 |
God’s Great Outdoors
The GGO Field Team Genesis
The Great Commission is obediently carried out in many ways by God’s people all over this planet. Meeting people “where they’re at” and sharing the Truth of the Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven is the model presented by Jesus Christ in His earthly ministry. The ministry of God’s Great Outdoors is ideally equipped to reach unsaved outdoorsmen and women by sharing the mutual enjoyment of God’s Creation with those who do not yet have a relationship with Christ. In today’s world of independence and self-sufficiency many men wouldn’t be dragged kicking and screaming into a church on Sunday morning even if you told them their lives depended on it. However, those same guys will come running if you offer to provide them an opportunity to enjoy one of their favorite outdoor activities offered by GGO Field Teams.
While you may not have credibility with these people as you stand in a church and talk to them about God and Jesus, you will have their ear if you first earn their trust and respect as you share in outdoor recreational activities together. Over the course of time, your authentic friendship and humble openness in being a reflection of Christ’s love will have an effect! Your openness about your faith in Christ and what your relationship with Him means in your life will be one of the ways God draws your friends to Himself. If you feel led to get off the evangelical bench and out onto the playing field and you have been blessed and gifted with skills, talents, and/or interests in an outdoor recreational pursuit, then the God’s Great Outdoors Field Team concept might be for you.
Read and consider the Mission Statement of God’s Great Outdoors and read the Statement of Faith. If you desire to represent the ministry of God’s Great Outdoors by beginning a GGO Field Team you must be in agreement with these principles.
Mission Statement
The mission of God's Great Outdoors is to encourage the sharing of our interests in the outdoor adventures we enjoy with others.
Thus enabling our relationship to increase and provide a common ground from which to present the Gospel of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Statement of Faith
I. The Word of God: We believe the Bible is the fully inspired Word of God without error in the original manuscripts. Written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and thus has supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. - Peter 1:20, 21
II. The Trinity: We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three persons; that these are equal in every divine perfection, and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption. – Deut. 6:4; Cor. 13:14
III. God the Father: We believe in God the Father, an infinite, personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love. We believe He concerns himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that he hears and answers prayer, and that he saves from sin and death all who come to him through Jesus Christ. – John 3:16; I Tim. 6:15, 16; Eph. 4:6
IV. Jesus Christ: We believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten son, conceived of the Holy Spirit. We believe in His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles and teachings. We believe in His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension into Heaven, perpetual intercession for His people, and personal, visible return to Earth.
V. Holy Spirit: We believe in the Holy Spirit who came forth from the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify, and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ. We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Christ, and that he is an abiding helper, teacher and guide. – John 14:16, 17; John 16:8-11; Acts 1:8
VI. Regeneration: We believe all men are sinners by nature and by choice, and are, therefore, under condemnation. We believe those who repent of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ as Savior are regenerated by the Holy Spirit. – Romans 3:23; I John 1:9; Eph. 2:8
VII. Christian Conduct: We believe a Christian should live for the glory of God and the well being of His followers, that his conduct should be blameless before the world; that he should be a faithful steward of his possessions; and that he should seek to realize for himself and others the full stature of maturity in Christ. – Phil. 3-10; Gal. 5:16, 22-25; James 1:27
VIII. Religious Liberty: We believe that every human being has direct access to God, and is responsible to God alone in all matters of faith. – Heb.10:18-22
IX. Church Cooperation: We believe in the universal church, a living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and all regenerated persons are members. We believe in the local church and encourage every believer, as part of God’s family, to regularly attend the fellowship of His church. – Ps. 122:1; Peter 2:5, 6; Col. 1:18
X. Christian Witness: We believe every believer has a scriptural mandate to share his life of faith in Christ. We believe the only Christ many will ever see is the Christ they see in us, thereby making our personal lives the most powerful influence for an effective Christian witness. – Matt. 28:19, 20; John 20:21; Matt. 5:16
