10 Things I Wish Someone Told Me About Church Planting

I often try and think about the things that I wish someone would have spoken to me about before I made a ton of mistakes. Yes, I grew from these mistakes and the Lord always brings beauty out of ashes, but if only someone would have told me certain things. Now that I think about it, it would be better aptly titled, ‘Things I Really Took to Heart Before Church Planting” as I’m sure some of these concepts I had heard about before planting.

These will be in no particular order. But here goes…

1. God is more concerned with the Minister than the Ministry.

I was shocked to realize that God was more concerned with the state of my heart than He was with the perceived success of the plant. I know a pastor who told me that the first five years was for the pastor’s growth, the next five years is for the fellowship’s growth. He even went so far to call his first church plant’s people ‘the poor practice sheep’. When God calls a man to go and plant a church, He loves that man enough to kill him. It often takes some time for us to realize, but God is more concerned with making the church planter like Jesus than He is in blessing the work. Don’t get me wrong, He’ll do an amazing work in the fellowship. But He’s more concerned with your growth, than the church’s growth.

2. Visit the Local Pastors, not the Local Churches.

It is important for a church planter to visit and meet the pastors in the area that he is moving into. I’ll speak in point 3 about the major pitfall of most church planters in this regard. But relationships with local pastors are invaluable. Those who have been in the area for awhile will have a unique perspective, an experiential perspective, about an area. You can learn from them. But don’t visit their churches. I would say even if they invite you, don’t go. Why? Because if you have a heart for people, you will build relationships with them and when they hear that you are going to plant in the area, some will want to come. And then the ‘sheep stealing’ discussion starts. Church planting is hard enough and the last thing you want is to get off on the wrong foot with people that you want to be close to. I made this mistake personally, so I know.

3. Don’t let your Calling Drive a Wedge between You and Other Pastors.

Almost all first time church planters make this mistake. I made a reference to this in my second point. Here’s how it happens… You sense God’s call to an area and you are rightfully excited. Upon your arrival, you are filled with ideas and vision. You meet with another local pastor and as you speak of your ideas, you make them feel as if they are in God’s doghouse. They will automatically resent you. An example of this is when a planter says something like, ‘God has called me here because He wants to see a Bible Church here’. That says to most people, ‘You are not a Bible teaching church.’ Humility is not learned, it is a consequence from being broken. Because He has broken you, you will be humble. So although you are just getting started, and you probably haven’t been broken much yet, try and respect your brothers who have been plowing the field that you are going to work in. Remember this, ‘You are not God’s gift to the area that you are called to! Jesus is. You are just an unprofitable servant doing what you were asked to do.’

4. Don’t even Think about Quitting for at Least 4 Years.

They say that 80% of church plants fail. Why? They fail for numerous reasons, I’m sure. I think one of the main reasons is that guys quit too soon. Before you even step out, you should be prepared to commit 5 years of your life to it. If God is calling you, what is 5 years anyway? As I said, you should not even think about throwing the towel in until you’ve been laboring for 4 years. It takes time for a church to get established (most people will say that a church is still a baby at 10 years old). God will work in His timing so be patient. I don’t have statistics to back it up, but I imagine of the 80% that fail, most of them shut the doors within the first few years.

5. The Attacks Will Come so Don’t Freak Out When They Do.

When the children of Israel left Egypt did they just coast to the Promised Land? Nope. They had attacks from the outside (the Egyptians and the Amalekites). They had attacks from the inside (Korah, the Golden Calf, the 10 scared spies, etc). The same holds true for the ministry of our Lord Jesus and the apostle Paul. The attacks will come. If you sign up for the front lines of a battle, don’t freak out when bullets start flying. When you are called to plant a church, you just signed up to be on the front lines, expect there to be issues. They will come from people on the outside and they will come from people on the inside. Expect them and when they arrive, don’t think it’s strange.

6. Before You Become the Senior (or Lead) Pastor, Be An Assistant Pastor.

I believe that this is so crucial and I am soo grateful for my training as an assistant pastor. In every field, you have to learn the ropes before you take the reins. As a doctor, you don’t just jump from Medical School into the Operating Room. First you do your residency. Same is true of business. The guy from the mail room never gets hired as the CEO. Never. Why? Because they first need to learn the ropes of business. I have found that the ministry is caught (much like a cold). I learned soo much from catching the ministry from my pastor. I learned things to avoid, ways to handle situations, how to gracefully let someone leave the church, how to handle a wounded sheep, etc. Most pastors who have never been Assistant Pastors normally hurt a lot of people because they need caught the ministry from another pastor. My advice would be, “If you want to be plant a church, get on staff at a church first.”

