Externally Focused churches are convinced that good deeds and good news can’t and shouldn’t be separated. Just as it takes two wings to lift an airplane off the ground, so externally focused churches couple good news with good deeds to make an impact on their communities. The good deeds, expressed in service and ministry to others, validate the good news. The good news explains the purpose of the good deeds.The points I got from this are not limited to "externally focused churches". The first point is one of integrity. We ought not be sharing good news if there is really not good news to share. I see too many people talking about the great meeting they had that frankly wasn't so great. Or the wonderful small group program that truthfully barely exists. Etc.
Engaging the community with good news and good deeds is not just a tactic or even a foundational strategy of externally focused churches, it is at their very core; it is who they are. These churches have concluded that it’s really not ‘church’ if it’s not engaged in the life of the community through ministry and service to others. Ministry and service are not programs reserved for a few extraordinarily dedicated individuals but are woven into every aspect of life. This is certainly not the only thing these churches do, but to stop ministering and serving in the community would be to end their very existence. An external focus is embedded in their DNA.
In our excitement, we tend to focus on positives and end up distorting the real truth. This is not right, nor is it helpful. If we are doing the right stuff, there will be plenty to tell about without making things up.
The other point is that people celebrate what is important to them. Their "DNA" is visible in all that they do.
I've been to churches, listened to sermons, etc. where even though a core value is not explicitly mentioned, it is visible in everything. Sadly, I've been to other churches, listened to sermons, etc. where at the end of it all there was still no clear underlying message.
Our message must be clear and it must be consistently present. This is true for high level values such as the Gospel as well as for the distinctives of our local community. When I go to a church that understands the value of small groups, even without explicitly promoting them, they are in the forefront. I recently listened to a sermon about ministering to those with emotional issues. In that the speaker read a testimony from someone relating how her small group demonstrated the key points included in the sermons. It wasn't about small groups, yet it was evident that small groups were important - and helpful.
I attended one church that valued "inviting". Every time someone joined the church, part of the testimony the new person gave included mentioning the people that first invited them.
And then I go to other places and I'm left wondering ... or I see printed material indicating value X but I hear a lot more about Y in the announcements. Someone is kidding themselves.
So what about you? Do you celebrate what you value? The answer is "yes you do". So the real question is are you really valuing what you want to value?
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