Sean Benesh's Blog, page 9

Why All This Talk About Ministry and Startups? An Intrepid Origin Story

About 5 years ago I was in a dark place. I had wondered if I was experiencing some kind of mental health crisis or possibly some burnout … or even a mid-life crisis. What was going on? What was sounding the alarm of concern within me?

I was falling out of love with the city.

Now mind you, I was all-in on cities … from writi...

How Do You Want to Be Labeled? Ministry Leader or Entrepreneur?

Labels stick. It’s hard to shake them. In the NBA LeBron James is not considered “clutch” as he is held up against the backdrop of Jordan or Kobe. But truth be told he has more game-winning shots than either of them. Yet they are considered clutch and LeBron isn’t. Labels. They stick and stand out.

Recently I had a long co...

Why More Denominations, Mission Orgs, and Church Planting Networks Should Fund Startups

If you’ve followed along for any length of time you know that I believe that funding church planters is a bad idea. Even within the past month in cities across the country I know of a number of planters who up and left after 5-7 years even though they each had well over a million dollars in funding. What was left? In most...

What Ministry Leaders Need to Know About Launching a Startup Before Diving In

My calendar is packed each week working with leaders who’re launching startups. Sometimes I refer to these entrepreneurial endeavors as startups, other times as brands, or social enterprises. They all fit and represent the wide variety of businesses and non-profits that are being started. Interwoven in our conversations e...

Finding Solutions to the Revolving Door of Church Planting

Another week and another church planter is leaving. That is happening in each and every city across the country. Obviously as to the reasons, they are myriad. But they all have the same effect. The dream of a thriving church plant has died (or is slowly dying before it is pulled off life support). So what has to change?

If...

Why I Wrote A Book About Awkward and Uncomfortable Topics in Church Planting

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Our latest Intrepid book … AWKWRD: Uncomfortable Conversations in Church Planting That We Avoid drops this week. The follow up question then is … why? Why did I write it? Is this a tell-all exposé about the underbelly of church planting? While there are definitely uncomfortable conversations and topics, my goal is to simp...

Whether Launching a New Brand or Church ... It's a Grind.

We can cite innumerable quotes or wise sayings that address how nothing in life comes easy. Go ahead, which ones come to your mind? It could’ve come from a parent, coach, book, conference, class, etc. The point? No one achieves anything without a lot of hard work and determination. There’s usually a lot of sacrifice along...

How to Raise Funds for Both Your Ministry and Startup at the Same Time

From a donor perspective investing in a ministry … any kind of ministry … comes with the intentional or unintentional expectation of a ROI (return on investment). In church planting that could look like a self-sustaining (and growing) church that is able to pay a pastor full-time, in a discipleship ministry that could loo...

Why Do We Think Ministry Leaders Need to Be Paid Full-Time?

The question in this title is one of the focal points of tension in the whole bivocational conversation. For many, it is assumed that the trajectory in ministry is to be paid to do it full-time. And for some, it means a very handsome salary package with perks, bonuses, and performance incentives. Especially for those goin...

You're Significantly More Prepared to Launch a Brand Than You Realize

If you’ve followed along for any length of time you will catch on one of the themes I pick up and polish from time to time. And that theme is this … most often those who’re trained for ministry aren’t really trained to do anything practical. We learn bible, theology, squishy ministry stuff, church history, preaching, mayb...