New Churches Podcast

Episode 648: Full-time paid ministry is fraught with perils. Host Trevin Wax and Ed Welch, a Christian counselor with more than 30 years of experience, sort out the various challenges and offer valuable insight into how to meet them. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: How to be dutiful in pastoral ministry and still maintain your pursuit of holiness in Christ Why your relationship to Christ in mini...

Episode 647: At some point in church ministry, practically all pastors will experience betrayal or hurt from those near them. Host Trevin Wax talks with Ed Welch, a Christian counselor with more than 30 years of experience, about preparing for that and still putting your whole heart into ministry. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: How to deal with the experience of betrayal that anyone in pastoral...

Episode 646: One of the most important topics for pastors and church planters is improving their preaching. Host Clint Clifton and Noah Oldham, lead pastor of August Gate church in St. Louis and NAMB’s senior director of deployment, discuss ways to continue to grow as preachers. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: Two schools of thought in church planting when it comes to preaching Three things youn...

Episode 645: Preaching to a small crowd offers both unique opportunities and particular challenges. Host Clint Clifton discusses them with Noah Oldham, planter and pastor of August Gate Church in St. Louis. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: How whether you know the people you’re preaching to affects how well you communicate with them Why preaching to a smaller crowd is more difficult than a large...

Episode 644: An explosive crisis in a church can destroy both the congregation and Christ’s reputation in the community. Clint Clifton discusses crisis communication strategy with Christian Pinkston, founder of Pinkston, a public relations firm in Washington, D.C., that often helps churches with strategic communications. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: How a focus on enhance a church’s reputatio...

Episode 643: Ed Stetzer, Tiffany Smith and Clint Clifton discuss the advantages and disadvantages of four different approaches to funding a church plant. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: Some of the advantages and disadvantages of four possible approaches to fund church planting: The “Shark Tank” approach The “School Fundraiser” approach The “Get a Job” approach The “Campus Crusade” approach Shar...

Episode 642: Next-generation missionaries and church planters are leveraging their careers for mission. Host Ed Stetzer talks with NAMB’s Tiffany Smith and Clint Clifton about vocational options that work well for bivo/covo church planters. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: Considerations you must keep in mind as you think about planting a church while having another job Whether the bivo/covo tren...

Episode 639: When people experience powerful moments at church, they leave remembering having encountered the Lord and feeling changed. Clint Clifton and Todd Adkins discuss the challenge of “setting the table” for those moments without crossing the line into manipulation. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: The four different types of moments a church planter wants to create for his congregation Wh...

Episode 638: Systems for multiplying church leaders must have a healthy balance of the organic and   pragmatic. Host Clint Clifton discusses how to create an effective system of leadership development with Todd Adkins, director of LifeWay Leadership. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: Three reasons leaders must be learners in front of those they lead Components of the multiplication system at Clint...

Episode 637: One of the biggest problems a pastor faces is developing leadership. Host Clint Clifton talks with Noah Oldham, pastor of August Gate Church in St. Louis, about how you can find the future leaders for your church planting work right in your own congregation . In This Episode, You’ll Discover:   Noah Oldham’s “cheat” for approaching people in whom he sees pastoral potential How our fre...

Episode 636: Residencies are crucial to multiplication in church planting, but how do you start and organize them? Host Clint Clifton discusses the practical components of residency with Noah Oldham, pastor of August Gate Church in St. Louis. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: How Noah Oldham designed the August Gate church plant in St. Louis to be a multiplying church How the August Gate residency...

Episode 635: The physical health of a church planter directly affects his spiritual health – and both are critically intertwined with the work God has called him to do. Host Clint Clifton and Noah Oldham, NAMB’s senior director of church planting deployment, discuss their own fitness journeys and how the lack of fitness may point to deeper, unresolved spiritual issues in a person’s life.­­ In This...

