Starting Out Cold
Selling "cold" in the life insurance business is to sell a prospect that has not been contacted before. I want to make some suggestions about starting "cold" in planting the church in a city where there is none. Because of my acquaintance with many men who have planted churches from "scratch", I feel qualified in writing on this subject. These composite suggestions are from my observations of these men.
Know Yourself
Any preacher needs to know himself, and this is certainly true of the man interested in moving to a community to plant a church. Do not consider going into a difficult field unless you can preach. If one is not apt to teach, he will find it extremely difficult to plant the church. Working with a small church requires just as many sermons as working with a larger congregation.
Are you easily discouraged? In the first year the church may make progress, but in the second year attendance could drop. The weak will fall, some will leave, and interest may lag. Do you have the ability to stick it out through the low spots? You must be able to preach just as hard to ten or fifteen as others can to two or three hundred.
Have complete faith in God. Believe in the all-sufficiency of Christ, His word, and His church. Have enough faith to do the will of God and leave the results to Him. Without a strong faith, you are beaten before you start. If you feel you have the ability to preach the gospel of Christ, are not easily discouraged, have a deep faith in God, and know where you want to begin, you are ready to start. How does one begin?
Making A Start
Perhaps it would be best to get a job. One of the big problems in beginning a new work is getting contacts. Getting a job where you will meet laboring people is a fast way to get acquainted. Harold Dowdy used this method effectively in Jesup, Georgia. Through working, he was able to convert some of the construction men with whom he labored. As contacts are made and the teaching responsibilities increase, drop the job and put your full time into preaching the gospel. Make arrangements for some church to take up the support when the job is over.
Another means of contacting people in your new community is advertising. Advertise in the local paper, the radio station, and in the yellow pages of the telephone directory. Even with very little money, a lot of advertising can be done. It costs about 75 cents a month to advertise in the yellow pages here in Newton, New Jersey. Most county papers have a free listing of church services, and many local radio stations give a daily "Community Calendar" of local church and club news. The simple process of advertising where and when the church is meeting can give you some contacts, including members of the church living in the community. When these members are restored, it is possible to have Bible classes in their homes as a way of meeting people.
A Gospel Meeting
After you have been in the area a while, have a gospel meeting. With hundreds of printed or graphed ads for the meeting, go from house to house handing out these notices. Do not just put the handbills in the door, Knock on the door, introduce yourself, and leave the invitation. Advertise the meeting in the "church news" section of the local paper. Write a news item about the coming meeting and give it to the editor. Turn in an announcement to the radio station for their "Community News Program". If you have the money, run a display ad in the local paper. Above all, give your announcements to all that know you. Give one to the gas station attendant, the children's teachers, your neighbors, the telephone man, and the salesman that comes to the door. Not only invite your acquaintances, but go by to see the friends of any members you have found.
Get good, experienced preachers for the meeting. Too often a young preacher feels well-known evangelists will only speak before large audiences. This is far from the truth. Being well-known does not mean a preacher is unavailable to struggling churches. I have seen Rufus Clifford preach to an audience so small I felt his long arms could reach out and touch the back row. I have heard Robert Jackson when the audience was small enough to easily fit in a living room. I have seen Sewell Hall preach in a field outside a small South Carolina town. Space forbids my telling of Harris Dark, James Finney, David Arnold, Edwin Hayes and a host of fine preachers that have declared God's message to a handful. Well-known preachers are usually a humble, courageous breed. Use them. You might be surprised at how quickly they will respond.
About Those Contacts
After the first contacts are made, the next question is - What do I do with them? The answer, "Teach them". Work up a short 15 or 20 minute lesson that will clearly present the identity of the Lord's Church. Go to the home of the one you want to teach and present this short lesson. You believe the one you want to teach is interested in the Bible, so do not waste a lot of time. Get right into the lesson. At the close of the short presentation ask about coming back and teaching four more lessons on God's book. You are in, the ice is broken, and you will be back. Discuss the division of God's word, the authority of Christ, the church of Christ, and the plan of salvation during the four lessons. A few of your contacts will obey, but whether or not they obey - they have heard. It will work for any of us if we will use it.
Our next article will continue investigating this subject.