Mobilize Your Church
What’s the mission of your church? Is it crisp, clear and compelling? Can the average launch team or church member articulate it at a moment’s notice?
Beyond being able to verbalize your mission, can the average church attendee or launch team member live out your church’s mission? Do they know their part in it? Are they equipped and empowered to contribute to it in their daily lives?
At Passion for Planting, we’re fueled by a desire to see leaders start new churches that make disciples who take the good news of Jesus to where they live, work, study, and play. (Not our mission statement, but it’s not a bad one, huh?)
God has given your church a specific and unique mission. As our friend Will Mancini puts it, “Never forget that God is always doing something cosmically significant and locally specific in your church.” Ultimately, the mission God has given your church revolves around making more disciples of Jesus. You can say it a million different ways, and while how you say it does matter, it’s not as important as living it out. That’s why we’ve filled this month’s newsletter with ideas, tools, and resources to help your church make disciples and start new churches. We hope it will encourage you!
-Dale Spaulding, Director
November 2019 – Contents
- Three Thirds Process
- Evangelism for Introverts
- Covocational Planting
- Group Strategy
Three Thirds Process
Want a simple, reproducible method for developing a disciple making culture in your church? Start small groups that hinge on the habits and practices at the heart of disciple making movements worldwide.
While the typical church small group model does a good job helping people connect, support one another, and increase biblical literacy, it doesn’t have a track record of producing disciples who make disciples. The reason for this is because the format isn’t designed to produce disciple makers.
One small group strategy that is making disciple makers is called the Three Thirds Process. It’s called that because the strategy divides small group gatherings into three equal parts, helping participants grow in their character and competency as disciples of Jesus. Missionary Ying Kai utilized this disciple making strategy as part of his ministry which has seen millions come to faith in Christ. It’s not a silver bullet, but it is one helpful tool your ministry can use to equip disciple makers within your church or launch team. Learn how you can implement the Three Thirds Process into your ministry here.
Evangelism for Introverts
If you’re an introvert, the idea of sharing your faith may sound intimidating. You may be tempted to think you can’t be as effective sharing your faith with others like your extroverted friends who are natural networkers and could sell sand at the beach. Whether you typically find yourself being the life of the party or someone who instinctively gravitates towards the quiet corners of the room, you can be an effective evangelist and disciple maker.
If you’re an introvert wondering how you can step up your evangelism efforts read the short article How Introverts Can Do Evangelism. If you’re not an introvert, read the article and then share it with someone who is. Then start putting these methods into practice.
Covocational Planting
In his paradigm shifting ebook Covocational Church Planting, Brad Brisco challenges our common understanding of how we can multiply disciples and new churches. According to Brisco, a Christian movement will only take place in North America once churches figure out how to equip and empower believers to be everyday missionaries and church planters where they live, work and play.
We used to think planting a church required someone to quit their full-time job so they could have the bandwidth to serve the local church. However, in this book Brisco challenges that assumption and offers advice on how Christian leaders can plant churches while maintaining a career in the marketplace. According to Brisco, this the only way the American church will be able to equip the amount of church planters needed to start a movement. Interested in learning more? Download your free copy today.
Groups Strategy
Have you ever heard the saying, “People grow in circles not in rows”? It’s true, right? While we can grow through times of personal study, worship, prayer and listening to a sermon, the Bible makes clear that following Jesus isn’t something we’re to do on our own.
It’s no wonder then that according to our friend Greg Curtis, if a new visitor at your church doesn’t develop 4-6 meaningful relationships during the first six months they attend your church, they will stop showing up shortly thereafter. You will have lost your opportunity to help them take next steps in their faith journey.
The fact of the matter is that God has designed humans for connection. He’s created us to love and be loved. How is your church doing at helping people meet this fundamental need and desire? To help you, we at Passion for Planting have developed a Groups Strategy Template which guides church planters in defining their groups strategy. You’ll create opportunities where people can build meaningful relationships, help each other grow spiritually and most importantly make disciples. Download your free copy today.