Link to archived webcast: Rural Church Planting
Webcast Participants
Alan Foster is the MNA Church Planter Recruiting Director and runs a cohort of pastors who labor in rural contexts. afoster@pcanet.org
Paul Joiner is the Senior Pastor at Zion Presbyterian Church in Columbia, TN. Paul is leading an effort to reach small towns with populations under 20,000 in middle Tennessee. psjoiner@gmail.com
Hutch Garmany is the pastor of Grace Community in Trenton GA and a church planting leader in the Tennessee Valley Presbytery. hutch@gracetrenton.org
Kevin Thumpston is pastor of Watershed Fellowship in Lexington, SC and oversees church planting for the Palmetto and Pee Dee Presbyteries kevint@watershedfellowship.org
Tom Powell serves bi-vocationally and out-of-bounds on a small island off the coast of Maine, serving a congregation on the Cranberry Isles. His other vocation…lobsterman. Mailtompowell@gmail.com
If you are interested in reading more about the work Tom is doing, here are some links specifically on his work:
https://byfaithonline.com/tag/tom-powell/
https://presbycast.libsyn.com/an-island-ministry-preacher-lobsterman-tom-powell
Below are links to various articles which come from a variety of perspectives.
https://www.census.gov/library/video/2017/rural-america.html
https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/debunking-three-myths-about-rural-america
https://www.statista.com/statistics/985183/size-urban-rural-population-us/
https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/rural-economy-population/rural-classifications/what-is-rural.aspx
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/01/03/five-myths-about-rural-america/
Suggested Bibliography
The Left Behind: Decline and Rage in Rural America by Robert Wuthnow
The Unsaved Christian: Reaching Cultural Christianity with the Gospel by Dean Inserra
Small Town Mission: A Guide for Mission-Driven Communities by Aaron Morrow
Dynamics of Spiritual Life: An Evangelical Theology of Renewal by Richard Lovelace. – Talking about revivals/renewals and the Jesus Movement. Often referenced by Keller.
Alienated America, Timothy Pl Carney
Small Town Jesus, Donnie Griggs
Hillbilly Elegy, J.D. Vance
Below are PDFs you may find helpful.