Category Archives: Church Planting
The 501(c)(3) Question in Church Planting
An increasingly popular FAQ in church planting in Louisiana is “Do I have to apply for a 501(c)(3) covering?” The answer I’ve always received from people smarter than me is “No.” And I’ve taught this in church planter training events every chance I’ve gotten. However recently, banks have been asking for this determination before allowing a new church to open an account. This is tough, because it can take months to get approved for a solo 501(c)(3) status. But finally, a CPA friend has tracked down the exact IRS statue on this question! Yes!!! 
Get the entire doc: Churches, Integrated Auxiliaries, and Conventions or Associations of Churches
So the answer is “NO!” You do not have to have it! Church Planter, print this off & carry it with you to the bank, give it to the banker, & open that account!
Now, as a Louisiana Baptist Church or Mission you can obtain a letter identifying you as an auxillary. But it shouldn’t be a requirement for you to do business as a church.
For a couple of more helps in this area, see my Posts 7 Steps to Establishing Your Church as a Legal Organization & Handling Money in a New Church.
5 Books to Put Under the Church Planter’s Tree
Wondering what to get the church planter friend or loved one in your life for Christmas, etc.? It was actually a great year for books for church planter types. Lots of great books to choose from. Here’s five recent books that I think will make most church planters smile this Christmas or just because.
>> Saturate: Being Disciples of Jesus in the Everyday Stuff of Life by Jeff Vanderstelt. See some of my thoughts about the book HERE.
>> Gaining by Losing: Why the Future Belongs to Churches that Send by J.D. Greear. Great book on creating a culture of sending. Lots of how to’s. Must read for any missions or church planting enthusiast.
>> 100 Deadly Skills: The SEAL Operative’s Guide to Eluding Pursuers, Evading Capture, and Surviving Any Dangerous Situation by Clint Emerson. Do I have to explain why he’d love this?
>> The Great Fire: One American’s Mission to Rescue Victims of the 20th Century’s First Genocide by Lou Urenek. This would be a great movie, were it not for today’s political correctness. Inspiring story!
>> Staying is the New Going: Choosing to Love Where God Places You by Alan Briggs. Fellow church planter Alan Briggs helps all of us with a strong case for being on mission locally.
And if you wait too late you can’t go wrong with coffee shop or bookstore gift cards for church planters. :)
I keep an up to date, best stack of books for church planting HERE.
Church Planting Makes a Difference
Since 2010, 124 new churches planted in Louisiana with 8,987 new commitments to Christ reported in the first 36 month of these churches. That’s 72 new commitments to Christ per church plant.
How could 72 new commitments to Christ impact your community?
And that doesn’t account for a now lifetime partner in fighting community issues like addiction & hunger, a new partner in global missions, total evangelism as new believers get involved in new testament relationships & serving. Church Planting makes a difference.
Missiologist Peter Wagner said, “Planting new churches is the most effective evangelistic methodology known under heaven.”
Tim Keller says, “The continual planting of new congregations is the most crucial strategy for the growth of the body of Christ.” (get his great article Why Plant Churches).
Keep exploring the question “Does My Community Need a New Church?” HERE.
Check out these resources to help you get started:
- 10 Biblical & Practical Ways to Get Involved in Church Planting
- Every Church Can Encourage Church Planting and Multiplication
- Every Church Can Be a Church Planting Partner
- Your Church Can Be a Parent to a New Church or Campus
Connecting Dots, Defining Impact – Church Planting Highlights from the Louisiana Baptist Annual Meeting
Enjoyed a great couple of days of networking in Bossier City with the Louisiana Baptists Annual Meeting. The big highlight for me personally, was hearing my good friend Kirk Jones, Pastor of Fellowship Church in Prairieville, preach the Convention Sermon. Fellowship started from scratch in a Prairieville Fire Station in 2002. Since then 440 people have been saved & baptized at Fellowship & 700+ gather for worship each week on two campuses in hard to reach Ascension Parish.
Kirk took time to connect some dots & show the impact of the Southern Baptist Cooperative Program on his life. Kirk & I are the same age, so I saw myself in this exercise he led us through. From his local church having a Missions education program for boys called Royal Ambassadors, to the Annual Youth Evangelism Conference held each year to inspire teens to be on mission, then through Baptist Collegiate Ministries during college & Seminary training at SBC seminaries, & then deployment as church planter through the North American Mission Board & Louisiana Baptist Convention. Now 440+ new brothers & sisters in Christ & a healthy, multiplying church that is now a partner through the Cooperative Program & SBC Missions offerings. There are not many in our generation connecting these dots today. Thanks to Kirk for the great reminder. It’s not perfect. It’s not the only way to do it. But the Cooperative Program works.
