More than 15 years ago, I led a major research
project on the characteristics of the most evangelistic churches in
my denomination. My team was able to identify 576 churches that
represented the top 5 percent of all churches in conversion growth.
From that point, we were able to identify nine
correlated characteristics of churches that were evangelistic versus
those that were not.
Some of the correlated factors were surprising;
others were not. There was one factor, however, that was a bit
surprising to me: the evangelistic churches were more likely to have
a traditional outreach program.
The Nature of These Outreach Programs
Even back in 1995, traditional outreach programs
were in decline. There were two types that were more popular than
others. In one approach, church members would visit someone who
visited the prior Sunday. Typically these visits were “cold calls,”
in that the church members showed up in the visitors’ homes
unannounced and unexpected.
The second, more common approach was a memorized
evangelistic visit, sometimes derogatorily called a “canned”
evangelism program. Again, the church members would often visit in
the home without an invitation. One of the church members would be
responsible for delivering a memorized Gospel presentation.
Culture Changed and Outreach Programs Declined
For better or worse, our culture has changed. Most
people today really do not want someone showing up in their homes
unexpectedly. As fewer families and individuals were willing to
receive these unexpected guests, the excitement of the outreach
programs declined. They were deemed ineffective, probably rightly so.
Eventually most churches abandoned the traditional outreach approach.
For many established churches, that which was
considered a vital part of the church’s ministry, an outreach
program, no longer existed. And it was in the abandonment of the
program that some fascinating trends developed.
That One Factor
As churches abandoned traditional outreach programs,
they took one of two paths. A few replaced the traditional approach
with a more culturally acceptable approach. They found ways to equip
and encourage their members to develop relationships with lost and
un-churched persons without invading their space or their homes. These
churches tended to continue their patterns of growth.
Unfortunately, most churches abandoned the
traditional outreach program and did not replace it with anything.
This one factor may explain the beginning of decline in most of
our evangelical churches in America. Indeed, just today I delved
into the records of a few dozen churches that were growing a decade
ago, but have been in decline for the past several years. Almost
without exception, the decline started shortly after the traditional
outreach program was abandoned, but not replaced with any other
intentional outreach ministry.
Understanding Why the Decline Began
Even when the traditional outreach program was not
highly effective, Its activity sent a message throughout the church.
It reminded the members that the church was not all about the
self-serving needs of themselves, but it was about reaching beyond
the doors of the church. It was about them as well as us.
But when there was nothing to replace the admittedly
ineffective approach, the message changed. The emphasis moved from
outreach to inward focus. As a result of the inward obsession in many
churches, conflict arose among the members as they now competed for
how the church can best meet “my” needs.
For many churches, it was that one simple factor.
Traditional outreach ministries were not replaced with any other
outward focus.
But in a few of the churches, the outward focus
continued unabated. Though they were no longer making unexpected cold
calls, they did find ways to connect their members with lost and
un-churched persons. Most of these churches continued to grow.
So what did these other churches do to continue
growing? There is no single answer or approach.
