Yesterday, I challenged churches to kill their programs. This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have programs. We should…if they are properly planned and executed. Here are a few suggestions for planning new church programs.
1. Train on the Way
All programs must include something beyond just training. It does not appear that Jesus or the early church ever did training just for training. Most of the training was while they were on the way to do something. It was on the job training.
If Jesus taught evangelism training today, it would go like this. He would announce the training in church, in the bulletin, and on the website. Then, on the night of the training, when everyone arrives, He would say, โOk. Weโre all here? Good. Thereโs a van out back. Letโs all pile in. Weโre going to go downtown and hang out with drug addicts. Iโll tell you what you need to know on the way.โ I donโt care what program you start, if it does not include actually doing what you are being trained to do, donโt do it. [Read more…]