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Alabama WMU has a rich
heritage of being committed
to the
Great Commission,
at home and abroad. |
For more than
one hundred years, Alabama WMU has focused its vision, actions and resources
on equipping individuals to accept the challenge of the Great Commission. In
the spirit of this great tradition, we continue to live according to
Christ's mandate to make His name known, in our state and beyond.
The Alabama Baptist State emphasis for 2005-2007 is
Intentional Evangelism. This strategy is designed to encourage Alabama
Baptists to be more intentional in personal evangelism efforts and to be
involved in ministries for which they are personally passionate. Alabama WMU
has a rich heritage of being committed to the Great Commission, at home and
abroad. The Alabama WMU ministries listed below are examples of creative
intentionally evangelistic ministries you can incorporate in your daily
life. For more ideas, contact
Faith
McDonald |
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Heart Call
is an evangelism method developed by the North American Mission Board
specifically for women, based on the relational way women witness. Heart
Call is designed to equip and encourage women to share the Gospel message
with other women with whom they come into contact during normal, daily
activities like grocery shopping, sitting in the bleachers with other
mothers during a soccer game and interacting with neighbors.
Every woman in Christ has a responsibility to witness
to the lost women around her. Women encounter countless lost women as they
engage in the tasks of daily routine. Through Heart Call, they are
encouraged to be intentionally evangelistic with contacts, acquaintances and
even the strangers to other women in their spheres of influence, prayer must
be of highest priority. |
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STEP 1: How to Pray
* Women should first pray for themselves, that they may have clean
hands and pure hearts as they seek to share the life-changing story of
Christ.
* Women should pray for God to reveal to them the women in their
spheres of influence who are nonbelievers. Pray for those lost women daily.
* Pray that the Lord would provide opportunities for them to
intentionally and naturally share their faith with the women around them. |
STEP 3: Get Equipped
* Heart Call is just one of many resources designed for women to use
when witnessing to other women. Women should use those methods with which
they are most comfortable. To order Heart Call women's tracts and other
helpful evangelism resources, contact the Office of Evangelism at the State
Board of Missions at 1.800.264.1225.
* Regardless of the method chosen, women should be familiar with the
Scripture they use to share the Gospel message since it is the Word of God
along with the Holy Spirit that have the capacity to convict human hearts.
* Women should view ordinary tasks such as trips to the mall, grocery
store, sporting events and schools as opportunities to share their faith
with those around them. They should be prepared through prayer, evangelism
training and Scripture knowledge to be ready to share the Gospel wherever
they are. In their busy lives, women are reluctant to add another
"activity" to the schedules. Heart Call allows them to see evangelism as an
intentional part of their daily Christian life, not as a separate and
occasional addition. |
STEP 2: Complete the Women's IP Prayer
List
* Complete the Women's IE Prayer List provided by the Alabama WMU
office.
* Women are encouraged to prayerfully think through an average week
(the places they go and the people they see) and identify the
lost/unchurched women with whom they come into contact on a regular basis.
* The IE Prayer List enables women to realize how many lost women
they encounter in the daily routine of life |
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Project HELP: Poverty enables individuals,
groups in the church and the larger church body to engage in intentional
evangelism through attempting to break the cycle of poverty by addressing
the spiritual and physical needs of lost/unchurched individuals.
Poverty is the condition of a person lacking financial
resources to provide adequate diet, housing, clothing, health care or
transportation for themselves or their family. According to the U.S. Census
Bureau, one out of every eight Americans lives in poverty (12.5%).
Statistics from the Auburn University at Montgomery Center for Demographic
Research show 16.1% of Alabamians live in poverty, and 21.2% of Alabamians
under the age of 18 live in poverty. These statistics show the great
opportunity exists for an intentionally evangelistic ministry like Project
HELP: Poverty.
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* As with any ministry endeavor, prayer
must be the first step. Individual and corporate prayer must be a priority
in seeking the Lord's direction for ministry avenues and examining personal
attitudes regarding the poor. Individuals should pray for witnessing
opportunities. Groups are encouraged to prayer walk in needy areas. Prayer
walking has been called "praying on site with insight." Groups should pray
on site with insight for those with physical and spiritual needs in their
areas.
* Take a fresh look at your own community. Drive through the poor
areas of town looking for tangible ways to reduce poverty by meeting needs
and sharing Christ in your "Jerusalem." Examine the resources your
organization already has.
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New ministry endeavors do not
always require more money! Does your church have a Wednesday night meal in
which your group could sponsor a needy family to eat and worship with you?
Does your church have vehicles that can be used to transport needy people to
interviews, doctor visits or church? Does your church have a food pantry
through which your group could provide baskets for delivery to needy
families in the community? Consider what your group already has, and use
those resources to meet needs and share Christ.
After your organization has sought the Lord's guidance,
assessed the community and examined resources, to out into the community and
share the love and message of Jesus by meeting physical needs of those
around you. For additional resources or more information about Project HELP:
Poverty, contact
Faith
McDonald. |
Parties with a Purpose |
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"Parties with a Purpose"
incorporate the Intentional Evangelism emphasis by enabling women to reach
out to lost/unchurched women through hosting purposeful parties; in essence,
parties for the purpose of evangelistic outreach. The overarching goal of
hosting a "Party with a Purpose" is to share the love and message of Christ
in a creative way.
Hosting a purposeful party enables women to use
hospitality intentionally as an evangelistic outreach to others. Purposeful
parties can be fun anytime parties, parties to celebrate occasions and
holidays and ministry parties that include mission projects. |
| Steps to Hosting a Party with a Purpose |
| * The hostess (or hostesses) must first determine
what kind of party she will host. |
| * Then she may want to consider a specific theme in
order to coordinate invitations, decorations, refreshments, games,
activities, devotions and even take home reminders of the party. |
| * There is no single way to host a successful party.
Every hostess should prayerfully seek the Lord's guidance. |
| * Prayer is important in every part of hosting a
party with a purpose from the initial planning to the sharing of the Gospel
at the party. |
| As women get to know their party
guests and connections are formed, the hostess gains more credibility with
her lost/unchurched friends and is able to more effectively share her faith
in Christ. Often Gospel presentations are most effective, and the hearers
most receptive, when there is a genuine friendship and mutual atmosphere of
respect and concern between the individuals. Women are encouraged to host
purposeful parties to get to know acquaintances better and to share the
message of Christ with party guests. |
| During the Party: |
| * The hostess must be continually prayerful through
the entire process of planning and hosting a purposeful party. No matter how
busy she becomes with party details, she must remember the purpose -- to
share Christ with friends and acquaintances. |
| This concept provides a unique opportunity for women to
engage others in a creative, intentional manner to share their faith in
Christ. The spiritual needs of the party guests should be the foremost
reason for hosting a purposeful party; otherwise it is just another party!
For more information on Parties with a Purpose contact
Faith
McDonald or to order visit
www.wmustore.com. |
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