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Ten Principles For Launching a Major Growth Thrust

As we read through the book of Acts we need to always remember it is a book of history.  It gives us a glimpse of how God worked through ordinary men and women to fulfill His purposes and carry out His ongoing mission of redemption.  We should look at the book of Acts as a place to glean principles and insights for church planting and church life.  It is not a book to look for blueprints or models but rather a book to discover transferable principles which will be shaped by your cultural context. 

Here are a few transferable principles that we can glean from the launching of the church in Acts 1-2:

1. Our motives must be great commission driven.  Acts 1:4-8

If our only motive is to get butts in the seats at whatever cost we are heading for a world of hurt and disappointment.  If all we are doing is to try to increase our revenue stream and meet our church's financial needs, we are just going to be frustrated.  If all our efforts are trying to get the "already convinced" into our church, the wheels will fall over very quickly.  We must be great commission focused. Our hearts must be broken and burdened for those who are far from God. The only way some churches are going to grow in the consumeristic Christian culture that is being developed is through effective evangelism.  My experience is that unchurched people don't need all the bells and whistles of the mega church...Christians do!  Those far from God want relationships and meaningful connections.

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Nine Ways To Create Momentum For Fall Outreach

By Gary Rohrmayer

Legendary football coach Paul 'Bear' Bryant said, "Have a plan. Follow the plan, and you'll be surprised how successful you can be. Most people don't have a plan. That's why it's is easy to beat most folks."  In a recent survey it was revealed that 79% of churches have little to no plans for fall outreach.  This may be the reason why 80-85% of the churches in America are either plateaued or declining. Designing, executing and implementing outreach plans and strategies is one of the skills pastors need to create positive momentum in their churches.

Here are a couple insights that you can apply in planning your fall growth thrust.

1.  Develop a team.

Too many pastors try to carry the load all by themselves, which is an unbiblical notion.  Christianity is a team sport. Team building is one of the skills successful pastors need in their tool belts. Learning to pick the right players on your team is crucial. Guiding and leading the team is imperative.  Trusting the team to execute the plan is empowering.  Celebrating and encouraging the team is vital.  I encourage pastors to use short-term task forces with a specific task along with a starting and ending point.  If you built a task force for each of your major outreach initiatives for fall, winter and spring your team building skills would improve each time.  Team building is a skill which is honed through the "learning by doing" process. 

Getting key influencers involved in the process is vital to building positive momentum. 

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