The Summer Outreach Planning Guide (and 5 Ideas)

by Sophie Tolar | Jul 22, 2019 | Outreach

As a church leader, the summer can feel like an overwhelming onslaught from a powerful enemy. 

During the spring, you see the summer months coming, and a tinge of anxiety strikes your chest. 

You see what’s about to happen. 

Your attendance declines. 

Giving decreases. 

Your ability to reach your community feels thwarted. 

In these moments, you’ll feel tempted to hide for cover, close your doors, and bury your head in the sand until school starts again. 

Be encouraged!

I know the summer can be a challenging time. But I’m here to tell you it can also be a fantastic opportunity to reach your community for Christ!

Below, I’m going to share a handful of outreach events your church can use. 

Before I share those details, I think it’s essential to talk about two things first:

1. 5 common mistakes to avoid when launching an outreach event
2. How to plan your next outreach

Let’s get started!

5 common mistakes to avoid when launching an outreach event

Launching a new outreach event is exciting. 

The thought of connecting with new people, sharing the gospel, and making disciples is awesome. 

In your excitement, it’s easy to make mistakes in the rush of launching something new. 

Before you dive headfirst into your next outreach event, take a moment to learn these common mistakes. This will help you to avoid stepping on any potential landmines that can blow up your progress. 

1 – Moving too fast

I just alluded to this first mistake: 

Getting caught up in the moment and launching something too soon is a common mistake. 

In other words, it takes time, planning, volunteers, and money to make most outreach events work. 

What is more, if you try to launch something in the next few weeks or months, you may not be able to secure the support you need  or have enough time to promote your event to the community. 

When planning your next outreach event, be sure to forecast the amount of time you’ll need to make it a success, which leads me to the next point. 

2 – Misguided vision

Pop quiz:

What's the goal of an outreach event? 

Time’s up! 

Have your answer?

It’s to reach or serve your community. 

When thinking through how to reach your community, keep in mind that your goal is to connect with non-Christians or people who are unaffiliated with a local church. Your outreach event needs to be about just that: outreach—not (only) about doing something fun for your church family. 

Launching an outreach event unanchored to a clear purpose of serving your community will naturally lead your plans to become simply an event for your church. 

Before getting started, clearly identify your goals, think through who you want to reach, and make sure every staff member and volunteer is in the know. 

3 – Lack of promotion

Who are you trying to reach in your community? 

How will they find out about your outreach event? 

If you’re not thinking about these two questions, then stop what you’re doing. 

If you don’t have the time or resources to promote your event, then don’t plan on anyone showing up other than your church members. 

To reach your community, you have to do more than build something and expect people to come. You have to make a plan and provide people with a compelling reason to show up. 

4 – Expecting one person to do everything

Don’t expect one person to do everything that needs to be done. 

Running an outreach event is no joke. 

It takes a village of people to run a successful event. 

This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t have a project manager. What I’m saying is that you can’t expect for only one person to accomplish all of the tasks that need to be completed. 

Whomever you assign to spearhead your outreach event, encourage him or her to build a team of volunteers, be open to ideas and input, and empower everyone to pitch in a helping hand. 

5 – Mismanaging your outreach event

It’s easy to be inspired by an idea. 

But implementing an idea through to completion is a different ballgame. 

When (not if) you run out of steam, there’s a good chance your outreach event will derail.

Why? 

If your only motivation is inspiration, and you don’t make a plan and work your plan, then your outreach event will go nowhere fast. Excitement can only take you so far. You need to clearly define what needs to be done to get ready and to get your community excited. 

With these common mistakes out of the way, let’s take a look at how you can plan your next outreach. 

A checklist for planning your next outreach

I know you’re pumped about launching a new outreach. 

Before you get caught up in a whirlwind of excitement, stop for just a moment. 

You’ll need to take a moment to think through the nitty-gritty details. I know this stuff isn’t exciting. But like I just mentioned, it’s a huge mistake to overlook planning, organizing, and managing any outreach event. 

We’ve covered project management for churches elsewhere. So I don’t want to get into the weeds here. However, I’d like to share with you a few quick practical tips for launching a new outreach. 

