Session 1 and Panel Between Session 1 and 2
The first session has just started at this bad boy. There about 2000 people in this giant auditorium. There are a lot people in jeans with vintage looking t shirts, holes in their jeans, and a goatee or soul patch or is it sole patch. I’m not sure I’m cool enough to be here. You can probably tell I’m getting cynical and jaded about all of this. I don’t want to be. Call me up short if I am. I’m just reporting the sights and sounds as I see it. You’ll be able to tell when I’m excited or grouchy. Optimistic or a smart…alec. The first session is with Ed Stetzer who has become the foremost student, writer, and communicator of missiology in North America. Missiology is the study of missions, thus his ministry is about missions to Americans of which we see ourselves at Crew. He’s a great communicator and even better thinker. I’m excited to hear from him.
Alright, the network sucks in this room, so I was constantly losing my connection. So I’m going to write live as I’m experiencing this, but I’ll be publishing it at a later time when I can get on. You’ll still get the info, but it won’t be live. Sorry.
I had several trends that he communicated, but lost them. I'll try to remember a few:
--Most churches are started by churches 200 folks or less.
--Smaller churches start other churches more naturally and easier than bigger churches
--The most effective evangelistic strategy in America today is start new churches.
All right, they’re doing a panel now between session 1 and 2.
They have a few pastors who have started churches out of their church at an incredible success rate. Here are a few things that resonated with me. Anything hit you?
One guy was asked how to keep church planting on our church’s radar. He said celebrate ways in which you contribute to church planting. Tell everyone how much money you give to planting churches, bring church planters in to speak at your church and make heroes of them. He said, what you celebrate is what you become. Based on that what would you say we celebrate at Crew that we shouldn’t? What should we be celebrating that we aren’t?
One church, Northwood Community Church, has planted almost 100 churches in 20 years. 13 of them are within 10 miles of their church and have over 10,000 people in them. If Northwood wouldn’t have planted those churches then they too could be a megachurch with a lake and a Payne Stewart golf academy. I think I’d rather be smaller Northwood, wouldn’t you?
“You can right the ship if you’re off course. But sometimes it turns like a freighter”
Ok, I'm live again...for now.
Alright, the network sucks in this room, so I was constantly losing my connection. So I’m going to write live as I’m experiencing this, but I’ll be publishing it at a later time when I can get on. You’ll still get the info, but it won’t be live. Sorry.
I had several trends that he communicated, but lost them. I'll try to remember a few:
--Most churches are started by churches 200 folks or less.
--Smaller churches start other churches more naturally and easier than bigger churches
--The most effective evangelistic strategy in America today is start new churches.
All right, they’re doing a panel now between session 1 and 2.
They have a few pastors who have started churches out of their church at an incredible success rate. Here are a few things that resonated with me. Anything hit you?
One guy was asked how to keep church planting on our church’s radar. He said celebrate ways in which you contribute to church planting. Tell everyone how much money you give to planting churches, bring church planters in to speak at your church and make heroes of them. He said, what you celebrate is what you become. Based on that what would you say we celebrate at Crew that we shouldn’t? What should we be celebrating that we aren’t?
One church, Northwood Community Church, has planted almost 100 churches in 20 years. 13 of them are within 10 miles of their church and have over 10,000 people in them. If Northwood wouldn’t have planted those churches then they too could be a megachurch with a lake and a Payne Stewart golf academy. I think I’d rather be smaller Northwood, wouldn’t you?
“You can right the ship if you’re off course. But sometimes it turns like a freighter”
Ok, I'm live again...for now.
posted by Josh Perry at
2:07 PM
3 Comments:
Well, there's two things I have to say, I guess.
1.) My first reaction to the "how to keep church planting on our church's radar?" question was, that's dumb. But as I tell my students every day, there's no such thing as a dumb question. So maybe it's kinda' hypocritical for me to be thinking that way.
I think my worldview has changed dramatically since becoming involved with Crew. Church planting is always on our radar because we do celebrate it.
As counselors, we're told to discuss the last session with our clients during the first session. That way, there is always this mindset of there will be a day when counseling will be over and it helps prevent stagnation for both the counselor and the client. From my experience, I have seen Crew do the same thing: I was told from the beginning that Crew was never meant to be the final project and that we are always moving towards the day when there will be a new church develop out of us.
I think the way to have church planting on your radar is to have it be part of your identity as a church. I've attended several traditional ("My family's been going to church here for 75 years!") and mega churches in the past that never gave a thought to planting. It wasn't a part of their mission statements or identities, so it wasn't even a blip on the radar for them. And the congregation (including myself at the time) didn't even notice.
I wonder if the guy asking the question represents a church like those in my past. Regardless, I think I'm going to admire this guy's question instead of calling it dumb. At least he's trying to "right the ship".
And I didn't even state my second comment because I was too busy monologue-ing about the question he asked instead of the question you asked. My second comment was I think we should spend more time celebrating the community service done by our members and the opportunities there are out there to serve. I kind of remember there being a plan to feature different ways Crew could love on the city at one time (I think it started with Contact) but there was never really any follow-though with that, that I noticed (please correct me if I'm wrong!). Perhaps if we broadcast the opportunities more frequently in our services and celebrate the experiences of those who are out there helping, we can grow our presence in the world that needs love and care for them the way Jesus calls us to.
Great thoughts Jen and thanks for letting us hear from you.
On the 2nd comment. You are exactly right. We did not celebrate the win with our work with CONTACT (rape crisis center). We provided several products for their care packages, but once we did we never announced how much or who did what. Michelle Sigler who facilitated that was never applauded as a hero and a person who gets it. Also there was a thank you letter sent to Crew from the director of CONTACT that I could have read or emailed or posted as a blog. No one at Crew, but me saw that. Again, bad leadership. This is what Andy Stanley was talking about yesterday. Celebrate the win. Crew is going to do that better. Thanks again Jen.
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