XI. The Last Things: We believe in the personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth and the establishment of His Kingdom. We believe in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment, the eternal joy of the righteous, and the endless suffering of the wicked. – Rev. 22:12; I Theses. 4:`6, 17; Luke 16:22-25
XII. Satan and Hell: We believe in the personality of Satan, The Prince and Power of this world, and his ultimate defeat by Jesus Christ. We believe in a literal hell, a place prepared for Satan and his followers. Pet. 5:8; Eph. 2:2; Matt. 25:41
The GGO Field Team
The single most important consideration in any evangelical ministry activity is the individual’s relationship with Christ. You cannot give what you do not have. This is not about you. Your heart must be to glorify Christ, not just to be able to say “I’m active in ministry”. Your service to Him must be an overflow of your love and gratitude for His grace and mercy. Only after you have prayed and listened for God’s leading should you share your vision with your pastor and others at your church. Part of what you should be in prayer about is who will be involved. Pray that God will assemble your ministry team. Pray that He will send workers into the harvest field for the harvest is truly rich! Your GGO Field Team should be comprised first and foremost of obedient followers of Jesus Christ. Because your audience will include serious outdoorsmen your team should include skilled, competent outdoorsmen. Get together with those you’ve invited to participate and share your vision. Pray together that God would lead you as you seek to glorify Him. There are virtually infinite ways to enjoy the beauty of God’s Creation so keep an open mind about what types of activities you’ll present. As your team begins to take shape it would be wise to begin looking at your area and the most heavily subscribed outdoor activities. If mountain biking is big in your area consider an event involving a ride and picnic. If hunting is big, consider having a “Field Day” with shooting ranges for target practice. If you are blessed with lakes or a river, consider a boating or fishing event. In each of these cases you’ll have a ready-made audience since these activities are already prevalent. Your job will be to provide opportunity and to gently share the reason for the hope you have!
GGO Field Team Logistics
When you’ve prayerfully decided on an event, the most important task at hand will be organizing/delegating responsibility to individuals for each aspect of the event. You want one person who will be a lead worker plus whoever they choose for their committee. Some of the areas of consideration are: promotion and publicity, reservations of venues, insurance, procuring donations for prizes, financial accountability and funding of your event, procuring supplies, food preparation, service and clean-up, lining up volunteers for event assistance, handicapped-accessible facilities, evangelical literature and outreach, prayer support.
The GGO Field Team Leader should coordinate meetings with the Committee Leaders. It will help greatly to have an individual Committee Leader to speak for each group after they’ve met with their committee members. Some of the efficiencies we’ve developed over the past five years include using the church’s insurance umbrella plan (with prior authorization), using public facilities like trail systems and parks for events, utilizing public service announcements in local papers and on local radio stations for promotion, partnering with other evangelical churches, and creating durable signs etc to be used for multiple events.
The God’s Great Outdoors DVD training tool is a wonderful resource for accelerating your learning curve. You’d be wise to view this tool with your team to glean benefits of many other peoples’ experience. No sense in reinventing a perfectly good wheel! Make sure your church body is kept informed of your ministry activities and always strive to involve more believers in your ministry. A GGO Field Team creates ready-made witnessing opportunities for all followers of Christ to share His love with the unsaved.
God’s Great Outdoors Field Team Application
We welcome you and your church’s interest in considering the formation of one of the God’s Great Outdoors Field Teams. We would first suggest you, your pastor and perhaps a group of men and women who enjoy time in God’s Creation, spend some time in prayer about what the Lord has laid on your hearts. Then acquire a copy of the DVD pastor and lay leaders teaching series titled The Trail To Adventure! on outdoor outreach evangelism. It will be useful in equipping your prospective GGO Field Team. The second disc of the four hour two DVD set has a PDF file that holds the 180 page book quality and printable manual. Print enough copies for your entire ministry team. After all this, if God has placed the spiritual needs of the unsaved sportsmen in your circle of influence, and called you to reach out to them through outdoor outreach, then the next step could be becoming a God’s Great Outdoors Field Team.
