What does door to door ministry achieve?
by John Mark Hobbins on Oct.16, 2010, under Connections, Gospel
Door to door visitation is a great way to build strong relationships between the local church and local people. The goal is for the same person to visit the same people to win them for Christ’s sake. We try to visit them every three months. Often, those conversations are about the common things of life but we are building trust with people and forming a long term relationship. As a result, we have many conversations about the Lord, people are invited (and come) to our Church, we strengthen our relationship with local people and build a strong network with the community around us.
Today, I am attending the funeral of a man that I met through door to door visitation. I have a very good relationship with his family, some of whom I have also met through visitation to a different address. Several people I have met in this way are now coming to St. James – and they are very much a part of our church community. Some are reading the Bible with me regularly. Many of the people I know might never meet a Christian otherwise. Meeting them this way means they have the opportunity to hear the Gospel, be invited and respond.
What do you think about door to door visitation? And what can make it easier or more difficult?
October 20th, 2010 on 10:52 am
Hiya John Mark,
When we have occasional door2door it has produced strong relationships and great conversations. We have been thinking and praying into setting up a regular approach to this.
Could you put together a series of posts that describe how you have gone about putting together a door to door ministry for an estate. What are the key ingredients?
Thanks Mate
Ste
October 22nd, 2010 on 7:25 pm
Planning door to door visitation – Part One
When starting out with door to door visitation, it is a great idea to identify an area that you can realistically visit every (say) three months. For example, this may be one hundred homes.
Take literature round that introduces people to your church and shows that it is relevant for them. Offering literature is also a great way to start a conversation.
Listen to people. It takes time to build trust and people need to know that you respect them and their views. You may not necessarily get a conversation every time you visit but that is OK.
Encourage people at your church to be on the lookout for newcomers who have been met through this work – so that they know that they are welcomed and loved.
May 3rd, 2011 on 3:57 pm
Thanks for this. Some say that door knocking is getting harder and harder in a culture where people are increasingly private and busy. Despite this I know that you have seen it as a helpful way of meeting people and sharing the good news of Jesus. What are the pitfalls?