Update on New Roots and Woodbury

It's been a while since I've posted, but I want to keep folks up-to-date on what's going on with new church.

 New Roots: New Roots Ministries (the name of the ministry in Northern Cass Country, North Dakota) continues to go well. In an email to New Roots families and supporters Pastor Wade Miller explained what was going on at New Roots during Holy Week:

I am writing to all of you because of the exciting service we have set up for tomorrow's Family-friendly worship and After-School ministry. I believe it is a great addition to any of the Holy Week services you might already be planning on attending, and a great way to begin our Easter Celebrations. During our After-School ministry, we will focus on two vitally important stories for Christians to understand, one from the Old Testament and one from the New...Passover (God delivering the Israelites from slavery in Egypt) & Easter (God delivering Christians from slavery to sin/death). Our after-school ministry begins at 3:45 in the library and goes to 5:45. Just a reminder, we always make sure there is time for our kids to work on their homework and reading as well as time for fun & games and teaching... Then, we will clear the tables and begin a very different kind of worship. Instead of gathering in the auditorium and hearing a message, we will set the tables for a Seder-inspired family worship. The Seder (literally, "order") is a meal that started after Jesus' time to help Jewish families teach the story of the Passover. When Jesus gathered his disciples for the Lord's Supper on the night before he was arrested, tried, and crucified, they gathered to celebrate the Passover. The words might have been different. The "order" may not have been the same. But it was the Passover story that reminded us that God has always been faithful, and (even though we still stumble) delivers us from slavery to evil and sin! You will certainly have something to talk about with your friends and family! And, hopefully, we will all learn just a little more what it means to be an Easter people!

Please take some time to visit New Roots website or it's Facebook Page to keep up with their progress in sharing Christ in Northern Cass!

 Woodbury: If all goes well, a new congregation should start in the Eastern suburbs of the Twin Cities later this year. Woodbury Christian Church is in its planning stages being led by Mike Brady, a Licensed Minister and long time member of First Christian Church in Minneapolis. Mike is busy finding rental space for the new community and has a small grant from the Region to help in getting this new ministry. Visit WCC's Facebook Page to learn more about this new seed that's growing in Woodbury! There are still other possibilities that are still in the early stages. I will share more as time passes. Please keep New Roots and Woodbury in your prayers. May God bless them as they share the Good News of Jesus Christ!

Helpful Tips for Church Planters

In December of 2006, Community of Grace, the church plant I started, was approaching the end of its life.  I decided to write a blog post on what I had learned and I'd like to share this with other planters.  These tips are not the end all and be all; some people might do the opposite of what I suggested and turn out okay.  But this is what I picked up during that time, my experiences and impressions that I want to share.  

By the way, this was supposed to be a two part blog post.  I never did write part two.

  Community of Grace is facing a crossroads of sorts. Attendance has fallen off significantly, and the leadership is just plain exhausted. We have decided to enter a time of discernment and see what happens in the next few months. If nothing changes by May 2007, we will make a decision to end the current form of ministry.

As that time draws near, I’ve wondered what things could have been done differently. I’ve been thinking that if I do this again, or even continue this is some other form, there are some things I would do that I didn’t do this time around.

Gather a group of committed people willing to help plant a church with you. When I started CoG back in 2004, I asked some people who were interested in starting a church and people did show up. However, many of them were not people who committed. That’s nothing against them, it was just this was something they were curious about, but not interested in doing this in the long term. I would spend some time finding people from all walks of life who are interested in planting a church. I wouldn’t only look for church going people, but even those who are curious and willing to stick it out in the long run.

The thing is, having more people that are church planters put less pressure on the pastor and make it a more community building event. Having to carry a church on your shoulders only leaves you tired.

Pray. Yeah, I know this sounds pretty pathetic, but I failed to spend a lot of time in prayer and I didn’t encourage those who were with me, like my co-pastor, to come together in prayer. Prayer isn’t some kind of magic, but it does keep us grounded in God and without it, you start to get really frustrated, really easily. And I did.

Have no other churches before you. Another problem is that I was still involved in another church, as was the co-pastor. It gave the idea that CoG was more a hobby than a real ministry. If I did this again, I would give up membership with my old church and focus on the new church.

Make sure to secure funds for the church. The fact that we had no way to pay staff hurt us. We relied on our denomination for money, but they could only give so much. It was also hard to get others to give, because many thought that was the denomination’s job. Evangelical churches can do a whole lot better in getting financial support. If I did this again, I would basically come up with some kind a spiel that would give people a vision and a way to latch on. A church staff does this for love of God, but they have to pay bills like everyone else.

Build community, NOT a church. One of my favorite verses is Acts 2:42-47. It talks about those first believers coming together as a community. That is what church should be: about building community. Too often we were focused on building a church, a place where people come and get a little God once a week and move on. A community is a place where we learn to be followers of Christ, not just on Sunday, but everyday. We needed to be a people who prayed together, worship together, study the word together and just be together. I’m not talking about a cult, but about trying to be the body of Christ.

Another related thing was that we were trying to do certain things that would draw people. If we used a projector…if we move to this location…if we meet at this time…all of this turned church into a commodity. We should have focused more on being the church.

That’s all I have for now, but I’m sure there are others. Stay tuned…

Happy Birthday! Give to the Pentecost Offering!

Happy Birthday!

That’s basically what we are going to celebrate this Sunday, Pentecost Sunday.  It was on that day, long ago when the disciples of Jesus were gathered in a room and received the Holy Spirit.  It was on this day, that the followers of Christ ignited a worldwide movement that continues to this very day. 

We learn about what it means to be a Christian, to be a follower of Jesus through the gathering of believers called the church.  From Sunday School classes to weekly worship and communion, it is at churches in urban areas and in the country that we are formed into Christ followers.

This Sunday, churches accross the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) will be collecting the Pentecost Offering which goes towards supporting new churches, new places where people old and young will be introduced to Jesus through the lives of Christians who have heard the call to plant new communities of faith. 

This offering makes a difference in the Christian Church in the Upper Midwest as we work to foster new communities of faith in Iowa, Minnesota and the Dakotas.  Communities like Open Source Christian Christ and Iglesia Neuva Jerusalem in Rochester, MN or Korean Dordom Christian Church in St. Louis Park, MN.  There are also planned church starts in the incubation stage in Woodbury, MN and Northern Cass County, North Dakota (just north of Fargo).  We are working to spread the good news of Jesus to all people...sharing the news in Korean, English and Spanish, which is kind of like the first Pentecost- telling the story of Jesus in different tounges.

Please consider giving to the Pentecost offering.  You can give in your churches this Sunday or consider giving online.

I’m also urging folk to visit our new church ministry blog called the Pentecost Project.  You will read stories of how these new communities are reaching out to share the gospel and find ways to support them.  I also ask that if you have a passion for new church, please consider joining the New Church Ministry Team.  If you’re interested, you can either fill out the form at the Pentecost Project, or drop me an email at dennis.sanders@gmail.com.

May God bless you this Pentecost and may God’s church continue to grow!

Dennis Sanders

Team Leader, New Church Ministry Team, Christian Church in the Upper Midwest

Associate Pastor, First Christian Church-Minneapolis

Setting the Table in Rochester

The Pentecost Offering is one of the "big four" major offerings done by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).  The Pentecost offering is taken up in congregations on Pentecost (May 27) and goes to help in the efforts of planting new churches.  The good folks at Open Source Christian Church in Rochester, MN did a special video for the offering, showing the work that has been done in Rochester and asking folks to give to the offering.  Watch the video below and consider contributing in your congregation next Sunday or you can donate online.