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Essentials: Worship

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010

Note: Casey Johnson is an M.Div. student at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando.  He is at the GCA Conference this week and is going through the “Essentials” course.  He shared his thoughts with us on the Worship module, which was taught by Jason Sears.  In very brief, bullet-point form, here’s what Casey learned.

Last night’s worship session was very enlightening. Here’s some of the highlights I took from it:

1. Don’t let others determine your vision. What he meant by this was not that you shouldn’t figure out what style of worship would hit your target group, rather, once you have a vision in place, don’t let the people who don’t agree with the vision determine your vision. (In my words, “the vision’s not for sale”).

2. When planting a church, don’t look for the rock star to be your worship leader. Too often new churches look for the rock star in skinny jeans, white belt, hair product, etc. to fit the look and sound they desire, but they don’t really hire a worship leader. Look for someone who has vision for this ministry and a heart for the church. Here are five things to look for in a worship pastor.

i. Ability to play and sing.

ii. Relational/Pastoral

iii. Teammate with you. Someone you could go to the movies with. You must have his back.

iv. Musician. Find someone who is passionate about music. Don’t look for someone who learned the beginning of a couple Coldplay songs, look for someone who loves music.

v. A Learner. Someone who is constantly reading magazines, books, listening to new music, going to hear other musicians. Always wants to get better themselves.

3. Without giving the whole talk away, here’s one last thing: The Four Stages of Presbyterian Hand Raising. You’ll have to ask Jason about this yourself. Go hear him next time he teaches.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Casey!

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Church Planting: Using Technology and Social Media

Tuesday, January 26th, 2010

This year’s conference consists of 13 sessions.  In keeping with past years, there are two tracks.  The Foundations track is for church planters who are just getting started.  They may still be in the planning stages, or in the first year or two of planting.  The “Essentials” track is for planters who are a little bit further along (3-5 years) and is designed to help them determine the next steps in the development on their churches.

I’ll be blogging my way through the “Foundations” track.  Because of the density of the material and the pace at which we’re moving through it, there’s just no way for me to cover everything.  So I’ll only be sharing one module with you today.  I’ll try to cover two on both Wednesday and Thursday.

Technology and Social Media

This session was presented by the duo of Tim Brister and Drew Goodmanson.  It’s actually not part of the “Foundations” track proper.  But it seemed like such a unique module that I couldn’t resist sharing it with you.  (And, of course, as a blogger I’m probably a little biased!)

Technology is changing.  It’s more immersive.  It’s all around us.  And if we want to reach the culture around us, we will have to learn to speak in their technological language.  In other words, the Church needs to be using all avenues of communication to share the gospel.  In America today, this means websites, Facebook, Twitter, and blogs just to name a few.

This doesn’t mean we should accept technology uncritically.  What it does mean is that we shouldn’t react against it per se.  We know that technology – and social media in particular – impacts the amount of time we spend directly interacting with one another.  So what we need is to have a theology of presence such that we can understand the positives and negatives of technology and its affect on relational intimacy.  Where this hasn’t been done, we have yet to fully comprehend our relationship with the gadgets that surround us.

With regard to social media, church planters need to understand that they have four audiences that they are trying to reach: non-Christians, new Christians, regular church-goers, and church leaders.  In some sense, it’s unrealistic to expect a one-size-fits-all approach to reach and inform all four of these groups.  So a good approach to a church’s online presence is going to be multi-faceted.  It just has to be.

The project of managing any organization’s online presence is called Internet Presence Management.  This involves first figuring out which online services are being used by the people you want to reach (be they an un-reached group that you want to evangelize, or the average attendee at your church).  There’s no doubt that there are a lot of options here: Facebook ads, clever domain names, and private member portals (e.g. the “unifyer” service) only scratch the surface.  It’s easy to get exhausted trying to consider all of the options.  I could feel a collective sigh of relief as Drew stressed that the goal isn’t to keep up with everything going on here.  Just find out where the people are that you want to reach online and do those things well.

If you’re willing to put in some time (or hire an expert), search engines make it possible to speak to people who you otherwise wouldn’t.  Instead of finding them, they might come into contact with your message on Google. Doing this well entails presenting your material in such a way that it will rank high in search engine results.  For example, a church in Orlando would do well to tailer their website such that it ranks highly (i.e. within the top five results) for someone searching “Orlando church.”  This process is called search engine optimization (SEO), and it’s a process best left to the experts.

Here are some interesting tidbits that Tim and Drew had to share. Traditionally, web site design has convinced almost no non-Christians to attend a particular church.  For Christians new to an area, on the other hand, the website has replaced an ad in the phone book as the first filter in determining what church to attend.  43 seconds is the average length of time that a visitor spends on a website.  That means that, if all of the important information on your website can’t be reached quickly, then visitors will simply move on.  Aside from the homepage, the most popular page visits tend to be “I’m new” pages.  Visitors will not come if your website is outdated (77% say this is somewhat to very important).

Talking with Tim and Drew after the session, it was clear that they do not support the use of all of this technology for its own sake.  Rather, they recognize that these are the media that people are using today to gain and share information.  As church planters, leaders and evangelists, who naturally want to seek the lost, we need to go where they are.  As it turns out, they’re online.  That being the case, the gospel needs to get online.  And it needs to “go viral.”

