practical guide to implementing visitation

7/28/2019 Practical Guide to Implementing Visitation

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This work was written and submitted by: Joseph M. Willmouth, Pastor of

Eastview Baptist Church, Kentucky. This contributed article is copyright

protected, and the sole property of the contributing author. It may be freely

copied and used provided the above credits are included. Document expiration:

indefinite.

A Practical Guide

For Conducting A

Church Visitation Program

January 2004

What Visitation Will Do For Your

Church (1)

Vitalizes the work of the Sunday School and Church.

Increases the enrollment of the Church, the Sunday School and other Ministries.

Secures home cooperation.

Inspires regular attendance to all services.

Ties the home closer to the Sunday School and Church.

Affords a soul winning opportunity.
http://www.bibleteacher.org/mail.htmhttp://www.bibleteacher.org/Dmmain.htmhttp://www.bibleteacher.org/Dmmain.htmhttp://www.bibleteacher.org/mail.htm


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It is also very important to have key members of the church involved because they willmotivate and encourage others to get involved. The key members, as a minimum, are

the pastor (this includes elders if your church has them), the deacons, the Sunday

School director and teachers. If your church is going to have a successful and fruitful

visitation program then these individuals must set the example if they expect others tobe involved.

The 4 reasons why people say they don't go to church. (4)

1. The church is not relevant to what is going on in their lives.

2. Never have been invited.

3. Mistaken notion about the church is only after their money.

4. They believe that the church is insincere.

A church that does not reach out to its community will only continue to fuel these

attitudes to the lost. If a church is sincerely following the Lord they will have a desire to

show individuals that Christ is relevant to what is going on in their lives, they will invitepeople to come to church, and the end result will be that these people will come to

realize that the church cares more about them than they do their money. A active church

visitation program will accomplish all of these things.

12 Types Of Visitation1. Soul Winning Visitation.

The purpose of this type of visitation is to lead the lost to Christ.

2. Survey Visitation.

The purpose of this type of visitation is to find prospects and gathering information

about your local community so as to better minister to the needs of your community.3. Sunday School Visitation.

The purpose of this type of visitation is to contact absentees (those who are already

enrolled) and encourage them to participate in Sunday School, and to meet newprospects.

4. Bus Visitation.

The purpose of this type of visitation is to reach the lost by going out into the

community and bringing them to church. Usually this ministry is focused more towardschildren, became many adults will not go to church but will allow their children to go if

they have a ride. As a result, this will often give you the opportunity to witness to their

parents.


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5. Follow-up Visitation.

The purpose of this type of visitation is to encourage and strengthen individuals so they

will follow through on their decisions. For example, if they have made a profession of

faith, you would encourage them to follow through with baptism and discipleship. Ifsomeone has rededicated their lives to Christ, then you would want to encourage them

to seek discipleship, or involvement in the church through service.6. Shut-in Visitation.The purpose of this type of visitation is to reach out and minister to those who cannot

come to church because of their health. This ministry provides fellowship and seeks to

minister to their needs.7. Hospital Visitation.

The purpose of this type of visitation is to reach out to minister to church members,

visitors, and contacts who are in the hospital. Often, it is during a crisis in a person's lifewhen the lost person is more open to the gospel. This provides us with an opportunity to

witness. Also, it demonstrates the church's love, concern and compassion towards those

who are in great need.

8. Sick Visitation.The purpose of this type of visitation is to reach out to those who are sick and have

missed church. We can do this by taking food to them, helping around the house, and/or

simply holding their hand and praying with them.9. Welcoming Visitation.

The purpose of this type of visitation is to reach out to new families who have recently

moved into your area. This is an opportunity to establish a relationship with them, andto share information about your church - let's not forget the importance of inviting them

to come to church either. An effective way to open doors in this ministry is to take a

"welcome basket" which can contain information about your church and a small gift

(like a coffee cup, or a church recipe book, ink pens, etc. - give something that a person

would be likely to keep and make sure that it has the name of the church and phonenumber on it. This will be a constant reminder to them every time they use the gift).

10. Promotional Visitation.The purpose of this type of visitation is to promote church events that are designed to

draw new people into the church (or even to draw wayward members back into the

church). Some examples of this would be VBS, Music Programs, Fall Festivals, etc.11. Prospect Visitation.

The purpose of this type of visitation is to visit someone who has been referred to your

church by someone.

12. Wayward Members Visitation.The purpose of this type of visitation is to encourage inactive members to return to

church. While this ministry is important, I have also found it is the most difficultbecause you are normally dealing with people who are basically backslidden. I havevisited hundreds of these types of people over the years, and they are usually very polite

and will often admit that they need to get back into church, but very seldom do they

respond by coming back to church. Be careful not to encourage them in their excuses,but get them refocused upon what the bible teaches about Christian envolvement in

church (like Hebrews 10:24-25).


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There are 3 common elements that are found in any type of visitation; 1) to reach the

lost for Christ; 2) to ministry to the physical, and spiritual needs of an individual; and 3)

to promote church growth, which is the life blood of the local church (this is the end

result of the first two reasons).

Be Organized

1 Corinthians 14:40 But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way(NIV).

"The ministry of visitation, if not planned, usually never happens." (5) Barry Campbell

Put Someone In Charge.In order to have an effective and active visitation ministry, your church needs to have

one person who oversees the whole ministry. This can be the pastor, associate pastor, an

elder, a deacon, or anyone else who is capable of organizing, overseeing, promoting,and actively keeping the visitation ministry moving forward. If you fail to appoint

someone like this, then the ministry will struggle and probably fail due to lack of

attention. There's nothing wrong with having others help this individual, but there needs

to be one central person who can be held accountable for this ministry. Once your

church appoints someone to oversee this ministry, then they also need to support themwith their prayers, and funding for supplies and materials.

Set Up A Visitation Ministry Tracking System.There are many ways to set up a visitation ministry. Some use color-coded index cards,

bulletin boards, computers, etc. A basic program should have a organized system totrack and file visitation results. For the average small church, really all you need is a

couple of small index card boxes and some index cards. The cards should record some

basic information, like First and Last names, Children's names, local address, phone

number, and any special requests of those who need to be visited. On the back of the

card, have the visitation team write the date, time and summarize the results of the visit(this is for future reference). One of your index boxes should be labeled "visited" and

the other "prospects" (or something like this). This way you can keep track of thepeople who have not been visited, and you will quickly be able to tell if you need to do

a follow-up visit to someone you have already visited (try to save these for the nights

when you don't have any new prospects or you have more visitation teams than you doprospects). You could also have another index box with just the names of inactive


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first visit and when you contact them.

