Launch Team Training Handout for New City Boston

EAST COAST CONFERENCE OF THE
E VA N G E L I C A L C O V E N A N T C H U R C H

Launch Team
Training Day
February 23, 2013 • Boston MA

New City Covenant Church

Notes:

2 | Launch Team Training • New City Covenant Church, Boston MA • East Coast Conference • Sat Feb 23, 2013

Saturday Morning NOTES:

Opening Devotional
“Outsiders, Insiders, Friends, Family” Audio | Full Message
Version of Devotional
What are the four types of people typically drawn to a new • http://archive.org/download/
church community? OutsiderInsiderFriendFamily-
ChooseWisely/
OutsiderInsiderFamilyFriend-
Who you embrace is who you become, choose wisely!
ChooseWisely.m4a
• “Outsiders” - Matthew 12:46-50 • First presented Sat March 11
at Launch Team Training Day
confuse concern with control for Sanctuary Church,
Providence RI; Highrock
• “Insiders” - Matthew 20:20-22a, 24-28 Northshore, Salem MA;
confuse position with purpose Highrock Quincy, Quincy MA

• “Friends” - John 20:24-26, Matt 22:11-14 - mostly
positive; caution: don’t confuse sentiment with covenant

• “Family” - Matt. 12:50, Galatians 3:26-29 - mostly
positive; caution: don’t confuse membership with mission

Welcome & Intros
Leadership & Support
• T.C. Moore, Lead Pastor & Planter, New City Boston,
newcityboston.org

• Larry Kim, Coach (Pastor, Cambridge Community
Fellowship Church)

• Jason Condon, Director of Church Planting

Group Intros:
• Share your name and what you love about where you live

• Why are you involved in or exploring
the New City Boston church planting project?

• What do you hope to get out of today?


Our Larger Church Family NOTES:

East Coast Conference
www.eastcoastconf.org

Our Mission: “Believing we are a
movement of God, the mission of
the East Coast Conference is to
Multiply Churches, Orchestrate
Ministries, Vitalize Congregations,
and Empower Leaders”
Our Regional Mission Field:
• Maine, New Hampshire,
Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island,
• Eastern New York, New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania,
• Delaware, Maryland, Washington D.C., and most of Virginia

Conference Staff
• Howard Burgoyne, Superintendent
• Jason Condon, Director of Church Planting (Assoc Sup)
• Kreig Gammelgard, Dir. of Congregational Vitality (Assoc Sup)
• Alicia Sturdy, Ofﬁce Manager

Evangelical Covenant Church
www.covchurch.org

The “Four Als” of the Covenant
Two historic questions Covenanters
asked one another:
• Biblical: “Where is it written?”
• Devotional: “How goes your
walk?”
As they formed in the US, they took
on the name “Mission Friends”:
• Missional: Are we pursuing
Christ’s purposes?
• Connectional: Are we together
in Christian community?
11 Regional Conferences Comprise the Larger
Missional Regions of the Evangelical Covenant Church


Covenant’s Five Strategic Priorities: NOTES:
covchurch.org/what-we-do
1. Make and Deepen Disciples
2. Start and Strengthen Churches
3. Develop Leaders
4. Love Mercy, Do Justice
5. Serve Globally
5min | TEAM TIME:
Covenant Affirmations:
covchurch.org/who-we-are/beliefs/affirmations • Which of these
“family characteristics”
1. Centrality of the word of God resonates most with you?
2. Necessity of the new birth • Why is it important to be
3. Commitment to the whole mission of the church connected with a larger
family of faith?
4. Church as a fellowship of believers
• What are the challenges of
5. Conscious dependence on the Holy Spirit
not just being
6. Reality of freedom in Christ “independent”?

Vision & Values
Answers: “Who are we and
where are we going?”
“Zera” (Seed) Verse:
what is the biblical story of your new church?

