Here is a brief introduction of Servant Evangelism by Steve Sjogren. I highly recommend all church planters show this video during their launch team formation and as an introduction to their monthly servant evangelism outreaches after their launch. You can purchase the full presentation for $10.00 - Introduction to Servant Evangelism
Steve Sjogren offers ten practical reasons for using Servant Evangelism in your church:
I would add the following:
Small things done with great love will change the world! This is the motto of Servant Evangelism developed and popularized by Steve Sjogren through his book Conspiracy of Kindness, his website and newsletters.
Steve Sjogren is a church planting leader who has planted churches in Europe and throughout the U.S. primarily through the use and development of Servant Evangelism. He launched Vineyard Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1985 with 37 people which grew to over 6000 in average attendance.
"What makes this story unusual is that this happened in Cincinnati, Ohio --- a city that has long been known for its in-your-face unfriendliness! Mark Twain spent a good deal of time in this city on the Ohio River and often commented about how rude people were. When this church was launched, Cincinnati was ranked as the third most unfriendly city in America. After serving about 12 million people over those fifteen years the tone of the city literally changed and that change had made a permanent impact on the city in innumerable ways. Servant Evangelism connects people to people in a natural, easy, low-risk, high grace way." (HT)
Steve is now in the process of launching their fifth church on the east side of Tampa called Coastlands Tampa
Here are five ways they I encourage church planters to use Servant Evangelism in their new churches:
Over 15 years Steve led his church to sow 12 million evangelistic touches into their community...no wonder it grew to over 6000 in attendance! How many evangelistic touches are you sowing into your community each year? If you are not reaping an evangelistic harvest you are probably not sowing enough evangelistic seeds or touches.
Sowing seeds of Christ's incarnational love into your community is a key characteristic of a missional church. NorthBridge Church in Antioch, IL, at their one year anniversary banquet, raised $17,000.00 to give into their community and cast the vision for three other churches to simply love a local struggling school district by turning a useless, old school building into a functional classroom. Here is the newspaper article on the project: Download NorthBridge School Article.pdf
A few take aways:
1) There are hurting organizations in your community. Open your eyes and ears to see and hear the hurting.
2) Ask people how you can help them. Don't tell them what you want to do.
3) Don't do it alone. Involve the larger body of Christ.
4) Love them unconditionally in the name of Jesus.
5) New churches can make a big difference!
When we started this evangelistic journey back in May we took a close look at the Three Spheres of Outreach which included: 1) The leader and the people they connect with during the week, 2) The church and those within their sphere of influence, 3) The unconnected, those who know nothing about the church and are disconnected with your people.
In each of these spheres we developed Three Strategies of Outreach, 1) The leader sets the standard through modeling, 2) The leader equips the church to reach into their relational spheres, 3) The church learns how to sow evangelistic seeds into the masses of unconnected people in their community.
One of the foundational principles of scripture is the principle of sowing and reaping. We see this first in the life of Isaac (Genesis 26:12). He sowed, planted and reaped a hundredfold of crop because of God's blessing. Farmers understand this principle in a very practical way, the more seed you plant, the more you will reap at harvest time. The Apostle Paul in addressing the need for generosity in the life of the Corinthian church wrote, "Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly and whoever sows generously will also reap generously." (II Corinthians 9:6) So my question to you, as it pertains to evangelism, is: How many evangelistic touches are you sowing into the masses of people who are unconnected with your church? The evangelistic fruitfulness of your church is directly related to the amount of evangelistic seeds you are sowing into your community.
Here are four ways to evangelisticly touch the unconnected in your community:
Yet, the quantity of seed is only part of the equation, there also needs to be a concern about the quality of the seed. Read Hosea 10:12-13. If you sow righteousness you will reap love, if you sow wickedness you will reap evil. With very stern words the Apostle Paul writes, "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from the nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life." (Galatians 6:7) In relation to evangelism, here is the question to be answered: How would you rate the quality of the evangelistic seeds you are casting in your community?
Over the next few months we will take a close at how to increase the quantity and quality of the evangelistic seeds you are sowing into your community.
Solomon wrote these words, "Sow your seed in the morning and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well." (Ecclesiastes 11:6)
My friend, Dave Olson, just released a groundbreaking book entitled: The American Church in Crisis. Order Here
There are many that believe that the American church has been lulled asleep by its own press and endless activities to build itself up. Dave Olson, with his relentless pursuit of truth, offers a wake-up call to a church that has fallen asleep. The American Church in Crisis offers a clarion call to all followers of Jesus to reexamine our motives, methods and mission. In my humble opinion, this will be the most quoted book in the next 5 years.
Here is a brief summary:
Attendance at American churches is less than half of what the polls report, according to David Olson, director of the American Church Research Project. The American Church in Crisis presents groundbreaking research that offers a more accurate picture of the actual state of the American church at both the national and local levels. The American Church in Crisis delivers unexpected and original insights into both the challenges the church faces and the solutions that will enable the American church to thrive again. Based on the largest-ever research study of American church attendance, yearly data from more than 200,000 individual Christian churches was collected from 1990 - 2006. This unique research base led the author to discover trends and patterns in the American church that were previously unknown.
The American Church in Crisis answers the questions church leaders are asking: Why are these trends occurring? What can our church do to reverse its pattern of decline and decay? How can we make the gospel story come alive again to new generations? How must Christian leaders change their values, habits, and priorities for the American church to grow in health and influence? By following a four-step process of observation, evaluation, introspection and action, readers will find hope in the possibility of God rebuilding and restoring his church.