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North American Church Planting Conference Starts Today!

Tuesday, January 26th, 2010

Conference RoomToday we’re excited.  Today marks the beginning of our North American Church Planting Conference in Orlando, FL.  We have spent awhile getting things ready and even now attendees are showing up to register.

We’ll be updating this blog periodically over the course of the conference with lessons our attendees are learning from the trainers.  So be sure to check in with us over the course of the next few days.  Even if you couldn’t make the trip to Orlando, we want you to stay informed!

If you’re the type of person who is interested in statistics, the following might be of interest to you.  Here is who will be attending this years’ conference:

  • Over 200 People
  • 28 States
  • 10 Countries
  • 20 Denominations
  • 23 Trainers

Even if you’re not down here with us, please feel free to keep in touch with us over the course of the conference.  You can always reach us at our Twitter and Facebook pages.

We’ll be sure to update you tonight on some of the things we learned today.  In the mean time, please be praying with us for everyone at this conference.  We hope people leave here feeling refreshed and with a renewed sense of focus and vision.

For the nations!

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My Top Ten Mistakes In Ministry–That I Can Share Publicly: Mistake # 2

Sunday, November 15th, 2009

“If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.” 2 Corinthians 11:30 (ESV)

Man Sorry for MistakesThis is the third in a series of blog posts called, “My Top Ten Mistakes in Ministry (That I Can Share Publicly)” After many years of ministry experience as a church planter, pastor and seminary professor I think I’ve finally learned that one of the best kept secrets to surviving well in the ministry is to stop making the same old mistakes that others (like me) have been making for decades. Instead, let’s all start making some brand new, bold, innovative and creative mistakes!

We began this series with an introduction called, “Ladies First” in which veteran church planter wife, Shari Thomas, addressed the tough topic, “What I Wish I Had Known About Church Planting” from the perspective of the church planter’s/pastor’s spouse. Last time we looked at Mistake #1 called, “Failing to Understand the Importance of How I Define Ministry Success.” This time we’ll take a brief look at Mistake #2 (these are in no intentional order) I wish someone had the wisdom and guts to tell me before I began church planting/pastoral ministry more than 30 years ago.

Mistake #2: Managing My Time And Not My Life

clock-headIn his classic article, “Tyranny of the Urgent”, Charles Hummel writes, “‘Have you ever wished for a thirty-hour day?’ Surely this extra time would relieve the tremendous pressure under which we live. Our lives leave a trail of unfinished tasks. Unanswered emails, unvisited friends, unread books and articles, etc., haunt quiet moments when we stop to evaluate. We desperately need relief.

But would a thirty-hour day really solve the problem? Wouldn’t we soon be just as frustrated as we are now with our twenty-four allotment? “A mother’s work is never done”, and neither is that of . . . any pastor. Nor will the passage of time help us catch up. Children grow in number and age to require more of our time. Greater experience and success in life and ministry normally bring more exacting assignments. So we find ourselves working more and enjoying it less.”

Our problem is often, unknowingly, allowing the urgent things in life to crowd out the truly important things. We all live in a constant tension between the urgent and the important.

The Gap Between the Compass and the Clock

There is an ongoing contrast between two things that continually influence our lives: the clock and the compass. Stephen Covey, in his book, First Things First, describes the clock as representing such things as our commitments, appointments,compassschedules, goals, activities; it’s how we use and manage our time. The compass represents our core life values, our conscience, our sense of personal vision and life mission; it’s what we believe is truly important in life and how we manage life.

The struggle comes when we experience a gap between the compass and the clock–when what we actually do with our time doesn’t contribute to what is truly most important in our life. In an effort to close the gap between the compass and the clock, many of us naturally turn to the field of “personal time management.” Traditional time management theory suggests that by doing things more efficiently, you’ll eventually gain control of your life and that increased control will bring personal peace and fulfillment.

Although there is much to gain from such things as planning, prioritizing and goal setting, the bottom line is that mere increased efficiency normally does not lessen the gap between the compass and the clock. In fact, I was a living example of someone who had learned how to get a lot more work done in less time, but what I was actually doing with my time was not at all what truly matters to me the most. This is why I wish someone had asked questions and said things to me like:

“How many pastors on their deathbed wish they had spent more time at the church?”

“The worst enemy of the best is often the good.”

The Answer is Not Learning to Get More Done in Less Time

The gap between what is deeply important to you (your compass) and the way you spend your time (your clock) cannot be closedTime_Management_Techniquesby simply learning to do more things more efficiently. The answer is not found in learning to get more things done in less time. In fact, increasing your time management efficiency can actually make things worse! What is needed is a new way of thinking—learning how to manage your life and not just your time, and learning how to shift your focus away from things that are urgent to the things that are trulyimportant.

Often, unless we take intentional, proactive steps to fight against it, we’ll inevitably become slaves to the “tyranny of the urgent”.  It’s been said that, “Anything less than a conscious commitment to the important is an unconscious commitment to the unimportant.”