We started with only two GGO Field Teams (See GGO Field Team History) and stayed at the two experimental teams until the name God’s Great Outdoors had completed the registration with the “United States Patent and Trademark Office.” The completion date for the process was January 24th, 2006. We have now also completed the process of compiling the materials gathered from the first two GGO Field Teams and are ready to begin granting permission to use the name of God’s Great Outdoors to other additional teams that wish to minister under the banner as a GGO Field team.
Requires Churches Pastor or Church’s Head Elder’s Signature
1)___________________________We have read and agree with God’s Great Outdoors Mission Statement & Statement of Faith.
2)___________________________We have read the GGO Field Team History and plan to follow those well executed examples, as God so directs through our Team prayer time.
3)___________________________We agree to keep the GGO Field Team under the authority of our local church named here.______________________________________
4)___________________________We agree that GGO Field Team funds be kept by the church and may require a separate account. (Field Teams cannot file for a 501 (c) 3 IRS Tax Exemption under the name of God’s Great Outdoors. They are part of their church!
5)____________________________We understand becoming a GGO Field Team gives us the right to use God’s Great Outdoors on banners and printed materials relating to our fund raisers, outreaches or other ministry efforts. (Field Teams cannot place the name of God’s Great Outdoors on items to be sold, on articles of clothing, for profit or that would disgrace the efforts of the other GGO Field Teams, National Ministry or Jesus Christ.
Violations of this signed agreement will revoke the permission to use the name God’s Great Outdoors!
6)____________________________We agree to mail an annual report to the GGO’s Home Office, by every December 31 on what our GGO Field Team has done for the past year and what our GGO Field Team plans to do as outreaches for the year to come.
Please print church address, phone number and date this signed form and return by mail.
God’s Great Outdoors
GGO Field Team Concept
“You Need Troops!” Ken Beck
No matter how dedicated to serving in outdoor ministry you are, you cannot do it effectively on your own. You need a team! You may be the leader of this team (every wheel needs a hub) and it will be up to you to maintain a biblical perspective and Spirit-led direction. Eventually you’ll have a sizable number of volunteers helping with specific events but your team is your core group of people you can count on to get the job done.
“Pray, Planning Preparation & More Prayer!” Gerry Caillouet
If you have prayerfully determined that God wants you to share the Good News through outdoors evangelism then you should be assembling a team of like-minded believers who will make up the “many parts” of the “one body”.
“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give.....” Psalm 37:4, 5
Even more important than what specific skills or talents an individual has, is the spiritual walk that person who will be working with your team is on. You cannot give away what you do not have so it is important that your team be made up of Bible reading, Bible obeying, followers of Jesus Christ. You can leave it up to God which particular skills they have because He has been preparing them for this very moment and knows exactly what He plans to do. *
“Let us not give up meeting together, as some are….” Hebrews 10:25
Assembling a team for ministry can take some time so don’t be in too big a rush to get your first event off the ground. Share your vision for this ministry with some of the people you know from church and see what their reaction is. Do they sense a common calling? Do they have a passion for seeing the lost come to salvation? Are they solution oriented people that can overcome obstacles and resistance? You’re sure to encounter some opposition and challenge in outdoor ministry!
“Two are better then one, because they have a good….” Ecclesiastes 4:9
Don’t limit yourself to just your church. In God’s eyes there really is only one church and we are all supposed to be working together for HIS glory and for the expansion of the Kingdom of Heaven. You may discover that there is still some “us versus them” mentality in churches (maybe even your own!) but this is not a godly perspective. However, there is no need to create conflict so if a pastor at another church chooses not to permit collaboration then simply, prayerfully, move on.
“Keep The Main Thing, The Main Thing!” Ken Beck
Once you’ve gotten a group of committed individuals identified you can have a meeting with them to discuss the vision for this ministry. This is the point at which you can solidify your purpose which must be to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with unsaved outdoorsmen. Having established that, you can then begin to brainstorm about ways to reach unsaved outdoor loving people in your area. (Follow the guide lines given on page number III of The Trail To Adventure! teaching series as you prepare to plan your outreach events.)
