If you read my previous post challenging churches to use a Facebook page for  and outreach,I have good news for you.

Yale Wall, the State Convention of Baptists in Indiana Media Specialist, gives very simple, specific instructions to help a church set up a Facebook page.

You can read it at

http://www.scbi.org/images/scbi/ibm/aprmay/techtalkfacebooksetup.pdf

He also has an article about it here. Click on “Social Networking for Churches.”

Great resources!

Here’s my Fresh Ideas article that’s in today’s Baptist Press. See it here”

Baptist Press or Article in Baptist Press or pasted below:

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INDIANAPOLIS (BP)–Ahh, spring! Kids’ sports teams are practicing everywhere. It’s such fun to encourage and support your child’s extracurricular activities. I admit, however, that I occasionally begrudged the multitudinous hours spent in practice, meets, tournaments and games.

That attitude changed dramatically one day. I was looking around at coaches and players, and their parents, relatives and friends, when I suddenly realized that God had placed me there for a strategic purpose. Here were dozens of people who didn’t know Christ, and we would be together in those bleachers for weeks. God had called me to the “bleacher ministry.”

What if every Christian child and parent in your church saw their sports season as a mission too? Need a few fresh ideas?

1. Be intentional. Before the season begins, chat as a family about ways God may use you. Ask God to open doors and guide you.

2. Personalize. Work hard to learn names, beginning at the first practice. Study the roster and cheer for players by name. Make a point to introduce yourself to parents, and keep a notebook in your car to help recall. A simple “Hello, Heather” can mean a lot to a lonely mom.

3. Move it. Sit near different people at the games, and get to know them. Carefully avoid being part of a clique.

4. Listen well. There are needs all around you. When problems or crises occur, be ready to act. Send a card. Promise to pray for them.

5. Live it. People are watching to see if God makes a difference in your life. Smile. Have fun. Treasure your child. Let your words, actions and demeanor reflect Christ. Absolutely avoid criticism or bad sportsmanship. Never forget that you are God’s ambassador — his “letter” to those parents who don’t know Him. As others observe your relationships, your positive parenting and your Christ-like attitude, they’ll be drawn to Him.

6. Do something extra. Be available. If you’re asked to do help, do more than expected. Volunteer your yard for the end-of-season team cookout. Share game photos. Call to check on a sick teammate. Seize every opportunity to show God’s love.

7. Carry a few church brochures or invitation cards, and be ready to share them when the opportunity arises. Invite your child’s Sunday School teacher or church children’s minister to a game, then proudly introduce them to other parents.

Lastly, if your church provides a sports league, such as Upward, build a bleacher ministry into the strategy. Ask Christian parents and other church members to attend games with a ministry purpose.

An estimated 45 million kids play organized sports in the U.S. each year. That’s a mission field larger than the population of Canada. God can use you to impact entire families if you’ll let Him. A simple kind word. A life of integrity. Has God called you to the bleacher ministry this season?
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Diana Davis is author of “Fresh Ideas” (B&H Publishing) and wife of the North American Mission Board vice president for the Midwest region. Visit her website, www.keeponshining.com.

Here’s my newest “Fresh Ideas” article.

Fresh Ideas

Ten Tips for a Church Facebook Page

By Diana Davis

Take this quiz:

-       If your church could make free public announcements to thousands of your own members’ friends, would you do it?

-       If there was a simple way to help members and guests feel more connected to your church, would you use it?

Small and large churches across our nation are effectively using a Facebook organization page to enhance in-reach and outreach. Should your church have one?

Do the math. Ask for a show of hands to find out how many church members use Facebook. The average Facebook user has 130 registered “friends,” so if just twenty church members use Facebook, that’s 2,600 people who could read posts about your church. One hundred members with Facebook could touch 130,000. This is multiplication at its best. Convinced?  I interviewed several churches to compile these tips to help you get started.

