More to Life is a movement that is seeking to join in with God’s passion and mission to reach the lost. Key to this are the “multipliers” who will equip others to become part of what God is doing in creating a new culture of faith sharing across North America. Thank you for your willingness to become a multiplier and join with many others across North America who are playing a key role in helping to create this new culture of faith sharing. It is likely that you will be familiar with some of the material in this manual. You may have come across it at a Rooftop Cluster or at a More to Life training event. Either way it is helpful, but not critical, that you already have some awareness of this material. This manual has been created to help you, as a multiplier, present More to Life to others who may, like you, want to become multipliers. Please take time to become familiar with this manual before you use it to train others. As you flip through it, you will see that there is a lot of material. Please feel absolutely free to tailor this depending upon the context/time allowances, etc. As you become familiar with the contents and begin to prepare how you will teach More to Life, please be creative and imaginative. This manual provides the core of what you need to know and teach. But as you find more helpful ways to engage people in the material, use them! This manual outlines three key steps that are important for any potential multipliers of More to Life. How you teach these—in one meeting or over multiple meetings—is up to you. Once again, thank you for your willingness to serve in this way. God bless you.
Dennis “I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” (Philippians 1:3-5, HCSB®).
Getting Started
NOTE TO LEADER.
Ensure that you watch/read and become familiar with all of the More to Life materials. These are:
Engaging Through Story – the sixsession training pack that equips Christians to share their faith as they gain a passion and confidence to engage in telling their story.
Real People Real Stories – the “testimony DVD” that serves as the engaging piece/first story in the More to Life four-story approach.
Discover More to Life – four “get-togethers” that help people discover the truth about Jesus.
Contents The Moment...................................................7 The Message..................................................13 The Movement.............................................25
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The Moment The Setting. People should introduce themselves by saying something about who they are and what they do. It is important to make this introduction personal and informal, mentioning family/hobbies, etc. The group should feel that they are in an environment where they will be able to share something of who they are. This session will explore the current situation in North America and seek to identify at least one significant step that must be taken if a significant change is going to take place. Look at the diagram below and consider the following questions:
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As you consider the future, do you feel that the church in America is likely to grow or decline? What causes you to feel this way? At which point on the diagram do you feel the church in America is at? What do you think needs to happen for the church to move from where it is into a place of growth? 7
Following these discussions, look at diagram 2 below.

Diagram 2 is a visual image of a key factor in the failure of the church to impact the lives of people outside.
Only three in every 100 Christians in the United States ever share their faith with somebody outside of church. Spend some time discussing how true this is in the churches that are represented. Be open and honest in these discussions. Of all the things that may need to change, the ministry of More to Life has identified this as being the most significant because the days when most people attended church and heard the gospel are passing rapidly. The situation in the UK, where More to Life was birthed, demonstrates how a nation can “lose its faith.” In the early twentieth century, around 83 percent of children attended church every week and another 11 percent attended from time to time. Only six percent never attended. In the early twenty-first century, only around four to seven percent of people attend church! The cause of this huge decline is primarily due to the fact that around one hundred years ago parents stopped sending their children to church. Those children grew up and didn’t send 8
theirs. And this pattern was repeated in the next generation. By the fourth generation, children had no Christian influence from parents, grandparents, or even great grandparents. They became “never-churched.” Consider the following questions:
How does the current situation in the United States compare to what happened in the United Kingdom? How far away are we from having a “generation of the never-churched?” What implications might this have for the way we communicate the gospel? Look at Diagram 3, the Graspometer.
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G R A S P O M ETE R
Full grasp of the -1 Christian faith
Most evangelistic activity
Churched
People becoming increasingly lost. This is where witness must be increased.
Less churched
-2 -3 -4 -5 Belief in God but -6 not committed -7 -8 -9
No idea that
-10 God exists
Often totally unreached
Never churched
The Graspometer is a visual aid that helps us identify how much of a “grasp” a person has of the Christian faith.