7. Get a Mentor, You’ll Need Him.

My pastor, John Henry Corcoran, told me before I left to plant the first church, that the next set of lessons that I need to learn can only be learned as the pastor. But once you step on out, you are in uncharted territory. You want and need someone who you can bounce ideas off of. You want to have someone who can say to you, ‘Whatever you do, don’t do that.’ I did that once and …’ You’ll also need someone who can support you personally. Once you step on out, the enemy will be gunning for you like never before. You need accountability as most church planters feel isolated from people. Make sure that you have someone who will ask you the hard questions and keep your struggles and issues before the Lord.

8. The Key to Church Planting – Discipleship

There are a small percentage of church plants that take off like wildfire. Most of them are slow going. Like Jesus, discipleship is the key to building the kingdom. Discipleship involves relationship and relationship takes time and energy. You need to pour into the people that God has brought to you. You need to be available and open with them. You need, like the apostle Paul, to be a poured out offering. Discipleship builds solid churches.

9. Beware of Friends and Family Who Want to Help with the Church Plant.

I know, this statement is a bit shocking. I have found from my own experiences and in talking with many other pastors that one of the biggest hindrances to a pastor’s joy is the well meaning friends and family members (extended) who want to be involved. I often tell men to discourage their close buddies and families members from being there at all in the early stages.

10. Make Sure That You Keep Feeding Your Soul.

For most church planters, they are used to going to church. Even if you are in service at the church, you are often hearing the Word taught a few times a week. Once you step out, you need to make sure that you are still sitting under the teaching of the Word. I have found that the best way to do this is to pick a ‘Pastor’ for the next three months. It can be anyone you want. But listen to a few Bible studies a week from a certain pastor. Maybe study through a book or sermon series with a certain pastor. As I am writing this, I am presently studying through the book of Colossians with Pastor Tim Brown of Calvary Chapel Fremont and am being absolutely blessed and convicted. If you let this lapse, you will sense the leanness of your soul.

Helping God Fill the Trench with Water

“Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood.”
And he said, “Do it a second time.” And they did it a second time.
And he said, “Do it the third time.” And they did it the third time.
And the water ran about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.

1 Kings 18

 

Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.”

James 5

One of the snares of ministry that I find myself entangled in occasionally is the thinking that I am somehow helping God by what I am doing…as if He needed my help with anything.

“If I were hungry I would not tell you , for the world is Mine, and all its fullness.” Psalm 50

Elijah wanted to show God’s people that he wasn’t going to try to help God out. He actually went out of his way to prove that he didn’t have any smoldering charcoal briquettes up his sleeve that he shook out into the altar as he repaired it. He wasn’t putting on a religious show as he re-stacked the stones, laid the wood in order and placed the sacrifice for the burnt offering upon the wood.

He then proceeded to dig a trench around the altar with the prophets of Baal looking on, king Ahab, and the people of Israel. Now that was different. That wasn’t normal. Probably took a while ti dig since it hadn’t rained for a few years.

He then asked for four pots or barrels to be taken down the hill, presumably, filled with water, brought back up and poured over the whole altar. Now maybe some of you have stood on Carmel like I have…and the only thought I could muster was, “Where in the world did these guys go and get the water from? How long did that take?”He does it a second time…and a third time.

This guy is going out of his way to do something people had never seen before. He was removing himself from the equation, as much as he possibly could. In my mind, he was utterly convinced that God was going to show up. And the people were in need of being utterly convinced themselves that God is who Elijah says he is.

What is Elijah doing? He wasn’t apologizing or arguing or defending God. He simply afforded God an opportunity to show up.

There is a specific way in which God desires to be approached and worshipped. There is a responsibility on our part to repair the altar by  “stacking the stones, and laying the wood in order, to lay the sacrifice in order upon the altar in plain view for all to see.” But even this is nothing, in and of itself, if there is no fire sent from heaven to consume it all, beyond all logical belief and to the amazement of the people we are repairing altars in front of on a regular basis.

