resources

Download the Annual Report ↓ Get the .pdf with photos, stories, and stats! Orchard-Group-Report-2021-22-1.pdf 5 MB download-circle [https://blog.orchardgroup.org/content/files/2022/02/Orchard-Group-Report-2021-22-1-1.pdf] More than 30 years ago, Tim Keller started Redeemer Church in Manhattan, and he recently retired with decades of ministry experience in New

What does Orchard Group do best? How does it serve the mission of church partners and vision of church planters? New churches have been planted with Orchard Group for more than 70 years, and over the decades we've zeroed in on four core areas of practice. While some

Christian missions efforts have a rich history of creative and fruitful outreach across the world, and individuals and churches have an ocean of possibilities as they consider how to invest their resources. Why should church planting be an integral part of that mission? With so many good options, why choose

By Luke Greer, Director of Partnership Receiving truly good news is a delight — all the more so in the middle of a prolonged tumultuous season. As our team here at Orchard Group began preparing last year to publish our annual report [https://blog.orchardgroup.org/orchard-group-report-2020-21/], I was a bit

It’s hard to think of very many aspects of normal life that haven’t been disrupted in the past year. Yet, one thing has never been disrupted, and never will be: God is still at work in our world!

Then Jesus told his disciples...that they should always pray and not give up. (Luke 18:1) While thoughtful plans and strategies are necessary, if God is not ultimately at work through them, they will produce little lasting fruit. This is why we are thankful for the thousands who pray

“Most churches and Christian organizations have all kinds of strategies: a strategy for evangelism, a strategy for crisis planning, a strategy for staffing, or a strategy for how to manage your building. But how many have a solid strategy to ensure that they are fighting against racial injustice?” –Brandon Watts,

As we near the halfway point of 2020, we can look back on what has already been a historically challenging year. It makes us all the more grateful for you who pray and give for the establishment of new churches, and for the leaders that are serving communities around the

By Robert Tomko, finance director -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Three church finance considerations for our current moment: 1.) Maintain accurate and responsible records. During this time, many of us will have fewer in-person connections with our accountant or bookkeeper. It’s important to ensure that our financial reports are produced with accuracy and

From Luke Greer [https://greer.lt], Partnership Director -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > He said to me, “My strength is made perfect in weakness.” —2 Corinthians 12:9 Strong and Weak Links A couple of weeks ago, Malcolm Gladwell gave a talk [https://munkdebates.com/dialogues/malcolm-gladwell] where he articulated some of his

from Greg Hubbard, Director of Operations, Orchard Group What is it? The economic stimulus bill recently passed by Congress (the CARES 2020 Act) contains $349 billion in potentially forgivable loans for small businesses, including churches, to encourage them to retain their employees through the current crisis. Who can get a

Like many organizations that are serving entrepreneurs and start-ups, we have been challenged by Praxis' article Leading Beyond the Blizzard [https://journal.praxislabs.org/leading-beyond-the-blizzard-why-every-organization-is-now-a-startup-b7f32fb278ff] . It gives an excellent framework for the current moment, and for moving forward over the medium and longer term. Borrowing the concepts of "

By Brent Storms, Orchard Group President/CEO Over the past couple of decades with Orchard Group I have experienced a handful of crises: the terrorist attacks on 9/11, the 2008 recession in the global economy, and the brutal impact of Hurricane Sandy on New York City. There have been

We know that at this point, everyone's newsfeeds are inundated with posts related to COVID-19. It can be daunting to sift through it all! So we've compiled a list of resources that we've found most helpful: Websites to monitor for current information: * Centers for

By Derrick Puckett, Renewal Church, Chicago We came into planting a church in Chicago like we had it all together. We thought we had the perfect location, the perfect staff team, enough money, and people. In the mind of the church planter, the plant may look and feel better than

From Brian Kruckenberg, lead planter of New City Church You’ve read the books, gone to school, gone through assessment, raised money, worked and reworked your vision statement, found a place to meet and made it through launch. Congratulations, you’ve planted your church! You thought the most difficult stage