Archive for the 'Leadership' Category
Planting New Gospel Churches
Did you know that only 4% of 46,000 Southern Baptist Churches are directly involved and connected to planting new gospel churches? If this is true in a missional convention of churches like the Southern Baptist Convention, I wonder what it is like among all evangelical denominations or networks of churches? Yes, when a Southern Baptist Church contributes through the Cooperative Program of the convention, these contributing churches are indirectly involved in church planting. I am calling for churches to not only do this, but directly be connected to planting new gospel churches. Why?
Gospel Churches Plant Gospel Churches
Since January, we have been preaching through the book of Acts. Again and again, we see the biblical precedence of planting churches. When the apostles went into towns, cities, and regions where the gospel had never been before, they won people to Christ and planted a gospel church immediately.
Gospel advancement and gospel community were both a significant part of the churches discussed in the book of Acts. It appears, at times, that it is difficult to separate the advancement of the gospel and the planting of a new gospel community or church. For us to be a church that lives out Scripture, we need to be a church that is involved in both gospel advancement and planting new gospel churches.
Planting New Gospel Churches will Help Revitalize Your Church
I understand fully the importance of our already existing churches being revitalized, meaning, given new life and vitality. What I have discovered in pastoring churches for thirty-six years and my present church for twenty-six of those years, a church has to be in a never-ending revitalization experience. Our 143 year-old Cross Church has been in a constant state of revitalization for the last twenty-six years, and I would imagine, many years before.
In church life, you cannot wait until you have it all together to become involved in planting new gospel churches. That may never happen! Yet, one of the greatest ways to lead revitalization in your church is to get people involved beyond themselves in a biblical endeavor like planting a new gospel church.
ALL Churches can Plant New Gospel Churches
Church planters and their churches receive monies from all sizes of churches. It doesn’t matter if it is $500 a year, $1,000 a year, or $100,000 a year. Church planters count all contributing churches as serious partners in planting their churches. From the smallest to the largest churches, we can all find our place in planting new gospel churches.
What Happened Historically?
I have wondered what happened historically. When I was growing up in the local church and even in my initial days of pastoring, there was little to absolutely no emphasis given to planting new gospel churches. This is why we are behind the curve of penetrating lostness, both nationally and globally. New gospel churches can help penetrate lostness.
The only new gospel churches that I remember ever being talked about were:
- Mission churches, with my Texas roots, usually meaning Spanish-speaking churches.
- Church splits that resulted in a new church, usually down the street or nearby in the same town.
This historical lack of commitment to planting new gospel churches has to be changed now, and each of us can be a part of this solution. Your church, regardless of size, can become involved in planting a new gospel church somewhere in America or the world.
Through partnerships with other gospel churches, the North American Mission Board, or the International Mission Board, your church can become involved at any level. Our local churches are to be the ones to plant new gospel churches. Church leaders and Pastors, lead your church to be involved in planting new gospel churches nationally and internationally.
Our Commitment at Cross Church
Since 2002, our Cross Church Family has planted 111 new gospel churches locally, nationally, and internationally. Right now, we are in an ongoing partnership with 34 new gospel churches located across the entire world. This is possible because our people came on board with a mighty vision to plant new gospel churches. Partnerships with other gospel churches and mission boards permit us to be involved in church planting.
Yesterday, the Sunday before, and Next Sunday…
Yesterday morning at Cross Church, we commissioned Drew Griffin and his wife, Emily, to Manhattan to plant a new gospel church. Once they familiarize themselves with Manhattan over the next several months, they will launch Cross Church New York City in 2014.
On Sunday, August 4, we recognized many of our church planters and their spouses. We had seventeen of our church planters and their spouses join us for a week with our staff team and church; mentoring, equipping, and blessing them.
Next Sunday, August 18, we will introduce our first class for our new Cross Church School of Ministry to our Cross Church Family. A few of the members of our first class are going to be planting churches globally. During their one-year residence with us, they will be in our school’s church planting track. We are getting them ready to launch and plant gospel churches globally.
