Even in a pandemic — when we are temporarily prevented from meeting face to face and exclusively engaging virtually — the mission of God still moves forward. But how can we continue to share the gospel and follow up with new Christians when we can’t see them or haven’t met in person? Here are a few practical tips to make the most of your evangelistic online service, including step by step guides, webinars, articles and other sample resources.
Use these practical resources and tips to make the most of your online services.
- Launch an online service
If you’re struggling to get your church livestream up and running, use these resources as a guide. - Invite people to attend
Inviting people to attend church has become much easier as there is less competition for people’s time. Create an invitation kit with digital images to use in social media, send it to your congregation, and encourage them to…- Send a link to friends and neighbors before the service and invite them to watch. If they aren’t available during the livestream, follow up with a link after the service has already streamed and invite them to watch it at their convenience.
- Use their social media status to promote your church’s service time and invite friends to join.
- Host a watch party on Facebook and watch the service with invited friends.
- Give an online invitation
When giving an online invitation, here are some great rules of thumb.- Give a very clear invitation with a clear way to respond. (See point 4 for some great ideas of how to engage with responses.)
- Give the appeal early and often. You never know when people will be coming vand going during your livestream.
- Read more practical tips for giving an online invitation.
- Engage in response
Here are some ways to connect with people responding to the gospel.- If you are streaming on a social platform, assign a staff member to engage with people onsocial media feeds.
- Create a digital decision card using an online form and use the information you gather to follow up with people who respond.
- Use a texting system for responses. For example, “Text the word ____ to this number _____ if you made a decision.” Follow up with those who text.
- Set up a dedicated phone number and ask people to call that number if they made a decision and would like to talk with someone.
- Whatever method you choose, have the information scrolling on the screen throughout the message if possible, and close your service with a slide reminding viewers how they can reach you.
- Celebrate salvation decisions with your congregation online through social media or your newsletter.
Here are some more sample resources to get you started.
Published April 24, 2020
