Baseball season is starting soon, and if you’ve ever watched a game, you know that fielding a ball is all about reaction time. In the major leagues, an infielder has just 0.15 to 0.25 seconds to recognize the ball coming off the bat and start moving. That’s faster than the blink of an eye. If they hesitate, even for a fraction of a second, the ball is already in the outfield, and the play is lost.
The reason they react so quickly isn’t luck—it’s training. Major league players have fielded ground balls thousands of times, until recognition and response have become seamless. They don’t think about moving. They just move.
Slow to Recognize, Even Slower to Respond
In my observation, we are far too slow to recognize church planting potential—and even slower to respond to it.
For years, church planter assessment trained us to be cautious. We learned to look for pitfalls instead of potential, to hold off on affirming a calling until we were sure. That approach made sense when there were more aspiring church planters than available opportunities.
But today, that’s not our reality. The need for church planters is far greater than the number of people stepping up to plant churches. If we don’t adjust our mindset, we won’t just be slow to recognize church planting potential—we’ll miss it altogether.
Training Ourselves to React Faster
We need to develop a scouting mindset when it comes to church planters. Instead of waiting for someone to prove they are ready to plant, we need to spot their potential early and help them develop.
This requires two things:
1. We need to know what church planter potential looks like.
- If you don’t know what to look for, you won’t see it—even when it’s right in front of you.
- This is why we created a Church Planter Scouting Guide—a simple tool to help you recognize the qualities of a future planter.
2. When we see potential, we can’t hesitate.
- If we don’t engage them, someone else will. Great leaders are in high demand. If the church isn’t developing them, they will find leadership opportunities elsewhere.
- The Church Planter Coaching Cards provide a way to start intentional conversations and help potential planters take their first steps.
The Future is in the Scouts’ Hands
The players on the field today didn’t just show up ready for the majors. Someone saw their potential years ago—when they were still raw, unpolished, and not yet ready to play at the highest level. A great baseball scout doesn’t wait until a player is fully developed. They see something before anyone else does, and they act.
That’s the role of church leaders today. The future of church planting depends on those of us who will see it early, say something, and start the process of calling, equipping, and sending. The question isn’t whether church planter potential is out there—it is. The question is, will we react in time?
Download the Church Planter Scouting Guide and Coaching Cards today and start spotting the potential in your church.
