Dr. Dan Reiland serves as Executive Pastor at 12Stone Church in Lawrenceville, Georgia. However, a strategy to grow your church may or may not have an impact on your community. Your email address will not be published. In a church community, we serve a purpose and in serving that purpose, we grow in significance and belongingness. You should attend the potluck anyway and here’s why: you can’t create community simply by going to church on Sunday morning, checking it off your list, and going home. Try to begin a friendship with someone who is disabled. I don’t think this is an ecclesiastical “chicken or egg” conundrum. There’s nothing wrong that. It was probably 10 years ago, or more, that I read this question for the first time. In fact, these two complex endeavors are highly interrelated. Take a walk and talk. You get to decide what structure and programs make up the foundation of your church. The first goal of community impact is not church growth. Read on as … You may not be able to know the mayor of your city, depending on the city’s size, but could you know your local council representative? The bottom line is that when people begin to see, sense and experience that you care about them, their perspective changes about who you are. When we become part of a church community, we are given a role to play. A church’s mission field goes beyond its membership to include all the people God calls it to serve. So often, one of the major roadblocks to building community is our own selves. Here are five ways your church can do that. ), Where Did You Go? Embrace an expansive concept of community. Getting to know individuals from many different backgrounds and walks of life within your community may give you a new perspective on the problems facing your community. Being a Methodist church—which are usually more plainly decorated than other denominations’ churches—there were no wall hangings, religious icons, or stained glass windows. He also encourages communities to take risks for, and with, one another. If we worry constantly about whether others will like us or be bored with us, then community … So I’ve arranged to get them to give us the full scoop so that you can retain the fruits of biblical labor PAST Easter. Powered by Knownhost and the Genesis Framework. It is true for me and perhaps for you too. You can grow a church on history and tradition, but you must become relevant to impact a community. Once you’re familiar with the vision and heart of the church, once you’re committed for the long haul, the next step would be to serve. Let me give you some of my initial thoughts about the role of the Word in community. But when it comes to impacting the community around you, people require that you meet them on their turf, on their time and their terms. When most people in our culture think of church, what comes to mind? Here are five ways to make your church known in your community. 1. They experience that you care firsthand. “Would your community miss you if your church no longer existed?” That has stuck with me ever since. In surveying four views on ministry structure, Stott promotes a model of every-member ministry. Look for the areas of need. He and Dr. Maxwell still enjoy partnering on a number of church related projects together. Relevance is not about your choice of worship or how casual you may or may not be, that is about style and preference. It’s true that Christians in particular will come to your church because what you offer is tried and true and comfortable. There is a great tension here because it seems like the larger and more successful our churches become, the more we are drawn inward to manage the daily affairs and programs of the church. One of the keys to life-giving community is the ability to cultivate community in a natural sense, says a pastor at Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Wash. Oftentimes churches try to force community through rigid structure in small groups when it should really be about building community in a more organic sense, around "the natural rhythms of life," said Brad House, director of Community for Mars Hill. Grow Your Church or Impact Your Community? But it is often an unintentional strategic error on the part of many churches to allow these two to become prioritized incorrectly. That’s a significant question we all should have the courage to answer. 4. Perhaps many individuals may never attend your church, but observation and experience says that God is pleased with this kind of ministry, and ultimately it does draw people to your church. Car decals and t-shirts. "We're the fastest-growing church in Flint," Martin says. You’ll be surprised at the community reactions you’ll see when you do so – being honest, open, and allowing all to come to your events can create quite a bit of good will, and spur some folks into learning more about your church, and your beliefs. It’s a simple reality that when churches get larger and really good at what they do, they often attract more Christians. He previously partnered with John Maxwell for 20 years, first as Executive Pastor at Skyline Wesleyan Church in San Diego, then as Vice President of Leadership and Church Development at INJOY. No matter what your skills are right now, you can become a better leader if you work at it. Become more familiar with your community. (It’s Almost Here! We need many community leaders. These 50 Ways provide tips on reaching beyond the walls of your church with worship, community events, ministries, and service. So what’s it like to live in a historic space with 26-foot ceilings? Relevance means that what you do matters. 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