On the Road Again

Well, I find myself in the Dallas-Fort Worth area of our country today.  There are three reasons for me to be here, maybe four.  First, I am in hopes of casting a compelling vision of what God's doing in our midst to a potential partner in our church multiplication efforts in the Mid-Atlantic.  Second, I expect to learn some things that will assist our churches in a fast-growing methodology for church growth and expanision.  Third, I'm attempting to network with one of our own key pastors to find out how we can assist him and his church in accomplishing the vision God has lain upon his heart.  And fourth, can anybody at Southwestern say "recruiting?"

First things first: I believe that in our global, experiential world there is a huge need for us to figure out how to partner together for Kingdom advance.  Church multiplication is on the cutting edge of this kind of ministry and there are those in the D/FW region that have a big vision given by an even bigger God for what can happen in and through their obedience.  What if BCM/D was able to join forces with churches and ministries like this?  I'm convinced the synergy would be dramatic and the results, exponential!  Pray that God will open the doors of possibility for relationships like this to develop and alliances to be formed that will extend the Kingdom in BIG WAYS we can't even yet imagine.

Second, multi-site churches are not the wave of the future...there's already here!  Their growth has been dramatic over the last ten years in the United States and all projections suggest it will continue.  While the methodology of Kingdom expanision is not as "pure" in my opinion as that of church planting, it does afford advantages over the old church growth models of the last half-century.  For one thing, new people are being reached in an incarnational fashion as the work is extending toward them.  Since every congregation has its own personality, and part of that is shaped by leadership and location, each site has the ability to reach different people that might never be reached by the home church congregation at all.  After all, it's about making disciples, according to Jesus, not making churches!!!

Third, nothing could be finer for me as a denominational servant than to find ways to support one of our pastors in the vision and work that God has given me for his church.  After all, that's why we at BCM/D exist:  to assist them in starting and strengthening our churches so that together we can fulfill our Lord's Commissions in Matthew 28.19-20 and Acts 1.8!  So, I'm in hopes that on this trip I'm able to figure out how we can best assist this significant local church in extending the Kingdom through the ministry of this local church.

Recruiting may or may not take place on this trip...a lot depends on how the rest of these objectives develop.  SWBTS has always been a great ally and supporter of our efforts at church multiplication in the Maryland/Delaware area.  If not this time, then soon I'm sure I'll be back.

More to come soon...