Vision: what is the dream and destination? 30min | TEAM TIME:
God’s preferred future.
• Pastor: spend 5
Values: What defines your` church and its culture? minutes communicating the
church plant’s
• Non-negotiables that help you say “yes” and “no” to “seed verse,” vision, and
options and opportunities. God’s unique design. values to your Launch Team
• Between 3-8 Core Values for your church, more is too • Team: Then take 25
many minutes discussing these
and answering questions
communicate these often, clearly, and consistently in word & deed!

BREAK | 11:15am-ish


Four-Stage NOTES:

Launch Process
Your ﬁrst twelve months
of church planting

Purpose of Four-Stage Launch:
• Build missional momentum and effectiveness
• While having “permission” to focus
and pace yourselves accordingly

Overview of Four-Stage Launch:
Timing & Benchmarks: Each stage is 3-4 months with clear
healthy, missional benchmarks
1. Stage 1 - Launch Team Development: gathering like-minded,
diversely gifted,
missionally-motivated people into a cohesive team
2. Stage 2 - Monthly Preview Worship Services: reaching and
gathering more people to the new church, developing effective
ministry systems, practicing what you’ll become
3. Stage 3 - Weekly Pre-Launch Worship: continuing to reach
and gather, reﬁning the ministries, getting the systems right, acting
“as if ”
4. Stage 4 - Grand Opening Launch: launching for accelerated
growth and impact, unfettered outreach & evangelism, robust
ministry systems

Four Scenarios for Adaptation
1. New Church Plant: from scratch, not pre-existing
2. “2.0” Church Plant: pre-existing ministry, new to Covenant,
from soft relaunch to hard reset
3. New Campus: extending church’s pre-existing ministry to a
brand-new location or venue
4. New Worship Service: multiplying worship services (new times,
different rooms, new styles, etc)


Cautions & Common Mistakes NOTES:
• New Church Plants (and sometimes Campuses or Worship
Services):
• go too fast, skimp on key components
• downplay or ignore benchmarks
• “2.0” Church Plants (and sometimes Campuses or Worship
Services):
• assume “regular attenders” = “Launch Team”
• don’t make the “hard asks”
• don’t revisit foundational principles

Three Key Metrics: 30min | TEAM TIME:
each is a blend of qualitative & quantitative measures
• what scenario (or
1. Launch Team Members: Speciﬁcally asked to commit to the blend) best represents your
church plant launch, the reliable leaders and workers, count on project? what are its
each other (balance of quality and quantity) advantages?
disadvantages?
2. Worship Attendance: Through prayer, evangelism, invitation,
• what caution or mistake
events, marketing, follow-through, and more, reach or surpass resonates most?
goals for each stage (emphasis on quantity, care for quality)
• what do you dislike about
3. Key Ministries: Deploy Worship, Children, Hospitality, Follow- the Four-Stage Launch
up & Connection, Small Groups, Evangelism & Outreach (or idea?
others). Improve “letter grades” throughout each stage (emphasis • what’s just one way it might
on quality, care for quantity/capacity) be extremely helpful?

Example: Suggested Launch Timeline & Benchmarks
STAGE: Launch Team Preview Worship/Soft-Launch Weekly Pre-Launch Worship Grand Opening Launch

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

LT: 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 65 70 70 70

WA: N/A N/A N/A 100 110 120 90 105 120 150 140 130

KM: C C+ B- B B B+ B+ B+ A- A- A- A-

KEY: LT = Launch Team Members WA = Worship Attendance KM = Key Ministries Letter Grade

LUNCH | 12:30pm-ish

Saturday Afternoon NOTES:

Leadership “And the things you
have heard me say in
Reproducing leaders that effectively the presence of
lead, serve, and multiply many witnesses
entrust to reliable
people who will also
2-2-2 Principle (from 2 Tim. 2:2) be qualified to teach
1. 1st Generation: Paul → Timothy others.”
~ The Apostle Paul
2. 2nd Gen: Timothy → “Reliable People”
to Timothy
3. 3rd Gen: “Reliable People” → “Others” (a seasoned church
4. 4th Gen: “Others” → ... planter to a younger
church planter)

Recognizing Potential Apprentices
The Must-Haves:
• Spiritual Velocity (what’s their movement/direction, not just
position in relation to Jesus?)
• Teachability (are they open to being developed and sharpened?)
• Relational Intelligence (do they get people, do people like
them?)

