YEAR 2000 PLANNING GUIDE
Table of Contents
Introduction
Your Church and More Than Gold
Selecting More Than Gold Leadership
Week, Weekend or Month-Long Outreaches
City Wide Outreaches
Literature Outreaches
Sports Person Team
Radio Outreaches
Audio Tape Outreach
Sports Clinic Outreach
Music and Drama Outreach
Social Issues
Sports is a Language
The Event
Dear Pastors and Church Leaders,
An unprecedented movement of outreaches is developing around the world, occurring around the major sporting events that capture the attention of people in every country.
For more than 20 years believers interested in ministering to and with sportpersons have met to share ideas, receive training and encourage one another. Out of this history have come models of major sports-event-related outreaches, multi-language literature for distribution, the cooperation of radio and video ministries and many other "helps" for local churches.
We invite you to study this planning guide and consider providing leadership in your church.
You will find in this guide suggestions on strategies for your church to apply during the Games from September 16 to October 1, 2000. We will use the term "Games" throughout this booklet to refer to the Olympics. The principles and strategies apply to other major sporting events as well.
The Resources Guide list the many 1996 resources. Over 70,000 churches in 18 countries partnered with committed Olympic athletes for 1996 ministry. Contact these agencies for information on their 2000 resources
Once you consider the ideas at this site, you are encouraged to pray and plan with other church leaders in your city.
International Network of Ministry Leaders and Sportpersons
Athletes Cities-Events-2004 Conference: October 2-8, 2000, Sydney, Australia
2000 Olympic Games: September 16 - October 1, 2000, Sydney, Australia
Every church can plan a service on one of the Games Sundays: September 18, 25 or October 1, 2000.
Here are some suggestions:
Pray for...
Read Scriptures that emphasize values relating to sports and competition. Examples...
Sing lively, upbeat songs with scripture passages illustrating sports analogies.
Present a sermon that includes sports or competitive illustrations.
Distribute literature to congregation with Olympic sportspersons faith stories available through your Bible or literature societies.
Sports offers your church its greatest opportunities for outreach with the least amount of money needed to reach the greatest number of people in the shortest period of time.
List potential leaders in your church who...
Important Note:
A More Than Gold outreach leader does not have to be a sportsperson, or even interested in sports.
Sports and Outreach
Basketball is one of many games created specifically for the purpose of ministry.
Dr. James Naismith created basketball while an instructor with the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA). His goal was to provide boys and girls with an indoor activity that could be blended with regular Bible study programs. Tens of thousands of churches today have basketball programs to accomplish a variety of ministry objectives.
Any church can develop an outreach. The ideas and resources are provided as possible ministries.
Examples:
Other possible activities include:
We encourage you to help lead community-wide church partnerships, employing Games Outreach strategies.
Information is available for developing a city-wide movement.
Imagine every person in your community receiving at least one piece of literature from your members, containing the faith stories of recognized sportspersons!
Literature focuses on the stories of committed sportpersons.
What ways do you see your church distributing a piece of Games Outreach literature to every residence in your community? (List)
Do you have student ministries or church schools in your city that would be able to assist your church members with the literature distribution?
Form one or more gospel teams of teenage, amateur, professional and/or retired sportspersons from churches in your community.
The months prior and the 17 days of the Games are days of special proclamation opportunity. The values and stories of sportspersons interest people.
Check which places would welcome a sportsperson gospel team.
Ministry Radio broadcasters are exploring a variety of radio programming formats to be made available around the world, focusing on the stories of committed sportspersons.
In what ways do you see your church benefiting from games outreach radio broadcasts? (List here)
Which of the following radio broadcasts reach your church?
An Outreach Audio Tape is a cassette of a well-known sportsperson communicating his or her faith story.
Check out these ideas for using audio tapes.
Imagine every child and adult in your community attending a sports instructional clinic on his or her favorite sport hosted by your church!
A sports clinic is: Individual(s) teaching sports skills to a group of children or adults who know less about the sport than the teacher.
Consider every sport an outreach sports clinic opportunity. Combining skill, instruction and an explanation of a personal commitment to Christ, makes for a complete physical, mental and spiritual sportsperson. List the sports which would be of most interest to the people of your community.
Check which groups can provide you with instructional clinic teachers.
Check when you would recommend starting the sports instructional clinics.
Music and pageantry play important parts of sports events. Discuss how you can create games music strategies with the singing and performing groups of your church.
Check the places your church can have a Games Music/Drama Ministry.
Video Tape Outreach
The More Than Gold 15 minute Games Outreach Video features sports action and many Olympians who present their commitment to Christ. The More Than Gold Video can be used effectively the months prior to and during the Games !
Check where your church would consider showing the Games Outreach video.
Would unchurched people come to video parties in members homes or your church during the Games or the opening or closing ceremony parties?
Many churches have focused their More Than Gold Games ministry efforts on outreach strategies. Churches have used the Games Outreach movement to deal with social concerns like crime prevention, housing needs, racial discrimination and health issues as a part of their outreach strategies.
Check the social issue that your outreach could approach, if you believe your plan should include helping specific social issues.
The greatest opportunity to share the good news of Christ is through sports. This is particularly true with the most difficult group to reach... urban youth.
Sports and music are two universal languages. The Games reflect many of the national sports of the world. Olympians are heroes and often role models for hundreds of millions of youth in almost every country.
Sports and Role Models
C.T. Studd and the "Cambridge Seven," famous Cambridge University cricket players, moved through sports from a place of prominence as sportspersons to significant roles in the modern missions movement.
The Hollywood film Chariots of Fire illustrates the impact of Scottish Olympic gold medalist Eric Liddel powerfully serving Christ through sport and foreign missions.
Today!
Silas and Jorginho, Brazilian Olympic and World Cup of soccer champions, partner with churches in various countries as they travel playing football. By sharing their faith stories through literature and other media, they encourage unchurched sportspersons to hear of Christ's love.
Just as the roads of Rome were utilized as bridges for the gospel, so in this era sports provide unique intersections in the world for the witness to the love of Jesus Christ.
The Concept
Well-timed strategies and high-quality resources developed around the Games empower your church outreaches through committed athlete faith stories.
Sports have become a unique way that God's people can build relationships with most other people. Over the past 40 years, sports ministry has evolved into an outreach strategy for the church.
Churches Unite During
Note: Sports is the positive motivator among these!
October 2-8, 2000, Sydney Australia
Hosted by: International Sports Coalition
Invited Participants Include Leaders of...
A primary goal of the A.C.E. 2004 Conference is to build national and international ministry partnerships