A few other highlights:
- Annual Church Planting Network Luncheon – We have some amazing folks planting churches in Louisiana & the Annual Meeting is the one time each year that we can get a majority of them in one room for lunch & to say thanks.
- We had 48 of our 77 planters on stage for our Annual Report Monday night. It was cool to see the diversity & depth of church planting in the state in one big group.
- Our Mission Support Committee, which oversees the work of the Missions & Ministry Team, met & approved funding for 110 church planting & compassion ministry projects around Louisiana for 2016. Grateful for the Cooperative Program, Georgia Barnette State Missions Offering, and Annie Armstrong Offering for North American Missions that makes this possible.
- Greg Shyne, church planter for United Outreach in Shreveport received recognition for Outstanding Bivocational Ministry from the Louisiana Bivocational Pastors Fellowship. We’ve seen & embraced a big upswing in bivocationalism in church planting over the last few years in Louisiana. Love it!
- The Louisiana Baptist Pastors Conference was also great with H.B. Charles, Frank Cox, Phillip Robertson, Brad Jurkovich & others giving us some great encouragement to pursue the call.
Kirk Jones, Planter/Pastor of Fellowship Church in Prairieville, LA preaching the Convention Sermon at the Louisiana Baptist Annual Meeting at FBC Bossier City.
Annual Church Planter Network Luncheon. Currently 77 church planting projects in years 1-3 in Louisiana.
Great to have a big group of our current Louisiana Church Planters on stage with us for our Annual Church Planting Report, Monday night.
The Missions Support Committee is made up of leaders from Louisiana Baptist churches & oversees the work of the Missions & Ministry Team. They approved funding for 110 church planting & compassion ministry projects for next year across Louisiana.
Congrats to Shreveport church planter Greg Shyne, Bivo Pastor of the Year.
“The power of preaching is in its content, not its function.” – HB Charles closed out the Pastors Conference. Great to finally get to hear him in person.
Church Planting = Water for the Thirsty and A City for the Hungry #devo
Two of my favorite images of church planting are found in Psalm 107:35-38.
35 He turns a desert into a pool of water,
dry land into springs of water.
36 He causes the hungry to settle there,
and they establish a city where they can live.37 They sow fields and plant vineyards
that yield a fruitful harvest.
38 He blesses them, and they multiply greatly;
He does not let their livestock decrease.
In every city & community there are a dry desert places that need the living water of God’s presence. In every city & community God wants to gather the hungry people for the sake of establishing a fruitful multiplying community. This gives great purpose to the work of the church planter & church planting team: FINDING DRY, DESERT, PARCHED PLACES IN THE COMMUNITY. Settle there & establish a place for hungry people to gather, grow, & multiply.
Questions for planters:
- Are we planting for the purpose of seeing God water the dry places? or are we planting in places that are well watered?
- Are we establishing a place for the hungry or the already full?
- Are we ready to sweat & experience the difficulty of desert life as we plant in dry places?
- Are we ready to lay brick #1 in a million as we build a city for the hungry?
Church Planter Fit
SUNDAY 11082015
- 1x pull trailer
- 4x unload equipment
- 4x hang signs
- 125x setup chairs
- 4x make coffee
- 125x shoulders (shaking hands)
- 4x 30 yard sprint (chasing kids)
- Repeat backwards
(And I guarantee this workout for 10,000 Fitbit steps before noon on Sunday.)
Who’s ready? There’s a church plant near you that can get you on the schedule ASAP.
Inspired by Crossfit.com.
ASAP in Church Planting: What should I do first? #churchplantingfaq
When starting a new church or anything else, getting off to a good start is very important. A great question I’ve been asked several times this year – “What should I do first?” I wrote about what to do BEFORE starting a church and what to do in THE FIRST YEAR of a new church. But what should I be most concerned about in the very beginning, the first quarter, of a new church planting project. Looking back at my three first quarters of church planting projects, here’s what I’d do before I ever start to think about finding a building, getting a 501(c)3, or hiring a worship leader.
