The Mission and Ministry

of the
Evangelical Covenant Church
Instructors:
Garth Bolinder, Superintendent - Midsouth Conference
Margie Swenson, Co-director of Missionary Personnel - World Mission
Greg Yee, Associate Superintendent - Pacific Southwest Conference

Covenant Orientation Connection (registration, follow-up)

Christine Olfelt (Chicago)
1
Schedule: Monday
1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
General overview
Getting connected..
with each other personally
with local churches represented

2:00 - 2:45 p.m.

Engaging Scripture I
BREAK
3:15 - 4:45 p.m.
Engaging Scripture II

DINNER BREAK
7:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Fireside Chat
4
Schedule: Tuesday
9:00-9:30 - Devotional

9:30 - 10:15 a.m. – Inside the Mission and

Ministry of the ECC

10:30 – 12:00 p.m. – Intercultural Missions

LUNCH
1:00 – 5:00 p.m. - New Hope Covenant, Oakland

5:00 - Bay Area dinner outing

5
Schedule: Wednesday

9:00

- 11:45 – Multiethnic

LUNCH

1:00 – 5 pm. - Church Planting

Travel to Great Exchange, Santa Clara (Dave Chae, Sean Curtis, Min Tak)

DINNER
7:00 - 8:00 p.m. - Fireside Chat

Schedule: Thursday
9:00 a.m. - Devotional
9:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. - Church Revitalization
Alan Forsman with Dan Johnson (Hilmar Covenant)
and Kevin Budd (New Hope, San Jose)
LUNCH
1:30-3:15 p.m. - Congregational Polity,
Denominational Structures, Role
of Conference/Superintendents
3:30 - 4:30 p.m. - Vision 2020
4:30 - 5:00 p.m - Closing, Review of Assignments,
Evaluations
Purpose
This course is designed to answer the
question:
How does the Covenant
minister today to,
with,
and on behalf of its
congregations?
2
Format
Guest presenters
DVD
Leader input
Individual activities
Small group discussion
Field trips

8
Guidelines
Full attendance and participation at all
sessions
SOT (start on time, stop on time)
Short breaks along the way
Have fun! Use this time to cultivate new
connections.

8


Connecting Our Churches
Draw a picture (using words, images, etc.) of your
local church’s ministry using newsprint provided.
Take up to 5-6 minutes to draw the picture and then
post for all to view. If your church is represented by
more than one person here, do the picture together.
Be prepared to give a 90 second description during
our “gallery walk.” Include:

Name of Church and Location (urban, suburban, rural, etc.)

Age of church
Missional emphasis (Acts 1:8b description – Jerusalem,
Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth)

14
Identity and Biblical Mission
We are united by Christ in a holy covenant of churches
empowered by the Holy Spirit to obey the Great
Commandments and the Great Commission:

to love God with all our heart, soul, strength,

and mind,
to love our neighbor as ourselves,
to go into all the world and make disciples

23
Mission and Ministry of the ECC
Guiding Commitments

22
Identity and Biblical Mission
We are united by Christ in a holy covenant of churches
empowered by the Holy Spirit to obey the Great
Commandments and the Great Commission:

to love God with all our heart, soul, strength,

and mind,
to love our neighbor as ourselves,
to go into all the world and make disciples

28
Historical Lineage
Biblical Christianity
Historic Creeds (Apostles’, Nicene)
Protestant Reformation
Scandinavian renewal movement
American renewal influences

24
Essentials of Character
Biblical: committed to the Word of God
Devotional: committed to intimacy with God
Missional: committed to the work of God
Connectional: committed to the family of God

25
Summary
We love God.
We love God’s Word.
We love God’s world.

And so we go, together, to obey

the Great Commandment and
the Great Commission

27
Inside the Mission and
Ministry of the ECC
28
The Covenant “at Home”

The ECC has 790

churches in
42 states and
5 provinces in
North America.

29
 Mission Fields
The Covenant
has 66 long-
term, 19 project,
and 40 short-
term missionaries
in 38 countries*.
More than
300,000 lives
are impacted.
*as of Jan 1, 2007
40
Mission Fields
These 38 fields are administered in five
groups, each with on-site
leadership.
Asia
Latin America
Europe
Chinese Ministries
Africa

41
Attendance and Membership (as of 11/08)
The cumulative attendance of the Covenant is approximately
179,000. Cumulative membership is approximately 124,000.

