Sharing a poster from my favorite church in Long Island, NY. We recently attended one of their Christmas performances and were amazed at the professional and anointed production. This church has always been known for its excellence even when they were a small storefront of about 20 people. They have grown to over 700 and their Christmas outreach reaches over 4,000 visitors through six performances in two weekends.
Which got me thinking…what if our churches came back around to a focus of Christmas outreach? Beyond our cute little “Christmas program” that is put together within a few weeks and usually focuses on how adorable the children are. NOTE: I have nothing against this, especially involving children in these concerts. They are precious and can touch the hardest heart with their innocence. But I’m wondering what type of results we would see if we all gave 110% to our presentations with hours, days and weeks of effort to showcase our best. I’ve noticed people shying away from involvement, anything that requires too much time and effort. They are busy with Christmas shopping, baking, wrapping presents, decorating, running around preparing for this one day of the year. I look at that and then look at a church like this where all those details are set aside till after the outreach and programs are over.
Parents, children, teenagers, couples, and singles are at practices for hours, laughing, loving, working together to present to the lost the message of the gospel. And the results are amazing! What if we all drew closer to this type of Christmas? I believe it would make the holiday so much more meaningful and blessed. People are more open at Christmas to receive the gospel. We should take advantage of this great opportunity and give our all to reach the lost.
Please share any outreach suggestions in a comment. Bonus: you will be entered in a giveaway for a Christmas dvd or the novel, “When the Morning Glory Blooms” by Cynthia Ruchi. Please include your email address in the comment.
Cynthia, I like what you’ve written here and agree that this idea is wonderful, however, your comment about “people shying away from involvement” is a concern. I, too, have found myself so involved with family, etc. that I have neither the time nor the energy to give to a worthwhile project like what this church has done. I do admire people who will make the sacrifice of time to do this and pray that the Lord will greatly bless them in their endeavor. Blessings to you! Anita
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Comment by Anita — December 21, 2014
Anita,
I think we all have seasons of life where we have other duties and responsibilities that prevent us from being involved in these type of areas. I guess my concern is younger people or couples that get caught up in all the Christmas frenzy yet are unwilling to invest their time in reaching others for Christ. I know we can’t generalize because we all come from different walks of life! Hope you have a lovely Christmas!
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Comment by admin — December 23, 2014
Cynthia, thanks for this commentary. I admit I’m “guilty” of joining an out-and-out outreach group this year, but I confess to openly telling customers at work when they share their problems, illness, or other concerns for others, that yes, I will pray for them. This is something that I’ve started doing within the last couple of years and I’ll say this: it feels good not to hide the fact that I pray a lot, and for virtual strangers.
BTW, I love Cynthia Ruchi’s writing and appreciate the chance of winning this novel.
Christmas blessings.
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Comment by Elaine Stock — December 21, 2014
Elaine,
I love your reply and you are “walking the walk” by reaching out to others in your job and to your customers. That is certainly an outreach and much needed in today’s crazed world. We all need someone to pray for us! Merry Christmas to you!
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Comment by admin — December 23, 2014
Yes, people do genuinely want to help others during the holidays but I think in our quest to do it right we at times can get caught up in the holiday craziness and over do it. By overdoing it in our quest to find just the right holiday outfit and meal to impress relatives. A way I use the holidays as an outreach is when I visit my relatives in the nursing home I also inquire of any of the elderly there that have no one to visit them. They enjoy the company and I enjoy listening to them talk of Christmases past.
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Comment by Deanne Patterson — December 23, 2014
Deanne,
Thanks for sharing your idea and concern for the elderly at nursing homes. So sad when people are forgotten and no one comes to visit. God bless!
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Comment by admin — December 27, 2014
I like the Christmas Outread ideas.
Personally I like to give and receive homemade gifts. My talent is pretty limited so I like to make food items. Normally I can veges from our garden but this year I was unable due to having back surgery. People love my salsa from our home-grown tomatoes. When my children were young I taught them how to make their coupon booklet with coupons for washing the car, doing dishes, cooking a meal, vacuuming etc. It made them feel good about themselves.
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Comment by Sally Davison — December 23, 2014
Sally,
Thanks for sharing your ideas and a Happy New Year to you and yours!
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Comment by admin — December 27, 2014
I agree that we all have seasons when we have responsibilities that keep us from having time to be active in our churches. I have to admit that, though I have the time, I don’t do as much as I should. Thanks for the reminder – and the wake-up call.
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Comment by Sherry Carter — December 27, 2014
Sherry,
It’s such a perfect time to share the gospel. People tend to be more open and it’s the only time you can walk into stores and hear, fall on your knees…and other wonderful songs about the birth of our Savior. Love it! Happy new year to you!
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Comment by admin — December 27, 2014