Let’s Start Churches Together!
At Living Hope International Ministries, our mission is to make disciples of all nations. The most effective way to do this is through locally run, self-sustainable, biblically faithful, spirit-led, emotionally healthy churches. To that end, we believe God has called our ministry to start churches around the world, especially in cities. (Check out our map to see the Living Hope global network of churches, home fellowships, and individuals.) For more about our reasoning, check out this article: “Why Start Churches?” by Sean Finnegan.
Are you interested in partnering with us to start churches around the world? If so, there are four different ways to help. Please prayerfully consider if God is calling you to do one of these.
Start a church
We believe God is calling people from a variety of backgrounds to begin and grow new churches. Has God called you to start a church? We’re looking for courageous Christian leaders of home fellowships or Bible studies with a minimum of twenty attendees who are ready to take the next step and establish a weekly Sunday service in a public space. If that’s you, fill out our church planting application. Please note, this application should be filled out by the prospective lead pastor of the new church. Please check our statement of faith to make sure Living Hope is a good fit.
Join a core team
Starting a church is hard work. Beyond a qualified pastor, churches typically need volunteers to help run worship, children’s ministry, audio, video, slides, and the team of greeters. Many churches serve refreshments before or after the service. Then there’s the need for spiritually mature elders and deacons to make decisions and serve the needs of the community. Beyond that, there’s outreach. New churches need to grow, which means they have a great need for courageous individuals willing to relentlessly invite people to come.
Do you think you can help with any of this? If so, you may want to join the core team of a church plant. This involves moving to a location where a church is currently being planted or about to begin in the near future. Your commitment will be for one year of service and you will need to support yourself during that time. Essentially, you will serve as a missionary for a year—whether in the US or abroad. This experience will inevitably provide you with many opportunities for growth as you walk with God by faith. If you’re interested, fill out our core team questionnaire.
Assist remotely
Another way you can help us start churches is by volunteering to help remotely. Starting churches takes a good deal of coordination and communication. We are looking for volunteers to assist both on our end as well as with individual churches. If you have skills that you are blessed to put to use for this effort, fill out this remote volunteer questionnaire.
Fund the work
Our largest limiting factor currently for starting new churches is funding. Just like starting a business, getting a church going takes considerable investment. Living Hope offers a range of funding options depending on the needs of the church plant and what we have available. If you would like to empower this movement to grow, please consider donating to our church planting fund online. (Be sure to select “Church Planting.”) Alternatively, you can make a check out to LHIM and send it to us at 458 Old Niskayuna Road, Latham, NY 12110. All donations are tax-deductible. (More about giving here.) Thanks so much to those who have already donated. Without you we would never have been able to get started on this exciting work!
