Taylor's Tips for Lifestyle Outreach
Reaching your community does not always mean standing on a picnic table to preach the Gospel in the middle of a Publix plaza. Although some of our team members have been called to do this and saw great success, the goal is not to be big and flashy.
The goal is to do life with people in a way that displays the love of Christ, even before a Scripture verse rolls off your tongue. That is where lifestyle outreach comes into play: living in a way that preaches the Gospel, and inviting others into the process.
Here are Taylor's tips for Lifestyle Outreach, based on the many things she has tried and been successful with.
Start small: Plan a simple devotion or prayer time to conduct in public places.
Don't fall into the trap that it has to be big to be good. If God brings the multiplication, great! But, I encourage you to start by finding a local public spot to do devotions, even if it is just a few people. Make sure to include amazing snacks and fun (maybe at a coffee shop or local park). One of the most important parts about being the light, other than getting into Gods word, is fellowship. You have to build relationships with others. Just watch as you meet for devotions how many people around you start to become interested in what you are doing! One of the cool parts of doing devotions so out in the open week after week is that people will begin to notice. I can't even say how many people came up and joined us for prayer asked for prayer requests, so we had the opportunity to pray with others about what they were going through. It was amazing how God had moved.
Surround yourself with strength: Make sure you have accountability from people who share your passion.
If I didn’t have my friend who was also passionate about reaching our city, it would have been a lot harder. Having someone walk alongside of you to help you remain committed to the Lifestyle Outreach over time is very important. Even if they are there just for support.
Creativity is Key: Sometimes an out of the box idea is God's idea.
One of my favorite outreaches we did was at Christmas time. We passed around candy canes with the gospel taped to it. I was thankful tha the host location was open to this idea. It is key to have community leaders on board to help you creatiey hare the Gospel!
Another outreaches we did was the Sticky Note Outreach. Each person would get a packet of sticky notes. We would pray over what to write on them, such as Bible verses or encouragement. Then, in the morning we would stick them around the park (secretly). Bathrooms, benches, signs, basically anywhere. Our prayer was that God would lead people to the sticky notes we posted. Our hope is that they would see exactly what they needed in order to be encouraged that day.
Another outreach we conducted was simply writing encouragement letters to teachers for Teacher Appreciation month. This was very effective, especially for the schools that we had personally attended.
Last, but not least, we made little baggies on thanksgiving and took them to a nearby retirement home. Some of the people in our group knew how to play piano, so they played for them and we also prayed for them. We played board games with them, mostly bingo. (They loved bingo). We just sat and talked with them, and one day we brought all the ladies a rose. We really loved spending time with them, and it really touched our hearts to see them enjoy our company, but we might have enjoyed spending time with them more than they did us.
Final Encouragement
Remember, Lifestyle Outreach is a simple overflow of your relationship with God. It does not have to be complicated!
Whatever you do for your Lifestyle Outreach, make sure to start by thinking small so you don't get discouraged, surround yourself with strength to stay passioinate, and stay creative! The Holy Spirit is an endless supply of creativity, if we remain in close relationship with Him.