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AEC2001 Plenary Session 3:The Ten Most Important Things
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 | Do you form a team out of those who volunteer or those who are invited? Some church plants have welcomed anyone living in the area to get involved; others have handpicked the planting team. My recommendation is that invitation is the primary factor in order to form a balanced team, but that some room is left for considering volunteers so that we do not become too prescriptive. However, some unsuitable volunteers may need to be dissuaded from becoming involved. Church plants are vulnerable to those with personal agendas. |
| There is value in forming a diverse team with a healthy mixture of ages, gender, cultural background, spiritual gifts, and human interests. If the planting church and the area into which a new church is being planted are fairly monochrome, such diversity may be limited. But it is harder for a team with only limited diversity to engage with a wider range of persons in the community. |
| It is tempting to pack the team with evangelists, but this temptation should be resisted. The planting church will not thrive if it loses most of its evangelists, and the new church will be unbalanced if it has too many. The planting team does need those who can relate well to the unchurched community, but it also needs those who know how churches operate. It is particularly helpful to have some on the team who are creative thinkers. |
| If the new church is aiming to reach a geographical area, the planting team should aim to live within this area. Commuting pioneers do not plant churches effectively or incarnate the gospel appropriately. |
| All team members, despite their valuable diversity of backgrounds, perspectives, gifts, and experiences, must be committed to a shared vision and shared values. Disagreements over theological, ecclesiological, or other important issues will seriously handicap the development of a healthy new church. |
| Church planting is exciting for the first few months but becomes increasingly hard work, whether the new church grows or not. In order to have a stable basis, it may be sensible to ask team members to commit themselves to the church plant for a minimum period (one year, two years, or more). This commitment, of course, is voluntary, but it may help the team survive the initial struggles and keep going when the temptation to give up is strong. |
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