Recently, IDC held a Church Planting forum to highlight five church plants that will be sent out from our church and one church planting effort that involves seeking to plant churches among unreached people groups living in NC (http://vimeo.com/89198128).
Here is what we are asking of you and here is what our church plants need moving forward:
Prayer – Our church plants need much prayer as they handle the logistics of church planting but also much prayer that many in these cities would hear the gospel and be changed by it. Paul writes in Colossians 4:12-13 – “Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis.” Our church plants and planters need us to be Epaphras’ for them that we would work hard on their behalf in our prayers!
Financial Support – Our church plants need financial support as well as they move their lives and families to these cities. Our brother John writes this in 3 John 5-8 – “Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.” It is our prayer that many will give sacrificially to help these planters as they go on “their journey” and that we should support people “like these” so that we can be “fellow workers for the truth.” (If you would like to give financially directly to our planting efforts you can do so by designating to the “Missions/Church Planting Fund” on an offering envelope or online donation here for members and here for other guest contributions)
Goers – In addition, our church plants need “goers” who will go with them who are zealous to make disciples and see a church planted in these cities. Paul writes in Philippians 1:3-5, a church that he helped plant, “I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.” It is the hope of the elders that you will seriously consider going with one of these plants. We pray that many will consider taking a risk for the gospel and go with these plants either here locally or nationally. In particular, we hope our men who are considering going into vocational gospel ministry would give serious consideration to going with one of these plants to help plant the gospel in major cities in our country.
*So please pray through how you can be a partner in the gospel with these plants and planters. Below we provide their information so you can reach out to them to hear more specifically about their needs and plans.
Church Plants:
– Philadelphia, PA (Brian Davis – Brian.s.dav@gmail.com)
– Boston, MA (Aaron Lumpkin – aaronlumpkin@gmail.com)
– Buffalo, NY (Ben Palka – benny2221@gmail.com)
– Raleigh, NC (Matthew Poole and Drew Raynor – matthewpoole1@gmail.com and draynor86@gmail.com)
– Los Angles, CA (Jason Wright – jason@revjtw.com)
International Church Planting here at home – if you are interested in helping with church planting among unreached people groups in the Triangle, Triad, and Charlotte you can contact Zac Lyons (lyons.zac@gmail.com) or Keelan Cook (keelancook@gmail.com)