THE NUMBER ONE TIME FOR VISITORS
Several weeks ago two of our evangelism mentors and one commission member attended a training session at the Parish Resource Center called A HITCH-HIKERS GUIDE TO EVANGELISM. Bill Tenny-Brittain from 21st Century Strategies, Inc. noted that the number one time a year when a church will see the unchurched as visitors has shifted. It used to be Easter, but now statistics are showing that the 2-3 weeks before Christmas and Christmas Eve itself has become prime time for pre-evangelism and evangelism efforts. In our society it is the one "politically correct" time that even secular people feel comfortable going to church.
How does your church approach Christmas, especially Christmas Eve? Is it an in-house, church family celebration or are you making plans to connect with the unchurched who will come through your door?
Share with us some of the plans your church is making.
How does your church approach Christmas, especially Christmas Eve? Is it an in-house, church family celebration or are you making plans to connect with the unchurched who will come through your door?
Share with us some of the plans your church is making.
In our congregation, We have a time for the family to come and share in an intimate gathering with celebrating the Lord's Supper; then later on, a time for all to come and celebrate Christ's birth.
Starting 2 hours before the Candle Lighting service, people from our congregation will come as individual families to the altar and partake of the elements together. They will then go for a time of fellowship with those who have already celebrated at the Lord's table.
Thirty minutes before the Candle Lighting service begins, we clean up the elements and prepare to worship with everyone in our community. Friends and visitors are always welcome and invited to join in the celebration of Christ's birth. We have even had someone accept Christ as Lord of their life at a Candle Lighting service; so, the message of Christ is not tamed down to make people comfortable. The true joy of the Christmas celebration is the salvation that has came through Christ.
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Thanks for sharing - and I totally agree. In fact, in our first church plant in 2000, we launched on the first Sunday of December because we felt that's when many unchurched would like to go to church. 220 showed up.
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