Truthfully, the best night for you to visit will probably come down to the night that you

can get the best attendance and support from your congregation. The important issue

here, is to set a night and time so that everyone knows, week-in and week-out, when thechurch has it visitation ministry. When you are consistent, it makes it easier for peopleto remember when they need to show up. If you tend to change that night, then it will

only confuse people, and will make participation drop off. Avoid having visitation on a

night that conflicts with other ministries in the church. Likewise, don't schedule otherchurch events that will conflict with your visitation night, if it done enough of the time

it will eventually kill a ministry entirely.

Once you set the visitation night and time, then it needs to be actively promoted to the

church. Post the information in the weekly church bulletin. Have people who participatein the visitation ministry give testimonies about their experiences. Years ago, I was in a

church that went out on a Saturday to knock on doors to simply invite people to ourchurch. Our pastor had us get up that Sunday morning to give a short testimony aboutour experiences. While we didn't have a massive response to our efforts, our experience

was very uplifting and encouraging to those who participated, and to the rest of the

church. I have personally found over the years that I have felt like the people that I hadvisited where more of a blessing to me than I was to them, and this is probably the case

with most people who participate in visitation. I have had only had a couple of negative

experiences in all the years that I have done visitation, and none of these were life

threatening or physically harmful (usually you'll just get a very negative verbal responseto your effort, and these are really far and few between).

Provide Your Team Members With The Tools That

Are Needed.

Provide visitation assignments. Prepare prospect cards or forms for the visitation teams

prior to them showing up to church. It is best to arrange their assignmentsgeographically, that is, give them homes that are as close together as possible to prevent

them from wasting most of their time just driving from one home to another. This will

allow them more time for visiting. (7)

Provide various Tracts that may be needed. It is best if the church buys and supplies thetracts because this way you can ensure that they are doctrinally correct and appropriate

for the purpose of the visit. There are a variety of tracts that can be used, for example

there are tracts that are designed to encourage believers; there are tracts that are

designed to give hope and encouragement to people who are grieving for the loss of aloved one; there are tracts that are designed to lead people to a saving knowledge of

Jesus Christ. So it would be a good idea to have a good variety of tracts to match the


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purpose of the visit. Ray Comfort, ofLiving Waters Ministries, gives this advise whenhanding out tracts:

When giving out tracts don't ask, "Would you like one of these?" They will probably

just say "No", or "What is it?" Instead ask, "Did you get one of these?" You stir theircuriosity and make them ask, "One of what?" That's when you hand it to them. It alsomakes them feel as though they are missing out on something. (8)

Provide door hangers. These can be purchased at any Christian book store. If you have

someone who has a computer and is graphically gifted you can print your own doorhangers. Make sure that you hanger contains the name and address of your church, and

a place to record the date and time of the visit, the names of those who visited, and a

place to write a short note on it too. It is important that you leave evidence of your visitif no one is home. You may have missed the family, but they will know that your

church cared enough to make the effort to see them. If you are stuck without a door

hanger, then use a church business card and write on the back of if, then stick it in thedoor before you leave.

Here are some suggestions for those who print up their own door hangers. We put the

following information on our door hangers: You Have Been Visited By (Name ofChurch, Address, Phone Number, and website address). This is followed by a box to

write in which has this preprinted opening sentence, "I'm Sorry That I Missed You!"

Under the box, we have printed the following information, "Please come and be with us

again" followed by our hours of our weekly services. We also put a brief "Plan ofSalvation" message on the back of the door hanger (in a small enough print that still can

be read, and will fit in the space that is available);

Something to think about. . .Everything you hold dear to you is going to be torn from your hands by death. Whether

we like it or not, we are all part of the ultimate statistic: Ten out of ten die. No doubt

you have wondered why death separates us from our loved ones. This happens becausewe have broken an eternal Law; "for the wages of sin is death. . ." (Rom.6:23a).

Let's look at the Law (10 Commandments) and see if we have broken any of them in

any way: 1) You shall have no other gods before Me (have we loved God above all

else?). 2)You shall not make yourself a graven image (make a god to suit ourselves,with our hands or our mind). 3) You shall not take God's name in vain. 4) Remember

the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy. 5) Honor your father and mother. 6) You shall not

murder(hatred is considered as murder). 7) You shall not commit adultery (lust is

adultery of the heart; includes sex before marriage). 8) You shall not steal (the value isirrelevant). 9) You shall not lie (including answering these questions). 10) You shall

not covet.

The Bible says that God will punish all murderers, rapists, thieves, liars, adulterers, etc.(Heb.9:22; Rev.21:8). He will even judge our words and thoughts (Mat.13:36-37;

1Chr.28:9). On Judgment Day, will you be found to be guilty or innocent of breaking

His Law (Rev.20:11-15)?


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God, however, made a way where His justice and His goodness could meet. We brokethe Law, but He became a man to pay the fine. Almighty God demonstrated how much

He loves you when Jesus suffered for you on the cross; "But God demonstrates his own

love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom 5:8 NIV). If

you want to trust in your own goodness, then you are saying His agonizing death on thecross was in vain.

The Bible says, "For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it

is the gift of God" (Eph.2:8-9). You cannotearn a gift.

When Jesus said to "believe" on Him, He was saying we should have faith in Him, inthe same way you would trust a parachute to save you when you jump from a plane.

You don't merely believe in the parachute --you put it on!

Please don't "jump" without Jesus. If you die in your sins there is no second chance.

God will give you justice, and you will end up in Hell forever. Any troubles you have atpresent, are dwarfed by the trouble you are in with your Creator. His wrath abides upon

you (John 3:36).

Confess your sins to God right now, put your trust in Jesus as Savior, and you will passfrom death to life (John 5:24; Rom.10:9-10). Then read the Bible daily and obey what

you read. Have faith in God, He will neverlet you down.

Provide printed church information. When visiting people who may be considering

whether to join your church, it is very helpful to have information available for themabout your church. Have pamphlets printed up that give a brief overview, that highlight

your church and its ministries. It is highly recommended that any printed material thatyou hand out is of good quality, if it isn't done properly then it will give a negativeimpression about your church to those who are visiting. It is also a good idea to have

copies of your church Constitution and Bylaws to give out if asked for. This also means

that those who are doing the visiting must be familiar with these documents if the

potential members have any questions. When talking with people about your church,always be truthful, but positive (every church has it problems, but you will never get

anyone to come back if you make it sound like there is massive division and strife, so

stay on subject and don't get sidetracked on minor issues. If you church is having majorproblems, then they need to repent of their sin and put God's house in order before they

ever go out and invite other people to come and join them).