In Isaiah 30:15 we read, “For thus the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has said, ‘In repentance and rest you shall be saved, In quietness and trust is your strength.’” At the root of our frantic propensity to overwork is the sin of pride—an exalted sense of our importance to the Kingdom of God. We secretly and arrogantly think things like: “If I dare to stop, the Kingdom of God just might not make it and my ministry would surely self-destruct!”

Some of us need to show our faith in God not by working harder but by working less!

Some of us have been hitting it too hard for too long, and we desperately need extended time to rest. For some it might be 6 months for others it might be 6 weeks, or maybe 6 days. For some of us the most spiritual thing we could do now is to go home and go to bed and sleep!

A seasoned missionary in Peru came up to me at a conference once to tell me that in all his years in the ministry, he has learned that there are two types of missionaries in Peru—those who take siestas (naps) every day and those who leave the field. He said, “If you don’t learn to take your siesta on your first term, you normally will not be back for your second term.”

Not Just Starting Well . . . But Finishing Well

It’s one thing to start ministry well. It’s another to finish well. We must remember (and keep reminding each other) that the ministry is not a sprint, but it’s a cross-country event. So we must pace ourselves. We must build into our lives a Sabbath Rhythm of work and rest, work and rest—daily, weekly, quarterly, yearly.

The Scriptures tell us, “When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he instructed his disciples to cross to the other side of the lake” (Matt 8:18). Jesus knew when it was time for him and his followers to pull away from the pressing demands of ministry. My prayer for you and for me is that we will too, before it’s too late.

Steve Childers is the President & CEO of Global Church Advancement, an inter-denominational ministry that provides Steve-Childers-Bio-Photochurch planting training, consultations, and resources for church planters, pastors and missionaries throughout the world. Steve has trained Christian leaders from more than 50 countries (curriculum in five major global languages) representing over 200 denominations and mission agencies. Steve is also an author, Professor of Practical Theology (since 1995) and the Director of the Doctoral program atReformed Theological Seminary, in Orlando, Florida, where he teaches church planting, missions, evangelism and spiritual formation.

To learn more about GCA:

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My Top Ten Mistakes In Ministry (That I Can Share Publicly) #1

Monday, October 12th, 2009

Pooped Pastor Picture

This is the second in a series of blog posts I’m calling, “My Top Ten Mistakes in Ministry (That I Can Share Publicly!). After decades of ministry experience as a church planter, pastor and seminary professor I’ve learned the hard way that most church leaders seem to keep making the same mistakes in ministry. I hope that this series will help some church leaders (including me) stop making the same old mistakes and at least start making some brand new, innovative and creative mistakes!

Last time we began this series with an introduction called, “Ladies First” in which veteran church planter wife Shari Thomas answered the tough question, “What I Wish I Had Known About Church Planting” from the perspective of the church pastor’s spouse. This time we’ll take a brief look at the first of my top ten ministry mistakes.

Mistake #1: Failing to Understand the Importance of How I Define Ministry Success

First, I wish someone had told me how critically important it is to have a biblical view of success in the ministry. I wish someone had the wisdom and guts to have taken me aside, before I went into pastoral ministry, and say something like this: “Do you know that you have a definition of what it means to be successful in ministry and that definition is probably very wrong and dangerous?” I wish someone had explained to me how my definition of ministry success had the potential power of either destroying my ministry and life or deeply enriching it.  But no one said that to me. So I had to learn this lesson the old-fashioned way–by failing.

By anyone’s standards the disciples’ ministry, described in Luke 10, seemed to be a raging success. You know the story. Jesus sent them out “two by two” and commissioned them to heal the sick and proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom. As they spoke in Jesus’ name and ministered to the people, God’s power fell on them in an astonishing way. They were not only surprised but also thrilled and elated. Luke 10:17 tells us, “And the seventy returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.’” Their enthusiasm was obvious. God was mightily at work through their lives doing great signs and wonders, just like they had seen done earlier by Jesus.

So the disciples rejoiced. And why shouldn’t they? Even the demons were subject to them, just as they had been to Jesus. But right in the midst of all their elation and rejoicing at how God was working so powerfully in and through them, Jesus spoke these sobering words. He said, “Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven”(Luke 10:20).

Here Jesus makes clear to his disciples what I wish someone had made clear to me many years ago–that their source of joy in ministry must not be found in what they do for Him but in who they are in Him. Jesus knew that there would soon come a time in all of their ministries when there would no longer be great signs and wonders to encourage them. Instead, there would be great hardships, trials, persecution, and even death for serving in His name. Jesus knew there were times before them when they would feel much more in subjection to the demons rather than the demons being in subjection to them.

At such times Jesus does not want his followers (then or now) to be robbed of joy, so he taught them to find their true source of joy in something other than what most would call “ministry success.” Instead, Jesus wants His followers, even in the face of what many would call ministry failure, to be the kind of people who learn to find deep-seated joy in their knowledge of the Good News of the God’s radical love for them in Christ, (i.e. that “their names are recorded in heaven”.)

