Everything I Did Wrong as a Church Planter: A Million Part Series

Logan Wolf
  • 5.0 (12)
  • Christianity
  • Biweekly Series

After nearly fourteen years in church planting ministry in Utah, my journey has been anything but predictable. From launching a mobile church and navigating a challenging church merger to leading a multi-site ministry and transitioning into a network of house churches, I've experienced it all—and learned countless lessons along the way. If I could do it all again, I’d do almost everything differently. This podcast shares my story and the stories of other planters from across the country. Together, we aim to equip the next generation of church planters to avoid unnecessary frustrations, heartaches, and missteps—saving valuable time, energy, and resources as they pursue their calling.

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  1. Episode 1

    I Gave Too Much Consideration to What Others Outside My Ministry Thought (with Bristol, Connecticut Church Revitalization Pastor Dustin Alley)

    We're in Season 3! In this season I'm focusing on the year immediately following the launch service of our new church plant in Provo, Utah.   In this episode, I'm joined by Dustin Alley of Bristol, Connecticut. He talks about the fear of man and the danger of giving too much thought to what those outside your ministry might think of you and the importance of discovering who it is God made you to be and what He has called you to accomplish.   At minute [14:09] Dustin reaches for the book Order in the Church: A Manual for Church Ministries by Paul Chappell. You can order a copy here.*   At minute [16:47] I pull When People Are Big and God Is Small: Overcoming Peer Pressure, Codependency, and the Fear of Man by Edward Welch off my shelf. You can order a copy here.*   At minute [25:12] Dustin recommends checking out Nucleus for your church website needs.   At minute [38:10] Dustin references an article by Tim Keller titled "Leadership and Church Size Dynamics: How Strategy Changes with Growth." You can read it here.   The Theodore Roosevelt quote I was talking about at minute [46:28] is: “It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”   At minute [50:09] Dustin recommends the book Stop Trying: How to Receive—Not Achieve—Your Real Identity by Cary Schmidt. You can order a copy here.*   You can check out Dustin's podcast here. You can listen to his interview of me here.   Connect with me further here.   *These are affiliate links with proceeds going to support our ministry here in Utah.

    54 min

  2. Episode 2

    I Did a Terrible Job Utilizing Our Ministry Space (with Orange County, California Church Planter Isaac Morin)

    We're in Season 3! In this season I'm focusing on the year immediately following the launch service of our new church plant in Provo, Utah.   In this episode, I'm joined again by Isaac Morin of Orange County, California. We talk about mobile church setups and how we did a terrible job of utilizing our rented ministry spaces.   At minute [12:12] I talk about the Zoom Recorder I used in our services. The model we used is discontinued, but you can see a similar model here.*   At minute [33:02] I mention Portable Church Industries, a company that, among other things, provides predesigned mobile church systems. You can learn more here.   At minute [45:34] I again mention the book Launch: Starting a New Church from Scratch by Nelson Searcy. You can order a copy here.*   Connect with me further here.   *These are affiliate links with proceeds going to support our ministry here in Utah.

    55 min

  3. Episode 3

    I Was Not with the People I Was Trying to Reach (with South Daytona, Florida Church Planter Joseph Wyatt)

    We're in Season 3! In this season I'm focusing on the year immediately following the launch service of our new church plant in Provo, Utah.   In this episode, I'm joined by South Daytona, Florida church planter Joseph Wyatt. We talk about authentic community within the church and moving beyond mere attendance to fostering genuine relationships with others.   At minute [39:19] Joseph mentions the book Doing Church as a Team: The Miracle of Teamwork and How It Transforms Churches by Wayne Cordeiro. You can order a copy here.*   Connect with me further here.   *This is an affiliate link with proceeds going to support our ministry here in Utah.

    1h 5m

  4. Episode 4

    I Didn't Communicate the Vision (with Canterbury, Connecticut Church Planter Adrian Ferrari)

    We're in Season 3! This season I'm focusing on the year immediately following the launch service of our new church plant in Provo, Utah.   In this episode, I'm joined by Canterbury, Connecticut church planter Adrian Ferrari. We talk about his experiences in Argentina, Connecticut, and now Illinois and the importance of communicating and inviting others into your vision.   At minute [45:36] Adrian references the book Gospel Eldership: Equipping a New Generation of Servant Leaders by Robert Thune. You can order a copy here.*   At minute [52:27] Adrian shares a quote from Kevin Scott: "Keep fast to the vision but loose to the method." You can learn more about Kevin and this idea here.   At minute [56:29] he shares a quote from Mac Lake's book The Multiplication Effect: Building a Leadership Pipeline that Solves Your Leadership Shortage. You can order a copy here.*   Connect with me further here.   *This is an affiliate link with proceeds going to support our ministry here in Utah.

    1h 1m

  5. Episode 5

    I Used/Didn't Use a Preaching Calendar (with Orange County, California Church Planter Isaac Morin)

    We're in Season 3! This season I'm focusing on the year immediately following the launch service of our new church plant in Provo, Utah.   In this episode, I'm joined again by Orange County, California church planter Isaac Morin. We discuss the pros and cons of the preaching calendar tool specifically, and the importance of the calendar generally.   At minute [06:13] I talk about Nelson Searcy's audio recording, Planning A One-Year Preaching Calendar. You can download a copy here.   At minute [21:44] Isaac mentions Preaching Rocket. You can learn more about this coaching resource here.   At minute [22:07] he mentions J. Kent Edwards' book Deep Preaching: Creating Sermons that Go Beyond the Superficial. You can order a copy here.* At minute [22:47] I recommend Wayne McDill's book 12 Essential Skills for Great Preaching. You can order a copy here.*   At minute [29:23] I reference a blog post by Michael Hyatt titled "How to Better Control Your Time by Designing Your Ideal Week." You can read it here. At minute [37:26] I reference an article I wrote for Belay titled "Utilizing 'Small Big Days' for Building Relationships." You can read it here. At minute [39:48] I talk about the National Day Calendar website. At minute [52:12] I recommend the book 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think You Do by Laura Vanderkam. You can order a copy here.* At minute [57:38] Isaac touches on Zig Ziglar's "The Wheel of Life." You can get a PDF of this tool here. Connect with me further here.   *This is an affiliate link with proceeds going to support our ministry here in Utah.

