Planting Churches
The GCC Canada church planting process is designed as a partnership between GCC Canada, planters and churches as described below. You as a church planter will not be alone. Here’s how the partnership works:
Connecting
You need to get to know who we are. If you are not part of a GCC Canada church, reach out and get connected to a GCC Canada church. Read “Is GCC Right for you?” This resource will help you get to know who we are.
After having read “Is GCC Right for you,” you can start the process.
Assessment
Once we’ve gotten to know each other, and in partnership with your local church, we’ll use a Church Planter Assessment to evaluate your character and skillset for strengths and weaknesses that relate to planting a church. Some candidates will be recommended for a residency at a GCC Canada church to prepare them for planting. Residency helps fill in the gaps you’ll need to lead a new church.
This is what we will cover during assessment:
- Church Planter Profile
- The Planter Application
- Local-Church-Based Pre-Assessment
- Network Assessment
Training
We believe that thorough, contextualized, training is vital for healthy church planting and that such training can build lasting community crucial to the mission. Our Church Planter Training is a series of eight modules combined with cohort coaching over a two-year period. CPT helps you gain essential, practical skills for planting and establishing a church and growing as a leader.
During training you will engage:
- Church Planter Cohorts, 2-year term
- GCC Planter-equipping Modules, 2-year term
- Other Training Resources
- Coaching
Funding
An important part of church planting is provision for the process. GCC Canada gives grants through the Church Plant Fund, a dedicated financial mechanism that allows planters to apply for renewable grants for up to three years, supplemental to their other fundraising strategies.
Funding comes from:
- Church Planter-raised funds
- Renewable GCC Canada grants
- Other GCC Canada Churches
Launch
As a core group grows, provision is made and training comes to a conclusion, the time comes to step out and launch the new church in the place to which God has called you. Just as with every other step of the process, you do not go alone. With GCC Canada, you join a family of pastors, planters, and network leaders dedicated to your spiritual health and planting success.
Church Planters are sent:
- With coaching and strategies from core group to congregation.
Strengthening
Planting is not the end of the process—it’s not the final goal. Healthy, reproducing churches are, and that requires more than being sent well. It requires partnership that stretches into the future and undergirds the work of the church in the days to come. That means strengthening leaders.
We strengthen leaders through:
- Skills-specific cohorts
- Personalized coaching
- Events that build leaders, lives, and marriages
