Wise Church Planting by Dan Steel (Review)
I’ve read a number of books on church planting over the years, but this gem of a book from Dan Steel is quite unlike any other I’ve read, and in a very good way!
Part of what makes it so unique and helpful is that it gathers research from around the world, not from church plants that have quickly flourished and grown but from plants that have struggled or failed. Dan has gathered the experiences and insights of 80 such plants and their planters, and compiled from them twelve common pitfalls that church planters face. Each of these pitfalls is analysed, relevant scriptures are explored and brought to bear and questions for further reflection and self-examination are offered, together with insights from other planters who have wrestled with the same issues. This approach has resulted in a book packed full of biblically informed, practical wisdom for the church planter.
An early observation of the book is “that most modern-day planting looks a little less pioneering and a little more like starting ready-made smaller churches in new areas where there is no (or little) witness” (p27). This can often make books on church planting rather less helpful for the rural church planter in his more pioneering role than it might be for his student town colleague. However the data informing this book seems to be drawn from a wider pool of church planting contexts which makes it very helpful in the rural context too. As a pastor/planter working in a more rural context myself, I found many of the chapters informative and insightful.
There is a great chapter on the priority of godliness over giftedness which pays careful reading and reflection. It’s been my experience that in more rural contexts where churches are typically smaller and budgets are often tight that it can be difficult to attract gospel workers and so tempting to ‘settle’ for whoever is willing to come! This chapter was a great reminder that it can be disastrous to ‘settle’ when it comes to character!
I found the discussion on isolation and loneliness especially resonated with me. Church planting (perhaps especially in rural areas) often seems to attract pastors/planters who are ‘rugged individualists’. The chapter is honest about the resilience this often gives us, but equally honest about the “shadow-side” of pridefulness and independence that often shows itself a few years in, with calamitous results. The need to intentionally establish and sustain ministry friendships and partnerships (despite the time investment) is essential to avoid exhaustion and burnout. The questions for self-examination in this chapter were definitely on-point and have helped encourage me to keep investing in this.
There is also a great section on the ever-present tendency to get distracted from “the careful, prayerful preaching and teaching of His Spirit-exhaled Word” (p83) and find ourselves functionally relying on other things to bring the fruit that only the gospel can. I have found that rural church planting can be particularly susceptible to this kind of distraction as, with very limited resources, the planter finds that if he wants to get something done, he’ll need to be the one who does it! To spend serious time, week by week, in the study and proclamation of God’s Word, requires discipline, humility and faith, but this is the work through which Christ builds his church!
These are just a tiny sample of a very considerable amount of wisdom in these pages, superbly culled and reflected on by the author. The chapter on the planters family and the strain that planting puts on marriage and family life is excellent and will repay careful reading. The importance of the relationship of the plant to the parent church for its ongoing health is full of helpful wisdom too. Indeed where some books have a chapter or two of ‘gold’ amidst a fair amount of ‘padding’, this is a book with ‘gold’ in every chapter!
Whether you are about to set out on a new church plant, or in the middle of leading one, or in a more established church looking to plant out, you will benefit greatly from reading and reflecting on the wisdom in this book. It would be a great book to get a few copies of in order to read together with a church planting team or group of elders, which is exactly what we’ll be doing with it!
