The “Corporate” World of Church Planting

Have you noticed?  Church planting is corporate enterprise these days.  Nearly gone are the days when men on their knees cried out to God for direction and were led to an area to establish a church.  From there, these men would pray, fast, and pray some more for direction as they began to carve out a niche for God in their church.  There wasn’t a lot of flashy production (at least in the beginning) and expenses were minimal because money was scarce.  Like minded men could still network on a lesser scale (and much more cost efficient too) and children’s programs (including the teens) were established without the McDonald playland atmosphere and the subsequent cost (not to mention insurance expense) associated with such ventures.

I was thinking about this today as I was reading my usual blogroll and a post from Ben Arment came up about church planting books…

I’m fasting from church growth books. This has been my hobby for the past 5 years, but I’ve decided it’s a little too close to my occupation to be recreational. Plus, they’re all contradictory and full of [insert favorite gross thing] =).

I must admit, he has a very good point.  Just about everyone and their uncle has written a book about how to plant churches, how to market them, how to bring them into the corporate world, etc…  My head is spinning.  On top of this, there are the numerous church growth conferences costing a small fortune to attend once you tack on plane fare, rental cars, hotels, and meals.  I have three children to raise and don’t have the money.  Neither does my church.

Now before you think I’m just sharing sour grapes, I’m not.  I’m actually working with other kingdom minded brethren to bring together the church planters in our region to collectively share ideas, resources, and fellowship.  I’ve found these meetings to be quite a bit more helpful than the conferences I’ve attended because they are realistic.  I’m currently submitting myself to the accountability of another church planter in my region to help keep me on task to reach new families, try new ideas, keep my personal life in order (how much has been written about this lately!!), and my spiritual life with God on track.   How refreshing it is to gather at these meetings and call each other by name in prayer.  We share coffee, juice, some fresh fruit, and a few Krispey Kremes and out goal is to see all of our brothers’ churches healthy.

Like Ben, I’ve taken a fast from all the literature that’s out there.  I’m also fasting from conferences next year except for my denomination’s annual convention in July.  I’m going to focus my attention on getting people saved, discipled, and plugged in harder than I ever have.  I’m focusing more time for the bible, both in my personal quiet time and sharing with my family.  That’s where I was when God called me to Denver.  I was close to God and not worried about such mundane things as whether of not I had enough sound equipment, the best lighting, a bass player for my worship team, an executive pastor to help me, a “connections” pastor to help me, a “children’s” pastor to help me, an av-audio pastor to help me, stage props, and everything else that goes with it.  That’s not to say that those things don’t have some importance but I feel at times like I’ve worshipped those things rather than valuing my relationship with the creator of all things, the one who has enough power to bring back the dead, the only one worthy of being called Savior!