In the often difficult and faith-testing trenches of real life ministry (not the unrealistic, Pollyannaish and triumphalistic pictures of ministry often painted by others) it is extremely easy and very normal for church leaders to become discouraged and depressed. Thousands have left the ministry over the years convinced they are failures because of their lack of what many would call ministry success. One of the downsides of my ministry is that I’m sometimes called in to help when church planters and church plants crash and burn. Often these church planters don’t just leave the ministry-they leave the Faith. And every time, without exception, I have discovered deeply lodged in their broken hearts an unbiblical definition of ministry success.

According to Scripture, success before God should be measured primarily in terms of faithfulness to Him. Success has been defined well by Ken and Barbara Hughes, in their excellent book Liberating Ministry from the Success Syndrome, as “faithfully pleasing God with the resources and responsibilities that He has given you.” The authors make the point that in the Parable of the Talents (Matt. 25:14-30)  Jesus rewarded each faithful man the same—even though one was actually given more than the other and even though one actually produced more than the other.

The main point in this book is not to denigrate the value and necessity of things like thoughtful planning and hard work in the ministry. And the authors are not advocating spiritual pacifism in the name of faith. Instead, they are making a solid case for a biblical view of success that is radically different from the world’s view. It is primarily qualitative not merely quantitative. Its emphasis is more on things like faithfulness, humility, love and relationships than on measurable, objective accomplishments and achievements in the ministry.

God’s Kingdom is an upside-down Kingdom. The Apostle James wrote, “God is opposed to the proud but He gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). Through the prophet Isaiah the Lord said, “But to this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word” (Isaiah 66:2). One of the supreme glories of the Gospel is that it is primarily through weakness that God has chosen to show his strength. This is why the Puritans used to say, “God’s grace, like water always flows to the lowest place, the sinner’s place–the foot of the cross.”

Paul writes,  “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of  the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of  the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of athe world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, that no man should boast before God”(1 Cor 1:26-29).

If you are like most of us in the ministry today your definition of success is naturally prone to be primarily quantitative not qualitative. Its emphasis is on measurable, objective accomplishments and achievements–things like ”nickels and noses” (church finances & attendance), making a “Kingdom impact”, attaining prestige, power and resources. Without realizing it your  sense of personal worth and identity is inordinately and frighteningly deeply rooted in these things–not in the Good News that “your name is recorded in heaven.”

Oswald Chamber wrote, “God can achieve his purpose either through the absence of human power and resources, or the abandonment of reliance on them. All through history God has chosen and used nobodies, because their unusual dependence on him made possible the unique display of his power and grace. He chose and used somebodies only when they renounced dependence on their natural abilities and resources.”

Never forget that your source of joy in the ministry must not be rooted in what you do for Him but in who you are in Him. That’s because there will inevitably come a time in your ministry when you will no longer have all the quantitative accomplishments, power and resources in which you are now illegitimately (and probably unknowingly) finding your true sense of worth and joy. “Do not rejoice in this…but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven” (Luke 10:20).

Instead, learn to find your true sense of personal worth and joy in the Good News of God’s radical love for you in Christ. Define your success in ministry as “faithfully pleasing God with the resources and responsibilities that He has given you.” Make the primary focus of your ministry things like faithfulness, humility, love and relationships. Then leave the results of your ministry to God.  Failing to understand the importance of how to define ministry success has been one of my top ten greatest mistakes in ministry–that I can share publicly. This failure has cost me greatly. I pray that you will not keep making this same mistake.

Steve Childers is the President & CEO of Global Church Advancement, an inter-denominational ministry that provides church planting training, consultations, and resources for church planters, pastors and missionaries throughout the world. Steve has trained Christian leaders from more than 40 countries (curriculum in five major languages) representing over 300 denominations and mission agencies. Steve is also an author, Professor of Practical Theology (since 1995) and the director of the doctoral program at Reformed Theological Seminary, in Orlando, Florida, where he teaches church planting, missions, evangelism and spiritual formation.

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Research Findings on Church Planting Wives: 6 Primary Sources, 8 Secondary Sources

Sunday, September 13th, 2009

UnhappyWoman2

The following factors provided the greatest sources of satisfaction or stress for church planting wives. These findings are taken from a research study conducted in North American among PCA church planting spouses of various ethnicities in both urban and suburban settings. This research was conducted by Parakaleo—a gospel-centered ministry that is highly recommended by GCA and represented at all North American GCA training events. Parakaleo exists to strengthen the gospel spreading impact of church planting
by coming alongside church planting movements and church planting couples.
Through coaching, connecting, caring, and celebrating they facilitate training,
encouragement and care of church planters and their spouses. For more information contact Parakaleo staff Shari Thomas, shari@parakaleo.us or Tami Resch, tami@parakaleo.us

Six Primary Sources

1. The Husband

The greatest source of satisfaction or stress for the church planter spouse was the person and work of the husband as he is involved/uninvolved with his wife. The lack of a support system not only increases loneliness and isolation for the wife, it puts added pressure on the marriage. If a clergy couple is relying primarily on each other for support, the marriage may function well most of the time, yet a narrow support system will become a problem when either one is not able to fulfill that role (McMinn 2004).

