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Ideas for Church Plant (or Renewing Church Zeal)

Gospel Tracts Always Available.

Carry tracts and have them available at all times. Carry them on your person to give out in taxis, stores or wherever you go and also place them in a visible and easily accessible spot at the church.

Audio Outside.

Have music playing outside the church along with someone from your country giving out Gospel tracts and inviting people to church. If it's not illegal, it sure wouldn't hurt to try.

Online Presence.

Use Facebook ads to invite people. Make a webpage. You can run it yourself or pay a local guy to run it, but definitely get one. Place your address, church times, contact info, testimonies of others, tracts, articles to read, your archived sermons and anything that could be a help to others.

Music Before & After.

Have recorded music going on in the building 30 minutes prior and after each service, offer free tea and have someone at the door to welcome people.

Get on radio.

1. Have someone do a 10-30 second commercial in the language inviting people to church. Maybe a question that says "have you ever wondered what happens after this life, have you ever wanted to have a successful family, have you ever considered what God is the real God,… visit us at blank Baptist church to find out the answers". Have this commercial loop five or 10 times a day every day of the week.

2. Maybe start a 5 or 10 minute Bible study when you get better in the language – there's no competition in almost every country when it comes to Bible teaching and preaching. People are hungry to hear about the Truth even if they are lost.

3. Here is a short article I wrote about why to have a radio ministry:

Have you Tried the Radio Ministry?!

Around March 2009, the Lord opened up the doors for a radio ministry here in La Plata, Argentina. It goes Monday-Friday from 8:00 - 9:00am, giving me the opportunity to preach to a possible crowd of close to one million people! In this city of La Plata and surroundings of over 1 million people, the Lord has opened the doors to preach on a radio station that reaches this entire city and extending outwards. I must say that at first I was very excited, but never imagined all the work it takes to prepare a one hour a day message. It is one thing preaching while looking at people but another when you are talking only to a microphone. Let me give you a few reasons I believe every missionary and church should take advantage of getting on & using radio:

1. Whereas you may pass out hundreds of tracts, the radio allows you to get into thousands of homes that may never receive a Gospel tract.

2. Whereas a church may never grow to one thousand in attendance, using radio can reach people with the Gospel and let them know about your church in a way much bigger than a sign, tract, or invitation.

3. The Gospel can be easily heard by people that otherwise would have to take 2 or 3 buses to get to your church. The city I worked in was large, making many areas a long distance to visit, but the radio was accessible immediately inside their house, car or handheld device!

4. Christians that are sick, disabled or elderly can hear the radio and use it as a discipleship course to grow more in their spiritual life.

5. People that are away from the Lord can hear the sound doctrine and hear about a Bible preaching church where they can get on their feet and begin to go forward for the Lord.

6. Both you and your local church realizes the radio is a means in reaching the city and doing what they were made to do, fulfill the Great Commission!

7. It helps you as a preacher realize that God can do bigger things than you can imagine!

Attire.

Find out what the leaders in your country wear and follow suit. If they wear ties, a special shirt, a special hat, copy it. Every country has a way to show who the important people are and I would find out that way. It doesn't matter what your opinion is or what the normal people on the street do; find out how the leaders dress and imitate.

Get the Name of the Church Out.

1. We bought plastic grocery bags with the church’s name on it and gave them out free to little stores. Give something out free that people like or need to get your name all over. They will keep it and remember the church.

2. Set up a booth downtown and offer free waters, tea or coffee.

3. Offer English classes, music lessons, free marriage counsel, etc. Anything that will draw people.

4. Make some cheap t-shirts, bracelets, free calendars, New Testaments, notebooks for schools, pens, market bags, etc.

Maps.

Put up maps and study the city/area, not only for you to think stragically but also of your church people. Pray to reach the entire city and beyond and plan for churches in the future. Don’t settle on just reaching your neighborhood, but the entire city and continue from there.

Plan Big and Special Days.

Use calendar holidays (Mother’s Day, Father's Day, Easter, etc.) as well as any other idea to generate excitement amongst church people, get new contacts or teach your people the need to bring in visitors. Some ideas are: friend day, picture day (bring family and get their free picture in a frame the following Sunday), neighbor day, etc. Offer gifts for whoever brings the most people. Stir up excitement in the church. Offer snacks, cake or a light meal after service for everyone. Here is something we made up and used when planning a special event in Argentina:

2 months before –

  • Put it in the church bulletin
  • Plan the theme and design the flyer
  • Start practicing a theme song with the choir and choose a song for the choir or special groups to sing
  • Start working with the children on a special song to sing
  • Plan other special music groups
  • Check on bookstore contents and who will be working in the bookstore, make bookmarks, etc.
  • Have a meeting with anyone who wants to work in the event and assign jobs (see list of jobs at the bottom)

1 month before –

  • Print the flyers, encourage people to invite their friends
  • Send a special letter to every contact that has come to the church
  • Send a letter to invite other churches in the area (even those who you may not agree with doctrinally), along with a few flyers and a large hang up flyer to put in their church Choir practice
  • Arrange for lodging for people coming in from far away
  • Make the song book (if using new choruses, etc) or prepare the slides for PowerPoint 

3 weeks before –

  • Decide on decorations, form a team to decorate
  • Put a banner on the window of the church
  • Announce it on the radio and/or newspaper
  • Plan the meals for people staying at the church, etc
  • Put someone in charge of any children’s activities – Bible Club, etc
  • Make sure nursery workers are signed up for every meeting going on at the church
  • Make sure the bus is in shape for picking up visitors (if you have one) 

2 weeks before –

  • Send out an email to the church list
  • Have a day of passing out flyers all day long
  • Decorate the church
  • Check on bookstore contents and who will be working in the bookstore, make bookmarks, etc.
  • Plan the program for each meeting

1 week before –

  • Send out another email
  • Have another day of passing out flyers all day long
  • Visit people who haven’t come in a while
  • Call all contacts and invite them

1 day before –   

  • Send another email out asking for prayer for the conference and inviting people
  • Call any other people who need to be reminded of the conference