Provide Maps, or copies of sections of maps, of the area to be visited. This will greatly

aid those who are driving around looking for the address. If your visitation teams have ageneral idea of where someone lives before they leave the church, then it makes it a lot

easier for them to find the house. It is a good idea to have a "master map" of the area

posted on a wall in the church. This way the team can look at it before they leave, tohelp them find the location. It is also recommended that you encourage your visitation


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teams to carry flash lights with them when they go out (especially during the wintermonths when it gets dark earlier). Home addresses can be pretty hard to see in the dark,

especially if they are not in an easily viewed area where there are no street lights.

Provide or encourage team members to get a pocket bible. Don't carry a large biblebecause it might scare off a nonbeliever. It is also a good idea to carry a second pocketbible (or New Testament) so you can have a lost person to read along with you. If they

accept Christ, then you can give them the copy of the Testament. (9) It is also a good idea

to write in the back of your personal pocket bible, useful information such as, commonobjections with Scripture references which answers the objection (sort of like a quick

reference listing - some pocket testament will have preprinted references like this).

Provide nursery workers, if needed. If your visitation ministry is large enough, and you

have individuals participating who have children, then it would be good for the churchto arrange for nursery workers.

Train Your Team Members To Know How To Visit.One of the reasons why America has one of the best militaries in the world, is that they

spend a lot of time training their personnel on how to use their equipment and how to

respond to various situations that they may come into contact with. Likewise, as the

Lord's army, we too need to make sure that we take the time to train our people beforethey are sent out if we want to be successful in accomplishing our mission.

Ephesians 6:10-18, Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might. Put

on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of thedevil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the

powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces ofwickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you

may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand

firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate ofrighteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in

addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all

the flaming missiles of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of

the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and petition pray at all times in theSpirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the

saints(NASB)

.

1 Peter 3:15But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an

answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But dothis with gentleness and respect(NIV).

Do some basic training before you send a new person out. This training should include

such things as; how the visitation program is ran, personal behavior, preparing and


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giving their personal testimony, and a basic understanding of how to witness to lostperson:

TRAINING IN HOW THE VISITATION PROGRAM IS RUN: They need tounderstand how your church runs its visitation program, simply because it not only

helps to train future leaders, but it also helps to maintain continuity and to reduce

misunderstanding and potential problems that could get the ministry off track.

TRAINING IN PERSONAL BEHAVIOR: Barry Campbell, in his book, Toolbox for[busy] Pastors (10), gives this advise about how we should behave when we make a visit:

- Don't be pushy - Leave the door open for future visits. Ask the person if they would

allow you to come inside for a brief time of discussion about your church. Allow theprospect to make that decision.

- Don't embarrass the prospect - Generally, if the prospect is embarrassed by your

conversation, you have not handled it properly.

- Understand the principle of harvest - Harvest will not come unless sowing andcultivation come first. The harvest may come several weeks after the initial visit.

- Be clean and neat - Dress casually. Let your dress communicate that the visit is

important but not formal.

- Go "two by two" - Follow the example of Jesus in Luke 10:1. Certain circumstances

of the visit are more easily handled when two are present.

- Be courteous - If the prospect has company or is in the middle of dinner, the visitation

team should graciously agree to come at another time.

- Don't be surprised by non-Christian behavior - Remember, a change of heart will

result in a change of behavior. Don't expect the change of behavior to occur first.

- Avoid verbal overkill - don't use language the prospect won't understand.

- Be Complimentary - Find something about the person, the home, or the children that

you can honestly compliment.

- We live in a selfish world, and people like to hear people talk good about them. The

best thing to brag on is children. Be able to compliment little children. Compliment the

home. If there is a new piece of furniture in the house, a beautiful carpet, a nice sofa ora dresser, brag on it. Be on the lookout for things to compliment. But MAKE SURE that

your compliments are genuine, if not you will come across like you are only trying topatronize the family. (11)

- Know names and family information - Never carry the prospect assignment card to

the door. Become familiar with it before you approach the home.- Be spiritually perceptive to all you see or hear in the home. For example, you may see


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other family members who were not listed on the visitation card. If this does happen,

then make sure you make a note of this information and later write it on the visitationcard before you turn it in. The family could have other members who are away at

college or the military. (12)

- Decide who will lead - one person on the visitation team should lead the conversation.

- Sometimes people will respond to one of the team members better than they wouldanother. If you are not the one doing the talking, then be quiet until your partner is

finished. The one doing the talking should do all the talking. The person who is notdoing the talking, should keep the way clear for the other person. For example if

another family member distracts the person that you are talking too, so the team

member who isn't talking can keep them busy so they don't distract the conversation

between the other two parties. (13)

- Go to the front door - Don't assume the prospect will expect guest at the back door.

- The exception to this wouldbe if you have been told prior to the visit by the family

which door to go to.

- Also it is suggested that you don't park in their driveway if there is an alternative.Many times a visit that is going well will be interrupted by the need for a car to be

moved. (14)

- Pray for the person you are visiting - Before leaving the parking lot at the church,pause and pray for the visitation encounter.

- Ask God to help and give power, and to open the doors and hearts of those that you

are about to visit. Keep it brief, so you don't take up your visitation time in prayer and

never go visiting. (15)

- Prepare introductory remarks - without sounding as if the remarks are canned, state

you name, your partner's name, and the church you represent.

- Show genuine interest in the prospect - you cannot convey genuine interest withoutlistening to the prospect.

- Be a Good Listener. People like to talk about themselves, so spend some time listening

to them talk. Talk to them about their interests, family, where they are from. If you let

them talk, then when it is your time to talk, people will listen to what you have to say. (16)

- Have a conversation plan to keep you on track - Use the acrostic FORM. "F" stands

for questions about family. "O" represents conversation about occupation or work. "R"is for the prospect's involvement in religion or church. "M" stands for your message or

the reason for you visit.

- By doing something like this, you will be maintaining the focus and purpose of thevisit, and will not tend to wander aimlessly. This will also help you to naturally present

the gospel, if needed, so that it won't sound fake or forced - thus it will be received

much easier too.