Here’s a 7-step checklist you can use for launching any outreach:

1. Figure out who you’re going to reach
2. Pick a tactic
3. Assign a leader
4. Make a plan
5. Build a team
6. Launch
7. Follow-up

Let’s take a look!

1 – Figure out who you’re going to reach

Who are you trying to reach in your community? 

Are you interested in making inroads to local schools? 

Is there an at-risk community who you feel burdened to reach? 

Are you trying to think of ways to reach families in your area? 

I know talking about this can feel awkward. But you have to know who you’re trying to reach so that you can identify the best ways to serve this group of people—to build relationships, share the gospel, and invite them to your worship service. 

Here’s why:

The outreach tactic you choose will influence who you want to reach, which leads us to the next point. 

2 – Pick a tactic

From the list of events below or elsewhere, decide what you’re going to do. 

I know this sounds obvious. 

But many church leaders (maybe you?) struggle with merely pulling the trigger. 

If you wait too long to make a decision, then you’ll miss out on reaching your community. 

As a friendly reminder, keep in mind whom you’re trying to reach. 🙂 

3 – Assign a leader

Who’s going to run point on your outreach event? 

Someone on your staff? Or do you need to tap on the shoulder of a volunteer? 

Whoever it is, just be sure it’s not your senior pastor or teaching pastor. I’m not saying your senior leadership is above managing an outreach event. 

Far from it. 

But at Church Fuel, we believe senior leaders must focus on the things only they can do, such as preaching and teaching and casting a vision. 

4 – Make a plan

Know what you’re going to do? 

Great. 

Now it’s time to get to work. 

To make a plan, there are a number of essential things you need to nail down:

• When is your event?
• Where is your outreach taking place? 
• What’s your budget?
• How many volunteers will need to help? 
• What tasks need to be completed?
• How are you going to promote your event? 
• Do you need to print anything? 

These questions will help you to start thinking about what you need to do. 

Now, as I pointed out above, everything that needs to be doesn’t fall under the responsibility of one person.

5 – Build a team

Alright, so you know who you’re going to reach, what you’re going to do, and have a pretty good idea of what needs to be done. Now it’s time to build your team. 

This process doesn’t necessarily have to start at this step. 

This is something you can (and should) do while you’re thinking through who you want to reach and what you need to do to reach them. 

As you build your team, think through everyone you’ll need to not only launch an event—but to reach the people you want to reach. 

6 – Launch

Launch your outreach event with a bang!

For anything you do for your community, you have one opportunity to do it well. 

Don’t hold anything back. 

Give it everything you’ve got to make it pop. 

7 – Follow-up

This is an essential step and it’s easy to overlook:

Follow up with your community and your church. 

Here’s how: 

Be ready to follow up with new guests by collecting information (if relevant). Also, consider planning a follow-up event to lead them one step closer to getting involved with your church. From launching a relevant sermon series to promoting your children’s ministry, there are several ideas you can pursue. 

For your church, share stories, images, and videos from your outreach event. Let your church know how everyone together—donating and volunteering—made the outreach possible. 

5 summer outreach events

The outreach tactic you pursue will depend on three things:

1. Your community
2. Who you’re seeking
3. Your resources (time, volunteers, and finances)

Below I’m going to share several ideas you can consider. 

As you pray through your next outreach, run through each idea with this lens. 

Let’s dig in!

#1 – Do something sporty

Sports can reach one of two groups:

1. Adults
2. Children

Depending on whom you want to reach, there are several different approaches you can take. 

For adults, you can either gather a team of players to join a preexisting league (e.g., softball) or start a sports ministry. For this latter option, you can tap an expert in an area (e.g., archery, MMA, aerobics) and offer classes.

For children, you can pursue similar opportunities. For example, you can recruit a team of children (both affiliated and non-affiliated) from your church community to join a preexisting league. What is more, you can also consider launching a sports ministry where you offer basketball, soccer, or baseball lessons. 

In both of these scenarios, don’t stop at offering sports training alone. Be sure to provide a great experience, offer refreshments, and find ways you can collect contact information and invite people to visit your church’s worship service, small group, or Bible study. 

#2 – Watch a movie

There is one thing most people in the United States have in common: 

They LOVE watching movies. 