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Consider the following questions:
1. Where are most evangelistic efforts of our church aimed?
a. Churched?
b. Less churched?
c. Never churched?
2. What are the implications of this for the future? More to Life recognizes that critical to the growth of God’s kingdom across North America is a new culture of faith sharing that goes beyond the churched and impacts the ever-increasing numbers of both the less- and never-churched. To achieve this, More to Life recognizes that every Christian can be involved in this. More to Life also recognizes that many Christians do not engage in faith sharing because they find the prospect of evangelism to be too difficult. More to Life defines evangelism in the following way: “Evangelism is leaving the person I have met with a better understanding of God than they would have had if they had never met me.” Consider the following questions:
1. How does this definition of evangelism compare to the ways we often feel when the word “evangelism” is used? 2. How could this help us reach the less and never-churched? 10
3. How do you as a believer feel as you consider this definition in relation to your own desires to share Jesus with others? Summary: The time in which we live presents either the greatest challenge or the greatest opportunity for the gospel. More to Life considers it an opportunity, a new day for a new movement of God that will be first and foremost seen as “ordinary” Christians reaching out to neighbors and friends to tell their own unique “extraordinary” story of how faith in Jesus is changing their lives. How More to Life helps this process is the content of Session 2.
NOTES:
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The Message In this session, we will be looking at the materials that make up the More to Life Resource Kit. These materials are essentially the “message” of More to Life. We will see excerpts from each of the three components. This session will be interactive and gives us the opportunity to use the materials in a small group setting. It is vital that each person become more than a spectator. Please be open and honest as you share in this session. Some important background: More To Life began in the United Kingdom (UK) and was the result of Dennis Pethers, the author of More To Life, hosting a “think-tank” of key leaders in the UK to consider the question: “How do we reach people who are never churched?” The discussions resulted in two significant conclusions that have shaped the More to Life approach to evangelism: 1. Reaching never churched people requires that: “Christians present Jesus as the question before they have the opportunity to explain He is the answer.” 2. It is the “changed life” of Christians that most powerfully causes a person who does not attend church to become curious about Jesus. As such, More To Life is based upon a key principle: “Changed lives authenticate the message of Jesus.”
Discuss this key principle in relation to John 15:8.
“My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be My disciples.” (HCSB®)
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Recognizing the key role that changed lives will play in reaching people outside of church, Dennis Pethers began to ask a core question in churches across the world: “What is more difficult… To get people outside the church interested in Jesus? Or to get people inside the church interested enough in people outside to tell them about Jesus?” Discuss how true this statement is in your experience. How does this make you feel?
Tragically, the answer always given is that it is more difficult to get Christians to share their faith than it is to get people outside of church to become interested in Jesus. The approach and materials of More to Life recognize this reality and have been created to help both Christians and those who are not yet Christians be transformed. Christians can be transformed into effective witnesses, and those who are not yet Christians can be transformed into Christians who will then become effective witnesses. The vision of More to Life is to create a new culture of faith sharing that will impact “lostness” across North America and beyond. The Materials: The contents of the More to Life “Starter Kit” Box. {NOTE} In the following notes I have suggested a way of sampling each aspect of Engaging Through Story and Discover More to Life. Please feel free to use some or all of these depending upon the time available. It is very important for each person to understand how More To Life: Engaging Through Story (the training course) and Discover More To Life (the “discovery” course) work together.
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 More To Life: Engaging Through Story consists of one DVD and one manual. One DVD is required for each small group. One manual is required for each participant. A brief overview of the six sessions: 1. Causing Heaven to Rejoice. 2. Discovering the “far from God” people around you. 3. Engaging and Giving Away My Faith (Story 1) 4. Talking About My Own Story (Story 2) 5. How to Hear Their Story (Story 3) 6. Telling His Story (Story 4) At the heart of More to Life is the word “relational.” The process outlined on the next pages is about Christians befriending and walking alongside those that they are trying to reach. It is likely that the process from first contact to a person becoming a Christian may take months or even years. This is a process, not a program! Guide to contents of each session. It is important to grasp both the way each session works and to gain an overview of how the sessions build on one another. As such it is important to work through Session 1 in full and to cover at least one aspect of each other session.