179,001.0

143,200.8

107,400.6

71,600.4

35,800.2

0
Attendance Membership
31
 Impacting More Lives 179000
179000 168878
165856
160916
Total ECC Worship Attendance 156237
148296
140617
135343
134250
128542
123912
117314
113763
108090
103041
9804899832

89500

44750

0
1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
32
 ECC Decadal Growth
One of the fastest growing denominations.

53% in the past decade 1998-2008

90% in the past 17 years 1991-2008

33
26
Factor #1: Strength of the Existing Church Base
110,000

88,000

66,000

44,000

22,000

0
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

34
Congregational Vitality
Healthy Missional Churches
Types of Churches
Healthy Missional
Stable
Critical Moment
At Risk
Resourcing
• Congregational Vitality Coaches
• Ministry Advantage Coaching
• Resource the coaches’ network through coaching
and periodic gatherings
Factor #2 – Ethnic Dynamic
(increase in # of churches, 1997-2007)
186

81

1996 2008
35
Decadal Growth Rate
Ethnic Churches vs. Entire ECC
160% 159%
140%

120%

100%

80%

60%

40% 53%

20%

0%
ECC All Ethnic
The 80-20 Phenomenon

Multiethnic/
Ethnic 23.6%

Text

White
76.4%

36
 Factor #3 – New Church Impact
80000

60000

40000

20000

0
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
37
 Distribution By Age Of Church
50,000

37,500

25,000

12,500

0
1850s-1860s 1880s 1900s 1920s 1940s 1960s 1980s 2000s

12
Established Churches and Church Plants
Attendance growth: 2007 – 2008

10,073 11,000
Net growth of all
Covenant churches

Growth in Growth in
8,250
churches begun churches begun
1993 - 1998 1998 and after

5,045 5,029 5,500

2,749
Growth in
churches begun
prior to 1993
-1
-1
 Factor #4 Large Churches
Worship Attendance as of 11/06 greater than 600

42

18

1996 2007 39
Pastoral Leadership
There are 2,135 clergy credentialed by the Covenant.

42
Higher Education
over 3200 all programs

288 all programs

430 all programs

satellites in the San Francisco Bay Area,
Claremont, CA, San Diego, Chicago,
Tijuana, Oaxaca and Guadalajara, Mexico
as well as La Coruna, Spain 43
Ministries of Benevolence
2 Hospitals
14 Retirement Communities
4 Enabling Residences
1 Domestic Violence Service
1 Children’s Home
1 Social Service Campus

44
Fiscal Resources
Pension
Insurance
Construction Loan Source

45
Conclusion

The Covenant remains in a strong season of

increasing impact as a servant of Christ’s mission
in the world, driven by a variety of factors.
46
Concluding Thoughts
The Covenant works because it is a Covenant. We
are “Mission Friends”, encouraging and
supporting one another to advance the mission
and ministry of Christ.

48
 Basic Ministry Groupings

ECC Churches

Departments Executive Institutions,

Board Corporations,
Services

CF CGE Comm WM NPU CMB NCP

PC CT BENEFITS
OM WM CMJ Admin

69
Affiliated Institutions and Corporations

Covenant
North Park
Ministries of
University
Benevolence

National
Paul Carlson
Covenant
Partnership
Properties

Covenant Bethany
Trust Benefits
70
Mission and Ministry Areas of the ECC

Church Growth
World Mission
& Evangelism

Compassion, Women
Mercy, Justice Ministries

Ordered Communications
Ministry

Christian
Formation
71
Affiliated Institutions and Corporations
• Covenant Ministries of Benevolence
• North Park University
• North Park Theological Seminary
• CHET
• National Covenant Properties
• Covenant Trust Corporation
• Paul Carlson Partnership
72
Covenant Ministries of Benevolence
In a sentence…
The sick, the elderly, the handicapped,
the at-risk, the poor.

73
North Park University
In a sentence…

Christian higher education.

74
North Park Theological Seminary
In a sentence…

Graduate level theological

education and ministry
preparation.

75
 CHET

In a sentence...

Preparation of Latinos and

Latinas for ministry.

76
National Covenant Properties
In a sentence...

The official loan source

of the ECC.

77
Covenant Trust Corporation

In a sentence...
Stewardship of
financial assets for
now… and ‘later’.

78
Paul Carlson Partnership
In a sentence...

Medical, educational,
and economic
initiatives in the
Congo and beyond.

79
 World Mission
In a sentence…

International efforts to
bring the whole gospel to
the world beyond the
United States and
Canada.

82
Compassion, Mercy, Justice
In a sentence…

Helping the hurting and

addressing the causes of
the hurt.

