{"id":1310,"date":"2017-05-11T16:42:57","date_gmt":"2017-05-11T16:42:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/?page_id=1310"},"modified":"2019-11-01T10:40:13","modified_gmt":"2019-11-01T15:40:13","slug":"bishop-james-d-leggetts-2005-report","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/bishop-james-d-leggetts-2005-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Bishop James D. Leggett&#8217;s 2005 Report"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Report of Bishop James D. Leggett,<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>General Superintendent<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>ROADMAP TO DESTINY<\/strong><br \/>\nWith this General Conference, we celebrate 107 years of ministry. Under the<br \/>\ndirection of the Holy Spirit, the IPHC has managed to alter its course and redefine its<br \/>\nmission to meet the ever-changing needs of those it seeks to serve. As a result, we have<br \/>\nbecome one of the most flexible, innovative, and fastest-growing denominations. Many<br \/>\ndenominations start declining long before their centennial, but we have experienced our<br \/>\ngreatest growth in the past decade. We believe our fellowship has experienced a<br \/>\nsovereign move of God. Jesus said, \u201cI will build my church,\u201d and He is doing that.<\/p>\n<p><strong>PURSUING OUR DESTINY<\/strong><br \/>\nAs remarkable as our recent growth has been, there is still more work to be done.<br \/>\nThe Lord has a glorious future and special destiny ahead of us, but to get there, we must<br \/>\ncommit ourselves to move with Him as He moves. In spite of recent achievements, our<br \/>\ngoals for the end of this decade are still faith goals:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>To have 500,000 members in the United States and 5.5 million members<br \/>\noverseas by the end of this decade.<\/li>\n<li>To plant 1,000 new churches and move plateaued churches into the harvest<br \/>\nfields.<\/li>\n<li>To have at least 80 percent of our churches showing growth each year. To<br \/>\naccomplish this, we plan to develop consulting teams for churches, mentoring<br \/>\nclusters for pastors, and coaches for pastors and churches.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We rejoice daily for the grace of God at work in our churches, but we need to ask<br \/>\nfor strength of heart and boldness to follow His highway on our journey to reach our<br \/>\nGod-given destiny.<\/p>\n<p><strong>GLOBAL ADVANCE<\/strong><br \/>\nThe growth trend in global membership continues. Each of the last four years has set<br \/>\nnew records of increase. PH members and adherents worldwide now total more than two<br \/>\nmillion people. When we include our affiliates, the Igreja Metodista Wesleyana of Brazil<br \/>\nand the Iglesia Metodista Pentecostal Church of Chile, the total reaches an amazing 4.1<br \/>\nmillion people.<\/p>\n<p>The decade ending in 2000 was the most significant 10 years in the church\u2019s history.<br \/>\nDuring the \u201990s, more than one million members were added to the church around the<br \/>\nworld. That was seven times the growth of any previous decade, and since 2000, the<br \/>\nnumbers are on track for another record-setting decade.<\/p>\n<p>The road leads through over 100 nations. For example, new churches have been<br \/>\nreported in the former Soviet states of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. Wonderful things are<br \/>\nhappening with the church in the Ukraine. They are targeting other Russian- and<br \/>\nUkrainian-speaking nations (predominantly Muslim) for church planting.<\/p>\n<p>In 2003, the Pentecostal Holiness church in Cuba celebrated its 50th anniversary.<br \/>\nThe work there not only has survived under Communism; it has thrived and is a vibrant<br \/>\ntestimony to the power of the gospel. It was a joy to be in Cuba for this great celebration.<\/p>\n<p>The World Pentecostal Holiness Fellowship (WPHF) is gaining in significance. The<br \/>\nWPFH held its third global meeting in February 2003 in San Jose, Costa Rica.<br \/>\nPentecostal Holiness delegates from all around the world gather twice a decade for vision<br \/>\ncasting, inspiration, strategizing, and fellowship. It was exciting to hear international<br \/>\nleaders report on God\u2019s wonderful works around the world. Delegates represented the<br \/>\nemerging global, diverse nature of the church.