The Bonuses:
• Missional (are they willing to sacrifice for God’s mission?)
• Discerning (can they wisely discern things in people and
situations?)
• Inclusive (do they love to bring people alongside them?)
• Biblically Knowledgeable (strong grasp on God’s Word?)

5 Steps of Leadership Development
1. I do. You watch. We talk.
3 Question at each
2. I do. You help. We talk.
debrief (“We talk.”)
3. You do. I help. We talk.
• What worked?
4. You do. I watch. We talk.
• What didn’t work?
5. You do. Someone else watches. You talk…
• How can we
improve?
* Ideas and highlights on this page adapted from the Apprentice Field Guide,
created by Community Christian Church. Available at www.lulu.com/shop/
apprentice-field-guide/paperback/product-13387075.html


The Five APEST Ministries NOTES:

“11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the
evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for
works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we
all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and
become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of
Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-13, NIV)

Apostle
• “tasked with the overall vigor, as well as extension of Christianity
as a whole, primarily through direct mission and church planting”

Prophet
• “called to maintain faithfulness to God among the people of God.
Essentially prophets are guardians of the covenant relationship”

Evangelist
• “the recruiter to the cause, the naturally infectious person who is
able to enlist people into the movement by transmitting the gospel”

Shepherd (Pastor)
• “called to nurture spiritual development, maintain communal
health, and engender loving community among the people of God”

Teacher
• “mediates wisdom and understanding. This philosophical type
brings comprehensive understanding of the revelation bequeathed
to the church”

Given “to each one of us”
• Paul says in verse 7, “But, to each one of us [Greek hekasto] grace was
given, according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” Hekasto literally
means “to each and every person.” This means every believer
carries this APEST “missional code” into life and ministry with
varying degrees of capacity and expression

Descriptions from The Permanent Revolution: Apostolic Imagination
and Practice for the 21st Century Church, Alan Hirsch & Tim Catchim


The Leadership Stool NOTES:
Created by Dave Olson, Evangelical Covenant Church
• All Three Legs are required
• The Seat provides strength & stability
• Legs should be near the same length
• Problem: no one has all in equal length

Spirituality:
• commitment to deep spiritual transformation
that brings about the life-changing work of God in people
• Biblical insight and passion
• Devotions and intimacy with God
• Authentic self-revelation
• “PRAY”

Chemistry:
• creates an inviting relational atmosphere within your church that
connects people to God’s community
• Personal relationships
• Small group dynamics
• Leading large gatherings
• “PLAY”

Strategy:
• creates process of sequential actions that produce fruitful ministry
in line with God-directed goals.
• Ability to anticipate tomorrow
• How to get from point A to point B
• Delegation and administration
• “PLAN”

30min | TEAM TIME:
self-select into the three groups around the room,
joined by a leader representing your group’s Leadership Style
• Leader with own group: What are our strengths & weaknesses?
• Leader rotates and asks:
• What about us annoys each other? :-)
• How should we communicate and interact
with you and show we value your style?
• How can you do the same toward us?"


NOTES:


Stage 1: NOTES:

Launch Team Development
What is a Launch Team?
Simplest Deﬁnition: The ones that show up and get it done.
• Highly committed leaders and hard workers who will pray, sweat,
laugh, cry, grow, and bleed together for the church planting
mission to which God has called them
• As the Pastor, you can rely on them
• As the Launch Team, you can rely on each other

Purpose: build, assist, provide, become, create, protect
• Invite Others
• Evangelism
• Develop Key Ministries

Gathering
Where will these people come from?
• pray, pray & pray some more! (Ask the Lord of the harvest…)
• work, work, & work some more! (faithful with the little things…)
• Parenting Churches, Partnering Churches, and Strategic Networks
• tap into, partner, and network with existing churches &
organizations
• organize and execute well targeted gathering events (vision
desserts, open house, picnics/bbqs, service projects, etc.)

