This month of July, 2022, leaders across Evangelical Friends Church Mid America are celebrating our new church, Emmanuel Friends Church in Fargo, North Dakota. This strong church family of immigrants from Bhutan and Nepal, began or planted in 2015. Over the last year and a half, leaders from this congregation have worked with your Home Missions Team to complete our Affiliation Journey of steps for full-church status. Pending approval by church representatives at our 2022 Ministry Conference in Lawrence, Kansas, this celebration will be complete. Our project in Fargo is one of twelve different unique new church developments that your Home Missions team has been working through their Journeys Toward Maturity this year.
Multiplying Groups, Ministries, and Churches is the final dynamic for healthy church growth that Dr. Bob Logan has been challenging churches across America and around the world on his Logan Leadership blog for the last 10 months. Dr. Bob Logan was the keynote speaker for our 2020 National Friends Church Multiplication Conference held at Barclay College in Haviland Kansas, and we respect very much his heart and challenge for our churches in EFC-MAYM. It must be our corporate goal to plan for and expect that all aspects of ministry will continue reproducing themselves to expand the work of the Kingdom across all cultures and generations.
Dr. Logan says in his latest blog that one result of having healthy and functioning structures in place is not only having ministry occurring, but having ministry multiply! A healthy, growing church has benefits not only for itself, but for all the world. Just as a healthy disciple produces more disciples, and a healthy group produces more groups, a healthy church will produce more churches. The focus of the Kingdom of God is always outward. It is the light that shines out in the darkness, the mustard seed that grows into a giant tree, and the yeast that works its way through a whole batch of dough. The Kingdom of God spreads. That’s its nature.
Our work is to plan for this outcome. We are to be intentional, sowing the seeds of new disciples, new leaders, new ministries, and new churches into everything we do. We are to cast vision that this is the purpose and nature of the church to multiply outward. That way the Kingdom of God grows; not inward keeping all resources to itself, but outward. Yes, God has designed churches as living organisms that are involved in the process of creating new churches in order to be healthy, reach out, and accomplish the Great Commission. May it be so for all of our churches!
Dr Logan suggests seven things you can do to multiply:
- Teach and cast vision for the biblical nature of multiplication like John 15.
- Foster a spirit of generosity rather than an “us vs them” mentality
- Assess each level of multiplication and how well it is working in your church
- Analyze your church from the viewpoint of a church planter. What do you see?
- Allocate your finances in alignment with your values for ministry multiplication
- Release your people for church planting endeavors i.e. possibly join a PAT on a church plant!
- Bless and support new ministries and churches like Emmanuel EFC in Fargo, ND or another
First of all, pray and listen to the Holy Spirit and take some time to assess how your church is currently participating in this area. Then, identify some customized action steps you can do to strengthen this dynamic in your church.
Blessings!!
Randy Littlefield
Director of Multiplication Ministries
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