17 Insights into Reaching People through a “DINNER WITH THE PASTOR”
Years ago at our Mega-Metro for Pastors, Dr. Charles Lowery shared an idea with us. He was using this idea to gather the guests to his church in an informal setting and give them the opportunity to respond to Christ and connect with his church. We took his initial idea and have made several revisions to it through the years as we contextualized it for our church. Today it is what we call, “Dinner with the Pastor.”
Let me share with you 17 insights into reaching people through this “Dinner With The Pastor” event:
1. We do this dinner at least two-four times a year on each campus.
2. We send invitations to all our local guests over the previous weeks, as well as invite them in our worship services to attend the dinner.
3. Our staff makes follow-up calls, working diligently to try to get as many of them to attend as possible.
4. The event lasts 90-100 minutes and involves food, fellowship, a fun game, then a major presentation which I do.
5. Each table has four guests and four members who serve as hosts.
6. My presentation consists of talking about who I am personally, really just tracing the steps of our family.
7. My presentation also consists of talking about who we are as a church.
8. My presentation then moves into the heart of my informal message, which is based around what we believe about the Bible, salvation and heaven, and the mission of our church.
9. The main body of my presentation also talks about what we believe about baptism, about belonging to a church, and about being involved in ministry.
10. My presentation talks about the importance of worshiping, connecting, and serving.
11. We show a video about the heart and mission of our church.
12. I give them an opportunity to receive Christ at their chair.
13. I give them an opportunity to join our fellowship, all done informally at their table.
14. Everyone fills out a registration card checking the decision they are making or letting us know they are just praying about joining our church.
15. Our hosts and hostesses then discuss one-on-one the decision they have made for Christ.
16. The culture for the night is built in an informal way and we promote it as “Bluejeans, Boots, and BBQ.”
17. We have had nights where 30-40% of the people present have made decisions for Jesus Christ, trusting Him as Savior and Lord or joining our church.
Therefore, this event is simple, but helpful. People learn a whole lot about us before they ever make any kind of decision. This week, through two of these events, we have seen God move and change the lives of people.
Isn’t it amazing how powerful the most simple experiences can be?
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