Unfiltered: Real Church Planting Conversations

[Recorded live at Exponential] Building a culture of generosity in your church isn't easy, but it matters to God and it should matter to church leaders. Experienced church planting leaders Lee Stephenson and Danny Parmelee, hosts of Unfiltered: Real Church Planting Conversations, are joined by Mark Albrecht, lead pastor and planter of NorthBridge Church in Antioch, Illinois. The trio discusses the ins-and-outs of building generosity as a cultural value in their churches and how generosity is used as an evangelism tool.

2:07 - Mark talks about his church's 15-year portable situation

3:40 - Mark discusses why generosity should matter to pastors and churches and how it is an avenue for sharing the gospel

5:31 - Mark speaks about the practical things that his church does to model generosity and the importance structuring your ministry so generosity marks who you are from the beginning

7:25 - Mark talks about how he uses his platform to help build the culture of generosity

10:10 - Mark discusses ways to keep generosity genuine and not manufactured

12:26 - Mark talks about ways to enhance generosity in a way that it becomes a cultural value at his church

13:58 - Mark tells how his church sets up its budget to make sure it doesn't spend more money than it takes in.

15:42 - Mark talks about how he helped alleviate fears of giving away money and being a generous church

18:13 - Mark talks about how to create a financial middle ground that leaves room for faith but still gives the church enough money in reserve so it won't be in financial jeopardy

19:41 - Mark talks about his church's budgeting style (fiscal year projection vs. using the previous fiscal year as a guide)

20:33 - Mark discusses pain points in his church's generosity journey

24:14 - Mark, Lee and Danny talk about whether or not it's helpful to know what church members give and how they thank givers

31:15 - Mark advises young church planters on "must-dos" when it comes to building generosity

35:11 - Lee talks about how generosity touches people's hearts and serves as an evangelism tool

36:30 - Q&A: Did your church make any missteps in terms of generosity that took you down the wrong path?

37:36 - Q&A: To what level should a pastor tell others about his own personal giving?

39:43 - Q&A: How do you manage the definition of generosity so it's not minimized?

41:45 - Q&A: How do you make sure to speak to every income level when it comes to generosity in your church? How do you speak to people in one giving level without offending people in other giving levels?

46:27 - Q&A: How do you develop a culture of being able to receive the generosity of others?

47:48 - Q&A: How do you balance using money in the church budget to give away vs. taking a special offering?

[Recorded live at Exponential] One of the most critical decisions a church planter has to make in its early years is when to purchase a permanent location. Church planting leaders Lee Stephenson and Danny Parmelee discuss their experiences moving from portable to permanent, along with the possible positives and negatives that come with the move.

0:33 - Lee talks about the transitioning aspect of moving from portable to permanent

1:16 - Danny shares about his experience of moving from portable to permanent and vice versa

2:01 - Lee talks about his experience of purchasing a property after being in a portable location for three years

3:04 - Lee shares about one of the most critical decisions a church plant has to make in its early years of ministry. When do we buy a building?

3:48 - Lee and Danny talk about the importance of establishing your church before buying a building and not putting too much emphasis on the building itself

4:59 - Danny and Lee discuss the advantages of being portable (financial, freedom to move)

6:32 - Danny and Lee talk about how moving to a permanent location won't solve all of your problems

7:34 - Danny and Lee talk about helping volunteers stay connected after you move from portable to permanent

10:28 - Lee cautions that even though moving from portable to permanent is a positive change, you're still going to lose people

11:49 - Danny shares about how God's timing was perfect in his church's move from portable to permanent

14:14 - Danny talks about the challenges of finding a location in an urban environment

15:14 - Lee talks about how you never know how God is going to open doors when the timing is right

18:43 - Lee likens the move from portable to permanent to a surfer riding a wave. The challenge is: Are you a surfer who can ride that wave? Are you ready?

19:26 - Danny says that if your church is not healthy in a portable location, moving to a permanent location will only magnify those problems

21:02 - Danny talks about the process of purchasing their first permanent building

24:02 - Lee talks about the growth spurt his church experienced after moving to a permanent location and the challenges that presented

24:28 - Lee gives six signs that you're ready to ride the wave generated from moving to a permanent facility

29:14 - Lee and Danny share about some problems/challenges (expected/unexpected) that are created by moving to a permanent building

40:07 - Danny recommends that church planters who are looking for a permanent facility contact the Converge Cornerstone Fund

41:20 - Q&A: "Could you share about some of your failures?"

47:40 - Q&A: "How you do you balance taking the plunge to get ready for taking on more but making sure you have a good enough system in place to handle incoming growth?"

51:00 - Q&A: "Is there a certain amount of money or a percentage that is healthy for a church to borrow when moving to permanent?"

Why is assessment so important to the potential church planter? Lee Stephenson and Danny Parmelee discuss the need for church planting assessment, four types of assessment, what happens during the assessment process and how that process made them better church planters.

1:20 - Lee describes four popular ways to assess potential church planters

2:06 - What is an assessment center? What happens at an assessment center? Why is it necessary for a husband and wife to take part in the assessment center together?

5:38 - What are the possible recommendations that can come from an assessment center?

10:18 - What are behavioral interviews? What are the positives and negatives of relying on behavioral interviews as an assessment tool?

12:24 - What are the critical things you would want to learn from a behavioral interview?

17:17 - Why is self-assessment not enough?

18:11 - Lee talks about his experience being assessed as a potential church planter. God killed a vision and rebirthed another vision.

21:20 - Why Lee is an advocate for the assessment center process

22:02 - Lee talks about the importance of the objective nature of the assessment center.

24:12 - Danny remembers the difficulty and the reward of his and his wife's assessment experience.

27:14 - Lee shares about how seriously the assessors take their responsibility to give potential church planters an honest assessment

28:04 - Lee talks about reactions of people who got red light and used that as a springboard to life in ministry.

How do you know God is calling you to church planting? Church planting leaders Lee Stephenson and Danny Parmelee introduce you to their own church planting experiences, how they knew they were called to church planting, the discussions between themselves and their wives during the process and what happens between the call to plant and actually planting a church.

2:31 - Danny talks about his journey from coming to know Christ to knowing he was called to church planting

7:00 - Danny talks about the timeline involved in his church planting experience

7:48 - Danny tells the story of the hard conversations he and his wife had about church planting

9:56 - Lee tells story of his calling to become a church planter, his wife's reaction, etc., what did Lee and Melissa do when they felt that call

14:03 - Lee talks about the kinds of things did he and his wife put on their list for them to become church planters

15:25 - What are similarities between a pastor's and a planter's call and advice on how to process the call?

16:45 - Danny talks about holy discontent his fear of losing a generation

18:00 - Danny speaks about the positive side and the sinful side that church planter's often face, and how to manage the tension between the two

20:00 - How do you walk through helping someone who is wrestling with their calling?

23:24 - Lee talks about how the story of Joshua has encouraged him as a church planter

24:34 - Lee discusses the hallmark that solidified the call to church planting for both himself and Danny