Your Journey Blog

Research on Church Planting Centers

Ed Stetzer offers the following reseach on Church Planting Centers.  It is a very helpful document as we develop our Multiplication Centers thoughout the country.

The NAMB Missional Networks team has been researching Church Planting Centers and shares their findings in the document linked below. By church planting centers, they mean "environments where multiple disciples are intentionally selected, developed, and sent with support to make disciples - resulting in new churches. They examine four types of centers: the Church Planting School (EBI in California), the Church Planting Church (Fellowship Associates in Arkansas), the Partnering Church Network (DCN in Alabama), and the Disciple Making Church (Soma Community).

Concerning the document they want you to know: "This document reflects our learning about church planting centers to date and therefore, is not a completed work. The questions raised here are the driving force behind our research which has been conducted in the first half of 2010. If you have comments or would like to contribute to this discussion, please feel free to contact John M. Bailey at NAMB. (jmbailey@namb.net)  (HT)

Download CPC Research Findings 9-1

Ten Marks of a Coachable Leader - Part 5

King David prayed, "Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness; let him rebuke me—it is oil on my head. My head will not refuse it." (Psalm 141:5) As we continue our series on being a coachable leader David's prayer really gets to the heart of the matter. Coachable people seek out those who speak truth to them, even if it is a painful truth, because it protects them and it makes them a better person and leader.

5. Coachable people take initiative with the coach, instead of the coach pushing or motivating them.

It is sometimes perplexing to me how many self-starters I have coached that lack initiative in the coaching relationship. Why is this? Here are a few reasons:

1) Pride - "I can do it on my own." Self-reliance is an America virtue but not a biblical value. Solomon wrote, "The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice." (Proverbs 12:15) The word 'listen' carries with it the meaning of seeking out as well as receiving advice. A lot of pain can be prevented if leaders would just check in with their coach before a making a big decision.

2) Fear - "I don't want to look stupid." One of my mantras is, "The only stupid question is the question not asked!"  Actually, fear is another symptom of pride.  Solomon wrote, "Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice." (Proverbs 13:10) There should be a level of connection in your coaching relationship where there is no fear but only only freedom to question and explore leadership thoughts and ideas.

3) Fatigue - "I'm emotional exhausted and lack energy for the coaching process." This one reason is true more often than you can imagine. The energy needed for the coaching process can be overwhelming and sometimes people can hit their limit. It is at this time the coach needs to bring soothing encouragement. Solomon wrote, "Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of a friend springs from their heartfelt advice." (Proverbs 27:9)

4) Indifference - "I don't want to deal with the issue at this time." It is in times like these that we need to see indifference as a warning light; warning us of the sin and ramifications of idleness.  Solomon wrote, "If a man is lazy, the rafters sag; if his hands are idle, the house leaks."  (Ecclesiastes 10:18)  No leader wants their ministry to suffer ... but idleness and indifference can bring a ministry down very quickly.  So let your indifference warn you as a loud siren sounding off to push you toward your coach.

5) Imposing - "I don't want to be a bother to my coach." I find with good coaches that just the opposite is true because they are so committed to your success that they welcome the questions, phone calls and emails. Solomon wrote, "Plans are established by seeking advice; so if you wage war, obtain guidance." (Proverbs 20:18)  We are in a spiritual battle. The consequences are eternal.  So seek advice at any cost.  Solomon wrote, "Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed." (Proverbs 15:22)

Coachable leaders can easily slip into any of the reasons we just considered because leadership is intense, emotional and fatiguing.  Leadership demands a certain level of mental toughness and to have a coach who believes in you and is willing to walk alongside you is critical to their success.

Solomon appealing as a father to a son wrote, "Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve from them. Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you;love her, and she will watch over you. Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding."  (Proverbs 4:5-7)

Reflective Questions:

• Are you praying for God to bring people into your life that will love you enough to speak the truth to you?
• Which of the five reasons do you wrestle with the most?
• What can demotivate you in your coaching relationship?
• Does your coach or mentor make themselves available to you?
• What are the signs that you are getting emotional or mentally fatigued in your leadership role?
• What habits are you establishing to develop a deeper level of mental toughness?

Next Time: Coachable people make key adjustments in their lives.

 

Optimistic enthusiasm as a form of realism - Seth Godin

How does your organization respond to new opportunities?

