ALLEN T. OLATUNDE
NOVEMBER 2011
INTRODUCTION
Church planting is a long-term project that involves God, the church and the church planter. Church as an organism has all characteristics of human being. Reproduction as a process from conception to delivery is applied in church planting. It calls for responsibility, strategy and involvement. The plant a church, it needs proposal, the feasibility study of the new church in which the strategy to adopt is tested on paper.
Proposal of church planting comes from the idea of intuition and conception of unseen with ability to realize the invisible church. This paper is on an abstract proposal of church planting in a village locality in Benin Republic.
OUTLINE OF CHURCH PLANTING PROPOSAL
- Why start a New Church?
- Who is the Ministry Focus Group?
- What kind of a church are we going to plant?
- With whom will you plant this church?
- How will you gather a group to be a church?
- Define the critical success indicators at each step of the way.
- When will the church go public?
- How much will it cost?
WHY START A NEW CHURCH?
The passion to raise living church in Sasse village was divine as I visited the land. The love and anticipating enthusiasm of the people proved the need to start a church. God had authored the passion through the Mission trip to the land. The vision for this new church is to raise indigenous leaders and spiritually mature Christian that can disciple others. However, in the land we have others churches that teach God’s word but their fervency and commitment to the scripture are watery. There is syncretism in church practice. There is lost of hope and trust in their indigenous leaders.
WHO IS THE MINISTRY FOCUS GROUP?
The ministry focus group in the land is the youth and the abandoned leaders. The people are skillful but unnutured and untrained. The youth are educated but not really spiritual. They have thirst for things of God but they are not rightly used. The leaders are not accepted because of their personal differences and their distant barriers. The focus will be on the leadership training and discipleship. The felt needs of the people of the focus group are right leadership training, living church that disallows syncretism and fetishism. The people need environment to show their love to God and raise their commitment in service to God, need good exemplary indigenous leaders. The demographic data of this ministry focus group is stated below:
Sassegbonou village in Republic of Benin was formerly dominated by typical Yoruba people from Nigeria, precisely Ejigbo town in Osun state. They were merchant, traders of traditional items and farmers. As time went on, the major indigene of the area; the Eguns and Ajas mixed up with Yorubas in marriage, farming and business. Their population is estimated to be 10,000. The statistics of the religion are Christianity about 50%, Islam 5%, and Idol worshiping 45%. The Christian churches in the land are Baptist, The Apostolic Faith and Roman Catholic. Christianity has greater percentage on the population but the manner and type of their belief is not really biblical. An average indigene enjoys ‘ogogoro’ drinks because of high numbers of palm trees in the land. They sell and smoke cigarette, and pounded tobacco leaves in local inhalers. Polygamy is their way of life. Church is not exempted. It is a pride to have many wives and step children. If you do not, you are cursed. They are more than averagely stark illiterate, though their children go to school, yet education still crawls in the land because education is costly in Benin Republic. There is high level of immorality among youths. Their girls became mothers unprepared. Early motherhood prevails in the land, even in the church. This decadence is not only in Sasse, but also in the neighbouring villages.
Sassegbonou village is located in the lower part of middle of Benin Republic. It is surrounded by villages like Hessa, Sebenou, Gbedji, Chiata and Tshito. The land is sandy and water proof during rainy season. The rivers of the land overflow and movement becomes restricted. It is on plain land and highly fertilized for palm products. No mountains and valleys, all is dilated plain land. Sassegbonou can be located though two routes: Igbolo and Cotonou. From Seme Border in Nigeria to Topa in Cotonou and from there to Ouegbo town to Aboti (Sasse), the tip that will last for 6 to 7 hours both on buses and motorbike.
WHAT KIND OF A CHURCH ARE WE GOING TO PLANT?
The church of Christ that is open to all tribes in the land and the church with full belief in scripture, absence of syncretism. The church shall be friendly, accommodating converts and help one another. Education and nurturing is core value of the church. The church in embryo shall produce leaders with in the culture that is Christ-cultured. We shall apply evangelism and outreach ministry style to first reach out to the target Ministry Focus Group. Evangelism and social outreach will open door for the mission. Organizing a programme that will involve youths and leaders in the land will help in starting up and later start up small group Bible study in a rent apartment for months. Through family Bible study and youth Bible study, we shall penetrate the land for gospel and living church.
WITH WHOM WILL YOU PLANT THIS CHURCH?