TRAINING IN PERSONAL TESTIMONIES: Be prepared to give your personal

testimony about how you came to know Christ, in case the opportunity presents itself to


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you. It is hard to argue with someone's personal experience, and that is why personal

testimonies are so effective. The Apostle Paul gives us his personal testimony in thebook of Galatians and in the book of Acts. If we examine his testimony, it provides us

with a biblical example to follow when it comes to sharing our own personal testimony

with others. Good testimonies will not only be a witness to the lost of the power of thegospel, but they will also be an encouragement to other believers who hear them. This isactually what Paul's testimony did and still is doing today. Paul's testimony is divided

up into these three parts. . .

Tell of your life before Christ (Gal.1:13-14; Acts 26:4-11).The Apostle Paul describes his former standing and activities before he became a

Christian.

Take the time to summarize what your life was like before you came to know Christ.

Remember, everyone has a different background and each one is just as important as thenext one - because those who are listening come from different backgrounds too, and

will only to able to "connect" or "relate" to those individuals that they have something

in common with.Often we think that only those who come out of a background of drugs, alcohol, sex,

violence, etc., have the only good testimonies, but not everyone can relate to these types

of backgrounds.

God can use a testimony of someone who grew up in a Christian home as much as Hecan use the most extreme situation - so don't let this stop you from giving your

testimony.

If you do come from some extreme background, don't try to share every little piece ofinformation, this could become a distraction and can even be offensive to some people

(especially if there are children in the audience).

Let me give you an example of this: I once heard a woman give her testimony about her

life before Christ and how she was sleeping around with numerous men. Instead ofsaying it in general way, like I just described it, she began to talk about all kinds of

details, almost to the point of the number of men, names, where they met, etc. The

result was that her testimony tended to put everyone in shock more than it helpedanyone to relate to her testimony.

Don't try to gave every little detail, but only those details that will give people a generaloverview of what your life was before Christ. Remember, you are doing this so that

people will be able to see a contrast between what your old life was like before Christ,and your new life as a Christian, and how Christ has made a difference.

Tell how you came to trust Christ as your Savior (Gal.1:15-16a; Acts 26:12-18).

The Apostle Paul simply recounted how God saved him.


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Tell about:

How God spoke to your heart.

Who God used and how they witnessed to you.

Where you were at when you were saved.

How you responded to that call.

Tell of your life after you put your trust in Christ (Gal.1:16b-24; Acts 26:19-23).

The Apostle Paul shared about how the Lord prepared him to preach the gospel, and

about his ministry to other believers and their churches.

Explain how your life has been changed since you accepted Christ.

How has this change impacted your personal life.

Examples: new strength to overcome problems, how your life now has a focus and a

purpose, a new outlook on life or about other people, etc. . .How has your changed life impacted others.

Examples: helping others who may be going through the same type of problems that

you went through, ministries that you are actively involved in now, etc. . .

Additional Advise On Personal Testimonies:

A good testimony should be no longer than 15 minutes and no shorter than 5 minutes.

Let the place where you are sharing your testimony dictate your length. Read Paul'stestimony out loud and time it to see long he took. If you are talking one-on-one then

you can take longer to give your testimony, but if you are speaking before a church (or

some other group) where other people will also be speaking, then you need to make surethat you keep your testimony short.

Look again at Paul's testimony, see how it is tightly put together - he didn't ramble on

about things that had no bearing on his testimony. It is good to set down and write out

your testimony, and then rework it over and over again so that what you are sharing isvery clear and focused. Try to get it down to 5 minutes, this will prepare you to give it

everywhere - it is always easier to add to it than it is to shorten it. Avoid rambling, this

will only become a distraction to those who are listening, and will cause your testimonyto lose its effectiveness - people will mentally tune you out. Practice giving your

testimony so that you will be prepared to give it when the opportunity presents itself.

TRAINING IN WITNESSING: Provide your visitation team members withwitnessing training.

Overcoming Our Fears of Witnessing: Most Christians fail to witness because of fear.


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In the witnessing course, Share Jesus Without Fear, they give us five keys to having aheart that overcomes the fear of witnessing. (17)

Passion (having a heart of the lost).

Prayer (prayer make the difference in witnessing).

Partnership (having our own special relationship with Christ).

Power (God provides the power we need to be effective).

Preparation (being prepared to respond to witnessing opportunities).

The fear of witnessing isn't so scary when we understand what our part is in the

whole process. God didn't call us to save anyone, He called us to participate with Him

in the witnessing process. God does the saving! The Holy Spirit's ministry in the

salvation process is to convict and draw people to God.John 16:8-11, And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of

righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of

righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment,because the ruler of this world is judged(NKJV).

First, the Holy Spirit clarifies the issue of sin in an individual's life (i.e., Convicts).

Second, the Holy Spirit clarifies the issue of God's righteousness verses man's

unrighteousness.

Third, the Holy Spirit clarifies the issue of God's judgment upon the unrighteous.

So it is God's job to do the convicting and saving of lost people - not ours. What is

our part? Our part is to unleash God's Power, that is, to share the gospel message with

the lost. We are working in partnership with the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 3:6-7, Iplanted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then

neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase

(NKJV).

So every time that we share the gospel we are either planting the seeds of salvation orwe are helping the seeds to grow and blossom into salvation by watering them with the

springs of living water of the gospel. We are successful, not when "we" lead someone to

Christ, but rather when we share the gospel - that is all God has asked us to do, becausewe are not capable of saving anyone - only God can save someone.

Methods for Witnessing: There are a variety of effective witnessing methods that can be

used to share Christ;

R.C.C.R. Method (18)

John 4:7-26 gives us the Lord's example of how to share our faith. When Jesus spoke to

the woman at the well, He did it when she was alone. We will often find that people aremore open and honest when they are alone. So, if possible, pick a person who is sitting

by himself. This method is good because it uses the 10 Commandments to convict and


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expose the sin of the lost person without us telling them that they are a sinner. Most lost

people today don't believe that they are "that bad" of a person:

Relate: Jesus began in the natural realm (v.7).

This woman was unregenerate, and the bible tells us "the natural man receives not the

things of the Spirit of God" (1 Corinthians 2:14). He therefore spoke of something she

could relate to - water. Most of us can strike up a conversation with a stranger in the

natural realm. It may be a friendly "How are you doing?" or a warm "Good morning!" Ifthe person responds with a sense of warmth, we may then ask, "Do you live around

here?" and from there develop a conversation.

Create: Jesus swung the conversation to the spiritual realm (v.10).

He simply mentioned the things of God. We may say something like, "Did you go to

church on Sunday?" or "Did you see that Christian TV program last week?" If the

person responds positively, the next question should be, "Do you have a Christianbackground?" This will probe their background. They may answer, "I went to church

when I was a child, but I drifted away from it."

