5 Reasons to Partner With a New Church Plant

I’ve heard from plenty of people that church planting is tough. When Angie and I expressed a calling toward it, we were warned by quite a few ministry leaders to the effect of “Don’t do this unless God has definitely called you because it’s hard.” Church planters face isolation, criticism, and the constant pressure to become self-sustaining. But for me, none of these represent the toughest aspect of church planting. The toughest aspect so far has been fundraising!

One of my own pastors has well said that “He who casts the vision must fund the vision.” So I’ve spent plenty of time connecting with leaders who might be interested in becoming a strategic partner in Grace Hills Church. And I’ve noticed a variety of reactions. Some are eager to help, but aren’t sure how or where to begin. A few are honest and forthright that the funding simply isn’t available. And plenty of leaders choose, for whatever reason, not to respond to the initial contact at all.

I think for us, being one of the first Saddleback Network churches has helped to provide some legitimacy to our work. It has also given the impression that if Saddleback is involved, they must have plenty of resources (while reality is that Saddleback is only investing a portion of our initial startup funding). The economy has caused many leaders to have to be more conservative in spending, church structures often prevent leaders from making commitments, and some simply haven’t understood the dire need for more churches to be planted. I’ve had numerous conversations with other church planters via our Facebook learning lab and other places, and the fundraising struggle seems universal.

So I’m making an appeal to church leaders everywhere to consider some things with me. I wanted to throw out some reasons to get involved with a church plant as soon as possible… To read more, click here.