Church Planter Tune Up

So you've launched a new church.  Now what?  This valuable seminar will help equip you and your team to take the next steps toward self-sufficiency and effective ministry.  Bring a team of lay people with you!  More momentum can be gained when you all experience growth together!  Here's what we will cover in this "tune up" time....

            Overcome common new church mistakes
            Gather momentum
            Inspire generosity
            Design worship services
            Early organizational structures
            Develop teams together
            Cultivate disciples
            Marketing the new church start
            Leadership development
            Staffing needs
            Initial ministries to attract
            Dealing with difficult people
            Get a life and keep it

LEADERS

Rev. Barb Flory is former pastor of Sycamore Creek UMC, a new church plant in the Lansing District of the West Michigan Conference. The church was launched in November 2000 as a daughter church of Holt UMC, in Holt, MI.  The mission of the church is to ignite authentic life in Christ, and their target audience is people who are un-churched, de-churched or never churched!  Sycamore Creek is a church where questions and spiritual challenges are welcomed.  It is a church where atheists come to faith.  The attendance is presently running over 300 per Sunday and the congregation is self-supporting.

Barb was pastor of Concord (Mich.) UMC from 1990-1998, during which time she started the only seeker-targeted ministry in the area. She also created two very successful one-day seminars called "The Little Church That Could," aimed at small churches interested in beginning seeker-targeted services in order to reach the unchurched. During her pastorate in Concord, attendance increased by 300 percent and financial support rose by 400 percent.

Barb was appointed Director of New Church Development for the West Michigan Conference in July of 2009.  Barb and her husband, Robert, have two children: Susan (Dan), a teacher in the Lansing School District, and Wendy (Glenn), a professor at the University of Hawaii.  They also have two grandchildren, 11 year old Gaelen, 8 year old Aidan, and 6 year old Kainoa. 

Dr. Brad Kalajainen is the senior pastor at Cornerstone United Methodist in Grand Rapids, MI. Brad was the founding pastor of Cornerstone Church launched in December of 1990. With the help of a small dedicated core group, Cornerstone grew to an average attendance of 350 in six years. Since moving into their building in 1997, the average attendance has grown to over 1400 weekly with another 300 children and youth in their own worship experiences at the same time.  Cornerstone uses a simple church model with a strong emphasis on small groups and equipping people for the work of the ministry.  They relocated their church to a 38 acre parcel of land in the fall of 2009.  The new facility doubles the size of their first site.

Brad has been a ministry track and seminar leader for new church, church growth, and small group ministry at the Board of Discipleship's School of Congregational Development for seven years.  Part of Cornerstone's vision is to be a teaching church. Cornerstone hosts annual teaching conferences.  Brad's wife Colleen is an elementary music teacher. They have two children, Kaylee in college and Ben in high school.

DATES AND PLACES

This seminar will be offered on the following dates and locations.  Click on a location for further information.

If your church or conference would be interested in hosting or sponsoring this seminar, please click on the "Sponsor Info" button or text link for information.