Why Church Plant?
A few years ago I went on a cruise with my Mum around the Norwegian fjords taking in the most stunning scenery. On one of the stops we decided to go on an excursion through the mountains to see a glacier. I’m always up for a bit of adventure and have never seen a glacier so I was excited at the prospect. We sat in a warm coach to make the first part of the journey and I looked out of the window admiring waterfalls and greenery to take your breath away. We arrived at the bottom of a mountain and were told that in order to see the glacier we had to pretty much hike our way up. We noticed there were small buggies that you could drive up for most of the way.
Partly because my mum thought she would not be able to do the walk and partly just through the desire for comfort, we decided this would be the best way to travel but to our dismay, they were sold out. We had a choice to make - do we trek it or miss out on seeing a glacier? We decided to go for it! It was not for the faint of heart, but after what felt like hours of walking in extreme rain we made it. Ironically, the rain made it even more stunning as it looked like the water was sparkling in the lakes below! Somehow the climb to this point made it that much more spectacular.
I found myself a few years ago at a crossroads in my ministry. My ‘comfort’ had been disrupted and I realised God was forging a new way ahead for me. At the time, like my experience in Norway, the mountains seemed to loom in front of me and the rain was intense. I was discouraged, down, lonely and felt I'd lost all courage to go on. I’d grown up in a fantastic church and although I had to battle through some difficulties, I was a lot more comfortable than I realised. I was on a good salary with good people around me who were family, people who had been there through some of my hardest times. But I found myself at this point of feeling like I’d been catapulted out of comfort and flying into the air, not knowing where I would land or even if I’d come out alive. I wondered if my ministry was over and battling deep feelings of loss on multiple levels I came before God in somewhat of a desperate state. It was in those quiet times alone with God, that he reminded me of the call upon my life. He reminded me of words he had given me and things he had said to me years ago that didn’t make sense at the time but now were coming back to my mind.
The honest truth is that I would not have chosen to be catapulted out of comfort - I mean, who would? I wonder now, if circumstances hadn't forced this would I still be living in comfort and not outworking the call upon my life - who knows apart from God alone? This worries me a little about the church as a whole in the western world. Have we become so comfortable that the thought of doing anything radical for God doesn’t even cross our minds? The church in the middle east and in parts of asia is growing at such a fast rate yet their experiences are anything but comfortable. Most of the church is underground. We have the blessing of relative freedom in the west, but maybe our biggest challenge is comfort?
I’d grown up hearing about people that church planted but had always heard people say how hard it was. I don’t know where that narrative came from but it appeared to me that it just wasn’t really the thing to think about doing! When I was youth pastoring, one of my favourite times of the year was during the summer when we had what we called our ‘summer schools mission’. This was pitched at young people who had finished their exams and had some spare time on their hands. They gave 1 or 2 weeks to serve alongside my youth team in our local schools. We saw God open the most incredible doors and in some years managed to get into every school in our town taking lessons, assemblies, lunchtime clubs and running other activities. We became the presence of Jesus in areas that oftentimes rejected Him. There was something adventurous about sharing the gospel in places that were often so closed to Him. This created a passion in my heart to get the gospel into places that might not normally be open. It was often risky, often uncomfortable when having to answer questions we didn’t necessarily have answers to. It was sometimes hard work as there was always a spiritual battle at play but it was always so exciting!
I wonder what is needed today to challenge a comfortable church to give more focus to church planting and mission?
“The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighbourhood.” John 1:14 (MSG)
I love this verse. The message seems to add a special layer to it especially in using the word ‘neighbourhood.’ Jesus didn’t expect us to come to Him, but He came to us, right into the mess of our humanity. For three years He walked around into different villages and towns making His presence and power known. He moved in. This word ‘dwelt’ that is used in the NIV gives the image of ‘setting up camp’, ‘making a home’. I wonder if the church could focus on even just walking into different neighbourhoods surrounding their buildings whether they would begin to see things differently. Often the church is a building that can be hard for someone to walk into but what if we gave more time, energy and resources into what happens outside the walls of our church? Some church planters would believe it’s important to move into an area to truly become incarnational in their approach. I’m living in London and the area I’m looking at planting in isn’t somewhere I’d be able to afford, especially as a single woman on a faith salary. But that doens’t mean I can’t be incarnational. Just last night I ate in a restaurant I may never have gone to had I not started exploring this particular area. I, with some friends, discovered a board games night available to people - I may not be able to live in the area, but I can ‘move into’ the area. Maybe we just have to be a little more creative?
Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” Matthew 19:16
The verse above is from a story where Jesus has a one to one conversation with a young man. The man ultimately walks away from the conversation because he is challenged in a way that isn’t so comfortable. Although this young man walked away, there were many others, like the disciples that we know who choose to walk the discipleship journey with Jesus. There would have been countless conversations in smaller groups or even one to one where the disciples felt challenged to give their all to follow Him. Discipleship in the ‘modern’ church has often become programme bases or event centric, but Jesus’ discipleship method was about getting alongside individuals, asking questions, challenging and inspiring to greater things. I wonder if we could create ways in our church where we disciple, coach and mentor people so that they are challenged and encouraged to step out in faith.
One of the things that most helped me on my journey especially after being forced out of comfortability was the mentors around me who were willing to ask me tough questions and help me take some risky steps into the unknown. This challenge never came from someone preaching but from one to one conversations where people were bold enough and kind enough to point me in the direction or embracing a new call upon my life to step out and think about church planting.
“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up…” Ephesians 4:11-12
We can often forget in the verse above that the whole point of leaders in the church is to equip people to minister. Oftentimes , the church can listen to a sermon on a sunday and walk outside of the doors without giving another thought to it. I don’t know if you, like me, have ever preached in church and seen someone having a good old nap! If I was preaching to young people and that happened, I’d call it out but that doesn’t quite work in an adult setting! I doubt a sleeper will do anything to change what they’ve heard as they haven’t heard it! I believe preaching the word is vital within our churches but I think we have to look further than just a weekly 25 minute slot to how we can help people put into action what we are unpacking.
I find myself these days with friends who are on the journey of church planting with me saying things like, ‘imagine if….’ I realise the more I do it, the more I am helping someone to envision something new or exciting or different. People begin to imagine what I am sharing. It begins to embed in the thoughts of another. Not only do I say ‘Imagine if…’ but ‘Imagine if you…’ That takes it from not just being my thoughts or my imagination to a partnership with another. I think, through both our preaching and discipleship, we have to find ways to help equip and challenge our church members to step out of comfort and be who God has called them to be!
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations ,baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:19-20
We all know these verses as the great commission - the challenge to ‘GO’ and reach people with the gospel in our world. I think in the modern church there can be a hesitancy to release people to go and plant out. There may be a feeling that you need everything in place, the right amount of money, the perfect people, the perfect location or the necessary structures in place. I’m not sure Jesus was thinking all that when he commanded the disciples to go. There can be a tendency to not want to ‘lose your best’ people. Everyone needs people to volunteer. If you lose people from your congregation it will just make your job a whole lot more difficult right? This seems like a strange way of thinking when it is God who is in control of the church. It is Him who makes it grow.
I learnt this lesson in part when I was youth pastoring as every year we would take on a new group of young leaders to train. We would spend a few years training them up and some would go onto join our youth team. Every few years I saw a pattern emerge which was that a whole group would disappear - often for university or to go onto serve in different areas. I would panic early on when this happened but came to realise that God always brought new people, stretched new people and sorted out any fears I had. Years on, I now get to see many of my young people serving Jesus around the country and I realise the power of releasing - it blesses not just me but the wider church. I hope in the future, churches will develop more of a kingdom mindset and will release hundreds of people to break into new areas and new neighbourhoods to reach people with the gospel - I think if we do this it could have a mind-blowing effect.
Why plant a church? Apart from the obvious of it being part of the plan of God for His world, I think we need to remember there are lots of places that need Jesus and there are lots of people who might not travel to come to your church but might be more likely to connect with someone who has intentionally come into their neighbourhood and started loving and connecting with people there. I feel uncomfortable all the time these days, whether it be going to areas I’m unfamiliar with, speaking to people I have never known or being crazy enough to think we can plant multiple churches. I’ve decided to embrace the discomfort knowing that God’s got my back. If anything, embracing discomfort has weirdly brought me great freedom. Remember the verse ‘where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom?’ That is how I feel, as I draw closer to Jesus and hear his call, I feel a sense of freedom like never before. Will you choose to step out of your comfort zone today?
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