Planting a church is not a solitary effort. In fact, church planters need regular insights and encouragement from other like-minded leaders. Well, what better way than to learn from experienced church planters themselves? That’s why we’ve put together a list of 25 Twitter handles that all church planters like you must follow. Check out these leaders whose tweets are worth following:
1. @timkellernyc: Pastor Tim Keller is the founder of Redeemer City to City, a movement that recruits, trains and funds church planters. This gospel movement has helped start over 337 churches in 45 cities. In addition, Tim Keller’s book Center Church is widely seen as one of the must-reads for all church planters.
2. @RickWarren: Who doesn’t know Rick Warren? Founder and senior pastor of the Saddleback Church, Rick places special emphasis on church planting. Saddleback’s PEACE Plan trains leaders to “plant churches that promote reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick and educate the next generation.”
3. @willmancini: A pastor-turned-vision coach, Will Mancini has worked with a variety of churches – right from church plants and missional communities to growing megachurches. Follow him on Twitter for a daily dose of insights and encouragement.
4. @DerwinLGray: A former NFL football player, Derwin L. Gray is the founding and lead pastor of Transformation Church in South Carolina. This church was recognized as one of the 100 fastest-growing churches in America by Outreach Magazine in 2013.
5. @danwhitejr: Dan White Jr. co-planted the Axiom Church and co-authored Church As Movement. He coaches missional church planters from all over the country through a 16-month training system with the V3 Movement.
6. @gregsurratt: Greg Surratt is the founding pastor of Seacoast Church, one of the pioneering multisite churches. Greg is also the president and co-founder of the Association of Related Churches (ARC), a global church-planting initiative. In fact, ARC has established more than 400 churches worldwide over the last 12 years.
7. @jdgreear: J.D. Greear is the pastor of The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, NC. His dream is to plant 1,000 new churches by 2050! In the last 10 years, The Summit Church has sent out more than 650 people on church planting teams.
8. @darrinpatrick: Pastor Darrin Patrick understands the nuts and bolts of church planting. In fact, his book Church Planter is seen as a top resource for church planters. Moreover, Darrin is a leading voice in the Acts 29 network for church planters and you definitely don’t want to miss insights from him!
9. @BillHybels: A well-known name among church leaders worldwide, Bill Hybels is passionate about the local church. He is the founder and senior pastor of the multisite church, Willow Creek Community Church. Every fall, Willow Creek hosts the Global Leadership Summit to strengthen and build up leaders across the globe.
10. @edstetzer: American missiologist Ed Stetzer brings his sharp insights on multisite churches and church planting to the table. He has planted and pastored several churches, as well as trained pastors and church planters in six continents.
Planting churches 10-15 minutes apart is a good distance. - @edstetzer Click To Tweet11. @MattChandler74: One of the most influential Christian leaders in America, Matt is the lead teaching pastor at The Village Church. In addition, he serves as the president of the Acts 29 church planting network.
12. @stevenfurtick: Steven Furtick is the lead pastor of Elevation Church, in Charlotte, NC. Steven is widely followed on social media and offers incredible insights for church planters. You really don’t want to miss his tweets!
13. @shawnlovejoy: The founder and CEO of CouragetoLead.com, Shawn Lovejoy helps to strengthen other church planters. He’s passionate about coaching leaders to help them “conquer what keeps them up at night.”
14. @herbertcooper: Herbert Cooper is the founding senior pastor of PeoplesChurch.TV in Tulsa, OK. An influential speaker, Herbert often speaks at church planting conferences across America.
15. @MarkBatterson: Lead pastor and author of the New York Times bestseller The Circle Maker, Mark Batterson has been an active part of church planting conferences across America. He regularly shares important resources and updates for church planters.
16. @Acts29: This global network of church planting churches offers amazing resources for pastors who want to start churches. The Acts 29 Churches have planted over 300 churches in the last 10 years. This network is the go-to place for many church planters for support, encouragement and mentorship.
17. @STimmis: Steve Timmis regularly tweets about resources, events and tips for church planters. He serves as the executive director of the Acts 29 network and is passionate about church planting. He is the co-author of Total Church, which is seen as a leading resource for church planters.
18. @AndyStanley: Andy Stanley, senior pastor of North Point Community Church, believes in “helping leaders go further faster.” His weekly leadership podcasts equip and encourage hundreds of church leaders and planters across the globe, and his tweets are equally empowering.
19. @petescazzero: Peter Scazzero is the pastor of New Life Fellowship in Queens, NY. He helps church planters identify and tackle core life issues and challenges. Pete regularly tweets thought-provoking gems for church leaders – don’t miss out!
In our defeats and failures are the seeds of harvest and new beginnings. - @petescazzero Click To Tweet20. @RobCizek: Executive pastor of Northshore Christian Church, Rob Cizek provides business leadership resources to churches and business leaders. You are sure to be spurred on by his motivating leadership tweets.
21. @J0hnBurke: John Burke is the founder and lead pastor of the Gateway Church in Austin, TX. His website gatewayleaders.com provides amazing church planting related resources for leaders and pastors.
22. @maclake: Mac Lake is the visionary architect for The Multiply Group, a church planting network based out of West Ridge Church, GA. Mac’s goal is to plant 1,000 churches in the next 10 years. Amen to that!
23. @brianjonesblog: Pastor Brian Jones wants to see churches multiply! He coaches senior pastors who are trying to break through the 100, 200, 400, 600, 800 and 1,000 attendance barriers. In fact, his vision is to transform the Philadelphia metro area by planting 20 campuses and helping existing churches grow beyond 5,000 members.
24. @JenniCatron: Jenni Catron coaches many leaders and pastors in areas of staff and organizational development. In fact, Outreach Magazine has recognized Jenni as one of the 30 emerging influencers who are reshaping church leadership.
25. @StevenPike: Last, but definitely not least, Steven Pike is perhaps best known as the founder of the Urban Islands Project. This initiative looks at starting multiple churches simultaneously on different “islands” – in the same city at the same time.
How many of these leaders and networks are you following on Twitter already? Which other Twitter handles should church planters follow? Please leave a comment to tell us who else should be included in this list.
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