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Lifeway Leadership Podcast Network. G'day, I'm Scott Sanders and I'm Derek Hanna. Welcome to the One Thing, a podcast designed to give you one solid practical tip for gospel center ministry every week. The One Thing is brought to you by Reach Australia. We want to see thousands of healthy, evangelistic,

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multiplying churches. Churches, plant churches and we want to see healthy churches multiplying themselves, starting new congregations, starting new campuses, sending out daughter plants, resourcing via the networks and denominations are a part of churches not only in their state but also outside of their state as well. We want to see a healthy gospel ecosystem all across Australia. Recently we've been thinking about where they need to be more churches.

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This is a conversation that often causes grief, you start putting pins on a map and start talking about where people start getting defensive. We want you to be defensive, we want you to be a little bit uncomfortable today and we're going to name names but let's just hold that off. Let me just to kick off this conversation. What is the most unusual place you have seen a church plan? I think the one that sticks out, I visited the commission network a few years back and they had a church near Canary Street Wharf which is the financial

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district in London. It was church on a barge. So St Peter's barge, I think it's London's floating church. It was planted by an Australian Ben Shaw who many know, passed away last year but he planted that church as part of the commission network and they met on a barge and all the places. I mean you lived in London a bit. The terms are pretty stinky, grotty, smelly river. It's not that attractive. You thought the Brisbane River actually? No, I think it's worse than the Brisbane River. But yeah, church on a barge. I have seen

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a number of churches, that goal of meeting in a pub, they're realising ban pubs are pretty tingy and ugly on a morning after a Saturday night. I think the other one, so during COVID and during lockdown, the guys over at Auckland EV, they planted a church in the north and they put in a car park and set up a tent. So just because of the COVID restrictions, like a tent meant they were outside and they could plant and that would allow

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them to get a large enough space. So I would, again, obviously, we evangelism was done in tent meetings all throughout Europe and America at various points in time but meeting in a tent today, you know, today, anyway. Oh, but they were good tents. Yes, all the tents. Yeah, guys still cold. Anyway, for now, you have pressed play on another episode of the one thing. We're going to talk about the top five places that we need to plant a church next in Australia. Now, obviously Derek, we know that you're going to say we

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need to plant churches everywhere. But we can't plant churches everywhere. We need to start somewhere. Or in this case, I just want your list, what are the five next places? Yeah. Now, I'm going to give names. I'm going to put my finger on. So we want people to write in resources at reachestraid.com.au. Or if you just want to go directly to source, Derek at reachestralia.com.au. No, I can spill my name anywhere. Derek D.E.R.E.K. at reachestraid.com.au.

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Hey, Mal, here we come. No, I would love to hear from people. The challenge in talking about this is people, as you mentioned before, people can get a little bit defensive if you mention their suburb. In that particular field, leading a church in there, because thinking what am I a chop lever? You know, what am I? And so we want to, we have Richard Johnson, where we talk about a bootcamp. Richard Johnson was here way before any of us. He was the one who brought the gospel. And so we are standing on the shoulders of someone else. We also want to say that there are more than enough lost people. So yes, there might be areas where there is a church needed more. But we don't want to get to the point where

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we say you can't plant nearly there's enough church to see, because we just know that's not true. But I'm going to talk today. A few categories we'll talk about. I've tried to pick a few spots over Australia that match either new greenfields areas or cross-cultural ministry areas. Some more regional than others. I haven't tried to cover everywhere, but we are doing a fair bit of work in this at the moment, building our kind of planting prospectus to identify one needs, talk about them today, but also opportunities. So particularly

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if you're a church and you're thinking we are looking right now, like I know the point church in Port McCoy and you said, well, I was looking for a plan to right now for campsy. If you're one of those churches you're looking for someone right to me, we want to work out how we can connect plantas with you for that. But we're going to talk about five particular areas. Okay, so what's place one? All right, place one. I'm just going to go to Queensland straight up at you. Always talking about Queensland. Always talking about Queensland. Did you know that everyone's coming to Queensland? Yes, we do. You've got a great climate. I need a amazing up there at the moment. Anyway, Ipswich and Surround. So this is a new

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greenfields population. If you're featuring Brisbane on the coast, Brisbane or South East Queensland above Brisbane, south of Brisbane, above Sunshine Coast, massively growing, south Gold Coast hugely growing. But particularly when you head out west around Ipswich and Surround's there, for example, the population in that whole area there around about 100,000 in this group of few suburbs. In by 2031, it's going to be 300,000 people, 320,000 people, in fact. Massive population growth. Most of it's just open fields at the moment, but you drive out there

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a little bit like Western Sydney, often fields. You drive down place and there's a new development. So I want to start off with Ipswich, hugely growing area. We need churches in there. So greenfields. So what are greenfields and eat it so badly? Oh, well, they're the places where population's going into. So I know there was a Dorothy Dicks question there, but part of that's where people are going to move into. So you've got a time at ride. You can't move so far into the greenfields that they're not going to be there for eight years and just wait around for it. You're trying to stagger where you go in. So for example,

