Church planting creates chaos and confusion. I am reminded of this reality any time I get near a church plant or listen to a church planter. People hate chaos and confusion. The demand of leadership can cause an intense aversion to it. I am convinced that this is one main reason why so many leaders steer clear of involvement with church planting. Yet, chaos and confusion create the soil from which effective church planting and leadership emerges. Leaders must lead the church in the work of planting by addressing these challenges with Gospel clarity.
2015 culminates much work and holds great promise in church planting for LifePoint. Numerous challenges stand before us, and chaos and confusion promise to arise. In an effort to lead effectively through this season I have scheduled a couple of posts to identify challenges in planting. In this first post I address four general challenges. In the next post I will discuss specific ways these challenges confront the sponsor church and the planter. I begin with 4 challenges that confront every plant.
Challenge #1: a qualified planter
A man who leads the church must be qualified. Scripture is clear on this point. This is the first and most important challenge, and often where the first mistake is made. When adequate attention is not given to the qualification of the planter, inevitable failure looms for the plant and the planter.
Three variables create difficulty for assessment. First, a great man does not make a qualified planter. People are too often satisfied by the “I like him” standard. If enough people feel this way then he must be qualified, right? No. True assessment demands a high commitment to “speak the truth in love” among leaders. No planter is just innately qualified. Planting and assessment create a process through which qualification is discerned. Godly character forged through the trials of planting is the only ultimate qualifier for the planter.
Second, a qualified elder does not necessarily make a planter. Every person holds a unique mix of strengths, skills, abilities and gifting. A man may be qualified to pastor and still not be right for church planting. This establishes the purpose of intentional assessment. I am not trying to elevate church planting so that only a few can do it. But truthfully speaking, not everyone is wired for it. This is not to make light of pastoring an established church. Rather, I want to stress that the demand of planting takes a toll on a man and his family that is unlike most all other scenarios and is very difficult to fully explain. The diversity of the number and kind of demands in planting create a unique challenge of their own. Discerning to plant is a decision that must be pursued with great care and counsel.
Third, a qualified planter is no guarantee of a successful church plant. A great man may experience significant failure in planting, and many have. This says nothing about the man, necessarily. But says much about the work. A planter needs leaders to help discern every decision along the way. A planter must remain humble and listen to close leaders in planting.
Challenge #2: a clear vision
Casting a clear vision is very challenging. Vision paints a picture of what must be but is not yet, engineers a way to move the mission to where the leader is leading and creates opportunities for people to engage and serve the mission. Vision answers essential questions and raises greater directives that focus attention on priorities for the work of planting. Church plants don’t offer the menu that established churches often have available for people. In addition, a church plant should not try to accomplish everything. Vision focuses mission and bonds people together in that mission.
Vision demands details that planters often do not have in the early stages. As the vision emerges and develops some details inevitably grow and change. Change is what people usually resist, even in a new work. Change demands that vision must be guarded against the tendency to drift when the ‘weight of opinion’ shifts or against any who may want to kidnap it. Therefore, the vision must be constantly reviewed, refined and re-cast to keep everyone together in mission.
Challenge #3: communication
Communication delivers the vision. The vision is only as good as the communication in which it is delivered. First, what you don’t say is often as important as what you do say. People listen for the one or two details that capture their attention. If they don’t hear those things, they sense no resonation with the vision. Second, this means that the temptation to say too much grows strong. A planter must communicate all that needs to be said in a way that it needs to be said, but resist trying to say too much. Saying too much is over-promising with no way to produce. Third, how you say what you say has become as important today as what you say. The planter must be wise to know how to communicate in a way that engages his target demographic. Finally, the planter must articulate vision clearly in a variety and diversity of ways to resonate with as many people as possible.
Challenge #4: committed followship
A planter works hard to gather as many people as possible. Gospel mission is about reaching people. And, people are essential to execute Gospel mission. But this can work against a planter. The need for people leads many planters to over-commit. Saying “No” becomes the hardest lesson early in planting, but it provides the greatest filter to identify the right people. The right people are more important than just many people. A planter needs people who are surrendered to follow Jesus under his leadership and committed to the mission of the plant. The reward for this type of person is the opportunity to serve with no expectation of being served. Early on in the church plant everyone’s job looks the same. But the planter must remember that his primary role is leading the mission, and not getting bogged down in doing all the work of the mission. He must focus on equipping people to serve. Committed followers, in turn, guard the planter by serving to help him stay focused.
LifePoint Church has labored to plant churches since our beginning. This strategy was intentionally implemented from the beginning. We’ve partnered to support and sponsor over 20 church plants with varying degrees of participation. We’ve invested significant resources of time, energy, money, training and people. Every church plant is unique and demands a distinctive strategy. LifePoint is working to strengthen and develop our strategies in 2015 to expand and multiply our mission.