Training your core team is very important to the connectivity of your new church plant. Twelve weeks allows you to cover major topics imperative to church and discipleship without giving too much information in one setting.
This plan allows the core team to create healthy relationships with one another by consistently meeting together over the course of 12 weeks and to have a long on-ramp of hearing your heart and vision as the pastor. It is a good season of encouragement and bonding in the healthy relationship with this church planting community.
Here is an overview of the 12-week process.
Week 1: The First Meeting
In this meeting, you will cast the vision for your core team. You will unfold the idea of membership and mission. Explain why membership and mission are so vital to the life of your church. Paint a picture of people not just coming to your church to hear the gospel, but of your church members carrying the gospel into the community.
Weeks 2, 3 and 4: Truth
- Every member identified. Their identity is no longer in themselves, but in Christ. The gospel changes and shapes them and gives them a new identity. You want your core team to walk away knowing what the gospel is, how they can communicate the gospel and the importance and role of baptism.
- Every member devoted. What is the role of spiritual disciplines? Your core team will learn about having a daily quiet time, the importance of personal and corporate worship and the importance of sacrificial giving.
- Every member praying. The devotion to prayer is a major part of the training. Prayer is highly important for the core team’s lives.
Week 5: Prayer-Focused Meeting
Pray for your core team, your community, your church plant, etc. Pray individually and in groups. Take a full week of training to implement what you taught them in Week 4.
Weeks 6, 7 and 8: Community
- Every member united. What does it mean to be unified as a church body under the mission before you? Dive into 1 Corinthians 1, where Paul talks about unity.
- Every member connected. Biblical community has an important role in the life of a church. Outline your small group structure. Your core team will learn the role that biblical community plays in the church.
- Every member serving. Give your core team a spiritual gifts inventory to help them understand how they can use their gifts in the church.
Week 9: Meet in Serve Teams
Each team can discuss what their role is on campus. Spend an entire session talking about how they can apply their gifts and what the logistics of their roles are.
Weeks 10, 11 and 12: Mission
- Every member equipped. In this session, your core team will learn a specific evangelism method and what conversion is.
- Every member on mission. Discuss what it means to live on mission. Your core team members will model mission for new members coming in and guests visiting your church.
- Every member at war. Spiritual warfare is real in a Christian’s life. Satan will be hard after your core team because you put so much spiritual energy into launching.
For more details on what each week should cover and an overview of how to plan each week’s meeting, watch “Nuts and Bolts for Core Team Training.” This video is part of the free Developing a Core Team training course. Register for the course here.
Published September 26, 2022