83
Church Growth and Evangelism
In a sentence…

The mission field of the United

States and Canada.

84
Christian Formation
In a sentence…

DEEPening the spiritual life of Christians

85
 Ordered Ministry

In a sentence…

Vocational and personal

development of those
credentialed for ministry.

86
Women Ministries
In a sentence…

Ministries to, from and for women

87
 Communications
In a sentence…

The print and electronic

link between the
denomination and local
church.
 Covenant Resource Center
1-800-338-IDEA
(A partnership of departments)

In a sentence…
The one-stop center to GET HELP with
resources, Covenant activities, etc. etc.
 Covenanters Serving in Mission
(members of Covenant churches)

Mission Local Church ECC

Agency (Covenanter in (Covenant
Mission) Missionary)
(i.e. IT, SIL, SEND,
etc.)
(Covenanter in Mission)

No administrative No formal Formal

or fiscal responsibility; responsibility
responsibility; possible support
loose affiliation; services;
possible potential
partnership partnership

“nuclear” “extended”
family family
 ECC-sent (Covenant) Missionaries
120+ missionaries serving presently

STM PM LTM
(short term missionary) (project missionary) (long term missionary)
1-2 years 3-5 years 5-30 years

5 geographic regions (with Regional

Coordinators): Africa, Asia, Chinese
Ministries, Europe, Latin America

120+ in the discernment process

But you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit comes o
n
you; and you will be my
witnesses in Jerusalem, and in
all Judea and Samaria, and to
the ends of the earth.
Acts 1:8
 Mexico  Spain
 France
 Colombia  Belgium
 Ecuador  Czech Republic
 Russia
 Taiwan  Sweden
 Japan  Cameroon
 Burkina Faso
 Thailand  Central African Republic
 South Africa
 Congo  Haiti
 Guatemala
 Honduras
 Brazil
 Argentina
 China
 Southeast Asia
  Community Development
 Holistic Healthcare
 Evangelism 

Business as Mission
Agricultural Development
 Church Planting  Alpha Courses
 Drug Rehabilitation
 Leadership  Homes for Children
Development 

Sports Ministries
Micro-Industries
 Medicine 

Radio, Printed Materials, Tapes, Film
Bible Studies
 Education  Conferences and Workshops
 Manuscript Studies
 Ministry with Gypsies
 Ministry with Prostitutes
 Justice Ministries
 Surfing for Jesus!
 Music
 Fish Farms
 Slum Ministries
 Marriage and Family Counseling Center
 Ministry with Down’s Syndrome families
 Ministry through the Arts (Visual, Dance, etc.)
7:00am – Chiang Mai, Thailand
Fish Hatchery
9:25am – Pingliang, China
Oasis Training Center
7:45pm – Paris, France
La Fonderie
Overview of World Mission
The Evangelical Covenant Church
79

This Covenant is not a church organization in

the ordinary sense, but a mission society
having churches as its members. These
churches have consolidated because of the
missionary spirit which led them to missionary
enterprises too large for any single church to
undertake.

Covenant Statement 1893.

Alaska - 1887
China - 1890
81

1896-1905
Alaska
medical mission; missionaries distracted by gold rush

China
training of Chinese staff to work with missionaries
in education
 1906-1915

Alaska
education, medical work,
reindeer farms, evangelism
and discipleship

China
seminary - 1909
revival - 1910-1911
medical ministry
 1916-1925

Alaska
community development
work in Unalakleet

China
nurses’ training college -1920
59 Covenant missionaries in
China during the decade.
 1926-1935
Alaska
holistic approach to mission

China
Communist uprising causes interruption
of work

Denominationally
first Foreign Mission Secretary elected
in 1927
 1936-1945
Alaska
church established in 1941

China
Sino-Japanese War of 1937-1945
affected work

Congo
ECC began work at Karawa in 1937

Covenant Mountain
Mission
began in 1942 in Jonesville, VA
86

1946-1955
Alaska Unalakleet high school opened in 1954

China 3 ECC missionaries murdered in January 1948; by

December 1948 all ECC missionaries were evacuated
Congo Bible Institute of the Ubangi - 1949; Wasolo - 1950

Ecuador work began in 1947 in partnership with HCJB radio

Japan work began in 1949

Taiwan work began in 1952

Formosa
Covenant Mountain Mission and Mexico Mission
transferred to Home Mission from Foreign Mission
 1956-1965
Alaska Arctic Broadcasting Association began in 1957