Team Mix
• Roughly 1/3rd each: Committed Christians,
Unchurched Christians, New Christians/Seekers
• reﬂective of your target (multi-ethnic, 18-30 yr-olds, etc.)
• balanced gifting (musical, kids, hospitality, admin, etc.)

Training Best Practices
• Teach the Vision - “T-Shirt Test” (succinctly communicate its
essence)
• Key Ministries Teams – break the group into your 5 or 6 teams
• Pray and Practice - reduces fear, builds skills, increases success


Cautions NOTES:
Launch Team Landmines
• “tasks not titles” (proven faithfulness and effectiveness)
• “process not promises” (leadership development path)
• faithfulness and fruitfulness need to be demonstrated
• Three “Highly” people to watch for and respond accordingly:
• Highly Controlling
• Highly Needy
• Highly Missional

Agenda Harmony: How do we keep this group together?
• critical to have clearly defined DNA, mission and vision that are
Biblically based (cf. earlier session)
• planting pastor must be the champion, custodian, and defender of
the mission, vision, and values
• out-counseling poor fits is a necessary leadership task
• self-selecting out is a mature response if the church plant is not a fit

Benchmarks
• minimum 30 committed, gifted adults
• 50% of Launch Team from new contacts
• planter is seen as the legitimate leader of the group
• increasing number of people contacted, coming, and connecting
with the group with growing enthusiasm

30min | TEAM TIME:
Use poster paper if helpful...
• Evaluate: What is the current make-up of your Launch Team?
What would God have you do to build a stronger Launch Team?
• Strategize: Create initial strategy for reaching 30-40 people total
• usually 4:1 ratio, so probably need to connect with 120 people)
• Put real names to list (as much as possible)
• Pray for your list


Stage 2: NOTES:

Monthly Preview Worship
Question: What is one of the biggest mistakes church
planters and their teams make early on?

Goals
• accelerating growth
• continue to build momentum to more fully express what your
church is becoming through public worship, and expanded
attractional & incarnational ministries

Benchmarks
• 75-125 at each monthly worship service (build momentum)
• 50 new people attending each preview service
• strong word-of-mouth: over half of guests from personal invitation
• roughly double size of the Launch Team

Wk 1: Wk 5:
The ‘W’ Preview Preview
Worship Worship
Reasoning behind the ‘W’ Rhythm Wk 3:
Gathering
• for most, gathered worship is the high-bandwidth High Point Event
of their experience of God and his community at a new church
• but there’s a tension, especially early on, also need Depth with
Launch Team development, training, and small group experiences
• yet both “extremes” can overshoot many people you hope to
reach, so also need some more accessible Middle Ground Wk 2: Wk 4:
Launch Launch
Repeating Cycle: Team Mtg Team Mtg

• each type of gathering is “open” (preview worship, launch team
meeting, gathering event, etc) MONTH 1 MONTH 2 …
• purposefully invite people to each (may invite different people,
different ways, for different portions)
• at each type of event also invite people to the other events
• should always be casting vision, calling to commitment, and
inviting each time, adjusting appropriately to setting and audience
• Note Benchmarks from Suggested Launch Timeline


Suggested Rhythm NOTES:
• Worship: music, message, related key ministries, vision casting, a
vital invite opportunity to the following weeks (invite at each)
• Launch Team Mtg 1: orientation, bible study, vision-casting
• Gathering Event: picnic, bbq, service project, bowling, etc.
• Launch Team Mtg 2: prep key ministries teams for next Preview
• Worship: like Week 1, only improved upon, more new people,
etc. (rinse, repeat!)

Applications
• Brand-new Plants & Campuses - fairly straightforward,
though variations are possible
(e.g. Preview Worship every other week, stretch out over summer
lows, etc.)
• “2.0” Church Plants (had already been meeting weekly, usually
bi-vocational pastor now full-time)
• Turn weekly meeting time into a feature, leveraging the existing
structure and strengths…
but still honor the principles!
• Build the rhythm and emphases into your weekly gathering,
treat each gathering purposefully

Quick Group Discussion
• What struggles might you face with the monthly worship concept
and execution with your group or in your context?
• Done well, what beneﬁt will it bring?

