New Churches Podcast | Season 1 | Episode 835

Wise Church Planting

J.A. Medders & Dan Steel

In this bonus summer episode, host Jeff Medders meets with researcher, preacher, and church elder Dan Steel to discuss many of the very real pitfalls experienced by church planters today. Tune in to discover how you can wisely navigate the hurdles and complexities of modern-day church planting while remaining faithful to the Lord and to His mission for His church.

In This Episode, You’ll Discover:

  • How an effective church planter is similar to a cross-country runner
  • Why a well-rounded core team is a game changer for any new church
  • What you can glean from the stories of the struggling church planters who have gone before you
  • Why charity and clarity are some of the greatest gifts a sending church can give you
  • How you can combat naivety through investing in wise community

Helpful Resources:

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Sharable Quotes (#NewChurches):

Ultimately, God says, “Well, hang on—I’ve told you how churches grow: patience, prayer, and preaching.” When we start trusting in the wrong things, we run into danger. — Dan Steel

None of us is the Swiss Army pen knife who can do everything; we all need each other. We’re designed to be interdependent, but that can be quite hard for a planter. — Dan Steel

Sometimes, the ground is hard, our ministry is hard, and we run into thorns and thistles. — Dan Steel

We love to platform the big guys and big guns the Lord has blessed, but in many ways, they’re the minority. They may be the ones we look up to, but they’re unusual. — Dan Steel

There are only a few times that we hear or see Philip do something in Scripture. Most of us are not the Peters, the Jameses, or the Johns. We are the Philips, the Nathanaels, and the Bartholomews serving the Lord. — Jeff Medders

We are obsessed with the highlights, but there are so many lowlights in ministry. God’s grace shines in the lowlights, and he meets us down there as well. — Jeff Medders

Published on July 10, 2024

About the Podcast

New Churches Podcast

The New Churches podcast offers practical answers to your real ministry questions. We aren’t going to provide lofty pie-in-the-sky theories. Instead, we are going to help you in your real ministry context, with your real thoughts, questions, and issues.

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Meet the Authors

J.A. Medders

General Editor New Churches

J.A. (Jeff) Medders is the Director of Theology and Content for Send Network and General Editor for New Churches. He is also an author, a preacher, and a PhD student in biblical spirituality at Southern Seminary, studying Charles Spurgeon and the Song of Songs. Jeff is a native Houstonian, where he lives with his wife and two kids.

More Resources from J.A.

Dan Steel

Dan Steel has been involved in church plants—in one way or another—for the last 25 years. He currently resides in Oxford, UK with his wife (Zoe) and 2 kids (with 2 away at university). He’s an elder at Magdalen Road Church and the Principal of Yarnton Manor. He’s the author of Wise Church Planting, a global research study seeking to listen to and learn the lessons from struggling planters.

More Resources from Dan