I take it as a given that a missional church sees and understands the new strange contexts of post Christendom as a mission field. Therefore, when our gathering gets too big for true relational community – we do not try to increase the size of our building or find ways to accommodate more people. We recognize that relationships are essential to the gospel and that when we increase the size of gatherings/buildings, organizational infrastructure to accommodate more and more people, we LOSE THE INHERENT ABILITY TO ORGANICALLY BE INVOLVED IN PEOPLE’S LIVES WHO ARE OUTSIDE THE GOSPEL. We recognize then that when we get over a certain size, all we end up doing is making the goods and services of being a Christian more accessible and convenient for already existing Christians. We have no other option then, when we get too big, to ask fifteen or twenty people to leave and go be missionaries to dechurched places in post Christendom. This used to be called church planting. We often now call it “seeding missional communities.”
This “seeding missional communities” however will look stunningly different than the church planting ways of the past so inherently dependent upon the cultural assumptions of Christendom. The much-derided “Franchise” approach has little application here in these contexts. We cannot depend on an already interested “market.” We cannot enter a place expecting them to “come to us” on our terms. We cannot even expect the way we talk about God, sin and Jesus to make sense apart from a way of life (and a displayed Story) from which such words take on flesh. So we like to think in terms of “sending” groups of people as “missional orders” into a community – bands of people who can take time, and sink in and learn that culture and be among the place in which God has called them to minister Christ. When we discern places for such a missionary endeavor, we ask are these places “under-churched,” “affordable for us as we seek to live missionally and beneath our means.” Can we get a calling for this place even though we have not yet “landed.” Are there signs God is calling us to this place?
5 Issues to Be Discerned in Seeding a New Community
Assuming we have discerned the place God is calling us to, the following 5 issues should be discerned as each group forms. Each one of these issues takes discernment as well as much prayer and seeking God for guidance. I take it for granted that each church planter is seeking God and listening to the gifts in community locally with people who already know them (Although JR has reminded me that I should not assume – instead we need to be intentional about that – Amen JR).
1.) DISCERN THE 3 (4 or 5) LEADERS. We (our church body) must discern the team of leaders who will be responsible for leading the theological integrity of this new community. This will be a team of leaders (as opposed to single superstar entrepreneur) who are on the same page philosophically, who will be bi-vocational, who will compliment one another in their giftings (APEPT), who have proven themselves in character and theological integrity so as to lead a community. Such a multiple bi-vocational leadership pushes the church outward instead of inward. Once assembled they will model THE 3 (4-5), THE 12, THE 120 seeking to build a strong shepherd/elder leadership who then they each shepherd 3-5 people. Together we learn the ways of “revolutionary subordination” – where God inhabits every conflict for the growth and furtherance of this community into the center of what He is doing in the community.
2.) They must then LAND (as opposed to a “Launch”). They will have to get jobs, places to live close enough together, start a small rhythm of life, a worship gathering, a communal meal, teach the children. Luke 10:17 tells us to “go eat there” – have a regular meeting with Jesus to be sent by Him (verse 1) from and return to (verse 17) to be grounded in Incarnate Christ. We enter not from power, but from humility …the goal is to become imbedded in sustainable and engaging ways of life with our surroundings.
3.) EXEGETE THE COMMUNITY (as opposed to doing a market survey) Again following Luke 10, we look for places to bless which usually means looking for the poor. We look for persons of peace (you will need relationships). We seek out the poor where God is working among the “poor in spirit” disenfranchised from the structures of power. Here we can find God at work and the harvest. Here we can learn about the Kingdom. We enter a community not to market, not from power, but meekly to discern where the hurting are.
4. TEACH MISSIONAL RHYTHMS. (As opposed to attractional events) We learn to inhabit and live among the places God has put us. We learn how to listen, pay attention, and take notice of those in our path as places where God is already working. We set places where we regularly visit same time same place every week. We seek out a time every month/week to be present among the poor (of all kinds). ALL WITHIN THE DAILY RHYTHMS OF LIFE (Luke 10.3 says “on your way,” 10.7 “remain eating and drinking”). We work not to build an evangelistic organization to individuals, but a missional way of life where God is at work. Luke 10:2 – the harvest is plenty; all we need is laborers out there.
