 Spiritual: May 15, 2024 Issue [#12555] |
This week: Church Planting Edited by: Jeff  
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"Only a real risk tests the reality of a belief."
— C.S. Lewis
About The Editor: Greetings! My name is Jeff and I'm one of your regular editors for the official Spiritual Newsletter! I've been a member of Writing.com since 2003, and have edited more than 400 newsletters across the site during that time. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me via email or the handy feedback field at the bottom of this newsletter! 
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Church Planting
Earlier this year, I wrote "Spiritual Newsletter (January 24, 2024)" about a difficult time my church was going through and, as it turns out, that's led us to a season where a few of us have decided to plant a new church in the area. The last time we were involved in a young, growing church was actually the one we just stepped out of, years ago when it was in its infancy, growing from a small house church, to a collection of house churches, to a full church with a regular Sunday service.
Starting (planting) a church is a lot of hard work. There are very few usual or comfortable rhythms, sometimes even including where you're meeting and the amount of revenue you have to operate church programs. Depending on the circumstances, you're likely coming into a space (a home, a school multipurpose room, even another church during off hours) and setting things up, only to take them back down and put them away again afterward. It often requires a lot of flexibility around everything from the details of your service gatherings to where you invest the funds the church has been entrusted with. Like starting any business, in most cases it's a "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" kind of situation, unless you're extremely fortunate to already have resources ready to deploy.
But it's also an exciting time. Everything is new, and there's infinite possibility about what's just around the corner. Everything from the name, to the processes, to the people. You get to build something new, and that's really exciting. And more than a little scary because, like any business, there's also a fair likelihood that it'll fail. That the people won't come, or won't give financially, and that it'll ultimately be an unsustainable endeavor. My family definitely has fears and worries going into this new season, but also a sense of hope and encouragement because we get to be in on the ground floor of something new, and it's always exciting to see what God will do with a fresh expression of faith.
If I've learned anything over the handful of years that I've been in ministry, first as an attendee and more recently as volunteer staff, it's that there's a lot of hard work involved, but it's also really satisfying to be in community with others. And while there's something tempting about going to a big, established church where they don't have to struggle with who's going to show up to lead worship. Where the kids' ministry is always set up and ready for you to drop your kids off. And where you always know that the staff salaries and the bills are going to get paid. But for those of us who are called to be active participants in building something new, we often sacrifice those conveniences and comforts for the uncertainty of the new. Because with uncertainty comes possibility.
Whether you've been attending a faith community for years or have just started, I sincerely hope that you have the opportunity to connect with those who are called to plant a new community. Not everyone is called to join that community or go on that journey individually, but you can always support those that do financially, prayerfully, or with other means of support so that they know they don't walk alone. And if you don't know of any local church plants directly, I'd encourage you to go out and find one and connect with those who are on the front lines of growing the Kingdom.
Until next time,
Jeff
If you're interested in checking out my work:
"New & Noteworthy Things" | "Blogocentric Formulations"
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EXCERPT: A young girl relies on her faith and family to come to terms with rumors about her father and her mother's untimely death.
EXCERPT: The red Jeep jostled as it ran over the rocky, dessert trail. The sun seared down on two men in the vehicle. Both wore white sun hats and tinted, black glasses.
“I can’t wait to confirm the finding, Dr Grale!” said a man.
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