Another simple way to swing to the spiritual is to offer the person a gospel tract andask, "Did you get one of these?" When he takes it, simply say, "It's a gospel tract. Do

you come from a Christian background?"

Convict: Jesus brought conviction using the Law of God (vv.16-18).

Jesus gently spoke to the woman's conscience by alluding to the fact that she hadtransgressed the Seventh of the Ten Commandments. He used the Law to bring "theknowledge of sin" (see Romans 3:19,20). We can do the same by asking, "Do you think

that you have kept the Ten Commandments?" Most people think they have, so quickly

follow with, "Have you ever told a lie?" This is confrontational, but if it's asked in a

spirit of love and gentleness, there won't be any offense. Remember that the "work ofthe Law [is] written in their hearts" and that the conscience will bear "witness" (Romans

2:15).

Jesus confronted the rich young ruler in Luke 18:18-21 with five of the TenCommandments and there was no offense. Have confidence that the conscience will do

its work and affirm the truth of each commandment. Don't be afraid to gently ask,"Have you ever stolen something, even if it's small?"

Learn how to open up the spirituality of the Law and show how God considers lust to bethe same as adultery (Matthew 5:27,28) and hatred the same as murder (1 John 3:15).

Make sure you get an admission of guilt. Ask the person, "If God judges you by the Ten

Commandments on Judgment Day, do you think you will be innocent or guilty?" If he

says he will be innocent, ask, "Why is that?" If he admits his guilt, ask, "Do you think


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you will go to heaven or hell?"

From there the conversation may go one of three ways:

He may confidently say, "I don't believe in hell." Gently respond, "That doesn't matter.

You still have to face God on Judgment Day whether you believe in it or not. If I step

onto the freeway when a massive truck is heading for me and I say, 'I don't believe intrucks,' my lack of belief isn't going to change reality." Then tenderly tell him he has

already admitted to you that he has lied, stolen, and committed adultery in his heart, and

that God gave him a conscience so that he would know right from wrong. Hisconscience and the conviction of the Holy Spirit will do the rest. That's why it is

essential to draw out an admission of guilt before you mention Judgment Day or the

existence of hell.

He may say that he's guilty, but that he will go to heaven. This is usually because he

thinks that God is "good," and that He will, therefore, overlook sin in his case. Point outthat if a judge in a criminal case has a guilty murderer standing before him, the judge, ifhe is a good man, can't just let him go. He must ensure that the guilty man is punished.

If God is good, He must (by His nature) punish murderers, rapists, thieves, liars,

adulterers, fornicators, and those who have lived in rebellion to the inner light that God

has given to every man.

He may admit that he is guilty and therefore going to hell. Ask him if that concerns him.

Reveal: Jesus revealed Himself to her (v.26).Once the Law has humbled the person, he is ready for grace. Remember, the Bible says

that God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble (James 4:6). The Gospel is for

the humble. Jesus gives us a summation of who the gospel is for: the poor, the

brokenhearted, the captives, the blind, the bruised (oppressed). Jesus is not referring to

those who lack financial resources when He speaks of the poor. The word means"meek, humble, lowly" and refers to the "poor in spirit" (Matthew 5:3) - the blessed

ones to whom the kingdom of God belongs. The poor are those who know that they are

destitute of righteousness. The brokenhearted refers not to unhappy people who havebeen jilted by a sweetheart, but to those who, like Peter and Isaiah, are contrite and

sorrowing for their sin. Matthew Henry wrote of Jesus, "For He was sent to heal the

brokenhearted, to give peace to those that were troubled and humbled for sins, and tobring them to rest who were weary and heavy-laden, under the burden of guilt and

corruption." The captives are those "taken captive by [the devil] at his will" (2 Timothy

2:26). The blind are those whom "the god of this world has blinded . . . [to] the light of

the glorious gospel of Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:4). The oppressed are those who are"oppressed of the devil" (Acts 10:38). The gospel of grace is for the humble, not the

proud. God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6). The Scriptures

tell us, "Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord" (Proverbs 16:5).He sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn are lifted to safety (Job


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5:11). God looks on the man who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at

His Word (Isaiah 66:2). Only the sick need a physician, and only those who are

convinced of the disease of sin will appreciate and appropriate the cure of the gospel.Learn how to present the work of the cross - that God sent His Son to suffer and die in

our place. Tell the sinner of the love of God in Christ; that Jesus rose from the dead and

defeated death. Take him back to civil law and say, "It's as simple as this: We brokeGod's Law, and Jesus paid our fine. If you will repent and trust in the Savior, God willforgive your sins and dismiss your case."

Ask him if he understands what you have told him. If he is willing to confess and

forsake his sins, and trust the Savior with his eternal salvation, have him pray and ask

God to forgive him. Then pray for him. Get him a bible. Instruct him to read it daily andobey what he reads, and encourage him to get into a bible-believing, Christ-preaching

church.

ABC's OF EVANGELISM Method (19)

In a very complicated, "religious" world... God has made salvation simple. Whoevercalls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:13). The advantage of this

method is it is as easy to use as "A.B.C."

Admit you are a sinner in need of the Savior, Jesus Christ: Your sin separates youfrom having fellowship with God (Romans 3:23; Isaiah 53:6; James 2:10; Romans

3:10-12; John 3:3; Acts 4:12).

A relationship with Jesus Christ begins with your admission that you need God. Youmust admit you need God to do three things:

You need God to forgive you of your sins, those attitudes or actions that don't meet

God's standards.

"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If weconfess ours sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all

unrighteousness." (I John 1:8,9)

You need God to give you eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of Godis eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23).

You need God to show you His purpose for your life.

Jesus speaks to us in John 10: 10 in the New Testament, "The thief (Satan) does notcome except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I (Jesus) have come that they may have

life and that they may have it more abundantly." and in the Old Testament, the prophet

Jeremiah writes to us in chapter 29: verse 11: 'For I know the plans that I have for you,'declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a

hope.

Believe that Jesus died to pay the penalty for your sins: The penalty for your sin is


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death. God loves you so much, He provided a way for you to escape that penalty (Acts

16:31; Luke 5:32, 13:3; Hebrews 11:6; Romans 2:4, 10:17; John 3:16, 20:21).

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believesin Him will not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)

Jesus can and will save anyone from an eternity without God, and from eternal

punishment in Hell. He died and rose again for your justification, to put your

relationship with God in right standing. Don't misunderstand the message of salvation.God is not standing ready to send you to Hell, rather it is your rejection of His Son

Jesus whereby you choose yourself to enter Hell's fires. God has made a way of escape,

you must choose to accept it.

