Ministry Matters™

Outreach 2013 (Nov/Dec/Jan 2012-13)

Ideas for mission and evangelism the whole year through! From getting Christmas visitors to come back in January, to Easter outreach, community-wide VBS, after-school programs, and Thanksgiving dinner delivery, and more. Plus, a printable 2013 calendar you'll want to keep handy!

In This Issue

2013 Calendar

2013 Calendar

By Ministry Matters
When is Easter in 2013? Mother's Day is May... what? What day of the week does Christmas fall on this year? Download and print this 2013 calendar with handy "When is..." list… read more
What Are You Known For?

What Are You Known For?

By Dottie Escobedo-Frank
Does your community know your church exists? If so, how do they describe you? Are you described as “elderly,” “boring,” “anglo,”… read more
Evangelism with the Never-Churched

Evangelism with the Never-Churched

By Jack Jackson
Last Christmas season, my family walked through the downtown community where we live. In one of the store windows we passed were a small set of woodcarvings that included a baby… read more
New Year's Visitors

New Year's Visitors

By Jessica Miller Kelley
New Year’s resolutions are a celebration of good intentions. Some we stick with, some we don’t, but the goal is always to make changes that we know are good for us… read more
40 Days of Love

40 Days of Love

By Betsy Newton
With February comes hearts, flowers, and chocolate candies galore—a time for couples to celebrate their romance, and for everyone else to roll their eyes and try to resist… read more
Time Your Egg Hunt Right to Get Visitors in Worship

Time Your Egg Hunt Right to Get Visitors in Worship

By Kara Witherow
Nearly 5,000 people attended one of Harvest United Methodist Church’s five egg hunts, which were held immediately following five of the church’s eight Easter worship… read more
Spring Breakers, Snowbirds, and Barflies All Worship at the Water

Spring Breakers, Snowbirds, and Barflies All Worship at the Water

By Jeremy Mount
When speaking to locals about the outreach worship service meeting in our Gulf Coast community’s world-renowned bar, the Flora-Bama, it becomes evident that things are not… read more
Community Baccalaureate Service

Community Baccalaureate Service

By Katie Z. Dawson
One of the ways that local churches can be in ministry with their community is to be aware of the transitions that others are experiencing. One of those “endings” my… read more
Community-Wide Vacation Bible School

Community-Wide Vacation Bible School

By Sylvia Berry
A community-wide VBS allows smaller churches in a rural area or certain area of town come together in fellowship and fun. The churches can share resources and start an annual… read more
Summer Program Lets Kids Be Kids

Summer Program Lets Kids Be Kids

By Sherrie Ilg
SPRINT (St. Paul’s Reaching Into Neighborhoods Together) began in 1995 as a brainstorm of two members and a pastor attending “FORUM,” a national United Methodist … read more
Healing Through Art

Healing Through Art

By Juanita Campbell Rasmus
It has been said that most of us cease being actively engaged in any type of creative expression on a regular basis once we leave elementary school. What an incredible loss to… read more
Campus Ministry on Move-In Day and Beyond

Campus Ministry on Move-In Day and Beyond

By Helen DeWitt Beckner
Every August, hundreds of incoming freshman girls and their families arrive on the University of Alabama campus for move-in day at Tutwiler Hall. With the sweltering Tuscaloosa… read more
After-School Program Helps Working Families

After-School Program Helps Working Families

By Ken Ramsey
Children are of the highest value for the people of Bridgeport United Methodist Church in Bridgeport, W.Va. One of the ways this is reflected to our community is through the… read more
Hallowing Halloween

Hallowing Halloween

By Ron Mills
The calendar page turns from September to October. Pumpkins and witches pop up on lawns. Ghosts and skeletons dangle from trees throughout the community. Giant spider webs appear… read more
Trading Spaces: Elderly Church Makes Way for Growth

Trading Spaces: Elderly Church Makes Way for Growth

By Rachel L. Toalson
During a service last winter that’s been called “moving” and “emotional,” the small, elderly congregation of Asbury United Methodist Church in… read more
Dinner Delivery

Dinner Delivery

By Lynn Beach
A few years ago our men’s group wanted to do something special on Thanksgiving. They figured that they could cook up a meal and take it out to people they knew whose… read more
Walk Through Bethlehem

Walk Through Bethlehem

By Sue Isbell
In the busyness of the holidays, take time to imagine what Bethlehem might have been like the night Jesus was born, as if you were a traveler on a special journey through this… read more