by Chris McBride_,_

Those pursuing Church Planting Movements (CPMs) believe CPM methods follow the ministry methods of Jesus. Perhaps the time has come for our missionary training methods to follow his mentoring model as well.

Here’s a shocking “secret” about missionary training. Most workers sent to the mission field receive little or no practical field training before they go to the field.

However, over the last several years, mission leaders have encouraged the growth of new missionary training models. These produce more effective and fruitful movement catalysts in a shorter time. Veteran workers using these models excitedly report positive results. New workers tend to progress toward CPMs much faster than those trained in classrooms or workshop-based trainings. Regional leaders have begun asking for workers prepared in these disciplines. Some even require this more experiential and mentoring-based training approach for new missionaries. They have seen better fruit coming from this approach than from workshop-based patterns. The 24:14 Coalition wants to expand and speed up adoption of these models. To do that, we are promoting a flexible, networked CPM Training Hub system. This will better prepare field workers to apply effective movement practices. This approach can be used by itself or paired with workshop-based trainings.

I long to see this vision become reality. Our family labored on the mission field for seven years without seeing anyone become Jesus’ disciple. After receiving CPM training, we worked for another seven years and started a local CPM. I know the burden of working without fruit. That’s why I want to send well-trained workers who will not repeat our mistakes. They will make other mistakes, but they will be more likely to bear fruit much more quickly.

A Hub System

The CPM Training Hub concept consists of several phases of training. These use live experience to equip workers seeking to catalyze a movement among the unreached.

Phase 1

This involves people starting their CPM training in their home-culture conbody. Unless a person came to Christ within a CPM, they need many paradigm shifts to move toward CPM fruit. Mission leaders observe that people more easily focus on these concepts in their home conbody. Their learning of the CPM process is not complicated by a cross-cultural conbody with culture shock and language learning. Phase 1 enables learning in a conbody where an experienced mentor can easily correct mistakes. Practicing within one’s own culture also gives the candidate a chance to affirm a call to church planting. Better to do this before facing the challenges of advanced missionary training, support raising, and learning a new language and culture.

Phase 2

Before moving to a “final destination,” Phase 2 equips the new missionary in a cross-cultural conbody. This conbody is as close as possible to the unreached group they desire to reach. This Hub is led by local or foreign mentors who ideally have a movement in their location. If not fully a movement, they at least have some multiplication in the area using CPM principles. This Hub trains in conbodyualized movement principles while helping the workers begin learning language and culture. Their experience in the home culture Hub has helped them understand and apply general movement principles. Then the cross-cultural Hub allows the new worker to see and experience CPM in a culture similar to their planned focus culture. There they can apply conbodyualized CPM principles under the helpful guidance of movement tutors.

Phase 3

In Phase 3, the mission worker moves to their chosen Unreached People Group (UPG). They now have much experience. And they may be joined by other workers (local or foreign) who they met in Phase 2. Their trainers/coaches from Phase 2 keep helping and guiding them into this third phase.

Phase 4

We have seen that if/when a movement starts, outside catalysts can make a very strategic move into Phase 4. This consists of helping send movement workers from their focus group to one or more nearby UPGs to start new movements. This can yield much more fruit than the outsider moving on to another assignment.

A Closer Look

The 24:14 Coalition is working hard to grow a network of CPM Training Hubs. We expect these will help reach the goal of movement engagement in every unreached people and place by 2025. Some emerging training Hubs are now training Phase 1 missionaries in their home cultures (all around the world). A few teams and agencies have started Phase 2 Hubs, receiving trainees from Phase 1 Hubs.

We in 24:14 analyzed how effective this approach has been so far. We found that Phase 2 Hubs reported a faster learning process for missionaries who had been through Phase 1. They were also more effective. They had practiced movement principles in their home culture. So they hit the ground running. They developed good movement habits during their language and culture learning phase. We have seen a strong connection between the amount of practical experience in Phase 1, and how quickly a person applies movement practices in later phases. Some have already begun to see fruit of movement in their Phase 2 Hub experience!

The length of time in Phase 1 and 2 Hubs varies. It depends on the background of workers being sent. It also depends on the agencies involved, the unique curricula, and the focus region. Some Hubs focus on giving candidates basic experience in movement principles during a missionary training program. Some Hubs want candidates to master CPM skills before allowing them to progress in their training. Many Hubs around the world focus first on catalyzing a movement in that location. After that, mobilizing occurs naturally.

