Church planting can’t save the church because church planting isn’t the Savior. Jesus has that more than covered.  A church planter wishes things into existence in a world that prefers things remain the same.Anyone who starts something new will face people who tell you, “That’s not how it’s done.” Do it anyway.  

Don’t wait until it’s perfect. Start with something imperfect and be willing to adjust. The church planter’s best tool is iteration. 

Never forget that every church that has ever existed was a church plant at some point.  

The goal of church marketing isn’t to trick someone into visiting so you can convert them into the image of what you think they should be. The goal of marketing is to clearly communicate who you are, who you are striving to be, and what it means for someone to be a part of your community. They can decide for themselves if it’s a good fit. Seeking people’s advice is one of the best ways to build positive relationships. You’re not trying fill up an auditorium with warm bodies. You’re taking time to get to know real people, with real needs and unique personalities.  

You can be you, with all your glorious, natural limitations: time, energy, and resources. Your prayers, at their most basic level, actively acknowledge that you’re not God and that’s okay.  

Striving to be the best, strongest, most influential is natural, but it’s not a motivation we should feed. It does not reflect the upside-down kingdom Jesus came to establish.  

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.” The same is true for church planting.  The goal isn't to create the perfect mission statement, but to create clarity about what you hope to do. You need multiple ways to share and explain your hope to others. The goal is effective communication, not a well-written sentence.  

Jesus only had a launch team of 12 disciples yet fed 5000. Never let the numbers of your launch team dictate the dream you have for your community.  

Most of what you love about a church is a personal preference. Not all personal preferences need to be duplicated in a new church.  

Church plants take an immense amount of initiative. You must start everything from scratch—there is no committee to rely on. Not until you form it. There is no staff to work with until you hire them and no money to spend until you raise it. Still, the worst thing you can do is try to do all of this by yourself. Your greatest tool is to recruit, train, and deploy high-impact volunteers and leaders to carry the burden.