Danny Hyde and Shane Lems, Planting, Watering, and Growing: Planting Confessionally Reformed Churches in the 21^st Century

As a response to the unique challenges facing the twenty-first-century American church, church planting has become a popular topic. But at a time when churches that spread the seed of the Word through preaching, the sacraments, and prayer are greatly needed, much of the focus has been on planting churches that adapt pop culture to meet “consumer demand.”  In Planting, Watering, Growing, the authors of this collection of essays weave together theological wisdom, personal experiences, and practical suggestions, guiding readers through the foundations and methods of planting confessional churches that uphold the Word of God.

You can view the sample pages here.

Table of Contents:

Foreword: Was the Reformation Missions-Minded?—Michael S. Horton
Introduction—Daniel R. Hyde and Shane Lems

Part 1: The Foundation of Planting Churches
1     The Fruitful Grain of Wheat—Brian Vos
2     The Sovereign Spirit of Missions: Thoughts on Acts 16:6–10 and Church Planting—Daniel R. Hyde
3     The Reformed Confessions and Missions—Wes Bredenhof
4     No Church, No Problem?—Michael S. Horton

Part 2: The Methods of Planting Churches
5     Church Planting Principles from the Book of Acts—Daniel R. Hyde
6     Heart Preparation in Church Planting—Paul T. Murphy
7     Church Planting: A Covenantal and Organic Approach—Paul T. Murphy
8     Planning the Plant: Some Thoughts on Preparing to Plant a New Church—Kim Riddlebarger

Part 3: The Work of Planting Churches
9     On Being a Church Planter—Daniel R. Hyde
10     Being a Welcoming Church Plant—Kevin Efflandt
11     Flock and Family: A Biblical Balance—Shane Lems
12     Declare His Praise among the Nations: Public Worship as the Heart of Evangelism—Daniel R. Hyde
13     “How’s the Food?” The Church Plant’s Most Important Ingredient—Michael G. Brown
14     Church Membership and the Church Plant—Michael G. Brown
15     Shepherding Toward Maturity, Part 1: The Authority in Church Planting— Spencer Aalsburg
16     Shepherding Toward Maturity, Part 2: Identifying a Mature Church Plant— Spencer Aalsburg
17     Motivation: The Planting Church and the Planted Church—Eric Tuininga

Part 4: The Context of Planting Churches
18     Church Planting in a Melting Pot—Shane Lems
19     The Cultural Factor in Church Planting—Mitchell Persaud
20     Growing Contextually Reformed Churches: Oxymoron or Opportunity?—Phil Grotenhuis
21     Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?—Michael S. Horton

About the Editors: Daniel R. Hyde and Shane Lems are the church planters and pastors of the Oceanside United Reformed Church in Carlsbad/Oceanside, California, and United Reformed Church of Sunnyside in Sunnyside, Washington.

Contributors: Michael S. Horton, Brian Vos, Wes Bredenhof, Paul T. Murphy, Kim Riddlebarger, Kevin Efflandt, Michael G. Brown, Spencer Aalsburg, Eric Tuininga, Mitchell Persaud, Phil Grotenhuis