WHY PLANT A NEW CHURCH IN THE WHEELING AREA?

 

PLANT:  A SOWER’S GUIDE TO CHURCH PLANTING by Winfield Bevins

​

In the United States alone, there are 180 million who have no connection to a local church, making it the largest mission field in the Western Hemisphere and the third largest mission field on Earth.

​

Eighty to eighty-five percent of all churches in the U.S. have either stopped growing or are in decline, and an estimated three to four thousand churches close their doors each year.

​

In 1900, there were 28 churches for every 10,000 Americans. In 1950, there were 17 churches for every 10,000 Americans. In 2011, there were 11 churches for every 10,000 Americans.

​

Only 17.5% of the US population attended Christian worship on any given weekend in 2008, and that figure is projected to fall to 14.7% by 2020.

​

OUR LOCAL MISSION FIELD

 

Ohio County, WV Population 2010:   44,443*

 

Unchurched                                  16,398 (36.9%)

Catholic                                         13,134

Mainline Protestant                        8,919

Evangelical Protestant                   3,963

Other                                               1,615

African-American Protestant           234

Orthodox                                           180

 

Belmont County, OH Population 2010:  70,400*

 

Unchurched                                 43,636 (61.9%)

Mainline Protestant                     10,012

Catholic                                          8,179

Evangelical Protestant                  7,732

Orthodox                                           463

Other                                                 202

African-American Protestant          176

 

Marshall County, WV Population 2010:  33,107*

 

Unchurched                                  18,921 (57.2%)

Mainline Protestant                        5,541

Catholic                                           4,040

Evangelical Protestant                   2,722

Other                                                1,743

Black Protestant                                118

Orthodox                                              22

 

*U.S. CENSUS DATA

 

 

WHAT IS THE ANSWER?

Virtually all the great evangelistic challenges of the New Testament are basically calls to plant churches, not simply to share the faith. The ‘Great Commission’ (Matt.28: 18-20) is not just a call to ‘make disciples’ but to ‘baptize’. In Acts and elsewhere, it is clear that baptism means incorporation into a worshipping community with accountability and boundaries (cf. Acts 2:41-47). The only way to be truly sure you are increasing the number of Christians in a town is to increase the number of churches. Why? Much traditional evangelism aims to get a ‘decision’ for Christ. Experience, however, shows us that many of these ‘decisions’ disappear and never result in changed lives. Why? Many, many decisions are not really conversions, but often only the beginning of a journey of seeking God. (Other decisions are very definitely the moment of a ‘new birth’, but this differs from person to person.) Only a person who is being ‘evangelized’ in the context of an on-going worshipping and shepherding community can be sure of finally coming home into vital, saving faith. This is why a leading missiologist like C. Peter Wagner can say, “Planting new churches is the most effective evangelistic methodology known under heaven.”

-Tim Keller, Founding Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church, New York, NY

 

Nine Common Myths of Church Planting:

1. Too many churches already exist.

2. Planting new churches will hurt existing churches.

3. Church planting really doesn’t make a difference.

4. Church planting is too expensive.

5. Church planting is only for young people.

6. Church planting is only for a select few.

7. Church planting is what missionaries do, over there.

8. A church planter needs to be an extreme extrovert.

9. Church planting is just for people who are ordained.

 

What is Church Planting?

“Church planting is joining in God’s mission to make disciples through starting new kingdom communities of believers in Jesus Christ in every context.”

 

What Drives New Churches?

1. Christ-Centered

2. Spirit-Empowered

3. Lay-Driven

4. Discipleship-Oriented

5. Means of Grace

6. Missional Impulse

1. Serve by being both evangelistic and socially minded

2. Recover the lost art of Biblical hospitality

 

Seven Steps to Church Planting:

1. Hearing:  Discerning God’s Call

2. Preparing:  Developing a Plan

3. Praying:  Building a Prayer Team

4. Reaching:  Building Relationships With the Unchurched & Serving the Community

5. Growing:  Discipling and Maturing

6. Gathering:  Coming Together in Worship

7. Multiplying:  Churches Planting Churches

8. ​

 

TIMELINE:  Launch on Sunday, January 7, 2018, at 10:00 am at the Children’s Museum of the Ohio Valley, 1000 Main Street, Wheeling, WV.