Tip #1:  Begin well. Study other churches’ pages for ideas. Use tips from Facebook’s help section to create your church organization page. Then ask church members and guests to “like” (join) so posts will display on their newsfeed.

Tip #2:  Keep it short. Want posts to be read? Keep them very brief. Give basic info to ignite interest and provide a link to the church website for more details.

Tip #3:  Add a graphic. Attract more readers by attaching your church logo, event logo, a photo or graphic to posts.

Tip #4:  Post regularly. Consider allowing several leaders or members to post. Two or three posts per week would be desirable.

Tip #5:  Keep it positive. Never forget that thousands of people may read posts. This is no place for whining. Positive posts convey the emotion and reality of true fellowship and confidence in God.

Tip #6:  Connect. Announcements help readers feel connected with the church. Tell about the upcoming men’s breakfast, kids’ camp or Easter celebration. Announce a new Bible class, staff member or benevolence project. Communicate weather cancellations or disaster relief.

Tip #7:  Develop a relationship with the reader. Be authentic and encouraging. Tell the story of God at work in your church and in individual lives. Encourage readers to comment or add photos. Their personal enthusiasm and involvement will add excitement and draw readers to your church and your God.

Tip #8:  Use video clips. Professional video isn’t necessary; a flip camera will do. Video 1- or 2-minute clips of members sharing life stories about God’s power. An Indiana church posted a hilarious video of a tithing rap. Introduce the upcoming sermon series, peek into a youth Bible class or show senior adults exercising.

Tip #9:  Different groups, such as a Bible class, worship team or youth group, could have another Facebook page for communication. My neighbor noticed an announcement from our women’s ministry on my Facebook and asked about attending a Bible study!

Tip #10: Wait just a minute. It takes seconds to write a post, and it’s online immediately. Before submitting, re-read carefully to check tone, grammar and spelling. It represents your God and His church, so do it very well. Pray for God to use it to touch lives, then hit “post.”

Oh, this doesn’t take the place of face-to-face outreach and fellowship, of course, but it may enhance your church’s impact. Half of active Facebook users log in on any given day. If your church members’ Facebook friends log in tomorrow, will they learn something about what God is doing at your church?

©Diana Davis 2011 www.keeponshining.com

It worked! We tried a get-to-know-you fellowship game that we made up, and it was such fun. As ladies arrived at our event, they were guided to two long rows of chairs facing one another. The goal was to visit with the lady seated across from you, learning as much as you could about her in just two minutes. Then a whistle blows, everyone stops mid-sentence and moves one seat to the left. Then they visit with the person for two minutes.

If time permits, they could visit with each person. Even if you just meet three or four people, new relationships may begin to develop.

Speed-Greeting would be a great activity for your small group. We tried this with a larger group–one hundred pastors’ wives–at a breakout conference this weekend.  Each got to visit with four ladies, and they loved it.

Here’s a great way your church can shine for Jesus this Valentine’s Day!

Fresh Ideas
Valentine Cookie Extravaganza
By Diana Davis

Invite your community to stop by your church this Valentine’s Day to receive two dozen free homemade heart cookies. This fresh ministry project, a true labor of love, is a sweet and personal way to say “God loves you” and “we care.”

Step 1: Set a big goal. A few weeks ahead, challenge individual church members to sign up to bake several dozen homemade heart-shaped cookies. They can vary in size, and may be plain, simply frosted or elegantly decorated. Remind volunteers to pray as they bake. If twenty members of a small church bake five dozen cookies, those 100 dozen cookies can touch fifty new families for Christ! A larger church’s goal could be several hundred dozen.

Step 2: Invite the town. Post an exterior sign: “Free homemade Valentine cookies! Please stop by February 14 between Noon and 2PM to receive our gift of love: two dozen heart cookies.” Print business-card-size invitations for members to distribute. Deliver door hangar invitations to the neighborhood around the church. Submit a newspaper story about the project, with a quality photo of a member baking cookies.