Your Church can Find a Way
Your church can find a way to participate in planting new gospel churches. I promise you, it will help contribute to your church being revitalized! New life sparks life! Just imagine sharing a strong testimony about how your church can be involved through your church newsletter, a testimony at church, or an offering time. You can give ongoing reports of what God is doing. You can even take some people from your church to this new gospel church to help them over a week or even a weekend.
Let’s help penetrate the lostness of our world through planting new gospel churches. Your church can do it!
Yours for the Great Commission,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.
Leading Millennials in the Family, Workplace, and Church
Today, RonnieFloyd.com welcomes guest writer, Dr. Nick Floyd. Dr. Floyd is a Teaching Pastor at Cross Church.
They’re influencing every facet of society. They’re making their mark on communities like never before. They’re dead set on changing the world. Who are these people? The Millennials. This group of young adults, born between 1980-2000, is the next generation looking to make a major impact on culture, the economy, and the moral make up of America. An increasing amount of information is being written and spoken about regarding this generation and the impact they are having and will have on the world. Thom and Jess Rainer recently put out a fascinating podcast on the Millennial generation, providing helpful information on this intriguing group.
But who are these iPhone obsessed people? And how in the world do parents, employers, coaches and pastors of millennials learn to lead them effectively? Millennials would cry that they are often misunderstood (as this New York Times piece shows). In order for us to effectively lead millennials, we must effectively understand them. I have a few confessions to make. I am a millennial (class of ’83). I lead a staff made up of several millennials who serve a church packed full of millennials.
Here are two things I have learned, as well as a few things I’m still learning as I seek to lead the millennials that God has put under my care.
They want to be heard. That doesn’t necessarily mean what they say has to be done, but they want to have an avenue of discussion. That may be with a boss or with a pastor. That can even be with a parent. I recently heard a dad explain this in dealing with his millennial child. When I grew up, when my parents said, “Because I said so,” I simply responded with obedience with no questions asked. This dad explained how his child does obey out of respect for him, but she really wants to know why. Now there is certainly a balance here, but this simple story does illustrate this powerful principle of being heard.
As a millennial, one of my biggest struggles is when I feel like there’s not an opportunity to express my opinion in the midst of the discussion. I believe many millennials are like me. It doesn’t mean we always have to be told yes, but it does mean we want to have a voice in the discussion. Are you giving the millennials under your care an opportunity to be heard?
They want to change the world. In former generations, you would likely only learn of those making a big impact through television, newspaper, or maybe even a magazine. With the new landscape of the Internet, Twitter, Facebook, and other technological advances – everybody knows who is doing something significant across the world – and they know it immediately. As a result, I believe there’s a growing dissatisfaction among millennials with the status quo. Now this is a slippery slope, and honestly a dangerous one. There’s something to be said about simple faithfulness wherever God places a person. Here’s where I think this provides both a challenge and an opportunity to employers.
The millennials that you lead know a lot about other places of the world, other businesses, and other churches. This means if they don’t feel like they are making a significant impact at your place, they know about a place where they can. In these cases, loyalty goes out the window in favor of making a big impact somewhere else. I’m not saying this is right, but I am saying this is reality in many cases. The challenge this brings is that it downplays loyalty and heightens the sense of the individual. The opportunity this brings is that as long as we continue to show millennials their value and the significant role they play, there’s a great chance they’ll stay. Are you showing the millennials under your care the opportunities they have to make a significant impact within your church, business, or family?
Finally, let me give a word to other millennials. May the words that mark us not be pride, disloyalty, and dissatisfaction. Instead, may the marks of godliness of humility, honor, and trust in where God has placed us reign in our lives. Let’s be humble and recognize we don’t know everything in the world there is to know. Let’s learn with humility. Let’s honor those who have given us opportunities, invested in us, and shown great confidence in us. Let’s trust the Lord. Let’s believe He has placed us where we’re at for a purpose. As Rick Warren says, “The grass is not always greener on the other side. The grass is greener where you water it.”
May faithfulness lead to greener grass.
Dr. Nick Floyd
Teaching Pastor, Cross Church
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.