During the summer months, watching movies is one of the most popular activities. So, why not tap into this crowd-pleasing activity and reach people in your community? Besides, your church probably has a sweet audio and visual setup or at least access to a legit location to host an outdoor movie. 

Now, if you go for hosting an outdoor movie, be prepared to have a backup plan. It’s impossible to forecast the weather, and you want to be able to pivot on the spot (go inside somewhere) or at least postpone the movie for another day. 

Regardless if you host an outdoor or indoor movie, go all out to create a movie theater experience. 

Get a popcorn machine. 

Buy boxes of candy. 

Provide drinks. 

To manage this, provide attendees with a ticket for one popcorn and/or candy. As for drinks, you can keep them flowing. If there’s plenty of snacks leftover, then offer people seconds and thirds.

#3 – Host a book club

People read books. 

I know that reading, in general, is on a downward trajectory. But depending on whom you want to reach, starting or joining a book club is a great way to connect with your community. 

You can start a book club for men, women, or both. 

You can start a book club to read through a “spiritual” book focused on an introduction to Christianity like The Reason for God by Timothy Keller or Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. Or you can pick a famous book people in your community are interested in reading. If you go this latter route, read ahead and find ways you can naturally weave into your conversations discussions about Jesus—but don’t force this if it doesn’t fit. 

#4 – Provide a date night

Parents need to go on dates. 

Just because people get married and have kids doesn’t mean they don’t want to or shouldn’t go out. 

But here’s the deal:

It costs a lot of money to go out on dates, and the cost of childcare can make it cost-prohibitive for many couples. Give parents a night out by providing free childcare, and ensuring their children have a great experience too. 

Here’s another thought:

Provide a gift card to a local restaurant or elsewhere for couples. This can be a total surprise for parents. But a tremendous blessing. 

#5 – Serve schools and families

During the summer, your church has two BIG opportunities to serve the schools and families.

First, is there a school in your community you can serve? Is there a school in need of restoration? 

Identify the local schools in your area, and reach out to them to see how you can help them during the summer months. From cleaning to painting classrooms to providing general repairs, unearth the problems they have, and then reach out to your congregation to see how you can help. 

In this scenario, see if a member of your church can spearhead the work. He or she can work with the school to nail down what needs to be done, then he or she can put together a list of what you need to purchase, and then you can get to work raising the money and recruiting volunteers. 

Second, you can purchase school supplies for families. 

Let’s be honest:

It’s expensive for families to get ready for an upcoming school year. 

From purchasing new clothes to buying the supplies they need, the expenses add up. 

As a church, you can provide real, tangible support by purchasing the school supplies families need. 

Here’s what you’ll need to do:

• Coordinate with local schools
• Get a list of supplies
• Set a goal for how much you want to purchase
• Raise financial support
• Go to the store!

After you collect school supplies, you can donate these to families in your church, or you can work with the local schools or shelters in your area to coordinate delivery. 

Over to you

The summer doesn’t have to be a time of retreat. 

It can be an opportunity for you to make forward progress with the gospel. 

For additional ideas, check out 7 Summer Outreach Ideas. 

6 Ways Pastors Can Equip Millennials to Evangelize

by Sophie Tolar | Jun 10, 2019 | Outreach

Evangelism is scary for most Christians.

Despite the fear evangelism creates within Christians, most believe sharing their faith is essential—especially millennial Christians. A recent report by the Barna Group illuminated this reality about millennials:

• 96% believe part of their faith means being a witness about Jesus

• 94% said the best thing that could ever happen to someone is for them to come to know Jesus

• 86% expressed confidence in responding to questions about their faith

Even though Christian millennials possess an urgency for evangelism, like every other generation, there is a gap between intention and reality. In other words, many Christian millennials don’t evangelize.

Talking about generational differences, the challenges millennials face are different. They experience unique internal and external objections. So, to equip Christian millennials to evangelize, the strategy you use must reflect these differences.

In this post, I’m going to share six ways you can equip millennials to have more faith conversations. Use these tips to create a custom evangelism training plan for your church.

#1 – Cultivate an evangelistic culture

You cannot turn people—especially millennials—into evangelists.

There’s not a program you can provide, a book you can share, or a message you can preach that’ll turn people into evangelists overnight.

For most people in your church, a desire to evangelize will slowly develop over time.

