Church Planting Lesson #5 – Church Planting Takes Patience

This is part 5 of my top 5 church planting lessons. This one is all too real to me. I have had to learn this lesson the hard way. Our vision for Relevant Church came to us over 5 years ago and we are now on the starting line of our launch.

The greatest thing that I have learned is that God will do things in His time, not mine. This does not only apply to church planting, but to everything in our lives. I had to release my time table to Him and allow God to work the process. This was not an easy thing to do since I like to be the one driving, but what I have come to learn is that when He is driving, I always get to where I need to be.

Are you waiting for something? Does it feel like God is taking His sweet old time? Just know that God is never late and never early, He is always right on time.

Filed under: Church Planting, Leadership, My Journal , Church Planting, Patience, relevant church

Church Planting Lesson #4 – Church Planting Involves Risk Taking

Over the last year and a half that we have been in the process of planting Relevant Church, I have understood that it takes stepping out and taking risks. By nature I am not a risk taker. I like to calculate the costs and make sure everything is in place. But sometimes God calls us to step out and take a risk for Him. Understand that the risk is not something that will harm us, but stretch us in our faith.

I have seen this in our dealing with the financial piece of planting this church. We have had to take risks and purchase items that were necessary only to see God provide something on the other side. A risk may also be bringing in a leader that may not be real proven, but someone you feel God has called to do the work.

All risk taking should be giant leaps of faith. Don’t step out in your own thinking and take a risk, step out in the calling of God and take a step of faith. It may stretch you, but that is what God is in the business of doing with us.

Filed under: Church Planting, Leadership , Church Planting, relevant church, risk taking

Church Planting Lessons #3

Here is the third part of a top 5 list of lessons I have learned planting a church. For those that need a review…

#1. Church planting takes a calling.

#2 Church planting takes time.

#3  – Church planting takes God.

Now I know that most of you might think “well, isn’t that obvious?” But the reality of it is, God must be at every turn you make. I have seen this at work in the last few months especially. God has to be in the big things as well as the small things. I have often seen myself focusing on the tasks that need to be done and pulling God in on the big stuff. The one lesson that I take away from this is that God cares so much about the vision He has given me, that He wants to be involved in the smallest details of the work. To be truthful, it is His plan and we are the workers He has chosen to complete it. So the plans and details all come from Him anyway.

Don’t lose sight of the “plan maker”.

Filed under: Church Planting, Leadership, My Journal , Church Planting, God, Relevant Chruch

Top 5 Things I Have Learned As A Church Planter Part 2

Yesterday, I started my post on the top 5 things that I have learned planting Relevant Church.

Let’s review..

#1. – Church planting takes a calling.

And now #2 – Church planting takes time!

Now I know, everything takes time. But what I have learned is that planting a church takes an extraordinary amount of time. As a lead pastor your time is spent casting vision (the fun part), designing budgets, raising funds, recruiting a team, and the list continues. What I have learned is that if I don’t prioritize my time, then the things that suffer are usually my family and walk with God. Too many times have I found myself replacing the “being” with the “doing”. As a church planter it is vital that my walk with God stays the priority. The reality is, there is stuff that needs to get done. Learn to prioritize and delegate. The key to longevity.

Filed under: Church Planting, Leadership, My Journal , Church Planting, God, relevant church

Top 5 Things I Have Learned As A Church Planter

Over the next several days I am going to post my top 5 things that I have learned as I have been on the journey of planting Relevant Church. Now let me say that this is not in any particular order, nor is it an all encompassing list. There has been a ton of things that I have learned along the way, and there is a ton that I still need to learn. So, for the first installment…

#1. – Church planting takes a calling.

Not everyone is called to be a church planter. 6 years ago I would have said that I was not one of them. Hearing the call from God, we pursued the calling. Along the way there have been detours, bumps, and distractions that have caused us to go back to the calling that God gave to us. Knowing that we were called and given an assignment, gave us the foundation and the faith to keep moving forward. I really believe that if you are called to plant a church, God will give you the strength to go through anything. Know this, church planting is not for the faint of heart. It is hard, grueling, stressful, but very exciting and rewarding.

Stay tuned for the rest of the list.

Filed under: Church Planting, Leadership, My Journal , Church Planting, relevant church

Get Connected Pt. 2

In my last post I told you about our financial campaign we were beginning. We are calling this campaign the “Get Connected” campaign. The thought was to allow anyone to be a part of what is happening with Relevant Church.

This post is to give a quick update on the progress. We started this just this past Monday 5-12-09 and already we have 9 people committed for $100 each. God is awesome and He continues to blow me away with His provisions.

With that being said, we still need your help. You can be part of advancing the Kingdom of God from wherever you are. We have a start-up equipment budget of $40,000 that we need to meet. Our need is not just dollars, it is also equipment. If you have the ability to donate any equipment on our list, that would go to help us reach our goal.

Some of the major items we are in need of are:

1. A sound system
2. Enclosed 20′-24′ trailer
3. Computer and video projector
4. Printing (we are in need of getting biz card, brochures, fliers, banners, and signs)

Would you consider becoming a partner? Help Relevant Church connect people to Jesus.

Filed under: Church Planting , budget, church, Church Planting, donations, finances, God, Jesus, partners, relevant church, Relevant Church Charlotte

Relevant Update

Happy December to all of you. Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is around the corner. It is hard to believe that the year is about up.

I wanted to give you all an update of what we are working on for the month of December so you can pray.

We have put together a list of families that we are going to invite to a home meeting this month to share our vision and heart for the church. We are going to take some time to fellowship and have some fun as well.

We would like you all to begin to pray that God will start working on the hearts of those families and others that we may not know yet. We are going to ask for a committal as to what their involvement might be.

Our other major request this month is to nail down a meeting place. We have put a decision date as January 1st on where we are going to meet. We have looked at several schools and we are determining which one is the right place. Please pray for God’s discernment.

Thanks for all of your prayers.

Pastor Kalum
Relevant Church

Filed under: Church Planting , church, Church Planting, God, prayer, relevant church

Church Plant Resource

Just found a great new resource that I wanted to share with the blogging world. If you are familiar with Portable Church Industries (PCI) or Church on Wheels (COW) then you will like this one.

PCI has formed a sister company specializing in a single box solution. If you know what you want for your new church and you do not need a consultation or training, then Church in a Box is the right solution. I just got off of the phone with Adam and he was awesome. They are able to give you the things that you need at a great price.

Check them out.

Filed under: Church Planting , church, church on wheels, church plant resources, Church Planting, mobile church, portable church, relevant church

Leadership Axioms

I just ran across this website and found some great videos from Wayne Corderio. He is talking to a bunch of church planters.

Check it out here.

Filed under: Church Planting , axioms, church, Church Planting, Leadership, planting, wayne corderio

Vision

Vision is a great thing. The Bible talks about it and how important it is to our lives. Right now I am in the process of taking the things that are in my heart and in my head and trying to creatively put them on paper. I am a terrible writer, but I have a great imagination. Why is it so hard to put thoughts to paper?

Filed under: Church Planting, My Journal , Bible, Church Plant, Church Planting, creative writing, God, Relevant Church Charlotte, Vision, vision casting