<\/p>\n<p>The WPHF Committee planned the World Fellowship. That committee includes<br \/>\neight members, each from one of the continents where the Pentecostal Holiness Church<br \/>\nministers, and one each from our affiliates in Brazil and Chile.<\/p>\n<p><strong>ACCELERATING PROGRESS IN THE U.S.A.<\/strong><br \/>\nThe U.S. church is also accelerating at a record pace in membership and new<br \/>\nchurches. During the past quadrennium, we registered the largest gain in members of any<br \/>\npreviously recorded four-year period. During this quadrennium, we had the second and<br \/>\nthird largest annual gains in our history.<\/p>\n<p>The decade ending in 2000 marked the fastest growing decade for the church in the<br \/>\nU.S. So far in this first decade of the new millennium, the church is growing at a pace<br \/>\nthat will easily exceed the previous decade\u2019s record growth. The gain for the last decade<br \/>\nwas 72,000, and in the first four years of this decade, we have gained 37,000.<\/p>\n<p>Nearly three quarters of the new members are the result of new church plants.<br \/>\nDuring this past quadrennium, 493 new churches were reported (an average of 123 a<br \/>\nyear). This means the fellowship has started more than two churches each week. The net<br \/>\nincrease in total churches this quadrennium is 152. Those new congregations accounted<br \/>\nfor 34,540 new members at the end of 2004.<\/p>\n<p>Just a few years ago, our goal was to start 100 new churches in a quadrennium. We<br \/>\nhave now quadrupled that number, and our net gain is now more than our original new<br \/>\nchurch goal.<\/p>\n<p>A corollary to this recent growth has been an increase in the number of larger<br \/>\ncongregations. A decade ago, we had only 23 churches with more than 500 members.<br \/>\nThat number has more than doubled to 54 in 2004. The same thing has happened with<br \/>\nchurches of more than 1,000 members; that number has also increased from 9 to 19.<\/p>\n<p>During this same period, two new conferences were created. The Ephesians 4<br \/>\nNetwork, serving churches in several midwestern states, was birthed from the<br \/>\nAppalachian Conference in 2001. The Hawaii Pacific Islands Conference is also new,<br \/>\nwith churches in Hawaii and New Zealand. This conference is a daughter of the Home<br \/>\nMissions Conference and was created with the desire to reach across the Pacific islands<br \/>\nwith the gospel.<br \/>\n<strong>PROVISION FOR THE JOURNEY<\/strong><br \/>\nThe Lord has blessed the church with a spirit of generosity. The IPHC believes<br \/>\nministry begins at the local church, and we have made a commitment to reduce the<br \/>\nGeneral and conference funds so more monies remain for local church ministry. We are<br \/>\nmoving toward a tithe that will be divided between the conference and the General<br \/>\nchurch.<br \/>\nEven with the reductions of this past quadrennium, the General church had an<br \/>\nincrease (albeit much smaller) over the past quadrennium. We thank God for His<br \/>\nprovision and the faithful giving of our people and churches.<\/p>\n<p><strong>GROWING DIVERSITY<\/strong><br \/>\nThis report would not be complete without acknowledging the increasing diversity<br \/>\nof our fellowship. According to a 2004 report, members from the various ethnic churches<br \/>\naccount for nearly 20 percent of our members. That\u2019s up from only 10 percent just seven<br \/>\nyears ago. In 1991, that percentage was only 8 percent of the total church membership.<\/p>\n<p>In recent years, church planting among non-Anglo populations has accounted for 38<br \/>\npercent of all new churches reported. One reason for the increased diversity is the role of<br \/>\nIntercultural Ministries, which sponsors the National Training Institute for Hispanic<br \/>\nministers and other church leaders, the Hispanic Pastors\u2019 Conference, the Filipino<br \/>\nPastors\u2019 Conference, and the African-American Fellowship Conference.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>IPHC EXPERIENCE<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\nA key development during the past few years has been the <em>IPHC Experience<\/em><br \/>\nmagazine. This publication is the outgrowth of the initial church publication, the<br \/>\n<em>Pentecostal Holiness Advocate<\/em>, which had been printed since the early days of the<br \/>\nmovement. <em>IPHC Experience<\/em> was unveiled at the National Pastors\u2019 Conference in<br \/>\nNashville in 2003.