Most companies launch new things, try out new initiatives, brainstorm new approaches. The internal response (or reaction) to these ventures is a cultural choice, one that often turns into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

If your organization is both pessimistic and operationally focused, then every new idea is a threat. It represents more work, something that could go wrong, a chance for disaster. People work to protect against the downside, to insulate against the market, to be sure that they won't get blamed for anything that challenges the system. In organizations like this, a new idea has to be proven to be better than the current status quo in all situations before it gets launched.

On the other hand, an organization filled with people who are rewarded for shaking things up and generating game-changing products and services just might discover that outcomes they are dreaming of are in fact what happen. The enthusiasm that comes from believing that this one might just resonate with the market is precisely the ingredient that's required to make something resonate.

One more thing: outsiders are way more likely to approach your organization with fabulous projects if they think they're likely to both get a good reception and succeed when they get to market.

via sethgodin.typepad.com

Free Evangelism Webinars

Do you want to raise the evangelistic temperature of your church? 

Gary Rohrmayer, in partnership with Chris Walker of www.evangelismcoach.org, conducted three 90 minutes webinars to help you as a christian leader increase the passion for evangelism throughout your church.

• How pastors can increase the number of spiritual conversations in their life.

• How pastors can better equip their church to reach their sphere of influence.

• How pastors can sow seeds of awareness throughout their community

FirstSteps for Planting a Missional Church Seminar - Jan 12-13, 2012

FirstSteps for Planting a Missional Church Seminar
January 12-13th - Dayton, OH

Are you considering planting a new church? Understand the critical steps to success before starting your church planting adventure. FirstSteps for Planting a Missional Church Seminar is an indispensable training event to equip you and all those who will work with you. You will participate in 12 hours of interactive training to help you understand a multitude of issues of the nuts and bolts of church planting in an interactive and inspiring atmosphere. This is for YOU, if you are serious about planting a gospel centered and mission driven church.

Who Should Attend?

• Prospective planters, those exploring the possibility of church planting
• Pastors who desire to understand the ins and outs of church planting.
• Church planters who desire to be proficient in their skills.
• Coaches who want to grow in coaching and church planting skills.
• Church leaders who want to strategically be a part of the harvest.

What Will You Receive at FirstSteps?

• 12 hours of interactive training on how to grow a healthy church.
• 1 FirstSteps for Planting a Missional Church Workbook for all participants (a $25 value).
• 1 Coachnet/FirstSteps Subscription (a $119 value - Church Plant Team Leaders only).
• 100 Spiritual Journey Guides (a $15 value - Church Plant Team Leaders only)

For More Information

Church Size: Leadership and Management - Tim Keller

One of the best leadership articles I have read in recent years is Tim Keller’s article on Church Size Process Management.  This is a must read for every pastor serious about taking their church to the next level. 

Keller writes on importance of this concept...

"One of the most common reasons for pastoral leadership mistakes and missteps is blindness to the significance of church size. Size has an enormous impact on how a church functions. There is a "size culture" that profoundly affects how decisions are made, how relationships flow, how effectiveness is evaluated, what its ministers, staff, and lay leaders do. We tend to think of the chief differences between churches mainly in denominational or theological terms, but that under-estimates                                                               the impact of size on how a church operates."

Download Kellerchurchsizearticle

Free Webinar on Spiritual Formation in the Local Church - Nov 22 @Noon CST

Want to be a more effective missional leader? Of course you do!

NextSteps is designed for any church leader who embraces the missional lifestyle, and aligns the ideas and tools around building healthy church systems that allows the church to actualize its values and achieve its mission. The NextSteps Series interprets the research from the Natural Church Development Paradigm by Christian Schwarz in a missional context.

The Next Steps Webinar Series is presented by CoachNet

Here are the details:

• November 22 at Noon Central: Passionate Spirituality Get Registered Here.

Next Steps Web Events -- Passionate Spirituality

How do you create a spiritual formation systems that produces passionate follower of Jesus?

In this 60 minute webinar, where you don’t have to travel or spend any money Gary Rohrmayer will be joined by Jonathan Reitz of Coachnet and you will

• Discover the siphons of spiritual passion
• Learn the three keys to spiritual formation in the life of a believer
• Gain a better understanding of the fruits of passionate spirituality
• Receive practical ideas for developing a spiritual formation system in your local church

You can expect to learn

• How to define a passionate spirituality through your vision statement
• How to identify the starting points in your spiritual formation plan
• How to use spiritual emphasis campaigns to ignite passion
• How to capital campaigns can raise the spiritual passion in your church.

Get Registered Here.