​

 

PRACTICAL ISSUES TO ADDRESS IN CHURCH PLANTING

 

PLANTING MISSIONAL CHURCHES by Ed Stetzer and Daniel Im

 

Systems for Church Planting

• Establish Church Structure

• Discover the Focus Group

• Develop the Launch Team

• Design the Discipleship Model

• Find a Meeting Place

• Communicating the Launch to the Community

• Ongoing/Continuous Connection and Follow-Up

 

Nine Key Launch-Team Leadership Roles

• Prayer Coordinator

• Outreach Coordinator

• Guest Services Coordinator

• Children’s Ministry Coordinator

• Small Groups Coordinator

• Worship/Music Coordinator

• Continuous Connection Coordinator

• Finance/Administrative Coordinator

• Volunteer Coordinator

 

 

Congregational Formation Documents

• Statement of Faith

• Mission/Vision/Values Statement

• Articles of Incorporation

• Bylaws/Structure/Financial Policies

• Employer Identification Number

• Federal Tax Exemption* and State Sales Tax Exemption

• Insurance

• Initial Budget

• Nonprofit Bulk Mail Permit*

*Interconnected and most likely unnecessary

​

 

Launch Development Through Outreach Events:

​

You can find many ways to build relationships by connecting through intentional outreach events.  These events will not only allow you to build a presence in your community, but they will create natural opportunities to talk about your church plant with those in your community.  This can be beneficial for both developing your launch team and also getting the word out about your church.  Here are a few suggestions:

• Neighborhood picnics/barbeques

• Sponsoring existing community events

• Free car wash

• Free drink (water bottles, lemonade, coffee, etc.) giveaways (e.g., to commuters, along bike paths, at ball fields, etc.)

• Face painting or balloon sculpting at other community events

• Food/desserts for local public servants (e.g., police, firefighters, EMT, hospital personnel, etc.)

• Handing out smoke detector batteries at appropriate times

 

(Additional ideas can be found in Steve Sjogren’s 101 Ways to Reach Your Community.)  SERVANT EVANGELISM is the key theme.

​

 

Ministry Development Following Launch:

 

(from SIMPLE CHURCH by Thom S. Rainer and Eric Geiger)

 

A simple church is designed around a straightforward and strategic process that moves people through the stages of spiritual growth.  The leadership and the church are clear about the process (clarity) and are committed to executing it.  The process flows logically (movement) and is implemented in each area of the church (alignment).  The church abandons everything that is not in the process (focus).

 

 

THE SIMPLE MINISTRY PROCESS:

 

CLARITY  >>>MOVEMENT  >>>ALIGNMENT  >>>FOCUS

 

 

CLARITY:  The ability of the process to be communicated and understood by the people.

 

MOVEMENT:  The sequential steps in the process that cause people to move to greater areas of commitment (DISCIPLESHIP).

 

1. Strategic programming.

1. Being with your clearly defined process (personal/family discipleship and making a Kingdom difference in the community/world)

2. Choose one program for each phase of your process.

3. Design each program for a specific aspect of the process.

 

1. Sequential programming.

1. Order the sequence of your programs to reflect your process.

2. Designate a clear entry-point to your process.

3. Identify the next levels of programming.

 

1. Intentional movement.

1. Create short-term steps.

2. Capitalize on relationships.

3. Consider the “Now What?”

4. Connect people to groups.

 

1. Clear next step.

New Christians who immediately become active in a small group are five times more likely to remain in the church five years later than those who were active in worship services alone.

 

1. New members class.

The relationship between assimilation effectiveness and a new members class is amazing.  Churches that require potential members to attend a new members class have a much higher retention rate than those who do not.

1. Teach the simple process.

2. Ask for commitment to the process.

 

ALIGNMENT:  The arrangement of all ministries and staff around the same simple process.

 

1. Recruit leaders/staff on the process…emphasis on nonbureaucratic, voluntary, task-oriented teams.

2. Offer accountability.

3. Implement the same process everywhere.

4. Unite around the process.

5. New ministry alignment is critical.

 

FOCUS:  The commitment to abandon everything that falls outside of the simple ministry process.

 

1. Eliminate.

2. Limit adding.

3. Reduce special events.

4. Emphasize at-home, through-the-week discipleship for families raising children and dealing with already-crowded schedules and consider activities off-campus for ease of access and community visibility.