"He (Jesus) was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our

justification." (Romans 4:25)

Belief in the death and resurrection of Jesus for your sins is essential for salvation, but it

is not enough.

"You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe God and

tremble." (James 2:19)

Confess Jesus as Lord and Savior of your life (Romans 10:9-10; Acts 19:18; 1 John1:9, 4:15):Confessing Jesus as Lord means to commit total control of your life to Christ. You give

him the ownership of your life. He becomes your new boss. Romans 10: 9-10 tells us

"that if you confess with your mouth Jesus {as} Lord, and believe in your heart thatGod raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes,

resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.ROMANS ROAD MethodThis method of witnessing is effective because you are presenting the gospel without

leaving the book of Romans. You simply "draw" a road map in your bible to tell

yourself where to go. All you need to do is to remember where to start at - Romans 3:10

(you could even write this part down in the front cover of your bible). Right besideRomans 3:10 write the next verse to tell your where to go, then continue to do the same

with the rest of the verses. Underline or highlight each verse so that it is easy to see.

Here's the Roman's Road method: Romans 3:10 (it tells us that no one has a rightrelationship with God); Romans 3:23 (everyone has sinned against God, this is why our

relationship is broken with God); Romans 5:12 (Christ died for sinners); Romans 6:23(the penalty of sin); Romans 5:8 (again the penalty of sin is death, but we can have

eternal life through Christ); and Romans 10:9-13 (this tells a person how to be saved).

SHARE JESUS WITHOUT FEAR Method (20)

This method is similar to the Romans Road Method, in that you are making a road map

in your bible so you know where to go, except with this method you are using other

Scriptures outside of the book of Romans. The Scriptures used with this method are


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Romans 3:23 (everyone has sinned against God, this is why our relationship is brokenwith God); Romans 6:23 (the penalty of sin); John 3:3 (speaks of the need to accept

Christ); John 14:6 (this points out that there is only one way to be saved - also see Acts

4:12); Romans 10:9-10 (this tells a person how to be saved); 2 Corinthians 5:15 (this

speaks of the new life in Christ - also see 2 Cor.5:17); Revelation 3:20 (they use thisverse to ask the person if they are willing to let Christ come into their hearts by

accepting Him as their Savior. Please note, while this verse may sound good for thispurpose, but the context is actually speaking to backslidden Christians, so you might

want to consider finding a more appropriate passage: other good verses to substitute for

this one are, 2 Cor.6:2; Matt.24:44; James 4:13-14).

Using this method, read the verse out loud or have the person you are witnessing to readthe verse out loud. Then ask them "What does this say to you" after each verse. This

reinforces what they have just read, and gives you the opportunity to clarify or correct

any misunderstanding.

They suggest that when you are finished taking the person through the passages, that

there are 5 Questions that you should ask that will lead a person to a point of decision:

Are you a sinner?

Do you want forgiveness for you sins?

Do you believe Jesus died on the cross for you and rose again?

Are you willing to surrender your life to Christ?

Are you ready to invite Jesus into your life and into your heart?

With this 5th question, there are two important things you must do after you have asked

it:

Be silent, so the person has time to say whatever they want to say.

Pray silently as you listen, this will keep you from interrupting the silence.

There are only two possible answers that you will be given at this point:

If YES, then guide them in prayer with something like this; "Heavenly Father, I have

sinned against You. I want forgiveness for all my sins. I believe that Jesus died on the

cross for me and rose again. Father, I give You my life to do with as You wish. I wantJesus Christ to come into my life and into my heart. This I ask in Jesus' name. Amen." -

Notice this prayer responds to the 5 closing questions.

If NO, then ask them WHY? Let their answer reveal what is going on deep inside the

person. The question "Why?" provides an opportunity to deal with the issue.

THE FOUR SPIRITUAL LAWS Method (21)


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TheFour Spiritual Laws presents a clear explanation of the gospel of Jesus Christ usingthe Tract from Campus Crusade. This is an effective evangelistic tools that uses a four

point outline:

God LOVES you, and offers a wonderful PLAN for your life (John 3:16; John 10:10).

Man is SINFUL and SEPARATED from God. Therefore, he cannot know andexperience God's love and plan for his life (Romans 3:23, 6:23).

Jesus Christ is God's ONLY provision for man's sin. Through Him you can know and

experience God's love and plan for your life (Romans 5:8; 1 Corinthians 15:3-6).

We must individually RECEIVE Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can knowand experience God's love and plan for our lives (John 1:12, 3:1-8).

THE GOGO Method (22)

God's Love (John 3:16).

Our Sin (Romans 3:23; 6:23).

God's Provision (1 Peter 3:18).

Our Response (John 1:12; Revelation 3:20).

Important Questions To Ask When WitnessingOpening Questions: When we begin to talk to people about their spiritual condition,

there are a couple of questions that we can ask them that will help us to discern whetherthey are saved or not. (23) Here are a couple of examples;

"Have you come to a place in your spiritual life where you know for certain that if you

were to die today you would go to heaven, or is that something you would say you'restill working on?"

"Suppose that you were to die today and stand before God and He were to say to you,

'Why should I let you into my heaven?' What would you say?"

If a person can't honestly say that they would go to heaven, or they don't know why theyshould go to heaven (i.e., based on Christ's finished work on the cross alone), or their

answer is unclear, then you need to take the time to share the gospel with them.

Closing Questions: After you have shared the gospel with someone it is important that

ask them a question that will get a commitment from them. (24) Here are some examples;"Does this make sense to you?"


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"Would you like to receive the gift of eternal life?"

"If You Died Now, Do You Know That You Would Go to Heaven? (25)"

"Would You Like to Know?"

"If I Showed You How You Could Know, Would You Do What the Bible Says?"

By asking questions like these, or similar questions, it will accomplish two things: First,it will make the person who has been witnessed to make a decision to accept or reject

Christ (you have accomplished what you have been called to do, plant and water. They

may need more time before the seed of the gospel begins to grow and before theyrespond, but you have made that process now possible); Second, it will give you an

opportunity to clarify any other questions or misunderstanding that they might have.

Common Objections

The purpose of listing some possible objections isn't necessarily so you can memorizethem, but so that you will not be caught off guard if it does happen. You will probably

never be totally prepared to answer every objection, but don't let that discourage you. Ifyou don't know the answer, then tell the person that and make a point of finding out the

answer and getting back with them. Also, don't let their objections side track you - that

is what most objections are designed to do. Most of the time, you can simply reply"before you can really understand what you are asking, you first need to understand

what God has done for you (or who Christ is)," or some similar comment. The point is,

you keep them focused upon the gospel message and not off on all the rabbit trails.

