New Churches Podcast

Episode 684: One of the biggest challenges planters face is recruiting people and building them into a team. Host Clint Clifton explores the issue with Jamie Limato and Todd Adkins.

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One of the biggest barriers church planters often face is recruiting people into a team when there’s really no momentum for a church plant. @ClintJClifton

The higher level of competency and capacity leaders you are trying to recruit, the more important clarity is, because they are going to dig down into the layers of what you just said. They’re going to ask more questions. And the best thing to do is answer their question before they ask it. @ToddAdkins

We don’t know whether a person is living out the values and vision unless we ask questions and listen. —Jamie Limato

Leading as a coach, for me, moved ownership for every single problem from them being dependent upon me to them taking ownership and responsibility. And now it was shared leadership. —Jamie Limato

True success in ministry is transferring ownership to others, developing leaders to the point where they feel  they are equipped for that work. It is a really fulfilling experience to have people around you who are doing the things you set out originally to do. @ClintJClifton

There’s a very good chance that those people you start with will not be as excited about the ministry when  it starts to take root and grow and multiply. @ClintJClifton

The power of story is really compelling but it must be tied back to a specific value. @ToddAdkins

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Episode 683: Sometimes church planters get a sense of entitlement about monetary support. Host Clint Clifton and Peyton Jones, author of  “Church Plantology,” discuss why a church might not want to support a planter and the best way to approach a prospective Sending Church.

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The first time I got my NAMB letter, it said, “Thank you for what you’re doing.” I sat at my kitchen counter and wept. I had been church planting for years on multiple continents, but I had never ever had anyone thank me. — PeytonJones

A lot of churches have allocated money in their budget to support missions and church planting. Just because church planting money is sitting in a church’s account doesn’t necessarily mean they are or should give it to you. @ClintJClifton

Church planting assessments can be the death knell of a church planter. Everything sounds wonderful until that one question: What are you doing now in your community? If there is no action, it’s all smoke and no fire. — PeytonJones

Church planters don’t often consider the stewardship responsibilities of a Sending Church pastor when they ask for money. They don’t put themselves in the shoes of that pastor. @ClintJClifton

If I were a planter going into a prospective supporting church, I might start with questions: What are you passionate about? What kind of ministries do you like to support?” And I’m assessing whether I’m a good fit with this church. If I’m not, I can say to the pastor, “I don’t know if I’m the right fit for you.” — PeytonJones

You want to hear what a pastor’s pinch-points are in getting the church jazzed about mission. Then you want to show how your relationship with the church can actually be a means to that end. @ClintJClifton

When the church is reviewing who they’re going to cut to invest in someone else, guess who’s going: people with no relationship. — PeytonJones

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Episode 682: Every church planter has experienced the link between prayer and progress in the ministry. It’s easy, however, to focus more on progress than on prayer. Host Ed Stetzer talks with Dan Darling and Jessica Thompson about the crucial relationships between prayer and progress in the life of the church planter. 

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We can focus so much on the the work of the Lord and not the Lord of the work. But as church planters we find ourselves dependent on the Lord and and His work every day, begging Him to do the work. @EdStetzer

In church planting, there’s so much doing, you might be tempted to not pray. But there’s a desperation too. When you’re starting a new work, you can’t help but pray. It seems to me they work together. @Dan Darling

This is a stereotype but the kind of people attracted to church planning seem to be people who are not naturally contemplative. There’s jet fuel drinkers and candle burners, and overwhelmingly the church planters are the jet fuel drinkers. @EdStetzer

What you can do is continually pray and have a heart attitude of dependency on the Lord and then cultivate that in your church. You are cultivating a life of prayer in your church so it is an overflow of what you are already doing and it’s coming out in your church.  – Jessica Thompson

Henry Blackaby says that God purposely calls us to things bigger than ourselves so that we’re dependent on him. I found that to be so true. @Dan Darling

I’ve never been more dependent on the Lord than when I’m in a church planting situation. The frailty of the situation, the desperation of the need and the focus of the church planting team – for me, those moments point us to a deeper and more profound moment of prayer. @EdStetzer

A lot of times people link prayer to progress. We need to be real careful when we’re doing that because I know some men and women with incredible prayer lives who don’t have thousand-member churches. But that doesn’t mean their prayers aren’t just as earnest and persevering.  – Jessica Thompson

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Episode 681: Sometimes church planters feel tension between being a pastor and a husband and father. Host Clint Clifton and guests Kathy Litton and Noah Oldham discuss how to deal with the practical issues “Pastor Dad” can face.

