In the previous article, we laid out 5 great questions you can ask if someone comes to you seeking your wisdom and direction and ask you, “I think I’m called to plant a church. Where do I go from here?”

We suggested that instead of jumping straight in with next steps, you start by asking questions that will:

1. help you to gain clarity about potential next steps
2. help them to understand what the church planting journey may entail
3. determine whether they should really plant a church.

You can read the first 5 questions in the previous article.

The NEXT 5 questions shift gear somewhat away from what they intend to do to who they are and who will follow them:

1. DO THEY HAVE HEALTHY CHARACTER?

Competence and charisma are fairly easy to see, but not so character. Yet ultimately character is something that can’t be compromised. It’s been said that when two people form a relationship, it’s personality or charisma that is the magnet that attracts but it’s the fruit of character that each must live with.

A past mentor of mine told me that whilst competence could be grown in a ministry role, character rarely would be. Healthy character makes a person trustworthy, whilst poor character will usually see other people hurt.

Patrick Lencioni in his book The Ideal Team Player says that good team players are humble, hungry and smart. He says that being humble means that a person will put the team’s agenda before their own. That’s what character does.

2. DO THEY POSSES THE ATTRIBUTES OF A CHURCH PLANTER?

Undertaking a robust assessment process is critical to ascertain whether a person has the attributes required to successfully plant a church. There are a number of great assessment tools available, with most having been developed from research performed by Charles Ridley and Bob Logan.

No matter the size or style of church plant, I would highly recommend that the prospective church planter undertakes a quality assessment. The assessment findings will then also provide invaluable insights to assist in ongoing coaching.

You can read more about church planter assessments here

3. WHAT DO THEY SEE THAT THEIR ROLE WOULD BE (IE LEAD PLANTER, MINISTRY LEADER OR TEAM MEMBER)?

The call to plant a church doesn’t necessarily mean that the person sensing the call should be the lead planter. Instead they may be called to be part of a church plant team with someone else leading the team.

Some time ago my wife Sharon and I assessed a young couple who felt called to plant a church. They were a great young couple but as we did the assessment we discovered that didn’t possess the attributes required to successfully plant a church. So was the call they felt wrong? I don’t think so. They went on to become core members of a church plant team that we introduced them to and made a great contribution there as team members rather than lead planters.

4. DO THEY HAVE PEOPLE WHO WILL BECOME PART OF A TEAM TO PLANT A CHURCH?

A lead church planter needs people who will follow them. They need to be able to cast a compelling vision that people will buy into and they need to be given the trust of people who will follow them.

If a person wants to lead, but doesn’t have a track record of being given this privilege by others willing to follow, the question needs to be asked as to whether they will be able to lead. Potentially they could be given low risk leadership opportunities to develop and demonstrate their leadership capabilities before they are given the privilege of leading a church plant.

Being able to recruit and lead others is a core skill church planters must have.

5. IS THEIR FAITH STRONG?

Whilst there are many practical skills involved in planting and then leading a church, ultimately doing so is a spiritual endeavour that requires robust faith in the leaders.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that:

“…our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12 NIV)

Some of the ways to ascertain whether a person’s faith is strong include personal observation of their attitudes, actions and lifestyle, honest discussions from mature referees and discerning whether spiritual habits like prayer and regularly engaging with scripture.

Ultimately discerning whether a person’s faith is strong is just that; discernment. It’s something worth praying about!

I hope that these 10 questions will help you to respond wisely and well the next time someone asks you “I think I’m called to plant a church. Where do I go from here?”

And I hope that this is a question that you will be asked many times!

Tim O’Neill, Executive Director

Exponential Australia