How to Write a Church Planting Prospectus
We are excited that you are interested in Church Planting. Below you will find an outline/overview designed to help you best express what God is planting in you and your specific community/region. Make the prospectus visually appealing, simple, and precise. You will be able to use the entire prospectus or sections of it to help develop partners, core team members, and create a call to action.
1. Description:
Kick off your plan with a description of your Church Plant by addressing these topics. Make sure you use factual evidence, demographic studies, personal interviews, testimonies, and observations to reinforce your findings:
• Who you are (you, your family, your calling)?
• Who will make up the church?
• What is God calling your church to do?
• When do you plan on launching the church?
• Where is God calling you to plant?
• Why is it important to plant a church in this location?
2. Vision Statement:
Write a concise one sentence vision statement, which gives your answer to the question: ‘What do we want this church to become over the next five to 10 years?
3. Mission Statement:
Lay the groundwork for how the church is going to serve local communities, cities, regions, and beyond. Accomplish this in one or two sentences.
4. Core Values:
Provide a list and explanation of three to five core principles upon which the church will be built and how and why everything will align to those values.
5. Goals:
Make a list of three to five long-term goals that translate your church’s vision into specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-specific objectives. These goals will help express what needs to take place for your vision to take affect.
6. Market Research:
Briefly walk through these thoughts.
• Who is in your community? What do you know about them (i.e. demographics, life patterns, needs, habits, etc.)
• Detail what makes your church uniquely qualified to meet the needs of your community.
• Detail the methods you will use to meet the needs in this community.
• Express how you will measure the effectiveness of the church and how you will adjust the plan accordingly.
7. Church Planting Strategy:
Briefly walk through these thoughts.
• What do you want to accomplish through your planting strategy?
• What is your plan for forming the church?
• What is your gospel (evangelism engagement) plan?
• What is your discipleship plan?
• What is your leadership (deacons, elders, etc.) development plan?
• What is your strategy to plant the next church?
8. Financial Plan:
Keep the details about your financials brief, using the same narrative style you have been using throughout the plan. Then, use a footnote to alert readers that more detailed financial schedules and assumptions will exist in a separate document. To keep focused, consider telling your story by providing the following information:
• Start-Up Cost
• Estimated Budget projections with detailed assumptions
• Three- to five-year projections that express growth toward self sustainability.
• Three- to five-year balance sheet projections that express growth toward self sustainability.
• Sources and uses of funds
• Needs from Sending Church
• Needs from Supporting Churches
• Needs from other agencies
• Projected tithing base
9. Executive Summary:
Save the beginning for the end by taking time to write a concise synopsis of the entire plan.
If you have followed these guidelines your prospectus will serve as a clear guide helping you develop partners, cast vision, and stay focused on what God has called you to do. For more support, questions, or comments contact us at churchplanting@bcnm.org .