The Church Planter’s Call to a Place
“It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance...” - Hebrews 11:8, NLT
The call to a specific place can come as part of your original calling, or later. Generally, there is a clear correlation between who you are and the place God calls you to plant a church. While a few exceptional people are called to cross-cultural ministries, most of us are called to places that match our personality or life experiences. If you are called to start a church, right now God is specifically preparing you for that place. God is also specifically preparing that place for you.
If you already know where you are called to start a new church, think about how God has prepared you for that place. What life experiences have you had that will help you relate to the community? Can you see how God has been working in you already? If you’re not yet sure where you should start your new church, these questions may help you clarify this part of your calling:
- Has God called you to leave your current home? Keep in mind that you may already be in a place to which you are called.
- Are you passionate about a particular area of the country/world? Be careful not to confuse passion with personal preference! If you know God has put a passion in you for a specific place, carefully examine the possibility that he could be calling you there.
- Have you ever told God, "The last place in the world I would want to live is _________"? That might be the exact place He is calling you to go. Remember Jonah?
If you are having a hard time pinpointing where God wants you to start your new church, take the time to do some research, talk with other church leaders, pray with your spouse, and study some examples from Scripture.
Your partner in ministry,
Nelson
P.S. If you’re planting a church and you’re ready to learn all you can about a successful church launch, click here to access my FREE resources for church planters!
The FREE resources include: The Call of a Church Planter, Funding Your Church Plant, Launching Large, Starting Small Groups, and Starting a Worship Arts Ministry from Scratch ($149.00 total value)
Stay connected with news and updates!
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.
Don't worry, your information will not be shared.
We hate SPAM. We will never sell your information, for any reason.
Nelson Searcy is the Founding and Lead Pastor of The Journey Church, with locations across New York City and in Boca Raton, FL. By God’s grace, he identified and developed the Eight Systems of a Healthy Church® that he has used to coach over 5,000 churches in the US and around the world to adapt those eight systems to their unique ministry fields, resulting in great health and growth.
Nelson regularly coaches pastors online and in-person through the Church Leader Insights and Renegade Pastors Network ministries that he founded. He also leads several annual pastor in-person conferences and online training events. In ministry for more than 25 years, Nelson and his church routinely appear on lists such as “The 50 Most Influential Churches” and “The 25 Most Innovative Leaders.”
