Church Planters
Good Soil Evangelism & Discipleship is effective for church planting ministries.
It’s no accident that Good Soil Evangelism & Discipleship is such a good fit for church planting, as it was created and developed to train missionaries involved in a church planting ministry. It helps people clearly understand, sincerely embrace, and firmly hold on to the gospel, all in worldview relevant ways.
Good Soil Evangelism and Discipleship Training
Engaging, Interactive, and FUN Learning!
The Good Soil Basic Seminar equips you to share God’s story of redemption chronologically, so that people will clearly understand, sincerely embrace, and firmly hold on to the gospel. The seminar extends over two days and is followed by a one-day Good Soil Trainer Certification Workshop.
Good Soil Basic Seminar – May & October
- Day One: Understanding Good Soil Theology of Evangelism and Discipleship
- Day Two: Preparing to Use The Story of Hope, The Way to Joy, and Other Good Soil Resources
The Good Soil seminar is based on principles of evangelism and discipleship found in the ministry of Jesus and the early church. The first day of the seminar focuses on the Biblical foundations of Good Soil and the need for worldview-relevant evangelism and discipleship. The second day introduces participants to The Story of Hope, The Way to Joy, and several other major Good Soil resources that church planters, around the world, have found to be helpful.
Good Soil Trainer Certification Workshop - May & October
A day of training to equip (and certify) you to teach the Good Soil Basic Seminar in your ministry. Some review of the basic seminar concepts, but primarily a day of learning instructional tips and techniques that will be of great value to you as you teach to your congregation what you have learned in the Good Soil seminar.
Pre-requisite: Must have attended a FULL Good Soil Basic Seminar at ABWE or a Good Soil seminar led by a Good Soil approved trainer.
Good Soil Trainer Workshop participants receive certification that qualifies them to purchase copies of the Good Soil Basic Seminar workbook, as well as grants them access to the other (FREE) instructional resources needed for teaching the seminar in their ministries.
Moving Beyond Lecture Workshop
Two Days in October, Following Good Soil Seminar & Trainer Certification Workshop
Move Beyond Lecture – in your teaching, by adding other instructional tools to your teaching toolbox.
This workshop will enhance your ability to teach the Bible creatively, with increased student interest and participation, beyond what you can probably imagine. You will...
- Learn a seven-step process for developing lessons for teaching and training.
- Enlarge your teaching toolbox with techniques and tips for teaching.
- Become more sensitive to classroom factors that can enhance your teaching-learning environment.
- Engage your students more actively and make learning FUN for them.
- Become much more confident in your teaching.
The Roots of Faith - Old Testament
The Roots of Faith - New Testament
Teaching the Bible chronologically, in a way that equips students for effective ministry in a world of competing faiths and cultures.
The Roots of Faith courses are three courses in one:
- Chronological Bible survey courses—Students master the overall chronological framework and core content of the Bible.
- Biblical theology courses—The Bible’s basic theological concepts are presented as they were progressively revealed, from Genesis 1 through Revelation 22.
- Worldview apologetics courses—Common non Christian worldview (“worldview noise”) issues are addressed throughout the courses in order to equip Christ-followers to live and minister in a world of competing faiths and cultures.
The courses also include:
- Downloadable Bible commentary for each course, to provide expert help for all of the Bible passages included in the lessons.
- Instructors Guide for each course.
- Access to online instructional resources for each course.
Additional supplemental resources are available, such as printed and PowerPoint teaching visuals and chronological Bible cards and more.
Bible courses you can become certified to teach in your church.
Good Soil Evangelism and Discipleship Resources
We all want to share our faith effectively…but how do we do it?
The Story of Hope
A Bible Study Resource for Personal Evangelism or Discipleship
The Story of Hope for Evangelism – This resource was developed to be an evangelistic Bible study, for use in personal or small-group evangelism. It is designed to work with unbelievers who know little or nothing about the Bible, as well as with people who do have some background knowledge of the Bible.
