Amen to Ed Stetzer’s article, “What will it take to bring young leaders back?”. I have felt for several years that his comments could well be applied to church planters. Of course, many of our new church planters are young pastors. As they have sought to be culturally relevant to their communities, church planters have built new congregations that meet in non-traditional settings, sing contemporary praise and worship songs and dress in less formal attire. Despite external appearances, their core message has been Biblically based.

My concern is that our convention is losing a new generation of church planters, not because they are not Biblically based, but because the traditional leadership disagrees with their methods. These young leaders are making a difference for God’s kingdom. They are using innovation to lead lost people to Christ.

I would challenge our Georgia Baptist Convention to take a leading role in promoting a greater atmosphere of inclusion with church planters who are reaching the lost in new and effective ways. We can learn from one another.