Stories tagged with: church planting

• South Korean church plant finds home

  by Stella McMillian*, posted Wednesday, July 22, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  IMB photo

  SEOUL (BP) -- While Stuart Robinson, an IMB missionary in Seoul, South Korea, was walking in his neighborhood one day, something new caught his eye. In the window of a café there was a small sign: "Closed on the Lord's day."

  Robinson was immediately curious. Though South Korea has had a great harvest of believers in recent decades, it isn't common to see such a clear expression of faith from a business owner. He ducked inside. Read More

• After finding new life, Missouri church will host NAMB Replant Summit

  by Brandon Elrod, posted Tuesday, June 16, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  NAMB photo

  GREENWOOD, Mo.—Ten years ago, after several years of decline, the future for a 175-year-old Southern Baptist church in Greenwood, Mo., seemed bleak. But a sister church in the area embraced the dwindling congregation and helped them recover their place in the community. In August, the reborn and growing church will host the North American Mission Board's Replant Summit to help others learn how to do the same.

  "The First Baptist Church of Greenwood has an incredible testimony," said Mark Clifton, senior director of Replant at the North American Mission Board (NAMB). "The Gospel witness of any church is far too important to allow it to fade when adversity comes." Read More

• 'Class of 2019' church plants turn challenges into ministry opportunities

  by Brandon Elrod, posted Monday, June 01, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  Photo from Story Church.

  OAKLAND, Calif. (BP) -- Church planting missionaries expect obstacles when launching new ministries in parts of North America that need Gospel-proclaiming churches. For the "class of 2019" Southern Baptist church plants that launched last year, persisting in the face of a global pandemic was not something they could have planned for.

  "What looked like a challenge became an opportunity," said Akeem Smith, lead church planter of Storyline Church in Oakland, Calif., about facing the hurdles created by COVID-19. Read More

• Church plants that meet in school buildings face reopening challenges

  by Tess Schoonhoven, posted Thursday, May 21, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  Submitted photo

  ATLANTA, Ga. (BP) -- As the state of Georgia continues on a path to reopening, Christ Covenant Church is cautiously planning to resume in-person gatherings. But decisions about when and how to return are complicated by where.

  Christ Covenant has called Sutton Middle School its Sunday home for 2 1/2 years. The church, which averaged about 500 in attendance before the COVID-19 pandemic, will be ready to reopen before the school does -- which has Jason Dees, Christ Covenant's pastor, searching for options that might even include a local synagogue on a temporary basis. Read More

• Young church plant finds creative ways to minister during COVID-19

  by Deborah Leuthold, posted Tuesday, May 05, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  Submitted photo

  GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- When Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey issued a stay-at-home order in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, members of The Church at Estrella prayed and asked God how to "do church." The 2-year-old church plant could no longer meet in Westar Elementary School where they had been holding regular services.

  Like many churches, they were looking for ways to serve their neighbors while unable to physically gather. So they used their contacts and asked around, and someone came up with a sweet idea. Read More

• Easter marks 40 years of changed lives at Saddleback Church

  by Tobin Perry, posted Monday, April 13, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  Photo provided by Sumi Sellon/Saddleback Church

  LAKE FOREST, Calif. (BP) -- Lee and Cynthia Hensler had mostly left behind their religious background when they moved from New York to Southern California in the 1970s. They occasionally visited churches for Christmas and Easter. When friends invited them to join them for a service, they usually declined so they wouldn't hurt feelings when they didn't return the next week.

  But that changed when Lee and Cynthia had their first child, a daughter, in 1979. Read More

• North Carolina sees Hispanic church planting boom

  by Keila Diaz, posted Friday, March 27, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  Submitted photo

  CHARLOTTE, N.C. (BP) -- In the last seven years North Carolina has been experiencing a Hispanic church plant boom, with 150 new Hispanic churches. And the growth shows no signs of stopping, even amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

  "There has been a spiritual awakening that has led to planting of Hispanics churches across the state," said William Ortega, consultant of Hispanic church planting for the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina. Read More

• NAMB church planting missionaries adjust to COVID-19 crisis

  by Brandon Elrod, posted Monday, March 23, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  Photo from Gregg Gober's Facebook page

  ALPHARETTA, Ga. -- Eight months ago, Gregg Gober and his family arrived in New York City, ready to begin the process of launching a new church. Hope Community in Brooklyn had just started gaining momentum when the COVID-19 virus brought life in the city -- and the world -- to a halt.

  "We had just moved the church out of our apartment," Gober said. "We started renting space in an old synagogue. Last Wednesday (March 11), we had more people than we've ever had, and this was a momentum killer for us." Read More

• COVID-19: NAMB spending changes aimed at keeping missionaries on field

  by Mike Ebert, posted Thursday, March 19, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) -- The North American Mission Board (NAMB) is implementing a series of budgetary freezes and cutbacks designed to keep missionaries on the field during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.

  NAMB president Kevin Ezell shared information Thursday (March 19) with staff and missionaries on a video conference call and in emails to state convention leaders and other mission partners. Read More

• NAMB partnership in Pennsylvania and South Jersey aims for 'multiplication movement'

  by Shannon Baker, posted Tuesday, March 10, 2020 (3 years ago)

  

  HARRISBURG, Pa. (BP) -- Faced with more 14 million lost people across its region, the Baptist Resource Network (BRN) of Pennsylvania/South Jersey has partnered with the North American Mission Board (NAMB) for the past several years to plant churches in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

  Now, the Send Network partnership is extending to the entire Pennsylvania/South Jersey region, supporting church planting across its sprawling rural farmlands, mountains, coastland, urban centers and small towns. Read More