It unfolds the Bible’s redemptive story, from Genesis through Revelation, allowing the participant to have his/her own “aha” moments as mysteries of the Bible are progressively revealed through the study. It’s a great “no pressure” way for non-Christian participants to clearly understand the gospel, so that they can sincerely embrace Jesus as Savior.
Church planters sometimes use The Story of Hope for personal or small group studies as a means of getting a church started. Also, it is a good resource for beginning the process of discipleship and Bible teaching.
The Story of Hope for Discipleship - This Bible study workbook is also very helpful in discipleship. Participants learn the overall development of the Bible’s BIG Story, so that they know how it all fits together, while also being equipped to teach it to others.
National missionary in Western EuropeI have started to teach The Story of Hope at a church where another missionary couple is doing a church plant. It is a joy to see new believers who are getting excited when they start to understand the bigger picture of the entire Story of the Bible.
FREE Leader’s Guide
Some of the unique features of The Story of Hope:
- 40 Bible-event lessons, from Genesis through Revelation.
- Ends with the Chronological Bridge to Life, which helps participants to clarify, personalize, and be appropriately persuaded to put their faith in Jesus as Savior.
- Personal Faith Response page is the final page, which encourages the participant to make a personal faith response.
- Gets the participant involved in direct Bible study.
- Includes thought-provoking questions, not simple fill-in-the-blanks or simplistic questions.
- Time-flexible – can be used in brief presentations or in-depth Bible studies.
- Can be used for chronological Bible teaching or as a basis for chronological Bible story telling.
- Beautifully illustrated with high quality Bible event images, specifically commissioned for this resource.
- 64 pages of high quality paper with plastic coil binding. Generous quantity pricing.
- Available in many languages.
- FREE 103-page professionally designed Leader’s Guide available for downloading. Go ahead and download it and see what you think.
The Story of Hope Bible Class
31 Class Sessions for Teaching the Bible and Training to Share the Gospel
An excellent set of resources to use in teaching your congregation, in a way that equips them to reach others.
- Students are constantly engaged in active learning, as they study the Bible from Genesis through Revelation in 31 class sessions (or more or less).
- Underlying the teaching of the Bible’s BIG Story in this study, students are also being equipped to use The Story of Hope to lead others through the study. The final lesson is called “It’s Your Turn” and students are challenged to teach to others what they have been taught in this study.
- The 120-page professionally designed Class Facilitator’s Guide is available as a FREE download.
- A professionally designed PowerPoint with 400+ slides is also available for class facilitators.
- FREE access to an online Instructor’s Resource Center for teaching The Story of Hope Class.
The Way to Joy
A Bible Study Resource for Basic Discipleship
The Way to Joy – This resource was developed for personal or small group discipleship with new believers, or for people who have professed faith in Jesus Christ but have never been discipled—never been taught the basic steps in beginning to follow Jesus Christ.
It begins with a chronological overview of the Bible, from Genesis through Revelation, and the Chronological Bridge to Life. Then, it introduces the participant to these key foundational discipleship topics:
- Assurance and Security of Salvation
- Reading and Studying the Bible
- Prayer in the Believer’s Life
- The Holy Spirit in the Believer’s Life
- Personal Purity and Holiness
- Learning to Share Your Faith
- The Place of the Church in the Believer’s Life
- Becoming Involved in Serving Jesus
The Way to Joy is a unique basic discipleship resource in many ways.
Some of the unique features of The Way to Joy:
- Developed in response to the request of a group of church-planting missionaries who were asked, “What should be included in a basic discipleship study for your ministries?”
- 10 lessons covering foundational topics that every Christ-follower needs to understand in his/her beginning walk with Jesus.
- Gets the participant actively involved in studying the Bible.
- Bible memory verse cards included for the memory verses assigned in each study, as well as verses associated with the Chronological Bridge to Life.
- Bible reading plan and pages for devotional journaling.
- Lessons progressively lead to getting the participant involved in some kind of personal ministry.
- Beautifully and colorfully and creatively illustrated.
- 64 pages of high quality paper with plastic coil binding.
- Generous quantity pricing.
