Kindness Report

Christian Family Chapel

Hi, Steve!


I’m from Christian Family Chapel in Jacksonville, FL and we just finished doing another Kindness to Go – it was one part of our Jr. High service retreat called Out2B (Out2B Outside of Me). It went great and the kids loved it…again! We took the gift bags to more stores, and we also went to swimming pools with sunscreen and water. (We need to tweak the labels on the sunscreen as some of them did not stick well.)

I heard that a lady at Krispy Kreme donuts called the church office….she has been having a hard time and the bag was really an encouragement to her. She called the church office to say thank you…and she said she might come and visit us sometime.

My niece works at Little Caesars Pizza and they received a bag. She told my sister that the employees were saying how nice our church was to do that and how they really appreciated that it didn’t include something that said “YOU NEED JESUS!” They seemed to have a favorable and friendly impression of CFC because of this.

Someone giving out sunscreen/water offered it to some boys. When asked about it, they said that they were showing the love of Jesus in a practical way. The boys said that they were Muslim. Our kids said, that is OK, we still want you to have it. The boys looked shocked, and took the water.

Bill Winton had a great idea….we stuffed the bags so quickly that we had a lot of time to deliver the bags. He was driving one of the vans so he decided to drive to one store, let two kids out to deliver the bag. When they returned, he had them debrief….what was said, what they could have done differently…and so the whole van was able to participate in each store experience – and they were also were able to improve their gift-giving through this practical training!

Thank you, again, for taking the time to come to Florida to train our kids and our church on this fun outreach!!!

Kristin Friend

Summer of Love ....Are You Experienced?

This is the 40th anniversary of the summer of love in San Francisco... We weren't aware of this. Yet we seemed to click into the feeling with the design of new Vineyard water label...

This weekend I will be doing a reverse outreach for kindness to go.

What's a reverse kindness to go?

Sometimes veteran outreach guys and gals have "the curse of knowledge"(see the book made to stick). In other words, we, who have the knowledge and the experience of positive outreach, know what an outreach feels like, looks like. We are the ones who know and understand: outreach for us who are experienced is easy, not scary. Our experience for the most part is positive. We know servant evangelism builds bridges, opens the heart and mind for great conversations, and encourages the heart of both the giver and the receiver.

We have the knowledge and the experience.

Pause: Reality, not so for others they have not the experience. Until someone participates in a positive experiential outreach they don't have the knowledge, the understanding, the feel: the positive emotions, the sense of wow and seeing the life changing effect.

The people we are attempting to encourage toward outreach may also have the 'curse of knowledge.' They may have had a 'bad trip'. Their experience or perception of outreach may not have been positive. This 'bad trip' forms a negative experience, which can create a 'no way hosea' mind set.

What to do? What to do?

Education (positive communication) + doing = understanding = lifestyle change

In Scotland. My mission for a summer was to led a team of 50 college aged students to reach out to the thousands of people Edinburgh...I spent several sessions teaching the principles of sowing and reaping, methods of reaching the current culture vs reaching past culture etc. I opened up the sessions for questions. 'How's does this work?' 'Duh?' 'What about?'

It was clear they just didn't understand... I believe outflow / kindness outreach or servant evangelism is much like a modern parable...It takes an experience to bring a paradigm shift to bring understanding.

How do people learn? They learn by doing. Having an experience.

The Experience
So out we went...the first people we met were from a radio station...we handed them a small coke...they asked what we were doing...the students replied...the radio station people were stunned... after a lengthy dialogue, answering why? what? how? who are you? they were then recorded for a show on BBC1.


The second person was contacted by the disbelieving (this stuff can't work, or relate) student leader. He handed out a coke to the interested person...the guy read the connect card attached to the can and asked, 'I've always wondered...How can I become a Christian? Can you tell me?'

Hear...Do...Understand.
Needless to say the team were now experienced. They had a positive outreach experience that was a shift that moved them from hearing, to doing, to understanding. The experience changed their perceptions and actions.

'Are you experienced?' jimi hendrix

The question how can we begin to give the people of our churches a positive outflow experience? What can you do? Communication is part of the process but a positive experience is needed.

Answer: plan a reverse outreach.

How? It's simple.
1. purchase some bottled water ( we have our own label)
2. put water in coolers
3. Have teams in the parking lot after the services hand out bottles of cold water with a smile

Tip: Our kindness to go geared to reach the people of the vineyard is the weekend before our Dayton Fourth of July BBQ and Water Everywhere Outreach.

During the plugs for the coming outreach we will hold up a bottle of water and announce the date and the time.

As people leave they will receive a bottle of water. Hopefully, they will become experienced, and will begin to realize that the coming outreach is easy, fun, and meets a need... thirst...

that's kindness to go in reverse

Sun Screen...a kindness to go

great fathers day at the vineyard...a solid day...positive vibe...encouraging message... and 2500 packs of SunBuddy Sunscreen with attached connect cards away out into the community...

We set the full wagons up by the exits...

During the plugs we encouraged people to take the sunscreen out to fairs, events, car races, picnics, swimming pools etc. You could see the ideas pop into people heads...

as they left they picked up the sunscreen on the way out...big buzz...kindness to go...

Helping to connect the dots

Here is a flyer we produced to inform the people of the vineyard how they can participate. On the back are the summer outreach opportunities.

Outward focused communication, combined with practical application, helps nurture the heart of the Vineyard people empowering them to reach outward to their family, friends and daily connections.
Steve Bowen

the dayton vineyard is an outward focused church...we embrace go.

We seek to promote our outwardfocused value toward the people of the Vineyard and beyond by creating fun outreach events that are experiential, participatory, image-based and connective.

Outreach is in our DNA.
Years ago Doug Roe and Scott Sliver came to Dayton to plant The Dayton Vineyard. As they started the church they decided to pool their money and began to reach out to the people of Dayton. The projects ranged from passing out cokes, cooking hot dogs on street corners, visiting the sick in hospitals, to taking bags of groceries to the poor of the city.

Each week we actively reach out to the people of Dayton. As we go, serve and reach we also intentionally seek to foster a warm, inviting atmosphere in the celebrations and on the campus.

We serve our way into the heart of our community. Our serving breaks down barriers, builds bridges and redefines Christ followers to our community.

How can you become involved?
catch our vision…actively go, serve, and reach

participate in our planned monthly outreaches

sign up in the program when events are advertised

prepare behind the scenes, your help is appreciated

submit your fresh outreach ideas by email to
sbowen@daytonvineyard.com

grab a few friends, or your small group and plan your own
outreach…we’ll help...just call the office 427.1912.

seek to become a kindhearted outward focused person