5 Important Tips For Starting An Outreach Ministry

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“Church outreach” has become quite the buzzword in leadership circles these days, and for good reason! As our churches grow, not just numerically but spiritually as well, many of our new church members and attendees long to feel a sense of contribution and service to their fellow believers and communities.  

As a leader in a church, it can be very energizing to see the new believer metaphorically (or sometimes, literally) rolling up their sleeves and doing the “dirty work” of outreach to our fellow man. It’s even more precious to witness those more experienced believers give consistent effort, time after time, to help with outreaches in one way or another. And then, to be able to see the Lord glorified because of the willingness of our people to be used to bless others, and literally being the hands and feet of Jesus Christ! That is amazing!

But what do you do if you are just now getting started trying to organize an outreach ministry within your small church? What about those of us working to resurrect an outreach ministry? Hopefully, this article will provide some insight and encouragement for starting an outreach ministry in your church.

What Are Outreach Ministries?

Before we get into defining outreach, let’s be clear on what outreach ministry is not. Outreach ministry is not a “grow quick scheme”. It should not be thought of as a way to quickly boost church attendance or membership. In fact, our local church held regular community outreaches for years before ever seeing someone start regularly attending church as a result of the outreaches.

That’s okay though, because the goal of starting an outreach ministry should not be building up the numbers of the church.  

Outreach ministry could be defined as an opportunity for service, by fulfilling a need of others outside the walls of the church. Basically, it’s a chance for those of us who have been blessed by the Lord in some way or another (which is all of us, by the way) to be a blessing to others.

Why Consider Starting An Outreach Ministry

One of the main reasons for starting an outreach ministry can be found in Hebrews 13:16.

 Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Hebrews 13:16

Simply put, we are commanded to do good for our fellow man. One way to “do good” is to find a need, and fill the need!

Not only will an outreach ministry or event help to meet a need in your surrounding community, but it also allows Christians at any stage of their faith to “live out loud”, so to speak, and to share the compassion that they’ve received from the Lord with others. Taking the time to serve another person is a great way to reflect on our own blessings, and even better when we can bring along the next generation with us! I love seeing parents and children together serving their neighbors and community in some way.  

5 Tips For Starting An Outreach Ministry

1. Identify The Need In Your Community

Your small church’s outreach ministry should have one main purpose, to meet needs within your community. So first, you must recognize the needs within your community. Does your community have a lot of single parents living in the area who may need help with childcare from time to time? Start a parent’s night out! Is there a stretch of highway in need of some cleaning and TLC? Get a group to take care of it for free! Start your brainstorming by first naming the needs.

2. Connect With The Leaders In Your Community

You may have a pretty good idea of what’s needed in your community, but your community’s leaders will know of things you may not have thought about. Touch base with local council people, firefighters/first responders, patrol, etc., and talk with them to see if there’s a more pressing need that you and your team can make an impact upon. Even if there’s nothing to be learned from the leaders, it will let them know that your small, but mighty, church is willing to do what it takes to be there for their local community.

3. Create Your Dream Team

Unlike the USA Dream Team in the Olympic basketball fame, this team doesn’t necessarily have to have special talents. The most helpful people on your team are those who are willing to do whatever it takes, and do it with the desire to spread the love of Jesus Christ to others.  

Some churches prefer to give people the chance to sign up for volunteer opportunities, but I’d recommend you select some strategic volunteers to be invited to serve on the team. These are people who you know would serve with excellence and be able to handle specific tasks needed to make your events a success. 

Remember, you don’t need all professionals to volunteer for your outreach ministry. However, if you’re planning the oil change outreach I’ll explain below, it would be a good idea for someone with some mechanical talents to be on your team then.  

4. Plan And Prepare

While it would be nice to just choose a date and time for your outreach and everything fall magically into place, there is more planning required. Make a list of supplies needed. If preparation is required beforehand (such as preparing food bags), schedule a time with your volunteers to get it done. Be sure to plan a crew for tear down and clean up. That is an aspect that is often forgotten.

5. Connect With Local Businesses

If your outreach idea is more costly than you were originally hoping, or more than most of our small churches could handle, reach out to local businesses. Explain the need, let them know your plan for meeting the need, and invite them to partner with your outreach team to meet those needs financially. 