The best way to grow this desire among millennials is to create an evangelistic culture. But let me warn you: Building an evangelistic church culture isn’t easy, and it takes (a lot of) time.

What is an evangelistic church culture?

In short, evangelistic church culture is when the members of your church share the gospel because it’s just what your church does. Like attending a worship service, joining a small group, or bringing food to a potluck, evangelism is what your church pulls together to do.

But my church culture doesn’t support an evangelistic lifestyle. Now what?

If this is what you’re thinking, hang tight.

All hope isn’t lost.

Thankfully, your church culture is something you can influence.

Below are several ingredients you can knead into the life of your church to compel your millennial church members to share the gospel.

#2 – Treat evangelism like a spiritual discipline

As a church leader, you’re called to make disciples.

To make disciples who live and love like Jesus, you have to teach them Christianity 101: reading the Bible, prayer, biblical community, and baptism and communion, to name a few.

Why state the obvious?

Simple.

To help millennials embrace an evangelistic lifestyle, show them that evangelism is a spiritual discipline similar to praying and reading the Bible. Per Jesus, sharing the gospel is one way we can live like him (Matt 28:18–20).

Let’s be honest:

Sharing the gospel isn’t always fun.

Often, the people we talk to about Jesus will not be open to hearing what we have to say. What is more, many millennials fight the fear of “offending” someone, which makes sharing the gospel … tricky.

But here’s the deal:

The gospel will be offensive to some people (1 Cor 1:18). But we don’t have to share it offensively. There’s a big difference between the two.

Arguably the best way to share the gospel with someone else is in a relationship, which leads us to the next point.

#3 – Build bridges with people

Millennials highly value relationships.

Most millennials grew up with divorced parents, and they’ve experienced the pros and cons of developing friendships in light of social media and unfettered access to the Internet.

What is more, based on the survey by Barna, many millennials (40%) feel judged if someone disagrees with them.

Here’s what you need to know:

Millennials will be more open to hearing about the gospel if they know who you are.

Practically speaking, to equip Christian millennials to share their faith, encourage them to build bridges. In general, evangelism is most effective when the person you’re sharing the gospel with believes you have a genuine interest in their well-being.

Sure, there will be times when you’ll feel prompted to share the gospel with a stranger or acquaintance directly. But equipping millennials in your church to start faith conversations is enormous.

Encourage them to ask questions such as:

“Do you believe in a god or God?”

“What do you think about religion?”

“Have you read the Bible before? What did you think?”

These simple questions only scratch the surface. But asking questions is a great way to encourage millennials to engage in conversations about faith.

Equip the millennials in your church to ask good questions and listen well. If they don’t know how to answer a question, let them know that’s okay. They can tell their friends, “I don’t know. But let me look into it for you.”

Here’s another practical idea:

Encourage millennials to share how Christianity is relevant to their everyday life.

From sharing how God is leading them to ways he’s influencing their life every day (forgiveness, reconciliation, overcoming sin), transparency goes a long way in deepening relationships, and it also helps non-Christians see how Jesus is real and relevant today.

#4 – Start a mercy ministry

The gospel is good news.

To share the gospel, we have to use words.

This doesn’t mean doing “good” deeds isn’t necessary.

Far from it.

Acts of mercy are an essential part of living and loving like Jesus. But we don’t want to confuse the gospel (good news) with the fruit of the gospel (love, kindness, feeding the poor, etc.).

With that being said, here’s one way you can lead millennials to build relationships with people in their community:

Start a mercy ministry.

Think about it.

When you help people in your community, you will naturally build relationships with people, which will place you in a better position to have faith conversations.

#5 – Model evangelism

As a church leader, you have to model evangelism.

As you know, most of what you share will be caught—not taught.

If you want to lead millennials to have more faith conversations, you and your leadership team will need to hit the pause button and take a long look in the mirror.

Do you regularly have faith conversations?

Do you want your church members to model your evangelistic behavior?

If you answered “no” to either one of these questions, then you’ll need to prayerfully consider whether you can serve as a better model. Remember, it’s hard to ask a millennial to do something that you don’t do yourself. They’ll sniff out your hypocrisy a mile away.