“Never do something someone else is doing or can do, when there is so much to be done that no one will do or can do!” Dawson Troutman
Since there may already be some game dinners or other outreaches in your area, you should think about doing something that is not currently being done so you have a fresh approach. Remember the people you are seeking to evangelize are activity based people. That’s why they love the outdoors. Participation-based events of a sort that are popular in your area are likely to succeed since you’re simply making available an opportunity for people to do something they already like to do. Some examples of this for our local field team include canoeing on the local river and ATV riding on the areas extensive trail network.
“Though one may be over powered, two can defend….” Ecclesiastes 4:12
Your team needs to be able to divide up the tasks equitably so no one person gets too heavy a load. You’ll also want to have a treasurer who can keep track of costs and income from fund-raisers. Schedule planning meetings well in advance and assign the task of notification to someone so everyone is aware of the next meeting. We like to do potlucks at our house for the meetings and we derive a great fellowship benefit even as we plan the next event. Having a secretary to record meeting minutes is a big help in staying on track!
“And my God will meet all your needs according to….” Philippians 4:19
Your ministry can do some fund-raising activities to subsidize the cost of other events. We do a brat fry and have a silent auction to raise needed ministry funds. This year we’re considering a “Polar Bear Plunge” fundraiser! All money for this ministry is in a dedicated bank account under the authority of our local church. It is very important to have precise accountability for all funds, both incoming and outgoing. As you grow, you’ll have a chance to support the national ministry of God’s Great Outdoors and possibly you could underwrite the cost of the broadcast of “The Trail to Adventure” radio program on a local radio station. (Page 130,131 in GGO manual)
“Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree….” Matthew 18:19, 20
Our local field team is under the authority of and insured under the local church. This does not mean we limit participation to just our church. We enjoy the regular participation of at least three local churches on our field team and many more for individual events. We also make an effort to inform pastors of other congregations about this ministry and invite them to partner with us in reaching the lost in this outdoors ministry. Many pastors are praying for just such an opportunity!
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord….”Jeremiah 29:11
As a field team leader you’ll have many opportunities to network with community resources for your events such as the local newspaper, radio station, youth groups, natural resources personnel and many others. Be proactive in establishing these connections and you may discover that you have lots of opportunities to witness to these people too in the course of your interactions with them. They will be curious about your ministry and you get to share the love of Christ with them as you explain what and why you do what you do. You may also discover great opportunities to partner with other existing Christian ministries at some of your events. Remember, we’re all on the same team, God’s team. To God alone be the Glory!
"…Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord Almighty.” Zechariah 4:6
Since we can accomplish nothing eternally significant apart from God’s help, it is critically important that prayer be a primary component of your local ministry team. Pray for each other, pray for your community, pray for God’s leading in each event, pray for God’s protection over each event, pray that God would prepare the hearts of many people to hear the Good News as you share it at these events. Prayer, Planning, Preparation and Prayer!
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on….” Proverbs 3: 5, 6
We find it helpful to have an annual review meeting to evaluate our past ministry efforts and to plan for the upcoming year. This is also a time to re-commit to serving in the coming year. The whole idea of the team is to have a group of people you can count on and achieve predetermined goals with as you move ahead in serving our Lord.
(See Page, 175 of the Trail To Adventure! DVD)
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” Mark 12:30
God’s Great Outdoors, Media Profile: Tenth Year Anniversary!
The now, both National, and Internationally syndicated, twenty-five minute weekly radio program first aired on July 6th, 1996, on Cedarville University Christian Radio Network. At present the program airs on almost two hundred stations in the USA and Canada. Plus, the listeners can hear on the Web the weekly and eighteen archived programs “Anytime Online”, thus the audience is worldwide. God’s Great Outdoors is a 5 01 C3 tax exempt organization and a media ministry, developed, produced, and hosted by outdoorsman, Gerry Caillouet, who has been using much of his time a field and stream to see men, women, and children come to a saving knowledge of the Creator Jesus Christ for close to two decades. Featuring both Christian Ministry Leaders and Professional Outdoorsmen in interviews, the radio program explores the numerous ways to use God’s Creation to evangelize others in our own sphere of influence, plus deepen relationships with those family and friends who already know Christ.
