Posts Tagged ‘Church programs’

ChurchNet USA Develops Project Outreach

Tuesday, July 27th, 2010

Helping Churches and Faith-Based Organizations to Reach More by Reaching Out

The team here at ChurchNet USA really believes in the power of reaching out to grow your church and better the community.  That is why we are so happy to officially launch “Project Outreach“.  We want to assist churches and faith-based organizations nationwide in growing their attendance and becoming a staple for their communities.  Check out a few excerpts from today’s press release for more details about the program and if it sounds like something your church may be interested in, download the information pdf or contact us!

ChurchNet USA is excited to announce their new program developed to meet the revolving needs of start-up churches and

View our Project Outreach Information Packet!

faith-based organizations. The new program, Project Outreach, includes free consultation and outreach ministry resources designed to help grow church outreach programs nationwide.

“Simply put, if churches want to reach more people, they need to start reaching out. Project Outreach will help them do so,” said Efrain Rodriguez, CEO of ChurchNet USA.

Project Outreach is about helping churches and faith-based organization start outreach ministry programs that will increase church membership, help followers in the community, condition the heart to be receptive for spiritual outreach…

By implementing a successful outreach program, churches will help attract and give help to needy individuals, build relationships and share the faith within their community.

Through Project Outreach, ChurchNet USA assists churches with the planning and implementation of church outreach programs …. Some of the most popular and successful Project Outreach programs that are easy to implement with limited resources include:

-Healthy Living Support Group
-Entrepreneurs & Job Search Workshop
-Youth Programs
-Cooking Classes
-Family Life Center

“We have designed Project Outreach to help churches experience a growth in not only church attendance and monetary income, but also a revived interest in expanding the scope of the church’s vision,” said Melanie Swift, Director of Non Profit Services for ChurchNet USA.

After reading a few of the excerpts, I hope you are as excited about Project Outreach as we are! Have any thoughts? Share them in the comments section below!  To view the full press release, click here.

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Start Reaching Out!

Friday, March 5th, 2010

When developing a church outreach program, your church should first evaluate what it wants to achieve through its program. Is it to demonstrate love to your neighbor, show the community that you exist, or help your congregation meet their “required” community service hours? Developing a solid outreach program in your church can put enormous pressure on the staff and leadership to come up with activities that everyone is interested in and that all will participate in. Many church leaders feel that they are responsible to provide every outreach opportunity possible to their congregation so that their members always have opportunities to love, share, and serve the community. While this is a good objective, what about considering this: Instead of developing an “end-all” outreach program, why not develop a program that can act as a catalyst to encourage and demonstrate to your congregation how to serve and how to get involved. This in turn, can help your church goers get in the habit of recognizing needs in the community and then following up with service, instead of just looking to the church to organize an outreach event or program.

A great example of this being played out is at my local church, Summit in Orlando, Florida. I am a partner of Summit and have been attending for about a year and a half. One reason I was drawn to this church is because of their constant encouragement to be involved in the community and not rely on the church to spread the love of God for you. One of Summit’s outreach programs is an event called niceSERVE. NiceSERVE is a quarterly event that the church organizes that only lasts for one day (actually just four hours). The goal is to “mobilize people to serve locally. This event connects volunteers and local non profits by creating helpful service projects that are geared toward revitalizing neighborhoods and communities.” Four Saturdays a year, over a thousand individuals gather together and are then sent out to twenty or more local non profit organizations. For three or four hours, volunteers engage in activities such as facility clean ups, planting shrubs, sorting food, or playing with children. After, the volunteers come back to the church to eat lunch and then go home.

So what is accomplished in these few hours? Well, initially, there are some benefits to the organization or individual that was served, such as a cleaned yard, encouragement from a stranger, etc.; but that is not the overarching goal of niceSERVE. While initial benefits to the community are great, it is only through constant follow up that an outreach program becomes successful. The goal of niceSERVE is to introduce people to these organizations and individuals in hopes of follow up being completed by the volunteers who participated.