#6 – Share evangelistic stories

Sharing stories of God’s work goes a long way toward inspiring millennials to evangelize.

Here’s why:

• Stories are relatable
• Stories help people “see” God’s work
• Stories are contagious
• Stories are memorable
• Stories are motivational
• Stories appeal to everyone

Don’t stop reading this if you don’t have an “epic” story to share.

Millennials aren’t interested in hearing something fit for the big screen. Instead, they want to listen to stories they can easily relate to in their everyday lives. As they see God at work in your church, they’ll become more inclined to share these experiences with their family and friends.

Not sure what to share?

Think about the answers to these questions:

• Did someone recently commit his or her life to Jesus?
• Is someone getting baptized?
• Have church members recently built new relationships?
• Can anyone share how they overcame the challenges of sharing the gospel?

As you share stories, you’ll inspire people to evangelize.

Know what else?

You’ll reinforce an evangelistic culture in your church. As a church, you will celebrate what you cultivate.

Over to you

Remember, evangelism training isn’t as easy as downloading software, recommending a book, or running a one-time program. It takes time to cultivate an evangelistic culture in your church, and for Christian millennials to grow in their ability and comfort in having faith conversations.

First-Time Guest Gifts: What Churches Need to Know

by Church Fuel Admin | Oct 29, 2018 | Outreach

Visiting a church for the first time is intimidating.

For someone to visit your worship service is a big deal.

First-time visitors likely have a host of questions racing through their mind and they probably have a ton of reasons why they should just turn around and go home.

Regardless of why someone visits your church, easing the tension your first-time guests feel is essential. By creating a positive experience, you will compel them to visit your worship service again or take the next step in getting further involved.

One way to create a better connection with your guests is to share with them a small gift for visiting your worship service.

In this post, we’re going to talk about:

• Why you should give gifts to your first-time guests
• How much your first-time gift will cost
• How to make people feel comfortable—not awkward
• 5 examples of first-time guest gifts

Let’s get started!

Why you should give gifts to your first-time guests

Inviting people to your house (or house of worship) is a big first step.

You’re extending a personal invitation for someone to enter your space, and making your guest feel comfortable is a hallmark of Christian hospitality.

Think about it.

You’re inviting someone new into your family’s weekly gathering. There will be many people they don’t know. They probably won’t know how to handle him or herself. And they’ll have no idea where anything’s at in your facilities.

By giving your first-time guests a gift, you’re not only creating a good first impression. But you’ll be able to do three additional things:

• Show people you care
• Get their contact information
• Follow up later

When you give a gift to a first-time guest, you’re letting them know you care. Gift giving is a simple act that lets people know you planned ahead for their visit, and that you’re thankful for their presence.

“When you give a gift to a first-time guest, you’re letting them know you care. Gift giving is a simple act that lets people know you planned ahead for their visit, and that you’re thankful for their presence.” – Church Fuel, Twitter.

By providing your visitors with a gift, they will be more inclined to share with you their contact information. When visitors share with you his or her contact information, they’re expressing an openness to hear from you in the future.

Following up with your guests is essential in encouraging them to consider visiting your church’s worship service again or to get further involved. Touching base with your guests after their visit is one way you can extend a positive experience, answer any questions, and let them know you’d love for them to visit again.  

To accomplish this goal, be sure to include connection cards in your gift bags.

With your connections cards, aim for simplicity. In other words, only require visitors to share with you the bare minimum of information—their name and email address. Making it easy to complete your connection cards will increase the number of visitors who will actually complete them.

By giving your first-time guests a gift, you’ll be better able to close your church's backdoor and encourage visitors to come back.

How much your first-time gift will cost

Sharing gifts with your first-time guests is a nice gesture.

It can do all of the things we just talked about above and more.

However, if the gift you share is done half-heartedly, you’ll end up discouraging people from returning, which defeats the entire purpose.

When planning your gift, be prepared to budget accordingly.

After talking to 33 church leaders across the United States about the gifts they provide to first-time guests, Rich Birch discovered that the average cost per gift was $4.88. In his research, he discovered that the least expensive gift was $0.75 and that the highest amount spent was $15.00.

How much you spend will look different from church to church and city to city.

