One of the tools we can use for training people to get comfortable talking with others, inviting them to our weekend worship gatherings, and eventually sharing their faith is through special events. Event evangelism can include the more popular ones like Easter and Christmas, but also can include Parent/Child Dedications, Mother’s and Father’s Day, and the beginning of a new sermon series.
How Event Evangelism Helps People Share the Mission
There are at least three reasons why special events can help people move toward becoming comfortable sharing their faith.
1. Special events provide a natural opportunity to invite.
The “salesman” approach to evangelism or inviting someone to church is rejected by many believers and unbelievers alike. Such “cold call” presentations seem fake, insincere and rehearsed. However, a special event can provide a natural way for people to invite their friends, family, co-workers and neighbors. Given that special events can provide a natural opportunity to invite others, churches should take advantage of special events by offering invitation tools for their people to use.
For example: A church beginning a series on “Making Sense of Our Decisions” can create materials to promote the series topic and main idea. As people naturally engage others in their day-to-day life, they will encounter friends, family, co-workers or neighbors who are in the middle of making some pretty important decisions. When important decisions arise in conversation, church members can give the promotional materials, inviting them to the new series on decision-making.
If people can learn how to naturally invite others to special events, and are intentional about making sure they attend, eventually those believers can learn how to naturally invite their friends, co-workers, etc., to Jesus.
2. Special events provide people with a small win.
Most people who attend a church do so because of a personal invitation, and it remains the case that many people are open to an invitation. However, due to fear, uncertainty or outright disobedience, very few believers, or even churchgoers, ever extend an invitation in a given year.
One of the reasons why people keep their faith, or their invite, to themselves is they fear rejection. This fear prevents them from ever experiencing the exhilaration of someone responding affirmatively.
Also, for many, when it comes to sharing their faith or inviting people to church, they don’t know where to start. It may be they don’t know where to begin the conversation, or what to say after the conversation gets started. As a result, they stay silent. Moreover, intimidation may be a factor. For many—especially introverts—the thought of talking to, sharing with and inviting others really is intimidating.