Now something of this magnitude may seem hard for you to pull off. For example, the hours that go into contacting local non profit organizations to discover present needs, organizing project leaders, and gathering supplies are just some of the activities that need to take place before a niceSERVE type event can be accomplished. However, my goal in explaining this project to you is not to have you replicate it, but to understand the premise behind it. Your church’s outreach programs should be the spark, catalyst, or “kick in the rear end” to mobilize and equip your congregation to a discipline of service. So before you organize a parent’s night out, vacation Bible school, or a potluck meal, consider two questions: “How can we improve our community through an outreach program?” and “How can we improve our congregation through an outreach program?”

Be sure to check out our short video on Church Outreach.

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Sustaining and Growing your Outreach Program

Tuesday, May 12th, 2009

A successful outreach program keeps the congregation and its target audience actively involved in the outreach activities. The congregation should be inspired to continue to volunteer and give; the target audience should receive services that are in-line with their needs. If both of these conditions are being met at your church, congratulations, you are on the road to success! However, if you are noticing a lack of volunteer interest and your target audience does not attend your programs, there are a few things that you may need to revamp.

If your congregation has ceased to volunteer their time or give to the outreach program, they may have forgotten that your church is conducting an outreach program. Are flyers prominently displayed on the church bulletin board advertising the program? Are periodic updates being provided during the announcements portion of worship services? Have you polled the current volunteers to see if there are any problems that they are experiencing while volunteering? Oftentimes, volunteers cease to support outreach activities because of a lack of knowledge or a bad experience while volunteering before. Make sure that your outreach program is fresh in the minds of your congregation by providing updated pictures on the church””s bulletin board, website, and/or newsletter. Remember to periodically check in with volunteers to see if they need more resources (i.e. books for a reading program), more support, or if there is a problem with any part of outreach program. They will appreciate the concern and may be able to clue you in to the lapse in volunteer support.

Another problem that may hinder your outreach program from operating successfully or growing is misaligned services. If your church did not conduct a needs assessment prior to starting the outreach program, the services that you””re providing may not be what your target audience actually needs. Therefore, you will most likely have low turnout at your events. Survey your local community to find out what services they need. Are many of the parents unable to afford after school services? If so, can your church serve as an after school program site? Are many families suffering from the current economic crisis? If so, can you provide weekly financial management workshops? Even if you conducted an initial needs assessment, you should conduct yearly assessments to ensure that the needs of the community have not changed. Designing and implementing an outreach program that truly responds to the needs of the surrounding community ensures that your target audience will actually use your services.

A successful outreach program, one that is sustainable and growth-oriented, must respond to the needs of the congregation and target community. If your outreach program is experiencing problems, conduct a thorough evaluation of every component of the program to see where improvements can be made.

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Get and Keep Church Members Involved in Outreach

Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

Oftentimes, I encounter churches that complain of a lack of dedicated volunteers for their programs; a problem that can certainly ruin outreach efforts. In some instances, they began their program with a substantial amount of volunteers and within a couple of months, the number of volunteers had dwindled to no more than a handful. In other instances, the church was unable to acquire any volunteers from the start of the program. While the cause of a lack of dedicated volunteers varies, there are a few common culprits that your church should consider during the planning and implementation process of an outreach program.

Lack of advertisement

Many churches fail to advertise their outreach program adequately. They may announce the outreach opportunity during the announcement section of worship service, but they fail to mention it at any other time. This is a big mistake. Church members have a life outside of the church. They have full-time jobs, children, workout regimen, etc. While the outreach program at church may be important, it is added to the long list of “to-do” items that they must accomplish each week. Thus, without more than a quick verbal reminder, the outreach program may become a distant memory. In addition to mentioning the outreach program during worship services, the outreach committee should also post the outreach program on the bulletin board, keep it listed in the church””s newsletter and on the website, and encourage established volunteers to bring a friend each week.

