Home > Blog > How Do I Discern a Call to Church Planting?

How Do I Discern a Call to Church Planting?

By New Churches Team

Discerning a call to church planting is a process. A lot of it is intangible. When Ed Stetzer planted his first church, he was not assessed or coached and did not have access to an online tool. But in all of those cases, he and his wife planted a church because God directed them to do so. Prayer was the only thing they had to help them discern the call. But Ed states that he would have had a lot less grief through the process if they had done more to first understand the call to church planting.

What Are the Steps?

You must go through an assessment process. This helps steward your life, ministry, and family. First, take an in-depth screening with an organization. A good option to take is LifeWay’s Church Planter Candidate Assessment tool. Then present yourself to your church elders and, through the elders, any organization your church partners with that could help you through the process. Finally, do a larger and deeper assessment process through an assessment center. If you still feel a call to church planting after going through those steps, find ways to dip your toe into church planting. Consult your church or a church planting organization for ways to do this.

Do I Need a Burden for a Location?

There is a huge role in the notion of a call and a distinct burden to a particular city or neighborhood. It is beneficial to fast and pray until God has given you a “come over here and help us” moment. Ed does not think you should plant a church until you have a deep burden for the people and the place where you believe you are supposed to plant a church because that burden and sense of certainty in your call will be the only thing that gets you through some days. Successful church planting most often relies on that burden.

Do I Need My Church’s Support?

In Ed’s case, he was turned down by the mission board to plant a church, but he and his wife felt such a call that they went anyway. But he feels that it is much better to go in community with direction from your elders and your church. And if everyone is telling you that you should not be a church planter – that God has not wired you that way – but you do it anyway, the end result will be problematic and confusing. It is much better to approach church planting with a community of support.

Adapted from the New Churches Q&A Podcast Episode 473: Discerning a Call. Click here to listen to more to church planting, multisite, and multiplication tips.

Home > Blog > Hiring Practices During a Pandemic

Hiring Practices During a Pandemic

By New Churches Team

Even though we have been in a months-long pandemic, some churches are in a good place financially. Giving has been good, they’ve been cutting expenses, and now they are ready to hire. But during this season of COVID, there are unique circumstances that should be considered when it comes to hiring practices.

What Role Do You Need?

Whether it’s a staff member, a volunteer role, a coach, a ministry director, or a leadership role, all of your roles need a short-term and mid-term audit in light of COVID implications. When you are ready to hire, this will ensure you know what you are looking for. Make sure that the new hire’s skill set matches what you think you will need as things have shifted. Don’t assume that you need to just fill a role that is empty based on your previous ministry plans. Consider first how your ministry plans have shifted as you make your hiring plans. The longer this season goes on, the more permanent this new normal will become.

Person Over Position

Hiring the person, not the position, means that you are hiring an effective leader that has transferable skills. If someone is good at one job at a director level, they should be able to switch to a different ministry role with a high level of competence. In an ever-changing world of ministry, hiring the person who is a good human capital developer, has strategy, is good at managing talent, and reasonable at execution is the proficiency you want in a leader. Strongly consider the person over the position in this context. Be sure the person is experienced in Ephesians 4 and can show you the fruit of their ministry. The line of questioning should be more about who they have developed than what they’ve done.

Importance of Calling

As you look for someone for your open role, does that person have a love for the church and a love for the city and community you are ministering to? Do they have a calling? Not necessarily to your specific church, but has God led them to the job and to the city your church is reaching?

Family Matters

One final thing to consider is if the spouse and family are on board. You aren’t hiring the spouse for specific duties, but the family does have a bearing on their ministry. Does the family feel called to be a part of the church family, or is it just a job? Does the family feel like the church also gives them an opportunity to use the gifts God has given them? A spouse and a family that is supportive creates a multiplier and a catalyst within the church.

Adapted from the New Churches Q&A Podcast Episode 516: Hiring Practices During COVID-19. Click here to listen to more to church planting, multisite, and multiplication tips.