I hope to see a movement of churches in Canada across denominations go from plateaued and declining to thriving by reaching lost people in their locale. I pray for an enormous increase in Salvations across Canada with reports of life transformation by the Gospel. I long for churches that make disciples who make disciples who make disciples.

Your church website is the front door of your church. If anyone is thinking about checking out your church, they will go to the website first. Here are 5 things your church website needs now.

If you desire to reach lost people, serve a community, and partner with a local church to make Kingdom impact, you don’t need to travel overseas to have a meaningful cross-cultural experience.

No matter what you’re preaching about, take 3 minutes and preach the gospel. Simply say, “You may be here and you’re not following Jesus in the way we’ve been talking about today. Let me tell you …” and then just go for it.

Ask a church member why they’re at the church. Ask any parent why they go to the church they go to. They will all have the same answer, “We have friends here.”

In Canada, the largest demographic population is Millennials (ages 25-35) with young children. This is an incredible opportunity for the church to reach out to families with children. Whether you’re a large or small church, you can make connections and build bridges to families with children.

For a church to grow by reaching lost people, the congregation needs to have a passion for souls to be saved. This seems obvious, but my experiences have shown me that many Christians aren’t too concerned about the eternal destiny of anyone other than themselves and their family.

When we think of church outreach, we tend to think of carnivals or block parties or musicals; events that involve lots of people, lots of planning, and lots of dollars. Although there is a place for such things in a church outreach strategy, I find there is a much higher return when churches are consistently outward bound even on a smaller scale. To do this, you have to be able to organize small teams of people quickly and spend less money for a single outreach.

We're less than 60 days from Christmas. Let that one sink in. As we're heading into the holidays, here are three stories and seven ideas to inspire and help you as you're planning and preparing your Christmas outreach.

These are simple ways to get out and be in your community 5 hours per week. Remember, you’re building connections and making yourself accessible to those who live, work and play there. Don’t stay in your building. Get out and get in your community.

If evangelism were only the work of church leaders, we would quickly hit a ceiling on our effectiveness in reaching people with the gospel. However, if evangelism is the work of every believer, anything is possible.

Resilience is the ability to withstand, adapt and grow in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy and stress. It’s the ability to transcend despite all the odds. Resilience is the single quality we all need now to go where no one has gone before.

There’s no question: this COVID-19 pandemic has grabbed our attention. It just cannot be “the same old same old.” I’m not too old to learn; I want to learn. My prayer, as we face an uncertain future, is “Lord, teach us. Lord, use us.”

Millions of Canadians are coming out from house arrest. They are excited to be out. They are a little nervous. Some of them are learning what it means to have real-life conversations again. And all of this new interaction makes for a great opportunity to look at your community with fresh eyes.

Less is more. Two courses are all you need to reach people far from God. Both function effectively online as well as onsite. Both are hugely valuable and offered free of charge. In thinking like a church planter with limited resources, offering these two programs alone will help you effectively reach your community this Fall.

For many church leaders, this has been the hardest season of their lives; their decisions have been questioned, their lives have been interrupted, their faith has been tested and, their fears have tried to overcome them. And now, they are poised for the greatest opportunity they have ever seen.

As we look to the fall and the potential of limited restrictions, churches are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. This will be different than the reopening that we’ve been accustomed to. This will be, in essence, a fresh start; something from which to build upon. It’s for this reason that church leaders are looking at relaunching this fall.

It doesn’t have to be a huge carnival. It doesn’t have to be a musical that takes months to prepare and dozens of volunteers. It doesn’t need a whole lot of money to make it happen. I’m talking about showing God’s love by blessing your community.