Congo National church organized in 1960; Paul Carlson

martyred in 1964
Ecuador 14 missionaries by 1965
Japan 16 missionaries by 1965

Korea work began in 1964

Taiwan leadership development, church planting, evangelism,

youth work, and medicine
Others Hong Kong and Indonesia
 1966-1975
Alaska work transferred from World Mission to
Home Mission
Colombia work began in Medellin in 1968

Congo first Friends of World Mission project

(Zaire) funded a new operating room at Karawa
Ecuador education and national church support
Japan evangelism and church planting

Mexico moved back to World Mission 1971

Taiwan/ 10 missionaries
RCC
Thailand work began in 1972

Other: Indonesia ended in 1971

89

1976-1985
In 1981
100 missionaries served
in8 countries with 718 churches
and 69,532 members
90

1986-1995
In 1991
long-term
44 short-term missionaries
served 9 countries

with 1,325 churches and

111,845 members

Covenant Mission Connection started as

partnership of 3 departments in 1991
 1996-2005
In 2001, mission staff served
17 countries
1728 national churches
with

167,795 members and

1487 pastoral workers

No numbers were available for Congo due to

political unrest.
2006-Present
New Motto
Global Mission, Local Vision
 Mission Fields
The Covenant has 95 career / project and
30 short-term missionaries in 23 countries*.
More than 300,000 lives are impacted.
*as of June, 2008
Mission Fields
These 23 fields are administered in five
groups, each with on-site leadership
Asia
Latin America
Europe
Chinese Ministries
Africa

16
Areas Served today:

Africa Guam/Micronesia
Argentina Japan
Asia Kenya
Belgium Laos
Brazil Mexico
Colombia Russia
Congo Spain
Czech Republic Sudan
Ecuador Taiwan
France Thailand
Fulani Merge Ministries

Connections in Sweden & Netherlands

Partnerships in Chile, Germany, India, Philippines, South Africa
In a word or a phrase describe
C ompassion and J ustice
ministry?
He has shown all you people what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act JUSTLY and to LOVE MERCY and
to WALK HUMBLY with your God.

Micah 6:8
Why is compassion, mercy,
and justice important?
The church is called to be
marked by it
Biblical foundations- Old and
New Testaments
Because there is an urgent need
for a powerful presence and a
prophetic voice and action in
our communities
 Compassion asks us to go where it hurts,
to enter into places of pain, to share in
brokenness, fear, confusion and anguish.
Compassion challenges us to cry out
with those in misery, to mourn with
those who are lonely, weep with those in
tears.
Henri J.M. Nouwen
 SAMPLE DEFINITION OF ADVOCACY
by the Institute for Development Research: Advocacy Sourcebook

Colleagues in India describe advocacy as an organized,

systematic, intentional process of influencing matters
of public interest and changing power relations to
improve the lives of the disenfranchised.

Other colleagues in Latin America define it as a process

of social transformation aimed at shaping the direction
of public participation, policies, and programs to
benefit the marginalize, uphold human rights, and
safeguard the environment.

African colleagues describe their advocacy as being

pro-poor, reflecting core values such as equity, justice,
and mutual respect, and focusing on empowering the
poor and being accountable to them.
The Evangelical Covenant Church
Our vision...

…every congregation planting ministries of

compassion and justice,

…every ministry seeking God’s transformation

for the poor and at risk, and

…every congregation finding renewal as it

reaches out with the love of Christ.
BIBLICAL FOUNDATIONS FOR
COMPASSION & JUSTICE
MINISTRIES
Old Testament:

Deuteronomy 24:19-22
Psalm 146:6-9
Proverbs 31:8-9
Isaiah 10:1-2
Isaiah 58:6, 9-12
Jeremiah 5:27-29
Amos 5:21-24

 BIBLICAL FOUNDATIONS FOR
COMPASSION & JUSTICE
MINISTRIES

New Testament exhortations:

Luke 4:18-19
Matthew 25:31-46
Philippians 2:3-5
James 1:27
C ompassion
helping hurting people

J ustice
helping stop the things that hurt people
Brainstorm ministries of
C ompassion
we can/should be
involved in
Brainstorm ministries of
J ustice
we can/should be
involved in
Our BELIEFS
determine our ACTIONS
Our ACTIONS
reflect our BELIEFS
Trajectory
of the
Gospel
4th Largest in Empire
(Rome, Alexandria, Ephesus)

Political Center
Commercial Center
“Sin City” Reputation
Small Area
Crowded
Public Space
Tenement city
Filthy
Disease
High mortality
Tense
For he himself is our peace, who has
made the two one and has destroyed
the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility...
and in this one body to reconcile both
of them to God through the cross, by
which he put to death their hostility.
Ephesians 2:14-16
Trajectory of the Gospel
 The
Five-Fold
Test
W here did you grow up
and name one thing you
liked about growing up
there?