5. PREPARE FOR A SUSTAINABLE WAY OF LIFE OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. (as opposed to projected growth and financial sustainability after three years). EXPECT GROWTH TO BE SLOW, BUT OF MIRACULOUS VARIETY. YOU MAY START WITH 10-20 PEOPLE, EXPECT NO SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS FOR THE FIRST FIVE YEARS. IT TAKES FIVE YEARS TO BUILD A MISSIOANL PRESENCE. BY THE FIFTH TO EIGHT YEAR, GROWTH WILL HAPPEN.
………………………….
I’m here in Edmonton writing this and have found friends of like mind who have wonderful materials. I recommend the Karen Wilk’s materials here in Edmonton entitled Living Dangerously. Wonderfully written by Karen, you can find out more about them at kwministry@shaw.ca. Also, check out the great materials at Roxburgh Missional Network – particularly the MBIN (moving back into the neighborhood) workbook (find out more at www.roxburghmissionalnet.com). Blessings to Howard Lawrence and Greg Brandenbarg and their work in the neighbohoods of Edmonton. They are part of Forge.ca. Thanks to Hioward, Greg and Karen – I was blessed to have met you this week!
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Really useful, practical post David. Thank you! I’d be interested to know how big is too big in your opinion – at what size do we begin to “LOSE THE INHERENT ABILITY TO ORGANICALLY BE INVOLVED IN PEOPLE’S LIVES WHO ARE OUTSIDE THE GOSPEL”?
Speaking from a UK context, for us small cells have been talked about as the most efficient size, to mid-sized groups of around 20-30, up to churches over 100. Which applies to your model?
This is really helpful, David. My question is this: At what point is a community too large to sustain the relational/missional dynamic? I know there is no magic number, but it is the question we are wrestling with in our context. Given the high level of need in our community, we are convinced that smaller is better. With up to 40 people entering into our community, we are already faced with the challenges of size, both in respect to intimacy and leadership. Any thoughts?
Peace,
Jamie
Great post, David. This provides some important compliment to the things regarding “mini-church” vs “mega-church” that I’ve read about in the books “Deliberate Simplicity” and “The Monkey and the Fish.”
This really helps me further formulate some things I’ve been thinking through regarding a community I’m evaluating right now.
David,
This is solid, pratical and very helpful model for what a missional church plant can look like.
One question: How do the theological leaders chosen help or hinder the process of exegeting the community?
For me, this is where background, experience, communication skills and cultural proficiencies all come into play. There’s the distinct possibility that 3 people could walk into a neighborhood and based on their perspectives exegete it in markedly different ways with markedly different outcomes. Or those same 3 could all interpret the same way and miss out on something Big!How do you cultivate the right balance of perspectives amongst the founding cohort, so you don’t miss opportunities God is placing in front of you?
David,
Thank you for this post and for being a clarion voice in the ongoing conversation. All of the above is good and helpful. My experience points to #5 being one that we are prone to struggle with regardless of models. In a microwave, results-oriented society, we eschew ideas like “the long haul.” Thank you for holding this up as being worth striving for and celebrating.
Thank you!
David,
I’d like to ask how you imagine doing church planting bi-vocationally in expensive urban centers. It seems that most people who have interest in helping to lead the seeding of missional communities usually do not have the skill set or training to find an economically sustainable job in an expensive urban center. Must those of us with theological/biblical training simply be ok with remaining in more affordable areas of the world so as to be bi-vocational?
best,
Michael Rudzena
I love this! We “landed” (with others) before we intentionally started aiming for these five things! These are great. All of ‘em, but especially #2, 4, 5 … and 1 and 3 … okay – all of ‘em!