Priorities in Fast-Growing Church Plants - Ed Stetzer

Church plants that grow faster are also intentional about their outreach priorities. For example, 80 percent of fast-growing churches put 10 percent of their budgets toward outreach and evangelism compared to 42 percent of struggling churches committing this percentage. Fast-growing churches also use more contemporary worship styles that are more culturally relevant to the unchurched people they are trying to reach.

Other significant findings that differentiate fast-growing church plants from struggling church plants during the 3-year period following launch include:

1. Only 9 percent of fast-growing church planters are given salary support past 4 years; 44 percent of struggling church planters are supported past 3 years.
2. 63 percent of fast-growing church planters raise additional funding for the church plant. Only 23 percent of struggling church planters raise additional funding.
3. Planters leading fast-growing church plants are given more freedom to cast their own vision, choose their own target audience, and they have more freedom in the spending of finances.
4. Fast-growing church plants have multiple paid staff. Two paid staff members was a majority among the church plants.
5. A majority of fast-growing church plants utilize two or more volunteer staff as part of the church planting team prior to public launch.
6. Fast-growing church plants utilize more seed families than struggling church plants.
7. Fast-growing church plants use both preview services and small groups to build the initial core group.
8. Fast-growing church plants that use preview services used three or more of these services prior to public launch. A large contingent of these churches use over five.
9. Fast-growing church plants have children and teen ministries in place at time of launch and offer at least three ministry opportunities to first-time attendees.
10. 57 percent of fast-growing church plants teach financial stewardship during the first 6 months from public launch. By contrast only 40 percent of struggling church plants teach financial stewardship. HT

70 Million Americans Feel Held Back by their Past by Barna Group

In the middle of the economic recession and the Occupy Wall Street protests, residents' economic mood and outlook has been well documented. Yet, underlying emotional and identity factors are often overlooked, such as whether Americans feel they are fulfilling their own personal potential or not.

A new study by Barna Group examines these kinds of indicators, looking at how Americans think about their lives these days. Four characteristics of millions of residents emerged from the survey.

1. One-third of Americans are struggling to live to their "fullest potential."
One out of every three adults in this country say they are not living life to their fullest potential, including those who say they are "not at all" (6%) or "not much" (26%). A slim majority of adults (57%) feel they are "mostly" fulfilling their potential, while about one out of eight (12%) feel "completely" fulfilled. Those most likely to feel they are fulfilling their potential include Elders (ages 65-plus), practicing Christians, and Bible readers.

Interestingly, education was correlated with fulfillment, but only to a certain point: college graduates were some of the least dissatisfied, but they were also some of the least likely to feel completely fulfilled. A similar pattern emerged with regard to personal economics: the wealthiest Americans were some of the most likely to give extreme responses, either very fulfilled or very unfulfilled.

2. Seventy million Americans feel held back by their past.
Overall, 70 million Americans (31% of adults) feel "held back or defined by something in their past." This perception was most commonly expressed by younger adults, blacks, divorced adults, unmarried individuals, and those who have some college experience but never completed their degree. Those with a practicing faith were among the least likely to feel defined or held back by their past. Lower-income households were more likely than average (38%) to feel defined by their past, though 25% of higher-income households were also likely to share this perception.

3. Nearly 70 million Americans are dealing with emotional conflict.
When asked if they are dealing with unresolved emotional pain or conflict in life, three out of 10 adults (30%) confirm this description is a present reality for them. This perception was most common among lower-income adults, divorcees, women, and those with no faith allegiance. Married adults, Elders, men, and practicing Christians were the least likely to be dealing with unresolved emotional conflict.

4. One-sixth of Americans are wrestling with the role of church and religion.
In total, 15% of Americans said their experiences with religion have caused them to question God, a sentiment that was most common among twentysomethings, college graduates, unmarried adults, non-Christians, and unchurched adults. Similarly, 16% of Americans said they have been hurt by experiences in churches. This perception was most common among women, Boomers (the generation born between 1946 and 1964), and divorced adults.

Conclusions
David Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group, directed the survey. He pointed out: "In recent weeks the Occupy Wall Street movement has focused on the economic gap between the wealthiest one percent of the population and the remaining 99 percent. As others have observed this movement reflects a mix of anti-institutionalism and disillusionment with the economy, government and financial industry.

"But perhaps Americans' growing dissatisfaction with institutions is more influenced than they realize by their own personal expectations and experiences. While people are increasingly skeptical of external forces, like religion and government, the research shows that internal doubts about fulfillment, faith, emotion and personal history significantly define millions of the nation's residents."   HT