The Sacred Movements of Starting New Churches: An Update on Our Newest Congregations
By Gary Shockley, Director of Equipping Vital Congregations
“My job was to plant the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. The ones who do the planting or watering aren’t important, but God is important because he is the one who makes the seed grow. We work together as partners who belong to God.” I Corinthians 3:6-9 NLT
Church planting is a vital expression of ministry if we are to reach new people with the good news of Jesus Christ. Remember, your church was once a new church plant. With love, commitment to God, and self-sacrifice, church planting pioneers created new communities of faith as expressions of Christ’s presence in the world.
Starting new churches remains our best strategy for reaching new people in new places. But here’s the thing——church planting IS a high-risk venture, with all the unpredictable characteristics of pioneering into unchartered territory, but not nearly as risky as sitting on the sidelines doing little to reach new people with the Good News of Christ. Every church, new and established, is called to follow in the footsteps of Paul, Christianity’s first church planter, to engage new people in faith and discipleship.
Recently, three new churches were launched in our annual conference. The Journey in Harrisburg was planted out of a merger of participating congregations. Under the pastoral leadership of Kris Sledge and Deb Port, The Journey has demonstrated success in reaching new people in the city of Harrisburg resulting in a current average worship attendance of 84 people. This past year, The Journey has received 19 new members and has 9 small groups meeting weekly with a combined average of 46 people. The Journey has created vital partnerships with the Harrisburg School District, sponsored community events that enabled members to interact with hundreds of residents, and on several occasions led members out of the building and into the streets to knock on doors, pray with neighbors, and invite them to participate in church-sponsored events. This new multi-ethnic community of faith is having a great ministry influence in the city. Funding for this project has come mainly from the merger of participating congregations and the sale of closed properties. We thank God for God’s grace in growing seeds that are being planted in faith. Your continued prayers for The Journey are appreciated. “God is the one who makes the seed grow. We work together as partners who belong to God.” Visit: thejourneyharrisburg.org
The Valley is our second new church initiative planted in State College under a parachute-drop model. In this model, an area for ministry engagement is identified, a person is selected, assessed and trained to be the planter, he/she is given resources to start something new from scratch, and typically without a partnering church. They “parachute in” and get to work. For this project the planter, Tim Parker, was given financial support, coaching and resourcing through the Equipping Vital Congregations Office with the goal to build relationships that would yield a leadership team and then a launch team that would engage the wider area.
The Valley project included a gifted church planter doing all the right things, with the right mix of resources and coaching support, and generous financial backing from the conference. Even with our best efforts, the project has struggled to meet the benchmarks set to measure effective growth in attendance, small group development and internal financial viability. In ongoing conversation with the District Superintendent, the Equipping Vital Congregations Director, the project coach and church planter Tim Parker, the unanimous decision was recently made to discontinue this project by the end of May. Tim will be reappointed to a new ministry setting and conversations will continue with the small gathering of people aligned with The Valley to help them discern next steps in their spiritual journey. These kinds of endings are never easy and, we fear, misunderstood by those who have not been involved in the daily work of this ministry or the direction of this project. It is wise to acknowledge that church planting, especially in this model, is very difficult and doesn’t always unfold in the way intended. As people of faith we believe nothing is ever wasted in God’s hands. Though we may not see the fruits of our labor we know it is God who continues the work among those who have been involved and who will move forward on new paths of faith enriched by what they have learned and the blessings of their time with The Valley.
“And I am certain that God, who began the good work in you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” Philippians 1: 6 NLT
We invite you to be in prayer for Tim and his wife Sasha and for all the leaders and participants of The Valley as they move into a time of discernment and transition. Visit: thevalleysc.org
Our third church plant, The Open Door, was launched as an extension church planting model where, in order to reach new people, an existing congregation (Calvary Dillsburg) decided to start a new congregation with staff and facility to extend ministry to a specific population group. The Open Door is primarily reaching college aged and young adult people in the wider Dillsburg area. The worship style is more contemporary and led by a dynamic team of adults under the age of 30. The team leading this initiative is in the midst of holy experimenting, relationship building and faith formation as they are committed to small group development, mission projects and community engagement that speaks to young adults in ways that are intended to widen the circle of participation in the life of this church. Attendance growth has been slow and new strategies for reaching their target population group are being explored. This particular model of church planting is less expensive and less risky than the parachute drop model because an existing congregation provides support, facilities and resources supplemented by conference and district funding. We remain hopeful and prayerful for the seeds being planted by church planter Chrisanna Rogers and her team as they participate with the Spirit to grow and produce fruit for the kingdom. Your continued prayers for their efforts are appreciated. Visit: opendoordillsburg.com
Again, church planting is challenging and requires a willingness to take a risk, but it is an essential strategy in reaching new people in new places with the good news of Jesus Christ.
My friend Dr. Elaine Heath offers us a faithful stance for engaging in new things: we need to show up with our best thoughts, prayers, intentions and resources; we need to pay attention to where God is and what God wants to do in and through us; we need to participate fully in God’s work even if it comes with great risk and cost; and in the end we release the outcome to God, whatever it may be, knowing the work is God’s who sees what we are not able to see. God is the one who makes the seeds grow often times exceeding our imaginations.
We accept that not everything we do will succeed in the way we intended. We learn from our experiences. We celebrate the times when the vision grows to full bloom and a new church widens the circle of God’s embrace. We are grateful for all who say “yes” to this journey. Let us pray for one another as we continue to serve together as partners in God’s work.