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Suggested program (this will need to be adjusted to fit time allowed): Session 1 – Causing Heaven to Rejoice The motivation for evangelism is not a church recruitment program; it is, in line with Jesus’ parables in Luke 15, “to cause heaven to rejoice”—to bring a smile to the face of God. Refer to Session 1 notes in the Engaging Through Story manual – pages 6–13. Be sure to point out the “Personal Engagement” section at the end of each session, which contains personal activities to carry out between sessions to help participants. Each person should take five minutes on their own to review the “Bible Encounters” on page 15. Session 2 – Discovering “Far from God” People Around You This part helps Christians to identify people that are close to them but far from God. These people may be neighbors, friends, family, work colleagues… Watch Session 2, Clip 1 “Understanding Lostness” on the Engaging Through Story DVD. Work through pages 22–24. Session 3 – Engaging and Giving Away My Faith This is the first “story” in the More to Life “four-story approach to evangelism.” The session introduces the Real People Real Stories testimony DVD and outlines how this DVD can be used to begin a conversation about Jesus. Watch Session 3, Clip 1 “Becoming Familiar with the First Story” on the Real People Real Stories DVD. {NOTE} Time may not allow you to watch the whole of this DVD, but be sure to watch the teaching that introduces it and as many of the faith stories as possible. 16
{NOTE} The More To Life DVD cover is reversible and includes Christmas-themed art for reaching out during the Christmas gift-giving season. Work through the activity on Page 39. Session 4 – Talking About My Own Story This is the second “story” in the More to Life “four-story approach to evangelism.” Christians are helped and given practical opportunities to talk about the difference that faith in Jesus is making in their lives in response to questions raised by those who have received the Real People Real Stories DVD. Watch Session 4, Clip 1 “The Power of Your Story.” Work through the activity on page 51. Session 5 – How to Hear Their Story This is the third “story” in the More to Life “four-story approach to evangelism.” Christians are helped and given practical opportunities to consider the important role that listening plays in evangelism. Watch Session 5, Clip 1 “Time to Listen.” Work through one or two of the “Group Discussion” questions on page 65. Session 6 – Telling His Story This is the fourth “story” in the More to Life “four-story approach to evangelism.” It provides Christians with some creative thoughts on how they can share Jesus with others. A key feature of this session is the introduction to Discover More to Life. Watch Session 6, Clip 2 “An Introduction to Discover More to Life.” Work through the discussion notes at the top of page 82. 17
Having looked at what is in each session, it is helpful to summarize the flow of how it all fits together. Session 1 Inspires Christians to want to share their faith.
Session 2 Helps Christians identify the people that they will share their faith with.
Session 3 Introduces the Real People Real Stories DVD as a way of beginning a conversation.
Session 4 Helps Christians tell the story of how faith in Jesus is changing their lives.
Session 5 Encourages Christians to find out what the person they are witnessing to believes as they listen to them.
Session 6 Provides Christians with helpful ways of sharing the gospel.
{NOTE} While the training takes six sessions, the actual engagement with lost people is likely to take far longer than that. The sessions are preparing Christians for engaging with lost friends, which will continue long after they have finished the training. It is imperative to remember the More to Life definition of evangelism as you consider this. “Evangelism is leaving the person I have met with a better understanding of God than they would have had if they had never met me.� The relationship between Engaging Through Story Training and Discover More to Life: Engaging Through Story equips Christians to engage in faith sharing using their story of how Jesus is changing their lives. 18
Discover More to Life helps people who don’t know Jesus to discover who He is and make a decision about becoming His Disciple. The following are important points to note as you consider the sequence of More to Life: •
Either during, or most likely at the end, of the six Engaging Through Story training sessions, Christians will begin to engage with their friends using the Real People Real Stories DVD. (The first story.)
