Vineyard Church North Phoenix | I Want to Plant a Church... ...What Do I Do?

1st of all, that urge, or vision, or difficult-to-describe feeling of excitement that you may be experiencing is part of something really big. Church planting is the primary method the Holy Spirit uses to build the Church, and it is the most effective way to make disciples of Jesus. God loves church planting! Ultimately, it’s God who plants churches. With God, it’s always about people – reaching the lost, the last, and the least, with the love of Christ. And most often, God prepares a person – perhaps that’s you – who is willing to strike out into uncharted territory and plant a church to reach those people. That’s where a church plant is born – in the heart of a person that God is preparing and speaking to about his church.

2nd, pray – a lot! If you’re married, make sure your spouse is in on this thing early on in the game. Pray together, talk and dream together, write out your thoughts, and dreams, and vision. Don’t underestimate the importance of dreaming, envisioning, and praying, especially at the beginning while this vision is being formed and birthed in your heart. I believe that what God shows you by His Spirit in this time will be crucial to you as you actually begin to put action to your vision. There will be times when you doubt, times when you can’t wait to get out there and start planting, times when you feel like this vision will explode in you and times when you wonder if you’re just plain crazy. But if you have spent the time in prayer and envisioning up front, and you know what God has shown you in your heart, you will always have that to go back to as a map – or point of origin; and it will prevent you from being de-railed in the roller coaster ride which is sure to come.

3rd, begin to ask the nuts and bolts questions: Where do I want to plant? When do I want to plant? How, practically speaking, do I actually go about starting a church plant? Who do I want to reach in my church plant, and who do I want to go with me as a church planting team? At this point, it is absolutely essential that you talk with your pastor about your dream – your vision – to plant a church. Trust God in this! Your pastor may be willing to recommend you as a church planter right away, or he may have some stuff he wants you to consider and work on first. By the way, if you’re not sure where you want to plant, or it doesn’t matter where, ask your pastor, or talk to your friendly area CPC – Church Planting Coordinator. There’s a whole list of cities and places where we’d love to see some Vineyard churches planted.

If your Pastor is willing to recommend you as a potential church planter there is a process in place that will help guide you through the steps of planting a church. These steps include:

• Filling out some forms – ask your Pastor to fill out a

• “Recommendation Form,” and you – and your spouse if you’re married – will need to fill out an “Application Form” (the forms that you will need can be found on the church planting part of the Vineyard website)

• You will need to fill out a pre-assessment questionnaire and then meet with an assessment team to help you sharpen your understanding of what God is calling you to, measure your strengths and weaknesses and continue to shape your strategy for planting

• There will most likely be some ongoing training as you prepare to plant

• Spend some time envisioning and writing out a two-year plan – knowing in your heart and writing down on paper what you envision for your church plant is crucial

• You will need to get an official release form signed

• Work with your pastor and CPC to have a coach who will help you with ongoing support as you plant your church

Lastly, let me encourage you that as you go through the outward process and steps towards planting a church, allow God at the same time to take you through the inward steps that only He can do in you as He clarifies and affirms your calling, whispers to you His dreams and heart for what you’re undertaking, and breaks your heart for those who are lost – the very ones you will be spending your life on and for.