“We have a strong marriage and I know my husband is committed to me. If I weren’t called to do this type of work, he would quit. We both have a profound respect that God has called us together as one flesh and He will not pull us in different directions. My husband practices the scripture of laying down his life for me as Christ laid down His life for the church. I can submit to that kind of husband.”

2. Support System

The major factor which restricts clergy spouses from experiencing the support they need is that their primary support system comes from their husbands-men who tend to be absent from the home evenings and weekends. The study also indicates that wives do not talk about their husband since this could jeopardize his career (McMinn, 2004).

“It would have been most helpful if I had connection with other church planting spouses early on.”

3. Sabbath Rest

“The highest levels of exhaustion were caused by overextending ourselves because of perceived expectations that we feared we were not meeting. Overall, we were not trusting the Lord.”

“We did not take regular days off or vacations. Nor did we know about keeping boundaries. So a lot has been learned and changed over the years.”

4. Reliance on Christ

“I attribute my spiritual and emotional health to daily repentance, and to understanding how great my sin is, to the ability to laugh, and balancing my heart for the church with the fact that the church is not my life or my significance.”

“…it is God alone, salvation, prayer, his goodness, his very presence in the Spirit.”

“While I give head assent to relying on Christ, my life style shows my functional belief system which is in myself and human effort”.

5. Boundary Ambiguity

Ambiguity is endemic to ministry. To the clergy family, the system is not clear. All members of the family participate either directly or indirectly in the church. There is some role expectation of the congregation which must be fulfilled by the minister, his spouse, and even his children. This level of ambiguity causes high levels of stress for clergy spouses (Lee, 1988).

a) Role Ambiguity

“My greatest challenge has been how the ambiguous role of the cp spouse would affect me. The struggle of knowing church planting was my passion, being trained in ministry, and yet not knowing how to interface this without having a defined position was difficult. I often functionally operated as an assistant minister yet without title, pay, or decision making power.”

b) Emotional Ambiguity

“How much should my husband tell me? I realize I am his primary support, but it’s hard to love people well when I know how they have hurt him.”

c) Physical Ambiguity

The constant unknowns of facility and where we will be located coupled with the constant unknowns of who will stay and who will leave the church plant has been my biggest challenge.”

6. Physical health

Having balanced or unbalanced health

60% of church planting spouses reported leading more than one major ministry in the church plant or community along with being involved in 2-3 other ministries. It is no surprise they report exhaustion and often burn out in ministry.

Eight Secondary Sources

1. Changed lives

“Walking with people in their journey and seeing their lives changed because of the existence of our church is incredibly exciting.”

“Transformed lives, mine and others, have been the greatest source of satisfaction.”

2. Commitment and sense of call to church planting

“What is our major calling if we have other passions? How do we balance this with the demands church planting places on us?”

“I feel just as called to church planting as my husband. We are both in this together.”

3. Family Time

“My husband keeps his day off and is intentional about building a relationship with our boys. We work hard to build a family focus, identity, and history.”

“I don’t show the kids my unhappiness with their dads lack of participating in our family life. I feel like he spiritually takes care of the church and I take care of the family.”

4. Raising kids

“I really suffer here…often my husband is not a part of what we do as a family. When the church is struggling, the less my husband does for and with the family and the more he wants me to focus on helping him with the ministry.”

“He helps us apply the word to our lives as we go…in devotional time, in the car, around the table.”

5. Church growth

“Having come from a large church it has been discouraging to see the slow growth.”

6. Expectations- from/of self and others

“I didn’t realize how high my expectations were of others. It took me time to realize not everyone has the same calling I have but also that some may not be passionate about seeing others come to know Christ.”

“I have been disappointed with the lack of responsibility and loyalty some people have”.

7. Finances

“Church planting is like starting a business only after the hard work we don’t get the financial payback. It’s hard to give our blood, sweat, and tears to this type of work and not have some sort of financial outcome that we can then pass on to our kids.”

8. Use of gifts and abilities

“I thought I would have an opportunity to use my gifts but with the exhaustion my husband experiences, the needs of our kids, and without having other leaders, most of my time is spent in areas the church needs but not where I’m passionate.”


head_shari_drinkingShari Thomas (GCA Blogger) has been involved with her husband, John, in church planting for over 25 years both in North America and abroad. Shari serves on Mission to North America’s church planting staff as the Director of Parakaleo, a ministry primarily to church planting spouses. Shari and/or Tami Resch (also on staff with Parakaleo) lead the Women’s Forum (6 Sessions) at the North America GCA Conferences & Seminars. John is the director of global training for the Redeemer Church Planting Center in Manhattan, NYC. They have 3 children who amazingly still claim them as parents. They love sailing, only do legal drugs, and are known coffee snobs.


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Planter Spouse Looks Back: What I Wish I’d Known About Church Planting! by Shari Thomas*

Saturday, August 22nd, 2009

Shari-Thomas-Photo

Given at the Global Church Advancement North America Conference

I wish someone would have told us (Shari and her husband, John), that we both would need a support system greater than just each other…

…that we would need coaches and mentors, and we should plan at more than one stage in the journey on getting counseling….