Years ago I worked with an individual who would come back to my office to ask mesome "religious" questions (this individual was very intelligent, but he also liked to get

Christians all twisted up with questions that they could not answer). Every time hewould ask me one of his questions, I would tell him that before he could reallyunderstand the answer to his question, he needed to understand who Jesus was and what

He had did for him. By the time this individual left the job for a new one, he told me

that I was the only Christian that he had ever met that gave him intelligent answers orchallenged him. The truth was, I didn't really answer any of his questions, but I had

simply pointed him back to the gospel. I don't know if he had ever accepted Christ, but I

do know God used that time for planting and watering the gospel. In the book,

Evangelism Explosion, they give the following suggestions for handling objections (26);

Avoid Arguing: you may win the debate, but lose the person's respect.

Show A Positive Attitude: let the person know that you are glad that they have enough

freedom to express their feelings to you. let the person know that you are glad that theyare listening and assimilating what you are presenting.

Use Sincere Compliments: sincere compliments are effective in reducing tensions. Let

them know that their opinions are intelligent or well thought out, even though you

might disagree with them for your own reasons. Let them know that you enjoyed theirwillingness to discuss spiritual issues with you. These type of compliments can be


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sincere and often will keep an argument from starting.

Prayer: if you are visiting, and you have someone with you that is helping, then make

sure they are praying for God's presence during the whole conversation. Rememberonly God can change a heart, we are not capable of doing that no matter how verbally

gifted we might be.

Here are some common objections that you might encounter when you are witnessing

(27);"I've got plenty of time"

Answer: "We all think we do. But nobody is promised tomorrow. People die

unexpectedly every day. No one should put off such an eternally important matter"

(James 4:13-17; Luke 12:19-20).

"I'm a good person and I don't believe God would ever send me to hell."

Answer: "Compared to other people, you may be a very good person. But, God is aholy God and His standard is perfection. Can you give Him that? Nobody can.

Everybody has sinned and is in need of God's forgiveness. We are saved by grace

through faith in Christ who died for us on the cross. Good works will never get anyoneto heaven because we can never be good enough" (Rom.3:23; 6:23; Eph.2:8-10; Titus

3:5).

NOTE: When someone uses this excuse, using the 10 Commandments will do anexcellent job of stripping away their goodness (See the R.C.C.R Method of witnessing

above).

"There are too many hypocrites in the church."Answer: "You are absolutely right. But, God knows who they are and will deal with

them in the day of judgment. When we stand before God, He will not be asking usabout what someone else has done with Jesus. He will ask what have we personally

done with Him" (Rom.14:12).

"There are so many churches and I just don't know which is the right one."

Answer: "A church doesn't save anyone. Jesus saves. It's important for you to find the

right church, but that comes later. Right now, let's just focus on receiving Jesus Christ

into your life" (Acts 4:12).

"I'm afraid I won't be able to live it."Answer: "No, you won't live a perfect life. But Christ living in you will give youstrength and help you to live for Him. When you do fail the Father's forgiveness is

available. He wants to forgive and instantly restore fellowship with Him" (Phil.2:13; 1

John 1:9; Rev.3:20).

"Idon't understand enough."

Answer: "Becoming a Christian is not based upon WHAT we know but WHO we


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know. We don't become a Christian by receiving knowledge but by receiving Jesus. If

you understand John 3:16, you know enough to become a Christian."

"I have already been baptized."

Answer: "Baptism doesn't save anyone. Jesus saves. Baptism pictures the death, burialand resurrection of Christ and through it we let others know we have trusted Christ forsalvation. It is the ANNOUNCEMENT of our salvation, not the WAY of our salvation"

(Acts 16:27-33).

"I'm afraid."

Answer: "You won't be afraid when you realize how much God loves you. He gave His

Son to die on the cross so that you can be saved. If He loved you enough to do that, you

don't have ANYTHING to be afraid of! He only wants the best for your life" (Rom.5:6-8).

"When it's time, I'll feel right about it."

Answer: "The bible doesn't say anything about 'feeling' a certain way when we decide

to receive Christ. It's a matter of the WILL. If it is your choice to receive Christ into you

life right now, you can" (Rev.22:17).

"After the way I've lived my life, I don't deserve to be saved."

Answer: "What you have just said is true for everyone of us. But, no matter what you

have done, God still loves you and wants to forgive and save you. Christ died on thecross for the sin of the WORLD. That includes anything and everything you may have

done. Everyone must be saved by God's GRACE" (Eph.2:8-10; 1 Tim. 1:12-16)

Summary On Witnessing

Regardless of which method you use (or even a combination of several) the main pointsof witnessing are always the same (28):

God loves all of us, so we don't have to earn his love.

I have sinned against God (by breaking His law or standards), and this sin must be

punished by God because He is Just and Righteous (i.e., He always does what is right).

Christ died to pay the price for my sin.

I must accept Jesus as my Savior to receive God's forgiveness.

When I do this, I become a God's child.Find a method that you feel comfortable with and use it. Acrostics (letters at the

beginning of each line which form a word or a message) are useful because they give us

mental word pictures that make it easier for us to remember, so use the one which iseasiest for you to remember.

One of the best ways to train others is for them to watch someone else. (29) So it is not

only helpful to provide some "classroom" training, but it is even more important to get


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them involved with some "on the job training." Send your new visitation team members

out with experienced members until they gain the experience and confidence to lead a

visitation team. Also send them out with different experienced visitation members, this

will give broaden their experience.

Hospital VisitationHoward R. Sugden & Warren W. Wiersbe, in their book, Confident Pastoral

Leadership, give this advice when it comes to making hospital visits. (30)

Get to know the hospital personnel and make yourself available to help them, but don'tassume authority that you don't possess. If there is a chaplain in charge,by all means

become his friend, even if you are of different faiths. [My notes here: This is important

because there has been recent federal laws that have been passed which have had adirect impact upon your visit. Understand that most hospitals are thrilled to have pastors

come in and visit, but they are also afraid of being sued and have to deal with federal

laws dealing with the patient's privacy. If you visit someone and go and tell others about

their situation, without their permission, you could be opening yourself, your church,and the hospital up to law suits. So gets the facts before you go].