The Hub approach requires more experience and fruit from candidates before they go to their target location. We have found that this does not have a negative effect on mobilization. In fact it helps mobilize more people for the field. We also expect it will have a positive impact on missionaries lasting longer on the field.

We aren’t trying to prescribe the Hub system for the global Body of Christ as required for all missionary candidates. However, a strong CPM Training Hub system would serve well most missionary candidates. They would benefit from learning in the conbody of active coaching.

Creating a Framework to Grow Hubs

Hub sponsors use many different curricula for missionary candidates. Many agencies are now working together to develop a framework of Hub criteria. These will help evaluate CPM Hub Training and candidate readiness. 24:14 is proposing standards of training and care gleaned from these Hub leaders. This could potentially serve as a global “airline alliance,” working together to better train candidates.

With so many agencies and approaches in the world, what kind of framework can help us work together? One popular approach is a simple “Head, Heart, Hands, House” framework. This describes the skills needed for a missionary to thrive at the next stage. Figure 1 lists skills that several agencies and networks recommend for those completing a Phase 1 Training Hub and moving to Phase 2. Figure 2 shows a similar list for skills for Phase 2 learners moving to Phase 3. Many of these standards spring from years of missionary training programs. The new and unique part is the focus on practical experience and applying these skills before moving from one stage to the next. These skills can be gained through a variety of curricula and learning processes. The key idea of the 24:14 Hubs Network is that missionary candidates become skilled in CPM principles and practices before moving to their next phase. These training processes may be developed at a Hub or outsourced. Having a general set of recommended skills allows Hubs to adapt organically and assist cooperation between agencies.

The Hubs Task Force is taking these steps:

Continuing to find and list new Hubs.

Gathering Hub leaders to develop best practices and further refine the skills.

Creating connections between agencies that sponsor Hubs, to decrease overlap and strengthen the network.

Connecting people and agencies who want to join the Hub system.

Assisting agencies and churches that want to create CPM training Hubs and become mobilization centers. Providing them with resources and consulting.

We in 24:14 believe this model can greatly increase the number of CPMs among the world’s unreached. You can learn more about the Hub system and the Hubs survey project via our website (https://www.2414now.net/hubs) or by contacting hubs@2414now.net.

Fig.1 Phase 1 Competencies

Head

Culture Training: Understands basics of culture, worldview, conbodyualization, and cross-cultural expectations.

Theology: Understands basics of Theology of Salvation, Overview of Scripture, Missions, Personal Calling, Suffering, and core Christian Doctrines.

CPM Training: Understands the basic DNA of movements and their Biblical justification using one of the common movement training templates (Transition Points of Movement, DMM, T4T, Four Fields, Zume, etc). Understands a simple plan and process that leads to reproduction.

Language: Preparation for how to learn a language.

Pastoral Care: Knows about and able to use available resources.

Heart

Spiritual Authenticity: Focus on seeing that the trainee has a healthy degree of the following and is making consistent progress: humility and teachability; walking in honesty and integrity; hearing and obeying God; exercising faith that God will start a movement with his/her people group; love for God and others.

Perseverance: Has demonstrated perseverance in difficult circumstances. Displays a dogged tenacity to do the right things to complete the task, pressing through obstacles. Has counted cost of personal risk. Has a long-term commitment to God’s calling.

Personal Spiritual Disciplines: Demonstrates a lifestyle of prayer, time in God’s Word, obedience, fasting, accountability, hard work and rest, abiding in Christ, and personal transparency. Understands basics of spiritual warfare.

Personal Holiness: Has a lifestyle free from addiction. Lives in moderation in all things. Seeks to avoid being a stumbling block for others.

Personal Wholeness: Is in a healthy place working through personal issues (addiction, depression, self-image) and family of origin issues (divorce, trauma, abuse), has a healthy marriage (if applicable), is in a healthy place working through parenting issues. Has been evaluated by a counselor for field readiness.

Hands

Engagement and Evangelism: Has extensive practice in engaging lost people, finding potential Persons of Peace, and sharing the gospel message in a way that intentionally moves the lost towards becoming disciples of Jesus.

Demonstrates the Kingdom: Has learned to pray blessing over people and pray for the sick.

Discipleship and Church Formation: Has practice in making disciples that form church (preferably from the lost) and has worked towards reproducing that generationally.

Vision Casting: Has practice in envisioning others in disciple making and church planting movements.

Training: Has practice training others in disciple making and church planting using one of the common movement training templates.