W hat cultural/ethnic
background do you
most identify with?
 By creating space to
share our stories and
beliefs, we knock the
feet out from under
prejudice.
Enter the River, Jody Miller Shearer
Attorney General
Eric Holder called
America a "nation of
cowards" when it
comes to discussing
race
I've often said that in
my view racism is the
biggest social problem
we face in the world
today, and I believe it
still is.
The Rev. Dr. Billy Graham
 We must take sides. Neutrality
helps the oppressor, never the
victim. Silence encourages the
tormentor, never the tormented.
Sometimes we must interfere.
Eli Wiesel
Holocaust Survivor
Nobel Laureate
Political Activist for “peace, atonement and human dignity
Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and
narrow-mindedness, and many of our people
need it solely on these accounts.
Ministry and the
call of the church is
at the intersection

TEXT
and
CONTEXT
Why bother with multiethnicity?
Why is it important?

SHIFTING DEMOGRAPHICS
 Decadal Growth Rate
Ethnic Churches vs. Entire ECC

ECC 53%

All Ethnic 159%

The 80-20 Phenomenon

Multiethnic/
Ethnic 23.6%

White
76.4%

36
 Focus moving away from
North and West to

A NEW GLOBAL REALITY

South and East
Non-western

evangelical growth
The southern

church of 2025
 HISPANIC STATS
 45M people of Hispanic heritage equal 15% of the
U.S. population – the largest minority group.

 Increasing numbers of Hispanics are moving into

smaller communities previously untouched by new
immigration.
The “Browning” of Asian (North) America
4,000,000
4,000,000

3,565,000
3,000,000

2,500,000
2,000,000

1,520,000 1,599,000

1,000,000 1,204,000

0
Chinese Filipino Indian Korean VietnameseJapanese

Nearly 60% of Canadaʼs new immigrants are from

Asia (including the Middle East).
The number of visible minorities in Canada
is expected to double by 2017. A survey
released in 2007 reveals that virtually 1 in 5
Canadians (19.8%) are foreign born. Canada
has the highest per capita immigration rate
in the world, driven by economic policy and
family reunification
 Canada
10% First Nations
13% Other Minorities
19.8% Foreign Born
 Today 2050*
Total 37.7M 60.0M
Hispanic 35.5% 52%
Asian 12.4% 13%
Black 6.1% 5%
White 43.0% 26%
* CA Department of Finance
 Trends toward 2050

Asian American population will increase

213% to 33.2M people

Hispanic-American population will increase

188% to 103M people, 25% of the
population
38%+ 1.25-3M
Arab-American growth

82% are U.S. citizens

42% Catholic
12% Protestant
23% Orthodox
23% Muslim
First Covenant Church (1888)
Fresno, CA
Why bother with multiethnicity?
Why is it important?

EVERYDAY REALITIES
 1997 474 groups
Hate Groups 2007 888 groups
 U.N. Committee on the
Elimination of Racial
Discrimination
(CERD)found
l d i s p a r i t i e s ”
“sta rk r a c i a
in the U.S. and issued
failing grades especially
in the areas of
criminal justice,
housing,
health care, and
education
Of all the forms of inequality,
injustice in health care is the most
shocking and inhumane.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

 Racialized Society

= A society wherein race

matters profoundly for
differences in life experiences,
life opportunities, and social
relationships.
What are the everyday realities
that you see around YOU?
Why bother with multiethnicity?
Why is it important?

OUR BIBLICAL CHALLENGE

I saw the Holy City…the city does not need the
sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of
God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The
nations will walk by its light and the kings of the
earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day
will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no
night there. The glory and honor of the nations
will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever
enter it, nor will anyone who does what is
shameful or deceitful…
Revelation 21
Then the angel showed me the river of
the water of life, as clear as crystal,
flowing from the throne of God and of the
Lamb down the middle of the great street
of the city. On each side of the river stood
the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of
fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And
the leaves of the tree are for the
healing of the nations. No longer
will there be any curse.
… I saw a vast crowd, too great to count,
from every nation and tribe and
people and language, standing in front
of the throne and before the Lamb. They
were clothed in white and held palm
branches in their hands. And they were
shouting with a mighty shout, "Salvation
comes from our God on the throne and
from the Lamb!"   
Revelation 7:9-10
This, then, is how you should pray:

   Our Father in heaven,

    hallowed be your name,
    your kingdom come,
    your will be done
     on earth as it is in heaven.
Eleven o'clock Sunday
morning is the most
segregated hour and Sunday
school is still the most
segregated school of the
week.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
How are WE doing?
PROJECT

CHUCK YEAGER
DATE CLIENT
OCTOBER 14, 1947 USAF
 The Five-Fold Test
1. Population: Are we reaching increasing numbers of people
among increasing numbers of populations?

