Lost people matter to God, and therefore, ought to matter to the church. Jesus made the purpose of his Mission to planet earth very clear when he said in Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

For over 30 years SLPC has been committed to exposing the congregation to God's heart for the world and developing disciples for ministry throughout the world. We are also committed to the on-going encouragement of those we have sent out to minister in many parts of the world. In addition to our international missionaries, we support a number of U.S. based missionaries and organizations that bring their unique talents and abilities to spreading the gospel.

At SLPC we are committed to educating and equipping people to use their time, talents and treasure to fulfill the Great Commission. This command from our Lord Jesus Christ to reach the nations with the Gospel was declared in Matthew 28:19-20 “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”

The mission of the Church is grounded in this great commission. To that end we are committed to spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ to people and areas where the outreach is most needed and where we believe God is leading us to work as a church. We continue to promote innovation, new missions efforts, and adoption of unreached people groups, where the Gospel is unknown, while continuing to affirm, encourage, and support our existing missionary efforts and missionaries.

SLPC also seeks to cultivate a global vision for the kingdom of God by integrating global outreach at every level of congregational life. Our goal is to engage every member, at every age, in the global work of the gospel. We do this through four main strategies:

First, Missions as a Way of Life: To teach the members of SLPC that our life in Christ must be demonstrated and lived out in all social circumstances—with courage, discernment, and preparedness “as ambassadors for Christ” knowing “that God is making His appeal through us.” (2 Corinthians 5:20) Strategic actions:

1. Prayer: Encourage regular prayer for our personal outreach endeavors, for each other, for our families, for our children, for the youth, and for the mission organizations and missionaries we partner with.
2. Personal Evangelism: Run training sessions to equip SLPC members with knowledge and skills to carry out personal evangelism.
3. Weaving Missions into SLPC Activities: Make missions a part of all that we do—such as Worship Services, Care groups, Women ministry, Men ministry, Children and Youth ministries, Bible Study Groups, and Sunday School classes.
4. Missions Awareness: Sponsor an annual event in which members of the SLPC are made aware of SLPC missions approach and challenged to be involved in missionary activities.
5. Community Outreach: Train SLPC members how to evangelize their families, friends, neighbors and co-workers.
6. Sending from Within: Help SLPC members and families discern God’s calling to missions and then encourage and support the sending of SLPC members to local and global missions.
7. Charting Progress and Challenges: Chart our progress in living a missional life and address any problems and challenges experienced.

Second, Outreach to Children: To nurture children to accept Jesus Christ as Savior and to follow him as Lord of their lives. Strategic actions:

1. Entertainment Activities: Develop and manage Christ-centered activities that attract children and allow them to learn about Jesus Christ.
2. Annual Bible-Centered Educational Event: Sponsor an annual one-week educational event aimed at reaching a significant number of children in our neighborhoods with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
3. Bible-Centered Events: Sponsor timely events following up on the Annual Event to continue reaching out to the kids and to disciple them.
4. Christmas and Easter Events: Organize Christmas and Easter Events through which the Gospel of Christ is shared with children and their parents.
5. Children’s Church and Sunday School: Host weekly Children’s Church and Sunday School Explorer’s classes to enable kids to grow in their faith and walk with Christ.
6. Reaching Out to the Children’s Families: Develop an evangelistic ministry to the parents and extended families of the children who participate in SLPC sponsored activities and ministries.
7. Chart Children’s Spiritual Progress: Chart the changes children undergo in their faith and walk with Christ, and respond to circumstances they face.

Third, Youth Missions: to challenge the youth with the Gospel and disciple those who accept Christ as their personal Savior helping them to develop Christian character, leadership skills and an ability to witness effectively for Christ. Strategic actions:

1. Annual Outreach and Training Events: Plan and host annual events focused on sharing the Love of Jesus Christ and how to witness to fellow students.
2. Social Events: Run Christ-centered social events aimed at helping the youth to share their experiences and support one another in their walk with Christ.
3. Youth Missionary Outreach: Sponsor an annual missionary trip to an area in the United States or in another country for evangelistic outreach and social action.
4. Youth Sunday School: Host Sunday School focusing on growing in faith and walk with Christ, and attaining leadership responsibility.
5. Youth Missionaries: Prepare the youth and identify opportunities for them to participate in short-term missions.
6. Fund-raising for Missionary Causes: Sponsor an annual fund-raising activity for a missionary cause the youth identify and follow through the use of the funds.
7. Chart Spiritual Growth and Challenges: Chart the growth of the youth in their faith and walk with Christ, and respond to challenges they experience accordingly.

Finally, Missions with Partners: To identify and support missionary partners within the United States and internationally. Strategic actions:

1. Identifying Partners: Develop criteria for the selecting of missionary partners that SLPC should sponsor and assist. Then establish an ongoing process for identifying partners based on the criteria.
2. Developing Terms of Partnership: Develop terms of partnership with each missionary, including stipulating goals, duration, expectation and how information will be exchanged.
3. Communication with Partners: Receive regular feedback from partners, share the information with SLPC members and use the feedback to assess need for further support from SLPC.
4. Indigenous Ministries: Identify geographic locations within the United States or internationally and come alongside the local Church (plant one if the Church is not there) or Christian organization in spreading the good news.
5. Engaging Institutions of Learning: Reach out to institutions of higher education in the Greater Philadelphia to identify students who could be supported by SLPC to spread the Gospel when they return to their homes of origin.

Revised June 6, 2011