…and when we didn’t have this support system it would be up to us to seek it out!

I would have greatly benefited knowing that we needed to come to a mutual understanding and commitment about what my involvement in the church plant would be…

…that pursuing and nurturing my gifts was as important as nurturing his.

And that we would often need to review this involvement through out the stages of church planting and seasons of life…

…that when the children were young, my husband and children would require and need most of my time.

I wish he’d known how much I would need his support in sticking to these commitments rather than both of us rescuing ministries and people when they floundered.

I longed for someone to gently come alongside me and remind me again and again that what my husband needs from me most is love and respect. 



He can find coaches, teachers, nags and critics in countless places. He already has one mother. And when it’s late at night and we are falling into bed that this is not the time or place to hear one more idea on how to make the church successful! 



But at the same time I also wished he’d known how very important it was for the two of us to have our weekly “staff” times to talk about how the church and family life intersected.

I was a part of the church planting team and needed to know about the plant, give my input and have a place on the team. I wish we had spoken more openly about this to our staff as they too needed to work through their understanding of my role on the church planting team.

If I had known that my heart as well as our kids would be hurt, angry, and almost torn in two by this ministry we might not have planted a church. 



….but we also may never have learned the delight and satisfaction of pointing each other to Jesus, to the hope that only the gospel brings, and the deep joy of leading others to this hope.

…if we hadn’t planted a church I don’t know if we would ever have known the joy of watching the people we had led to Christ then turn and point our hearts to Jesus during our dark hours.

We would have benefited from being told that the question “should we stay in this church?” will be one that will haunt us through out our ministry lives. 

I was not prepared for him rolling over in bed doubting his call.

I didn’t know we would question if God had brought us here…that when my husband’s passion and energy for the church plant was waxing, mine might be waning and vice versa. It would have been helpful to know this was normal.

I am thankful that someone told us we would have to work harder for a marriage where there is spiritual, emotional, and physical intimacy than we would have to work at planting the church…that this would involve sacrifice on both of our parts, and it would be well worth it. 



…that this would mean being honest about the damage we both do to one another and then seeking reconciliation to whatever point was needed for the sake of the other.

…that repentance involved not a simple “I’m sorry” but asking the other person to tell how we had harmed them and to listen without defending .

That it would mean doing this over and over in our marriage…that it would mean being willing to give up church planting, even leaving ministry for the sake of loving the other person.

I am glad my husband learned early on that church planting gave him great freedom to creatively mold his schedule to fit the needs of both his family and the church. 


I am grateful he takes time from church ministry to pour into the lives of our kids: working on school projects, creating feasts in the kitchen, taking vacations, catching the latest blockbuster, filling their lives with music, asking them the tough questions, drawing out their hearts, repenting openly before them…

…I love watching their eyes fill with pride when they introduce their friends to their dad. Nothing draws my heart to him more than that he loves our children so well. 



And at the same time when both he and I love our kids poorly, I really wish I had known that the Christian life and Church planting was not about working so hard to get it right, be right, and do right.

That it was not my job to perfect myself. That even learning the gospel was not another tool to add to my arsenal of how to live a better life. 

But it was church planting that finally brought me to the realization that I can’t change myself.

That it’s not about what others say about me. That Jesus has already said, “It is finished.”. That God’s verdict spoken over me comes before any of my performance, before I ever started on this journey of church planting…he delights in me already! 



If I had known this, I would have enjoyed life so much more. But the journey isn’t finished and I’m planning on joining the party more these days.

But I am most grateful that my husband keeps learning that no one can pursue, strongly lead and cherish me the way he can. 



…that when I’m withdrawn and discouraged, his gentle wooing speaks volumes

…when I’m masking deep hurt with anger, his strong, consistent pursuit melts me like nothing else 



…when darkness has masked Jesus face, I have felt another strong hand leading me home 



…and when it’s all said and done, and we are at The Great Marriage Feast I will recognize the tastes and sounds and smells. The dance will be vaguely familiar…

…for hints of the realm unknown have drifted across the border land.

…and I have caught glimpses of what is yet to come for so many of you, my friends, my church family, my kids and my husband have shown me the way.

 *Shari Thomas has been involved with her husband, John, in church planting for over 25 years both in North America and abroad. Shari serves on Mission to North America’s church planting staff as the Director of Parakaleo, a ministry primarily to church planting spouses. Shari and/or Tami Resch (also on staff with Parakaleo) lead the Women’s Forum (6 Sessions) at the North America GCA Conferences & Seminars. John is the director of global training for the Redeemer Church Planting Center in Manhattan, NYC. They have 3 children who amazingly still claim them as parents. They love sailing, only do legal drugs, and are known coffee snobs.

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New Barna Report: Most People (64%) in USA Attend Smaller Churches

Monday, August 10th, 2009

small-country-church-photo“A new report from The Barna Group, based on interviews with more than 3,000 adults, shows that congregational size is related to the nature of a congregation’s religious beliefs, religious behavior and demographic profile. There are clearly significant differences between the smallest and largest of Protestant churches in terms of the theological beliefs of adherents.”
 