5. The process must be easy to communicate and simple to understand.

 

 

DISCIPLESHIFT:  FIVE STEPS THAT HELP YOUR CHURCH TO MAKE DISCIPLES WHO MAKE DISCIPLES by Jim Putnam and Bobby Harrington

 

Shifts in Understanding and Practicing Biblical Church Discipleship

1. Move from “reaching people” to “making disciples.”  What is a disciple?

 

1. Move from “presenting information” to “equipping for practical life application.”

 

1. Move from “offering programs” to “inviting to purposeful community.”

 

1. Move from “holding activities” to “building relationships.”

 

1. Move from “accumulating members” to “deploying ministers.”

 

As a result, a Watermark Church small group is a purposeful community of 7-12 individuals who meet regularly and frequently to build relationships of mutual support and care with other followers of Jesus, who receive Biblical insight that equips them for practical Christian living in the real world, and who intentionally but naturally grow into disciples of Jesus who are willing to be deployed, individually and as a group, as His ministers in their community and in the world.

 

THREE TRACKS OF SMALL GROUPS FOR WATERMARK CHURCH:

Community (Open-Ended/Sermon-Based)

Compass (Short-Term/Special Topics Based on Current Directional Need of Individual or Family)

Commitment (Rotating Short-Term for New Members)

Core (Rotating Short-Term for Leadership Development)

 

FOCUS GROUP INFORMATION

 

KEY DEMOGRAPHIC DATA FOR ANALYSIS:

Mean Travel Time to Work (Minutes) – U.S. Census 2010

Ohio County, WV                                                                19.5

Marshall County, WV                                                          23.4

Belmont County, OH                                                           25.4

 

Why is this important?

Studies indicate that travel time often defines the time limit people will draw when driving to a church facility for worship/ministries/program activities, etc.

 

Religious Traditions – Association of Religious Data Archives (Current)

Ohio County, WV                                                            16,398 Effectively Unchurched

Marshall County, WV                                                      18,921 Effectively Unchurched

Belmont County, OH                                                       43,636 Effectively Unchurched

Total Effectively Unchurched in Target Area                78,955

Adjusted Unchurched for Target Area Boundaries      75,000

 

Why is this important?

Studies indicate that effective church plants can realistically set 1% of a target area’s unchurched population as a goal for average attendance after 5 years of mission/ministry. 

 

 

Areas of Expected Above-Average Growth – Church of the Nazarene Report

Absent from major industrial facilities locating in the area (which may happen with the proposed “cracker” facility in Belmont County, OH), the area will experience stagnant growth, with growth in the number of young adults limited to areas surrounding college campuses.  However, significant pockets of growth in terms of “family units” will occur in Belmont County, OH and in a portion of northern Marshall County, WV.  Significant growth may also occur in post-family units (“empty nesters,” early-retirement age, etc.), including growth beyond simple biological trends in Belmont County, OH and a portion of Ohio County, WV.

 

Average Household Income – Church of the Nazarene Report (Percept Confirmed)

The area’s household income is expected to be 75% of the national average.

 

Largest Demographic Group in Target Area – Percept Group

Boomers (Ages 50-68)

Fastest-Growing Nontraditional Ethnic Group – Percept Group (Census Confirmed)

Asians

Most Unchurched Ethnic Group – Percept Group (Census Confirmed)

African Americans

 

Gender Issues – U.S. Census 2010

Ohio County, WV         Women comprise larger % of population (above-average)

Marshall County, WV   Women comprise larger % of population (above-average)

Belmont County, OH    Men comprise larger % of population (above-average)

 

 

Summary of Denominational Surveys of Target Area

 

Giving Pattern: 

Most yearly congregational budgets reflect an annual giving pattern of $750 to $1000 per person in worship attendance.  In other words, a congregation of 300 would typically function with an annual budgetary income of $225,000 to $300,000 (or weekly income of approximately $4300 to $5800).  NOTE:  This is a pattern with EXISTING congregations, NOT with new church plants.  Most new church plants seeking to reach unchurched people for Christ will only reflect the lower range, and may reflect even less giving if the congregation is made up of a significant number of children/youth, the unemployed, etc.