The ministry of God’s Great Outdoors evangelism outreach instructional material and ministry tool development has evolved from one area to the next. From radio broadcast, to Internet, then those tips and lessons shared by Gerry and his guests were compiled into a one-day teaching series done across the Nation called, The Trail To Adventure! These “pastors & lay leaders training conferences” have been helping churches do outreach theme events to reach the outdoor recreationally minded people who recreate in our nation’s outdoors every year. The conferences were turned into a four hour, two DVD teaching series with a PDF file that allows the printing of a book quality, 180 page manual. The churches are licensed to print copies of the manuals so they can do them at their place of worship. From there GGO has produced an almost three hour long DVD Tract feathering over 40 Pro Christian sportsmen titled: True Stories Of Pro Outdoorsmen On The Trail To Adventure!
With 149 million people over the age of 16 recreating each year in the USA, add the 16 year olds and younger, that is an incredibly large mission field. In fact, it is more than half our nation’s population and it is right outside our own backdoors! One key point: 93% of the time if you can get the father/ husband to come to Christ the whole family follows! But, if it is the only the mother/wife, that comes to receive Jesus as Savior, just 34% of the time, the family follows. Outdoor Outreaches are drawing men to Christ! God’s Great Outdoors would be more than happy to partner in ministry with evangelistically minded churches; we’d welcome personal contact by phone, any time at (937) 418-9684 till 2:30 EST, Monday thru Saturday.
GGO Field Team History
12/28/2006
This First God’s Great Outdoors Field Team Began In February Of 2002
The following is a description of our five year history as a God's Great Outdoors Field Team as well as a few word pictures of some of our events. Please feel free to use what you'd like from this information. I'm always happy to answer questions of folks who are undertaking this wonderful mission so please feel free to give me a call or email me, Craig Johnson at (715) 963-2713 Home/Office charcoalvalley@centurytel.net
Parkview Church is a small, Baptist General Conference church in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. Located in a small town in west central Wisconsin, an area dominated by outdoor recreational activities. A majority of the area residents and a significant majority of the visitors to our area enjoy the region’s many recreational opportunities. It has been our goal to share the love of Jesus Christ through shared enjoyment of recreational activities in God’s great outdoors! Our weekly attendance averages about 120 people with actual membership of about 45 people. The city of Black River Falls has about 4000 residents. We are largely a rural area with outdoor recreation being a primary area of interest. There is much outdoor recreation related tourism in our area with large tracts of public lands for hunting, fishing, boating, ATVing, biking, skiing and more. Parkview Church has been developing a God’s Great Outdoors Field Team since 2002. In February of that year a couple of us from Parkview attended a “Trail to Adventure!” training conference in the Appleton, Wisconsin area. While in attendance we became quite inspired to build an outdoors ministry in our home church.
NOTE: Soon after getting our local GGO Field Team established our church hosted a "Trail to Adventure!” Pastor & Lay Leader Training Conference so churches in our western part of the state could send representatives and expand the presence and ministry outreach of God's Great Outdoors outdoor theme evangelism. There have been several other churches in our area that have undertaken various outdoors-related ministry events thereby broadening the reach of the Gospel to more unsaved outdoorsmen and women.
