Door-to-Door Ministry can be an easy way to make friends for your church as you'll discover in the story that is told by George Martin who knocked on thousands of doors while starting a new church. He learned the power of simply inviting people (with a focus on those who didn't have a church). Emphasizing a friendly approach meant offering people the opportunity to come and see. His approach was based on the relationships and friendships he formed as we went door-to-door. This book, though, has so much more. It includes all the ways in which Martin learned to create a guest-friendly church that is truly hospitable. In addition he discovered many ways to literally "put the church on the map"! You'll find a great deal here suggesting ways for your church to be more visible and most important of all, to have a positive welcoming reputation in your community. An insightful part of this book includes the Biblical reflection which gives a unique and fresh interpretation of the command of Jesus as he sent his disciples out two-by-two. Martin wondered why they were told to find just a single house in the town to which they were sent? The scripture says it was a house from which they could do ministry. His biblical study led to Martin's unique relational approach this ministry. The book includes many ideas for inviting members of a church to share in this ministry. One chapter is about ways to help train people to go out to a neighborhood. There is a whole chapter on creating and using a "door-hanger" as a way to let people know about your church, even if you just leave the information at their door. Unique to this work is the idea of "Event Evangelism" as a kind of way of creating church events that serve to welcome people to the church itself. Because Martin had experience in the world of advertising and direct marketing, there are additional insights in this book regarding the best ways to convey what your church is about using print. The author of Door-to-door Ministry, George Martin, is an Episcopal priest who founded a suburban church near Minneapolis that had one family when it started but after fourteen years, and lots of welcoming ministry, the average attendance was 325 every Sunday. In the years since that work he has been an interim pastor in seven different churches. He has led many church growth seminars throughout the country, was the founding and executive director of the Church Ad Project, and continues to write and teach. He lives in Rosemount, Minnesota.
About the Author: George H. Martin is an Episcopal priest who lives in Minnesota where he served one church for eleven years prior to becoming a church planter. With the help of his diocese and with one family a new church was planted in 1986 in Eagan which was a suburb of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Prior to this adventure Martin had started the Church Ad Project which became a para-church ministry offering award-winning print ads, to all kinds of churches in the USA and throughout the world. He worked with some of the most creative advertising agencies at the time. At the same time he was leading many church growth and evangelism seminars throughout the country with various denominations. Starting in 2000 Martin entered interim ministry work and has recently completed his seventh interim. He is currently working on a new book which will translate into a more easily accessible way the work going on in what is sometimes called the new perspective on St. Paul. With his wife Caroline they have four children and now there are ten grandchildren