1. Gather partners.
Before getting on the field, you should have been developing a network of partners for prayer, financial support, etc. Establishing good communication patterns at the very beginning is essential. Every Monday email, closed Facebook group, hard copy E-newsletter, discipline on reporting if you’re partnering with an organization that requires a monthly report. Get in a rhythm of sharing with your partners early. And continue to work your plan to develop & establish good partnerships.
2. Meet some new people.
Establish yourself as a people person immediately. Build some relationships, get to know your neighbors, stick your nose in some conversations at a coffee shop, & share the gospel. If you get into month 3 or 4 & you don’t have some relationships on the field, the walls will start closing in & the loneliness will begin to stifle you. And these relationships will hopefully give you some soundbites to communicate needs to your partners & some potential core team members as well. I used Dan Morgan’s KISS method as a strategy for meeting new people: Know a name, get Involved, Share your Story, Share the Gospel.
3. Gather at least one circle.
Three keys to church planting: Gather, Gather, Gather. To grow the church, you’ll need to effectively gather CIRCLES (small groups), ROWS (worship gatherings), CROWDS (special events). Right now, focus on gathering one circle by inviting some of the people you meet to a Bible Study. You may be blessed to have a launch team from a sending church to help you form a circle. If so, work hard to keep that circle open to the unchurched. Or start a second circle for the unchurched. The more circles the first year, the better.
4. Meet with a coach/mentor.
Most church planters have read widely before getting on the field. You’ve got a ton of ideas. You’ve kept up with what others are doing. You need to establish some relationships with people that can help you focus on the best courses of action right now. A good coach or mentor will hold you accountable, help you process & sort through plans & ideas, & give you honest feedback. Eventually, you’ll have a team inside your church that can help with some of this, but now you need trusted advisors on the outside that believe in you, love you, & want to see your church succeed. In my experience, the closer to the field your working that they are, the better. Don’t wait until you need some advice. You need it now whether you know it or not. Establish a pattern of meeting with someone in the first month.
5. Establish patterns of devotion & rest.
One hour each day, one day each week, one weekend per month, two weeks per year. Plan out when you’re going to spend time with God, what will be your day off, date nights, vacations. Running past your devotional life & seasons of refreshing will lead to a quick flame out for most church planters.
So, a good checklist for the first 3-6 months of church planting:
- How many partners do I have? Have I communicated with them effectively?
- How many names do I know in the community?
- How many circles have I started?
- Who is my coach or mentor(s)? And when do we meet?
- Have I rested well this quarter?
The Gravitational Pull of Any Church #quotes #booksworthreading
The gravitational pull of any church is toward insiders, not outsiders. Left unattended, your church will become a place where preference
s of the members trump passion for the mission. There are two primary ways to address this drift:
- In every decision, focus on what you want to reach, not on who you want to keep.
- Commit to losing yourself for the sake of finding others.
people automatically respond with “What about me and my needs?
… People who focus on helping others and honoring Christ soon discover that their needs are met far more deeply than they ever experienced otherwise.
Carey Nieuwhof in his incredible new book Lasting Impact: 7 Powerful Conversations That Will Help Your Church Grow.
Like a Blur… A Church Planter’s Sunday
His office is his dining room table. His pulpit is a music stand. His breakfast on Sunday is adrenaline & coffee (& maybe Red Bull). On Sunday, he’s often a Pastor / Worship Leader / Sound Guy / Church Secretary / Church Administrator / Children’s Minister / Janitor. He can type the bulletin, enter the power point presentation, run the sound board, make copies, make coffee, change diapers, repair sound equipment, setup the chairs, preach the sermon. He uploads the sermon to iTunes & then to Facebook WHILE greeting every guest, thanking every volunteer, cleaning up a few spills, downing another Red Bull. First one there, last one to leave. Grateful for my church planting brothers this morning.
(adapted from personal experience & from the experiences of those I know on the front lines of planting new churches in North America).
A Church Planter’s Sunday
He’s up early, pulling a trailer, setting up the chairs, making the coffee, motivating the team, shaking every hand, saying thank you 100’s of times. Welcomes the guest, preaches the message(s), extends the invitation, stacks the chairs, loads the trailer, cleans up the messes. Misses kickoff but doesn’t care. Grateful for all my church planter & portable church brothers this morning.
Lane Corley 