Pulling Off a Successful All-Church Campaign

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Here are the main benefits and challenges.

by Bill Search | posted 11/16/2009

Topics:	Birthing groups, Campaign, Church growth, Recruiting leaders, Recruiting members, Sermon based
Filters:	Director, Pastor, Start
Purpose:	Discipleship
References:	John 15:8
Date Added:	November 16, 2009

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My favorite burrito is nearly 1,000 calories and has almost 40 grams of fat. Thanks to the company website, I was able to check out the nutritional value (or lack thereof) of my typical lunch at a popular restaurant. I was shocked an appalled—especially because I assumed that the burrito was healthier than other fast food options. I was wrong.

The health disaster discovery was made after a friend gave me some advice in the weight room. "Bill," Dennis said, "If you really want the full impact of weight training, you need to watch what you eat as much you work on your lifting routine." After complaining that it is hard to eat healthy, quick, and cheap, I was encouraged to go online and check out the menu options. I was surprised how many good options are on fast food menus and alarmed at all the bad ones I normally consumed. Dennis reminded me that regular exercise might build muscle, but if I am following it up with junk food, I will not get the full benefit.

It boils down to this: you cannot hit the gym and the French Fry Hut and expect to see dynamic physical change. That makes sense, of course, when we really think about it. But for some reason we think we can take the same approach with our spiritual lives.

Too many church dwellers figure that an hour a week in a worship service will eventually turn them into a spiritual dynamo, or at least a strong believer. They are often disappointed when they realize the truth—that our spiritual lives need to be holistic.

That's why connecting the weekend message to a spiritual community and to our personal devotions has exponential power—much like a great workout routine matched with a healthy diet. An all-church campaign is like that. It combines the intensity of the weekend message with the community and trust of a small group.

The Benefits

There are three significant advantages to an all-church emphasis:

Focus. Be honest, do you remember the last sermon you heard? After laboring on a message for hours, the preacher delivers volumes of significant information in half an hour. Within a day, the hearers forget most of the message. This is tragic when you consider the importance of the message.

But when a sermon is linked to a group Bible study, it encourages hearers to take notes, listen with keen ears, and think about questions relating to the message. We pay more attention when we know we need to discuss what we are hearing.
Application. Sermons are longer on information than they are on application. They are usually designed to illustrate and explain a biblical text, and in the waning moments of the talk, two or three points of application drive it home. But the application has to be vague, since it has to apply to all hearers.

When a group connects with a weekly sermon, a natural outcome is to ask how the sermon applies directly to each life in the group. It is energizing and enlightening when we listen to each other apply God's truth to unique contexts. Often those applications help us better apply the truth to our lives.
Growth. People do not like to be left out. When attenders from your church realize that the typical pathway for your church is to listen to the sermon and participate in a group that discusses the theme further, they do not want to miss it. This is especially true if the all-church emphasis occurs only once or twice a year. When the pastor stands before the congregation and explains that a particular topic is so important for this church that everyone should participate, it creates a higher incentive for people unconnected to join a group. In the years I have participated in all-church campaigns, every one has produced an increase in group participation.

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November 23, 2009 6:24 AM

Angela Duncan

This is a great article and a great idea, in fact it's the best I've heard in a long while. I am trying to think of a way to help my old church expand and I think this is a great starting point. I'd like to hear more on this subject. This is an incentive for the congregation to really listen and discussions bring people out and closer together. This is a church family and growing closer to each other promotes growth in the church. When you are involved in your church you talk to friends outside the church about what you are doing and it can interest them to join in on the fun. My old church needs to grow or it will die and I can't let that happen, I ask God what to to and this is a beginning. Thank you.