Sunday, October 19, 2008 Next Steps: An Update

Sometimes I feel that things are moving forwards much slower than I would like. The truth is, that God is truly in control. I've been keeping this in mind as I've been examining our next steps with Encounter. Here's where we are and what I'm working on...

PARTNERSHIPS
Pursuing a partnership with ARC (see here and here and here) will first require an established church to sponsor us. I just blogged about a potential partnership with our current church. A lot of our next steps depend on how our church-sponsorship proposal is received. Different responses will mean different next steps. For now, we're just kind of waiting. Once we know where we stand we can step up an intentional effort of sharing more about Encounter and developing a Church Planting Team. I'm actually really excited about being able to share this passion on our hearts!

LEGAL STEPS
I've been looking into the legal actions we need to take to officially establish Encounter as a church in Helena. This will eventually be required for gifts to Encounter to be tax-deductible. We've been reviewing different samples of church constitutions, bylaws, and considering trustees. Church planters friends of mine have encouraged us not to rush into any of those, so I was relieved to find that, unlike other states, Montana does not require them incorporation of a religious non-profit.

PLANNING
Since we've already outlined our mission, strategy, and ministry approach in the prospectus, another step I'm working on involves developing a full launch plan, schedule, and budget. I already have an extensive to-do list for Encounter stuff, but a comprehensive launch plan will keep things moving in the right direction and on track.