Summary of Evangelism Strategy
The proposed text of an Evangelism Strategy, "Sharing Faith in a New Century: A Vision for Evangelism in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America," was recommended by the Church Council for adoption by the 2003 Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.  Here is a summary of that document

Called by God in baptism and empowered by the Holy Spirit, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America calls upon its members, congregations, synods, churchwide ministries, and related institutions and agencies to.....

Objective I:  Call the Church to Prayer
...pray for the renewal of this church so that every member, congregation, synod, churchwide unit, and institution might bear witness to the Good News of Jesus Christ.

GOAL:  Activate and mobilize this church to pray for renewal that is grounded in the Word.

ACTIONS:
A.  Issue a call for prayer from the presiding bishop and synodical bishops to congregational members and congregations.
B.  Promote spiritual renewal
C.  Provide resources to teach, model, and mentor prayer
D.  Learn from, and walk with, our global and ecumenical partners in prayer ministry.
E.  Develop new prayer leaders through the indentification and training of children, youth, and young adults.

Objective II:  Prepare and Renew Evangelical Leaders
...nurture evangelical leaders under the renewing power of God's Spirit so that this church can be faithful in its response to God's call to mission and evangelism.

GOAL:  Prepare and renew evangelical leaders, lay and clergy, by reaffirming evangelism as a key priority.

ACTIONS:
A.  Provide local grants to initiate evangelism and leadership renewal, with an emphasis on youth and lay development.
B.  Implement a comprehensive churchwide mentor training program.
C.  Train ethnic-specific leaders
D.  Strengthen internships to sharpen evangelical leadership skills
E.  Establish criteria and assessment tools for effective outreach and evangelism with youth and young adults
F.  Expand training of lay mission developers, redevelopers and evangelists
G.  Deepen the conversation about our evangelical identity

Objective III:  Teach Discipleship
...train disciples by equipping persons of all ages to be faith-filled witnesses to God as revealed in Jesus Christ and committed disciples in service to others, working for justice and peace in all the earth.

GOAL:  Teach people of all ages to live as disciples of Jesus Christ, sent as witnesses to Jesus, in service to others and working for justice and peace in all the earth.

ACTION:
A.  Teach disciples of Jesus Christ by inviting them to deepen and broaden their faith practices
B.  Develop spiritual mentors
C.  Offer anti-racism training and resources
D.  Provide discipleship and evangelism resources
E.  Host a variety of inspirational evangelical mass rallies, gatherings, or revivals
F.  Expand the plan to start new Christian schools and early childhood education centers

Objective IV:  Start and Renew Congregations
...seek opportunities to strengthen partnerships throughout this church for starting new congregations and renewing existing congregations as centers of service and witness, inviting all to faith in Jesus Christ.

GOAL:  Increase the number of ELCA congregations and ministry sites, which are growing spiritually and numerically.

ACTIONS:
A.  Develop a comprehensive plan for establishing vital new start congregations
B.  Develop a comprehensive plan to revitalize congregations
C.  Research and publicize alternative funding sources for starting and renewing congregations
D.  Increase the purchase of advance church sites
E.  Expand electronic communication for internal and external communication and evangelism
F.  Expand the partnership with the global church and our ecumenical partners
G.  Develop worship resources to renew the church
H.  Strengthen relationships between worship, evangelism, and discipleship ministries

The full document can be read or downloaded from the ELCA's Web site:  www.elca.org/visionevangelism

Bishop Mark S. Hanson..."a few words on evangelism"

As I reflect upon evangelism, particularly in the context of parish and specialized ministries, I invite you to consider these points:

Evangelism is the Good News of Jesus Christ.  Mark 1:1 proclaims that it is "The beginning of the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Son of God."  The Good News of Jesus Christ -- that we have been saved by God's grace through faith for Jesus' sake -- is the heart of our proclamation.  Through this Good News, the Holy Spirit works to bring people to faith.

This Good News is the Gospel.  As I travel through this church, I have been encouraging pastors to consider not using the word "Gospel" in preaching.  My intent has been misunderstood by some.  My concern is with the use of the word "Gospel."  It is a word which may be familiar to people already in the church, but one that may hold no meaning for those who are unchurched.  It may, in fact, mean something other than the Good News of Jesus Christ.  For instance, a Chicago sports writer used the word gospel 10 times in a recent column.  He began:  "In the culture of the NFL locker rooms, there are beliefs and then there is gospel."  Then he went on to say, "Gospel is the sacred but unwritten rules of engagement."

To Mark's hearers, the word gospel may have been associated with the Good News announced in the public square, which declared a victory in battle by Caesar's armies.  Mark infuses the word gospel with a radically new meaning.  The word Gospel came to mean the Good News of God's victory over sin, death, and the devil, achieved not through military might, but through Christ's death and resurrection.

It is my hope and prayer that through our telling of the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit will bring equally startling and life-changing results.

Evangelism is the vocation of all the baptized.  In the affirmation of baptism, we ask, "Do you intend to continue in the covenant God made with you in Holy Baptism?"  We go on to say what that means, including "to proclaim the Good News of God in Christ through word and deed."

Evangelism is the Holy Spirit at work through the baptized, as each proclaims Christ and invites others to come and see Jesus.  It seems to be a great challenge for us to move from thinking about evangelism as the work of a committee -- churchwide, synodical, or congregational -- to thinking about evangelism as the work of all the baptized in the world.

Evangelism is proclaiming and inviting.  I fear some shy away from the word "evangelism" because it brings to mind images of intimidation and interrogation.  It is, however, the gracious word spoken by forgiven sinners--often shy, but sometimes rather bold--proclaiming the crucified and risen Christ.  Evangelism has the sense of wonder of the Samaritan woman Jesus met at the well who ran to the people, inviting them to "Come and see."  Evangelism has the compelling urgency of Peter and John responding to their accusers, "Whether it is right in God's sight to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge; for we cannot keep from speaking about what we have seen and heard." (Acts 4:19-20)

Evangelism is public and personal.  In day-to-day conversations, we share the love of God in Christ Jesus with neighbors, colleagues, and family members.  The witness can be very personal, but it is also public.  In every ordination, the pastor pledges to, "...give faithful witness in the world, that God's love may be known in all that [we] do."

Evangelism is public because it points to and participates in God's work in and for the sake of the world.  Sometimes we separate evangelism and mission, making them seem like competitive priorities.  Yet they are inseparably linked and must be consistently integrated.  Inviting people into faith and sending people of faith in Jesus Christ into the world are two movements of the Holy Spirit's work.

Finally, our work in evangelism needs to reflect our commitment to being a more diverse church and to being in ministry among persons living in poverty.  I trust this work will be rooted in God's grace, grounded in the sacraments, and Trinitarian in scope.

I recently came across a delightful brochure called "20 from 10:  Twenty Insights from a Decade of Evangelism."  It is a recent publication of a group of churches in England and includes insights that are instructive for this church as well.  The insights include:

-Most people come to faith gradually
-Personal relationships are basic in evangelism
-Good evangelism is an invitation, not a confrontation
-Evangelism is about sharing Jesus, not about promoting the church
-A changing culture demands changing approaches
-Evangelism among children and young people is a major challenge
-Local initiatives are best
-Christian witness in ordinary life is at the heart of effective evangelism
-Evangelism is part of well-rounded mission
-Evangelism needs evangelist, but we are all witnesses
-Personal stories are a powerful tool

The brochure can be downloaded from:  www.evangelism.uk.net/20from10/index.htm

Remember this... "We are not evangelizing people to build up our church membership, we are evangelizing to win souls to the Kingdom of God."