Whether they know it or not, people need to be connected to the life of the church. This means you get them involved in fellowship, events, groups, and serving. Getting people plugged in will ensure they’re ready to commit to the journey. And this increases the chance that they will stay connected to the church. So how do you reach those in need near your church?
Understand the Needs
Understanding your congregation and community is imperative for a thriving and growing church. We may think we know our congregation. But do we? Why is it still so difficult to understand how to recruit church volunteers? How does our congregation compare to and relate with our surrounding community? We want to highlight Reaching Those In Need Near Your Church to share some immediate actions your church can take now. You’ll discover all the opportunities in your neighborhood so you can best reach them and serve their needs.
For example:
- What if, through an insightful report, you could uncover the ministry and program preferences of those in the community? Based on their actual life concerns. and add it to your outreach church calendar?
- Let’s take it a step further. What if you could also find a list of various programs and potential ministries with a number that shows what percent of your community thought that program was “important” for the church to offer?
- How about lasering in on the community’s key concerns? And by identifying the areas in your church that may be able to serve these needs?
How to Get There
Asking yourself, “Why is technology important for churches?” may reveal several reasons. But, we are convinced it begins with a good demographics study. In this context of knowing your neighbors and meeting them where they are, the use of MissionInsite, a community analysis tool, reveals insights about the people around you, so you can purposefully move from data to decisions. Once you have defined your community, and discovered who they are and their needs, you are on your way to developing strategies to most effectively connect with them physically and spiritually.
Barna asked, Are Local Pastors in Touch with Their Community’s Needs? And here’s what they discovered: “Practicing Christians are the most likely to believe that local pastors are aware of their community’s needs, with 73 percent affirming this. Non-practicing Christians are not far behind, with over three in five (63%) saying the same. When it comes to non-Christians, however, the data shift significantly. Among those with other religious beliefs, about two in five (44%) say pastors in their community are out of touch with local needs. That percentage rises to over half (55%) among those without faith.”
Hey, church, we can do better.
Conclusion
If you want to change the above statistics and become a trusted and respected resource in your neighborhood, start with knowing the most pressing concerns of those in your community. This will allow you to craft relevant sermon topics, series, and services around those subjects. Practically speaking, what works for your friend’s church across town may not have the same or similar impact on serving your neighborhood. Outside of the common denominator that every person needs to hear the Gospel Message and be encouraged to become a disciple and join the church body. We have to realize that it’s not a “one size fits all” mentality when it comes to meeting individual needs.
To further connect with our insightful Church Growth Resources, you can also receive ministry blog posts – like this one – straight to your inbox!
Reaching Those In Need Near Your Church
Studies show that more and more people around us are not being reached by local churches. It can be hard to discern how to reach those unreached people in your community.
This free guide can help. This resource provides key insights that can show you how to leverage digital tools like MissionInsite to:
- Define the community you’re trying to reach.
- Learn some of the demographic details of your neighbors.
- Understand the needs and program interests of nearby people.
Forrest started with ACST in 2015 and has held key roles across many departments working directly with our ministry partners. He is currently a Territory Account Manager. and specializes in helping large churches use technology to meet their full potential in every aspect of their ministry. He has served in youth and children’s ministry staff roles at his church. Forrest is passionate about leading churches in meaningful change.
