Church Planting Explosion

 

We need many new church plants in our division to reach different types of people,” said Don Schneider in his opening comments to attendees of the North American Division Committee year-end meetings November 5. Schneider, 
president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in North America, shared inspiring stories of how evangelism, personal witnessing, and church plants are leading people to Jesus.

 

“It’s working,” said Schneider. “We’ve had more baptisms this year than we’ve had in years. And more people like Jeannie Ramos are reaching out to their communities through the ministry of church planting.”

 

PRAYING FOR POWER:  After inviting NAD year-end meeting attendees to pray for the Holy Spirit's power in opening new churches, division president Don Schneider prays with church planter Jeannie Ramos. In 2003 Ramos helped start a church plant called FaithStep in Hagerstown, Maryland. “Our goal was to reach the down and out,” said Ramos. “Some of the people who attend are homeless, and many struggle with addictions.”

 

In an interview with Ramos, Schneider laughed as he recalled her being concerned about his visiting FaithStep dressed in a suit and tie. “The people we minister to dress very casually,” said Ramos. “When we started this church, we resolved to create an environment in which they’d feel comfortable.”

 

“When you ask people at FaithStep how they’re doing, no one says, ‘Oh, I’m fine,’” said Schneider. “They say, ‘I’ve been doing pretty good—I’ve been clean all week.’ Or, ‘I fell off the wagon last week but I’m back on now.’ FaithStep is a very real place.”

 

Marti Schneider, Schneider’s wife, shares his passion for church planting. Marti is director for programs of the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s Office of Adventist Mission, which helps start new groups of believers in unentered areas around the world. She coordinates SEEDS and ChurchWorks conferences, challenging people to plant congregations and expand their horizons as they spread the gospel. “New churches aren’t simply new worship centers,” Marti said. “They are outreach centers, planted for the purpose of reaching new territories or new people groups for God.” (To learn more about SEEDS conferences, visit www.nadei.org.)

 

In closing, Don Schneider challenged attendees to make church plants a priority. “We start 100 churches every year,” said Schneider. “But we need more. Do you know where you can find a McDonald’s from here? Go out on the street and travel north, south, west, or east. You’ll find one. Then go another mile or two and you’ll find another. What if we had that many Seventh-day Adventist churches? We all need to be thinking about how to make this a reality.”