Lack of tasks

When designing their outreach program, some churches forget to think of the role that volunteers will play in the implementation of the program. Outside of their planned program personnel, there aren””t any defined tasks for volunteers to take on. As a result, when church members show up to volunteer they end up sitting around without anything to do. This is definitely not motivation for them to show-up again (especially given the aforementioned list of other obligations). When planning the outreach program, keep in mind the volunteers. If your church is starting a meal program, for example, some volunteers can operate the meal line; others can cook; others can handle clean-up and others; set-up.

Lack of recognition

While your church””s members are most likely volunteering out of their desire to give, it doesn””t hurt to give to them as well. Some churches fail to recognize and/or thank their outreach program volunteers for the wonderful job that they””re doing. This may cause some church members to feel unappreciated and diminish morale. A recognition event could easily solve this problem. Your outreach committee could simply have cake after worship service, put up a thank you banner, or if funds are available, have a dinner celebration.

While there are other causes of a lack of participation in outreach programs, this list can help churches to avoid the common pitfalls that have hindered the success of worthwhile programs. If churches remember to keep both the target community and the congregation in mind while planning the program, these problems can be avoided.

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What Type of Outreach Program fit your Organization?

Tuesday, April 14th, 2009

Just as all churches are not the same, outreach programs also vary. Some outreach programs take place on the church′s premises while others are in conjunction with another community agency. When thinking about the type of outreach program that your church will take part in, there are a few things that you should keep in mind.

Size of your church. The physical size of your church as well as the number of members, are important factors in determining what type of program to implement. Smaller churches may want to work with outside agencies to provide outreach services if their facility or available bodies do not allow for hosting a project of their own. Instead of starting their own program, smaller churches may want to help the local American Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, or Boys and Girls Club. Larger churches, on the other hand, might have the staff, size and resources to host an outreach program on its premises. Larger churches may be able to host a reading program, afterschool program, or senior day activities.

Time commitment. Starting an outreach program requires additional time of your outreach committee and congregation. When considering an outreach program think about the time that it requires. Does your congregation have time to devote four hours per week to an activity or should it occur once per month? Only take-on what your congregation can handle.

Expertise. If your church decides to host an outreach program (i.e. implement your own program), make sure that someone in the congregation has experience in the program area. If you′re considering an afterschool program, for example, do you have any teachers in the congregation? While the community will be grateful for the extra services, you should only provide services that can be administered appropriately.

Cost.  Each outreach program will come with various expenses. Outline the projected expenses for the different outreach programs that you′re considering and choose the option that best fits the budget of the church. By only taking on what your church can handle, you will be able to sustain the program over the long-haul.

Outreach programs should be approached honestly. The outreach committee should be honest about the capabilities of the church before starting a program. An evaluation of the church′s human, financial, and structural resources will reveal what type of outreach program it can handle.

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The Importance of an Outreach Committee

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

 Now that your church has decided to start an outreach program, it is important that the outreach is a positive addition to the church. Church members should not be confused about what types of programs the church offers, when they occur, or how to volunteer for the various projects. Most importantly, if you’re requesting that your church members volunteer their free time, that time should be well spent. 

Enter the Outreach Committee. Outreach committees are responsible for planning and organizing outreach events and keeping the congregation informed and involved. Outreach committee members should be active church members that share the vision of the church and have a vested interest in the community.

It will be the duty of the outreach committee to find outreach opportunities and create an action plan for implementation. Outreach members will serve as the contact persons for both the community and the congregation. They will outline the steps necessary to get the program started and operating. For example, if your church decides to partner with Habitat for Humanity as a reoccurring outreach program, the outreach committee would be responsible for contacting Habitat, selecting the dates and time (i.e. every other Saturday at 10:00am), informing the congregation of the location, and meeting volunteers and the agency at the location.

Outreach committees also serve to increase outreach opportunities. Instead of one person being charged with finding and/or designing every outreach program (which can get pretty hectic!), a team of 5-7 members, will easily handle this task. Like the popular phrase, ″Two heads are better than one″, an outreach committee is better than a lone outreach soldier. The duties will be distributed so that the steps mentioned above will be carried out efficiently and effectively.

