How to Determine if You’re Ready to Plant a Church
Note: this is an AI generated transcript of my YouTube Video
Are you hesitating to plant a church because you're wondering if God has actually called you to do this? You might have the desire, the wisdom, and even people ready to go with you. You might have all the necessary skills. But you're still waiting for your burning bush moment—waiting for God to pick up the phone, dial your number, and clearly request that you plant a church in your city.
If you're still waiting for that moment, what we're about to discuss might just be the clarity you need to not only know if you're called, but to know exactly when you should get started.
The Problem with "Calling"
I have a complicated relationship with the word "calling." Not because calling isn't real, but because of what the word has become to some churches and church leaders.
I think some people view their calling like the bat signal from Batman. God has turned on the floodlight, projecting their special signal into the night sky, alerting them of a need. Of all the millions of people in this city, they alone are worthy enough to answer the call. They're the only ones with the cape, the grappling hook, and the Batmobile.
This way of thinking about calling has some serious problems.
Three Ways This Thinking Hurts Church Planters
1. It Encourages Pride
When I start thinking that being called by God means I'm special in some way, it promotes pride. There are 8 billion people on this planet, and God chose me? I must be so much more equipped, prepared, and humble than everyone else.
If that's how I think about calling, why don't I just appoint someone to walk before me and shout, "Make way for the called one!"? When I think of my calling as something that makes me special, it will always promote pride.
2. It Promotes Pastor Worship
Pastor worship makes me genuinely nauseous. It's when people in your church treat you like royalty who can do no wrong. They put you on a pedestal, overly celebrate you, ignore your flaws, and follow you blindly—even when you're leading them somewhere terrible.
People will naturally elevate their pastors to some degree because pastors are influential and helpful. That's unavoidable. The problem is when pastors fuel their church's desire to worship them by not being careful with their words and actions.
Our words build culture. When we walk around talking about how we're "the called ones," it can lead people to think we have something they don't—that we're special and extra worthy of their respect and admiration because God called us.
3. It Discourages Wisdom and Counsel
When you feel like you've had a burning bush moment and God has called you, how likely are you to listen to respectable and trustworthy people in your life? How likely are you to actually sit down and hear critical feedback?
When you use the language "God called me" or "God told me," you're communicating that if someone disagrees with you, they're actually disagreeing with God. This leaves no room for wise people in your life to impart their wisdom, because speaking up would mean speaking against what God has said.
I can't tell you how many times I've watched people I love do foolish things because "God told them to," and therefore they wouldn't listen to anybody else.
Now, don't get me wrong—I absolutely think God speaks to us. But to quote my good friend Gina Hayes (I call her Mama Gina): God always confirms His word.
If your pastors or trusted friends are telling you to be careful about something you think you heard God say, you might have actually misheard Him.
The Truth About Calling
Here's what you need to understand: Everyone else has the same calling as you.
We may all play different roles, but we've all got the same call. God literally picked up the phone and group-dialed all of our numbers on the day Matthew penned Matthew 28:19—the Great Commission:
"Therefore go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit."
The day Matthew wrote those words is the day God called all of us. We are all responsible and accountable for God's call to make disciples of all the nations.
So if you've been wondering whether you're called, allow me to end your confusion: You are called. You were called the moment Jesus told you to go.
The question isn't whether you're called. The questions are: What part are you supposed to play, and when is the right time to begin?
But What About Specific Direction?
You might be thinking, "Sure, we're all called to make disciples, but what about when God calls us to do that in unique ways—like through church planting?"
I do think God gives people specific direction at times. But here's my question: Does He have to? Can people just volunteer if they want?
Are people allowed to volunteer to start a church? To start a ministry? To move to the Amazon River to work with people and help them know about Jesus?
I think so. I wonder how many churches never got planted because men and women were waiting for a burning bush moment, all the while God was thinking, "What? I gave you your moment. It happened when Jesus came back to life and told you explicitly to go make disciples. That was your moment."
If you're inclined to plant a church, if you have even a little bit of desire to do this, I'd say that's enough. You've already been called. If you've got the passion, pursue it.
The Better Question: Am I Ready to Be Sent?
Instead of asking "Am I called?" I want you to ask a much better question—one that's more clarifying and less prone to cause pride, praise-seeking, or dismissiveness of others' feedback:
Am I ready to be sent?
This is what Jesus did. He called all His disciples before He ever sent them. "Follow me," He said. They spent years with Jesus after they were initially called, before He sent them out. When the time was right, He finally did send them.
This was the apostle Paul's journey as well. He had an incredible encounter with Jesus in Acts 9. Jesus called Paul to be His chosen instrument to take His message to the Gentiles. But Paul doesn't get sent out to actually start doing that until Acts 13—scholars say there was about an eight to ten year gap between those chapters.
What was Paul doing in those years? Building character. Learning. Growing. Preaching to believers and fellow Jews. Preparing. It wasn't until the time was right that the church recognized him as someone ready to be sent.
Why This Question Changes Everything
"Am I ready to be sent?" properly frames your calling for what it really is: a team sport, not a solo sport.
This question forces you to get other people involved in your decisions. It forces you to be vulnerable and open up to trusted leaders and loved ones to get their honest feedback on whether now is the right time to get started.
And here's the best part: When other people are involved this way—seeing and pointing out your blind spots and weaknesses—it limits the power that pride has on you. And it gives you way more confidence when the time does come for you to go.
If you're thinking, "But I don't really have anyone to send me," that's great news—because that's an indication you're not ready to be sent. You need to go find some people to send you.
After all, why would you want to do this alone? Planting a church is the hardest and loneliest job in the world. You do not want to do it alone. You need to find a sending church, people who will get behind you and say, "Yes, you're ready to be sent, and we're going to be there with you all along the way."
