Wow… what a week.  I flew to Orlando to join about sixty others from around the country at Assessment Center.  There were 18 couples and one single man.  These men and women gathered here because they wanted to know if they were “Church Planters”.  I was one of almost 20 assessors, who had been given the great privilege of seeing these people in a very unique setting.  We learned about their hopes, dreams, skills and spiritual life. 

The assessment is based on these building blocks:

  • 200903262106223Emotional Health/Self Image
  • Relational Ability
  • Marriage/Family
  • Personal Integrity
  • Vision/Philosophy of Ministry
  • Evangelism
  • Leadership
  • Entrepreneur/Organizer
  • Public Ministry Skills
  • Enthusiasm
  • Faith
  • Productivity
  • Knowledge
  • Disciplining
  • Ability to Motivate Others

    • We also consider some very important Style Factors.  Are they Below, Meet or Exceed our expectations for:

    • Attentiveness (gives full attention to the person speaking)
    • Expressiveness (verbal/non verbal to enhance a message)
    • Team Player (knows how to fin into various groups)
    • Clarity (others understand what is being communicated)
    • Personal Appearance (creates positive attraction)

    The Assessee meets with a therapist (trained in Church Planting), takes a battery of tests, learns about their personality types using several tools, preaches, participates in several group activates, evaluates a case study and creates a major church planting project.  Through all of these and the many other interactions we gain a tremendous insight into the candidates life. We look for one thing and one thing only…is this person a potential Point Leader for a Church Plant.  That is it.  We do one thing and we do it very well.  We aren’t looking to help them find the right nitch, just give guidance as to the Point Leader position.

    At the end of the week we will tell a candidate what we saw and give one of four recommendations. 

    1.  Approved – Green Light

    If they are called to plant, we affirm that we see the stuff it takes in this person to make it happen.

    2.     Approved w/Conditions  - Yellow Lightimages1

    They have things they MUST do before planting.  These things could take up to 17 months.

    3.     Approved w/Strong Conditions – Red Light (STOP)

    This will be given rarely.  We see potential but there are significant things this candidate needs to work on before being re-assessed.  We anticipate this taking between 18 and 24 months.

    AND

    4.     NOT Approved – Dead End

    You are not a church planter.  Not now, not ever.

    In all these cases we are not attempting to define IF a candidate should be in ministry but again, do the building blocks suggest that this person would be a Point Leader in a New Church.  

    It was a rewarding and exhausting week.  I made some new friends and I saw some amazing potential for new churches that I believe will depopulate Hell.  I also felt renewed in my “call” to the greatest opportunity we have in this life… participate with God in building the Kingdom through the local church to the glory of Jesus Christ.