I'm about three years into planting a church, which means I'm not an expert. However, I do trust my Bible, love my Jesus and have some battle scars. I know first hand many of the things, internally and externally, that compete for the church planters heart, mind and soul. Unfortunately, the reality is that many, if not all, of these can threaten to eclipse the very thing that our people need most from us.
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The early stage of church planting is a unique season that comes with its own share of opportunities and obstacles. We're familiar with the obstacles, but what about the opportunities? Because everything is so new and fresh (and frightening) at the beginning it is an opportune time to network. With who? With anyone who is willing to meet with you. Anyone. I'm not a natural networker, but I found the following to be incredibly helpful.
Read MoreI try to keep the content here generally applicable to everyone, but from time to time I like to share what's happening on the ground in our local gospel work to solicit prayer, offer encouragement and spread the word. There's always a risk of appearing self-promoting, but its worth the risk if it results in prayer for our newly forming flock in the city. This Sunday we're starting a new series through First Timothy. Would you pray for our church? Would you pray for our city? Would you pray for a fresh outpouring of the Spirit that results in new, and re-newed, awakenings to the reality of God? If you're not currently connected to a local Jesus-loving, Bible-believing, gospel-centered church in the area, consider joining us. If you know anyone with questions and/or interest in the person and work of Jesus, feel free to send them our way and we'll make sure they get taken care of. Thanks in advance. With you, in Christ.
Read MoreI have the privilege of meeting with 2-3 potential church planters every month and one of the central questions asked is, "What books should I read?" One of my hopes is to be of help to those that are (1) considering planting, (2) in the early stages of planting, or (3) looking at becoming a church-planting-church. Given that, I plan to regularly provide an updated list of books and resources that every church planter should read. I'll update the list as I come across newer/better resources. This post builds off of a previous one here. I'd love to hear from you if have additional recommendations. There's a much longer list than what is provided below, but if you're planting you need it narrowed down. Let's look at the top nine...
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I have lost track of how many church planting books I have read. I have attended conferences. I have read blogs. I have listened to sermons, workshops and seminars. I have talked to seasoned planters and pastors. I have done my homework. As a novice church planter I was told to focus on: converts, leadership development, missional communities, connecting with city leaders, contextualization, strategic planning, social networking, engaging preaching, membership development, and contemporary worship. Those are all good, even needed. I agree with (most of) them. Yet, in focusing on so many things, it is easy to lose focus on the main thing.
Read MoreThere are few things that get me as excited as seeing normal, Jesus-loving, Spirit-filled men lay down their lives to plant/replant a church. For every pastor whose name is nationally known, there are 1,000s who are faithfully slugging it out in the trenches whose names you will never know. In fact, the overwhelming majority of churches throughout the history of Christianity have been planted and pastored by such men.
Read More"Church planting? What is that?" I still get asked that question, even after a couple years in. Any way you slice it the idea of church planting is often either misunderstood or, literally, unheard of. The questions are many, including:
- Why plant a new church in a city already filled with other churches?
- Why not focus instead on helping existing churches grow?
- Won’t starting a new church merely take people away from other churches?
- Shouldn’t we focus on cultivating better churches, rather than adding churches?
These are valid concerns that stem from a fundamental misunderstanding/ignorance of the complexities of revitalization, organizational life-cycles, demographic diversity, theological distinctions, leadership styles, evangelism, and general philosophies of ministry within existing churches. It’s more complicated than we may at first realize.
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