On Christmas Day, I sat next to a newcomer at church and introduced myself. She said with a smile that she had decided to attend church rather than stay home and do her tax return! It was then that I realised I had met her at our most recent evangelistic women’s event. When I spoke this event, I shared a statistic that an increasing number of people in Britain are submitting their tax returns on Christmas Day—in 2022, an astonishing 3 275 people. This may be because of isolation, boredom, or family avoidance. After quoting this statistic, I encouraged people to take home a copy of Luke’s Gospel; instead of whatever the equivalent of doing their taxes was this Christmas, I encouraged my listeners to read Luke or consider coming to church to experience a public celebration of Jesus’ birth.
I am a strong advocate for such evangelistic events for several reasons.
An Easy Invitation
Every week is a good week to invite a non-Christian to hear the glorious gospel message at our regular church services. But special events give us an extra boost to invite someone. Evangelistic women’s events help mobilise the large percentage of women in our congregations to proactively extend invitations to the women in their lives.
The invitation is also an easy one to receive, especially for a non-Christian who might not be ready to attend church yet. Knowing that these gatherings might also include something relevant to their specific situation (for e.g. a seminar) or an activity they might enjoy (for e.g. wreath making) makes the invitation an easier one, too.
It is important to be clear and honest. If someone comes to a gingerbread-making event, they should not be surprised when someone stands up and talks about Jesus. We make this clear in our advertising, to avoid a bait-and-switch approach (see 2 Cor 4:1). Last year we advertised “Rowena will speak on ‘The Three Wise Women of Christmas.’” The year before the theme was ‘Seven Reasons NOT to Go to Church this Christmas’.
Real Relationships on Display
As Christians, we aren’t doing life by ourselves, trying to muddle through in isolation. Instead, we do the messiness of life together. Typical feedback from newcomers to our events is how welcoming people were, and how friendly and how… normal. The events are a snapshot of the real connection and love the gospel creates. Guests experience firsthand how we learn from God’s word, how we learn in relationships, how we grow and encourage one another.
Those of us who organise these events also experience a dimension of our relational bond in Christ. Each year I invite women onto this team for the next twelve-month period, some choose to stay on for longer. It is wonderful to watch them getting to know each other better, be trained, learn, and grow. I love working with a beautiful and diverse group of women, using our God-given gifts (1 Cor 12:4–6).
With a higher representation of women in church compared to men, it is essential for women to actively extend invitations to other women, so we tailor events that specifically cater to their needs and interests, connecting them to Christ and each other
A Bridge to Church
Going to church for the first time is hard. Where to park your car? Where to sit? Where are the exits? For the non-Christian who hasn’t been to church before, coming to an evangelistic event in a church building is a literal foot in the door. Many of those questions are now answered. Not only are the logistics smoother but hopefully there are some familiar faces to welcome the newcomer on a Sunday.
And so the newcomer I sat beside on Christmas Day said in jest that she had come to church instead of doing her taxes. Now that’s a Christmas miracle! Women who come to evangelistic events do make it through the door of our church services. That is an excellent reason to add, restore, or continue women’s evangelistic events as a part of your church calendar this year.