 

Demographic Groups Featuring High % of Unchurched:

Men in blue-collar or nonprofessional jobs

Single women under age 50

Single-parent families

College-age young adults (particularly those of age but not in college)

Households below the poverty line

 

Community Concerns:

Basic sustenance

Health maintenance

Workplace/Financial Stress

Drug/Alcohol Abuse

Adequate/Available Counseling for Marriage/Family Issues

Child Safety Issues

​

STRATEGIES ARISING FROM DEMOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS

 

Strategic Areas for Outreach:

 

Men’s Ministry.  It should be more than just breakfasts or outings; men, and particularly blue-collar men, like to do/accomplish things…what can be offered that is consistent with the church plant’s DNA and different than what is offered by other area congregations?

​

Ministry to/with Single Working Women (with or without children

​

Children’s Ministry featuring Safety Emphasis (an example would be using KidCheck security system and utilizing connections to obtain law-enforcement endorsement of the program) and Working Around Busy Family Schedules (ministries that don’t simply “add one more item to an already-busy calendar)

​

Ministry to/with Impoverished Families.  This is easier said than done, but networking with local relief agencies to address family needs at particular times of the year (holidays, back-to-school, etc.) yields great goodwill in this particular area and opens important doors to relationship-building.

​

Community Mission (not to be confused with Servant Evangelism).  This means offering authentic hands-on ministry that will appeal to young adults, particularly Millennial.

​

Nontraditional Times for Worship Services (multiservice, multisite).  Over 45% of the area population reports some type of Catholic background.  Saturday evening or midweek Mass is normative in this region, unlike some parts of the “Bible Belt” in the South.  Is this an opportunity to consider since there is now no Protestant church in the area offering a Saturday evening service?  Several churches of which I’m personally aware in Pittsburgh (a similar area) with two or more worship services on Sunday mornings report that, upon offering a Saturday evening service, the Saturday service immediately became the second-largest service in attendance without taking large numbers of people from the Sunday services.

​

Recovery Ministries.  Celebrate Recovery is available at St. John’s/Center Wheeling Fellowship on Thursday evenings in Center Wheeling.  Some churches have abandoned the program for one of two reasons:  1) The program is labor-intensive, and, unless there is strong volunteer leadership, it often leads to the need for paid staff to ensure quality and keep it visible; 2) the strong volunteer leadership can often lead the program to become a “church within the church” and create conflict.  Still, recovery ministries are a definite need and are clearly desired in this area.

 

Teaching/Programmatic Themes: 

​

Finances/Workplace Stress/Unemployment Stress

Marriage/Family Issues (including Divorce Recovery)

            Grief Recovery

“Bible for Beginners” (This is the single most-requested program I’ve heard people mention in all walks of life around the Valley.)

 

 

CONGREGATIONAL FORMATION DOCUMENTS

​

 

WATERMARK’S CORE BELIEFS

​

With other Christians throughout the ages, we proclaim traditional Christian beliefs that are rooted in Scripture and expressed by the Apostles' Creed and other early Church affirmations.  Specifically, you will find our preaching and teaching is based on the following core beliefs:

​

The sole basis of our belief is the Bible, God’s word of grace.  We believe all Scripture is uniquely God-inspired and is our sufficient and final authority on all matters of faith and practice.  Proverbs 30.5-6; Matthew 4.4; II Timothy 3.16-17.

​

We believe that there is one true God, eternally existing in three persons:  Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  God created the universe and all things in it, manifesting the glory of His power, wisdom, holiness, and love.  God is the Author of life and the source of all grace, and He is working throughout history to fulfill His plan for creation.  Genesis 1.1; Psalm 139.7-10; Matthew 28.19; II Corinthians 13.14.

​

We believe that human beings were created in the image of God and were designed to love and serve Him.  By sinfully rebelling against God’s will and going their own way, they broke fellowship with God, and the image of God was marred in them.  As a result, human effort cannot achieve or earn a right relationship with God; God’s saving grace is necessary.  Genesis 1.26; Romans 1.18-23; Romans 3.23; Ephesians 2.8-9.

​

Through prevenient grace, God initiates reconciliation with humanity and convicts individuals of sin, enabling a response to His outreaching love by accepting His offer of salvation by faith.  I John 4.19; John 16.5-11; John 3.16; Romans 5.8.