Step 3: Prepare well. Set beautiful tables of cookies in a convenient foyer and plan a simple pick-up process. The gift will include a church brochure, newsletter, note from the pastor, and Valentine-themed evangelism tract (i.e. Valentine Memory Cross or Happy Valentine’s Day).

Step 4: Joyfully give. On the day of the event, folks come in and choose two dozen cookies, which are packaged for them by friendly church members. Each person is treated as an important guest, and hot cider and cocoa are served to those who want to relax and visit. A “decoration station” allows kids to frost and sprinkle a large heart cookie, and every person is verbally invited to Sunday worship. Absolutely no donations are accepted. This is a gift.

When cookies are gone, post an exterior sign, “Oops! Our 7,000 homemade cookies are gone. Please take a brochure, and know that you’re loved by God and Hope Baptist Church.” After the event, package leftover cookies to deliver to nearby businesses and shut-ins. This project can also be done as a Christmas Cookie Extravaganza.

It’s a major effort but a Cookie Extravaganza will “get-’em-in-the-doors” and provide an effective way to touch lives and love them to Jesus!

©Diana Davis is author of Fresh Ideas for Women’s Ministry (B&H Publishing) and wife of Indiana Baptist Convention’s executive director. www.keeponshining.com

We visited worship with our son and daughter-in-law in Ohio this weekend, and saw a great idea there. 

We all know that small children can’t usually listen all through the sermon. I love this idea that keeps their hands busy and their focus on Jesus. A note in the bulletin explains it:

 Worship Bags Available.

We welcome children of all ages to worship. Realizing that our younger ones sometimes become restless, the Christian Education Team has arranged for children’s worship bags. These bags are available at the rear of the worship center or from ushers on Sunday mornings. Enclosed in the bag should be some crayons, a children’s worship bulletin, paper and a couple of extra activity sheets. Chidlren will also find a Magna-Doodle and some other quiet toys as well as some Bible stories.  Please return all permanent items to the bags and return the bag to the table after worship. The bags will be refreshed each week.

Is your church planning a Christmas pageant or drama or concert? God could use that event to reach people for Him. You can read this article at Baptist Press.com or below:

Fresh Ideas

Powerfully Purposeful Pageants

By Diana Davis

Isn’t it awesome that Christmas music appeals to people who don’t even know Jesus? With minor adjustments, your church Christmas pageant, concert or drama can be a major evangelistic opportunity. Need fresh ideas?  

The Prayer Principal

• Begin every pageant planning team meeting or rehearsal with prayer for unsaved people who will attend.

Personalized Promotion

• Ask every participant and church member to give pageant tickets to five unchurched friends.
• Send a top-quality e-invitation to the entire church database so they can forward it to their address book, post on Facebook or twitter about it.
• Stage a Christmas backdrop and take digital family photos before and after Sunday worship. Members can download it into printed or e-invitations for their friends.   
• Everyone invites! Kids’ choir gives invitations while caroling at the mall. Youth fill an entire section with friends. Bible classes invite recent church guests. Singles gather friends for an after-pageant coffee. Staff members hand-deliver invitations to city leaders. Senior saints bring friends and nursing home residents to an afternoon dress rehearsal.  

Perform without Pretention

• Present the pageant with a positive attitude and a servant heart. That means no complaining, bickering, fretting or bowing. Point all the glory to God.
• Share God’s plan of salvation. The Pastor might conclude the presentation, asking guests to check a box on their registration card indicating their interest in accepting Christ as Savior, or request information about the church. Promise they’ll be contacted within a week.   
• Printed program includes invitation to worship and church Christmas events.

Post-Production Project Pursues Prospects

• An after-pageant Blitz event takes place a week after the event.
• From day one, print Blitz date on rehearsal schedules. Every pageant participant or helper is involved. Invite Sunday School leaders, church staff, and willing church members.
• Blitz the town. Assign teams of two or three to visit each guest who made a decision. Return for a big party, with testimonies, report-back whiteboard, pageant videos and fellowship.   

