Have you ever wondered how AFM missionaries go about their work? What are their major goals and objectives? At AFM, our missionaries use the Church-Planting Cycle to guide them through the challenges of establishing church-planting movements among unreached people groups. Here is a brief overview of each of the major phases and what missionaries are trying to achieve.

PRE-EVANGELISM
Pre-Evangelism is one of the most challenging and complex phases of the church-planting cycle because it lays the foundation for the rest of the missionary’s ministry. Missionaries have three major objectives during this period. The first is to settle their families and adjust to living in a foreign environment. Second, since effective evangelism depends upon good communication, missionaries learn the language, build close relationships with the people and complete a careful study of the culture. Missionaries do their very best to learn how the people think, how they communicate, what their values and goals are, who the most receptive people are and what the major barriers to understanding the Gospel will be. Finally, based on all they have learned, missionaries craft a carefully designed series of chronological story-based Bible studies to help their people understand and respond to the Gospel. These lessons, written in the language of the people, usually begin in Genesis and end with the
book of Acts.

EVANGELISM
During the Evangelism Phase of the church-planting cycle, missionaries begin applying all they have learned through the process of active evangelistic outreach. They carefully guide their audience—whether an entire village, a small family group or an individual—to an accurate understanding of the Bible’s message and how it specifically applies to their lives. Hearers come to understand the major players, values and themes of the Bible and how they compare or contrast with those of their own culture. They are able to see how Satan has deceived them and what God is offering them to meet their deepest needs. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, they are positioned to make intelligent faith decisions for Christ.

NURTURING/DISCIPLESHIP PHASE
The Nurturing/Discipleship Phase has two major objectives. The first is to guide new and growing believers in applying the Gospel message to every aspect of their lives. Every culture is a specific people group’s best attempt to meet the social, physical, spiritual and emotional needs of their members. The Gospel message must also be applied to each of these areas. A relevant Gospel is so much more than a statement of beliefs. It is a way of life. People must learn how the Gospel relates to their work, recreation, gardening, marriage, family, illness, death and every other aspect of life so that their new Christianity is just as full and meaningful a package as their old cultural system was. Additional lessons often must be written to assist the people in their spiritual growth.

Believers must learn how to live their lives on God’s side of the Great Controversy through participation in church life, ministry to believers, outreach and witness to non-believing family and friends, and leadership in the church. Much hands-on training, coaching and mentoring is required during this stage to help people learn how to live the Christian life in the fullest possible way.

PHASE-OUT
Phase-Out completes the last stage of active onsite involvement in the establishment of a church-planting movement. During this phase, the missionary’s primary goal is to develop fully qualified local leadership to carry on all the activities of evangelism, nurturing, and the planting of new churches. Missionaries must mentor leaders with vision and talent to take full responsibility for the growth and development of the church. Without this careful investment of time and energy, the church may stagnate and fail to fulfill its Great-Commission purpose. Once this phase is complete, the project is turned over to the local Adventist mission, union, or division for continued support and guidance, and the missionaries move on to other fields of labor for Christ, rejoicing in God’s goodness in allowing them to be used to bring a people to Him.

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