Outreach members will also keep the congregation informed and involved in the outreach activities. They keep everyone excited about the positive efforts that the church is making through mediums like an outreach bulletin board, website updates, announcements, etc. They also actively recruit volunteers for the various programs that the church is conducting. Outreach programs only work when the church is involved; the committee is responsible for fostering that involvement.

Starting an outreach committee can be a simple process that brings great benefits. Remember to pick hard-working and positive people and your committee will build an outreach program that strengthens your church and the surrounding community.

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Strategic Planning for Churches

Wednesday, March 25th, 2009

Churches, like all organizations, must map-out how they plan to grow and/or sustain themselves over a period of time.  This can be accomplished through a strategic plan. Strategic planning steers an organization on the path to success. It is the framework that determines where an organization is going over the next year or more; how it””s going to get there; and how it will know if it got there or not. More specifically, a plan identifies the mission, vision and/or values of an organization; goals to work toward the mission, strategies to achieve the goals, and action planning (who will do what and by when)[1]. It increases effectiveness, efficiency, productivity, and accountability.

6 Steps for Church Strategic Planning

  • 1. Assemble a Team – Gather a diverse team of 5-7 church members to spearhead the strategic planning process. For example, choose congregation members of different ages, races, men and women, as well as church leaders to ensure that the voice of the entire congregation is heard. Be sure to pick team members that are grounded in their faith and are committed to seeing the church grow or thrive.  

Explain the team””s roles and responsibilities and provide a timeline for completion.

  • 2. Identify the church””s mission and vision- The mission of a church summarily states the purpose of the church given its activities and constituents. The mission statement should answer the questions, “Why are we here?” and “What are we supposed to be doing?”.[2]  

Vision statements create commitment and understanding by articulating how the organization sees the future. Vision statements answer the question of “What is being built?” It paints a clear picture of what the church will look like in 1 to 5 years.

  • 3. SWOT Analysis – A SWOT Analysis examines the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of an organization””s internal and external environment. Strengths and weaknesses of the organization as they relate to achieving the objectives of the organization are identified in addition to external/environmental opportunities and threats.

The SWOT analysis will help guide the remainder of the strategic plan by identifying what objectives are or are not feasible given the internal and external environment. 

  • 4. Identify Measurable Goals and Objectives – Goals and objectives are the big steps that it will take to achieve the church””s mission and vision. More specifically, goals can be seen as “micro-missions”. They are components of your church””s mission in that they also state what you plan to do.  

Each goal should have at least two objectives that are the stepping stones to achieving that goal. These objectives should be SMART. S.M.A.R.T refers to the acronym that describes the key characteristics of meaningful objectives, which are Specific (concrete, detailed, well defined), Measureable (numbers, quantity, comparison), Achievable (feasible, actionable), Realistic (considering resources/SWOT) and Time-Bound (a defined time line). 

  • 5. Create an action plan – Create a plan that clearly outlines how each objective will be achieved. The actions plan should not only have steps that need to be accomplished but it should also have a timeline (when should each step be completed?) and indicate who is responsible for making sure that it is completed.  

Each member of your team can be assigned a goal and create a task force consisting of other congregation members that will responsible for meeting the objectives under the goal. Specific action steps can be disbursed among the task force. 

  • 6. Present the Plan – When the strategic plan is complete, present it to the entire congregation. Make an event out of the presentation so that the congregation is excited about the direction the church is going. Use this time to get additional feedback on the plan and to gain more volunteers for the various task forces.

Strategic planning pushes your team to focus on the future and the commitment that it will take to make the church a success. It shows those who read it that the church is committed to a plan of action that is both sustaining and growth-oriented; one that will allow the organization to better serve its constituents.

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[1] Thompson, Anthony C. Anchoring Your Mission. Conference Presentation at the University of Central Florida Capacity Building Institute. March 2008.  

[2] Saint, Roy Lee. Florida Baptist Convention. Strategic Church Planning.

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