Every church knows that church growth is closely tied to the amount of gospel seed sown by evangelism ministries. Here are four critical ministries every church should consider emphasizing:
Personal Witnessing: This is the most successful form of evangelism. When saints are witnessing and inviting those they know to church, more conversions occur. Churches can encourage this many ways, but two of the best are (1) each year teach a series on “How to Be an Effective Witness.” Use one of the many soul-winning books on the market as a curriculum guide. (2) Launch a “Constant Contact Consciousness” ministry in your church. The CCC ministry serves as a powerful motivation and reminder to participants to be faithful in witnessing. The CCC team can inspire the whole church. Not everyone will participate. Use those that will.
Home Bible Study: Train your saints to teach home Bible studies (HBS). This training should be offered annually. Bringing in an outside “expert” to conduct this training is a real plus. New converts and move-in’s since your last training seminar should especially be encouraged to attend the training sessions. Keep your trained HBS teachers busy teaching by using several of the methods outlined in my past column “How To Get More Home Bible Studies.”
Visitor Follow-up: 100% of your new converts come from guests that attend your church. But less than 5% receive the Holy Ghost the first time they come. This means, for your church to grow, guests have to return on average 3-5 times before going to the altar. The best way to encourage return visits is with a comprehensive guest follow-up ministry. This ministry should include: a phone call within 24 hours, a letter within 48 hours, an at-home visit within seven days, and 2-3 follow-up visits over the next 12 months. No ministry will impact the growth of your church more than visitor follow-up.
Sunday School and Bus Ministry: Your Sunday School provides you with a powerful platform to promote special days and events. Give your saints lots of reasons to invite their family, friends and co-workers! Special Sundays could include: Watchnight, Easter, Pentecost Sunday, Military Day, Multicultural Sunday, Friend Day, Children’s Crusade, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and more. And don’t forget Bus /Van Ministry! When coupled with Parentreach, this ministry will bring in families year after year. At least monthly a “Super Church”-style children’s church will see bus kids receiving the Holy Ghost consistently. Strong Sunday schools build churches!
If you are unsure how to implement any of these outreach ministries, contact the IBC Perspectives office and purchase Total Church Growth which explains these ministries and more in great detail. Call 1-800-800-0247 or email: ibcperspectives@apostolic.edu.
