» 2007 » July

Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. Heb 13:7What will be the outcome of your way of life?

Previously I pointed out that sooner or later 95% of leaders—and church planters are no exception—find themselves in a place where they [...]

Church planters and movement leaders are instinctive beasts. Action is their forte.

But even the best of them can greatly improve their effectiveness with some good planning.

Guy Kawasaki has posted an interview with Tim Berry on How to Write a Business Plan. Some great insights on planning. Here are the highlights:

On why plan. . .

A business [...]

I read a letter today from a church planter out of his depth. He’s in a tough situation, distressed and in despair. He tells me unless God comes through, he can’t go on.

We’ll call him “Paul”. You can read his story here.

His story is not unusual. I meet church planters all the the time who [...]

Join several thousand church planting leaders in Orlando, Florida on April 21 – 24, 2008 for the National New Church Conference.

The lineup features 10 pre-conference-intensives, 30 national speakers (to be announced within weeks), and 6 main tracks. Super earlybird rate just $99.

The Exponential Conference is partnering with Catalyst to offer a special Church Planting Lab [...]

After four years the average US church plant has an attendance of over eighty people. According to Stetzer and Connor here are some factors associated with larger worship attendance in church plants:

The church planter has been through an assessmentThe planter has realistic expectations of growth that are metThe planter works full time in the church [...]

I know a denomination that has committed $10 million to restart church planting.

Not a bad budget. They’re in the planning process for spending it.

How long are they going to take to get the plan right? To get all the appropriate approvals? Until the end of next year.

The problem with movements that have settled down is [...]

I’ve just received a copy of Stetzer and Connor’s Church Plant Survivability and Health Study 2007.

The good news is around 68 percent of US church plants still exist four years after having been started. The claim that 80% of church plants ‘fail’ can be laid to rest. I never did believe it.

Even better, the research [...]

I’ve just spent a day trekking through the Tongariro National Park, New Zealand. Here’s a shot I took from Mt Ngauruhoe (Mt Doom in Lord of the Rings) looking out across to Mt Tongariro.

Lost the trail and wandered through the snow for an hour or so in gale force winds. Terribly irresponsible of me. But [...]

Fortunate enough to live in Australia, New Zealand or somewhere in the Pacific?

You now have a new online supplier of resources for the region—ResourceZone.

They cover church multiplication, church planter assessment, church planting, coaching, leadership, missional churches, multi-site churches, and simple church.

My favourite resource for anyone committed to fueling church planting movements?

Be Fruitful and Multiply – [...]

In his 1908 masterpiece Orthodoxy, G. K. Chesterton explored the phenomenon of theologians who deny the reality of sin.

The strongest saints and the strongest skeptics alike took positive evil as the starting point of their argument,“ Chesterton wrote. ”If it be true (as it certainly is) that a man can feel exquisite happiness skinning a [...]