ConvergeUSA Blog

Welcome to Our Church - Cool Video

Lee Stephenson a Vision Arizona Church Planter and FirstSteps Graduate.  Just launched Harvest Community Church with 356 attending their Grand Opening!

Engage Your Entire Congregation in a Spiritual Conversation

Equipping yourself and others for getting into and sustaining spiritual conversations is critcial to a church's ability to impact its community missionally. Are you sending your people out without resourcing them?

We have had several reports from pastors all over the country who have handed out the Spiritual Journey Guide to their entire congregation on a Sunday morning.

• "We have seen a dramatic increase in spiritual conversations in our congregation." - Illinois
• "We are hearing great spiritual conversation stories weekly throughout our church." - Washington
• "This has helped our people develop a specific plan for spiritual growth." - Florida
• "We are seeing people, who have been on the fringes, making first time commitments." - California

The Spiritual Journey Guide is a simple conversational guide that helps people self-assess where they are on their spiritual journey while providing guidance and direction for taking the next step towards spiritual discovery and spiritual maturity. (Click to see a Sample Version)

In light of this great response we are offering the Journey Guide at a greatly reduced price until August 31. Save up to 50%

Take Advantage of the Sale

Equipping yourself and others for getting into and sustaining spiritual conversations is critcial to a church's ability to impact its community missionally. Are you sending your people out without resourcing them?

We have had several reports from pastors all over the country who have handed out the Spiritual Journey Guide to their entire congregation on a Sunday morning.

• "We have seen a dramatic increase in spiritual conversations in our congregation." - Illinois
• "We are hearing great spiritual conversation stories weekly throughout our church." - Washington
• "This has helped our people develop a specific plan for spiritual growth." - Florida
• "We are seeing people, who have been on the fringes, making first time commitments." - California

The Spiritual Journey Guide is a simple conversational guide that helps people self-assess where they are on their spiritual journey while providing guidance and direction for taking the next step towards spiritual discovery and spiritual maturity. (Click to see a Sample Version)

In light of this great response we are offering the Journey Guide at a greatly reduced price until August 31. Save up to 50%

Take Advantage of the Sale

Fill it up! Epiphany Station Style

Assessment Center Update - Campus Planter Track

Here is an opportunity that grows out of pure need.  We get the request continually to offer a quality setting for multi-track leaders using the same building blocks as church planters, but with the unique challenge of leading from the "second" seat in some fashion.  We have added some testing.  We have uniquely marked the interview process.  We have found some ways to ascertain leadership compatibility.  And we are able to bring the senior/lead pastor into the process as well - which means we can offer some meaningful input into the long-term team arrangement between the primary leaders.
 
In the past, we have had to tell sending agencies that we only assess the point leader of a church plant.  But now, for those headed toward a multi-site or satellite setting, we are able to offer an expanded assessment process within the existing track.  This new track costs slightly more because of the additional testing and interview process, but the extra cost will be well worth the investment.  We anticipate many, many churches and sending agencies will find great benefit from sending their potential multi-site planters/leaders to the ConvergeUSA Assessment Center.  Be sure to register these candidates early!

 

You can go to www.convergeusa.org and click on "church planting assessment center" for more details.

Ed Stetzer Gives Some Encouraging Words about ConvergeUSA

I always go way encouraged after I talk with Ed Stetzer...who recently posted the following about ConvergeUSA:

"Based on a research project I did for Leadership Network, I have said that they are the leading mid-sized to large denomination engaged in North American church planting."  HT

When I read these words two things came to mind:

1) Gratitude - That God has favored us with his power and presence (Ps 20:7). That our leaders nationally and regionally have empowered a bunch of crazy church planters to double our impact in the last 20 years.  That our movement is maturing, in that, successful church plants of the last 20 years are owning the vision and are now becoming the chief funding source for the next generation of church planters.  And finally, when I was a 27 year old church planter with no connection with this tribe, they welcomed me, resourced me and empowered me with many opportunities for growth and leadership.

2) Fear - Knowing what I know about our movement and all the areas of improvement there needs to be in our movement systems and movement relationships, this is a scary thought.  Fear that we will rest on our past successes and miss the opportunities ahead of us.  Fear that some church planters will not make the sacrifices to move into national and regional roles.  Fear that we won't "see" that 20-something church planter with his crazy ideas, rough edges and lack of experience - and miss the opportunity to embrace him and empower him to reach the next generation.

So, in light of Ed's encouraging words, let's get ready for the next 5 year church planting emphasis, Ignite a Church 2010-2015, A Courageous Call to Multiplication (stay tuned for more details).

Thanks Ed for your encouraging words about our movement and also for your personal words of encouragement to me.

Ed will be speaking at the Converge MidAmercia Annual Gathering at Heartland Church in Indianapolis, IN, October 22-23, 2009.

To find out more about us, click Who is Converge?