Attractional vs. Missional

At our most recent leadership development session we were talking about these two basic approaches to outreach. Both are easy to identify. Both are even modeled for us in scripture. But which would you say describes the ideal strategy? Attractional is best seen in the crowd affect of Jesus gaining greater and greater numbers attracted to himself as he went public with his message and power. People were drawn to him like a magnet – not just to see the miracles, but to hear the teaching and learn about the kingdom he was powerfully demonstrating. Come and See is a good summary of the attractional model.

Jesus also propelled people away from him in missional ministry. After the 12 had been with him a while, he empowered them to go preach about the kingdom. Missional ministry equips people to go and tell. Go and serve. Take the kingdom everywhere people are who need Jesus.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could harness the power of BOTH. As you look at your ministry – your group – which model are you drawn to? Does your group attract seekers who can be led to faith in Jesus? When you look at the Christians in your group, what potential do you see for equipping those people to take the mission outward from your group.

Take a few minutes to glance through the handout you’ll find here: Leadership Development 11-07-10 Evangelism

Be sure to look ahead at what’s coming up in Jan 2011 between Lee Strobel’s visit to CCC and Easter. Those three months will hold a lot of opportunity for enriching your ministry with attractional and missional evangelistic energy! Get in front of your group with the tools and options Tim has outlined in the handout above. Stay tuned for more details about Lee Strobel, The Jesus Class, Intersections evangelism training and Mark Ashton’s evangelistic message series in March and April.