What is a Matthew party?

Our church just complete the book "Just walk across the room".

One of the things we learnt was regarding a Matthew Party. 

(Read more on what it is at the end of the post)

We decided to put into practice what we have learnt so we organised one!

Our girls group organised a pizza and do-your-own ice cream party at my house's common area.

The start of the party was a little awkward since there were a lot of new friends and they have yet to warm up to each other.

We started dinner and that was a good time for them to get to know each other as they converse.

After dinner, we played some simple group games to engage everyone.

The games really helped and by then everyone has already warmed up so we had a good time.

It started to get a little cold so we headed up to my house.

We bought a tub of ice cream and some toppings so everyone made their own ice cream.

And we also continued our conversations over ice cream.

I have to say that the event went way better than i expected and it seems like everyone really enjoyed themselves, especially at the middle-end of the night. Thank God for that! We have been praying about the event and God answered us with more than we asked.

I am glad our new friends could get to know some of our life group girls and I hope our contacts would be more willing to join us for life group in future.

What is a Matthew Party?

(info from https://www.usc.salvationarmy.org/usc/cc/apr13/Matthew-Parties.pdf)

A few points to consider:

• Be sure that those who are already Christ-followers are outnumbered, so that those who are far from Christ don’t feel like they are being ganged up on.Try to decide which Christ-followers would be best for those on your invitation list. You might think about age, stage in life, interests, temperament, etc. You want this to be a wonderful experience for all.
• You should never find yourself “enjoying” the ways of the world – or participating in them.
  Think of an event you wouldn’t want to miss, plan it, prepare for it, promote it, experience it and then FOLLOW-UP those who attended. Make sure a clear Gospel message is shared and an invitation to accept Christ is given.
  Remember the goal is to always – in love – point to Jesus! 
  

In Luke 5:27-32, Matthew, a tax collector, decided to follow Jesus. And upon making this exciting decision, the first thing he did, was to throw a big feast (or party) and invite all of his other friends who were also tax collectors over to his house.
Of course... this made the religious folks of the day very angry, and they accused Jesus of eating with, drinking with, and being a friend of sinners.
To these accusations, Jesus replied... “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? I’m here inviting outsiders, not insiders – an invitation to a changed life, changed inside and out.” (Luke 5:31 MES)
This was uncomfortable for the religious people, because:

• Matthew was not a speaker sharing from their platform
  
• He wasn’t one of their chosen select few
  
• Matthew was considered the “filth” of society
  
• The meeting was not held in the synagogue
  
• It was not labeled a study of scripture (or Bible study)
  It was simply... dinner at Matthew’s place, and Jesus was a guest.
  Although Jesus didn’t share in the life style or sinful habits of these tax collectors, He was able to look past their outer appearance, and with the love of the Father, see people who needed a Savior. We know this by His reply in Luke 5:31 (above).
  What is a Matthew Party?
  It is a get-together (or party) with the purpose of getting to know those around you, and in love, introducing them to Jesus. The invitation list should consist of both people that are still far from God, as well as a few Christ-followers.
  As Christians we need to remember, that we can do many good things for God, but if we do not truly love others, it is all for nothing!