Do you already know exactly what it is going to look like when you plant a church?
Then maybe a V3 Movement Learning Cohort isn’t for you.
That was a lesson learned by Matthew Watson, Church Planting Resident at the District Church and a participant in a recent Learning Cohort. According to Matthew, the experience has caused him to think deeper and more contextually.
A place to “cut his teeth”
As a new church planter, Watson was looking for a place to “cut his teeth.” Having read Creating a Missional Culture, and having met V3’s JR Woodward, he felt like he could learn a lot from the coaches. He was encouraged by the fact that the voices involved in the cohort weren’t just “experts,” there was a variety of practitioners in different contexts and seasons of planting.
The Learning Cohort provided a weekly one-on-one coaching call as well as a monthly group call with other planters. They weren’t just given theories, but the opportunity to explore how different ideas might play out in their missional setting. He left these calls with specific steps he could use in developing a core leadership team.
Who is really in my neighborhood?
Having already developed a passion for neighborhood ministry, Watson was challenged to think through what such an approach might entail. Rather than just focus on people that The District Church naturally connected with, Matthew was challenged to consider the different cultures all around him.
Longing for the food of his home in the south, Matthew started hosting a weekly barbecue in his neighborhood. He quickly found himself sharing meals with a variety of neighbors. This helped him move beyond his preconceptions and given him tangible examples of the people his new church was trying to reach.
The cohort has also affected how he approaches leadership development. Discussions and resources challenged him to build teams and develop leaders based around the different strengths of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Shepherds and Teachers.
Out of the Echo Chamber
Matthew notes that a V3 Learning Cohort isn’t for everyone. It’s not like going back to school or to a conference. The people who will benefit are those who ready to put in time and effort into getting “out of the echo chamber” of their own heads and learn alongside other practitioners how to translate the gospel into their context.
You can learn more about Matthew on the District Church website and follow him on Twitter.
Registration ends June 2. Sign up for a V3 Learning Cohort today!
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