In September we’ll place twelve thousand calls to invite our community to church and to ask how we can pray for them.
It would be good to review how God has used this effort in our church in the past. Here’s my LeaderLines note from January 17, 2008, about four months after the 2007 Campaign:
In this week's Beacon, Herb Ingram gave us an update on our Connection Campaign. Herb wrote, "It continues to be one of the most effective outreach campaigns I have ever been a part of." He pointed out that some results are quantifiable while others are harder to measure. Regarding the count:
· We had around 120 guests at our BBQ.
· We added about 200 households to our prospect database.
· We have around 50 people that are maintaining some degree of continued presence.
· We have had 4 families join the church, some awaiting baptism.
· We continue to see new folks from the Campaign.
In addition to this good news, other results are harder to measure. Herb wrote:
· We've had scores of cards, calls, and emails thanking us for reaching out to the immediate community with this prayer effort. We have really upgraded our standing in the community at large as a church that cares and prays.
· It was like a revival for many of our people who participated, sensing that we were making a real effort to connect with the lost in our local mission area.
· Many of the unchurched in our community are now open to us and should the situation arise, I think we would be the first church they would think of for ministry. This is no small thing.
I think Herb's last point is especially important. Any effort like this raises the profile of our congregation in the community, making people more mindful of Hillcrest. To have 50 people from the Campaign attend even occasionally is a fantastic success in my book, but our church is now "on the radar" of far more people than that.
We continue to contact them. In fact, I just sent a letter to 180 households from the Campaign, encouraging them to make a "New Year's Resolution" to come visit us. Through Easter, we will continue to mail our weekly newsletter to every household that told us they were interested in us. We also include them on special mailings highlighting our special events.
That means our Connection Campaign isn't over yet! Please continue to pray for the 180 households who originally expressed interest in getting information about our church. Pray for the 50 of them who have made one or more visits to Hillcrest. And pray that we'll continue to find creative ways to raise awareness of our church in northwest Austin!
That was in 2008. I look forward to what God will do in our 2011 Campaign. The launch is just around the corner. We start placing calls on Sunday, September 11.
As a partner in leadership at Hillcrest, how can you best prepare our church for the upcoming Connection Campaign?
First, pray for God to bless our efforts.
Second, promote the Campaign in the halls and pews and classes of our church. Generate enthusiasm!
And three, sign up for one of the call teams. My call team meets on Monday night, but other nights are available. We’ll train you, and then on the night your call team meets you’ll place calls at our phone bank. Based on previous experience, our calls should result in about a hundred attending our church on Connection Sunday, and about a thousand interested in prayer. Let us train you and put you to work! Contact Herb Ingram right away (herb@hbcaustin.org or 345-3771).
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Each Thursday I post my article from "LeaderLines," an e-newsletter for church leaders read by more than 350 subscribers. If you want to subscribe to "LeaderLines," sign up here.
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