OVERVIEW
ENTERING THE FIELD
Although there are general principles that the church planter draws upon, nothing can replace the specific mining of the context in which the new church will be started. As the planter enters the field, he would do well to remember the words of Jesus: “Look to the fields; they are ripe for harvest” and “Go, I am sending you.” It is a vitally important part of the process to be able to plant a truly contextual ministry. Most church planters go into the planting of a church with a preconceived idea of what that church should be and look like. The work of conducting a solid community analysis will keep you from planting your fantasy church, built solely for you, and will help you build the gospel-centered church the community needs.