Spiritual Dynamics: Jesus said, "I will
build my church..." (Matthew 16:18). We believe our mission
is spiritual, and therefore our strategies must be first and foremost
spiritual. We believe we can best fulfill that mission by seeking
the leadership of the Lord through prayer and carrying out His
direction through His spiritual gifts.
Coaching: We are providing every church planter
with an experienced coach who is a part of a greater coaching
team. The coach provides spiritual guidance, emotional support,
ongoing encouragement and expertise in ministry skills. Our goal
is to see each church planter become a great coach.
Assessment: In cooperation with TeAmerica,
we are providing an intense assessment to help church planting
couples or individuals clarify their call into church planting,
and to avoid misplacing pastoral personnel.
Recruitment: Jesus said, "The harvest
is plentiful, but the worker are few" (Matthew 9:37). We
are developing a network of "spotters" for the movement
-- individuals who know what a church planter looks like and will
encourage them toward church planting.
Parenting: For a church planting movement
to accelerate and make a significant statewide impact, we believe
it must be developing a network of both established and new churches,
that will take an initiative to multiply themselves. Iowa Baptist
Conference is seeking to develop PCNÕs (Parent Church Networks)
throughout our district. They will provide experienced pastors
who have daughter churches to help educate and assist groups of
4-6 pastors in leading their own congregations to reproduce.
Funding: We are developing funding strategies
which will encourage churches (and individuals) to provide church
planting work funds and assist church planters in raising an appropriate
level of personal support.
Training: We believe training is essential
for a healthy movement of churches. We are providing ongoing training
for church planters in the areas of theological formation, leadership
development, and pastoral skills.