The Andrew Plan - Success Stories

Pastor Cyril Spaude (P.em.)	October 09, 2007
Dear Jim, I like your Andrew Plan for Outreach and Assimilation. Some call it Friendship Evangelism. It's very effective, in fact, the one plan that really works. My dear wife, Adela now a saint in heaven, used it to begin the Hispanic work here in Watertown. It involves getting to know the other person, developing trust, sharing the gospel, bringing him/her to church, then remaining in contact and encouraging the other person. The results cannot be disputed. St. Mark's now has a full program for the Latinos. Regular worship services every Sunday evening with Sunday School, about 90 communicant members, 12-14 in our Lutheran grade school and 2 in Lakeside Lutheran High School. The only difference in your plan is that the member brings the prospect to a BIC. Good idea, both from the standpoint of reaching the prospect with the Gospel but of being a good refresher for the member. My only question is: Is it difficult to get the member to come to the BIC? Does this turn off some members from doing outreach? From your report it does not seem to have that effect. How did you "sell" your congregation on the plan? A job well done! May our gracious Lord use it to reach countless souls. His blessings to you and your family, and upon your work! Note: My answer to Pastor Spaude's questions is as follows: I first introduced the Andrew Plan to our congregation at our Long Range Planning meetings last spring. Since then I have shared my Andrew Plan pamphlet and Responses with several members of the congregations. Most have reacted very favorablly to it. Some even brought their FRAN to our Pastor's BIC this year. But there is still much that can and hopefully will be done. The crucial issue, I believe, is that pastors need to enthusiastically support it. If that happens, then sucess stories, much like the ones I received from Pastor Ron Freier and Pastor Brian Keller could be joyfully reported by many more of our pastors and congregations!
Pastor Ron Freier	September 29, 2005
Hi Jim, I read your brochure entitled "The Andrew Plan" with interest. Thanks for sending it to me. Here is a true example that the plan works. In 1960 when I came to Grace located at that time in a changing neighborhood in Benton Harbor, I was told by the district officials and neighboring pastors that Grace's doors would be closed within the next three years and that I would receive a call elsewhere. In other words I was to prepare to preach Grace's funeral sermon. We were loosing members at a rate of 30-50 per month. Instead of crying, the congregation accpepted my challenge of asking all the communicant members left to attend one of my BIC (or AIC) classes and to bring an unchurched FRAN with them. The end result was as follows: Members no longer left the congregation; within 4 years 85% of the members attended one of the AIC classes and brought FRAN with them. Sometimes I had 40-50 members and prospects in a class; I had two classes per week. Five years later we relocated to south St. Joseph. The church became the largest WELS church in the Michigan District. The people were so on fire by the Holy Spirit that a multi-million dollar church, school and gym were constructed on a fifteen acre piece of land. Today it is paid for. And two thirds of the membership is made up of adult converts. THE ANDREW PLAN WORKS! Since I retired from the fulltime ministry in 1997 I have been working partime at St Paul's in Stevensville and am priviledged to minister to your son Jeff and his family. Push "The Andrew Plan"! I have been and will continue to do so. We didn't call it that, but that's how we did it. Thanks for your work and our Lord's richest blessings to your and your family!
Rev. Brian R. Keller	September 28, 2005
Dear Friend, We have not met, but I've been meaning to write to you for some time. I want to begin by thanking you for sending that second flyer promoting the Andrew Plan. Much has happened since that flyer came in the mail. We now have about 200 adults and teens attending the adult instruction course. Most of them are members, but some are visitors. A good number of them have never been in a Bible Class before. That second flyer was very convincing. When I read the encouraging words of men I deeply respect, it made an impression on me, and on my partner, Pastor David Koehler. We both decided that day that we would begin planning to implement the Andrew Plan here. It felt familiar, because it was very much like something I had tried in a mission congregation in the South. We liked that it was simple, because it would help us focus the people on the basics. We noted that it would be very inexpensive to carry out. We also enjoyed doing all the planning and preparation. We put the idea in the bulletin every single week, writing a different "teaser" each time. We did not immediately reveal what the plan was, only what we thought it would do, by God's power and blessing. Everyone knew the Andrew Plan was coming, but no one knew what it was yet. We only promised what it could mean, and what it could do, because it emphasized God's powerful Word. Interest reached a peak, and curiosity a maximum. We were ready for the next step. We made a Power Point presentation for the basics of the plan, seeking to motivate people with God's Word and to focus the members on this plan. We presented the basic plan to every board, every committee, every Bible Study group, etc . We might have been repetitive, but the points were made to as