​

Through justifying grace, God forgives and regenerates all who trust in Jesus Christ, God’s incarnate Word and virgin-born Son, who perfectly reveals God the Father to us.  He lived a sinless life and died on a cross for the sins of all, taking on Himself the punishment for sin.  He rose from the dead and ascended to the right hand of the Father, where He intercedes for us.  Believers in Christ are adopted as children of God and begin to live a holy life through faith in Christ.  John 1.14; Colossians 1.15-20; Philippians 2.5-11; I Corinthians 15.3-8; Isaiah 53.1-6, 12.

​

Through sanctifying grace, the Holy Spirit brings spiritual growth in the believer’s life and makes possible wholehearted love for God and for others.  The inward witness of God’s Spirit with their spirits, along with the gracious promises of God’s Word and the fruit of the Spirit in their lives, assures believers that they are children of God.  The Holy Spirit equips believers with gifts for ministry in the Church and witness in the world.  II Thessalonians 2.13; Romans 8.15-16; Ephesians 4.11-16.

​

The Church is God’s community of grace, composed of all who trust in Jesus Christ as Son, Savior, and Lord.  As Christ’s body, the church is visible in the world wherever believers, in faithful obedience and unity, hear the Word, receive the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and live as Christian disciples.  The Church exists to glorify God, to make disciples of Jesus Christ, and to offer transformational service to the world through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Matthew 16.18; Acts 2.46-47; I Corinthians 12.12-13; Ephesians 1.22-23.

​

Grace will ultimately triumph in the return of Jesus Christ, the resurrection of all persons, the final judgment, and God’s glorious victory over sin and all evil.  For followers of Christ, a new heaven and a new earth, with eternal unbroken fellowship with God, is the great promise of grace!  I Corinthians 15.24-28; II Thessalonians 1.5-10; Revelation 21.1-4.

 

 

 

WATERMARK’S MISSION, VISION, AND STRATEGY

​

 

The Mission:

​

“Multiplying Disciples and Making a Difference” (Matthew 28.16-20) 

​

Definition of a Disciple: (Matthew 4.9)

1. One who follows Jesus as Savior and Lord

2. One who is growing in grace through Jesus

3. One who is serving and sharing Jesus

 

The Vision:

​

“We are called to be a community characterized by grace-based relational environments where people can lovingly connect with God, with others, and with the mission of Jesus in order to grow into disciple-making disciples who change the world…starting where we are.”  (Matthew 22.37-40; Acts 1.8 and 2.42-47)

 

Grace-Based Relational Environments are:

 

RELEVANT:  God isn’t honored when we bore people with the Gospel.  Therefore, our worship is contemporary yet Biblical and directed toward God, and our messages apply Biblical truth to practical everyday life, offering answers to real-life questions and discussing real-time issues in a relevant way.  Small groups and our 24/7 prayer ministry keep our disciple-making mission geared to following Jesus in the real world.

​

RELATIONAL:  We attempt to remove theological “buzz-words” and insider vocabulary and replace them with language that can be understood by 21st-century people.  We believe life is meant to be lived in community, so we build opportunities for relationship with others into the heart of every ministry.

​

REAL:  People are never “put on the spot,” but they are always greeted with radical hospitality.  We may be casual in our dress, but not in our love for God, for each other, and for the world.  We are a Biblical refuge in which all people are welcome “just as they are.”  In order to be that “refuge,” we are as transparent and authentic as possible in everything we do, and we seek to serve our community in Jesus’ name in ways that meet real need and make a real difference.

 

The Strategy:

​

SHARE Jesus with a lost and hurting world, one person at a time.  (Luke 19.10; I Peter 2.9)

SHEPHERD followers of Jesus into small groups for support and growth.  (John 10.7-11; II Timothy 2.2)

SHAPE followers of Jesus into gift-based servant ministers and disciple-makers.  (Mark 10:45; Ephesians 4.11-12)

SEND disciples into Wheeling and the world as missionaries who make a difference for Jesus.  (Acts 1.8)

​

​

​

Watermark

[waw-ter-mahrk] 

 

Noun

 

1. A figure or design impressed in some paper during manufacture, visible 
   when the paper is held to the light.

 

1. A mark indicating the height to which water rises or has risen, as in a river.

 

Verb (used with object)

 

1. To impress (a design, pattern, etc.), as a watermark.

 

 

WATERMARK CHURCH…a real and transparent community of Christ-followers committed to growing 1) deep in faith through grace-based  relationships with God and each other, and 2) wide in multiplying disciples of Jesus and making a relevant transformational mark upon Wheeling and the world for Jesus…truly making a difference!