Potential Church Outreach Ministry Ideas

1. Community Food Drive

This may be one of the most common outreach ideas, and around the holidays may be one of the most popular times of the year to host one. In our region, some churches actually call them “manna drops”, which I love! Generally, we will bag up non-perishable food items before the actual event, so that when people come to pick up their food, it’s already ready for them. There are state-sponsored organizations that may help you get the food to distribute – just be sure to abide by any laws regarding FDA, SNAP, etc.

2. Hot Meals For Unhoused People

It seems that more and more families are being affected by homelessness today, and one of the greatest needs for those living without a home is ensuring proper nutrition. For this reason, hosting hot meals for unhoused people on a regular basis is a great outreach! You’ll need to be prepared to do it with some regularity (not necessarily daily, but on a certain day each week). 

It also helps to host the meal in a location convenient to the homeless community, and usually in the same place each time. That way, as you continue to be a blessing to this population of our brothers and sisters, word will spread quickly so that your small church will be able to reach more and more people as time goes on. 

3. Handiwork For The Elderly Or Single Moms

This outreach idea will be such a blessing for those who are unable to care for their homes and it requires very little budget, if any. Gather a group of willing workers, bring the tools or equipment you’ll need, and be ready to mow, patch leaks, or clean out garages for those who are not able to do so themselves!

4. Oil Changes For Those Who Need It

Along the same lines as #3, this outreach idea is designed to help those on limited budgets still be able to maintain their vehicles. Make sure your volunteer force consists of a few workers with experience in changing oil, and recruit them to bring their preferred tools, oil racks, etc. Perhaps the church could purchase the oil, or you could reach out to a local business to see if they may sponsor the oil for the outreach.  

5. Family Holiday Handouts

During the Covid pandemic, our church (like many others) was unable to host the community Easter egg hunt as we normally did. We felt the pull to still provide what little bit of joy we could to our community’s families, so we put together “family bags” of filled easter eggs, some coloring handouts about the real meaning of Easter, and some other fun items and gave them out, drive-through-style, to anyone coming by.

We promoted it on social media for one week prior, and we were amazed with the turnout! That year prompted us to think outside the box in regards to having people come to us for ministry. You can also put together Christmas-themed bags for the family to celebrate Christmas…Valentine’s Day… Summer Fun Days… just about any day. Just promote it well and be a light to the whole family!

6. Fill-Ups On Us

With gas prices soaring, every family could use help with a tank of gas. We’ve partnered with a local gas station and paid $25 toward each tank of gas within a certain period of time. For our small church, it was easiest to have a family from our church there with the church card to pay toward each gas purchase. You could also meet with the gas station manager and prepay a certain amount, instead of leaving someone there for the entire time.

The Best Way To Stay Organized Through It All

Starting any new ministry can be overwhelming, so I recommend keeping good notes throughout the process. As you move forward, you’ll want to make sure things do not fall through the cracks, so good old-fashioned checklists work wonders for me. 

Another tip is to utilize the free virtual assistant most of us have within our cell phones. (Siri, Google, Alexa…) There can be so many to-do boxes to be checked, sometimes I have to set reminders for myself so that I don’t forget important tasks before it’s too late. 

I would also recommend that you invite someone to come alongside you and share the responsibilities – at least some of them. Depending on the complexity of the outreach, it’s more important that it get done than it be “perfect” in your mind. Trust someone else with the work, too.

Staying Aligned With His Mission

With all the planning and execution of your new outreach ministry, it would be very easy to become focused on the wrong things. Things like making sure the supplies are provided, or set up correctly, or even whether the “right” people show up can quickly become a distraction to our true mission in outreach.  

In addition to making sure your church’s new ministry is aligned with the mission of your local church, it’s eternally imperative that we stay aligned with the mission of our Lord. He came prepared to be a servant, for those of us who didn’t deserve it. But He did it out of love for us. 

Let’s do the same thing for the rest of His children, too. 

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

John 13:35

Read More:

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‘Sew Can I’ An Outreach For Girls – Small Church Ministry 

How To Expand Your Small Church Outreach