    1 hr

  6. Episode 6

    I Didn’t Consider the Importance of Where We Planted

    Returning after a few months' absence, I'm on my own in this episode, discussing the location of our new church plant and my failure to consider factors beyond just the price of a meeting place.  I couldn't find the exact list I reference at minute [04:46], but here a similar one. At minute [05:49] I mention visiting with Pastor Tommy Swindol of The Donelson Fellowship in Nashville, TN and church planter Ed Goode of Bridge Church in Champaign, IL on drive across the country. If you're nearby, you need to connect with these brothers! At minute [06:24] I talk about going to the Ark Encounter. You can learn more here. At minute [07:17] I recommend Brian Moran's book The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months. You can get a copy here.* At minute [09:26] I answer the burning question, Where did you get your outfit? You can get the same blue light glasses here,* but you'd have to compete in this event to get the t-shirt. At minute [10:16] I mention River Community Church in South Jordan, UT where I filled in some this summer. You can watch my message from Acts 20:17-31 here and my message from Acts 21:1-14, an exploration of New Testament prophecy, here. At minute [23:04] I talk about real estate websites and their descriptions of the various neighborhoods. Here is an example. Here is another one. At minute [29:23] I reference several churches that have met in downtown Provo at various times, including First Baptist Church, The Rock Church, and, currently, Mosiac Church. These are some great brothers and sisters! At minute [31:56] I begin discussing an article titled "Ten Mistakes Church Planters Make" by Robert J. Vajko. You can read it here. You can learn more about Bob Logan, whose presentation is sited in the article, here. At minute [45:12] I talk about using World Population Review to find growth statisitics for counties and states. Check it out here. At minute [45:57] I talk about PIPSY—Poor, International, Prisoner, Sick, and, thanks to the suggestion of my friend Kevin Banberger, Youth—as outlined in Chris Galanos's book From Megachurch to Multiplication: A Church's Journey Toward Movement. You can get a copy here.* Also, be sure to watch our Q&A with Chris here. At minute [49:15] I share a couple of books I'm reading. The first is Covocational Church Planting: Aligning Your Marketplace Calling & The Mission of God by Brad Brisco. This was given to me by Michael Cooper of ValleyLight Church in West Valley City, UT. You can get a copy here.* The second is Philip Yancey's The Jesus I Never Knew. You can get a copy here.* Send your church planting experiences, stories, anecdotes, and questions to desk@crosspointutah.com. Connect with me further here.  *This is an affiliate link with proceeds going to support our ministry here in Utah.

    52 min

  7. Episode 7

    I Assumed My Past Success Would Translate into Future Success (with Denver, Colorado Church Planter Dave Elshaug)

    In this episode, I'm joined by Denver, Colorado church planter Dave Elshaug. We discuss his past ministry successes—and the grave error of assuming they would translate into success as a church planter. At minute [17:04] Dave recommends Ralph Moore's Starting a New Church* (and how his own copy is now in the hands of Derek Murphy, a great brother here in Utah at Salt City Underground Church.) At minute [20:41] Dave also recommends John Maxwell's The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership.* At minute [46:26] he talks about his experience at K2 The Church, a wonderful body of believers also here in Utah. Send your church planting experiences, stories, anecdotes, and questions to desk@crosspointutah.com. Connect with me further here.  *This is an affiliate link with proceeds going to support our ministry here in Utah.

    1h 3m

  8. Episode 8

    I Wasn't Content with What God Had Planned for Me (with Former Santaquin, Utah Church Planter Christopher Murray)

    In this episode, I'm joined again by former Santaquin, Utah church planter Christopher Murray. We discuss the danger of pride and his own struggle with being content with what God is doing in the present. At minute [7:15] Chris quotes our mutal friend Doug Lane. You can listen to my previous conversation with Doug here. At minute [36:10] Chris mentions his being on the radio recently. You can catch him on Key Radio from time to time. Listen online here. At minute [47:25] Chris recommends Tim Challies' Sexual Detox.* At minute [48:22] he also recommends Relational Revolution* by John C. White. At minute [49:25] I mention Steve Gallagher's At the Altar of Sexual Idolatry.* The music at the close of the episode? That's Chris, aka CDZ the Messenger. Check out his music here. Send your church planting experiences, stories, anecdotes, and questions to desk@crosspointutah.com. Connect with me further here.  *This is an affiliate link with proceeds going to support our ministry here in Utah.

    53 min
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About

After nearly fourteen years in church planting ministry in Utah, my journey has been anything but predictable. From launching a mobile church and navigating a challenging church merger to leading a multi-site ministry and transitioning into a network of house churches, I've experienced it all—and learned countless lessons along the way. If I could do it all again, I’d do almost everything differently. This podcast shares my story and the stories of other planters from across the country. Together, we aim to equip the next generation of church planters to avoid unnecessary frustrations, heartaches, and missteps—saving valuable time, energy, and resources as they pursue their calling.

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