Outward Focused: Putting a dent in the world

Steve Sjogren: Session 1
Notes on What Steve has learned as a Church Planter/Pastor/Writer/Speaker/Teacher

1. People have a desire to Change the World. Sometimes, their desire to change the world is even more deeply rooted than their desire to get to know God.

- We should be World Changers! We should be radical ALL of our days. Not just until we are 35.

We should always focus on loving the untouchables, the outsiders, the nobodies, the hurt and broken - the people no one wants! Thats what Jesus did. And He is our model.

2. To do the Stuff that Jesus Did - You have to have to engage people.

- Doing the stuff is as easy as leaving an above average tip (30 percent instead of fifteen!). Compliment your server at a restaurant, then call the manager over and compliment your server again!( I saw Steve do this personally - and it blows people away - because the manager expects you to complain. He didn't know what to say when Steve kept lavishing on the compliments of this server)

Buy someone Coffee behind you at Starbucks. Buy the next person in line behind you at Taco Bell lunch. Buy Tic Tacs and give them away!

Each of these is simple and easy, and gives an opportunity for the Kingdom of God to show up right there - in that moment.

Mat. 13:1-23 The SCATTERING of the seeds.

Jesus told the parable of Scattering - Not Planting- seeds. Of course, the seed fell on all types of ground. But the point is not the ground, the point is the abundance of seed that was thrown. We can constanly look for opportunities to scatter the seed of kindness and let the Holy Spirit do the work of 'plowing' in peoples hearts.

- God will grow you into an extrovert. Spending 25 hours preparing your message behind the computer is a cop out. There are better things to do with our time. (There is ENOUGH TALK about God...Let's DO SOMETHING to show His Love to People!)

How do we get people "OUT THERE" -> "IN HERE"?
Many churches can't anwser that question.

We have to BRING and INCLUDE.
Watch our Vocabulary - not "Visitor" - "Guest" is better - "Newcomer" is best...

We make people feel like there is a great chasm between "all of us who are already in the church" and those who are "Not Yet Christians". Yet, if we don't watch our vocabulary,if we don't include, we'll never bridge that huge gap.

Steve Sjogren is the founding Pastor of Vineyard Community Church in Cincinnati, and loves servant evangelism.

More of :Outward Focused: HERE