Being Multi

Last week was a great week for forward momentum on multi-site. I spent Thursday researching the lastest approaches to multi-site churches. Well over 1,000 churches in America are multi-site = one church meeting in multiple locations. It is inspiring to see the variety of ways that churches creatively bring their church into their context.

On Sunday evening, a group of representatives from all four San Jose area Community Groups met with me to plan the initial steps of exploring this mission approach. That late-night meeting felt like the early days of our church plant back in 2000 -- a few people sitting in a living room envisioning a new work of God.

We're planning a series of San Jose gatherings: to get everyone in that region together to dicuss how our vision could work through multiple worship sites and to begin crafting a launch. These 3 Catalyst Meetings will prayerfully seek God's leading. These same three gatherings will be repeated in Palo Alto to reboot the mission there.

A few important lessons from other churches:

1. A church cannot just 'have multi sites.' Rather, it has to become a 'multi-site church.' Everything changes: the DNA has to become stronger, leaders have to be developed at every site, ministries and staff and decisions have to be shared.
2. Multi-site churches are very effective at evangelism and community service. They frequently avoid the inevitable inward focus of established churches and remain in mission-mode longer.
3. This will not be easy, but it will be fun! More people getinvolved, often wearing several hats. At first, things may seem like a mini-step backwards. The simplicity, however, gives a focus to ministry.

Many more lessons will be learned! I just created a new Multi-Site page to Grace Church's online bookstore. While you're there, consider Tim Keller's new book "The Prodigal God," to be released on October 30.