The American Church in Crisis offers sidebars, charts, maps, and graphs to give a visual overview of key information. Questions for reflection and discussion help congregations and church leaders take these valuable insights and information, and apply them to their unique situations. Readers will find a richly textured mosaic, with stories of both optimism and challenge. The American Church in Crisis confirms hunches, explodes myths, and offers a clear path toward a brighter future.
I can't remember the original source of this list but it has personally served me well as I have prayed for loved ones and friends over the years.
1. That God draws them to Himself
Jn.6:44: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him …”
2. That they seek to know God.
Acts 17:27: “God did this so that men would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.”
3. That they believe the Scriptures
1 Thess. 2:13: “And we also thank God continually because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God …”
4. That Satan is bound from blinding them to the truth
Mt. 13:19: “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.”
5. That the Holy Spirit Works in them
Jn. 16:8-13: “When the Holy Spirit comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment…..He will guide you into all truth…”
6. That God sends someone to lead them to Christ
Mt. 9:37, 38: “Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field.”
7. That they believe in Christ as Savior
Jn. 5:24: “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”
8. That they turn from sin
Acts 17:30-31: “God commands all people everywhere to repent.”
Acts 3:19: “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”
9. That they confess Christ as Lord
Rom.10:9-10: “if you confess with your mouth ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
10. That they yield all to follow Christ
2 Cor. 5:15: “And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”
11. That they take root and grow in Christ
Col. 2:6-7: “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”
Here is a short list of an interesting chart comparing the differences between a Withreach mindset vs a Outreach mindset along with the declining and emerging influences on our culture.
Declining in Influence – Emerging in Influence
Outreach – Withreach
Confrontational – Incarnational
Monologue – Conversation
Superiority – Humility
Church speak – Human voice
Target segmented group – Create holistic community
Image of community – Authentic community
What would Jesus do? – What is Jesus doing?
Check out the complete description of withreach at
When it comes to equipping your church to be actively engaged in evangelism many start with a class or a seminar because that is the way we were taught. It is not that I am against classroom education or equipping seminars, I just believe that these trainings should come after one's heart has been captured through positive experiences. Providing your people with positive, low risk experiences that build on each other is one of the best ways to design your equipping strategy.
What entry level evangelistic opportunities will you provide your church? Here are a couple of ideas to start with:
1. Prayer Walking: In equipping people for evangelism I would start by offering specific opportunities for individuals to talk to God first about their community rather than teaching them to talk to their community about God. Prayer is a mystery but prayer walking is even more mysterious. I don't completely understand why prayer walking works but I know it works. I have seen its impact on communities and impact on participants. Here is a free prayer walking workbook. (Download Here.pdf)
2. Community Service: There is an ever widening chasm between the church and our culture. Churches that have an outreach orientation seek ways to build bridges over the chasm through simply serving their communities. Robert Lewis in his book The Church of Irresistible Influence writes, "The church is to be in the bridge-building business, according to the design of Jesus Christ. Over this bridge the church must travel and prove its reality to a disbelieving world." He continues, "Our world must experience the same incarnational influence as the first century experienced when Grace and Truth himself suddenly bridged that Great Chasm and became flesh.” (pg. 30) Mobilizing your people to love their community through acts of service is another way to engage their hearts for outreach in a positive way. Download a free Summary: The Church of Irresistible Influence.pdf
3. Servant Evangelism: Steve Sjogren's motto is, "Small Things Done with Great Love Are Changing the World." Servant Evangelism goes beyond community service in that it uses an act of random kindness to earn the right to give a person a connection card. The connection card is key to the process in that it gives a positive message coupled with specific information about the church that is blessing them that day. Servant Evangelism seeks to win the heart before it confronts the mind. A small act of kindness nudges a person closer to God, often in a profound way, as it bypasses ones mental defenses. The average Christ-follower is willing to hand a stranger a can of cold Coke on a hot day (low risk). The high grace is seen in the typical reaction. "Oh, thank you!" "This is so nice!" "I can't believe this is for free!" And, "Why are you doing this?" Kindness builds the bridge for the person to receive a touch of love from God. It's simple, practical, effective, inexpensive and fun! (HT:Servant Evangelism) Giving your people fun, positive and meaningful opportunities to share God's love with their community will lift them to a whole new level of evangelistic commitment.
4. Investing and inviting: Statistics show that one out of four adults in the United States will go to church if someone invites them. (Marketing the Church, George Barna, pg 111) Equip your people on how to relationally invest in the lives of their neighbors, friends and co-workers, along with helping them recognize the opportunities to invite them to what Rich Richardson calls ‘soul-awaking events’. Soul-awaking events are opportunities to "…awaken people to the existence of their soul. These events get people in touch with their spiritual needs and longings. These events do not call people to conversion. A quick call to conversion is not good stewardship to people who are still a long way from God. It turns them off. It pushes them away….I am convinced that high quality soul-awaking events are the greatest missing link in evangelism today. I am also convinced that high-quality soul-awaking events will be the most controversial part of what vibrant evangelistic ministries do." (Evangelism Out of the Box, pg 76) Figuring out what your people will invite their friends to is a trail and error proposition. This is a place where you are to take risks and push it to the edge. What does a risky 'soul-awaking event' look like in your small groups, affinity events and worship gatherings?
Questions to ponder:
Check out this video! See how Steve Sjogren and his team are using Servant Evangelism to create buzz for the launch of their new church in Tampa, Florida.
