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Church Planter Training
Resources for starting new ministries & churches
Do you have an entrepreneurial spirit when it comes to reaching people with the Gospel?​
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When you notice a ministry gap in your church or community (something that’s missing or not working) are you energized by the idea of building something new from scratch?
Alexa Young, CA
Welcome!
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The fact that you're reading this means you have seen and experienced that "the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few" (Luke 10:2). You have prayed for those who are disconnected from Jesus and He is sending you to be the answer to that prayer.
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The Harvest Partnership (north Houston, central Texas, and beyond) is currently praying over mission areas faster than we can find church planters. We need creative and mission-focused people who will boldly pray with us that the Lord of the harvest will send MORE laborers into His harvest (Luke 10:2)... and may you be among those sent!
1.What to expect
Adults best learn when they combine formal education (think: books, speeches, "content") with experiences.
We need information; but we also need to play with that information for it to stick and -- furthermore -- to be transferrable to our context, which is what we truly hope happens through this experience.
You have a date set to visit with us. Great! Before you show up, we've got some info we want you to learn so you're ready to go when you get here.
Read
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Planting Missional Churches - Ed Stetzer
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No Silver Bullets - Daniel Im
Prep for Strengths & Spiritual Gifts Assessment
2. Pre-work
3. Visit schedule
​The precise schedule for your visit will be included in an email from Mark or Laura. Here is a sample schedule of what three days with us might look like:
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FRIDAY - VISION
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Dinner
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Learn about the vision of Harvest Partnership
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Harvest Partnership social gathering
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SATURDAY - VISION IN ACTION
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Breakfast
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Share reflections on Planting Missional Churches
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Optional: Prayer walk
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Lunch
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See the vision in action
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Process visit w/Seth, Steve, or Al
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Share reflections on No Silver Bullets
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Dinner
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Story Share with Lazarus
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​SUNDAY - APPLICATION
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Morning
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Visit Lazarus or The Dwelling
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Complete first time visitor audit (No Silver Bullets)
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Lunch
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Strengths & Spiritual Gifts assessment (calling cards + application)
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Process full visit
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4. Visit resources
First-time visitor audit
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Please print ahead of your visit if you like to take notes
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Click here to download (see pp. 4-5)
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Discussion questions for assigned books
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What was the most surprising or impactful idea you encountered in this book? How did it change your perspective?
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Were there any examples, data, or case studies that stood out to you?
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Were there any sections of the book you disagreed with or found challenging? Why?
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How can you foresee applying the lessons or insights from this book to your next step in church planting?​
Recommended Resources
Mission
New Churches Q&A Podcast (starting at episode 1)
The Gospel Comes with a House Key - Rosaria Butterfield
Viral Churches - Ed Stetzer
Communication
Atomic Habits - James Clear
Building a Storybrand - Donald Miller
Discipleship in the Home
The Spiritually Vibrant Home - Don Everts
Family Worship - Donald Whitney
Our story
My name is Alexa Young
In 2016, after 6 years in parish ministry (Laura as a DCE & Mark as a vicar and then pastor), we had a convicting realization:
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We didn't know very many people who were disconnected from Jesus.
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We barely knew the names of our own neighbors.
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We didn't know how to teach others to share the Gospel with their friends & neighbors because it had been so long since we'd done it ourselves.
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We had no margin in our life for changing any of these things because we were so busy with "church stuff."
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In short, we didn't know how to make disciples of the nations because had become so good at shepherding the saved. And God was giving us a holy discontent surrounding this truth. There was only one problem... we had no idea how to make a change.
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If you find yourself in a similar spot, welcome. You're in the right place.​
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Mark & Laura Pulliam
Harvest Partnership
