Community Outreach

Community Outreach helps churches and believers love their neighbors with practical compassion and gospel clarity. Explore Bible-based articles on serving local needs, building relationships, partnering with community organizations, and creating outreach ministries that are sustainable and effective. You’ll find guidance on evangelism, mercy ministry, hospitality, and engaging your city with wisdom—so outreach is more than an event and becomes a way of life. Whether your church is starting new initiatives or strengthening existing ones, these resources equip you to serve your community in Jesus’ name.

December 13, 2010

Christian Standard

Church on Tour

By Jennifer Taylor Crossroads Christian Church (Newburgh, Indiana) encourages its thousands of members to participate in churchwide outreach events, volunteer with ministry partners like Habitat for Humanity, and attend seminars on generational poverty, evangelism, and more. But Eric Cummings, community outreach pastor at Crossroads, says the church”s “inner-city van tours” are the most valuable educational tool they”ve developed. Each month, 10-12 adults participate in the two-hour experience, seeing the reality of crime, poverty, and homelessness while also stopping at many of the schools, government agencies, and ministries working to help the city”s residents. “We don”t get out of the van,

December 9, 2010

Christian Standard

A New Perspective for a “˜Bunch of Jerks”

By Chris Beard It was just a billboard. We saw it as little more than a tool to help our congregation reach out to our community. But God had an even bigger plan. At 8:30 Monday morning I received a call from an elder informing me that our billboard had been featured in the local newspaper”s blog. “Well, good,” I said, “that will be a good conversation starter for our people.” I had no idea that by the end of the week people would be calling and e-mailing from all over the United States to talk about our billboard. Afterthought

December 1, 2010

Christian Standard

Ministry on Black Friday

Members of Journey”s Crossing Christian Church (Gaithersburg, MD) were at the mall at 5:30 a.m. on Black Friday””but not to get a jump on their Christmas shopping. Instead, the team gave away coffee, hot chocolate, and breakfast treats at one of the busiest shopping centers in their area.

November 17, 2010

Christian Standard

Skipping Dinner to Make a Difference

On Sunday, Rochester (IL) Christian Church celebrated “THANKSgiving, living, loving.” “Instead of our annual Thanksgiving dinner (which none of us needed!), we collected items to fill 200 Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes, 82 duffel bags filled with toiletries and gifts for foster kids, and 42 Thanksgiving meal baskets for local families,” says Matt Bortmess, senior associate minister. On Sunday families, small groups, and friends worked together to assemble the gifts. The special outreach is part of RCC”s “DO Something” series; throughout the series the church also shared other local and global ways individuals could “do something” to make a difference.

November 16, 2010

Christian Standard

The Buddy System

By Jennifer Taylor Central Church of Christ (Mount Vernon, Ohio) is committed to serving people with special needs. Five years ago the church launched its “Very Important Persons” class for community members with Down syndrome. Each participant is matched with a “buddy” who becomes a special mentor and meets on Wednesday afternoons for Bible lessons, singing, trips, restaurant outings, and more. “An outgrowth of the ministry has been clowning,” says associate minister Don Linn. “The group rides in parades and visits nursing homes together. Not only is it fun for them, but we”ve discovered people treat them differently. Kids approach

September 28, 2010

Christian Standard

Offering More than a Meal to the Homeless

By Jennifer Taylor     “His Heart, His Hands” began with six people buying breakfast sandwiches at McDonald”s to distribute to the hungry and homeless of Chandler, Arizona. Today more than 35 volunteers serve hot breakfasts every Sunday morning to 60 homeless men and women from around the city. One reason for this rapid growth is obedience. Sharon Bouchard, a volunteer leader and a member at Chandler Christian Church, felt God leading her to the ministry. “Just a short time later, two other people told me they wanted to do something for the homeless,” she says. “I hadn”t mentioned it!

September 1, 2010

Christian Standard

Glory Days in Kempton, Indiana

By Jennifer Taylor When Kempton, Indiana, officials donated a baseball field to Kempton Christian Church in 2004, the church renamed the site “Glory Field”Â and developed a T-ball league for some of the community”s littlest members. Each year the league welcomes dozens of 3- to 6-year-olds and outfits each one with a medallion, cap, and T-shirt. The church leads devotions and prayer before each game, invites the children to its Vacation Bible School, and hosts an award ceremony and meal after the season”s last game. Local businesses have donated money for a concession stand, new benches, and an announcer”s booth. Jennifer Taylor, one of

August 18, 2010

Christian Standard

A Vision to Feed Families

By Ron Martin Across the country, people in local churches are struggling to stay ahead of the economic downturn and slow recovery. In particular, having enough food for families is a growing concern. One church in southwest Colorado has decided to do something about it. Southwest Colorado is one of God”s most beautiful gifts in terms of scenic beauty and recreational opportunities. It is home to Mesa Verde National Park, and the area boasts a rich history in the settlement of the West. The town of Bayfield, Colorado, rests just east of Durango, a wonderful resort town with attractions like

July 18, 2010

Christian Standard

Dreaming It, Modeling It, and Then Giving It Away

By Jennifer Taylor Day of Fest Mountain Christian Church, Joppa, Maryland, began “ServeFest” in 2003 as an event for Mountain members. The church contacted schools and other local organizations and spent a day landscaping, removing trash, and painting. Within a few years three more churches had joined the party, then 17, then 41. In April of this year 77 churches in five counties participated in the one-day event, unleashing thousands of people to serve across the city in 127 projects. “We have disappeared as owners of the event and it truly belongs to churches all over our region, including some

July 4, 2010

Christian Standard

Serving the People, Serving God: An Interview with Harriet Miers and Nathan Hecht