One of the survey results discovered was that most people in the USA attended smaller churches:

“Despite the substantial attention focused on Protestant mega-churches, such congregations draw about 9% of adults who frequent a Protestant church. In contrast, 41% of adults attending a Protestant church associate with a congregation of 100 or fewer adults. An additional 23% can be found at churches of 101 to 200 adults, 18% associate with bodies of 201 to 499 adults, and 9% can be found in churches of 500 to 999 adults.” © The Barna Group, Ltd, 2009

To read all the Barna Group research results click here: http://bit.ly/UiTCR

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WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING, TWEETING & BLOGGING ABOUT THE JULY 09 GCA CHURCH PLANTER TRAINING SEMINAR

Wednesday, July 29th, 2009

get-hands-on1WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT THE JULY 09 GCA CHURCH PLANTER TRAINING SEMINAR:

  • “Amazing insights; great resources; gospel-centered focus, top-notch material both written and presented!”
  • “This conference could replace all the other books, videos, classes and conferences I have encountered while preparing to plant”
  • “I went to another training that focused on some theory and included a lot of inspirational stories. The training wasn’t very practical and not gospel-centered. I wondered “Where can I learn practical and applicable theory that is gospel-centered and where God is present?” Well, God brought me to that place when my wife and I came to GCA!”
  • “It lays the foundational core for planting before you begin laboring at the plan. It gets your head and heart straight before you dive in.”
  • “Intensely practical from people who’ve been there and done that!”
  • “No other conference provides such intense training. This is truly a “bootcamp!”
  • “All the trainers speak from the experience of their failures, which is encouraging!”
  • “You only think you know what you are doing until you attend the conference! Hello, grenade-sitting-under-my seat! More than this, the love and riches of the gospel brought it all into focus.”
  • “Call my denomination and tell them here is a place to train!”
  • “This seminar surpassed my expectations. It’s like a grenade of useful information was dropped on me.”
  • “Most valuable thing was getting the “ball rolling” by having time in class to work through exercises.”
  • “Networking with others. GCA Must advertise more! Not many people know about it.”
  • “The encouragement and coaching, not so much in the skills, but in the ‘faith!’”
  • “Too much to list all, Relationships and Encouragement, Clearer Picture of the way forward.”
  • “Talking about finances, launching, planning …”
  • “The intentional nature of the conference was tremendously helpful.”
  • “The overall orientation in foundations track was excellent. I think I walked away with a macro view of just what a church planter is!”
  • “Encouragement from those who have been there and relationships with those who are going through it now.”
  • “I love to be here because we can talk and we can dream together of church planting…”
  • “Go tell others so they can come BEFORE they plant/start worship as a plant!”
  • “There’s no doubt that I need to come back again.” 

 

childers-vision-trainingWHAT PEOPLE ARE TWEETING ABOUT THE JULY 09 GCA CHURCH PLANTER TRAINING SEMINAR:

  • “God loves to manifest his presence and pour out his power on those who will dare to align their purposes more with his.” @stevechilders
  • “Missions exists because worship doesn’t” -Piper. For the younger generation, this is not Scripture. @stevechilders
  • Phenomenal 1st day @ the #_gca seminar. Met some great church planters. Listened to teaching on vision, focus, & prayer.
  • “Our greatest danger is not liberalism, modernism, postmodernism…but the church doing ministry in the power of the flesh” –Francis Schaeffer
  • “The irony of the gospel is that the only way to be worthy of it, is to admit you’re completely unworthy of it.” – Tim Keller
  • “Does “love” mean giving a person what they want, or giving them what they need?” #_gca
  • “Don’t let your living for tomorrow slay your living for today.” -Elizabeth Elliot #GCA
  • Leaving Orlando & the Global Church Advancement seminars more equipped, overwhelmed, missing my wife & trusting Christ more! #GCA

 

dsc00569WHAT PEOPLE ARE BLOGGING ABOUT THE JULY 09 GCA CHURCH PLANTER TRAINING SEMINAR:

 

 

 

 

Sharing a Contextualized Philosophy of Ministry: 
http://churchplanting.sojournchurch.com/church-planting/sharing-a-contextualized-philosophy-of-ministry-gospel-church-and-culture/

Staying Healthy as a Church Planter: 
http://churchplanting.sojournchurch.com/church-planting/staying-healthy-as-a-church-planter/

bob-nathan-steve

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Controversial “Spectacular Sins” by John Piper–Reviewed & Endorsed

Friday, June 19th, 2009

piper-book-cover-spectacular-sins2

Piper, John. Spectacular Sins.Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2008. 121 pp. $15.99. Listen to the Spectacular Sins sermon series at Desiring God.

Book Review by Terry Delaney at Going To Seminary

Have you ever picked up a book thinking it was going to be about one thing and it turns out you were completely wrong? Spectacular Sins and Their Global Purpose in the Glory of Christ is one of those books. I thought it would be a testimony about how God has glorified His Son through men like Hitler and Stalin. I figured it would be about how God can use the major sins in your life to bring glory to His Son.