Visit at hours convenient to the patients. Visiting them in the late morning, after their

baths, is a good time to stop by: The patients are fresh and clean, they have not been

worn out by other visitors, and there will be fewer interruptions. Arrange your visitsaccording to the rules of the hospital. Don't make yourself a pest. Get the facts about the

patient, so as not to embarrass yourself. Be cheerful but not a standup comedian. Leave

your problems and symptoms outside the door and enter the room determined to be anencouragement.

Don't become an amateur physician. It is wrong to diagnose the case or to compare apatient with others you have visited. Never act as a go-between when patients and

physicians have differences. If a patient has fears or frustrations, be a counselor andhelp them find their peace in Christ.

Be brief. Long visits can often do more harm than good. Each visit should help to lift

the patient with hopefulness and joy. In most cases, read something brief from the Word

and pray to the point. Don't turn the bed into a pulpit and preach to the whole ward. Aquiet, personal prayer at the bedside is what the patient needs. Pay attention to the

others in the room; greet them and be friendly. If it is a double room, or three-bed room,

be sure to include the other patients in your prayer. If there are other visitors in the

room, wait for a break in the conversation and ask, "Would you mind if I prayed for allof us?" Very few patients or visitors would be offended.

Use Christian literature judiciously. Be sure to read carefully whatever you distribute;

the wrong tract can do untold damage. Select Tracts that are appropriate to the purposeof the visit.


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Some church members should be advised not to do hospital visitation at all. They maynot like it, but it is better to upset a few saints than to lose your testimony before the

whole hospital.

Visitation Follow-upA follow up letter also makes the visit something special and appreciated. (31) In fact Dr.

Tom Clegg, in his church growth seminar7 Habits of a Visitor Friendly Church, (32)

says that it is important make at least seven contacts with the family afteryour firstvisit, in the next 7 days. This can be done in several different ways, such as; a pastor's

letter ; another informal visit by a church member or pastor (bring a small gift like

coffee mugs with church name); a phone call by another person (2 or 3 phones calls thatweek would reinforce the message that your church cares about them - make sure these

calls are short); send several welcome cards (from church members; a follow-up phone

call by a church staff member or deacon should be made within the 1st or 2nd week andagain 6 to 8 weeks later. (even if they haven't shown back up). Dr. Clegg also suggests

that if the person doesn't return to your church that you ask them why (this is so you can

evaluate your church to see what you are doing right or wrong).

Encouraging Your Visitation Ministry To Grow.The best way to encourage others to get involved is to continue to promote the visitationministry before the church. Visitation is better caught than taught. It spreads best by

contagion, not compulsion, and don't scold those who are not involved. Start with a few

choice men and/or women, and take them with you when you visit. Ask God to touchtheir hearts. Give opportunities for your people to testify of the blessing of visiting.

Most of all be sure that the visitation ministry is worth inviting others to share in. (33)

ENDNOTES

1.How To Conduct A Visitation & Soul Winning Program, Liberty Home Bible

Institute, Jim Soward, 1976, Tape Series Notes.

2. 7 Habits of a Visitor Friendly Church, Dr. Tom Clegg, Church Growth SeminarNotes.

3. Confident Pastoral Leadership, p.97, by Howard R. Sugden & Warren W. Wiersbe,

Baker Book house, Grand Rapids MI, 1993, Second Edition.

4. 7 Habits of a Visitor Friendly Church, Dr. Tom Clegg, Church Growth Seminar


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Notes.

5. Toolbox for [Busy] Pastors, pp.177-178, by Barry Campbell, Lifeway Church

Resources, Convention Press, Nashville TN, 2002.

6. The Day Of Visitation, A Practical Guide To Establishing A Church Visitation

Program, Noel M. Wright III, Wright Track Ministries, Cordova TN, 1993

7.Ibid.

8. The Way of the Master Academy, witnessing and evangelism course, lesson 36,

Evangelist Ray Comfort, http://www.raycomfort.com

9.Let's God Soul Winning, pp.14-15, by Dr. Jack Hyles, Sword of the Lord Publisher,

Murfreesboro TN, 1973.

10. Toolbox for [Busy] Pastors, pp.177-178, by Barry Campbell, Lifeway ChurchResources, Convention Press, Nashville TN, 2002.



12. The Day Of Visitation, A Practical Guide To Establishing A Church VisitationProgram, Noel M. Wright III, Wright Track Ministries, Cordova TN, 1993



14. The Day Of Visitation, A Practical Guide To Establishing A Church Visitation

Program, Noel M. Wright III, Wright Track Ministries, Cordova TN, 1993



16.Ibid., pp.23-24

17. Share Jesus Without Fear, by William Fay & Ralph Hodge, Lifeway Press,

Nashville TN, 1997

18. The Way of the Master Academy, witnessing and evangelism course, Evangelist Ray

Comfort, http://www.raycomfort.com

19.ABC's of Evangelism, by Stan Toler, Beacon Hill Press, Kansas City, KS, 2002.


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20. Share Jesus Without Fear, by William Fay & Ralph Hodge, Lifeway Press,Nashville TN, 1997

21. Campus Crusade for Christ International, http://www.campuscrusade.com

22.Evangelism Made Easy, Personal Evangelism the First Baptist Church Way,

Bartlesville OK

23.Evangelism Explosion, p.31, by D. James Kennedy, Tyndale House Publishing,Wheaton IL, 4th Ed.

24.Ibid., p.32

25.Let's God Soul Winning, p.33, by Dr. Jack Hyles, Sword of the Lord Publisher,


26.Evangelism Explosion, pp.145-149, by D. James Kennedy, Tyndale HousePublishing, Wheaton IL, 4th Ed.

27.Evangelism Made Easy, Personal Evangelism the First Baptist Church Way,

Bartlesville OK

28.Plans For Presenting Salvation To Children,http://www.biblestudyplanet.com/f6.htm

29.Let's God Soul Winning, p.9, by Dr. Jack Hyles, Sword of the Lord Publisher,


30. Confident Pastoral Leadership, pp.97-99, by Howard R. Sugden & Warren W.

Wiersbe, Baker Book house, Grand Rapids MI, 1993, Second Edition.

31.A Pastor's Manual on Doing Church, pp.141-142, Mal Couch General Editor, 21st

Century Press, Springfield MO, 2002.

32. 7 Habits of a Visitor Friendly Church, Dr. Tom Clegg, Church Growth Seminars

33. Confident Pastoral Leadership, pp.99-100, by Howard R. Sugden & Warren W.

Wiersbe, Baker Book house, Grand Rapids MI, 1993, Second Edition.

practical guide to implementing visitation

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