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Ripley Church, Central Valley Church, Pierre and Catherine Ferencini planted there in Ripley. That's in and around this area. They planted out of central church in Ipswich. And so they planted into Ripley, which is just exploding around them. And we need to just keep moving with that and keep planting churches long there to reach these 320,000. So there are greenfields, greenfields, areas all over Australia. So if you hear Ipswich, think you're like a greenfields area. You already mentioned sunshine. Sunshine coast is 350,000. It'll be 500,000 people by sort of 20, 2035 as well. I think so there are places,

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places around but greenfields, awesome places to start a church. Okay, place two. Okay, I am going to talk about this is out in Melbourne now. So if you look at a Melbourne, lots again, greenfields areas, but if you look at in the west of Melbourne particularly, a lot of people whose birthplace is not Australia, particularly from South and Central Asia, huge population. I looked at the notes and I saw South and Central Asia and I went, hang on, we're rich Australia, like having you read the memo. We're just interested in planting churches

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in Australia. And isn't it amazing that they are coming to us and we have the opportunity indeed to read some. And so if you look in Melbourne, West Melbourne, the next little while, even now, this is places that are just absolutely exploding. So let me give you a few examples. We've already got like the Laneway Church in Futscray with Sarah and Josh Allen. They are looking at planting Senniac Quanhoe. Soon he's going to plant a church to reach Vietnamese and anyone who

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comes with the gospel out there. But you're looking at places out there like Rockbank in Melton, you're looking at Sunshine, Trigonina, all those places very heavily populated by South and Central Asian ancestry. So again, the question might be asked, well, in a place like West Melbourne, they're already churches. Why do we need to start new churches? Why can't these existing churches just learn how to reach them? Can start reaching them? Yep. Well, a lot of these areas, well, there's two answers that one. Some of these areas in new growth areas as well. The second one is

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a lot of the churches have been there for a while and they may not necessarily represent the population that has grown up around them. And so it's not to say those churches can't reach them, but we also need people who are often from those cultures in order to help us work out how it is best to share the gospel with them. And so that's what Futscray, that's what Laneway is doing. Quan is Vietnamese by ancestry and so he understands the challenges of second generation and they are supporting him going out to reach people who they probably wouldn't be best place to reach. Place three. Okay, place three, we're going to go over to Perth. If you've never heard

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Perth before, that's on the West Coast for Australia. Don't go, I lived in Perth for four years. Is that right? My brother is actually a sand groper and my team is the West Coast Eagles. So he's been a very tough season. Okay, yeah, better that. Yeah, anyway, that's that well, Northern South Perth. That's where we're going to at the moment. Is that we're going south, Pinchara, Baldoevo's Kinshara, doubling population in the next five, six years, up to 40,000, North, Alchemos, going from 15 to 30K, 30,000 people up there. So both North and South, this stretch along the coast in Perth. And again, I'm not saying there's no churches in there,

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but there aren't enough churches in there. So I'm really thankful. Let me just give a plug to North Beach Baptist Church over there who've been looking for someone plant for a couple of years, patiently, granders, been patiently working with the elders trying to find somewhere. They finally found someone to go over there. Very thankful we're staying there, journey with them to plan in Alchemos, but that's not the only church we need up there, or down south in Rockingham area. So yeah, there is something about when a number of churches are planting at the same time, there's an opportunity actually to see greater growth because you've

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got a whole bunch of people making noise in around a place. So again, if you're listening to this, and it's on your heart, the plant in Alchemos moss as well, don't just think, okay, North Beach got it sewn up and it's going to, we need a couple of churches. Yeah, I'm pardoning people who are doing it. Absolutely. Need more. Okay, place four. Quimian. So Quimian. So where's Quimian? Quimian is not camera. That's technically true. That I was just testing you. You know, is it in the, it's not the ACT?

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Not the ACT. It's the UCF Wilds. New South Wales. And yes, so look, this is a developing area as well. New South Wales. But that, and look, if you went up North of the Delta, yass and surrounds, but particularly the Quimian area is growing in population over the next six, seven, eight years. So this is an interesting one. It's not a regional center. It's right next to a big population of people in Canberra, but it is a distinct region and place. It is. And I think public is the real estate is so expensive in Canberra. It is beginning to push out.

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And again, there needs to be more churches in that area. And Canberra is pushing out as well. Canberra has been buying up New South Wales recently. Is that right? So Quimian, I know it's in New South Wales, I know I made that point, but also can I just make a shout out for Canberra as well? Canberra is seeing significant growth, particularly down towards the South, but also towards the North. And if you are, interested in reaching people from our capital city, Canberra, then it's a place to go. And I reckon it's a very interesting place to plant in terms of, I think it's got a can have quite a

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stable population, people who make Canberra home and stay there, but it's got that regular change over just because of government. So we are looking for people to go to Canberra at the moment. But it's not in the top five. It's just a adjunct and a side from place four, because we're only talking about five today. So I want you to go to place five near. Oh, I'm going to place five or I'd, and he's placed five. Can I, or how do you say this? How do you say this place? Gua. Gua. I think this how you say it. Yeah. I reckon, I reckon an

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Adelaideian's going to say it different. I reckon they would. I've been, I've been being bit on people from Perth, and they keep correcting me. It's not Albany. It's like a bogus. It's Albany. Yeah. Albany. Yeah. Albany. Anyway, this is Gua. Gua. Duncan and Mary are in Andrews in Victor Harbour down in South Australia. So Gua is just next door to them, and it is, it's beautiful area, Victor Harbour down there, but it's doubling in population essentially in the next kind of seven or eight years. So it's going from about 12,000 to about 23,000.

