When?

A Time For Everything

I am going to share with you everything I learned about creating a home-based Bible study in my neighborhood. The Lord’s exciting successes and my utter failures will be laid open for you to copy or avoid. You will be able to print invitations to pass out in your own neighborhood. You will find resources for everything from recipes to housekeeping tips and teaching material. Checklists will be available for you to download and save. We will talk about schedules and snack sign up, meeting agendas and meeting the challenges of ministry.

But first, please open your heart

and meet some of the women

you may welcome into your home.

Eighteen women came to my first Café. Three of us – myself, Bonnie and Betty – had lived on adjoining properties for five years but had never met. Linda lived one street over, but our paths had never crossed. Mary Ann had been my husband’s first grade teacher, but we were barely on a first name basis.

One woman candidly shared, “I call myself a Christian, but I don’t really do anything religious. I own a Bible but I’ve never read it. For me to even open a Bible would be a big deal. I see people with faith go through things like I’ve gone through – and even worse – but they seem to have a hope that I don’t have. I know I can get it, but I don’t know how. I don’t even know where to start.”

Although it took her nearly a year to return, this woman has started to explore the hope that we have (1 Peter 3:15) at my Neighborhood Café.

If you have prayerfully determined that God is calling you to open your heart and your home to your own Neighborhood Café ministry, the first decision you must make is when to meet.

What day will you meet?

Is your street lined with homes full of school-aged children? Then choose a weekday.
Do most of your neighbors work during the week? Consider a weekend.
Don’t forget Sunday evening as a possibility.
Obviously, choose a time that works with your schedule and your family’s needs.

What time will you meet, and for how long?

Pay attention to the traffic patterns in your neighborhood. When do your neighbors take a walk or water their lawns? How long do their newspapers sit at the end of the driveway before they retrieve them? When are the lights on?
Meeting for one and a half hours allows enough time to get to know each other and share a significant teaching time without taking up their entire day, or yours.
If your meeting time falls during mealtime, be prepared to provide food.
Mornings, afternoons and evenings are all doable times.

How often will you meet?

Meeting every other week is a comfortable commitment that isn’t overwhelming. However, if you miss one week you miss a whole month, and it can be harder to form close relationships.
Weekly meetings allow for a consistent and close knit group but this can be a demanding schedule. It does, however, ensure that your house stays clean!

Tip: You might consider taking off the laidback summer months of June, July and August, when attendance will almost always be light. Your neighbors might also appreciate a shortened schedule around the holidays in late November and December. Generally, January through May and September through November or early December work well for most women.

Whenever you choose to host your Café, any day or time will include some women or exclude others. Focus on those who will be able to attend.

Set a daily alarm for the time you’ve chosen, and as it rings begin praying now for calendars, schedules and hearts to be open for this divine appointment with our Savior.

It is commitment time, Girlfriend!

Click here to print a Neighborhood Cafe 2010 calendar. Decide which day of the week you will meet. Decide on the time and frequency. Decide when you will begin, giving yourself at least four weeks to prepare and pass out your invitations and decide on a teaching.