Church planting is not one man endeavour. We shall partner with the existing Baptist church in the locality and the association. The work will be done with a team that is evangelistic in the land especially the Youth in the association or in the church. The team will also raise few hands from Nigeria especially the ones that can speak Frecnh, Egun and Yoruba language fluently. The team consists of prayer warriors, teachers, counselors and missionaries. For this mission, there is need fo sponsoring organization like MMU and WMU of my home church to identify the needs on this mission. The sponsoring organization can best come along side of this team through prayer chain, finances, resources provision, logistics and visitations.
HOW WILL YOU GATHER A GROUP TO BE A CHURCH?
Firstly, we shall organize a village-wide crusade that will involve all churches especially the Baptist denominations around (if any). Secondly, the team will organize medical outreaches with counseling sessions. Thirdly, house to house evangelism with social ministry, meeting needs at home. Fourthly, we shall target the youth on the football pitch, join them through our competition organization with purpose of evangelism. Fifthly, we shall organize educative orientation for the farmers and the traders. Sixthly, we shall organize a powerful prayer revival monthly with counseling sessions. We shall gather people after all these as we start weekly Bible study with effective prayer meetings. After this programme is grounded, we shall rent or buy a land to build a worship center. The committed members will be recruited into the vision as the church grows.
DEFINE THE CRITICAL SUCCESS INDICATORS AT EACH STEP
This proposed church shall established indicators for growth to the level of becoming full-fledged church. They are:
- When the church is able to raise at least two indigenous faithful and trusted leaders;
- When the church is able to produce Christians that can stand faithful even outside of worship service;
- When the church is able to integrate members into the church system by having small groups functioning without close supervision of the Pastor/leader;
- When the church is able to raise people that can teach Sunday School, children class, Discipleship class, Bible Study, lead Prayers, Worship and take commitment in giving, singing, and visitation.
WHEN WILL THE CHURCH GO PUBLIC?
Every conception has a delivery time so also the church planted. This church shall be full-fledged church when she gives the success indicator as brighter as expected. The church will be on 5 years plan of church growth in which the strength and weakness will be measured to know her standing in the public. The threat and opportunity around will be ascertained before the organization. This is an assumed timeline for incremental steps in this church.
Jan - March 2012: Launching out through evangelism and outreaches and other strategies.
April – Dec. 2012: Bible Study and Prayer Meetings only.
Jan. – Feb. 2013: Continuous Open air Revival with Deliverance sessions.
Mar - Dec. 2013: Include Sunday Morning worship.
Jan. – Dec. 2014: Full course on Discipleship, Stewardship and Leadership Development Programme
Jan. – Dec. 2015: Small groups start functioning and roles initially identified begin. Discover spiritual gifts for church growth.
Jan. – Dec. 2016: Allow the trained leaders and youths to function autonomously without close supervision. This will lead to the organization of the church.
HOW MUCH WILL IT COST?
This mission is capital intensive because it is cross-cultural. The need to be mobile and communicated all times makes the work continued. This project will cost more at the beginning but later become less as soon as the church grows in giving grace. This is the initial start up budget and expected funding streams.
BUDGET FOR THE FIRST TWO YEARS
EXPECTED INCOME
Personal Savings N70,000 CFA210,000
Church Societies N100,000 CFA300,000
Donations from Friends N50,000 CFA150,000
Others N80,000 CFA240,000
N300,000 CFA900,000
ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE
Transportation N50,000 CFA150,000
Accommodation N 40,000 CFA120,000
PA System N 50,000 CFA150,000
Feeding N 100,000 CFA300,000
Logistics N 10,000 CFA30,000
Stationeries N 10,000 CFA30,000
International Documents N 20,000 CFA60,000
Miscellaneous N 20,000 CFA60,000
N 300,000 CFA900,000
FUNDING STRATEGY
For this kind of project, other sources should be strategized into the missions in order to finish well. We shall add these means as funding strategy:
- Raising funds through Nigerian Baptist Convention (GMB)
- Launching Missions Project Funds
- Online Donations through Website Info on the progress of work on the field
- Business venture basically to assist the Missions
- Partnership with mission minded churches in Nigeria
- Others – as God gives inspiration and ideas to raise more funds.
CONCLUSION
This proposal can become reality if the idea, the goal, and the strategy is maximally shared with mission minded fellow. This is just an abstract proposal but effective in planting real church in a foreign and home mission fields.
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