 

“BUILDING PEOPLE FIRST”

 

WATERMARK CHURCH

P. O. Box 6430

Wheeling, WV  26003

304-312-2278

www.watermarkchurchwheeling.org

info@watermarkchurchwheeling.org

watermarkwheeling@gmail.com

 

WATERMARK’S CORE VALUES

 

Scripture.  We make the Bible our final authority for faith and practice.  We believe Biblical teaching with life application is the primary catalyst for the development of disciples of Jesus Christ.  We are committed to the clear and accurate communication of Scripture in a way that ministers God’s grace and invites people to full devotion to Christ.  II Timothy 3.16-17.

​

Community.  We make every effort to provide a grace-filled relational environment in which all people feel welcome and in which they feel safe to explore the Christian faith.  We believe that healthy relationships should permeate every aspect of congregational life.  We are committed to small group ministry as the most effective means for believers to give and receive care, develop relationships, grow in faith, and be equipped to share and serve Christ.  We strive for unity through openness, authenticity, mutual respect, and love for one another.  Ephesians 4.1-6.

​

Maturity.  We make full devotion to Jesus Christ the goal and standard for every believer.  We believe that the Church is a spiritual family in which all members are continuously nurtured toward conformity to the character of Christ.  We are committed to providing the means of grace through which people grow into Christian disciples who in turn help others grow into disciples.  Ephesians 4.14-16.

​

Ministry.  We make ministry the motive for everything we do.  We believe all Christians have God-given gifts for ministry, and we encourage the discovery and exercise of these gifts in order to fulfill the Church’s calling to be the Body of Christ in our world.  We are committed to a simple functional structure for church leadership that emphasizes teamwork and empowers every individual and family to fully participate in our mission.  I Peter 4.10-11.

​

Creativity.  We make effectiveness in ministry the measure by which we evaluate everything we do.  We believe that excellence in ministry honors God, and we are open to creativity and innovation in our pursuit of it.  We are committed to inspirational forms of worship and service that are culturally relevant and that best express what God is doing in our community and world in our time.  Luke 5.36-39.

​

Service.  We make service the primary means by which we reach out to our community.  We believe that God calls the Church to meet human need, and we believe that authentic evangelism happens best in the context of serving as Christ served.  We are committed to ministries of servant outreach and global witness.  Galatians 5.13-14.

​

Prayer.  We make prayer the lifeline of our Church.  We believe that God calls all believers to pray for one another and that God expects the Church to prayerfully rely on the resources of the Holy Spirit in response to His call to mission and ministry.  We have a passionate love for God and for others that leads us to answer the call to make disciple-makers who make a difference in this world for Jesus Christ.  Mark 12.28-31, I Thessalonians 5.16-18.

 

 

RESULTING PRACTICAL EMPHASES:

​

1. Messages prompted by periodic questions submitted in writing to the Lead Pastor, organized into message series that can be developed from books or significant portions of books of the Bible, and prepared entirely from a Biblical text that is thoroughly exegeted.  Messages will be delivered with practical, real-life applications but always in an order that emphasizes the process of growing as disciples of Jesus.

2. Small groups will serve as the basic organizational unit of the congregation and as a potential “front door” for newcomers.

3. Ministry development will be based solely upon the basis of whether the program contributes to developing and deploying disciples who in turn make disciples in order to make a difference in Wheeling and the world.  Family ministry will be designed to simplify life for families with children rather than add additional calendar items to already overburdened and overbooked schedules.

4. The title “minister” is reserved for all members of the congregation.

5. We evaluate everything we do with two questions:  Are we consistent with Biblical teaching, and are we fulfilling our mission statement?

6. We serve Jesus best by serving others, and inviting others to join us in serving our community can provide an avenue to share the Good News of Jesus with them and to invite them to connect to a small group, serving as a primary “front door” for newcomers.  This relieves the pressure to constantly force a “front door” mentality solely on the worship service, and our de-emphasis on building and personnel costs relieves the pressure to constantly “beg for money” prior to the weekly offering.

