This was the second time I’ve participated in a Church Planters Boot Camp and the first time I got to present at one. 

And in comparing my two experiences, I think I can say, like all things Ecclesia-related, this one was just “better.” 

Part of the value of Ecclesia is that when they say “relational network”, they actually mean it. Those involved in the network agree to be in relationship with each other, not just in some vague metaphorical sense, but with actual phone calls, conversations, and time spent with each other. 

This seems to all begin at the boot camp, with meals together, late night talks, long walks on the beach (ok… I made that last one up, but still.)

From the moment I arrived, I began to realize – this is a room of like-minded individuals intent on seeing the Gospel spread and healthy, missionally-minded communities planted. And in the lonely world of church planting, I can think of few things more valuable than having a handful of friends like that.

The boot camp itself was a great mix of the theoretical and the practical, the motivational and the devotional. Times of prayer, times of discussion, lots of learning and lots of dreaming. Plenty of room for divergent models- no, not everyone here is going to plant the same kind of church- but a common heart because of a common focus on the person of Jesus.

If you ever take part in one of these bootcamps, and you should, just don’t expect to be wowed by experts who started their church and a year later had 1,000 people showing up. This wasn’t like that… and since your church planting experience probably won’t be either, that’s a good thing. 

This was a really healthy mix of seasoned practitioners and newer church planters all sharing what they’ve learned along the way. And everyone was invited and even expected to do the same. This boot camp quickly became a community of learners and teachers as everyone contributed.

The setting of the Richmond Hill community was wonderful with its rhythms of daily prayer and contemplative atmosphere. Hard to imagine a better setting for listening to God and seeing what it is He might be birthing in you as regards church planting. 

This boot camp is an annual event so there will be another one in 2010. If you are interested in learning more about Ecclesia and the boot camp, you are invited to e-mail Christ Backert by using our the contact form on our website.

You can listen to the audio from the 2009 boot camp here

Bob is the pastor at Evergreen Community Church in Portland, OR and blogs here.

Contributors to this series included authors, bloggers, professors, and practitioners. It contained perspectives from different ethnicities and different genders, as well as from Asia, South America, Europe and North America. In this blog series each of the contributors summarized their understanding of the Good News in 300 to 500 words.

The series was excellent and we had a number of Ecclesia Pastors who took part in the series. You can find a full list of contributors here.

These two questions will be giving shape to our time together during this day.

We are excited to have two exceptional conversation partners for this event:

Dr. Darrell Guder
Dr. Guder is the Dean of Academic Affairs and Henry Winters Luce Professor of Missional and Ecumenical Theology at Princteon Theological Seminary and author of the landmark book Missional Church, among others.

Andy Crouch
Andy is the author of Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling, winner of Christianity Today’s 2009 Book Award for Christianity and Culture and named one of the best books of 2008 by Publishers Weekly, Relevant, Outreach and Leadership. (Read more about Andy here)

Event Schedule:

• 10:00am – 12:00pm / Reading Scripture with Dr. Guder
• 12:00pm – 1:00pm / Lunch at local restaurants
• 1:00pm – 3:00pm / Culture Making with Andy Crouch
• 3:00pm – 4:00pm / Panel & Discussion led by Scott Jones

About the Location:
The Well is a church community in Feasterville, PA, a suburb of Philadelphia. Check out some pictures of the seminar space here.

More info and registration for this seminar: http://scriptureandculture09.eventbrite.com/

It is not difficult to realize that church planting is something more people are doing and seeking to do, because there are many opportunities for church planters to get training, coaching and resources. As a person who has been planting churches for some time and who loves to help church planters, I wanted to let you know about a training event that is happening this coming May in Richmond, Virginia.

Aggelos

Aggelos is a greek word meaning a messenger, envoy, one who is sent, an angel or a messenger from God. It is the name of a theological and practical training for missional church planting that is hosted by the Ecclesia Network, a relational network of churches, leaders and movements that I work with.

Who is this For?

This training time is designed for people who are seeking to plant a church within the next two years or are within the first two years of a church plant. It is taught by over a half dozen church planters with a wide and varied range of experience and expertise. So if you are in this category continue to read. If you know people in this category, please point them to this blog entry.

How is this Training Unique?

There are a number of distinctives that I enjoy about this particular training time. First of all it is held at Richmond Hill Urban Retreat Center, a Christian ecumenical retreat center in the heart of Richmond. We actually join their prayer rhythms for the week. We do our meals together which allow people to connecting informally with church plant coaches, fellow church planters as well as spiritual directors. It is both theological and practical. It is interactive and taught by practical theologians, meaning people who have been trained theologically and actually plant churches. It is designed for church planters and their teams.

Download the brochure for the schedule.