Dawson, Shades Mountain use noonday lunches as outreach

Food, fellowship and door prizes are part of the equation for a lunchtime ministry to business people at two Baptist churches in the Birmingham area.
   
Whether it’s through a special message those attending can apply to their workplace or a unique prize, ministers at Shades Mountain Baptist Church, Vestavia Hills, and Dawson Memorial Baptist Church, Homewood, said they have seen a positive response to their monthly lunches.
   
Danny Wood, pastor of Shades Mountain, said the church started PowerLunch in October 1998. PowerLunch is held the first Tuesday of every month and averages about 200 guests.
   
A ticket to PowerLunch includes not only the meal, but also a chance to win one of several prizes. The pastor or motivational speaker delivers a message during each gathering.
   
For Wood, the feedback has been encouraging.
   
“It’s a great opportunity for businessmen to meet others in the business community,” Wood said. “We have retirees, housewives, businessmen and others. Plus, you can get here in 10 to 15 minutes from just about anywhere.”
   
Wood offered a similar activity while pastor of a Ruston, La., church and carried that idea to Shades Mountain.
   
Mavis Gates, administrative assistant to Wood, believes PowerLunch is a ministry. “Business persons and others enjoy a refreshing break from work, a delicious meal with friends and a motivational/inspirational message from our pastor,” said Gates.
   
Thirty to 40 percent of those who attend PowerLunch aren’t members of Shades Mountain. Wood said that members invite co-workers to attend, and that gets his members accustomed to inviting others to church.
   
Dawson Memorial’s LifeLunch is held the third Tuesday of each month and also features door prizes.
   
Gary Fenton, pastor of Dawson, started the lunch in April 2001. Dawson provided a breakfast a few years ago similar to LifeLunch but discontinued the morning meal when the church remodeled. Wanting to target a wider age range, Fenton decided to switch meals as well when the program was reinstated. Like Wood at Shades Mountain, Fenton imported the idea from his church home, which is in Tyler, Texas.
   
“When I was in Tyler, we did one every week during the time school met and found it was a very effective means of reaching others,” he said.
   
Fenton said he hoped to achieve two goals for holding LifeLunch.
   
“One is outreach,” said Fenton. “We want to reach non-Christians and pre-evangelize them. Second, it’s a great opportunity for fellowship across boundary lines. We want to bring together both Christian friends and non-Christians. It also provides an avenue for people from different churches to get together.”
   
Like Wood, Fenton also sometimes gives up the floor for a guest speaker.
   
Mike Royer, anchorman for NBC-13 in Birmingham, sometimes speaks in place of Fenton. He said the meal provides an excellent opportunity to enjoy lunch with business associates, friends and others in a Christian atmosphere outside of Sunday School or church.
   
“I invited a fellow broadcaster and friend to attend,” Royer said of a recent lunch. “We get together for lunch from time to time anyway, so this is a great opportunity to come away from lunch with a challenge and a message.
   
“It just lasts an hour, it’s very informal and there is no agenda to recruit folks to our church or any church,” said Royer, who has been a member of Dawson for 10 years.
   
Both LifeLunch and PowerLunch have touched lives.
   
Wood recalls an incident several years ago when a gentleman visited PowerLunch. At the same time, he saw the Shades Mountain advertisement for “Heaven’s Gates, Hell’s Flames,” a drama performed during Halloween about characters who experience heaven and hell. The man attended the drama and accepted Christ.