Books mentioned in this podcast:

Interested in learning more? Check out our Church Planting Primer

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Families deal with these issues every single day. When they are ignored over the long haul, it will be destructive to their marriage, to their witness, to their relationship with their children and to their church plants. – Kathy Litton

There’s so much pressure to take time away from the home. Most church planters are willing to sacrifice for the mission of God and what they don’t realize is they’re not just sacrificing themselves but also sacrificing their wife and kids. @NoahOldham

Sometimes being a pastor can feel at odds with being a dad and a husband. I remember one family member saying to me at one point, Can I get my dad back? I don’t need my pastor right now; I need my dad. @clintjclifton

When I thought about “pastor dad” early on, what I thought was teaching all about teaching and discipling. But my wife helped me understand she doesn’t need me to be her personal Bible study leader. What she needs me to be is a shepherd who listens intently and with compassion. My kids need that. @NoahOldham

My wife sometimes is used as an agent of God to rattle my attention back to where it should be on family matters. I get all laser-pointed at something and sometimes I’m not able to see the more important matters in the home. @clintjclifton

We all need a plurality of voices speaking into our lives. So many times church planting wives don’t feel they can share with anybody about issues going on in their home because it’ll taint their view and they’ll leave the church. @NoahOldham

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Episode 680: Serial church planting hasn’t seemed to be a valued option in the world of church planting. Ed Stetzer talks with two experienced sequential planters – John Worcester and Jared Huntley – about the nuts and bolts of planting a church, positioning it for long-term efectiveness, then moving on to plant another.

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I get a plant up to support level, work hard to find the takeover pastor and then turn it over. God puts it together in various kinds of ways. The denomination has helped at various times. Churches and individual friends helped us various ways. Every time we plant, we start over and piece it together. – John Worcester

If it sounds exhausting and draining to you, then it’s probably not how you’re wired and you probably shouldn’t do it. Starting new things energizes and excites me. I didn’t set out to be a serial church planter. I just realized I’m gifted at it. @Jared Huntley

One of the benefits of being a serial church planter is that you learn from your mistakes and you’re able to be a more effective church planter. @Jared Huntley

Our experience has been that it’s been really good for the family. It’s helped make us more dependent as a unit on one another rather than them getting dependent on on their peers. Our kids learned how to meet new people and go new places and do different things. – John Worcester

Most church planters in North America see church planting as an entrepreneurial beginning to something that’s probably a long-term vocation. They’re going to be pastor of this church. But many church-planting missionaries tend to birth missionaries. @EdStetzer

There’s a fine line between being wired and gifted by God as a serial church planter and being discontented and restless. That’s something each person has to wrestle through on their own and it can be helpful to invite others in to speak into that. @Jared Huntley

Some of the things to look for to discern whether this might be something God’s calling you to is if you’re energized by starting new things. Are you a self-starter? Do you have a track record of people following your leadership? Are you able to articulate and cast vision in a compelling way that other people want to get involved and jump in? Are you able to develop leaders? @Jared Huntley

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Episode 679: Hector Medina came from a gang background and hated God and Christianity. Now he serves as pastor of Salvo Por Gracia in Claremont, California. Host Clint Clifton talks with Hector and his wife, Alicia, about how God miraculously took them from the brink of divorce to a fruitful ministry in church planting. 

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No one really wanted to do anything with me in life. Society, my family, school, everywhere I went, that was the life I lived. — Hector Medina

I was such a baby believer, and I didn’t have nobody to walk with me, to guide me, or to tell me, “It’s all going to be okay. Trust God.” For me, giving up was the easiest, healthiest option for both of us, before he would kill me or something. — Alicia Medina

Hector and Alicia’s story is a story where God began to work in them and they, with obedience, stepped one step right in front of the other, and eventually God prepared them and equipped them for the work. @ClintJClifton

I needed to be humbled to enter this church planting. I think God was like, “Man, you can’t enter this like this.” — Hector Medina

One of the primary reasons church planters quit is because of isolation. @ClintJClifton

Finally, I said, “I need help. I know God’s called me. I just don’t know how to do it.” — Hector Medina

Church planting is a difficult and dangerous sport, but it’s worth it in the end, as God uses us to establish churches that become rooted in our community and proclaim the gospel of Jesus to others for generations. @ClintJClifton

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Episode 678: As a church planter, what does “sustainable” mean to you? Host Ed Stetzer discusses various aspects of quickly becoming sustainable with experienced planters Jared Huntley and John Worcester.

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I think a church planter should be consumed with “How am I going to reach the most people in the fastest possible way?” If he does a good job with that, then long-term sustainability takes care of itself. – John Worcester

An equal emphasis needs to be placed on developing leaders around you. If you can’t plant with a team, try to raise up a team as quickly as possible. If everything is dependent upon you as the planter, then you don’t have something sustainable. @Jared Huntley

Too many people say success is a full-time pastor pastoring a self-supporting church. It doesn’t have to be a full-time pastor. That is not the biblical norm and around the globe that’s certainly not the case. @EdStetzer

I like being intentional about giving other people space to lead and platforming other people. You should be aware of areas where you’re weak and allowing other people to run in their lane where they might be gifted in an area where you’re weak. @Jared Huntley

You have the best opportunity for the fastest growth momentum, the younger the church you’re in. As a planter, put your energy into getting the momentum to reach a lot of people as fast as you can. It’s out of that mix that you create the larger group where you find leaders. – John Worcester

We don’t want to sell our souls to get there, and we’ve got to trust God to bring about that growth. But there is a practical component to this: If more people don’t start attending our church, then you’re not going to become financially self-sustainable. @Jared Huntley

In the early days, when it’s evangelistic growth going on, I don’t emphasize giving a lot on Sunday mornings. Say something about it but don’t make it a big push. But when people are going to join the church, I teach about tithing and giving, and I promote leaders who are examples of giving. – John Worcester

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Episode 677: It’s hard to get people who are on your side to give you honest feedback, but without it a leader is doomed to failure. Host Ed Stetzer talks with Dan Darling and Jessica Thompson about creating an environment for constructive criticism in your ministry.

