AssemblyBoard

Ok, just another post by yours truly to cheer the heart! 8)

What is your favorite type of outreach/outreach tool and why (your not limited to the assembly, but I have to admit I have not been involved in so many different types of reaching out like I was in the assembly).

Was it door to door, puppet ministry, tent meetings, Pilgrim Players/mimes, convolesent home, coffee houses, roast-n-toast (beach thing), etc.

First off for me I liked them all (the tents I was not that hot on, but not because of the idea, just how they were done).

The two I like were the gospel sketchboard and the famous quotes (the one where you gave quotes from the world and godly quotes, the winners would get money).  I like these both for the same reason you could use them to reach the lost from where they were at.  Draw a sketch of things that have to do with present day like, or quote famous people of today and use it to show life was all vanity.

Lord Bless you all,
G

My most favorite outreach was the puppet ministry but also because I got to play an important part, I was Bonnie Bunny! Imagine how I could remember that after all these years. It was in the SLO assembly and everyone was great until one brother told me to 'Shut Up'. It was devastating.

I have greatly enjoyed going to the nearby movie theater and speaking with the many people here.  Of course, I only went a very few times as an official "assembly" outreach, mostly with just a few others.

It was most revealing to me when I finally realized that the purpose of the outreach was to share with people about Jesus Christ, and not to invite them to a Bible Study.  What I carried changed from mostly invites, to a bunch of tracts.  I ended up buying my own tracts for my use, since I wanted ones that people would actually read :) .

Last time I was there, there was a drive-by shooting (yes, in Mira Mesa).  Those were some of the best conversations.  Just in simplicity.

I will still probably go occasionally to the theater just to talk to people.

Dave

I loved watching the mimes in Omaha and when I visited Santa Barbara. Wes Cohen is an incredible mimer. The outreaches that really bothered me were the ones where the only people there were the saints.  :-\

My favorite one was when a leading brother was open air preaching out of the King James Bible.  He announced the to the people of Laguna Beach that "God wants to succour you".  Very funny.

My favorite outreach was the health fair we had at 'Taste of Champaign', serving people by attention to both physical and spiritual needs. In all my 22 years of medical practice/training, I have yet to have a patient who refused my offer to pray with them. My inspirational book is "The Great Physician" by G. Campbell Morgan.

RESCUE MISSION  There but for the Grace og God go I

I was only in the group for 4-5 months but I loved Thursday nights at Farmer's Market in downtown SLO.  Some nights I would go and I would be SO tired from endless nights of schoolwork but by the end of my time at Farmer's Market I would be pumped!  Sharing the good news and talking to people was such a blessing!

 This memory probably would be better catergorized as "most bonehead in retrospect Outreach."
   We were going out into a park in Fullerton on a Sunday afternoon two by two.  There was a giant family reunion/picnic where they had gathered a long row of tables and placed them together.  The group was all seated, and in the middle of their meal, when Bob Anderson (present Assembly Mouthpiece) stood up about 6 ft. away from the end of a row of tables.
   Bob began to shout at the top of his lungs to this large group from some obscure passage in the old test.  The recipients of his message tried to ignore Bob, hoping that he would go away, but this did not daunt him in the least!
   I was afraid that he was going to suffer "persecution" from some of the large men at the table, but he escaped without even having one apple core tossed his way! ;D
   I'm sure Bob thought he was being faithful, but this of course is far more important than the actual purpose of the proclamation of the gospel; the salvation of souls. ;)
                                     God Bless,  Mark

My favorite was neighborhood backyard puppet outreaches.  One summer we went to different saints' homes and had an evening puppet/game fellowship -- small scale, not the entire assembly bombarding a neighborhood, just the puppets and a few others to help.

We did that one summer with fantastic results.

Sadly though, that was the end of the puppet ministry, regardless of the burden to keep it going (it just wasn't the lb's burden).

We tried to do the neighborhood outreaches the next summer, but were told to just do it on our own if we wanted (ie, it was no longer a 'sactioned' assembly outreach) -- it all fizzled from there.

But -- puppets are being revived!!!  We are starting a puppet ministry at the church we fellowship with -- ready to be fired up for this spring/summer.

yeah! the puppets were great! it was sad to learn that outreach wasn't being done anymore.

My favorite outreach was having Remedy play at our Gospel Campaigns in SLO in 2001 and 2002.  Until 2001 we forced the poor visitors to listen to our congregational singing and encouraged them to participate.  When Remedy came to town the meetings rocked - literally!  We just dropped the congregational singing altogether.  Those outreaches were actually fun.  I had such a great time making videos of Remedy those 2 years.  I admit I was much more interested in the technical aspects of working with the equipment than in talking with people.  I felt guilty for not having my former 'burden' to preach the gospel (I used to be a hard-core gospel presentation preacher who gave all 3 memorized points no matter what).  I did, however, take comfort in the fact that I could help with the outreach by doing something I really enjoyed - video.  Nobody had to lay a guilt trip on me to get me to do it.  I did it gleefully.  It was the coolest.  And now I have my own wedding video business.

