We are thrilled to partner with churches who share a vision for spreading a passion for the supremacy of God through church planting.
This year's assessments will be held in Minneapolis, MN.
Application Process
The following steps are required to be completed by the deadlines in order to participate in an assessment.
Confirmation of Intent. Submit a confirmation email indicating both your and (if married) your wife’s commitment to attend the event. Due by Dec 13.
Church Planter or Parent Church Packet Review. Familiarize yourself with the anticipated benefits and expectations of membership by reviewing the Church Planter or Parent Church membership process packet as well as the TCT Membership Covenant. Due by Dec 13.
Confidential Questionnaire. Complete the Applicant Confidential Questionnaire. If you are married, your wife should also submit a separate copy of the same questionnaire. Due by March 6.
Membership Application. Complete the membership application for specific level of membership you and your church are seeking. Due by March 6.
Personality Test. You may submit any style test you’ve taken in the past such as DiSC, Enneagram, Myers-Briggs, etc. If you've never taken a test before, you may complete a free test at 16personalities.com. You will then want to print to PDF the outcomes from the resulting pages below, and submit those to us. Due by March 6.
Introduction
Strengths & Weaknesses
Career Paths
Workplace Habits
Release of Assessment Information. If you have completed any prior assessments with Converge, NAMB, GCA, A29, Sojourn, a church planting residency, or your sending church, please complete an Authorization for Release of Assessment Information and submit via hyperlinked folder. This will grant us permission to speak to your prior assessors. Due by March 6.
Miscellaneous Items. The following will be requested at different portions of your application, but are listed here separately in case you aren’t able to supply them while completing the online application. Due by March 6.
Two Sermon Samples (one from OT and one from NT)
Church Planting Proposal (for planters) or Philosophy of Ministry (for pastors)
Discipleship Plan
Resumé
Assessment Fee. Due by April 3.
Preparation for Assessment Day
1. Please come prepared to make a 10-minute presentation of your church planting plan / philosophy of ministry. You are encouraged to bring single page handouts (front and back printing allowable for 15 attendees) to provide to your audience. Some suggested points to cover are listed below.
Vision Statement
Core Values
Where are you located? Is there a specific focus group or targeted people group in your area?
How are you going to reach lost people in that focus group or in your part of the city?
How are you going to make/grow disciples?
What is your plan for raising up leaders?
2. Please note that during our time together, in addition to a personal 2-hr interview and the above 10-minute presentation, you will be invited into 1) a 30-minute discussion of some aspect of the TCT Affirmation of Faith including but not limited to your responses in the application and 2) individual and group counseling/shepherding exercises.
Further Details
Assessment
Your assessment will involve a team of up to 3 pastors/planters or ministry practitioners and 1 pastor’s wife listening, asking questions, and providing loving counsel regarding your and your wife’s calling, gifting, and readiness to engage in the work of church planting to the praise of God’s glory within our brotherhood. Questions will come from a range of topics including but not limited to marriage & family health, personal physical & spiritual health, ministry health, and ministry strategy.
Assessment Outcomes
At the conclusion of your assessment, your assessment team will make 1 of 4 recommendations regarding your readiness and fit for planting ministry in partnership with TCTN.
You will receive a final written assessment with clear strengths, weaknesses and action steps no later than 1 month from the date of assessment.
The action steps will include conditions to be met, an expected timeline to meet them, and whether or not an additional assessment will be required prior to being granted network membership.
Assessment Outcome Definitions
Approved: There are no conditions to be met and assessees are ready to move on to the candidating phase (see membership packet for further detail).
Approved With Conditions: There are 1-2 conditions that need to be met within a 3-12 month time span and upon meeting those conditions assessees will move to the candidating phase without a reassessment.
Reassessment With Conditions: There are 1-2 conditions that need to be met and upon meeting those conditions a reassessment will be required.
Not Approved: We do not believe the assessees are a good fit for the network or we believe they should not plant a church.
Cost
The price of the assessment is $500 per applicant couple. Planting teams will be charged the fee for each pastor/planter which attends the event.
You or your sending church will be responsible for the cost of travel to attend the event.
We realize this assessment process is daunting and requires quite a bit of work, and our team prays for each candidate couple that the process will be the blessing to you that it’s been to many other candidates who have walked through it over the past several years.