Connecting is Key!

Understand that Relationships are so important when it comes to Connecting people to power of the Gospel.

More and more people turned off by religion because of relationships or the lack there of. People have a personal connections in their past to someone who used the Name of Jesus for personal gain or they claimed to be a Christian but their action spoke loader than their words. On and on we could go but I think you get the point, the reality is people will not trust your God until they can trust you.

Simply put we are called to be the body of Christ, so the question is who do the people that you are connected to on a day to day basis see who are they getting to know. Do they see just you, the world, the enemy, or do they see Christ. Who are they getting to know you or the God that lives inside of you that is madly in love with them. We are called to live as Christian (Christ-like) day in and day out so your connection matter and what your are portraying matters...

Here is a great article on connecting or networking by Chester Mitchell, allow this to challenge you to make the most of your connection! It is no accident that you keep running into the same person or that you keep having the seemly same interaction with that person. Next time be perpared with the knowledge of win that person (to you then to Him) by being who you are called to be....

Networking Your Community
By Chester Mitchell

For the church planter, the single most important challenge after identifying the unique harvest field of your calling, will be finding ways to connect to the people in your city. Whether you are in a large metro city like Washington, DC or a small rural community, the challenge is that of making contacts. Connecting is everything.


"Your church beginning with you must change its heart and its behavior, learning to build intentional relationships with people in your community who aren't Christians yet." Tom Clegg

Every successful church planter must become a skilled networker. According to the book, Power Networking, a referral generates 80 percent more results than a cold call. Seventy percent of all jobs are found through networking. It is estimated that each person has at least 250 unique contacts.

Anyone you want to meet is only about four to five people away.

Networking is best when it is done in the natural process of life. The guy who works in the produce section or the gal who checks out your groceries at the store where you shop. The clerk at the dry cleaners. The person who delivers your mail. The garbage collector who picks up the trash. The moms on your street who wait at the same corner to pick up and drop of their kids. The business associates or family members burying a loved one at a local funeral home. The barber who cuts your hair. The people at your community association meetings. Relatives, friends, and friends of friends.

Get your whole family involved!

Every communication must be crafted with the goal of ensuring that its not the last one. The best way to do this is to make sure the people whose lives you touch know that they are in charge of choosing how much information they receive. They must know you honor their choices at their level of willingness to engage, or they will feel pressured and threatened, and trust will be broken.

Keep in mind the following key action concepts:

(1) Identify and build on your existing circles of influence.
(2) Create and build on new circles of influence.
(3) Develop a system of regular, repeated contact with each person.
(4) Base your networking on building relationships, serving and disciplining.

(Chester Mitchell is the pastor at Capitol Community Church in Ashburn, Virginia)