Search Control Center

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of Him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few." Luke 10:1-2

Lostology Law #19

Coordinate resources to maximize the search.

Our scoutmaster, Mr. Range, yelled for us to circle around him. Talk about a motley crew: twenty-something elementary-aged boys, grimy and stinky from the weekend campout, noisy and obnoxious. Bumping and pushing, poking and punching, we gathered around our leader.

"We have a missing scout," Mr. Range said solemnly. "We need to look for him." Suddenly interested, we all asked, "Who's missing? Yeah, who's not here?" Mr. Range said, "It's Squiffy." Upon hearing of poor Squiffy's plight, all of us were touched by emotion. Sensitive as any group of little boys could be, we cut loose with a series of boisterous affirmations and assessments:

"Way to go, Squiffy. Yeah, way to go."

"Squiffy always gets lost."

"That Squiffy is so stupid."

"He probably got lost coming back from the latrine."

"No way. Squiffy probably fell in the latrine."

On and on we piped one wisecrack after another. Not your "dream team" for a search. But we were it--a bunch of knot-headed little boys and a few frustrated adult leaders.

Mr. Range had limited resources for his search effort. Strategy became supremely important. He could have said, "Boys, you all know what Squiffy looks like. Head out until you find him. Report back to me." We would have loved that. Of course, most of us would have gotten lost along with Squiffy.

No, Mr. Range was a wise leader of men . . . and goosey little boys. Immediately, he began to bark out instructions: "Men, let's stretch out in a line with about ten feet or so between each of us. Don't start until I tell you. Just stand there."

We began to position ourselves. Leaders interspersed themselves between every four to five boys. In the end, our search line stretched for several hundred feet through the forest.

From the center of the line, Mr. Range called out, "All right; let's go." On his order, we began to move forward, giggling, chucking rocks, messing around, occasionally calling out, "Squiffy! Hey, Squiffy!"

Squiffy's dramatic rescue was anticlimactic. I didn't even see it. Someone else found Squiffy--not lost, but hiding in the woods because he was mad about something. The intense search and rescue mission only lasted a few minutes.

Before we knew it, we were back at camp loading up packs, muddy tents, and dirty dishes into the leaders' cars. Search completed, we headed home. Twentysome grungy little boys, a tired group of dedicated leaders, one wise scoutmaster . . . and Squiffy.

Spontaneous Combustion

The search for Squiffy that day was a coordinated effort. Many search efforts are more spontaneous and far less organized.

It happens when someone gets lost. The word spreads. Phones and doorbells ring as the news travels throughout the circle of concerned relatives and friends. People gather. A collective rush of adrenaline energizes the group. Action. Get with it. Do something . . . anything. Get moving. Find him. Look for her. Call back when you know something. Like a hornets' nest smacked with a rock, the searchers swarm helter-skelter in a frenzy of concern. The search begins, high on energy, low on coordination.

As students of lostology, we know that such spontaneous searches can be effective. Sometimes, such searchers find lost people. But not usually, and never if the search area is vast and the terrain rugged. Such high risk circumstances require more than activity. They demand coordination.

Lostology Law #19 encapsulates the truth Mr. Range taught a group of men and little boys that day in the woods: coordinate your resources to maximize your search. Activity and good intentions are not enough. Effective coordination of resources and energy will determine the success or failure of the rescue effort.

In evangelism, we desperately need to coordinate our efforts so we can maximize our results. How easily we miss this basic law of lostology and rush out into the world with evangelistic activity that lacks collective impact. Fortunately, Jesus' life provides a model that helps us develop a coordinated approach to evangelism.

Model Coordination

As we have already observed, Jesus spent His years of earthy ministry in an intense spiritual search and rescue mission. He moved into a lost world to help lost people find God.

Jesus was an incredibly effective personal searcher. No one surpassed His search skills. But the key to Jesus' success was not His personal contact with the lost. Instead, Jesus invested the majority of His time gathering, training, and coordinating a long-term search and rescue force.

Jesus' Master Plan

Robert Coleman, in his classic book, The Master Plan of Evangelism, makes this insightful statement:

"Jesus was a realist. He fully realized the fickleness of depraved human nature as well as the Satanic forces of this world amassed against humanity, and in this knowledge He based His evangelism on a plan that would meet the need. The multitudes of discordant and bewildered crowds were potentially ready to follow Him, but Jesus individually could not possibly give them the personal care they needed. His only hope was to get men imbued with His life who would do it for Him. Hence, He concentrated Himself upon those who were to be the beginning of this leadership. Though He did what He could to help the multitudes, He had to devote Himself primarily to a few men, rather than the masses, in order that the masses could at last be saved. This was the genius of His strategy."

Jesus provided a model for us, a master strategy we can follow. In just over three years, He enlisted a group of unlikely leaders and spent time with them until their lives were marked by His values. Jesus broadened their base of experience and increased their skills. Through progressively challenging circumstances, He pushed His men to their limits and beyond, stretching their faith and building their confidence in God. Instruction was on-the-job, not in the classroom. One of their training assignments in spiritual search and rescue work included the following instructions: "Calling the Twelve to Him, He sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits. These were His instructions: `Take nothing for the journey except a staff--no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra tunic. Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them.' They went out and preached that people should repent" (Mark 6:6-13).