Following that Trail To Adventure! training conference, we began plans to develop an outdoor ministry team. After much prayer and discussion we elected to begin our ministry by hosting a “Fall Field Day”. This event is designed to provide a variety of hunting related activities for participants. We went into the process inviting others to participate in this ministry. Our first Fall Field Day was held on my 120 acre hobby farm in the Black River Falls area. The event was activity-based, we set up a 100 yard rifle range for deer rifle sighting-in, and a clay pigeon thrower for shotguns. We had an archery range for the bow hunters along with an expert bow-tuner to assist. We also provided certified Hunter Education Instructors at all shooting station’s, for the rifle, shotgun and archery events. Other activities offered at the Fall Field Day included a silent auction of new and used sporting good donations. This event allowed people to get some excellent buys on sporting goods with all proceeds being applied to the ministry of
God’s Great Outdoors, both locally and nationally. We also had a potluck-style game feed with many people bringing their favorite game recipes to share. There were some non-game items as well for the less adventurous participants. Some of the items served over the past five years of this event include squirrel pie, caribou, moose, bear, deep-fried turkey, smoked salmon and lots of venison recipes. Our GGO Field Day “NOW” attracts about 200 people, many of whom put this event on their calendar a year in advance! It is a great witness of the love of Christ
Publicity was handled by flyers posted around town, (free radio community service announcements); announcements on the Chamber of Commerce “Upcoming Events Bulletin”, invitations to other churches in the area are invited too! Promotion on local radio stations can be enhanced by sponsoring GGOon the station weekly, (See attached two pages about God’s Great Outdoors Radio Program.) and in the local paper as well as person to person invitations. The stated purpose of the event was to have believers in Jesus Christ invite unsaved friends and loved ones to share in a day of fun and fellowship with Christians. We provided evangelistic literature to all attendees and all the volunteers were encouraged to interact with the attendees and to freely share the love of Christ with them. Attendance for our first event was well over 100 people. Many friendships were born and all in attendance were blessed with the presence of the Holy Spirit. The principle behind this ministry is “relationship evangelism” as opposed to “hit and run” evangelism. These people are our friends, neighbors and loved ones. We see them on a routine basis in our everyday lives. We seek to bear witness to Christ’s love for them and to provide a forum for discussions about matters of eternal significance. We also model our Savior’s example as humble servants. As we build these connections we develop the trust of these people and earn credibility as we share our love of God and their need for salvation.
We have invited participation from the WI Department of Natural Resources and each year they send a number of their staff as volunteers to assist. They also bring a “Laser-Shot” trailer which is like a giant video game used for firearms safety instruction and marksmanship training. This is very popular with the kids. For young participants we’ve added some games and team skills-building exercises and for the past two years we’ve had another ministry called “Josh’s Hope” come set up their field archery, BB gun and fish casting events. These are designed for the youngest of outdoorsmen with kids as little as three years old shooting archery! For many of the kids this is their first exposure to outdoors activities and they seem to love it!
Evangelism efforts are made in many ways at our events. There is always a literature give-away with GGO Cover Versions of the Gospels of John, Tracts published by GGO, plus GGO Bookmarkers and many other pieces free for the taking. We post scriptural messages in the areas where people congregate (food area primarily) and for a couple years we had a traveling missionary set up his RV on site for people who wanted to sit down and visit about their faith. Our experience has been that “relationship evangelism” is most effective. While we make no effort to tabulate “saved souls” or “recommitments, we are all committed to sharing the Gospel of the Kingdom with participants and invite them to come to church if they desire and certainly to attend all of our other GGO events.
Over the past five years our ministry team has grown to include participants from several other local churches of various denominations and we’ve expanded to a schedule of more than a half dozen events each year. We are largely self-supporting. Some of our events are designed to raise money for ministry operating expenses. Even these fund-raisers are an opportunity for evangelism. For example we host an annual GGO Hunting Camp Brat and Burger Fry in the parking lot of a local Wal-Mart each winter. Brat fries are a summer tradition here in WI but there aren’t many of them in the winter due to weather conditions. We set up a rather extensive “Hunting Camp” including a wall tent with woodstove, pack horses, all sorts of outdoor gear and we dress in traditional hunting clothes to simulate a mountain hunting camp. We grill brats and burgers and serve several other side items. The wall tent is a place for our customers to warm themselves as they enjoy a grilled brat and to visit with ministry team members. We also have GGO Gospels of John (www.pocketpower.org) and other evangelism literature for all who come. We explain that the proceeds from this event fund other GGO events throughout the year. We also hand out handbills with the schedule of the coming events. While it tends to be a very cold, long day for the ministry team, our hearts are always warmed by the wonderful reception we get from the community.
