Home Outreach Leaders Articles for Outreach & Missions 10 Things to Know About Church Planting in an Urban Context

10 Things to Know About Church Planting in an Urban Context

6. Get a spiritual father. (1 Timothy 1:2 and Philippians 2:22)

Some see this as charismatic, but the bottom line is, it’s biblical. Get strong men that can speak into your life, men that you would follow and submit to, and allow them access to the you that only your wife and children know. Let them speak into your life about your family, finances, church, sex life and hurt. This will pay HUGE dividends in your life and the life of your church.

7. Date your wife. (Ephesians 5)

It’s easy to replace your wife with the church. Allow her to be honest with you about how she’s feeling and be intentional about dating her, loving her, listening to her and romancing her. Don’t take her for granted, she’s worth more than that and deserves your best. Don’t give the church your all and give her your leftovers. As you are visioneering for your plant, be sure to visioneer on how you intentionally show and tell your wife how much you love her.

8. Establish unity with your core team. (Philippians 1:27-28)

Have a clear sense of your philosophy of ministry and communicate it well with your core team. You want to be unified on three major fronts: theologically, relationally and philosophically. Clearly define your theologically open and closed handed issues. Examine how you relate with the leaders on your team and ask explicitly if they embrace your philosophy of ministry. This will ensure unity along with a healthy board and longevity for your plant.

9. People will leave. (John 6:58-66)

In John 6, many walked away from Jesus after hearing hard truth and many will leave you too. Don’t trip, but listen to what those that are leaving are saying. Don’t dismiss them all because you’re hurt that they are leaving. Some of them will have valid points for leaving, which can be a necessary thorn in the flesh (2 Cor. 12:7-10) of a church planter to keep you on your knees. When people leave, it will hurt, and that’s ok. Don’t pretend that you’re not hurt, but don’t let those that leave define you either.

Some will talk to you on their way out, while others will just shoot an email or just leave you to find out on Facebook that they’re at a new church. Although you may not want to confront them, you should have streams for growth and exits. Conduct exit interviews for people on their way out; you may find some holes in your leadership team that need to be addressed. Lastly, it’s rare that people are honest with you about why they leave, but allow this to keep you reminded that Christ will build His church.

10. Fundraise for longevity. (Philippians 4:15-20)

Secure your salary and healthcare and another guy to be on staff on the front end. If you plan on being bivocational for the life of your plant, then you can have some leeway with this, but you want to secure as much money as possible prior to launching because this is a burden that you don’t need on top of everything else needed for your plant.

In all of this, love Jesus and his gospel; your identity isn’t in the success or failure of your plant. Your identity is in Him. And as simple as it may sound, you’ll be prone to forget this. Remember this: You weren’t chosen because you’re special, you’re special because He chose you (John 15:16). The truth is, you don’t have what it takes for what you’re about to embark on.

If your joy is in the plant and not in Christ, this will become evident quickly and you’ll burnout and quit or abuse your people and make the plant about you. Christ loves you and you’re His son. He didn’t die for you to be a great church planter, he died for you to be His son and that’s more than enough. I’m praying for you and wish you much godly success.