•
The dialogue that may take place following this (Story 2 and Story 3) may take weeks, months, or even years before a person is ready to ask the question “Who is Jesus?”
•
As such people may be being invited to Discover More to Life “get-togethers” soon after or long after the initial Engaging Through Story training has taken place.
•
More to Life is a process, not a program—some careful planning is required.
Watch Session 6, Clip 3 “The Cascade Effect.” Discuss what this may mean for you and the context that you are in.
Discover More to Life 
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Four informal small group get-togethers will help lost people discover the truth about Jesus. Each get-together is a creative blend of watching the DVD, allowing time for questions and personal reflection, and recording thoughts and observations in the attractively designed journal. We use the term get-together for these sessions because we do not want them to feel like a formal Bible study or church event. Discover More to Life get-togethers will be a small group activity. The group could be as small as two people as a Christian leads a friend through the material. It is probably not good for the group to be larger than eight or 10 people, at the very most. Discover More to Life is best run in an informal location such as a home. If in the church, use an informal coffee area or comfortable room as opposed to the sanctuary. Discover More to Life consists of a DVD and a Journal. •
One DVD is required for each small group session of Discover More to Life.
•
One journal is required for each person that attends.
Within each session the DVD is used to: •
Tell the story of the encounter with Jesus.
•
Explore the relevance of this to us living today.
The journal contains:
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“The Group Experience” – a series of questions related to the DVD clips that are used for discussion by the group.
•
“Stop and Think” – an opportunity for each person to take some time between the get-togethers and think about things a little more deeply on their own.
A brief overview of the four “get-togethers” Each get-together is based on a life-changing encounter recorded in the gospel of John: The woman at the well – the theme of this encounter is Love. The man born blind – the theme of this encounter is Purpose. Thomas – the theme of this encounter is Hope. Nicodemus – the theme of this encounter is Decisions. Guide to contents of each get-together It is important to grasp both the way each get-together works and to gain an overview of how the sessions build on one another. As such it is important to work through at least one get-together in full and to cover at least one aspect of each of the other get-togethers. Suggested program (this will need to be adjusted to fit time allowed): {NOTE} A typical group that attends Discover More to Life will be around half Christians and half those who are wanting to find out more about Jesus. As you work through these sessions now, it is almost certain that all are Christians. Please attempt to imagine some of the ways that those who don’t know Jesus may discuss the questions you will consider. Cover Get-Together 1 in full. Session 1 – The Woman at the Well Understanding that Jesus can help us discover real love. Review Session 1 Notes in journal – pages 6–13. Following this, note that there is a “Stop and Think” section at the end of each session that contain notes for each person’s personal journey, to use between the sessions. Each person 21
should take five minutes on their own to look at the reflection on pages 10 and 11. Session 2 – The Man Born Blind Understanding that God has a purpose for our lives. Watch Session 2, Clip 1 “The Power of Your Story.” Work through two or three of the questions on pages 16 and 17. Session 3 – Thomas the Disciple Understanding that Christians have an eternal hope because of Jesus. Watch Session 3, Clip 2 “Two Stories.” Work through two or three of the questions on pages 28 and 29. Session 4 – Nicodemus The Teacher Encouraging those who attend to see that there is a decision to make. Watch Session 4, Clip 2 “How Can This Be?” Look through the Stop and Think section on pages 42–46. Summary Having looked at the “Message” of the More to Life materials, next we will consider ways that this message can be used to bring about a movement that creates a new culture of faith sharing across North America.
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NOTES:
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The Movement be part of it. There are two realties that are closely related: 1. People across North America are becoming less and less familiar with the truth of the gospel. 2. Very few Christians share their faith. There is a clear connection between the realities stated above. If we are to see North America reached for Christ, it is critical that we do not just do what we have been doing and expect a different result. Nor is it doing what is essentially the same thing differently. It is time to do something different—to face the realities of “a new day.” Defining the comments above: •
Doing what we have been doing – just continuing to run church in the ways we have always done and waiting for people to come back.
