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5 Essentials
of Healthy Church Starts:
- Clear
Calling from God
- Assessment
- Coaching
- Training
- Sponsors
Think of church starting like raising your family. As much as your
love your children when they are small you hope that one day they
LEAVE and have a family of their own; then you can spoil the
grandchildren. When your church starts a new church you are growing
your family. Churches start churches, the association serves as the
doctor coming alongside your church to help you every step of the way.
Checklist for
churches and Pastors desiring to start churches:
- It all begins
with a vision to join God in the work of expanding His kingdom.
- Begin praying
seeking the where God is working and how he would desire your church
to participate in church starting.
- Share the dream
with key leaders get them involved in thinking like local
missionaries.
- Create a church
starting culture--Church planting is more than a one-time event
in the life of the church; it is most effective when it is part of
the church’s overall mission’s strategy.
- Assess your
involvement
- Seek counsel
from associational staff, convention staff, and other Christian
leaders about the variety of ways a church can be involved in
church starting.
- Budget money to
assist church starting.
- Promote church
starting through brochures and other methods within the
congregation.
- To what degree
will you help the planter with his core group?
- Become a
sponsor church
- Churches start
churches!
- A sponsorship is
a formal covenant between an existing church and a new mission.
- There are a
variety of ways that a church can be a sponsor. Some churches
use an internship program, others serve as a co-sponsor with
multiple congregations, while some churches prefer to be the
sole sponsor.
- Watch,
celebrate, rejoice
- The early days
of a church plant are exciting and sometimes adventurous times.
- The sponsor
church becomes a great encourager: praying , promoting, sharing
testimonies, helping in various ways the new congregation take
off.
- Reproduce
- Once the new
church is established, the sponsor helps the daughter church grow
and mature.
- Hopefully, your
church becomes not just a mother church but a grand-mother
church.
Checklist for
Potential Church Planters:
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Pray about God’s calling, seek godly wisdom, discuss
at length with spouse.
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Meet with Dr. Banks to discuss opportunities and
process.
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Spend time on
churchplantingvillage.net, read
Seven Steps to Planting a Church (NAMB publication), and Church
Planting Movements (David Garrison).
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Develop a comprehensive action plan for the new
church plant including vision, target audience, ministry style,
prayer strategy, starter’s resume, etc.
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Make initial contact with potential church sponsors
and seek guidance from state convention personnel.
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Church starter assessment interview.
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Seek out other church starters to network with and
interview.
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Demographic study for potential church.
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Financial Planning: how much is it going to cost and
how are you going to live?
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Begin serious discussion with potential sponsor
churches.
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Meeting with sponsor church(es), church starter, and
Dr. Banks.
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Fine tune strategy including specifics such as core
group recruitment, launch process, and financial plan.
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Assessment Results.
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Background and reference checks
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Begin formalizing relationships and expectations
between new church and sponsor church(es).
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Enlist the help of state convention or network. GBA
is a Southern Baptist association and works on the premise that
churches start churches.
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Basic Training
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Enlist a mentor/coach
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New Church Covenant
Church-planting Links:
For more
information, see the Church Planting Checklist
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