10 Ministry Ideas for Your Church This Summer

Hand Idea by miracle at www.freeimages.com

Hand Idea by miracle at www.freeimages.com

I wanted to share a list of ideas for your church to consider this summer.  This is certainly not an exhaustive list and I welcome any ideas you may have that we could use here at Seven Oaks.  You probably have heard of these before, but they may be a good reminder.

  1. Have some “Church/Eat/Church” Sundays.  For the past several years we would have three Sundays in the summer where we would have a fellowship meal and then an early afternoon worship.  We would bring in a local guest speaker for the afternoon service.  It allowed us to hear some local preachers and not conflict with their regular speaking schedule.  It affords good fellowship and allows people to have an open  evening in the summer.
  2. An Ice Cream Supper night. This has been a long standing tradition at Seven Oaks and many congregations.  We typically have visitors and I try to coordinate my sermon around this evening.
  3. Special Sunday and Wednesday nights.  Summer is a good time to change up the typical order of activities for Sunday and Wednesday nights.  Many churches have a summer series where they invite guest speakers.  For years we have done a summers series with our own men on Wednesday nights.  You can spruce up Sunday nights some in the summer with special reports, prayer nights, singing nights, and fellowship afterwards.
  4. Bible Investigators.  This was a program Amanda and I developed.  We are not using it this year, but you can read this post to find more information about it.  You could use our program with slight modifications or take the idea and make it better.  It is a program for kids through 6th grade that focuses on memory learning.
  5. Family night.  We move our evening service to 5:00 and have a cookout afterwards for families and kids.  We have organized games and activities for the kids.
  6. Video Sermon Series.  Adam Faughn and the Lebanon Road Church of Christ have organized and developed this new ministry.  It is a video series that can be used by churches for free.  The topic is “Building Godly Families” and involves a list of very capable speakers, except for one who did not feel like his lesson went well!  You can find out more at this link.
  7. We Are the Sermon.  This is a community service project where your church finds projects in the community to do on a Sunday afternoon.  We are doing two of these this year.  We have worship at 2:00 and then go serve.  We mow yards, clean forgotten cemeteries, trim bushes, and take appreciation gifts to health care workers.
  8. Day Camp for Youth.  Ryan and other youth leaders did this ministry last year.  Simply invite children from area churches and the community and have a day camp for a week.  Plan games, devotionals, and other activities.  Let your teens serve as counselors and have a great time.
  9. Summer Reading Series.  Most libraries do a summer reading program.  Churches could take the idea and have a reading time for young preschool children.  If you have a playground you could allow time for play and have parents bring a sack lunch.
  10. A Give Away Day.  Your congregation could do a free yard sale like items give away on a Saturday morning.  You could collect back to school supplies and do a community give away or provide free vegetables from church members gardens to the needy.

 What ideas can you share?

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