We have expanded our schedule of events annually to include: a fundraiser called the “GGO Hunting Camp Brat and Burger Fry”; a “GGO Father’s Day Canoe Trip” on the Black River; a “GGO Group ATV Ride and Picnic”; a “GGO Coulee Cruise Motorcycle Ride and Chicken Barbecue Lunch”; “GGO Black River Country Summer Social” which is a combination grilled steak and sweet corn dinner with the music preformed by a Christian country/gospel/bluegrass band (this event is huge with over 350 steak dinners sold last year); we are developing a horse-back trail ride event for 2007 to be held in early fall and of course the “GGO Fall Field Day” is an annual event every October. The events we’ve chosen are a reflection of the interest and gift areas of our outdoor ministry team. That being said, it is crucial that a fledgling ministry spend much time in prayer about how they will engage in outdoor ministry. The most effective evangelism is accomplished when sincere followers of Christ share their interests, skills and experiences with the unsaved. You can determine what types of events your local team will conduct only after you’ve assembled and developed the team of committed volunteers.
Our team meets at least every other month throughout the year to conduct planning sessions and for fellowship. Our meetings are usually potluck affairs with family members frequently in attendance. One of the keys to well-run events is delegation of responsibilities. There needs to be a committed leader in charge of each aspect of an event. That leader is then responsible to assemble his or her team to carry out their duties. There is a central committee of people that are involved with every event while many other volunteers participate in one or more events. Again we utilize free publicity whenever possible including public service announcements on radio and newspapers.We've discovered that the local paper will often do a feature article or take pictures of unusual events so we try to keep them informed of what is going on with GGO. We also use inexpensive posters around town. The most effective and constructive promotion though is word-of-mouth invitation. After all, our point is to make connections with people and what better way to do that than to invite them to participate in something they already like to do! We begin and end all of our meetings with prayers that God will bless this ministry, that He will send more workers into this rich harvest field and that lives will be changed for eternity as a result of Christ’s love reflected in His people.
While our ministry team is made up of roughly 15 committed members, we invite everyone in the church body to become involved by bringing an unsaved loved one or friend to these events. It really is a ready-made witness opportunity for all believers.
Our GGO ministry team is under the authority of Parkview Church and is covered by the church’s liability insurance. We have a separate checking account for the ministry through the church and raise as much of our funding as we are able through the silent auction and the GGO Brat/Burger Fry. There are several other local churches from various denominations that are involved with this local GGO Field Team. This has been a wonderful example of the Body of Christ expanding beyond denominational boundaries.
Local GGO Field Teams and their churches can also raise funds to sponsor the “Trail to Adventure!” radio program as well as donate to the national ministry of God’s Great Outdoors. (Again see attached two pages about God’s Great Outdoors Radio Program.)
The late Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, was credited with the following description of what we are seeking to do in outdoor evangelism/ministry:
“Effective evangelism is sharing of the love of Jesus Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results up to God.” God’s Great Outdoors Field Teams are ideally suited to reaching unsaved sportsmen and women because of a mutual love for outdoors recreation. Many of these folks couldn’t be dragged into a church to hear the gospel but God has drawn them to Himself by giving them a love for His Creation. We need only to tap into that love and invite them to share in it with us. How do I know this will work? Because it worked with me, Praise Be To God!
NOTE: Outdoor Ministry is how Craig Johnson came to receive Jesus Christ as Savior!
See God’s Great Outdoors DVD; True Stories Of Pro Outdoorsmen On The Trail To Adventure!
God’s Great Outdoors Field Team Events
Our GGO ATV Ride/Picnic has attracted between 20-30 people. We have ride leaders who conduct the group ride on WI State ATV trails and other ministry volunteers meet the group at a picnic site with a prepared lunch. We commence the ride with an explanation of God's Great Outdoors and a prayer for safety and fellowship and of gratitude for the beauty of God's creation. We also have prayer over the meal and hand out evangelism literature.
Out group GGO Motorcycle Event attracts about 20 bikers with each participant receiving a “biker Bible”, a route map and a “rag tract” (shop rag with imprinted Gospel message). We ride as a group through some of the prettiest countryside this side of heaven and attend a chicken barbecue. Again this event is begun with a welcome, an explanation of God’s Great Outdoors and a prayer for safety and fellowship. Many great connections are being made with local motorcycle enthusiasts.