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And so there's a lot of people moving in there, and there are hardly any churches in that entire area. Now, I'm probably going to get hate mail from that. And that's okay, because now you've got my email address, but Derek, and Registraria.com to make you. Oh, no, no, I'm not. But listen, even if you're in there, I, I'm not saying that you're not going to be in a prison in a prison in a prison in 80. It's pretty easy. But anyway, what I'm saying is this is an area that needs people to go to. No, look, there's lots of other places. I could pick up North

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Brisbane, over Brisbane, well, of Adelaide as well. The Hills District and Adelaide around Men Barker as well, that is exploding. I want to stop you though, because the reality is Australia is un-reached. Massively. And you are doing the work. We're putting together a planning perspective where we want to provide a place where we can actually go to to see all the opportunities and the needs around the place. And we want to call them out so that we can be starting to pray for these places. Planning is not a quick thing. Generally, the lead-up time can be anywhere

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between seven to two, three years out before we actually launch and see the thing happen. So I want to ask a hard question though here. What do you think is the main obstacle to people actually planning churches in these places? Well, it can depend, can't it? Sometimes if you're a church in your running church running a ministry, ministry is hard in and of itself. And so often the idea of multiplying is just one step too far. You're struggling to do all the other things in ministry. I'm saying, no, we need to put multiplication on the table and we need to think about

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what it looks like to continue to think through planting no matter what your involvement might be. You might be two years away from it, you might be ten years away, but I think you need as part of your conversation piece if you're leading a church. I think that's one blocker. We pull the conversation up too short. I think from the other side as well, I think there is a fear in planting at the moment. I think there's a nervousness about it in leading anything actually, in leading a church, being a senior in church, or in church planning. And so I think it's not

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like church paintings become harder. It's always been hard work. Yeah, absolutely. It's not like it's riskier. It's always been risky. Yep. And look, there's lots of things which people think blockers like finances. We've never had a church launch, which hasn't had enough money. There are lots of people willing to support this financially. There's not enough lost people out there. No, I think there's just a nervousness, maybe a risk of failure, a nervousness that the culture is hostile. Culture has always been hostile. It's just a little bit more obvious now. So I think from

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planters perspective, there's maybe a nervousness around leading. And so maybe not that gospel courage we need to see. Maybe lastly, well, this is part of this podcast, people aren't aware of the opportunities. And so if you are a church that is looking for a planter and you've got a place down the road that you want to repot or revitalize or plant in, let us know. And we will do our best to match you with somebody. If you are a person who is thinking, even having an inkling about planting, talk to us because we want to work out how to work through the things that

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are irrational fears or we need to just be able to get over. And the things that are right fears, and we need to address in a godly, thoughtful, biblical way. But we need to keep pushing for with this conversation, because we have to register. We're planning is not the only tool we've got, but it's a really key one. So, Joey, what's the one thing about the need for planting more churches? Well, we need to plant. We need more planters. We need more churches who are willing to plant and support plants. And we need to raise up teams who are willing to get their lives

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with those churches to see the lost reach wherever they go. Great. Well, I'm going to open up the toolbox. You raise a really important point, the need for prayer or we've launched a prayer net network this year. Pete's going to put in the show notes just a link so you can sign up and be praying for what's going on around Australia. One of the things we're wanting to do every couple of weeks is put a different place on the agenda and be praying for existing churches in that space, but also for new churches as well. Prayer needs to clothe and proceed and continue to be

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around all our churches and particularly church plants. There's a great spiritual battle going on as well. Some of those places that we've talked about and some of the people will share a couple of podcasts just from a few different people about Greenfield's planting, from Stuart Star, also an episode from The Andrews as well, just on Victor Harbour as well. I always find stories are really useful in allowing some of those obstacles and some of those fears. Derek's done it.

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We can plant churches. He's been able to do it in a mother daughter. You know, you feel, hey, we can do this. Absolutely. It's not out of reach. It's really not. So the other thing to remind you, if you are thinking about planting, get assessed. You know, often you'll have a place on your heart. The assessment process is going to help you with others put together a plan. Think about your suitability. Walk alongside you as you have that conversation with your church. So get assessed and get assessed. Even if it's like an easy no-brainer, you know, you've got a

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hundred people in the coming out of a church, you know, on their fifth church plant, still get assessed. So if you want to also add your church plant need to our prospectors of church plants, email resources at reachastralia.com.au. We want to hear of more and more places so we can keep putting them on the agenda. I'm Scott Sanders. I'm Derek Hanna. Chad soon. So question. What's that? That was just that was what professionals do, but they clap.

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That was just a mic.