2.Participation: Are we finding ways to engage life together

through denominational, conference, and local events?

3.Power: Are the positions and structures of influence (boards,

committees, and positions at both the conference and denominational level)
influenced by the perspective and gifts of diverse populations?

4. Pace-Setting: With additional perspectives, burdens, and

gifts in our midst, what new ministry opportunities are we now
better positioned to strengthen and initiate?

5. Purposeful Narrative: How do the stories of new

backgrounds become incorporated into our overarching history?
How do all of these streams flow together into one story moving
forward?
 173

RR
I2 Invitation to Racial Righteousness
 174

Sankofa Journey
 175

j2m Journey to Mosaic

Central, North Pacific &
Pacific Southwest
 176

Journey to Mosaic Squared

iJ2M
CHURCH PLANTING

“Reaching
the
lost
and
helping

those
who
hurt”.
 A Biblical Foundation:
• Great Commission: Matt 28:18-20
“Go, make disciples of all the nations.”
• Great Commandment: Matt 22:37, 39
“Love the Lord your God…love your neighbor…”
• Great Empowerment: Acts 1:8
“When the Holy Spirit comes, you will receive power…
you will tell people about me (Jesus) everywhere.”
The Purpose of the Church
To proclaim the gospel of Christ and gather believers
into local churches where they can be built up in the
faith and made effective in service, thereby planting
new congregations throughout the world.”






David Hesselgrave
8 reasons to start new
churches
1. New churches are needed
because the large majority of
Americans do not attend a local
church.

15- 20% of Americans attend a local church on any

given Sunday. Many of those attend a church where
they do not clearly hear the message of salvation in
Jesus.
© 2006 by David T. Olson
2. New churches are more
effective than established
churches at conversion growth.

Studies show that new churches have 3 – 4 times the

conversion rate per member as established churches.
3. New churches effectively reach the
growing ethnic populations of
America.

For example, California is now over 50% non-Anglo and

that percentage is growing. Every people group needs to
hear the Gospel in a way that makes sense to their culture.

© 2006 by David T. Olson

4. New churches have historically been
the best method of reaching each
emerging new generation.

Every new generation needs a new breed of churches

that speak the gospel in their cultural dress and
communication styles.

© 2006 by David T. Olson

5. New churches are needed to keep
up with population growth.

While there has been a net gain in the number of

Christian churches since 1990, the net gain in churches
is about one seventh of what would have been needed
to keep up with population growth.

© 2006 by David T. Olson

6. New churches give a group of
connected churches market share and
influence in their community.

Starting new healthy churches in the same general

vicinity increases the influence of all. Churches are best
started where a group has strength, not in distant areas.

© 2006 by David T. Olson

7. New churches grow exponentially
faster than established churches.

In a typical evangelical denomination, new churches

(in the first 10 years) were found to grow exponentially
faster than established churches (over 10 years old).
8. New churches are a test lab -
R&D

Most of the models and visions for healthy churches

are developed in new churches.
The Church Planter is the Key
The ideal church planter is a Godly person with
strong relational skills who excels in leadership and
communication, and is passionate about reaching
people for Christ and producing disciples.
Preach well
Lead well
Care well
Build well
Work smart
 Role of Conference
1. Recruitment and Assessment.
2. Face-to-face coaching of the church planter, and additional
training as needed.
3. Monthly accountability for progress based on agreed-upon goals.
4. Annual reviews, including financial, for the first 5 years of the
church’s life.
5. Pastoral support and care of church planter/family.
6. Peer retreats and gathering events.
7. Participate in the funding.
 Observation
“Every church contains the seed for other
churches. The local church was meant to
reproduce itself over and over again. As a
healthy plant forms seeds that when planted
bring forth other plants, so healthy churches
form seeds that produce other churches. There
is a price to be paid for the planting of that
seed. But there is a far greater price to pay if
the seed is not planted”
Keith Biely (1981) Missionary Alliance
 One Last Word
Church people think about how to get people into the
church; kingdom people think about how to get the
church into the world.
Church people worry that the world might change the
church; kingdom people work to see the church change
the world.
Dr. Howard Snyder
Revitalization Materials Here
GOVERNANCE
1. How does your local church govern itself?