In the absence of fire, we are simply doing what the false prophets do…stack the stones, throw on the wood, lay on the sacrifice, and proceed to exert ourselves in vain, putting on one heck of a show to entertain those who are in rebellion against the God who created them and loves them, entertaining them for a brief morning or afternoon, while they continue to falter between two opinions and are destined to be cast into hell.

Am I exerting myself in vain, putting on a show to entertain the starving and the dying, dancing, screaming, and cutting myself to prove just how much I really love God?

Am I defying all logic and stepping outside the box, doing things that aren’t “normal” by pouring water on the altar of my ministry, the altar of my calling, the altar I have been given to repair in the generation I have been born into so that God may be glorified when He proves He is by that manifesting Presence of His holy fire?

Prep-time Verses People-time

I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. (2 Timothy 4:1-2)

My greatest battle every week is over time spent between the study and with people.  I don’t know about you, but my week begins  on Monday morning and builds pressure until Sunday after I preach my last sermon.  Monday’s seem to consistently bring remorse over not studying the Word enough in preparing for the previous Sunday, or on the other end of the spectrum, feeling like I have not spent enough time out amongst the flock shepherding.  I don’t know that this tension can be resolved, but we must strike a balance in managing the tension between these two very importance responsibilities.

All of the Bible is important, but there is just something very relevant about Second Timothy for pastors.  Seriously, Paul is facing imminent death and these are his last words to the young pastor Timothy.  In the above passage Paul essentially charges Timothy in the presence of God to (1) preach the word and to (2) minister to people with patience.  I take this charge personally with great conviction and I would like to share how I try to apply this passage to my life from week to week.

Preaching the Word is priority number one for me.

I deeply believe it is the Word of God that changes lives.  The state of the pulpit worldwide is poor when it comes to preaching.  I don’t want to sound arrogant, or like my preaching is a finely oiled machine, but I attended a lot of church growing up and learned nothing from the Bible or about the Bible.  It wasn’t until I was an adult that I finally sat under men who taught the Bible with conviction and life did I come to know Jesus as Savior.  I was ultimately discipled in my walk with Christ through the expository preaching of these men.  This reality drives me each week to teach the Word faithfully, with clarity, and passionately.

Over the last few years, I have found some things that have been helpful for me in preparing to preach while shepherding the flock God has entrust to me:

1. Pray consistently about the message and text you are about to preach and teach.  I find myself constantly asking God, “What did this mean in context then?  What practical principles apply today? Lord, help me!”

2. Study, study, study.  You can not shortcut this step.  While this is not a post about how to study, I will say you need to study the language and grammar, the historical context, and the context of the text.  The text you are teaching on the next week and weeks ahead should so be in you that it invades your thought life almost nonstop throughout the week.  Without adequate study, you will not be able to handle the Word rightly.  This saying is so true, “Where there’s a mist in the pulpit, there’s a fog in the pew.”  The bottom line is you must understand the text through and through if you are going to teach others.

3.  Preach a book of the Bible at a time!  I am all about preaching in an expository manner as it provides spiritual food for those in your church.  It also helps that you don’t have to figure out what you are going to preach, you just have to figure out how to preach the text in front of you the coming week!  In many ways this frees up your time to focus on studying, rather than flipping through your Bible hoping you feel inspired to preach something.

4. Front load your studying in order to prepare for the inevitable crisis that will come.  Starting Sunday I start saturating my world with the Scripture I am about to preach on the following week.  Bible CD’s in my car, sermons from other men who have preached the text, Bibles and commentaries lying around all over my house.  Starting Sunday I intake as much of the text as I possibly can.  By front-loading my study I have it tinkering around in my mind and heart ultimately freeing me to respond and reach out to the people around me.

People should always be the priority!

I am chasing a deadline trying to get this post submitted.  “Stuff happened” last week that put me behind in the blogging category.  I have VBS this week and my routine is off kilter to say the least!  There are times when I want to shut off my cell phone, ignore my emails, and lock myself in my study all week long, but I don’t think this is what Jesus wants from me.  Because this week has required a lot of people time, I fear I am going to drop the ball on the las half of this post.

