The first session, “Living as a Disciple,” focuses on Jesus’ description of what it means to be His disciple and to live out the Great Commandments. The second session is “Loving Your Neighbor” and will look at the call to love your neighbor as yourself. The final session, “Loving my Neighbor as a Lifestyle,” presents practical ways to build relationships with your neighbors as a sustainable lifestyle. This workshop will include small and large group discussions and a “homework” assignment to be discussed as a group at a participant meeting sometime between the first and second workshops.

After a brief review of the homework, session one begins by looking at the call for all disciples to be witnesses for Christ and to make disciples. The second session will explain how to share your story of faith with confidence and will include practice exercises. The third session will then teach how to share the Gospel using Evangelism Explosion’s hand illustration. This workshop will also have a “homework” assignment for a participant meeting between the second and third workshops.

This third workshop focuses on understanding the practical changes that have come with living in a post-Christian culture. Specifically, how the Church and Christianity are perceived today and how we can respond in order to have a voice in this secular culture. In the first session, “Our Post Christian World,” we will focus on the cultural changes that have occurred over the last 30 years and how that has impacted our immediate context and the church’s witness. In the second session, “Removing the Obstacles to Engagement,” we will look at ways we can objectively evaluate our church facility, worship service, website, etc., with the goal of making them more accessible to our community. In the third session, “Discerning Opportunities to Engage Your Community,” we will discuss how we as a congregation can change the narrative about our church by looking for ways to engage our community with programs or services that provide perceived value and concern. This workshop will also have a “homework” assignment and a participant meeting at a future date.