For your gift, we suggest investing in a few gift bags to get started. This will let you know how much you should expect to pay, how much time it takes to put them together, and what type of feedback you’re receiving from your visitors.

How to make people feel comfortable—not awkward

Giving someone a gift is more of an art than a science.

Here’s the deal:

Make guests feel comfortable—not awkward.

What time you give a visitor a gift during your worship service is key and there are several times you can choose to give them a gift. But one of the best ways to hand your guests a gift is after your worship service.

To pull this off, here’s what you need to do:

• Dedicate a space to first-time guests
• Let first-time guests know where to go after your worship service

For this last point, it’s best to let your guests know during your announcements where they should go and to include this information in other places, such as your bulletin or in your foyer.

If you have a dedicated space with clear signage and volunteers present, first-time guests will be better able to identify where they need to go. But whatever you do, make sure this location is easy to find and not tucked away in a dark corner of your worship space.

One final point:

Don’t ask your guests to raise their hand or stand up during your worship service to get their gift.

For the vast majority of people, this is uncomfortable and making this request is arguably the number one way to drive away your guests. If you didn’t know, now consider yourself informed.

5 examples of first-time guest gifts

Not sure what your first-time gift should be? The ideas below will help you to get started.

Feel free to use these examples or come up with your own.

Regardless of what gift you give, remember that whatever you choose, it should help you do these three things:

1. 1. 1. Show people you care
      2. Get contact information
      3. Follow up later

If the gifts you choose accomplish these goals, then go for it!

Whatever gift you give, make sure it’s also something you think your visitors will like and that it’s relevant. For example, providing a gift to first-time guests with children may look different than a gift you will give a single person or grandparent.

In the meantime, here are five first-time guest gift ideas for you to consider:

#1. Book

The sky's the limit with the type of book you can give away.

Sharing copies of the Bible, The Jesus Storybook Bible for families, or seasonal books related to Christmas or Easter are all viable options.

With the book you give, keep this in mind:

Make sure it’s relevant and accessible.

Giving everyone a copy of a children’s book may cause some blowback, and giving someone a book fit for a seminary class isn’t the best idea, either.

#2. Gift card

Do you know what most people feel after your worship service?

Hungry or tired.

Not because your service is long or boring. Since 10:00 AM is the most popular start time for Sunday services, most people will be ready for a bite to eat or a little coffee afterward.

With this in mind, consider giving your visitors a gift card to a local restaurant or coffee shop.

#3. Coffee mug or tumbler

Did you know that 64 percent of Americans drink a cup of coffee every day?

Did you know that tea can be found in 80 percent of American households?

These stats may sound random, but here’s the point:

A coffee mug or tumbler is an excellent choice for a gift.

There’s a chance someone won’t appreciate this gesture, but we don’t talk to people who don’t drink coffee, so that’s okay (just kidding).

#4. Local item

Is there a small gift from a local business you can provide?

Not only will this gesture support local businesses in your community, but it’s also a way to share something heartfelt from your town that people will enjoy.

#5. Food

We’ll admit:

Giving away food can be tricky.

Since nearly 15 million Americans have food allergies, you’ll need to give away basic food, such as:

• Desserts
• Popcorn
• Jams/Jellies
• Coffee
• Hot Chocolate
• Tea

Speaking of popcorn, you can pair this treat with a gift card to Redbox, Amazon, or iTunes to create a movie night experience for your visitors.

Giving gifts

If you’re just considering first-time guest gifts, then we encourage you to start small.

Don’t spend a ton of money at first.

Test out different ideas.

See what resonates with people.

Remember, whatever gift you give is not only about making your first-time guests feel comfortable, but it’s also about leading them to get connected and ultimately about placing your church in a better position to share the gospel.

7 Summer Outreach Ideas

by Church Fuel Admin | Mar 26, 2018 | Outreach

Summer time is my favorite.

And not just because my birthday’s in June.

There’s watermelon, killer BBQ, the warmth of the sun on your skin, and my personal favorite…trips to the beach.

Summer is a time when things aren’t so chaotic and people are a little less tense. They can relax a little.

The squash is out of season and the holiday festivities are out of sight. And it is a GREAT time as a church to make yourself known in your community. We’ve got seven ideas for you to do this this summer.