Our GGO Hunting Camp Brat/Burger Fry sells something on the order of 50 pounds of brats and 40 pounds of hamburgers, lots of “camp pies” and everyone in attendance is exposed to spoken or written evangelism. In the course of the day we interact with probably a couple hundred people.
Our GGO Father’s Day Canoe Trip has historically involved 20-30 canoes on a leisurely paddle down the Black River with a stop for a sandbar lunch, swimming and often a beach-football game. This event can be a little tricky to coordinate in terms of keeping people together and ending on time. Kind of like ‘herding cats’.
Our GGO Black River Country Summer Social which is the combination of grilled steak and sweet corn dinner and music preformed by a local Christian country/gospel/bluegrass band. This event is huge with over 350 people in attendance in 2006!
Our GGO Field Day attracts about 200 people, many of whom put this event on their calendar a year in advance! It is a great witness of the love of Christ
Note: Craig Johnson’s comment from the segment on “fund raising” for future events includes mention of the “support gifts” this GGO Field Team sends the GGO Home Office from time to time, which is an incredible blessing! (Page 8 in reference to proceeds applied to the national ministry of God’s Great Outdoors.) These checks have come at some of the most critical times in God’s Great Outdoors past ten years! They are not in any way a requirement of GGO Field Teams. But it is because God knew our needs and used this GGO Field Team to help us in our time of need! They knew nothing of the fund level at the GGO Home Office; it was a “God Thing!” Cyndi & I Praise God for the “Troops” at Parkview Church GGO Field Team. Thanks to all!
This Second God’s Great Outdoors Field Team Began Development In 2003
Bethany Church, La Crosse, Wisconsin
Bethany Church, La Crosse, WI
GGO Field Team
Our Bethany Church GGO Field Team, Men’s Outdoor Ministry was started in 2003. God placed the concept of this type of ministry on our hearts and the God’s Great Outdoors. Pastor and Lay Leader Conference titled The Trail to Adventure! led the way! Thanks again also to Craig Johnson and the Black River Falls, WI, Parkview Church for their leadership and guidance.
Below is Bethany Churches own personal GGO’s Field Team’s Mission Statement.
What is God’s Great Outdoors?
What is Gods Great Outdoors (GGO)?
1. GGO is a fellowship/outreach ministry with a strong emphasis on youth and family.
2. There is a void of opportunities for men to connect with the church and it’s
people.
3. GGO presents a wonderful common ground for the sportspersons of this community to
share their passion for God’s Great Outdoors and their “Faith.”
What is the purpose of GGO?
1. Certainly Fellowship for all ages and all gender is a primary goal. GGO provides a connection
to bring all of us to Jesus Christ through our love of His magnificent natural creations
2. However, to be fully effective we must successfully “Outreach” to sportspersons who are not
completely confident in their “Faith.”
2a. We hope to reach out to the casual church attendee…the person who attends occasionally
and might not feel comfortable or interested in becoming more involved with their church
or learning more about God in their lives. We hope that GGO provides a common ground
for those interested in the great outdoors to connect with the church.
2b. We hope to reach out to the huge population of area outdoorsmen.
We believe most sportsmen have religious beliefs yet many do not feel the need to attend or
be involved with a church. Most sportsmen take pride in being a hunter/outdoorsman.
We would like to foster the understanding that you can take pride in being a
hunter/outdoorsman and can still profess your “Faith” and be involved with the church.
How can one get involved with our GGO Field Team?
1. Just pick up one of our brochures and plan on attending a GGO event.
2. You are welcome to join our GGO Leadership Team; just let us know through the contact
or just come visit with any of the guys in camo at our GGO display
3. Consider starting a GGO ministry at your church; and contact us for ideas and guidance
For more information and to get involved contact;
Bethany Evangelical Free Church 3936 CTH, LaCrosse, WI 608-781-2466
Bethany Evangelical Free Church Contact Is Lou George (608) 792-1566
Listen
Online Now! -- Current
weekly program or Archived
programs
Trouble playing sound files? Read
Media Tips for Free Software
Return To Home Page