I could not be more excited about our recent outreach opportunity here at United Baptist! At the end of the worship service on July 3rd, I announced that our church will be starting a new church-wide outreach initiative to pray for and invite two to worship with us on Sundays. Then, at the end of the worship service on July 10th, I told the congregation that I created reminder cards that were summarily handed out to everyone after the benediction. These reminder cards look like this:
If you haven't received one, make sure to see me and I'd be glad to give you one. They can be placed on your refrigerator, bathroom mirror or on the dashboard of your car as reminders to pray for and invite two to worship our Savior, Jesus Christ here at United Baptist. Based on the statistic in the graphic above, Thom Rainer reminds us that the only hindrance to reaching the unchurched is a simple, kind invitation! What sounds so easy (and completely free of charge to do!) is the kind of relational evangelism that Jesus instructed his disciples to embody with everyone they met. And when we consider the kind of ministry Jesus offered, it was always relational, invitational, and sincere. Notice that Jesus never compelled or forced people to follow him; he beckoned all to follow, but lovingly gave each person the choice to do so or not (think of the rich, young ruler who walked away from Jesus, unwilling to part with the wealth that held him back from free, unencumbered service to Jesus and others--Mark 10:17-23). Those who responded to Jesus' invitation to follow lived completely transformed lives, though they sacrificed much of what they thought was important. Their changed lives fulfilled Jesus' words: "'If anyone wants to come after Me, he or she must deny himself/herself, take up his/her cross, and follow Me. Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life will find it'" (Matt. 10:24-25).
Therefore, our goal is to invite people to United Baptist primarily to introduce them to Jesus. Whether or not someone joins our church is not the ultimate goal; praying for and supporting others in their faith journey IS the ultimate goal! Yes, we want our church to grow numerically indeed; however, if God's vision for us as a church is to know Him and make Him known then praying for and inviting two to worship with us is a great start! Just like young Samuel heard the voice of God the closer he remained to the Lord's presence, we too must remain close to God's presence...and invite others to do the same. It was Eli who helped Samuel hear God's voice and we are also charged with the same responsibility as Eli: we are to help the unchurched hear God's voice in Christ Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit. We love United Baptist and we want to see its mission and ministries thrive. Therefore, the Lord is calling us to open our hearts and our mouths and spend time praying for and inviting those with whom we've established friendly relationships. The following quote is true: people won't care how much you know until they know how much you care! Since we care about God's mission on the corner of 65 and Murray Rd. let us now, more than ever, tell people how Jesus is active and on the move in our missions efforts, our discipleship groups, and in our fellowship!
The Spirit is at work and no church member is exempt from telling others about the Savior we experience in and through our Sunday morning worship at UBC. Therefore, in addition to preaching and exhorting others to pray for and invite "2 in '22," I want us to partner with another church member (or more) so that you can hold one another accountable to reaching out in these exciting days. After two years of a pandemic, much social discord and division, people are weary and tired yet desirous of spiritual connections. They want to worship and build community with people who know God's Spirit is alive and well (and indeed, that's the truth, friends!). Therefore, over the months of September, October and November I'm gonna be writing my newsletter article about our church-wide outreach initiative, "2 in '22," focusing on the three pillars of outreach accountability: Each, Reach, Teach. In other words, over the next three months we will explore what it means for EACH ONE to REACH TWO and TEACH THREE reasons why United Baptist is a place to meet and get to know Jesus.
That's right: each one...reach two...and teach three reasons why Jesus is alive and well at UBC.
God made us all for community. That's why your praying and inviting will need encouragement, exhortation and support from a fellow church friend. Hold one another accountable and trust in the power of two in order that you can accomplish God's call to share Jesus with others and fight against the temptations and schemes of the Enemy! Consider the beautiful blessing of Eccl. 4:9-10, 12: "Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up the other, but woe to one who is alone and falls and does not have another to help...And though one might prevail against another, two will withstand one. A threefold cord is not quickly broken."
So--who's with me, friends? With Jesus as the glue of our friendships, a threefold cord is definitely tough to break! Are you excited about praying for and inviting 2 in '22? Which other church members are involved in this outreach initiative? With whom can you partner to hold yourself accountable in praying and inviting? Are you aware that Satan will try and tell you lies about the importance of reaching out in love? God will hear our prayers when we embody the presence of Christ wherever we go. The question is: do we believe that when we reach out in Jesus' name he will stir others' hearts and draw them to his glory during Sunday morning Worship? or in Sunday School? Or during Mathetes Bible Study on Wed. nights? Or during Choir, or during CIAs, or during one of our four, vibrant Missions Groups meetings?
Now's the time. You read the stat: 96% of people are likely to attend our church if they are simply invited. They might not attend on the first invitation, but if you are praying, and believing, someone will say "yes" and will experience Jesus' love the moment they set foot on our campus. It's just the way it is, and every church member who reads this knows it to be true.
God is sending us out to tell of Jesus by way of prayer and personal invitation. Who are your two? Who will hold you accountable? Who will hold YOU accountable? Are you getting fired up? I know I am--with every word I type! God is at work--you are his minister, missionary and evangelist. So let's trust God as we pray and invite--together!
Seeking to equip you (Eph. 4:12-16) to pray for and invite 2 in '22,
Pastor Will
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