If we are going to reach the Dakotas, and beyond, with the Good News about Jesus Christ, we must all play our part!  There are two things to keep in mind about every local church:

  • One size does not fit all, and,
  • One church cannot win them all

It will take all of us cooperating with each other to bring the wonderful Good News about Jesus’ love and mercy to the people of the Dakotas.  As an individual, you can be a part of sharing this wonderful news with others.  And as part of a Dakota Baptist Convention church, you can make an even larger contribution toward reaching across the Dakotas with the love of Jesus.  This quote from Peter Wagner, a church missiologist, is true:

Planting new churches is THE most effective evangelist methodology known under heaven.

So how can you and your church be involved in church planting? Below are 14 different ways you can be a dynamic part of spreading the Good News. 

14 different ways you can be a dynamic part of spreading the Good News:

1. Engage in Strategic Intercessory Prayer.
Praying for the pockets of lostness in their community – praying for church planting leaders – for spiritual breakthrough. This is the simplest, and most practical way for any church to be involved in church planting.

2. Adopting a Church Planter and his family.
Be a source of encouragement to them: be a friend, send them to conferences or retreats, send them notes of appreciation, give them a gift card to eat out, and many more ways to let them know you care.

3. Contribute to the New Church’s Financial Needs.
Put them in your church’s budget for one to three years. It does not have to be a large amount – any amount shows them you believe in what they are doing and that you want to help. You may be in a position to help them find funding streams to get them started. Give them a one-time financial gift for home or vehicle repairs, vacations, etc.

4. Provide Materials and Equipment.
Your church may be able to help them procure teaching / evangelism / VBS materials. You may be able to help them with gifts of sound equipment / computers / TV’s / nursery items, etc.

5. Share YOUR Church Facilities.
If a church plant is in your community, you may be in a position to help them by providing office space / space for mission teams / fellowships / even worship services.

6. Serve on a Church Planting Mission Trip.
You may have members who want to help them by going on a weekend or weeklong youth or college or adult church planting mission trips. You would be involved in going door to door handing out information about the church plant, or helping with service projects, or back-yard Bible clubs, or Vacation Bible Schools.

7. Discover Un-reached / Under-reached People in Your Community.
Your church can help in the discovery process about the community you live in. You can conduct community survey’s to gather information about your community. You can survey your own congregation to see who your people are. Once you compare these two surveys, you just may find there are many people in your neighborhood who probably would not fit in in your church. Helping to get a new work started targeting those people may be a great ministry and encouragement to your church.

8. Starting an Outreach Bible Study to Become a New Church.
Lead your church to be a ‘launching pad’ for a new work in your area. You church may be able to launch a Bible study in an area where an evangelical church does not exist. This could be the starting point for a new church in your community.

9. Sending People and Families to Help.
Encourage your members to pray about serving with a church plant for indefinite or fixed times. Church Plants need people, so sending volunteers to help them launch is a great way to help. You could also lead your church to “adopt” a church plant in your community or area.

10. Invite a Church Planter to Share His Vision with Your Church or Your Church Leadership.
This helps church planters clarify their vision and helps your church to understand what the planter is envisioning for his work.

11. Mentoring Church Planting Leaders.
Pastors can expand their influence by mentoring other church planters in administering the church ordinances – helping develop their leadership – help them learn how to evangelize and go share with them – and help them develop their preaching skills.

12. Partner with Other DBC Churches in Your Area in Planting a New Church.
It is our DBC dream to have churches come together in cooperation to plant more churches across the Dakotas.

13. Intentionally Disciple – Develop – and Deploy a Planter and Team from Your Church to Start a New Work.
It is never too early to start talking and planning for your church to give birth to new work. The need for ‘indigenous church planters’ in the Dakotas is critical. Imagine your church leading the way in identifying and developing native Dakotans to lead a new local church plant!

14. Replanting. A Radical – But Sometimes Necessary Step!
This requires a dying church to face the music and dare to start over again for the sake of the Gospel. This requires the church to close its doors for a period of time (each community and situation is different). This closed period allows the for the community to be more open for a new work to come into the community. A new work with a new identity – new leaders with a new vision – and a new passion to reach people for Jesus.