Getting Involved...
Creating Appealing Missions Displays
What Do Missionaries and Dick
Clark Have in Common?
Not much, but by the looks of some missions
displays...missionaries and Dick Clark never age!
es, cutting to the chase...our
pants or build momentum in mission supmissionaries never age on some porters.
displays due to the unfortunate
Attract them. Get them interested. Get
lack of updating our missions promotional them scanning and reading info. Get them
areas in our churches. So, here's the
participating in and supporting missions
test...if in your missions display you have
by praying, sending, giving, and going.
a picture of Michael McNamee in a powOn this and the following page, I have
der blue leisure suit
listed some ideas for
“I have even viewed a few mission
with his wife, Beryl,
creating an exciting,
and their two little
missions display.
displays that have some pictures of
girls, Tracey and
Still doubting the
missionaries who have gone on to glory.”
Ashley...well, Tracey
importance of a
is in college at Evangel University and
missions display? Talk to Patrick Rusch,
Ashley is old enough to drive (although,
the pastor at Pawnee. He says the first
Michael may still wear the leisure suit
year they developed their missions disoccasionally.) I have even viewed a few
play, which included prayer stations for
mission displays that have pictures of
their missionaries, their missions giving
missionaries who have gone on to glory!
increased by 85%! That’s well worth the
If your missions display never changes, effort, wouldn’t you say?
it will be difficult to attract new partici—Ron Heitman
Y
Ideas for Great
Missions Displays
• Designate a good traffic area
for your missions display where
people can stop and investigate.
• Assign a team of people to keep
the missions display updated.
• Design your display with room
for new missionary additions.
• Update information monthly.
• Update the overall look of your
display every year.
• Use current pictures of missionaries.
• Use great colors.
• Make your own missions certificates if old ones are outdated.
• Use identical frames and certificates for a uniform appearance.
• Use attractive borders.
• Add global or world graphics.
• Show the faces of the world.
• Display flags, posters and banners.
DFM Theme Banners
“Tell the Story” Horizontal banner 3' x 12' Item #717-029
“Tell the Story” Vertical banner 4 ½' x 6 ½' Item #717-030
Speed The Light "No Regrets" banner 3 ½' x 7' Item #733-050
Available through GPH 800.641.4310
World Flags
American Flags & Banner Co., 5220 Landon Rd. NE, Salem OR
97305, phone: 503.585.4294, website www.allflags.com
Maps and Country Information
www.maps.com or www.randmcnally.com
Rand McNally also has several stores in the Chicago area, including
Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg; phone 847.995.9606, fax
847.995.9408
Laminated 9' x 13' 8 color world mural, can be written on with dry
erase markers. Adhesive included for hanging. Available through
Hammacher Schlemmer, Item #66554G, $124.95.
• Have small lights illuminate a world
map of where your missionaries
are located.
• Have extra prayer cards from
missionaries in a sharp business
card dispenser.
• Display some intriguing foreign
items from various countries, i.e.
artwork, crafts dolls, tools, carvings.
• Show a historical graph of your
church’s missions giving.
• Give missionaries an annual raise in
your monthly support.
• Add a TV-VCR unit in repeat mode
and show DFM mission videos.
—Ron Heitman
Getting Involved...
MAXIMIZED
MISSIONS
1
Add to your display a large
mounted, working clock and
sharply display this quote around it:
"55 people go into eternity without
Christ every minute!
3333 people go into eternity without
Christ every hour!
80,000 people go into eternity without
Christ every day!
What are YOU doing about it?"
Or You could turn up the heat and say,
"In the last 60 seconds, 55 people went
into eternity without Christ! What are you
doing about it?"
2
Create and manage a missions
page on your church’s website
featuring all your missionaries. Include
maps of their nations, world news concerning their nations, photos, prayer lists,
reports, newsletters, missions pledge
information, project status and updates,
missions convention information, links to
the missionaries’ websites, church giving
data, a thank you for supporting missions,
various missions giving opportunities,
opportunities to e-mail prayers from
church members to missionaries.
3
Winning Missions Fund-raisers
Fill Cans. Give everyone a vertically stacked potato
chip can (not supposed to say “Pringles”—oops!) Ask
them to fill it with quarters. Amounts to about $120.
Leadership Match Challenge. Leaders decide how
much money they can personally raise together. Challenge members to raise the
same for leaders to match.
Wal-Mart Matching Funds. Most Wal-Marts will match funds up to $1,000-2,000
if your fund-raising event is held at their store (i.e., selling candy bars). You should
obtain the store manager’s approval prior to scheduling the event.
Envelope Idea. Place 50 envelopes on the altar, numbered 1-50. Issue a missions
challenge and invite people to take one or more envelopes. Be sure they understand
that the number 15 envelope represents $15, the 33 envelope represents $33, etc.
When you add 1+2+3+4....+50, giving will total $1,500. One hundred envelopes
add up to $5,050; 200 envelopes total $20,000. Write down whom took which
envelopes for thank you's and accountability reminders. Add some blank envelopes
and some of larger portions such as $150, $200, $300, $500, $1,000.
Missionathon. Distribute papers on which 10 squares are marked, each representing $10 ($100 total value.) Have members obtain sponsors for each square during a
6-week missionathon. Offer receipts for church credit and tax purposes. Sheets
drawn up with 25 $10 squares total $250, 100 $10 squares total $1,000.
Food. People will pay for food. Missions dinner theatres, international meals, and
multiple decorated rooms representing various countries and cultures are great
additions to any missions thrust.
Note: Most mission efforts should usually be short-term duration of four to six weeks.
—Ron Heitman
Create your own "Wailing Wall." I
preached in a large church earlier
this year that had all their missionaries’
pictures in nice frames around the side
and back walls of the sanctuary. The pictures were hung at eye level with the
names and nations of the missionaries
family displayed very classy. The pictures
literally almost surrounded the entire
sanctuary. During the middle of the
Sunday morning services when it came
time for special prayer, people automatically left their seats with their families
and stood in front of the pictures, laid
hands on them, and prayed. It was powerful! The pastor told me the idea came
from the concept of the wailing wall in
Israel.
—Ron Heitman
More Ideas for Missions Promotions
rint your own missions calendars for
the congregation with birthdays and
anniversaries of your missionaries...Make
your own coloring books, using graphics that
represent the countries of your missionaries...
Have your children correspond with missionary kids...Write a note of encouragement to a
missionary...Collect and make costumes from
around the world. Stage missions plays with
your children...Obtain flags of each of your
missionary countries...Hold an international
dinner and feature a dish from each of your
missionary countries...Integrate maps and
globes into your missions display...Invite missionaries often to speak, to share, to inspire...
Take your members on a missions trip...Use
music from around the world to create atmosphere at your conventions...Ask missionaries
P
to send you copies of their newsletters to share
with the congregation and missions groups...
Develop your own missions news bulletin that
provides information on missionaries, giving,
fund raisers, etc...Encourage your children to
collect postcards and stamps from your missionary countries...Make or have your children
make posters to promote missions...Hold a
Week of Prayer, praying for a specific need
each day (Missionaries, Tasks, Witnessing,
Thank you, Family, Sick, Services)...Plan a
special project to help missionaries: collect
shoes for orphanage, collect money for software, finance a vehicle, keeping your goal in
front of the givers and letting them see the
progress.
—Colin Phelps
Reprinted with permission