Planting Partners

(The following is some notes from a talk I recently gave about church planting.)

Biblical Rationale for Church Planting

1. Matthew 16:18 – “Upon this rock, I will build my church.” The church has a vital role in the redemptive plan of God.
2. Matthew 28:18-20 – “The Great Commission.” We are to be a “sent people.” Historically, new churches have been the most successful at “making disciples of all nations.”
3. Acts 2:41-47 – New converts are quickly assembled into “congregations” that continually multiply.

Why Plant a Church?

1. The fields are ready for harvest
   1. Only 17.5% of people in the U.S. attend church on any given weekend in 2005 (American Church in Crisis (ACC) by David Olson).
   2. About 4,000 churches close every year. Approximately the same amount of new churches start each year. However, to keep up with population growth, an additional 3,200 churches need to start every year (ACC).
   3. The number of unchurched Americans is increasing by a rate of 1 million per year (Church Leader’s Intelligence Report, 4-1-09).

1. To reach young people
   1. 70% of Protestant church-going high-schoolers have stopped attending church by age 23 (Lifeway Research).
   2. And it’s getting worse… at the current rate, only 4% of American teenagers will end up as Bible believers. (Washington Times)
   3. 19% of 18 – 22 year olds identify themselves as atheist or agnostic (Barna Group).

1. New churches are more effective
   1. It has been proven over the years and is universally accepted across all denominations that the most-effective way to reach unbelievers is through the planting of new churches.
   2. Evangelical churches under 10 years old grow at an annual rate of 16.5% compared to 0.6% for churches 10 – 40 years old and -1.1% for churches over 40 years (ACC).
   3. New churches have 4 times the conversion rate per attendee than established churches (ACC).

Why Support Church Planting?

1. The average start-up cost of a new church is $172,000.(Leadership Network)
2. The average church plant takes 32 months to become financially independent.
3. All church planting in the BGC is church-led and church-supported. Meaning the only way new churches get started is if existing churches support them.
4. Established churches that are involved in church planting typically experience spiritual revitalization as a result.
5. A study of 160 SBC sponsor churches from 1992 – 2002:
   1. overall 49% increase in worship attendance
   2. overall 28% increase in baptisms

Some other stats I included in talking about my specific context:

1. Based on location (urban, suburban, large town, small town, rural), small towns have experienced the biggest decline in church attendance -1.3% (ACC).
2. 78% of unchurched people think that Christianity is more about organized religion than it is about loving God and people (Lifeway).

I can’t sleep tonight. I am deeply burdened. One of the reasons I decided to plant in Thief River Falls, MN was because of the huge potential to start a movement in NW Minnesota – in communities like Detriot Lakes, Moorhead, Crookston, and East Grand Forks.

East Grand Forks has been on my mind a lot lately. It is only 50 miles from TRF on the MN/ND border across from the larger Grand Forks. Today we did some shopping in Grand Forks so I decided to take some time driving around East Grand Forks. Wow! Does this place need a vibrant new work of God!

East Grand Forks (EGF)is a small town of 8,000 people (roughly the same size as TRF), but it plays much larger, being right across the river from Grand Forks, a large town of 50,000+ and home to the 10,000 student University of North Dakota. EGF has a very nice new riverwalk with a thriving business community. There is a new 12 screen movie theater for which many Dakotans cross the river, along with a Cabelas and several large nice restaurants and bars (Applebee’s, Blue Moose, Whitey’s). On a weekend night, the area is teeming with people – many of them college students. On a Saturday night it easily feels like a town 3 times it’s size.

And what is there to offer all these people spiritually? Just 9 churches (plus a Kingdom Hall)! And only one of them is “evangelical” and it is very small from what I can tell. I’m sure your better at math than I am, but that’s just a little better than one church per 1,000 people! Ninety-one percent of residents claiming a religion identify themselves as either Lutheran or Catholic. There is a fairly large Hispanic population (about 8% of the pop.) and a larger than average population below the poverty line (12.4% in 2007; probably higher now).

My heart aches. What a ripe mission field!

I am praying to the Lord of the harvest.

Matthew 9:35-38

³⁵ Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. ³⁶ When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. ³⁷ He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. ³⁸ So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”

Links:

http://www.city-data.com/city/East-Grand-Forks-Minnesota.html

http://www.city-data.com/city/Grand-Forks-North-Dakota.html

http://www.grandforksgov.com/

http://www.ci.east-grand-forks.mn.us/

http://www.visitgrandforks.com/main.php/index.php

http://www.und.nodak.edu/