- FREE Leader’s Guide available for downloading. Check it out and see what you think.
The Way to Joy Discipleship Class
13 Creatively Taught Basic Discipleship Class Sessions
Resource for New Believers or Baptism Classes (or for any believer who has not been formally discipled)
In addition to its value as a resource for personal or small group discipleship, The Way to Joy works well in classroom settings. This FREE guide makes it easy!
A teaching plan for each of the 13 sessions is included. Teaching-learning activities are designed for engaging, interactive, and FUN learning—lots of variety in the activities. Also, there are several for-sale Good Soil resources that can be used to make the classes most effective. Lesson 13 is called “It’s Your Turn,” and designed to challenge class participants to put what they have learned into practice, by discipling another person who needs what they have learned in the class.
We have developed a FREE online Instructor’s Resource Center to provide class facilitators with instructional materials needed for some of the class activities.
LifeStories
FREE Evangelism Resource
106 Professionally Designed Pages - FREE
Designed for evangelism with people who enjoy stories and story telling. Connects “where they are in life” to major redemptive story events in the Bible.
Perfect for informal small groups. Activities engage participants in learning key Bible stories well enough that they can tell the stories to others. Each session also focuses on learning about God—the God of the Bible—who He is, what He is like, and what He has done.
LifeStories is a “stories version” group study of The Story of Hope.
GrowthStories
FREE Discipleship Resource
71 Professionally Designed Pages - FREE
Designed for basic discipleship with Christ-followers who love to learn through hearing or telling stories. A complete curriculum plan for small group gatherings. Loaded with creative FUN activities.
Participants compare their own struggles and steps of spiritual growth with characters in the Bible. Questions-activities provoke them to think of their own lives and what they can do to become more-committed followers of Jesus.
GrowthStories is a “stories version” group study of The Way to Joy.
Hooks for Hanging the Bible’s Storyline
Teach students to be able to think their way through the Bible, from Genesis through Revelation—in just a few hours.
Every movie or novel has a central storyline, a plot. Even children from age six and up can learn the BIG storyline of the Bible, using 25 “Hooks”—major eras of the Bible. And the activities are FUN for students of all ages, even the teachers.
The 12 "Hooks" for Hanging the Old Testament Storyline
The 1 + 12 "Hooks" for Hanging the New Testament Storyline
Ariel, Filipino visiting in New JerseyMy latest Hooks for Hanging the Bible’s Storyline workshop was last Saturday in a Bible study in the home of the owner of Sam Ash Music Stores in Bayonne, NJ. Several very diverse cultures were represented in the group (Filipino, Russian, German, American, African, Hispanic, Arab, and Jewish). They were amazed and enjoyed it - and everyone understood. Some said, “I finally got it!” “I’ll read my Bible again.”
FREE Book for Church Planters
Gaining Ground with Good Soil is an evangelism and discipleship training narrative—a scaled-down version of the Good Soil Evangelism and Discipleship seminar in a narrative format. The principles to be gained from this book are applicable to anyone wishing to serve God through Biblical evangelism and discipleship, but it is especially instructive and helpful for church planters, missionaries, pastors, and other ministry leaders.
The realistic, but fictional narrative, around which the book is developed, tells the story of a couple of church planting missionaries who were frustrated and discouraged—to the point of almost giving up—because of their lack of success in evangelism and discipleship on their field. But, the “Good Soil” principles they learned from Bible study revolutionized their ministries.
Free instructional resources for individual and group study are also available for download. www.GoodSoil.com/FREE
If you are currently involved in leading a church planting effort, with a USA shipping address, and will commit to reading this book, we will send you a FREE (and postage-free) copy of Gaining Ground with Good Soil.
More Good Soil Resources for Evangelism and Discipleship
Good Soil provides an entire toolbox of resources for church planting and many other ministries.
For a complete overview of our Good Soil resources:
Good Soil E&D Training and Resources for Many Types of Ministries
The focus of this page has been on using Good Soil in your church planting ministry. But, Good Soil provides training and resources for many different kinds of ministry.
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