The disciples embarked on their mission then reported back to Jesus. They told of the things they experienced and the supernatural work God did through them. Jesus affirmed them and continued to train and prepare them. Through crisis and pain, through joy and celebration, He molded them and equipped them for their mission--His Great Commission.

Multiplying the Search Force

Eventually, these men became the ultimate search and rescue force. After Jesus' death and resurrection, these evangelism veterans moved out and continued the search. More importantly, they enlisted and trained others until Jesus' search force extended to the ends of the earth.

What if Jesus had not taken time to enlist, train, and coordinate the search efforts of others? What if He had simply told His disciples: "There are lots of lost people out there. Go get them."

Activity? No doubt. Enthusiastic searching? Probably. But not success . . . at least not long-term success. Jesus, the great Lostologist, knew that you coordinate a search to maximize your results. How we need to follow His model in the church today.

Collective Impact

Our church in Portland centered around core organizational units called Community Groups. These small groups, drawn to each other through affinity and shared interests, joined together to grow in faith and reach others for Christ. At their best, these groups provided a wonderful means for people to work together in search and rescue activities which maximized their effectiveness.

Community Groups planned activities that were designed to create positive settings for new people to get acquainted and receive initial exposure to Christianity. New Christians knew other seekers, so they invited their friends. Seasoned spiritual veterans added their maturity and insights to help answer spiritual questions. The social types developed the activities. The organizers planned the events. Quiet people worked in the background. The extroverts worked the crowd. Everyone worked together.

Effective Community Groups accomplished more in their evangelistic searches through coordinating their efforts than any member could have done alone. Spiritual mathematics occurred: adding individual strengths together yielded multiplied influence.

A Part in the Plan

Every Christian can and should be involved in reaching people for Christ. This does not mean, however, that we all work in the same way or bring the same gifts to the search effort. Yet when we all use the special gifts God has given us, and use them cooperatively, our collective impact increases the chance of successful search efforts.

Every Sunday School class, every small group, and every church can become a team that works together to seek and find the lost. When cooperation occurs, everyone benefits. The searchers receive the satisfaction of participating in an effective evangelistic activity. The lost receive the ultimate benefit: they get found!

Here are a few steps you can take to work together with others in evangelism:

Build on the enthusiasm and contacts of new Christians in your group. Team the new Christians with longtime Christians. Working together, the new Christians can invite their lost friends to the group, and the longtime Christians can help supply answers to spiritual questions. If your group does not have any new Christians in it, pray and work and trust God to enable you to lead someone to Christ. Most groups experience greater opportunities for effective evangelism when they can build on the contacts of the new Christians among them. Plus, the changed lives and vibrant faith of new Christians encourage spiritual veterans like nothing else can.

Identify and build on the collective strengths of the group. God has gifted everyone in your group with spiritual gifts and talents. Learn enough about each other to identify those gifts and talents and plan activities with these in mind.

Remember that God wants to use you because of who you are, not in spite of who you are. As you plan your outreach activities, ask this question: What types of people can people like us reach for Christ? Usually, you are most effective reaching certain types of people--either people like you or members of a different race or nationality for whom you have special concern.

Work together using your collective gifts in ministry. Evangelism often results from ministry. If you are not sure how to begin in evangelism, begin with ministry. Meet the needs of people in your community, and opportunities to share your faith will come. Working in ministry is a wonderful way to involve people in evangelism who are frightened by the idea of talking to others about their faith. These people can share their faith through acts of service in Jesus' name. Explain to those you serve that everything your group does springs from your commitment to Christ and your desire for others to know Him.

Plan group fellowship activities and invite others to join you. Some non-Christians are surprised to discover that Christians are "normal" people who enjoy having fun. Celebrate the joy you have in Christ. Demonstrate distinctive Christian fellowship. Before long, your non-Christian friends will be curious about Jesus--the One who draws your lives together.

All of us are called to share our faith. Evangelism is not an add-on feature of the Christian fife. Evangelism is a matter of obedience. For most of us, working as part of a search and rescue team provides the ideal way to reach others for Christ. As lostologists, we know the importance of coordinating our efforts to maximize our impact. Now We need to join with others and seek the lost together.

The Lostology Lab

1. Recall a time when you lost an item and had to look for it alone. How did you feel while you were searching? How effective were you? Now recall a time when you lost something but others helped you search for it. How did you feel knowing that others were searching with you? How effective was your search?
2. Why do you think a search activity that is high on energy but low on coordination tends to be ineffective? What does coordination add to the search effort that makes such a difference?
3. What difference would it have made if Jesus had personally worked to reach the lost but had never trained His disciples to search?
4. Have you ever been part of a small group of Christians who worked together to reach others for Christ? What made the group effective? What part did you play in the group's activities in evangelism?
5. If you are in a Sunday School class or small group right now that is not involved in outreach, what needs to change for that group to be effective in reaching the lost? What can you do to help your group reach out to non-Christians?
6. Have you ever been part of a group of longtime Christians that added a new Christian to its fellowship? What sort of impact did the new Christian have on the life of the group?
7. In what ways can teams of Christians successfully involve people in evangelism who would have struggled on their own to tell lost people about Christ?

Coming Next: On Your Guard

Search and rescue is hard work. Rarely is success quick or easy. Often, the most important question searchers must ask themselves is "What will it take to stop us?" Many times, the force that stops the search effort takes the searchers by surprise.