•
Essentially the same thing differently – continuing to see the church building/services, etc., as things that will attract lost people if we change the style some.
•
Something different – equip Christians to take the gospel to the people that cannot come back to church because they have never been.
Where do we start? Consider the following question:
What is more difficult… To get people outside of church interested in Jesus, or to get people inside of church interested enough in people outside of church to tell them about Jesus? If we are to share Jesus in this “new day,” it is critical that it becomes less difficult to encourage and equip Christians to share their faith. 25
Imagine how different things would be if six percent of Christians were sharing their faith, or 12 percent! Or….? Creating a new culture of faith sharing Three happy people More to Life can make a significant contribution to creating a new culture of faith sharing because at its very heart is transformation both of the lost person AND the Christian. Consider the following as a likely scenario of More to Life. The parable of the reluctant evangelist John has been a Christian, a child of God, for 30 years. Ever since he became a Christian he has always known that Christians are supposed to share their faith and “do evangelism.” If he is honest (although to be honest, he seldom is honest about evangelism), he would have told you that the very thought of evangelism leaves him feeling a little sick in his stomach. So he is afraid of it. And now, after 30 years, he feels a little guilty that he doesn’t do it, especially when he hears a sermon about it. But he has come to terms with the “fact” that evangelism is somebody else’s calling. A few months ago, John was invited to Wayne’s house. Wayne is also a Christian who attends the same church and Sunday School class as John. Wayne invited John and about six others to his house because he told them that he had discovered a way of “doing evangelism” that didn’t leave him feeling sick or guilty. This had aroused John’s interest because it was just what he was like. When he arrived at Wayne’s house, everybody had a drink and something to eat, and then Wayne introduced this thing called “More to Life.” He watched some DVD clips and started to think more about how God views lost people and how God could use him to reach his friends, just by telling his story and getting alongside people that he knew. All of that was nine months ago. And now, this evening, John is sitting in his car. Next to him is Ben, a friend who he plays tennis with. He gave Ben a Real People Real Stories DVD some time back. Since then he and Ben have had numerous conversations about what they believe. Last month, John took Ben to Wayne’s house to a Discover More to Life get-together. There were six people there: three people from the church and 26
three others who had all been personally invited by one of the Christians. John’s car is parked at the side of the road because they were driving home from the last of these get-togethers and Ben has just said to him, “John, I want to become a Christian.” Fortunately there wasn’t much traffic on the road! Now, Ben has just prayed a prayer and committed his life to Christ, and three people are very happy: God, Ben, and John. Two of these three people have been transformed and will never be the same again: Ben, because he has given his life to Christ; and John, because he didn’t think he could “do evangelism” and now has just led a person to Christ! The next thing that John is going to do, in a few weeks’ time, is to invite Ben to an Engaging Through Story training course. Some questions: How will the transformation in Ben’s life help to create a new culture of faith sharing? How will the transformation in John’s life help to create a new culture of faith sharing? How could these two things work together? At the heart of More to Life is the core principle: “Changed lives authenticate the message of Jesus.” How do you feel the changed lives of John and Ben may help more people to come to know Jesus? Process not program As with most things, a greatest strength can be a potential weakness. And that is true with More to Life. Its great strength is that it recognized the need of a relational process. This can be a weakness because so many Christians and churches have become accustomed to “programs” that are very clear and definite in exactly what should happen and when. 27
The following is a suggested process for helping a local church work through a process of creating a new culture of faith sharing. A Suggested Process: The pastor, or leader with responsibility for evangelism, begins More to Life, not by announcing an evangelism course to be held at the church but by hand-picking a small number of Christians who have a heart for reaching lost people. He then trains these people by going through the More to Life materials as a small group and encourages them to begin to engage in faith sharing. He then encourages them to invite some church friends around to their house and to go through More to Life with them. He also encourages them to be on the lookout for people in their group who may become leaders and invite church friends to their own house. Now, there are a number of small groups of people who are engaging in faith sharing and helping other Christians to see that God could use them. From these groups, there are now a number of Discover More to Life get-togethers being hosted in different people’s homes. People are coming to faith and being encouraged and mentored by the Christian who led them to Christ to join one of these small groups and learn to tell their story to their lost friends, neighbors, and family. This is just one possible scenario. How would you go about this in your context? How would you improve this suggested process?