By Dusty Rubeck Serving Today In October 2005, George W. Bush introduced Harriet Miers as his nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court. He had once introduced her as a “bulldog in size six shoes.” This nomination capped a long and steady rise of her career in the law. Although she was not yet well known across the nation, fellow Texans were well aware of her rise to prominence. Harriet holds degrees from Southern Methodist University and the SMU Law School. The National Law Journal has named her to the “100 Most Influential Lawyers in America” list and the “50 Most Influential Women Lawyers in America” list. She

June 27, 2010

Christian Standard

Church Ladies Spotted at Strip Clubs

By Jani Lewis Anyone sitting outside a strip club on Wednesday nights in Lexington, Kentucky, is likely to see three or four women piling out of a van with armloads of food and being welcomed by bouncers who yell, “Here come the church ladies!” For five years the managers and owners of these establishments have allowed us to serve a warm, home-cooked meal to the dancers and staff weekly. Not everyone “gets it”””there are folks in our church who don”t understand why we go, and many people inside the clubs who are just as confused by our presence. We go

December 16, 2009

Christian Standard

Interview with Jerl Joslin

By Brad Dupray Forest Hill Christian Church in Oklahoma City is a solid, midsize church making a major Christmastime impact on its community. Forest Hill runs about 500 in weekly attendance, but more than 7,000 attend its “Journey to Bethlehem” one weekend each Christmas season.  “Journey” leads people on a path toward a figurative Bethlehem where they ultimately encounter the Christ child. Attendees don”t just watch a Christmas story, they live the Christmas story. The church is in its ninth year of leading the program. Senior minister Jerl Joslin, who has served at Forest Hill for 18 years, tells the

December 16, 2009

Christian Standard

We Can Be the Gift

By Mark A. Taylor Some readers will say we”ve saved our best “Get Your Hands Dirty” article for last. The feature appearing this week, “Season of Love,” makes more than 30 “Get Your Hands Dirty” articles we”ve published in 2009. The good deeds these pieces have reported are a thrilling overview of outreach and service performed by members of our fellowship: everything from overseas sacrifice to inner-city outreach. Browse through the items listed under this heading in our index, and you”ll be reminded how churches everywhere are serving the oppressed and helpless. But the Christmas stories in this final feature

December 6, 2009

Christian Standard

Mud, Sweat, and Tears: Recipe for Hope

by Sheila S. Hudson It wasn”t my intention to volunteer. Like so many things in the Christian walk, it just happened. My husband, Tim, and I were at the 11 am service at The Orchard Church, Loganville, Georgia, when we heard an announcement about a group from the church planning a Katrina relief trip to Biloxi, Mississippi. God tugged at our hearts, and before we left services we had volunteered to cook for the group. Thirteen in all, including us. Not a problem! Then the second shoe dropped. The number swelled when I learned we were to join a group

November 8, 2009

Christian Standard

Three Sides of Community Ministry

By John Sloper It”s the economy . . . well, maybe. At Broadway Christian Church in Mesa, Arizona, three separate ministries to help the economically disadvantaged are in place, and two of them began meeting needs long before the current economic downturn. Each has been responding to real needs on the east side of the Valley of the Sun in Arizona. Food Box Begun in the 1980s (its emphasis at first was clothing exchange), the Food Box Ministry has continued to grow and assisted almost 400 families in July 2009 (almost 1,500 individuals). The need has grown dramatically in the

November 8, 2009

Christian Standard

City Centered: Making a Difference One Relationship at a Time

By Jennifer Taylor Residents of inner-city Cincinnati need money. They need educational opportunities. They need clothes, medical care, and healthy food. But Hope Inner City provides none of that. Instead, the young couples working in this economically distressed, sometimes dangerous neighborhood offer the gospel through consistent loving relationships. It”s a new approach for many church leaders, but for these missionaries it”s the best way to build the kingdom. Programs vs. Presence Hope Inner City does organize some program-oriented outreach activities; a ministry for children ages 4 to 9 includes songs, stories, games, snacks, and more, while a preteen ministry focuses

November 4, 2009

Christian Standard

Like a Good Neighbor?

By Mark A. Taylor Neighbor is one of those words supposed to evoke warm nostalgia. The quietest children”s TV star, Fred Rogers, gently invited viewers, “Won”t you be my neighbor?” And a national insurance company seeks to seem close and personal with “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there!” But my first thoughts aren”t always positive when I hear the word neighbor. I remember the frat house atmosphere across the street from where we lived 30 years ago””the loud music, the girls coming and going with their clothes in plastic garbage sacks, my mailbox knocked over by someone too

August 9, 2009

Christian Standard

Loving Our Neighbors, Building Relationships in Kansas City, Missouri

  by Patirck O’Connell At Restore Community Church, Kansas City, Missouri, we call the intentional, outward-focused love of people “Reachout.” Through Reachout, we help align people with our mission of “Helping people find their way back to God” and mobilize them to become difference makers in their neighborhoods, cities, and world. Reachout is not an agenda or a program; rather, it”s our response to God”s command to love others. Being intentional about carrying out Jesus” command to love our neighbors has helped us forge new relationships and provided us the opportunity to be more like Jesus. We want to be

August 9, 2009

Christian Standard

Serving, Reaching, and Transforming in Cleveland, Ohio

  by Scott Pugh I grew up thinking church was boring and irrelevant. My attitude completely changed when I gave my life to Christ at a pool hall after a Christian reached out to me. But a lot of other people still think the way I did. They don”t go to church, or have been hurt by the church, and are just plain fed up with anything religious.  How are Christians going to reach these folks? We know the church must reach beyond its walls to seek the lost like Jesus did. And that”s what we”re trying to do through

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