The session and members of Calvary Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Glenside, Pennsylvania, had been considering the possibility of planting a daughter congregation for some time. Attendance had risen above three hundred. When pandemic protocols were introduced in spring 2020, however, the discussion took a different path. Calvary decided at that time to support some presbytery efforts rather than start one of its own.

In April 2022, seminary student Nate Jeffries asked if his upcoming internship might be shaped in such a way as to allow him to participate in the first steps of planting a church. The session approved the concept and asked Nate to lead a home group for families interested in exploring the possibility. I was privileged to be among the participating members.

We began with three interest meetings that took place during the summer. Each meeting featured presentations on chapters from Planting an Orthodox Presbyterian Church, with discussion following the talks. A midweek home group began that fall with Nate leading most of the meetings. This led to a deeper acquaintance with Nate and a growing confidence that he would serve well as our organizing pastor.

Evening worship services began in spring 2023. The Lord provided an amazing location in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania—the Temple Brith Achim. It was known from the beginning that once we began morning worship, our gracious host would not be able to accommodate us. The search for a new location began.

The Lord provided again! Whitehall Elementary School in West Norriton became the next (and current) home for Good News Orthodox Presbyterian Church.

Good News is in its formative season. Sunday worship, two Saturday morning Bible studies, a midweek home group, and regular fellowship meals are among the opportunities for fellowship and outreach presently in place. Pastor Nate, Amy, and their four children recently moved to the area and have already connected with neighbors and others with a view toward sharing the good news of Jesus with them.

All the mission member families are committed to working toward the formation of a vibrant, worshiping testimony of grace in this needy Philadelphia suburb. They are all committed to engaging in gospel conversations and are grateful for your prayers for a growing harvest in West Norriton.

The Benefits of Sacrifice

This kind of church planting has its costs—to participating families, to the mission work itself, and to the mother congregation. Members from both congregations miss each other’s company. The church officers sent to serve the mission left a leadership need at home. All mission members took their gifts and ministry involvements with them. This left opportunities for others to step in and take up their work. Unsurprisingly, financial costs were considerable.

But with every challenge came God’s generous supply. The Spirit brought more people to Calvary. Members learned to serve in new ways. Calvary’s 2023 budget was met, despite the relocation of generous members and the redirection of their robust offerings. Everyone involved with this project can testify how kingdom-directed sacrifices bless those who make them and honor the Savior for whom they are made.

Calvary and Good News have both grown in missions interest and support—locally, regionally, and worldwide. Prayers for the harvest in Glenside and West Norriton have deepened and become more regular. Tangible support for missions has increased. Leadership training in both churches is taking place with the emergence of several promising candidates. There is good reason to expect that new men will be ordained to serve within the next year.

Good News is not yet one year old. More of its developing story will appear in a future New Horizons issue.

The Seed and Sower Fund

As a daughter church plant, Good News OPC is receiving funding from the Seed and Sower Fund.

The Seed and Sower Fund used to be known by another name. In 2006, the Committee on Home Missions and Church Extension (CHMCE) established the “Neilands Fund,” named for elder David (“Scotty”) Neilands who left a generous bequest for home missions support. In time, the fund was designated for the support of mother-daughter church planting.

Mother-daughter church planting contemplates a congregation (the mother) sending a substantial number of families to work toward the formation of a new congregation (the daughter) in a strategic location accessible to the mission families. CHMCE has come to believe that this kind of home missions effort provides some unique ministry strengths as well as promise for Spirit-empowered success. Here are some advantages to this approach:

• Families already know each other and can build on and deepen their relationships and the practice of their biblical “one-another” commitments.
• The overseeing session has a history of working together to shepherd members of Christ’s flock already familiar to them. They can draw from this acquaintance and experience in their oversight of the mission.
• Because of proximity, there often remains ongoing fellowship and worship opportunities between the mission and the mother congregation.
• Aspects of church life such as diaconal involvement and financial management can be shared for a time as the daughter church grows.
• There is built-in financial strength that includes a substantial commitment from the mother church as well as additional funding from CHMCE.

This last point refers to the Seed and Sower Fund, previously the Neilands Fund. CHMCE will use money from the fund to provide a matching grant supplemental to its ordinary four-year program of support. Here are a few of the components of the Seed and Sower program that need to be in place for a work to be approved for the grant:

• The seed group must include at least eight committed families.
• The seed group must have at least $20,000 on hand.
• Seed groups that include church officers will be given priority.
• The mother congregation must provide the match to CHMCE’s grant.

(For a description of the term “seed group,” see “A Seed Must Die to Bear Fruit,” New Horizons, March 2023.)

Here is how the funding works. The usual support program for a mission work delivers funding for four years—one year with identical monthly payments followed by three years of declining support. Mission works that qualify for Seed and Sower monies will receive the equivalent of the first year total matched by an equal amount provided by the mother church. For example, if the first year funding is $48,000, a mission work receiving Seed and Sower funding would receive that amount matched by its mother church for a total of $96,000 as an initial boost meant to get the work off to a strong beginning. A regular four-year program would then begin on the one-year anniversary of the Seed and Sower distribution.

The program has been utilized well and has helped produce good fruit for the kingdom of Christ. When the Neilands Fund approached exhaustion, CHMCE made the decision to continue the support practice, rename the account, and fill it with assets from its reserves. CHMCE will continue to fill the fund for future opportunities to support mother-daughter church planting.

The Seed and Sower Fund has been in active use since 2018. In the six years since, it has provided support for twelve works, all of which have been successful church-planting efforts. The table (below) lists those works, some of which were featured in New Horizons articles. You can consult those issues to learn more.

Future Support

CHMCE is pleased to support up to three new mother-daughter initiatives per year. Interested congregations are invited to contact the CHMCE office for assistance on how to get started. The document entitled “Use of the Seed and Sower Fund” will lay out the process for requesting support.

The Seed and Sower program has been fruitful. As the Lord provides, CHMCE will continue to use it as long as congregations take this unique step to plant churches. Requests have already been approved to begin in 2024. Look for reports on these works and others as you pray for a growing harvest of righteousness in our needy world.

The author is associate general secretary for the Committee on Home Missions and Church Extension. New Horizons, March 2024.