A lady sitting next to me on a flight from Dallas back to Birmingham, Ala., asked me, "What kind of work do you do?" I answered, "I plant churches." She looked at me with confusion and replied, "Oh, what does that mean?" "I help young couples that have a dream of doing something extraordinary for God fulfill that dream as church planters."
Then I went on to explain that nearly 4,000 churches in the U.S. close each year and there is a huge need for new churches in every city. I explained that the Association of Related Churches (ARC), an organization I helped found, selected, trained and financed the ministries of people who wanted to start new churches, and that I felt like I had the greatest job in the world. She smiled and said, "That's nice."
Church planting is nice. I'm not sure if the lady in the plane felt sorry for me or if she was sincere with her comments. But the bottom line is this: Church planting is the most effective evangelistic tool in the church today.
Statistics show that after a church is approximately 4 years old, it starts to lose its evangelistic thrust and fewer people find Christ. New churches, on the other hand, have a high per capita conversion rate because in order to be successful they must reach people. The tendency is to ease off the evangelism once critical mass is met (there are enough people to pay the bills and the pastor's salary, and the building is 80 percent full.)
ARC started in 2001 with two church plants. Each one was named the fastest-growing church in America. In 2008, Church of the Highlands, Birmingham, Ala., pastored by Chris Hodges, was named the No. 1, fastest-growing church by Outreach magazine. Then in 2009, pastor Rick Bezet's New Life Church in Little Rock, Ark., earned that distinction. There are now 200 new church plants in ARC.
The cell church movement back in the 1990s was very significant to the church around the world, accomplishing two major things. It developed leaders who learned how to gather people, lead a meeting, prepare a message and raise up other leaders. Secondly, it refocused the local church on evangelism.
At our church we trained more than 600 cell-group leaders who won more than 5,000 souls in their homes in a five-year period. This was an amazing time. Prior to cell groups, the church had reached a plateau. Launching new "ministry cells" in homes changed all that. But cell groups were not enough.
While speaking in so many of the churches that were transitioning to a cell-based ministry, I noticed some alarming things. Though the church was raising up leaders and starting cell groups, Sunday services were still lifeless and outdated.
After each visit I would ask my wife, Charlene, if she would attend the church we had just visited if she lived in that city. She said no 85 percent of the time. Why? There were a few outstanding characteristics that seemed to be present in each church but the main ingredient missing was life.
Life is that element that gives the church a sense of God's presence and movement. It is the pulse of purpose and the reality that you are moving forward.
ARC exists to plant life-giving churches that are friendly, value people, serve communities, reach the lost and redefine what Spirit-filled churches are all about. ARC trains pastors to be authentic, life giving and teaches them how to raise up leaders that will go and plant more churches that will impact our nation with the gospel of Christ.
Billy Hornsby is a sought-after speaker and the president of the Association of Related Churches.
