"I" #2 - Introduce THEM to your Church Family

You want to be a Great Commission Christian. You have a great commitment to the Great Commission. You know in your heart that you have been commissioned to be a disciple maker, but you just need a plan. The I.N.V.I.T.E. strategy is a plan for personal evangelism. No not that drive-by mentality where you try and get someone to say the prayer so you can notch your belt, but the kind that is initiated in relationship and nurtured to maturity in the same way.

You are aware that sin has captured the souls of your friends, relatives, co-workers, and neighbors, and is holding them hostage. In a hostage situation, a SWAT team stands ready to swarm in with guns blazing and bring the situation to a quick conclusion no matter how many casualties might result. On the other side, a hostage situation also has the hostage negotiator who patiently tries to diffuse the situation and reclaim the hostages without loss of life. Some evangelism events and strategies are for the SWAT teams among us. The I.N.V.I.T.E. strategy is designed more for the hostage negotiators.

In previous posts we have Identified our personal THEMs (the people God wants you me to reach out to). We have begun to Nurture a real and personal relationship with THEM. In the course of building a friendship, we Verify their spiritual condition, and are now ready for the fourth initiative of I.N.V.I.T.E., "Introduce our THEMs to our forever family. You may discover that many pre-believers have pre-conceptions about what Christians are like. These are formed from a variety of input. T.V. Evangelists, Bible thumping relatives, judgmental comments on roadside signs, bad church experiences of the past, and on and on. These pre-conceptions can create hurdles you have to climb over if you are going to go where the prebeliever is, then lead them to trust again. Oftern, before a person is ready to trust Christ, they have to be lead to trust Christians.

So how do you show your THEM that Christians are regular people, sinners saved by Grace, non-judgmental conduits of the love of God toward THEM? The best way is to find non-threatening venues where your THEM can observe your church friends in informal settings. Include your THEM's with your believing friends in recreational activities you all like to do. If you like to camp, organize a camping trip. If you like to BBQ, have a backyard event. Host a movie night, game night. Go to a movie together, or a play, or a coffeeshop. Let your THEM see that their pre-conceptions are false and believing people can be genuine and loving toward THEM. This will go a long way toward establishing or re-establishing trust toward Christians in general and Christ in particular.

Warn your church friends to watch the conversation and try not to "talk church" the whole time. It's not enough to watch you have a good time with your church friends. Include your THEMs as active participants, not passive observers. If anything, the group should be more inclusive of the THEM, not less. When a THEM sees that they are naturally accepted by your group of friends, they will open their minds and hearts to what makes you and your friends tick. If you are successful in this step, your THEMs will be more inclined to listen when you get ready for the next step. (Next: Tell THEM your story!)