2. What do you perceive are the plusses and minuses

of your local church’s governance?

3. Why does it govern itself this way?

Congregational Polity
Rooted in…

• Biblical/theological understandings
• Historical understanding
• Commitment to be covenantal, not creedal
How the Covenant chooses to be
congregational…
• Denomination reserves right to decide “what is
Covenant and what is not”

• Mutual submission to form partnership for shared

mission

• Delegating authority for some areas of decision making

to a selected few, but reserving powers for all
Practically speaking for…

• Congregations
• Regional Conference
• Denomination
Practically speaking for...
Congregations

Regional Conference

Denomination
 Your
Church

ECC Conference

47
THE REGIONAL CONFERENCE
 Conferences and Region
The churches in North
America are grouped in 11
geographic regions. Each of
the 10 conferences is a
separately incorporated
mission region with its own
Executive Board and and
elected Superintendent.

ECCAK is a mission region

with a Field Director under
the supervision of CG&E
with a team.
30
 Canada Conference
(The Evangelical Covenant Church of Canada)

Jeffrey Anderson, Superintendent (President)

Conference office: Winnepeg, MB
www.canadacovenantchurch.org

Organized: 1904
Number of churches: 27

Bible camps:
Covenant Bay Bible Camp, Westerose, Alberta
Covenant Heights Bible Camp, Onanole, Manitoba
Kootenay Covenant Bible Camp, Harrop, British Columbia
 Central Conference
Superintendent: Jerome Nelson
Conference office: Chicago, IL
www.centralconf.org

Organized:
Central--1886; Great Lakes--1886; merged--1961
Number of churches: 111

Bible camps:
Covenant Harbor Bible Camp and Retreat Center,
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Covenant Point Bible Camp, Iron River, Michigan
 East Coast Conference
Superintendent: Howard K. Burgoyne
Conference office: Cromwell, CT
www.eastcoastonf.org

Organized: 1890
Number of churches: 68

Institutions:
New England Seafarers Mission, Inc.,
Boston, Massachusetts, and Providence, Rhode Island
Pilgrim Pines Conference Center
 Great Lakes
 Superintendent: Richard B. Lucco
Conference office: Plymouth, MI
www.greatlakes.cc
Organized: Michigan--1889;
Middle East--1885; merged--1981
Number of churches: 61
Institutions:
Covenant Manor, Jamestown, New York
Clinic Covenant Community Care Detroit, Michigan
Bible camps:
Portage Lake Covenant Bible Camp, Onekama, Michigan
Mission Meadows, Dewittville, New York
Covenant Bible Camp, Jonesville, Virginia
 Midsouth

Superintendent: Dr. Garth Bolinder

Conference office: Tulsa, OK
www.midsouthcov.org

Organized as region: 1987

Organized as conference: 2001
Number of churches: 21
 Midwest
Superintendent: Kenneth P. Carlson
Conference office: Omaha, NE.
http://www.midwestcovenant.org/
Organized:
Midwest--1886; Southwest--1885; Iowa--1885;
merged into Midwest--1957 and 1969, respectively
Number of churches: 78

Institutions:
Midwest Covenant Home, Stromsburg, Nebraska
Bible camps:
Covenant Cedars Bible Camp, Hordville, Nebraska
Covenant Heights Conference Center, Estes Park, Colorado
Twin Lakes Christian Center, Manson, Iowa
 North Pacific
Superintendent: Mark A. Novak

Conference office: Mercer Island, WA

http://covchurch-npc.org

Organized: 1890
Number of churches: 73

Bible camp:
Cascades Camp and Conference Center, Yelm, WA

 
 Northwest
Superintendent: Jim Fretheim
Conference office: Minneapolis, MN
www.nwc-cov.org
Organized: 1884
Number of churches: 131
Institution:
Minnehaha Academy, Minneapolis, MN

Bible camps:
Bluewater Covenant Bible Camp, Grand Rapids, MN
Covenant Park Bible Camp, Mahtowa, MN
Covenant Pines Bible Camp, McGregor, MN
Lake Beauty Covenant Bible Camp, Long Prairie, MN
 Pacific Southwest
Superintendent: Evelyn M.R. Johnson
Conference office: Concord, CA
www.pswc.org

