts, “I care about you more than an answer.†2. Teach people to ask better questions; Jesus did. 3. Facilitate random acts of kindness… just cuz. 4. Liberate people from the church calendar crunch. 5. Equip people to use their gifts, inside & outside the church doors.Extras
• NOC 07 Seminar Slides (powerpoint) • What's Hot (and What's Not) in Outreach (article)Topics: alan nelson, evangelism, missional, noc07 | 1 Comment »
November 9th, 2007 at 11:07 am
Jeremy, thanks for this post. As I read your notes I almost came away with the understanding that the 12 points were the trends of the next 5 years until I went to the Extras — the powerpoint & article – now I understand that those were the myths. Very insightful. Thanks for equipping me with this material.