Three Questions to Determine If You're Ready
To answer the question "Am I ready to be sent?" you need to ask yourself three broad questions. I'll give you some sub-questions for each category to help you honestly assess where you are.
1. Am I Ready Practically?
Are you equipped?
Do you have experience starting new things and succeeding at them?
Do you have experience leading people, including difficult people?
Do you know how to delegate?
Can you preach, and when you do, do people respond well?
Do you know how to create community?
Do people naturally gravitate to you?
Are you financially healthy?
Do you have any debt?
Are you tithing? (If you're not tithing, you're not ready to start a church)
Are you saving for the future?
Do you have a budget that includes tithing and saving, and do you stick to it?
Are you physically healthy?
Do you know how to rest—really rest?
Do you exercise and eat right?
The next couple of years will be the busiest of your life. If you don't already have a discipline of taking care of yourself, you won't develop it while planting a church. You'll say, "I'll start that later." You need to develop healthy habits now.
Is your family on board?
What does your spouse actually think? Are they for this, or do they see it as your side project?
Are they ready to sacrifice everything?
Let me be clear: When my wife Emily and I planted our church, we sacrificed our home, retirement savings, essentially our entire savings account, one of our cars, and we moved across the country, leaving close friends and family. Are you and your family ready to make serious sacrifices?
2. Am I Ready Emotionally?
Are you emotionally healthy?
Do you know yourself well? Do you know if you're an introvert or extrovert, a people person or task person?
Do you know what your temperament needs to give you life and fill you up?
Do you know how to comfort yourself when you're down?
How's your self-talk? How are your intrusive thoughts?
Do you have unresolved anger, bitterness, or resentment?
This is huge. In my experience, most church planters start planting out of discontentment with their last church. There's a lot of potential for hurt from your past pastor or church. Have you dealt with that?
How do you react under pressure?
What would your spouse say about how you react in high-pressure situations?
How do you respond when things don't go your way?
Are you quick to get angry?
Do you get overwhelmed, closed off, and moody?
Do you shut down or lash out?
Your family's answer to these questions will reveal whether you're emotionally ready.
Do you have unresolved grief?
Is there any loss in your life you haven't mourned in a healthy way? The loss of a loved one, a dream, a relationship? Many people cope instead of mourning—with food, drugs, alcohol, or work. Have you been working excessively, not just to get things done, but to avoid thinking about a loss you've experienced?
3. Am I Ready Spiritually?
Do you have a pastor?
Are you able to submit to another leader in your life? Can you respect somebody even if they make decisions you don't love or wouldn't make yourself? If you leave a church every time a pastor makes a decision you don't like, that's an indication you might not be spiritually ready.
Are you trusting God?
Do you actually follow Jesus?
Do you practice patience even when it's hard?
Do you practice tithing and giving even though money's tight?
Are you trusting God with your kids and marriage?
If you're not doing this now, you won't do it later. Church planting won't solve this problem—it will only enhance wherever you're at right now.
How do you respond to fear?
Do you trust God with whatever makes you afraid, or do you tend to quit or break down?
Are you prideful?
How do you relate to people you don't like—people who think differently than you politically or theologically? Spiritually healthy people actually listen to Jesus when He said to pray for your enemies.
What's your prayer life like?
Would you still plant the church if you knew it would fail?
This is a great question to assess spiritual readiness. If God is calling you to plant this church, but you knew after a year it would all crumble, would you still do it just to be obedient to God?
Your Next Steps
I know I just threw a lot at you, but planting a church is serious. The work you do in this stage will either set you up for success or failure.
Success to me is always obedience to God—not what your church plant looks like, but whether you'll be obedient to what God has called you to do.
Exercise 1: Self-Assessment
I've created a PDF with all these questions on a one-to-five scale. Answer them honestly—it's just between you and God.
Then here's the hard part: Have your spouse answer the same questions on your behalf. Promise them you won't be mad or upset, and that you want them to answer honestly.
Also have your three closest, most trustworthy and wise friends answer each question on your behalf.
You don't have to be perfect—none of us are. But you probably want to score around 80 percent or higher. If you're not in that range, thank God for showing you, then ask Him to help you do the necessary work.
Remember, it took Paul eight to ten years between being called and being sent. It might take you another year, maybe two or three. That's okay. It's time for God to work in you and build your character so you can be the healthiest church planter possible.
Exercise 2: Ask 15 People
Ask at least 15 people this question: "Can you see me planting and pastoring a church?"
Ask:
Five people who lead you (boss, parents, coaches, spiritual leaders)
Five peers (coworkers, small group members)
Five people you lead
Give them permission to be honest. Their answers will indicate whether you're ready to be sent.
Starting Well
I know you're eager to get started because you're entrepreneurial and love starting things. But this is what it looks like to start well—to take the time to ask yourself if you're emotionally, practically, and spiritually ready.
Your future church deserves to have a healthy pastor. Don't deprive them of that by fooling yourself into thinking you're healthier than you are.
Put in the work today. Everything you do now to get healthier will only benefit you and those you lead later.
After you complete these exercises, if you and your trusted people have determined that you're not only called but ready to be sent, and you want to start your fundraising journey strong, download my fundraising guide with my top five tips that helped me raise over $345,000 in startup funds.
But if you're not ready to be sent yet, don't worry about fundraising. Focus on the areas where you need to grow.
You Have Everything You Need
No matter what stage of the journey you're on, you have everything you need to take your next step—whether that's volunteering and getting started, finding a church to send you, working on your marriage, or beginning fundraising.
You can do this. I know this because you have the Holy Spirit of God living in you, which means there is nothing that God can't do through you.
Ready to assess your readiness? Download the free PDF assessment guide and start your journey toward becoming the healthiest church planter you can be. Visit churchplantjourney.com/assessment to get started.