many members as possible. After one more presentation, we obtained the firm support of the church council. We set a weekend when we would present it to the whole congregation in special worship services. Key lay leaders spoke in favor of the plan. As pastors, we urged, encouraged, and even "challenged" them to sign up for the plan. We made an easy sign up sheet, and made it readily available. The sermon that day was about 45 minutes, but we felt it was something important enough to change our usual time expectations. No one complained about the length, because this was different. We had hoped to have 25% of the communicant members sign up. By the time we were finished, 45% of the communicants signed up to participate in the Andrew Plan. They agreed to take the class and either invite a FRAN or a fellow member. Our Elders are still encouraging less active members to participate, and we expect that will be ongoing. Many more of our members are in Bible study. Some have never been in a Bible class before. I'm elated that some of these members we've been inviting to Bible class for years have finally signed up and begun to attend! Some brought friends. We did not immediately get as many visitors as one might think, but we believe that more will come "next time around". We plan to keep on with the Andrew Plan in the future. What a blessing it is to teach almost half of the adults and teen members the "New Life In Christ" course. How encouraging it is to see the lights turn on as they re-learn old truths and even some new ones. Since I didn't do this I can say it: some of the posters and flyers looked so professional, some wondered if this was a synod program. Maybe it could be, but it isn't. I believe that the result of this first phase will be that nearly half of our members will benefit from the adult instruction course, and will be even more motivated to invite a friend in the future. It's exciting to see people get into God's Word! I can't refrain from sharing my personal perspective. I'm in awe, not of the Andrew Plan, but of God's power in his Word. My first Bible class here almost nine years ago was attended by seven people. Now, each week, I have the great priviledge of being able to teach about 150 adults, and my partner teaches the rest. The Lord has been blessing his Word here, but with the Andrew Plan there was a great leap forward.For that I am grateful. We give God all the credit for the progress, because it rightfully belongs to him. We are already seeing many blessings, and can see many more to follow. We believe that this congregation will be more firmly established in "Bible Basics" and will be more motivated for outreach (and for supporting outreach) in the future. We plan to follow Bible Basics 101, with Bible Basics 201 (an overviiew of Bible History), and then with Bible Basics 301 (a study of the epistles, and a deeper study of Christian doctrine). I plan to work these courses out in the future, week by week. It is encouraging to hear people say that they plan to continue on this path. It feels like "Seminary training" now. Once the people have a taste for God's Word, they want more and more.... And they are better equipped to reach out to their FRAN. Thank you for sending that flyer with the encouraging words of those men. If anyone would like to see what we've done, and would like to modify it for their own congregational use, please contact my partner, Pastor David Koehler at pastorkoehler@hotmail.com We received freely. We will freely give, if that is desired. Yours in Christ, Pastor Brian R. Keller St. Stephen Ev. Lutheran Church (WELS) Adrian, MI 49221 Email: pastorkeller@ststephenadrian.com Ph. 517-265-5605
Pastor Carl Voss (P.em.)	April 11, 2005
Dear Jim, Re: Andrew Plan. The essence of the plan I had followed during the 45 years of my active ministry and--praise the Lord-- it did meet with what I consider rich blessings. I recommend it to anyone.
Rev. Richard Mueller, P.em	February 14, 2005
Dear Jim, Just a little note to thank you for your 'Andrew Plan' web site.We can well appreciate the amount of time you have spent on it. We also appreciate its content--and pray that you will update the 'Responses' and 'Stories' every now and then. The stories, especially, can be an encouragement to doubters to give the plan a try. It will work. It worked for our Lord. When we think of the plan you have proposed, we think of our work in Africa. We did not call it the 'Andrew Plan' -- but, in effect that is what it was. Those whom our Lord brought to us, passed on what they heard from our lips. The Holy Spirit worked in their hearts and they told what they had learned about sin and grace to friends, relatives, associates and neighbors. Take a look at what happened in Africa--and what is still happening in Africa today--and you can see how wonderfully the 'Andrew Plan' works. Our Lord has seen to it that His children are spreading His Word throughout Zambia and Malawi--with inroads being made into Angola, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Zaire. What a blessing the method of the 'Andrew Plan is. It worked in Jesus day--and it will work in our day, too. Indeed, it will work until our God calls us all home to be with Him in paradise. Bye for now. God's blessings to you and yours. And God grant that every pastor in our fellowship will hear of the 'Andrew Plan'----and use it! In Christian love, Dick and Irene (Retired Pastor Richard & Irene Mueller Email- NDILIBWINO@aol.com P.S. I still think of the 'Andrew Plan' as the 'Jesus Plan'.