Each One Reach One

As reports of declining church attendance capture the attention of social chronicles, my pastor is fighting back with God's Word.

Today Pastor Mac concluded the stewardship series by teaching our congregation from the gospel of Luke how to be 'inviters'. As an outreach pastor, I listened eagerly because I have sought but never heard anyone teach how to consistently succeed as an invitational evangelist.

You may remember the story about a man who held a great banquet and invited a lot of people all of whom gave excuses not to attend. Pastor Mac taught that there are three reasons first time attenders will accept your invitation and how we should respond.

1. The first group will come simply out of respect for you. When you invite friends relatives co-workers and if they refuse, ask them to do you a favor by being your guest.

2. The second group have felt needs in their lives that our church can meet. Should they decline your invitation tell them about our awesome small groups, marriage ministry and children's church.

3. The third group will come out of simple curiosity. If they decline your invitation tell them them to come and see our beautiful facilities and hear the good music or laugh at the goofy jokes Mac tells.

The only way that the body of Christ will reverse the downward trend of church attendance is by recognizing that that the Word of God is the only solution to life's challenges and that each one of us has the power to bring others under the influence of God's Word.

The Dream In Your Heart

Eric Rolland is using the promises in God's Word to achieve his dream. Although 34 years old, which is older than most PGA rookies, Eric is preparing himself to attend PGA Tour Qualifying School this fall.

“Pastor Mac has taught us to follow the dream in your heart”, Eric said, “so I am preparing myself physically, mentally and spiritually to achieve my life’s ambition to be a professional on the PGA Tour.”

Eric attends and is very active in ministry at Living Word Christian Center. In addition to ushering and street witnessing with Pastor Nick Kinn, he volunteers to teach swing fundamentals to the Crest View Elementary School junior golf team while incorporating life principles of determination and patience.

Eric’s accomplishments are admirable. He placed in the top ten at the 2008 Tapemark Charity Golf Tournament in South St. Paul and eleventh in the 2008 Minnesota State Open Golf Tournament. Eric hones his game through practice and by competing in local professional tournaments. He was "Man of theYear" for the Chippewa Valley Golf Association. Last weekend he won the event at St. Croix National Golf Club near Stillwater.

Eric's mission field is professional golf. “Without Jesus the life of any professional athlete is incomplete. I have wept in the middle of a golf tournament for the souls of these players", he shared recently.

Eric and his wife have a three year old child and live in Rogers, MN.

Healing is the Dinner Bell

Our pastor, Mac Hammond, recently experienced a miraculous healing from prostate cancer. In his Sunday April 26, 2009 message Pastor shared the circumstances surrounding this event. He credited the prayer of the saints, praying in one accord, as the reason for his healing.

Rev. Kenneth E. Hagin was gifted with a miraculous ministry of healing. Brother Hagin used to refer to divine healing as the 'dinner bell’ of the gospel. Years ago people living out in the country had a big bell on their back porch, and when dinner was ready, someone would ring the bell to let everyone in the fields know it was time to eat.

In Jesus ministry it was the miracles of healing that drew huge crowds to hear Him preach. People who are searching for truth will always be attracted to the spectacular demonstration of God’s power.

You can’t argue with results. In the days to come, outpourings of God’s grace and mercy, much like we have seen in our pastor will bring unsaved people to hear of God’s love and be saved from eternal damnation because healing is the dinner bell.

Best $10 Lunch in Town

Twelve years ago, Living Word Christian Center launched a noontime outreach to the business community called Winners Luncheon. A "luncheon and learn" format featured a delicious meal followed by a leadership presentation from Mac Hammond and a variety of local and national speakers.

The impetus for Winners Luncheon came from the many successful years Pastor Hammond spent in the air freight industry and his desire to share leadership principles for success in business and life. Another reason for the luncheon was to provide a platform by which our members could invite business colleagues, clients, and friends to our church in a non-threatening environment.

The first event was held at the Minneapolis Athletic Club, so it seemed appropriate to call it “Mac at the MAC.” Today, the Winners Luncheon is held on the first Wednesday of each month in our fellowship hall. Several hundred business professionals from throughout the Twin Cities enjoy the best $10 lunch in town as they're taught practical leadership principles from Mac Hammond and a variety of local and national speakers.

Leadership is not just a position. It's also a skill and something that must continue to develop throughout our lives. The Winners Luncheon provides our guests with new leadership insights and powerful principles to help them become a more influential and effective leader.

In the spring of the year, Winners Luncheon takes a one-month break when we host John Maxwell’s Maximum Impact Simulcast in our sanctuary.

The Winners Luncheon is just one more way Living Word is reaching people, touching lives, and making a difference.

If I Had a Hammer

The well-known motivational theorist, Abraham Maslow, once commented: "If the only tool you have is a hammer, you will see every problem as a nail." This applies to organizing for outreach ministry because each person approaches evangelism from a different motivation.

When reorganizing our Outreach Department in 2005 we wanted to align the ministry with our pastor's vision for evangelism. In his minibook "Winning Your World", Mac Hammond describes how to develop a personal style of evangelism custom tailored to your own personality, temperament and gifting.

Pastor's vision resulted in an organization that divides our efforts into several different types of outreach. They are servant evangelism, street witnessing, event evangelism, invitational evangelism and community outreach.

More and different tools of ministry mean more laborers for ministry. By creating several doorways of opportunity, more workers can respond to the Great Commission.

We've now created ministry opportunities for both the bold and confrontive as well as the shy and introverted. If folks are unavailable for week night events then weekends are an option. Families who want to serve together can reach out along with teens and singles.

I'll discuss these different types of outreach ministry in a future post. In the meanwhile, keep reaching out!