XXXII

I recently subscribed to a weekly maternity newsletter to continue to draw comparisons between the birth of a child and the birth of Hamilton Village. (Believe me, I felt a little wierd doing it) First, this will be a 40 week process. I know that there is Biblical significance for the number forty, but I’m really not shooting for that angle. Pregnancy is measured by the 40 week process from conception to delivery. During those 40 weeks, the development and preparation of this new person is taking place. It is not like one day you announce the upcoming birth of your child and the next day he or she is here. There are 280 days of development. There are 6,720 hours of preparation. And then one glorious day, the life that was growing on the inside, makes a special appearance to the outside world. Likewise, since the day we began talking specifics with the leadership of Northside, we knew it was going to be a 40 week process. We would have 280 days to get all of our training, funding, and partnerships lined up. We would have 6,720 hours to spiritually prepare for the birth of a new church.

Second, the relationship between the child and mother is essential. The child is dependent for nourishment, protection, and transportation. The mother feels a connection, devotion, and a duty to provide and protect this new living being. I am also convinced that there needs to be a strong bond between the new plant and the mother church. A healthy relationship that encourages interaction, cooperation, and celebration as God continues to work in the lives of both congregations. As we transparently walk through this process the relationship between Hamilton Village and Northside will be evident. There will be a healthy reliance on the mother church as we pray, plan, and implement this church planting strategy. This will be a healthy process that honors the relationship between the mother church and church plant. This will be a process that glorifies the Creator who conceived our church planting vision.

With that being said, as we sit here thirty-two weeks out we have made some progress in our development. We have incorporated and are officially recognized as Hamilton Village by the state of Indiana. The federal government recognizes us now as we have registered for our EIN which allowed us to set up our own business account. Logistically we are moving in the right direction.

We also received overwhelming support from our prayer team invitations. We are in the process of following up with those who have not yet responded as we look forward to hosting our prayer summit on February 22nd. Continue to pray for this team’s ministry and connectedness.

My next area of attention is to begin to prayerfully discern with our staff the families that God is going to set aside as our core team. I want to be very sensitive to the needs of both churches. I also want to make sure that we are surrounding ourselves with leadership that is gifted in areas of necessity for the new plant. This team will have to be cohesive and in tune with the Spirit of God as they begin to implement the strategies necessary to grow a healthy church. Please pray with us that God would enlighten us on who this core team should be and for those who are asked to continue serving at Northside. This is a Kingdom sized vision. We need everyone to play their part. Thank you for playing your part in praying for us and the process God is leading us through.