1.  Pastoring is about people.  My goal as a pastor is defined in Ephesians 4:11-13 and it is simple–to equip the saints for the work of the ministry.  When I look at the passage at the top of this list I am to reprove, rebuke, and exhort with great patience.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t feel comfortable reproving, rebuking, or exhorting total strangers, but I can do this with people I know and love.  I think the point is that we are to be deeply entrenched in the lives of those we serve.  It takes time…notice we are told to do these things with great patience, not with great frustration.

2.  Your life is the most powerful message you preach.  My philosophy as a pastor is to preach with transparency.  I air my dirty laundry on a regular basis.  This is intentional.  I am not up on a pedistal, but am walking this life as a “sinner saved by grace” just like everyone else in my church.  I love walking alongside the people God has called me to minister as it exposes my life with Jesus–my victories and struggles alike.  Paul the apostle preached a lot, but I think his life was his most powerful message.  My desire is to say the same thing to my people as Paul said to his, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1, NASB).  I think Paul could say this to them because his people knew him…just like I want mine to know me.

3. “Good things happen when you’re out.”  This a saying we had at my last church.  The point is simple.  When you are out in the community amongst your culture good things happen.  As a pastor you should know your culture and community around you.  It is all too easy for us to get sucked into our little Christian bubble and to loose connection with reality around us.  To guard myself from isolation am intentional about being out through a variety of avenues like the local Kiwanis, law enforcement chaplaincy, serving on the local cemetary board of directors, and meeting people from the church at Starbucks instead of my office.  It is hard to quantify the benefits that come to you, your preaching, your church, and your community when you as the pastor make time to be out amongst the community, but the fruit in my ministry from this has been great.

The tug-o-war where both sides must win.

We pastors do not punch in on time clocks.  For the most part we control how our time is used or wasted.  We must study to deliever sound relavant biblical messages that impact lives.  We must be out amongst the flock if we are indeed shepherds.  We must finish well with both these priorities.  I have shared what works for me for know.  I would love to hear what things work well for you in juggling these two priorities!

 

 

The Apologetics of Homosexuality

There is little doubt that Christianity and Homosexuality seem to be at odds with one another. The Christian belief that homosexuality is a sin and their refusal to advocate same-sex marriage has the Christian church dubbed zealots, bigots and homophobic by the homosexual camp. The rhetoric is loud and divisive on both sides. There is a massive chasm in both beliefs and mutual understanding. This makes a toxic environment to say the least. This toxicity begins to spill into the public forum with the debates, discussions and voting on the legality of same-sex marriage.

For a few decades now, Christians have congregated in churches and taught the Bible. Homosexuals formed like-minded communities and in like manner were built up in their beliefs. These two groups spent little time intersecting or interacting. But with the rise of the discussion about same sex marriage and its national exposure, these groups are now intersecting all the time. The problem seems to be that they aren’t interacting much. There is much bigotry on both sides of this very complex issue. What is most needed is mutual understanding. This short paper is an attempt at beginning a civil, although packed with emotions, dialogue on the discussion.

I am a pastor of a Christian church. I believe that the Bible is God’s word and that it is both inerrant (without the capacity for error) and infallible (without error). I believe that God says what He means, using human authors, and means what He says. Because of this, I believe, and the Bible clearly teaches, that homosexuality is an action that is in rebellion to the plans and purposes of God. In other words, it misses the mark of God’s view of perfection and it is properly termed a sin. I also have many, many friends who have same sex attractions. Some, because of their beliefs, have chosen not to act on those attractions and would say that they live lives of joy. Others, because of their beliefs, have chosen to act on those attractions and would say that they live lives of joy. These men and women are people whom I love and respect. We work hard, albeit uncomfortably at times, to maintain relationships although we disagree on fundamental things. There is love and mutual understanding. We love each other but we do not agree with each other on different things.

My goal is to write this out in such a way as it can be read in one sitting. So my aim is not to be exhaustive but to bring out the most basic questions. It is my hope to facilitate discussion and mutual understanding between the two groups. It is also my hope to give a nuanced view of why Christians view homosexuality as a sin and to propose a way to navigate the lack of civil rights afforded to those seeking government approval for same sex unions.

