About the NALC New Starts Team

In Luke 10:2 it is written, “And he (Jesus) said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into the harvest” (ESV). Christ is calling believers to share the Good News so others will come to saving faith in Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. This is the mission of the Body of Christ: to make disciples of the Lord and plant churches, so the world will come to know Jesus. The North American Lutheran Church takes this mandate seriously through Life-to-Life Discipleship and Mission-Driven efforts. One of those efforts is church planting.

Throughout the NALC, groups of passionate individuals and churches are being moved to start new congregations. Whether it begins as a mission post, house church, mission fellowship or a mission congregation, we follow the biblical imperative from the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:6-7: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth” (ESV).

Do you want to see the Word of God spread in your community? Do you want to see individuals receiving that free gift of grace through faith in Christ? Do you want to help make disciples so individuals and families will know the love and hope of Jesus in their lives? If so, please pray and consider being a part of the church planting movement in the NALC.

We know that there is a feeling of stepping into the unknown when you are pondering the work of starting a new church, so we are here to guide, encourage, and pray with you along the way. We are grateful for the hard work of so many in gathering resources and publishing them — especially the work of the NALC communications staff.

We encourage you to look through some of the resources on the newly updated portion of the NALC’s website — thenalc.org/new-mission-starts — attend a webinar, or connect with your local mission district dean to continue this conversation.

In Acts 13:2, as Paul and Barnabas are “set apart” to share the Good News and plant churches, we are also being called to grow the kingdom of God. Please consider this great opportunity for church planting, as the Lord will use it in a mighty way to touch and transform lives.