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The need for multipliers of a movement. More to Life is aiming to create a new culture of faith sharing across the United States and beyond. Over recent decades, the soil for the seed of the gospel has been becoming increasingly harder. We live at a time when the former ways are no longer likely to be effective in reaching “less- and never-churched people.” Critical to the breaking down of the hard soil and the sowing of the seeds of the Word of God is a movement of ordinary Christian believers who will be transformational in their own lives and in the lives of lost people that they know. To accelerate the pace and extend the reach of this movement, More to Life is seeking multipliers who “get” the vision of More to Life and who will absorb it and pass it on to others. Having looked at the moment in which we live and the message of More to Life, it is now important to consider, Could I become a multiplier? At the end of this time together, you will be invited to “be part of it” and become a multiplier. What does a multiplier do? The simple answer is “multiply the number of people who will get and pass on the message of More to Life.” Step 1 – Implement More to Life in your ministry context. Step 2 - Identify people within your network and sphere of influence that you could gather together and walk through this manual. Step 3 – Ask the Lord to direct you as you consider who these people should be. Step 4 – Approach each of these people individually and ask them to become part of what God is doing through More to Life. It is likely that those you approach will have had some exposure to More to Life. But if this is not the case, you may need to provide some more information. 29
Final thoughts Thank you for taking the time to consider More To Life as a resource in your Kingdom work. As you consider ways to leverage this information for reaching people far from God, we pray that God leads you to like-minded people, eager to join the movement of “causing heaven to rejoice� by helping the lost become found. Appendix i Possible ways of using More to Life. More to Life is not a program but a process that helps churches develop a culture of faith sharing as Christians gain a confidence and a passion to share their faith using the story of what God is doing in their lives. The following ideas can be used/adapted as ways of helping Christians join in with what God is doing and reach out to the lost people that are far from God but close to them: In a local church: 1. The pastor can train a small group of people by taking them through the More to Life starter pack. Once they have completed this and have begun to engage in faith sharing, they can be encouraged to invite friends from the church to attend an informal training experience in their homes. This decentralizes the training and helps it grow through the church and be less programmatic. 2. As part of Sunday School – the adult Sunday School class(es) could run a semester (12 weeks) of the More to Life training and Discover More to Life materials. They could then explore ways that, together, they could use this approach to share faith with their friends and neighbors. 3. A preaching series could be delivered to the whole church around the themes of Engaging Through Story and Discover More to Life. This preaching series could be followed up in small-group activity in mid-week small groups.
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4. As part of Vacation Bible School – parents could be invited to Discover More to Life get-togethers as a follow up. 5. At special times of the year—e.g. Christmas—the More to Life testimony DVD can be distributed to the large numbers who attend church at this time. Each DVD could contain an invitation to the Discover More to Life get-togethers. This is ideal for reaching those who have a greater understanding of Christ but have never given their lives to Him. 6. In a similar way to Point 5 above, the DVD (including an invitation to Discover More to Life) can be included in a welcome pack for new people attending the church. In a state convention: 1. As part of an existing statewide initiative – More to Life can be a vital ingredient, equipping believers to engage in faith sharing with the vast numbers of people who are no longer likely to attend crusades and revivals. 2. Training pastors and leaders to train others can set in place a movement that helps churches across the convention to be equipped to face the new realities of evangelism in a context that is increasingly “never-churched.” A key way of achieving this is to host a series of “Rooftop Clusters.” Leaders are encouraged to see their community from God’s perspective as they literally view their community from a rooftop. Interactive sessions help them to see how they can multiply the movement across their communities and the state. 3. Train pastors and leaders through training events held across the state.
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