I was wrong. Instead, John Piper sounds an alarm to all Christians that a time is coming when it will no longer be safe to be a Christian. He claims that Christians in the West are being “coddled” and therefore we need to prepare ourselves for the trials and tribulations that are sure to come. In calling Christians to a preparedness for these tribulations, Piper seeks to answer the question “Why does God even allow evil?”

Using Colossians 1:16 as a springboard, he gives us his answer. In short it is all for Christ’s glory. Piper showed that God allowed such spectacular sins as the rebellion of Satan, the fall of Adam, the tower of Babel, Joseph, the demand for a king by the Israelites and the betrayal of Judas Iscariot to take place in order that Christ may receive more glory. In essence, if Col. 1:16 is true, then we must live our lives—trials and all—in light of this biblical truth.

I found this book extremely hard to put down. I was enraptured by what Piper had to say. It seemed as though all throughout the book he was building to a crescendo only to see the book just end. It is only then that you realize that the crescendo is your living out the biblical truths presented in Spectacular Sins.

This book is a must read for all Christians. I must agree that there is a time coming when being a Christian will be not only frowned upon but will hazardous to your wellbeing. We need to be reminded that even all the evil and sin that takes place is ultimately for Christ’s glory and we have something far better waiting on the other side of death than what this world has to offer—if you are found in Christ.”

Steve Childers & Darrin Patrick Endorsements:

piper-book-endorsement3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“I wish I could have read this book as a new Christian as I was unprepared to face calamity because of my deficient view of God’s sovereignty. I am delighted now as a young pastor to be able to hand my congregation this book that will enable them to see and worship God in their suffering.”

Darrin Patrick

Pastor of The Journey, St. Louis

 

“Don’t let the small size of this book fool you. Like most of Piper’s writings—it’s wonderfully dangerous and critically needed in our day—especially in the Western world. This is a stick of gospel dynamite that has the potential of radically altering the way you view suffering and evil forever–on both a personal and global scale. But I must warn you. Don’t expect to find in this book all the typical, soft “words of comfort” espoused by many in our day to help people maximize pleasure by minimizing or rationalizing away the pain of suffering.

Instead prepare yourself to have your mind renewed by the deep, weighty truths of God’s word, your faith strengthened by a renewed vision of God’s supremacy in all things (including evil) and your courage bolstered in the face of the inevitable suffering that lies ahead to follow hard by faith after the One whose death was the most spectacular sin—for the sake of the nations and the glory of God. Only this can bring you the true comfort of God in the face of suffering and evil.  I highly recommend it!”

Dr. Steven L. Childers

President & CEO, Global Church Advancement

Professor of Practical Theology, Reformed Theological Seminary-Orlando

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Connecting with Global Church Advancement (GCA) by Tim Brister

Wednesday, May 6th, 2009

Tim Brister at PaneraPosted on Provocations & Pantings, April 27, 2009 by Tim Brister

As I mentioned in my last post, I was unable to attend the Gospel Coalition National Conference.  However, in God’s kind providence, I was able to go up to Orlando for a couple of days to network with other church planters and network leaders, most notably Scott Thomas (Acts 29), Gary Rohrmayer (ConvergeUSA), and Steve Childers (GCA).  These three men I have much to learn from and am grateful the opportunity the Lord gave me this past week.

If you can remember back in January, I attended the GCA National Church Planting Conference in Orlando for a week, and it was by far the most thorough and helpful church planting training I had ever received.  What is different about GCA conferences than typical bootcamps is that they are very hands-on, practical, and seeking to engage your church planting needs in the context of where you are.  Bootcamps are really important to attend as well, but they generally tend to focus on core values and guiding principles of a network rather than targeted training.  In other words, bootcamps shape the culture of a network, and GCA training provides all the nuts and bolts for a church planter.  Both are certainly needed!

During my time in Orlando last week, I was able to attend Steve Childer’s 3-session seminar on developing church planting networks.  That seminar, along with a host of other free resources, are available here.  At the close of the final session, I endeavored to ask Steve a question about the beginnings of something I’ve been a part of which ended up in six hours of fellowship, most of which was enjoyed at a local Panera.

It is often joked that GCA is “the best kept secret” in the church planting world.  I told Steve that it is not right to be kept a secret when so many guys could and should benefit from their training.  As a result, I am working to help them get networked online, beginning with social media.  If you are on Twitter or Facebook, let me encourage you to get on board with GCA and follow the developments in the future.  Here’s the links:

@stevechilders (Steve Childer’s Twitter)
@_gca (GCA’s Twitter)
GCA Facebook Fan Page

Furthermore, if you are in the church planting process–pre-launch or post-launch–let me encourage you to check out the GCA National Conference coming up July 21-24, 2009 in Orlando, Florida.  The pre-launch track called Foundations is specifically geared to address all issues pertaining to the start of a new church, including the development of a solid church planting proposal.  The Essentials track is a post-launch track addressing crucial components to a healthy, reproducing church.

Whether it is on Twitter, Facebook, or at one of their training seminar’s (or all of them!), let me encourage you to connect with GCA and benefit from years of gospel-centered labors of Steve Childers and his solid staff.  You will be blessed with their passion for the gospel, their love for the church, and their commitment to train men for the mission!

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