7. We will develop a 24/7 ongoing prayer ministry for any and all prayer needs known to us, utilizing the entire congregation as participants.

 

 

WATERMARK’S CHURCH STRUCTURE/BYLAWS/FINANCIAL POLICIES

 

• Staff-Guided

• Steward-Governed

• Trustee-Guarded

• Member-Gifted

 

Staff:

• Lead Pastor (Bivocational…no church salary)

• Worship/Music Director (Paid part-time)

• Children’s Director (Paid part-time)

• Administrative Director/Treasurer (Paid part-time)

• Financial Secretary (Can be outsourced to accountant)

 

Stewards:

• 3 to 9 members elected to 1-year terms by congregational membership

• Ensure that all staff actions/activities are in keeping with the church’s Statement of Faith and church’s Mission/Vision/Values Statement

• Provide quality control evaluation for staff and congregation (evaluation)

• Serve as Personnel Committee (except in cases of annual election of officers) and fill office vacancies on an interim basis

• Approve major mission/ministry recommendations by staff

• Recommend annual budget (and periodic budget adjustments) to Trustees

• Serve in pastoral roles in consultation with Lead Pastor

 

Trustees:

• 3 to 9 members elected to 3-year terms by congregational membership (must retire for at least 1 year at end of term)

• Legal titleholders in trust of all church property

• Serve as trustees of the corporation

• Responsible for the safekeeping of all legal documents of the church

• Along with Lead Pastor and Treasurer (and Financial Secretary, if applicable), serve as voting members on all financial matters (including review/recommendation of annual budget and purchases exceeding 3% of total budget) as the Church Finance Team

• Ensure that all financial procedures are in keeping with the Biblical guidelines of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (as pioneered by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association)

• Ensure that all church actions are in keeping with relevant federal, state, and local law and that an annual church financial audit is performed and published

 

Members of the Congregation:

• Meet in annual Church Conference and other church conferences called by the Stewards (thoroughly advertised with at least 14 days public notice, including two complete weekends)

• Annual Church Conference will elect Treasurer, Stewards, and one-third of the Trustees for the upcoming church year

• Annual Church Conference must approve the upcoming annual church budget

• Annual Church Conference will elect a Nominations Team (no less than 3 or more than 6) to make nominations for Treasurer, Stewards, and Trustees for the following/subsequent church year

• A church conference must be called by the Stewards in order for congregational approval to be given for the selection of a new lead pastor or for the purchase of any real estate (two-thirds approval of members present and voting is required in both instances)

• Congregational members are the ministers of the church and will always be equipped, deployed, respected, and regarded as such by church leadership

 

 

CHURCH PLANTING BIBLIOGRAPHY

​

• The Master Plan of Evangelism by Robert Coleman (1963).

•  

• Understanding Church Growth by Donald A. McGavran (1980 revised ed.).

•  

• 44 Questions for Church Planters by Lyle E. Schaller (1991).

•  

• The Purpose Driven Church by Rick Warren (1995).

•  

• Natural Church Development by Christian Schwarz (1996).

•  

• 101 Ways to Reach Your Community by Steve Sjogren (2001).

•  

• Starting a New Church by Ralph Moore (2002).

•  

• Community of Kindness by Steve Sjogren and Rob Lewin (2003).

•  

• The Church in Many Houses by Steve Cordle (2005).

•  

• Simple Church by Thom Rainer & Eric Geiger (2006).

•  

• The Forgotten Ways by Alan Hirsch (2006).

•  

• Sticky Church by Larry Osborne (2008).

•  

• The Nuts and Bolts of Church Planting by Aubrey Malphurs (2011).

•  

• WikiChurch by Steve Murrell (2011).

•  

• Center Church by Tim Keller (2012).

•  

• Deep and Wide by Andy Stanley (2012).

•  

• DiscipleShift by Jim Putnam & Bobby Harrington with Robert E. Coleman (2013).

•  

• Kingdom First: Starting Churches that Shape Movements by Jeff Christopherson and Mac Lake (2015).

•  

• Planting Missional Churches (2nd Ed) by Ed Stetzer and Daniel Im (2016).

•  

• PLANT:  A Sower’s Guide to Church Planting by Winfield Bevins (2016).

•  

• Launch by Nelson Searcy & Kerrick Thomas (2017).