The Bible and Homosexuality

There are extensive writings about the Bible and homosexuality. From Genesis to Revelation, spanning the entire Old and New Testaments, homosexuality is portrayed as ‘a sin’ (an act that misses the mark of God stated perfection in how humanity should conduct itself). No one denies this. Many people seek to handle these verses in different ways but no one can deny that ‘homosexuality is a sin’ is in there. Whether in Genesis with the narrative of Sodom, in Leviticus with homosexuality capital punishment laws, or in the writings of Paul or the Revelation, the Bible says what it says. So I don’t think it is time worthy to go into each of these passages and discuss them because, at least for me, it is a foregone conclusion as to the Biblical teachings on the subject.

So what are we to do with such a teaching? Most often the attempt is to argue away the validity of the teaching based on personal experience or accusations of judgmentalism. So let’s look at each of the most basic arguments.

Argument #1 – The Natural Affections Argument

This argument looks something like this. “For as long as I can remember, I have always been attracted to people of the same sex”. In essence, the argument is that my natural affections have always pointed that way. Because this way comes naturally then it should not be a problem. This is also extended to the “I love this person”.

Biblically speaking, this argument is exactly the reason that Jesus came to the earth, died on a cross and rose again. The teachings of the New Testament make the case that our natural affections are by default in rebellion against God. Sin is the norm. Sexuality is morally neutral in a vacuum. Humans are sexual beings by nature (whether by design or evolution depending on your viewpoint). The problem is not sexuality but how a human heart handles sexuality. Homosexuality and heterosexual immorality are handled the same way in the Bible. So sexuality is not the problem. The problem is that if humanity’s default is be in rebellion against God then humans tend to handle their sexuality in a way that is in rebellion against God as well. So the Bible teaches our natural affections are exactly the problem. People are naturally selfish (ever see two two-year olds fight over one toy in a room full of playthings). Selfishness is a sin as well. No one teaches a child to be selfish. That comes naturally and is exactly the problem.

Argument #2 – The Judgment Argument

This argument looks something like this. “Who are YOU to tell me who I can and cannot love?” This is the natural affection argument is used in regards to someone’s ability to limit the activities of someone else. This is where laws come into play in this discussion (and we will look at that separately in a moment). But the idea here is that it is wrong and judgmental for someone to tell someone else how to live. There is both validity and absurdity in this argument. I will discuss in a moment the validity side of this argument because in a free country, as long as the country deems that no one is being hurt, you cannot tell someone who they can and cannot love. Again, more on that in a moment. But the absurdity side of the argument is this. Freedom with the absence of any constraints is anarchy (which is radically constraining). True freedom is not living with an absence of restraints but living only with enough restraints to let them be truly free. A simple example is this. If a family lived in a house where their backyard is adjacent to a major highway, would the parents just let their children go out and play anywhere they want? No, they would put a fence around their property. Their children are then free to go and play in the backyard and express their childhood curiosities. But, the parents made a judgment to limit their children’s freedom (by putting up a fence) so that their children can have true freedom (the ability to express themselves without being harmed). So true freedom is not the absence of all constraints but instead enough constraints that there be an absence of destruction.

Argument #3 – The Loving God Argument

This argument looks something like this. How can a loving God not allow people to express their love in a way that seems natural to them.
Now on the Christian side of the discussion, other than using the Bible teaches it argument, there is two major arguments.

Christian Argument #1 – Natural Law

This argument is simply that homosexuality is against nature. This point is argued in a few ways. 1) Men have penises and women have vaginas. Penises emit semen. Ovaries produce eggs. The semen meets the egg and fertilizes it. You get the picture. This biology works simply and effectively. 2) That if took every homosexual and put them on an island (which I would NEVER advocate), without the help of technology or partner swapping, there would only be the present generation and no additional generations. The act itself goes against the evolutionary impulse of natural selection. There are other nuances to this argument but you get the picture.

Christian Argument #2 – Spiritual Blindness

This argument is that humans do not know the extent of their errors until God’s Holy Spirit illuminates it in their hearts. This argument is not specific to homosexuality at all, but is general to all of humanity. Humanity does not know the extent of their depravity until God’s light shines into man’s darkness. For me, I didn’t realize how selfish and destructive my sexual relationships with women were until God’s Spirit revealed them to me. I was a ‘normal’ American teenager; enjoy all the excesses of collegiate life. I was just doing what everyone else was doing. But when God’s Spirit illuminated my heart, I realized how wrong I had been. My conversion only began the process of my realizing the extent of my spiritual blindness. All humans suffer from spiritual blindness and lack an authentic understanding of the spiritual, social, emotional and physical implications of our decisions.

