Have you heard the growing buzz about church planting? Over the last few years’ church planting has become a trending topic and has come to represent a renewed effort to do missions around the world. It is exciting to watch. And we are excited to participate in some small way.
As of this summer, Calvary Chapel University started a new certificate program in Church Planting. This program draws upon the resources of the church planters in Calvary Chapel. We currently have Payton Jones of New Breed Church Planting overseeing two courses and we are hoping to add a few more faculty members this fall. We have received a lot of encouragement and support from Daniel Fusco of San Francisco, California, and Kevin Fitzgerald of Ireland.
We decided to launch this certificate program for two reasons: first, there are a number of young guys in Calvary Chapel who are interested in church planting. These guys are looking for training, camaraderie, and support. The University has the ability to be a gathering place for these future planters and can serve them as they prepare to launch out.
The second reason that we started the certificate program was because of the growing number of veteran church planters that have a heart to train new planters. There is a growing number of pastor’s that have planted churches and now have a vision for training men to do the same. And again, the University has the ability to gather those men together as a faculty that can provide training.
Church planting is a big emphasis in some of the newer church movements. The fastest growing group is the Acts29 network out of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington. These groups are producing some excellent resources and conferences. As we watch this emphasis unfold we believe that Calvary Chapel has an incredible heritage of church planting experience that can contribute to the church planting movement. The University has taken upon itself the task of gathering the church planting resources from within Calvary Chapel so that they can be distributed to upcoming leaders.
If you are interested in the most recent church planting resources in Calvary Chapel you will want to check out these links.
Fit for the Field – This is a one-month intensive training currently being hosted in Murrieta, California. Kevin Fitzgerald is the brains behind the event and has taken the summer off from his church plant in Dublin, Ireland to participate in the training. He has invited some excellent speakers to participate and most of the messages can be viewed through the live feed on his web site.
Basic Training (Church Planting Video Series) – This is a video series that Pastor Brian Brodersen recently completed. All the videos can be viewed for free on his web site.
Daniel Fusco – He is a church planter currently pastoring in San Francisco, California. He has great content on his blog and has been talking about church planting long before it had the current level of attention. He recently published a book called Ahead of the Curve, and has a big vision for church planting in San Francisco.
New Breed Church Planting Network – This is the ministry of Payton Jones. He was a church planter in Wales, England and has a passion to serve men who feel called to plant.