In outreach we want to find ways to get into good conversations about Jesus! – and one way is through surveys or questionnaires in our church’s neighbourhood…
Here are some questions you could try out as a starting point:
Q.1 Have you heard of our church? [It’s good for people to know who they’re talking to – and very possibly they’ve never heard of you and should!]
Q.2 Do you ever go to church, and if so how often?
Q.3 Do you ever read the Bible, and if so how often? [This and the previous question are hopefully useful reminders of the true state of affairs]
Q.4 Do you admire Jesus’ teaching?
Q.5 Do you think Jesus practised what he preached?
Q.6 Jesus said several times that he was God. What is your reaction?
Q.7 Do you believe Jesus rose from the dead?
If not, what do you think happened?
If so, what implications do you think this fact has for us today?
Q.8 If it were possible for you to know the living God personally, would you want to do so?
Note: These questions are meant to give opportunities to begin discussion. So if you’re familiar with just why we believe in Jesus’ resurrection (see https://petelowmanresources.com/foundations-2-5-reasons-for-faith-2-the-resurrection-these-are-the-facts/), it will help you in discussing Q.7. Then logically, Q.4 and Q.5 should prevent certain responses to Q.6. And Q.3 and Q.8 may provide good opportunities to begin, or to invite somebody to, an exploratory bible study for people who aren’t yet following Jesus; see https://petelowmanresources.com/latest-foundations-23-sharing-jesus-evangelistic-bible-study-reading-jesus-biography-with-friends-who-arent-yet-christians/.
You can summarize the results of the questionnaire (ethically you ought to), with comments, and then get them published, and/or print and hand them out – which will give still more opportunities for discussion!
So “don’t be afraid to ask questions”!!
(You’ll find other resources like this on https://petelowmanresources.com/category/church-resources/ .)