Homosexuality, Religion and Politics

Now we come to what has brought this issue into the forefront – the intersection of homosexuality, religion and politics in the American public square. The touch point for this issue is same-sex marriage. Most often this is seen in light of the separation of church and state. Even the language shows how much America has changed since the writing of our constitution. Today it would have to be seen as the separation of faith and state (or else you could argue that you don’t have to separate mosque or synagogue and state). In essence, the government is not allowed to impose a state mandated faith belief on the people. We are all excited about this. The government can not impose itself on a person’s personal interiority.

Here’s the problem though. This has become more of a debate about traditional religion and the state. But so many moral judgments, from whatever camp it comes from, are faith-based beliefs. Sure, they may come from non-traditional sources but they cannot be scientifically verified. Even secularism is a faith-based belief. The reality is that no one divorces his or her ideas about morality from some sort of faith-based belief (even if it is the faith-based belief against having faith). So in essence, everyone brings his or her beliefs into the public square. Not just the religious but the irreligious as well. No one ever leaves his or her religious (traditional or nontraditional) beliefs outside of the public square. So any side of any argument is the seeking of people to legislate their faith-based assumption on the morality of any issue.

With that being said, we have a level playing field. All people argue the validity of their position from a position of faith, seeking to win over society to their way of evaluating and seeing the world. Because of this, we have a divided nation.

Initial Leadership For Your New Church – Part III

 INITIAL LEADERSHIP FOR YOUR NEW CHURCH – Part III

TIME FOR CHANGE

When the church you’ve planted becomes established and new leaders are being called to serve by the Holy Spirit you will need to start looking at leadership transitions.  In part three of this series I want provide a biblical basis for training local leadership, as well as address some practical issues that come up when transitioning from a non-local board to a primarily local board of elders.

 TRAINING AND EMPOWERING LOCAL ELDERS IS BIBLICAL

There are some pastors who establish boards when they plant a church that are entirely comprised of senior pastors from other churches, who never decide to train up and empower men to be elders from within their local church.  While I would never say that’s a sin, I personally don’t believe that Scripture sets that example.  The Bible seems to encourage the training and placing of elders that rise up from within local congregations to serve as overseers over the local church. Paul told Timothy that it was part of his job as a lead pastor to evaluate the desires for leadership,[1] home-life and character,[2] teaching gifts,[3] spiritual maturity,[4] and reputation amongst non-Christians of the men in his local church for the purpose of establishing a local team of elders. He told Titus that it was his job as a lead pastor to do the same work of evaluating and establishing potential elders in the churches in Crete.[5] Paul was only calling these pastors to do what he had done in the churches he’d planted.[6]

A LONGTERM NON-LOCAL ELDER CAN STILL BE HELPFUL

I don’t think the example of the New Testament encourages us to have only outside elders helping us oversee the churches Jesus calls us to plant for the long-haul.  But that isn’t to say that you cannot have any outside elders after you’ve raised up some men locally.  In a sense, Paul was an outside elder to the churches he established after leaving guys like Timothy and Titus to lead and further establish leadership teams in some of those same churches.

At both churches where I’ve served as the lead pastor I have always had one long-term outside elder.  The main role of this elder is to be a man who can simply offer a fresh perspective in the event that the local guys are too at odds over something to be able to move forward. Thankfully I’ve never had to call on the services of these men to help deal with negative situations, but I’m glad they’re there.

 REPLACE THE LEAST HELPFUL BOARD MEMBERS FIRST

When it does come time to begin replacing outside elders with local elders I would encourage you to replace them in order from least helpful to the most helpful.  That sounds rude, but it’s simply honest.  I discovered that while none of my outside accountability elders were totally unhelpful through the process of planting Refuge, not all of them were equally helpful.  You’ll discover who fills these roles over time.  Some guys might be less accessible or less insightful than others.  Make sure you replace them first with local guys while still keeping the extra helpful guys around.  Of course, as in all things, I would encourage you to soak your decisions in prayer in this area and not merely be pragmatic.

