I've always been intrigued by entrepreneurs who claimed that they could "parachute" into a strange city and build a thriving business in 30 days. Why? Because frankly, many have done it.
But, what really intrigues me is this: Could a "thriving church" (not a large church, but a good, vibrant nucleus of mission-driven people) be created in thirty days? That thought has a way of challenging who I am as a follower of Christ, sort of boiling it all down to the essential core of mission...a way of measuring our saltiness or "social skills" as citizens of the world to come.
But how would you do it? What would you do first? Who would you seek out? What would be your key message, your universal attraction? What forms would the "church" take? Could it become self-reproducing? What tangible impact would it have on the city?

A challenge not just for planters, but for the planter in all of us.

Obviously the issue here is not whether the church is created in 30 days or 6 months, although I think it’s very important to stretch our thinking and keep a radically short timeframe as your objective. For those of you who have done it in 6 months (and I know many of you) use 60 days, if 3 months, use 30 days...you get the idea.

It’s also not so important that the church begin with a dozen or 50 or 200, but what is important is that it has a certain viability and potentiality apparent to all who are a part of it.

This is a challenge not just for church planters, but for the planter in all of us! The insights, attitudes, and skills gained through a challenge of this kind are transferable, and vital to the central goals of any ministry...it could have transforming effect on every person in your church, including you. It could impact...

The fact is, if your life depended on it, you could do it. And if you did it, what you learned could be worth everything. If indeed, you find you can create a church in a relatively short timeframe, one not only self-sustaining but also self-reproducing, can there be anything more important to your ministry, to your city, and to the fellowship of churches you influence?

Make it real.
It’s important to visualize the actual experience and keep it in view throughout this exercise. Pick a city and tape a map or picture of it on your computer. Imagine being stranded, cut off from all your usual workload, activities, and distractions. If you were actually there, it would be amazing how it would focus all your attention. So find a way to keep that focus in view.

The key components of the strategy.
The first step is to identify the necessary parts of an effective and complete strategy. In my view, there are at least eight key parts that need thoughtful consideration. They are:

1. What’s not working, and why?

2. How can we get in sync with God’s heart and strategy for those we want to reach?

3. How do we find the best way to correct or realign the skewed image of God (and the Church) held by those we want to reach?

4. How can we harness the power of media and the Internet in the most credible, tasteful, relevant, cost-efficient, and responsive way with the continuity and ease of an ongoing plan?

5. What are the easiest, most natural, and most readily-available ways to connect to people and initiate a relationship?

6. What should be the manner of our approach, the focus of our conversation, and strength of our deepening relationships?

7. What outcomes should we expect and plan for?

8. What systemic framework will allow us to build the holistic solutions needed for lasting change?

9. How can we internalize a propensity for healthy reproduction in a way that not only generates multiplication, but at a rate that will, by an acceptable time achieve exponential growth?

10. How can we create an environment for self-renewal, spawning fresh ideas and insights based on sound wisdom and practical experience, always ready to turn on a dime at the Spirit's lead.

Good answers to these key questions can transform your church and ministry, help any individual realize their God-given potential, and yes...I believe, create a church in 30 days.

The answers to these questions have already been revealed. They're out there--discovered in research, taught in seminaries, written in books, and walked out in practice--in churches and communities of all types. They just need to be rescued from fragmentation. They need to be brought into unified plan and practice.

That's a glimpse of the reformation we need--the revolution that's coming--a revival of wholeness.

But, I'm getting ahead of myself. In the coming editions of Mindstorm we will be exploring these questions, and bringing to the table some of the best answers in practice today. Then we'll conclude by providing the framework for a holistic strategy--one in which you can build on and modify according to your needs and perspective--applied to your church's own unique calling and mission.

There are three ways to do this...
1. Get each each edition of the Mindstorm IdeaLetter by subscribing here .

2. Email your thoughts on any of these questions and/or ideas about the answers to: michael@breakthroughchurch.com

3. If you want to work together to create and field-test your own tailored plan, call: 800-595-4327

C. Michael Johnson has over 30 years of ministry marketing experience, working with over 2,000 client churches in all kinds of situations, creating and field-testing effective, research-based outreach programs.

Always ready to brainstorm an outreach challenge, you can reach him through email or phone. (click here)