Developing Prayer Strategy: Has learned the basics of planning and executing a prayer strategy for their people group.

Planning and Evaluation: Learns to plan, evaluate the brutal reality, and adapt based on the fruit he / she sees.

House

Personal Skills: Has good people skills, communication skills, and conflict resolution skills. Can manage anger, disappointment, and anxiety.

Team Life: Has learned healthy patterns of team life.

Team Training and Development: Has learned to resolve team conflict and value different roles in a team environment.

Team Experience: Preferably has extensive practice “teaming” with others as they reach out to a local target population.

Finance: Is free from significant debt and has received adequate support raising training. Has raised full support before deploying.

Fig. 2 Phase 2 Competencies

Head

Culture: Has learned regional culture, history, and religion to a level of competency necessary to understand conbodyual tools and navigate roadblocks to gospel inroads.

Language: Language acquisition plan developed in conjunction with trainers and coaches in Phase 2 with accountability in place.

CPM Training: Has learned CPM applications in the cultural conbody. Works to learn innovations and cultural applications of movement theory to the region. Has exposure to advanced movement leadership applications.

Persecution and Perseverance: Has learned likely avenues of persecution in the target culture. Has learned biblical patterns for dealing with persecution and minimize unnecessary persecution. Has learned to persevere in difficult circumstances.

Heart

Spiritual Authenticity: Demonstrates willingness to learn from others, especially locals. Shows cultural humility as a lifestyle. Has demonstrated a lifestyle of surrendering rights.

Personal Spiritual Disciplines: Has continued and cultivated a lifestyle of prayer, time in God’s Word, obedience, fasting, accountability, hard work and rest, abiding in Christ, and personal transparency in target culture. Has learned to engage in spiritual warfare.

Perseverance: Has demonstrated perseverance in difficult circumstances. Displays a dogged tenacity to do the right things to complete the task, pressing through obstacles. Has counted cost of personal risk. Has a long-term commitment to God’s calling.

Personal Holiness: Has a lifestyle free from addiction. Lives in moderation in all things. Is aware of not being a stumbling block for others.

Personal Wholeness: Continues to be in a healthy place working through personal issues (addiction, depression, self image) and family of origin issues (divorce, trauma, abuse), has a healthy marriage (if applicable), is in a healthy place working through parenting issues. Has been evaluated by sending organization for continued field readiness.

Culture: Willing to adapt to and appreciate host culture.

Hands

Engagement and Evangelism: Has extensive practice in engaging lost people, finding potential POPs, and sharing the gospel message in a way that intentionally moves the lost towards salvation. Has learned reproducing evangelism tools that locals can use to equip other locals.

Demonstrates the Kingdom: Has learned to cross-culturally pray blessing over people and pray for the sick.

Discipleship, Church, and Leadership: Has learned how to make reproducing disciples in target culture and has learned a strategy for church formation and leadership development that can work in the target culture. Demonstrates comfort in allowing Holy Spirit and the Word to lead through locals rather than needing to be the leader.

Training: Has ability to train the basic DNA of movements and the Biblical justification of them using one of the common movement training templates (Transition Points of Movement, DMM, T4T, Four Fields, Zume, etc). Can train and envision a simple plan and process that gets to reproduction.

Developing Prayer Strategy: Has begun to recruit and incorporate other believing locals and expats into a prayer strategy for the area. Has recruited a number of daily intercessors to cover the work.

Planning and Evaluation: Is engaged in regular rhythms of planning, ruthless evaluation, and adaptation based on the fruit

Tracking: Has learned to effectively track movement growth in the cultural conbody and apply learnings to planning and evaluation rhythms.

House

Presence and Platform: Has developed a strategy to implement that will minimally explain reason for being in country and at most will give opportunities for engagement and a platform and visa for extended stay in country.

Team Development: Has adapted team life rhythms to interdependent overseas conbody.

Local Partnering: Is spending majority of time with local partners and the lost and is not over dependent on expat team. Understands how to build effective partnerships.

Team Contributions: Has identified giftings on the team and has figured out ways for the team members to contribute. Has developed team agreement / protocol and all team has reviewed and approved it.

Networking: Has surveyed the mission work (especially movement related) in the area. Has learned about fruitful evangelism and discipleship processes. Maintains good relationships for partnership.

Security: Has developed contingency plan and emergency protocol document for team. Understands and implements basic security protocols (social media, internet security, computer security, personal document security).

Leadership Development: Does not need to be “the leader.” Looks to empower, develop, and mentor other.

‍