Resources for evangelism: Wycliffe Institute

Wycliffe College's Institute for Evangelism has a number of online resources.  There are print and video resources, booklets, lectures - a variety of things on a wide variety of topics.

One little article entitled "Fresh Understanding – Research for Good News Sharing" highlights the importance of understanding the context of where your ministry is.  In others words, how much do we know (and I mean really know) about the areas where we see our ministry taking place?  There are some basic things we can do:  online demographics are usually available from government websites;  a habit of getting out of the office and into the neighbourhoods on a regular basis will give you a sense of who lives there, where they gather, and what the needs (and successes) are in the neighbourhood.  A while ago I downloaded information from the City of Edmonton census on the makeup of the neighbourhoods around St Timothy's.  Are we aware of who lives in our neighbourhoods? How might that information inform or change the way we approach ministry? Outreach? Evangelism?  Remember that the plural of anecdote is not data.

While that is a fairly formal approach, I believe that there is also need for the informal approach:  get to know your neighbourhood, hang out, participate, and develop relationships with those outside your doors.  A lot has been written and spoken in recent years using phrases like 'mission vs maintenance';  'attractional vs missional', etc, etc, etc.  Here is a simple thought, completely untested and quite likely untrue:  church communities have to go through the process of becoming attractional before they can become missional.  Now what do I mean by that, for those who don't follow the latest jargon explosion in church circles?  I mean this: the first step in being willing to reach the unchurched in one's community is recognizing that this may mean willingness to become more attractional to those outside the church.  Behind this thinking is the notion that if we do a few things here and there, or offer certain kinds of ministries and programs, people outside will be attracted to the church and they will come in.  Despite criticisms of this approach, I think it is a very good start, if done with the right attitude.  I think it signals a recognition that the church does in fact exist for the benefit of those who are not currently members; it is the beginning of the recognition that their is a clear call in Christianity to reach those who are outside.  Of course, one can also become 'attractional' merely to have more bodies to pay the bills, but let's set our sights a bit higher...

Once a church becomes attractional in the best sense, it is then ready to realize that there are those who will never step inside the doors, no matter how 'attractive' the church may become.  It is then that the church can decide to become missional - to move outside the current form of church to reach people where they are, instead of inviting them to come to where the church is.

Yeah, well, there you have it.

Comments

[John Bowen]

Joe: You say "church communities have to go through the process of becoming attractional before they can become missional." I have just come from the Bishop's Church Planting Working Group for the Diocese of Toronto--an exciting diocesan committee (not for once an oxymoron). We were discussing an impending church plant in downtown Toronto (see what I mean about exciting?) and someone said almost word for word what you said, with the same reasoning. So you may indeed be wrong, but you're not the only one. And, for what it's worth, I think we're right. :)

John

PS. Thanks for the plug for the Institute website.

[joseph]

Blessings on the church planting project, John. And I'm happy to plug the Institute's site - I think there are a lot of good and helpful things you folks have assemlbed there. I'll be looking forward to what God is calling the Edmonton diocese to do in this area...