Jack

Worst Outreach:  any outreach when we sang, "Come ye sinners, poor and wretched..."  Talk about a depressing melody!

I remember when we in the Valley would go out to
Van Nuys Blvd to preach the Gospel. I remember being
very scared at first. The first time I went out was a night
when we all held up signs and marched down the street.
I felt kind of embarrassed, not for the Gospel, but because of the way we were presenting it.

But as time passed I actually had fun and really enjoyed talking to people about Christ. I'll never forget one evening though when I "led" this teenager to Christ. He bowed his head and tearfully asked Jesus to come into his heart. When we were through I asked for his phone number so that I might invite him out to a meeting. When I called the next day I found that he had given me the phone number to a Jewish Temple of all things!

I confronted him the next Wednesday and he pointed to his friend and said "it was his idea". I warned him severely of the wrath to come, but I couldn't help laughing to myself for the "con job" he had pulled on me.

Another time we were told that "anyone" might be called upon to "open air preach". We made our way down the street and stopped in front of a huge group of Bikers. These were big, long-haired, leather jacket wearing guys.
"Joe, get up and preach" I was told. So I got up and spoke about John chapter 10 and the Good Shepherd. I was partly shaking in my boots, but joyful just the same that I got to share the Gospel with those guys.

For all of the meetings we had and all of the things we did I think going out and sharing was when I felt I was doing the most good.

--Joe

Joe,

Van Nuys Blvd. is where Dan Ryan got saved.  So some of the "fruit" was real.

Tom

Also, Tom Ludwig got saved on Van Nuys Blvd.

Tom/Stephen---

Thanks for the reminder. I had the good fortune of
being one of the two people who talked to Tom
Ludwig that night.  Despite all of the legalism and
strange things that happened in the Assembly the
Lord still used his Word to save people.

He says he sends out his Word and it will not return
onto him void. We've all seen how powerful that Word
is.

God bless you,  Joe

I think the best outreach was the Mime's ministry with JJ Simmons, Sherry Starr, Dave Brown, and the deaf brothers in our assembly. They were so funny and they related some very powerful messages without having to speak. I'd venture to say that they were better than our assembly's "band" with Gordon Kim and Briant Gibb, but then I could never understand the lyrics to their songs (sorry if you are guys are reading this). I'd also have to give a thumbs up to the food and the Starbucks coffee served there.

I also thought the Polaroid pictures were a clever idea where we would take pictures of couples and then paste a verse on back of the pictures and invite them to the Bible study.

When I was in the San Diego fellowship, I did the mime act with Shane and Sherry once. It was a lot of fun, during a Fourth of July post-parade fair.

The Twilight Zone outreach was fun even though I've spent too many hours in front of SciFi channel watching these episodes in my own time.

Those were the ones I liked the most. Accosting people in the parks, at their doors, and at school walkways were my least favorite.

   


     For over a year I have avoided posting on this thread, and I wasn't even sure why.  In retrospect I now see that it was because I was never comfortable with any of the forms of outreach we employed in my assembly days.  I guess, in order of preference, I favored the tent meetings, sunday afternoons in Hillcrest Park, and Wednesday nights on Van Nuys Blvd.  I just never viewed any of them as effective methods of evangelism.  They bore little tangible fruit, in my experience, and I tried to content myself with the thought that we were putting forth the word of the gospel, and that some of it would take root, grow & bear fruit in time.
     My personal method of witnessing was not aggressive, although when I preached the gospel on the street, I tried to be powerful in voice & message.  But one-on-one, I preferred to establish a rapport by which an intelligent discussion could ensue.  I sometimes felt that a genuine interest had been thus aroused.  I used my Bible freely, but tried to make it comprehensible, rather than weild it as a bludgeon.

     Looking back, I think that a lot of our outreach work was but a poor substitute for everyday witnessing to out neighbors, friends, coworkers, and family members.  When Christ is an ideal and a concept, but not a practical reality in one's life, one is painfully aware that those closest by are the most aware of the lack in one's life; a state which impedes any practical active witness to them.  Much easier is the approach to total strangers who may be fooled, even badgered, into believeing that we are the godly, spiritual people we profess to be.

     These days, as I learn to know and to trust the Lord in all aspects of my daily doings, I find myself delighting in the unexpected opportunities to interject Jesus Christ as a normal component into a normal conversation.  I am no longer uptight about defending my beliefs, because I am secure in Him, and whatever others may reject or scoff at is between them and the Holy Spirit Who would persuade them.  I have no axe to grind, nothing to prove.  My tool is now prayer rather than argument.
     There is still a place for public preaching, witnessing, the distribution of gospel literature, and godly works, but I now am free to do them without feeling that if I do not I will be failing God.  I can now do them simply because I want to please and serve Him.  I can now pray from my heart to the Lord of harvests to send forth workers and save lost souls, rather than worry whether I am fulfilling all that He demands of me.

Gratefully & gladly,
al Hartman