 PRAYERFULLY DEVELOP A SYSTEM FOR TRAINING NEW LEADERS

So how in the world do you go about identifying and training the men the Holy Spirit has called to be part of the local leadership team in your new church?  The fact is that identifying and training elders doesn’t happen by osmosis!  Pastor, God commands you to do the work of training up the men He will call into leadership in your church plant.  God’s exhortation to those of us who serve as lead pastors is seen in another command Paul gave to Timothy: “And the things that you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”[7]

That is a command of God to lead planters and pastors. What this means is that you need to prayerfully develop a system for evaluating the character, family life, gifts, calling, and theology of men before empowering them as your board.  It takes more time to do this with some men than others.[8]  There’s never a way to do this perfectly without making mistakes. You will simply have to be led by the Spirit, and be courageous as He guides you.

 LOOK FOR LEADERS WHO ARE GIFTED DIFFERENTLY THAN YOU

Recently I asked another local pastor I was out to lunch with if he had any main points of advice for a young guy like me who has been in ministry for a far shorter time than he has.  One of three valuable exhortations he gave me was this: “Figure out the things that only you can do, and do those.  Delegate and empower others to do the rest.”[9]  That’s really great practical wisdom.

I have the privilege of having one of my best friends as my assistant pastor.  Our relationship has proven the above pastor’s statement to be true over and over again.  As we work together we keep discovering that while we are both called to be pastors, the Lord has given us different kinds of giftedness as pastors.  My assistant pastor Jeremy is very priestly.  He loves meeting one on one with people and focusing on shepherding ministry.  I love to see and move people toward the big picture of what our church is supposed to be as Jesus leads us.  In some ways my gifts are more suited to working on the church while Jeremy’s are more suited for working in the church.

My encouragement to you would be to look for leaders who are biblically qualified to be pastors, but who have different emphases in their gift makeup.  If you are more of a visionary leader or a missiologist look for guys with a priestly heart who can help care for the personal needs of the people. Hire and empower to your weaknesses when it comes to creating your formal leadership team of local elders. Just like the wider church body, as you each fill your different but vital pastoral roles, your leadership of the church as a team will flow well and the people will be served well.  If you hire and empower guys who are just like you, critical needs in the ministry will probably not be met.

FIGHT TO MAKE IDENTIFYING AND TRAINING NEW LEADERS A PRIORITY

For whatever it’s worth, I would recommend that you as the lead planter start praying about crafting a sort of internship style system that will enable you to spend the needed time with prospective leaders, evaluating the necessary areas in their lives, and testing their call. The issue of training up local leaders is so important![10] Many things you do are important.  But if you allow meeting with people one-on-one, and all the other duties you have to prevent you from training up other elders, in the end you will end up burned out and the people won’t get the attention they need because there’s not enough leaders to help them as your church grows.[11]

At the time of this writing I am meeting with twelve men on Saturday mornings for an hour and a half each week.  On Saturdays we are praying together, learning theology, and practicing accountability.  During the week each man is serving in practical opportunities we’ve designed for them to be able to test their spiritual gifts and call from God. God has blessed it astronomically! You don’t have to be flashy.  You just need to be available to train God’s men and He will do the rest.  Pray for your initial team.  Pray for your replacement local team.

Kellen Criswell

Lead Pastor, Refuge Church

www.refugeutah.org

www.refugeutah.tumblr.com

www.calvarychurchplanting.org


[1] 1 Tim. 3:1

[2] 1 Tim. 3:2-5

[3] 1 Tim. 3:2

[4] 1 Tim. 3:6

[5] Titus 1:5-9

[6] Acts 14:23

[7] 2 Tim. 2 NKJV

[8] 1 Tim. 5:22

[9] Roy Gruber is the senior
pastor of Washington Heights Church in South Ogden, Utah

[10] See Exodus 18 for an Old
Testament example.

[11] Exodus 18 and Acts 6

Helping God Move the Pile of Dirt

“for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.”  Philippians 2:13

There was a huge pile of dirt up against the fence and I wanted to move it. I grabbed a shovel and started slingin’ dirt. As soon as a bunch of my kids saw me, they rushed out to ‘help’ dad. They gathered up their plastic shovels and buckets, sand toys…I think one even tried to get on the end of a pic.

I kept digging away, having to pause every once in a while because one of my well meaning children would be scooping up a blue plastic hand shovel full of dirt…and then dropping it down the baby’s diaper. My oldest son had found a bug in the dirt and was on his hands and knees, obstructing half of the pile.

