County-wide Alpha Invitation Results in Triple-Digit Growth

by Rebecca Long

 

“I saw these signs in the yards with this man on this mountain and the title, “is there more to life than this?” and of course it caught my eye…This is something that I definitely would like to check out, so I…came not knowing anybody.” Monica – guest, Christ Church, Lake Forest.

 

This is one of the exciting stories we heard during the pilot Alpha Invitation this fall in Lake County, IL.  Monica went on to say that the, “course has helped (her to) understand how to have a relationship with God”. This is a wonderful example of the Alpha Invitation’s goal being met - more commitments to Jesus Christ and disciples for him.

 

Churches participating in the Alpha Invitation worked together to promote their Alpha Courses in a variety of creative ways, from having a float in the town parade to putting up posters.  The result - more people had invitations to attend an Introductory Alpha dinner. This effort was blessed, as triple-digit growth was seen in both the number of guests (135% more) and number of courses (233% more) compared to Fall 2006. 

 

The Alpha Invitation generated a ‘buzz’ in the community and boldness among Christians to invite non-church-going friends, family, neighbors and co-workers to the Introductory Alpha dinners. Pastor Wayne Okamoto, who led the first Alpha Course at Hope Community Church said, “the biggest benefit of being part of the Alpha Invitation is…being able to reach more unchurched people. It has raised the redemptive potential within our church (and) given people greater heart to reach out to people.” 

 

God blessed the unity between churches during the Alpha Invitation (Ps 133). Pastor Eric Lerew of Fusion Church said, “we decided to integrate Alpha into our church this year because…there was a cooperative advertising effort and we wanted to be a part of the visibility and the opportunity to join with other churches.” 

 

How would your community change if every congregation member in the churches invited their friends, family, and neighbors to explore the big questions of the Christian faith at their Alpha Courses? 

 

For more information on how you can get involved in the 2008 Alpha Invitation, please click here.