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It is hard to get people who are on your side to give you brutally honest feedback. All kinds of people want to give me brutal feedback, but not all are there to do it constructively in ways that are helpful. @EdStetzer

I think this is vitally important for every leader by allowing people into your inner circle who have permission to give you criticism. I’m not talking about cynics. If you start out pushing away honest criticism, what happens is you create this bubble around you. That’s really dangerous for a leader. @Dan Darling

I think ultimately you have to ask yourself, are you actually open to receiving the feedback? I think you have to separate what is being shared from your emotions, and really try to listen, ask questions and understand before reacting. Then you figure out what you can learn from it and improve.  – Jessica Thompson

You may also need to think about the structure of your team. It’s very easy for a leader to surround themselves with people who are sycophants. You want people on your team who believe in you, but also know that you have frailties. @Dan Darling

It’s hard to receive feedback because we’re all insecure at some level. We all want to hear the good parts of the annual review, but not the bad parts. @EdStetzer

You need people in your life who don’t just feed your ego, but fill your gaps. You have to invite them in and have those relationships where you’re open to hearing that.  – Jessica Thompson

A leader without a cycle of feedback is ultimately doomed to failure. Proverbs 27:6 says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend. Profuse are the kisses of an enemy.” @Dan Darling

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Episode 676: The ministry demands of church planting can weigh heavily on a pastor, with the result that he finds himself “minoring on the majors.” Clint Clifton discusses with Adam Muhtaseb and Nathan Knight the challenge of properly allocating time and energy to ministry priorities that put a church plant on the strongest foundation possible.

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One of the advantages – and maybe even a disadvantage – of being a church planter having the opportunity to shape your own schedule and priorities. Any time I’m frustrated, I only have myself to blame. @ClintJClifton

Taking on outside ministry opportunities sucks your energy away from the the work God has called you to in the first three years. You should be laser-focused on multiplying and equipping leaders the first two years. @Adam_Muhtaseb

Planters plan too much and pray too little. Planters plan too much and pray too little. More time should be spent hearing from Christ before they plan him out of stuff. @NathanKnightDC

You should not be doing. You should be training other people to do so you can multiply and scale the ministry. @Adam_Muhtaseb

I’m not a great preacher and I’m comfortable with that. When I recognized there was a more fruitful preacher in our congregation, I quickly put him in that seat. @ClintJClifton

If you want to be a pastor, you should definitely be a pastor. Just do it at an existing church. But if you want to plant church, you need to be catalytic, a missionary. @Adam_Muhtaseb

Sometimes giving up on church planting has to do with a misallocation of energies and attention in the church planting journey. @ClintJClifton

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Episode 675: Trevin Wax and Clint Clifton review our new (free) Church Planting Masterclass, which offers 80 powerful videos intended to be used in two different ways: (1) If you’re an aspiring planter or a church planter yourself and (2) to be tools you can use to equip other leaders in your church.

Insights from three Church Planting Masterclass sample clips:

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You really do have to think like a missionary. We expect missionaries who go to other parts of the world to examine the culture that they’re going to reach. And yet for some reason when we think about North America  we don’t we don’t prioritize exegeting the culture as much. @TrevinWax

It’s not just that there are differences in cultures; it’s that our cultures are always changing. So even information about your city 20 years ago might not be relevant now. @ClintJClifton

There’s this popular idea of balancing family and ministry. We even have the phrase “Don’t sacrifice your family on the altar of ministry.” But I think sometimes we’re in danger of sacrificing our ministry on the altar of family. It actually goes both ways. They are your ministry and they’re your co-laborers in ministry. @ClintJClifton

It’s not sacrificing your family for ministry; your family is your ministry. You minister to your family and then you minister alongside your family. @TrevinWax

I love the idea that we’re not just bringing a person to a message; we’re wanting the message to get to a person. And it’s not the communicator that matters most; it’s what’s being communicated. @TrevinWax

When people come to church, they really want to hear what God says. The Bible is the best thing your church has going for you. You have something no one else has: the very Word of God. How could we not want to be the very best most effective communicators possible? @TrevinWax

What I’ve heard for years about Jonathan Edwards is that he was so clear in his message and so vivid in his articulation, but so monotone in his delivery. Yet he’s one of the most powerful preachers we could ever consider. @ClintJClifton

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