I have never been to a church that said, “We do not want to reach out.” I have never met a pastor who said, “I don’t want this church to succeed in outreach.” Never! So why are only 1 percent of all churches, according to researcher David Laubach, truly reaching the un-churched?
One reason is that point leaders don’t know how to communicate a vision for outreach to their church, staff, or team. Here are two ways that have been effective for our church:
1. Stories.
Nothing is more powerful than a true story. Last weekend our church had more than 20 people who made commitments to Christ and were baptized. Each of them has an amazing, personal story of change, and I will tell the best of those stories over and over again at staff meetings, leadership gatherings, and celebration services. As people hear them they not only believe we can be a church that reaches out, but they also understand how it can happen. If you don’t have any stories, borrow one of ours on our website, www.communitychristian.org. Storytelling is your best means for communicating a vision of outreach.
2. Slogans.
Our church’s slogan, “helping people find their way back to God,” also reinforces our vision for outreach. When we tell stories of outreach by video, in print, online, or in person, we often end them with our slogan. By doing this, whenever a person hears “helping people find their way back to God,” it reminds them of a story of a friend, neighbor or co-worker who experienced a life change.
A consultant we brought in recently told us, “We have not been around a church where everyone knows the mission and is so passionate about it.” And then the consultant repeated the slogan back to us. But this motto isn’t just printed on a brochure. It is what we do. It is what people pray. It is how we measure success. Find a slogan for your church that sums up your passion for outreach, and use it to focus everyone’s efforts.