Great Post. As a country we are becoming so secular that it is time many of us quite leaving for a foreign mission field when we have plenty of need in this country. I have been involved in domestic mission for many years. The missional church movement is starting to make inroads. My family recently moved from Colorado, back to Ohio. We found an older neighborhood on the east side that needs a strong presence. One thing you may want to add is pray about finding a local church to participate in. We found a great, small church. It had fewer than 20 active members. Most of the members are of retirement age. They had many needs themselves. We really felt that God was telling us, this church needed us. We found out that the Pastor had been praying for years to make a difference in the community.
I am sure there are other Pastors praying in their communities that strong christians with a heart to serve would work within their churches. It also gave us a quick connection into the neighborhood.
Cyber Pope – In referring to the “East side” without referencing the city, I think you may be talking about Cleveland. We’re on the “West side.”
LOL, Praise God. Yes the Eastside of Cleveland. Before I was relocated to Colorado 6 years ago, we lived in North Olmsted. When we decided to move back, we decided to give the East side a look. It seemed like it needed God’s message a little more. All the Christian bookstores have been shut down here, and it seemed more secular on this side of town LOL. We can turn our own neighborhoods into the mision field.
Michael,
the expensive places have their challenges. However, I don’t think getting a job is really any different here in these places? There’s usually more variety and opportunity IMO. I think the skills of a typically theologically educated leader – reading critically/writing/speaking in front of people/dealing with people – best translate into the plethora of service industries.
Again, I think this is all a matter of moving beyond the vocational training -professional training approach to getting a job that has dominated the last forty years. It takes a new imagination about what it takes to develop within a job and the long commitment needed and the worth of that…
DF
David,
I appreciate this post, as I do all of your posts. I am just wondering about the rigidity of these steps you have laid out. It seems to me that if a missional community is going to truly be organic, based on the natural rhythms of life and community, that sometimes following steps, even steps as helpful as you have laid out, will be impractical. I have never been involved in a missional community, so I am certainly not speaking from experience or with any expertise. But I am wondering if there ought to be a tension between the necessity of following rational steps (as any good planner will do) and allowing a community of Christ-followers to form organically. If we must live in this tension, in what ways must we lean into the “plan” and in what ways must we allow the community to form in its own time and way?
Kevin Bobrow – I am *not* speaking for DF or answering his question, but I can say I was encouraged by his “steps”, not because we’re not attempting to follow them step-by-step, but because we’re seeing that the Spirit basically made #1 and #2 happen and now we’re working through (over time) #3 (although our community is easy to exegete), #4, and embracing #5 and are excited to see what the Spirit of Jesus will do through us.
[...] How to start a missional community in the neighborhood [...]
you forgot the one step that most pastors are afraid of – get a real job then work from that context. Don’t just minister to the community – be in the community. Start a business with no christian aftertaste.
Scott ..isn’t that the first line of Step #2?
[...] Read the rest: [Not a "Franchise": Steps to Seeding a Missional Community in the Neighborhood] [...]
[...] matters of pragmatics. Here we’re focusing on the many issues surrounding preparing people to land teams and engage a context missionally (and of course there are theological issues here). If God so [...]
Superb article, I’ve contributed it to the section for brand new franchisees. I came across your post on Facebook, would you point me to other related info which you’ve published?
David, Great to chat with you about these ideas when you were up here in Edmonton.
My Observations have been that it is the “Capable Lay People” who lead the planting in the neighbourhoods in which they all ready live. I belive that for some, it will be our responsibility to “appoint” or affirm and support these individuals. It is much like Pauls instructions to Titus in Crete, “straighten out what was left undone and appoint elders in every polis/neighbourhood”. We have found very capable leaders in every neighbourhood that we have approached. With the lay missional church planter in mind, I belive that we will want to rethink some of our steps. Most of this will follow pretty naturally as we listen and encourage these leaders.
Howard
[...] be much more important than we realize. David Fitch talks a bit about this in a post on “seeding missional communities,” which is very similar to what I am talking about in planting new missional communities: We [...]
[...] challenges we need a new vision for church-planting. I’ve sketched in brief my ideas on this in this post? I think we need a [...]