Babies crying, siblings fighting, and dad getting frustrated. Mom comes to the rescue and scoops up the kids and takes them inside, away from a mad dad who can’t accomplish the work in front of him because of these kids.

“I’m not like that.”

“No, Lord, You’re not.”

“You’re like that, aren’t you?”

“Yes, Lord, I am.”

“I allow you to be involved in what I am doing and aren’t you glad I don’t get frustrated with you when you ‘help’ Me, Josh?”

“Yes, Lord…sorry, DAD. Help me not to be like that but to be more like You. Thanks for letting me ‘help’ You in the work that You are doing.”

The kids ended up coming back out after I asked them to forgive me for being a knucklehead, and as I was leveling the last of the soil. The father had accomplished the work. And the kids ran screaming into the house…

“Mom! Look what we did!”

I am continuously humbled that the Lord counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, His work. And I look forward to the Day when we all get to run Home screaming with a joy unspeakable, “Look what we did”, with that childlike simplicity…knowing the whole while, in our heart of hearts, that it was God working in us, both to will and to do, for His good pleasure.

Saturday Reflection #2 – Michael Frost – The Purpose of the Church

 

Michael Frost can be controversial. What do you think? Is he correct?

Saturday Reflection – Biblical Shalom

“We call it peace, but it means far more than mere peace of mind or a cease-fire between enemies. In the Bible, shalom means universal flourishing, wholeness, and delight, the webbing together of God, humans, and all creation in justice, fulfillment, and delight. It’s a rich state of affairs where natural needs are satisfied and natural giftings are fruitfully employed all under the arch of God and in His love. Shalom, in other words, is the way things ought to be.” (Cornelius Plantinga, Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be: A Breviary of Sin, [Eerdmans, 1995] p. 10)

Inclining Ourselves to the Will of God

Col 1:9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding

Summertime means camping for a lot of families like ours. It also produces one of the funniest and most frustrating scenes in all of life, putting up a tent. If you are like me you have spent many hours trying to erect a contraption made out of nylon and plastic that your family is supposed to sleep in. There is an exact way to do it and I know every way how not to do it. We can often get frustrated when things don’t fit exactly and easily give up, often using God as a culprit as to why it didn’t pan out.

One thing I am often asked as a pastor is the question “What is the will of God for my life?” People desperately want to know what God wants them to do with their life. Usually people are in a desperate situation like a loss of job or a potential move and really need some discernment in their life. I often feel helpless in these situations but try my best to help them wade through the process by praying and showing them scripture.

The problem we run into is that we try to turn God’s will into our to do list. For those of us who are task driven this gives us great comfort when we can check off acts of obedience. When we are uncertain it can throw our whole day. Let me suggest to you that knowing the will of God has little to do with what we are to do with our life but instead how we are to please Him.

In Colossian 1:9 Paul is praying that the Colossians will be filled with the knowledge of His will. From our first look this sounds great, someone else is praying that we will know what to do with our life. That isn’t what Paul is praying for. He is praying that the Colossians will know what pleases God and brings him joy. That is what the word “will” means here.

If we go from that definition then this frees us in so many ways. It is no longer about me but about what is important to God. What pleases God? I can safely guess it has little to do with where I live or where I work but in how I live. The first and foremost thing that we can do to please God is to worship Him. By this I mean true worship where we give him verbal praise and submit under his authority. If we were to focus on this I believe everything else would fall into place.

Here is the difficulty: to be filled with the knowledge of what please God means that we must incline ourselves to His will (Josh 24:23). To incline means to stretch a piece of material over the framework of a tent. If you have ever put a tent up you know this isn’t easy. Tentmakers purposely make the fabric smaller than the frame so that you have to stretch it. This produces a tight fit and helps it stand better. If we are going to please God it means that we need to stretch our lives over God’s framework. We aren’t big enough to do that but God is able to stretch us so that we fit. If we are inflexible we run into problems. Brings new meaning to the phrase “being conformed to His image.”

So doing the will of God means that we must seek out those things that please God. This doesn’t come natural to us so we must allow Him to stretch us into that framework. When we do this we start to understand what God sees and are drawn towards the things on His heart. Incline your heart to the will of God today and discover the wonderful world of pleasing Him.