Episode 634: Can a church-planter or team dream big on a shoestring budget? Co-hosts Clint Clifton and Todd Adkins explain why being “under-resourced” actually is a big advantage. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: Why being “under-resourced” actually is helpful for a church-planting team How a “we can if …” map can help you and a team process through a problem How vision clarity and focus made a d...

Episode 633: If a church planter has “parachuted” into an unfamiliar city, how can he best go about building a team from scratch? Co-hosts Clint Clifton and Todd Adkins offer a plethora of hacks that will promote success. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: Several leadership hacks helpful for “parachute”planters The power of a relationship that helps others move forward in the same direction over t...

Episode 632: Church-based residencies are a growing trend in ministerial and church planter training. Co-hosts Ed Stetzer and Dhati Lewis discuss the complexities and simplicities of such programs and offer some valuable insight on how churches both large and small can launch residency programs. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: How Blueprint Church was started to be a “blueprint” for other church...

Episode 631: What three main factors cause church plants to fail? Co-Hosts Clint Clifton and Todd Adkins discuss the role of isolation, conflict among team members and lack of self-awareness in the “slow-motion car crash” of church plant failure. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: How many church plants don’t make it to Year 5 The difference between poetry and plumbing in church planting The role o...

Episode 630: When should a church plant set its sights on planting a daughter church?   Co-hosts Ed Stetzer and Dhati Lewis discuss the problems of planting too early and the importance of “planting pregnant.” In This Episode, You’ll Discover: When the best time might be to plant your daughter church What it means to “plant pregnant” How Send Network’s new resources can make church planting easier...

Episode 629: What two things can we do to encourage more bivo/covo church planting – and what are the relational, financial and missiological benefits? Host Ed Stetzer and Brad Brisco, NAMB’s director of bivocational church planting, discuss bivo/covo church planting and how, depending on cultural context, it might be easier – or more difficult – than traditional church planting. In This Episode,...

Episode 628: What are some traits of domineering leaders and how can you recognize them in your own life? Host Clint Clifton and Todd Adkins, LifeWay’s director of leadership development, discuss healthy work relationships and how to guard against patterns of domineering leadership developing in new pastoral leaders. In This Episode, You’ll Discover: What can be done to guard against patterns of d...

In This Episode, You’ll Discover: The three categories of church planters The process for developing the financial resources to plant a church Why denominational funding for church planting comes with strings attached What is a church planting “side hustle” and what are some good options? Why would a church planter not want to be “overfunded”? How long should it take a planter to get to funding su...

In This Episode, You’ll Discover: Three components of calling to plant a church – and why a call from God is crucial How “an overweight musician with facial hair” decided to plant a church at Marine Corps headquarters How to discern that you’re in church planting for the right reasons The value of church planting residencies and joining a church-planting team The best scenario for getting started...

Episode 625: Host Ed Stetzer and Brad Brisco, NAMB’s director of bivocational church planting, discuss church planting movements and why “church multiplication movement” may be a better goal for church planting in North America. How is that defined? What thinking and behavior needs to change to see multiplication happen? What is the starting point? In This Episode, You’ll Discover: How we can thin...

Episode 624: While the words “church planting” don’t appear in the Bible, the entire context of the New Testament is entirely a church planting context. Host Ed Stetzer discusses the topic “Where is Church Planting in the Bible?” with Clint Clifton, the founding pastor of Pillar, a multiplying church in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., and NAMB’s senior director of resource and research strategy....

Episode 623: Podcaster Mike Cosper’s groundbreaking series, “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill,” offers several crucial takeaways for pastors and church planters. In this second of two #NewChurches episodes, host Trevin Wax asks Cosper to share what he thinks church leaders should learn from one of the largest church planting movements in American history and its very public dissolution. In This Epis...

Episode 622:  Podcaster Mike Cosper’s groundbreaking series, “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill,” takes you inside the story of Mars Hill Church in Seattle – from its founding as part of one of the largest church planting movements in American history to its very public dissolution – and the aftermath that followed. In this first of two episodes, host Trevin Wax asks Cosper to discuss the origins of...