I have read a lot of dialogue over the last several years about the inclusion of believers on a church plant Launch Team. Most agree that the Launch Team shouldn’t be only believers, though that is all too often what happens. A few promote not allowing any already-believers on the Launch Team for fear of battling hidden agendas.

Matthew Barnett, founder of the Dream Center in Los Angeles, suggests finding a balance. Having only life-long Christians in a church will guarantee its being “corrupted by the smell of a religious spirit”. We all need a mission, and short of being focused on reaching those far from Christ, we’ll trade that mission for infighting. Believers need the perspective of not-yet-believers and brand-new-believers to stay on track with the real mission of the church.

What I have seen in several plants is a group of already-believers praying to reach those far from Christ (which is a good thing!), but come the time of the Grand Opening, are still a group of already-believers praying to reach those far from Christ (without having reached any). It seems that if you aren’t able to recruit & include any not-yet-believers on the Launch Team, the DNA of the new church will reflect that after Launch. There’s not a magic switch that gets flipped when you start weekly services. Inertia is hard to overcome.

Vince Antonucci said at his recent Vault Conference, “Show me the first 100 people who join your church, and I’ll tell you what the church will look like eight years from now.”