Organized: 1902
Number of churches: 151

Bible camps:
Alpine Covenant Conference Center, Blue Jay, CA
Mission Springs Christian Camp and Conference
Center, Scotts Valley, CA
 Southeast
Superintendent: Robert Owens
Conference office: College Park, GA
www.se-conf.org

Organized: 1963
Number of churches: 44
 Alaska
Administrative Region
Evangelical Covenant Church of Alaska
Field Director: Rodney J. Sawyer
Office: Eagle River, AK
http://eccak.org/
Organized: 1973
Number of churches: 19
Institutions:
Radio Station KICY (Nome)
Alaska Christian College
Bible camp: Covenant Bible Camp, Unalakleet, Alaska
Developing Distinct Ministries in Cooperation

The Conference shall have ministries

to be responsible for specific missions
and purposes of the Conference.
These shall be in cooperation with
each other, the congregations, the
ECC, and affiliated corporations and
institutions.

14
Role of the Conference
Mission mobilizer
Congregational coach
Provider of care and support for credentialed
pastors
Link between local church and denomination

15
Role of the Conference Superintendent

19
General
guiding processes to discern vision for mission,
mission priorities, and strategic directions and
communicating such
team leader for staff and partner with Executive
Board and related Commissions and
Committees
oversee financial and risk management
linkage with denomination

20
With churches and pastors…
facilitate connections – churches with churches,
pastors with pastors
assisting churches during pastoral transitions and
search processes
facilitating crisis intervention with pastors and
congregations
overseeing care and support of pastors and assisting
Executive Minister of the Ordered Ministry in
processing care and discipline cases
21
Linkage with the Denomination

16
Partnerships
Church Planting
Technical Services (land acquisition,
construction loans, leases, etc. – co-guarantees)
Admission and dismissal of member churches
Referrals, care, and discipline of pastors
Group health insurance

17
General Linkage
Interpreter of Covenant identity, practices, and
policies

Advocate for denominational strategic directions

(i.e. mission expansion (local and global),
multiethnic ministries, reaching emerging
generations, compassion and justice ministries,
church revitalization, Christian formation)

18
Emerging Leaders Panel
Looking Ahead
The ECC in 2020

101
PROJECT
DID YOU KNOW 2.0

DATE CLIENT
2008 YOU
The ECC in 2020
The growth trajectory of the ECC means that
the ECC could grow to 285,000 people in
1100 congregations.

102
Projected ECC Attendance Growth
300,000 284,868

225,000 209,801

156,824
150,000

108,090

75,000

0
1996 2004 2012 2020
103
Projected Number of Churches
1097
1100

906
825 763
644
550

275

0
1996 2004 2012 2020 104
Projected Attendance by Conference
80,000

1996 2004 2012 2020

60,000

40,000

20,000

0
CAN CEN EC ECCAK GL MS MW NP NW PSWC SE
105
Projected Number of Churches by Conference
1996 2004 2012 2020

300

225

150

75

0
CAN CEN EC ECCAK GL MS MW NP NW PSWC SE
106
 Ethnic Churches
1992 2004
Ethnic Ethnic
10% 20%

Anglo Anglo
90% 80%
2020
2012

Ethnic
27% Ethnic
36%

Anglo
Anglo 64%
73%

107
Years Per 100,000 Growth
110
110.0

82.5

55.0

27.5
17
12

0
0-100,000 100-200,000 200-300,000

1885-1995 1995-2012 2012-2024

108
Possible Crossroads
Structural capacity
ECC identity and cohesion
Clergy supply and credentialing
Financial resources
Next generation issues

109
 In It
Together
 Vision
• Pursuing Christ
and
• Pursuing Christ’s priorities in the
world…
The Prow
of the Ship
 The Prow
of the Ship
• World Mission
• Church Planting
• Strengthen Existing Churches
• Compassion, Mercy, & Justice
• Multi-Ethnic Ministry
•
Assignment: December 28, 2009
2 papers 4-5 pages each
Choose 1 in EACH section
Section I:
Briefly describe your church’s polity and articulate its strengths
and weaknesses.
What do you see as the strengths and weaknesses of the ECC’s
practice of congregational polity at the conference and
denominational level.
Section 2:
Evaluate the missional momentum of your church locally,
regionally, denominationally, and globally. Include reference to
conference and denominational resources and partnership
possibilities to enhance that momentum
Do a demographic study of your community and use the 5-Fold
Test to identify how your church can move ahead in being
more missional in your community.
116