Potential Problem 

Oh, yes. There could be one possible dilemma to this pageant plan. You may have to add one or two additional–but purposeful–performances.

 This Christmas, will you limit your pageant’s reach to God’s family, or will you purposefully share it with those in your community who don’t yet know Him?

It’s a tongue twister worth rehearsing:  Peter Piper packed the pew for a powerfully purposeful pageant.

 © Diana Davis is an author, tongue-twister expert  and wife of Indiana Baptists Executive Director. Her latest book is Deacon Wives (B&H ’09). See www.keeponshining.com

See page 9 of http://scbi.org/images/scbi/ibm/augsep/augsep10ib.pdf or below:

Fresh Ideas

Free Drive-Through Prayer

By Diana Davis

 What a day! As she drove home from work, something caught her eye. A young man standing in front of a church held a big sign that read “Free Drive-Through Prayer.” She’d hardly noticed that church before today. “Oh, why not?” she thought and swerved into the driveway.

Your church could provide the blessing of “drive-through prayer” for your community. It’s an outreach project, where the community comes to you!  

Recruit a variety of friendly church members to help. Gather witnessing tracts, church brochures, pens and New Testaments or other Scripture gift books. Print registration cards with two blanks for name and address or email, and prepare a large sign. Spruce up the church’s exterior and you’re ready.  

She turned into the parking lot and saw a group of church members ready to pray. The assortment of ages, ethnicity and personality was intriguing. They obviously liked one another and were enthused about the prayer project. One person directed her where to stop, and an elderly woman rushed over to the car, using her walker and smiling broadly.

Approach the car, introduce yourself and welcome them warmly. Hand them a registration card and pen, politely asking for their contact information so you can follow up on their prayer. While they write, share some exciting things God is doing in your church and invite them to Sunday’s worship. Ask if they have any specific prayer request. Before you pray, ask a question about their relationship with God.

The elderly woman listened intently to her prayer request, then said, “Now before we pray, I just have to ask you one question. If you happened to have a fatal car wreck between here and your home, do you know for sure that you’ll spend eternity with God in heaven?” 

You may prefer to say something like, “If you don’t know God personally, I hope you’ll read this tract.” Then simply give them the materials, stating, “Just let me know if you’d like to talk more about God. Now let’s pray.” Touch their arm, bow your head, and voice a sincere prayer for them. If they had a specific request, be sure to pray about it.

“Drive-through” means brief. No lines. No entrapment. Relaxed, but purposefully expedient. Your goal is to plant seeds of friendship and witness, offer a heartfelt prayer, and invite them to worship. The car should be driving away within four minutes. You can vary the plan. If it’s hot, offer “free drive-through prayer and bottled water.” If it’s early morning, serve “free drive-through prayer and coffee.” Afterward, send a follow-up letter to reinforce the worship invitation. Then if they show up on Sunday, joyfully welcome them. And keep on praying.

The lady with the walker waved energetically as she drove away. “Hope to see you Sunday!” she called. “I’ll be praying for you.”

 ©Fresh Ideas are shared by Diana Davis, author, speaker and wife of Indiana Baptist Convention’s Executive Director. www.keeponshining.com

I saw a great idea at a church’s groundbreaking ceremony recently.  The pastor asked every person who attended the ceremony to have their photo taken with a shovel before they went for the lunch afterward. There were lots of shovels and dirt, and most took photos with their family or friends or Sunday School class. It didn’t take much time at all because it was informal, with  lots of assigned photographers.

Of course, the pastor will make a montage or powerpoint show, and will mail a copy of the photo to each member. What a great way to give “ownership” and excitement to a momentous event!

A friend of mine, Kim Hardy, just wrote a witnessing tract, so that was on my mind when I saw this photo. This is an Indiana pastor’s wife, Tami Hubler, skydiving! Take a close look at what’s written on her hands.

“Jesus saves.”

Now, wouldn’t that make a great photo on a witnessing tract???

How would you tie that in?

Actually, I just wanted you to see that photo!