7 Tips for an Effective Evangelistic Campaign
7 Tips for an Effective Evangelistic Campaign
by Loren Seibold
Focus on Prophecy
“Prophecy is still king in attracting people to evangelistic events,” says Larry Witzel. “No other theme gets as much response.”
Stay Thematically Cohesive
“Sometimes a presenter tries to mix themes—for example, mentioning prophecy but softening it to appeal to church members who object to strong prophetic imagery,” says Witzel. “The result is poor response rates. Advertising, sermon titles, materials—all need to be saying one thing.”
Utilize New Media
Pastor Diego Boquer and Jennifer Jill Schwirzer made effective use of Facebook. As for advertising, “Mail-back response is obsolete,” says Witzel. “Few people will take time to fill out a card, find a stamp and mail it. You have to get them on the phone or the website quickly, and get them to commit to attending an event.”
Keep Jesus Central
“In our efforts to understand the prophecies, we sometimes forget that it is ‘The Revelation of Jesus Christ,’” says Schwirzer. Pastor Boquer adds, “You shouldn't introduce them to the beast before introducing them to the Best.”
Incite Lay Involvement
“I think that my not being a formally trained theologian kept my audience with me,” says Schwirzer. “I felt like I crashed and burned in one presentation, but they stayed with me because they knew I was a fellow student.” Pastor Boquer asked an elder to preach a series of meetings, and church members quickly took over for him and the Bible worker to give personal Bible studies.
Keep it Congregation-Centered
Both Schwirzer and Boquer had church members meet and make friends with attendees every night. “Everything we do must build congregations,” says Witzel. “There's no point to evangelism otherwise.”
Continue Discipling
Pastor Boquer follows his evangelistic meetings with an equally intense series to root new members in the truth. Schwirzer’s pastor, Tara VinCross, presented discipleship classes to support Schwirzer’s evangelism efforts.
Comments
This is a very good article and has some very good advice and counsel.
The real challenge with all of the "New" tools that is available to the church is like turning a fire hose on a thirsty person that came for a glass of water; one needs to have the resources to break-down the "message" so that the person responding will stay by and feel a part of a team and not a “Fly-By-Night” one night stand organization.
That can only be accomplished by a well coordinated team of believers that are working as a God given / God directed unit. Everyone must be well informed with buy-in to the plans, operation, and end goal of the effort. This requires group planning, many meetings / training, and a good understanding of God's will for each member of the team.
When Jesus fed the multitude, He build on the help of one of His disciples that suggested that he saw a boy with a single lunch; this was the basis for the miracle that was wrought. Jesus use this assistance to involve one of His disciples in that which He already knew… miracles are awaiting to be had when we learn the art of “Team” work. Team work is the art of allowing each team member the opportunity of supporting the effort and making mistakes (but learning from them), as did Peter and others that walked with Jesus. Finishing the “Work” is more than an ART or SCIENCE; it is the “Holy Spirit” working through God fearing people, working in unity for souls to the glory of God.
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