1. Host a “movie under the stars” night.

According to the American Association of Retired Persons, the third most popular summer activity is watching movies.

Sure, you could pay a whopping $12 to go see the newest Marvel movie.

Or…you could have your church host a movie night for a fraction of the cost (or for free!).

You can use your church’s space, rent out a green area, or another cool space in your town. You can have food trucks, BBQ, or make it a dessert night. The possibilities are up to you.

If Disney does it, it’s gotta be a golden idea, right?

2. Join or host a book club.

Everybody loves a good story.

Summer is the perfect time when school is out, people are going on vacation, and they might have more time to crack open the novel that they’ve been meaning to get to.

While book clubs tend to be more of a female-geared activity, there are certainly men who enjoy participating in a good book club.

Regardless of whether you join or host a book club (for ladies, men, co-ed, or even kids) they are a time to get together, talk about real life issues, and easily open up deeper and more meaningful (even spiritual) conversations.

We highly recommend finding a book club that’s already going on in your city to be a part of.

You can use the “Meetup” app, the local library, or the local bookstore website to see what book clubs are going on in your city.

If there just doesn’t seem to be any going on, then start one in your city so new people who aren’t necessarily from your church can attend.

Or encourage people in your church to start one in their neighborhood!

Do all kinds of different books, not just Christian literature.

Here’s a popular book list for book club books in 2018.

3. Hold a 4th of July concert.

We all know you’re not American if you don’t enjoy good BBQ and fireworks on Independence Day.

It’s the Christmas of the summer.

Or maybe New Years?

Either way—it’s just about the only fun holiday that happens during the summer. And it’s a great opportunity to get together with your city and celebrate.

A great way to do this is to partner with your city to put on a local concert!

You can get local bands to play, have food trucks, offer to make or pay for good barbecue, provide games/entertainment, free refreshments or desserts, and figure out how to put together a firework show!

Families love having a place they can get together to celebrate and spend time together. It would be cool to make something like this happen—even on a smaller level.

4. Challenge your church to host neighborhood game nights.

When most of us think of board games, we think of the classics: Scrabble, Monopoly, and a good game of Clue.

But today it seems like there are as many board games as there are books.

Game nights can be a fun way to get to know your neighbors and friends better, let everyone’s competitive side come out, and share a fun experience together.

And since the summer time means off season for practices, people can bring their kids along as well!

Some of our favorite adult board games are: Speak Out, Ticket to Ride, Catan, and Codenames.

And here’s a list of some kid-friendly board games.

5. Start or join a biking, walking, or runner’s club.

Working out alone is the worst.

It’s true of anything else—doing something alongside another person just makes it better, easier, and more fun.

I am way more likely to actually take a yoga class, run, or go to the gym if I have someone I’m going with. It’s easy to cancel on yourself.

Summer is a great time when people are re-evaluating their New Year’s resolutions and starting to think about their health again.

This can be a great time to find or join some sort of club that meets your level of movement capability and meet other people who have a similar interest as you. You can share why your health is important with each other and hear other people’s life stories. What a great way to get to know your community!

You can use the “Meetup” app for this, look at your city’s website, post notices in your neighborhood, or ask some friends and co-workers if they want to join you on a weekly bike ride, run, walk, or whatever works for you.

6. Offer free car washes or yard care.

You don’t need big events to reach people in your community.

Acts of service are a great way to show people in your community that you care about them and aren’t just out for them to attend your church.

You can set up a car wash in your church’s parking lot and make sure to advertise well in advance. Or, if the space isn’t able to host a car wash, you could offer this in neighboring areas.

Here’s a guide and a list of all of the supplies you may need for this.

Offering to do free yard work will offer a little more flexibility, as you’re going to people’s homes.

For yard work, you’ll just need a good lawn mower and to be ready to pull some weeds!

7. Watch kids on “date nights.”

The off-season of the year is a great time for parents to get some quality time in together.

It makes it tough if parents don’t have money to afford a sitter and don’t know anyone who can watch their kiddos for them.

Have your church host a “date night day care” so parents can go out while you watch the kids. Make it fun, exciting, and a mini camp-like experience so that kids will want to come back.

You can also encourage your church to do this in their own neighborhood.

Let us know which of these you'll try this summer and how it goes.