30min | TEAM TIME:
‘W’ Posters
• 3 Sheets: Put up three sheets on wall, side-by-side to create
three months of Ws (heading toward Stage 3)
• Ideas: Write ideas on sheets
• follow the suggested rhythm
• build each month as completely as possible (details, etc.)
• it’s ok if you have wide variety of items (even mutually
exclusive) as you do this as a group project

LUNCH | 12:30 pm


Stage 3: NOTES:

Weekly Pre-Launch Worship
Natural continuation of Stage 2, with still some freedom to
tweak, improve, and over-haul as needed (plus, people are far
more forgiving when it’s labeled “Pre-Launch” :)

Goals:
• develop more strength and structure through vital ministry teams
and effective systems
• strengthen and improve your Key Ministries
• strengthen gathering and growing prior to Launch
• develop leadership and volunteers
• ﬁnalize Grand Opening Launch Strategy

Benchmarks
• minimum of 80 in the weekly services (75 is the enemy!)
• quality of Key Ministries improving from B to B+/A-
• increasing number of people serving in ministry teams
• 50% of adults in “small groups”

Stage 4:
‘Grand Opening’ Launch
Culmination of the ﬁrst three stages, with New City ready
to go “fully public” with the mission and ministry

Goals:
• launching strong (qualitative)
• launching large (quantitative)
• letting the entire community know we’re here!
• Help assure sustainability and growing Missional Impact for future
generations


Benchmarks NOTES:
• Launch past 125 in Worship, stay above 125 throughout
30min | TEAM TIME:
• Key Ministries with letter grades at B+/A-
Launching Large,
• Great facility that can accommodate growth to 200+
Launching Healthy
• Seeing increasing #s of people coming to Christ and connecting
• Contextualize: What might
• Healthy Mix: 1/3 mission-minded, 1/3 formerly de-churched, launching large look like for

1/3 formerly un-churched New City?
• Brainstorm: What might
you do to launch large
Net Growth =
(Visitor Flow x Retention Rate) enough and healthy enough

– Backdoor Loss to have a missional impact
in your community
Visitor Flow = how many first-timers experience the church • Strategize: What specific
Retention Rate = % who become regulars at least for awhile action steps still need to be
done to launch large in your
Backdoor Loss = how many eventually leave for any reason setting? Who will be
• pay attention to each of those variables so you know what’s working responsible??
and what needs improvement (can be applied to worship service,
small groups, or any “ministry” that should grow through people)
• easy to focus on the wrong thing, so get beneath the “numbers”
• Caveat: these are people, not soulless numbers - the “numbers” are
merely a tool for fruitful accountability and ministry insight

Example 1:
[10 visitors/mo x 20% Retention] - [2 leave/mo]

= 2 stay/month - 2 leave/month = 0 Net Growth
• Possible Interpretation: 20% is actually a fairly good retention
rate and 2/month departing isn’t bad either, therefore increasing
the number of visitors (through prayer, invitation, hospitality, etc.)
will likely increase Net Growth

Example 2:

• Possible Interpretation: 10% isn’t great for retention, though
2/month departing isn’t bad. For some reason people aren’t
coming back and getting connected. Evaluating hospitality, facility,
spiritual vitality, quality of programming, etc. might reveal ways to
improve that retention rate to increase Net Growth

Example 3:

• Possible Interpretation: May be an urban area or college town
with very transitory population and lots of “churn” AND/OR
church is great at “first impressions” but lacks depth and growth
opportunities. Depending on issues, may need to really increase
visitor rate while also working on back door loss

Extended Team Time NOTES:

For the next 75-90 minutes or so, work on one of the
following, combine them, or make up your own!

Sketch out the Next 4-6 Months
one giant sheet for each month
• details will depend on what Stage you’re at now, but likely some
combination of Stage 1 and Stage 2
• add details like dates, events, ideas, etc (take pictures to capture)

Normal & Natural Pathways
For New City what are the normal and natural pathways for…
• Making Disciples that are maturing in Christ
• Evangelizing People so they come to a transforming faith in Jesus
• Reproducing Leaders that effectively lead, serve, and multiply
• Instilling a Stewardship Culture of generosity, sacrifice, &
faithfulness. Stewardship Examples:
• placement of offering at end of service, clear explanation
connecting with mission and vision
• online giving that’s done well and easy to use
• Offer Financial Peace University course once per year
• Multiplying Churches that are healthy, missional, and
reproduce

Exercise: use one giant sheet for each “vital pathway”
full doc & full descriptions at: www.bit.ly/normalnaturalpathways
• Put down one idea for each, then more fully develop a couple.
• Which one will be easiest? Which one will be most difficult?
• Before the ‘Grand Opening’ Launch, flesh these out fully and
revisit them occasionally

SWOT Analysis:
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats
• one giant sheet for each area (take pictures at end to capture)
• In what areas are you going strong? what needs work?
• What key resources do you have, what resources do you need?
• Where are your greatest opportunities? greatest threats?


Resource List NOTES:

Web Resources:
• www.jasoncondon.com/search/label/churchplanting -
this is where Jason posts many of the materials and resources for
our East Coast Conference church planting efforts
• www.ChurchPlantingWiki.com - simple resource site compiled by
Directors of Church Planting across the Covenant - not pretty,
tons of good content!

Related Books:
Church Planting
• Viral Churches: Helping Church Planters Become Movement Makers, by Ed
Stetzer and Warren Bird (2010)
• Exponential: How You and Your Friends Can Start a Missional Church
Movement, by Dave Ferguson and Jon Ferguson (2010)
• The Permanent Revolution: Apostolic Imagination and Practice for the 21st
Century Church, Alan Hirsch & Tim Catchim
• Planting Fast-Growing Churches, by Stephen Gray (2007)

Congregational Vitality & Ministry Models
• Transformational Church: Creating a New Scorecard for Congregations,
Thom Rainer, Ed Stetzer
• Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church: Mandate, Mark Deymaz
• Hybrid Church and Deliberate Simplicity, Dave Browning
• Cracking Your Church's Culture Code, Samuel Chand
• Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High,
Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler
[notes: bit.ly/crucialconversationsnotes]
• Inﬂuencer: The Power to Change Anything [notes: bit.ly/inﬂuencernotes]

Missional-Incarnational Ministry
• AND: The Gathered and Scattered Church, Hugh Halter & Matt Smay
• The Permanent Revolution: Apostolic Imagination and Practice for the 21st
Century Church, Alan Hirsch and Tim Catchim
• On the Verge: A Journey Into the Apostolic Future of the Church,
Alan Hirsch and Dave Ferguson
• Creating a Missional Culture, JR Woodward
• Multiplying Missional Leaders by Mike Breen and Jon Tyson


Top Tens!
Top Ten Church Planting Maxims
10. You will be broken

9. Plant behind the plow. Prayer is the plow.
8. People are “polite” (*cough* lie) - don’t believe them :-)
7. 75 is the enemy
6. You can’t plant from behind a desk (or computer screen!)
5. There’s no magic bullet
4. God is in the vision – the devil is in the details
(so don’t ignore the details and derail the vision)
3. Its the relational – not the technical
2. Isolation kills – connection gives life
1. It’s a God thing!

Reflection: Which of these maxims are hardest for you to embrace? Most encouraging?

Top Ten Reasons for Starting New Churches
1. New churches needed because vast majority of Americans don’t attend church
2. New churches are more effective at conversion growth
3. New churches are the only truly effective way
to reach the growing ethnic populations in America
4. New churches are needed to stem tide of
ideological moral erosion in America
5. New churches have historically been the best method
for reaching each emerging new generation
6. New churches give a group of connected churches
“market share” and greater influence in their community
7. New churches grow exponentially faster than established churches
8. New churches are a test laboratory for church leadership development
9. New churches are the research & development unit of God’s Kingdom
10. New churches provide excellent on-the-job training for energetic young pastors

Reflection: Which of these reasons resonates most with you?


Notes:


Launch Team Training Handout for New City Boston

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