<\/p>\n<p><em>IPHC Experience<\/em> has a modern, contemporary design and focuses on the story of<br \/>\nwhat God is doing among His people around the globe. The magazine is provided free to<br \/>\nall members.<\/p>\n<p><strong>HITHERTO HATH THE LORD HELPED US<\/strong><br \/>\nWe take a look back as we reach for the future God has promised us. The Lord has<br \/>\nbeen good to this denomination. Several exciting developments have helped shape our<br \/>\nidentity. A key ingredient in the success of our strategy is that it has emerged over time.<\/p>\n<p>Consider these simple road markers:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>1984 \u2013 adopted Target 2000, and growth began at an unprecedented pace.<\/li>\n<li>1990 \u2013 achieved our first annual gain of 5,000-plus.<\/li>\n<li>1997 \u2013 Target 2000 became Mission21.<\/li>\n<li>1999 \u2013 reached the mark of one million members worldwide.<\/li>\n<li>2001 \u2013 Reach 3\u2022Plant 3 introduced.<\/li>\n<li>2004 \u2013 trained consulting teams.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These historical landmarks indicate that the process actually began more than 20<br \/>\nyears ago. The Lord of the harvest has led us through various means:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>anointed, visionary leadership at every level.<\/li>\n<li>prophetic words shared at key events over the past several years.<\/li>\n<li>gifted men and women who have come alongside to offer guidance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>ONWARD TO OUR DESTINY<\/strong><br \/>\nThe Lord has helped us, and by His grace and guidance, we intend to reach our full<br \/>\nKingdom potential. We are stretching to reach 6 million members worldwide (500,000 in<br \/>\nthe U.S.A.). We are moving forward to plant 1,000 churches in the U.S., and we are<br \/>\npursuing the goal of having 80 percent of our churches registering significant growth.<\/p>\n<p>Our goals are not the product of our imaginations. They developed over time, after<br \/>\ndiscussions with key leaders, and following days of fasting and prayer. We believe they<br \/>\nrepresent the task the Lord has laid out before us, and they will require faith on our part<br \/>\nto reach them.<\/p>\n<p>According to Scripture, we play a part in the building of the church. We are laborers<br \/>\ntogether with God. We may plant and water, but He gives the increase. When we do our<br \/>\npart, we can trust God to honor His Word.<\/p>\n<p>We are moving forward with an intensive training program for planting and<br \/>\nwatering seeds that are being planted. During this past quadrennium, we initiated the<br \/>\nmost intensive training program in our history as we developed a strategic spiritual plan<br \/>\nto reach our full Kingdom potential. We have started mapping the mission, developing<br \/>\nthe road to the destiny to which God has called us.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Reach 3\u2022Plant 3 \u2013 One way we help is by providing training materials such as<br \/>\nReach 3\u2022Plant 3. Our strategy is to evangelize the lost and plant daughter<br \/>\ncongregations for this decade. It is a call for each individual to reach three<br \/>\npeople for Christ, and for each church to plant at least three daughter<br \/>\ncongregations. The key is for each believer to become a soul winner, and every<br \/>\ncongregation a church planter. Disciple 3 has been added to focus the<br \/>\ndenomination on the importance of developing disciples.<\/li>\n<li>Superintendent Consultant Training \u2013 Conrad Lowe and George Bullard<br \/>\nhave joined us in the journey as consultants. Both of these leaders have met<br \/>\nwith superintendents to help them transform their conferences and lead them<br \/>\ntoward increase.<\/li>\n<li>Conference Consultant Training \u2013 Some of the most exciting components in<br \/>\nmapping our future were the regional meetings where conference leaders were<br \/>\ntrained as consultants. Most conferences now have two or more consulting<br \/>\nteams assigned to work with plateaued or declining churches. We want all of<br \/>\nour churches to grow, be productive, and bear fruit. Our goal is for 80 percent<br \/>\nof our churches to show significant growth.<\/li>\n<li>Pastoral Mentoring \u2013 Another mapping strategy is pastoral mentoring. Conrad<br \/>\nLowe is now visiting conferences and training mentors who will facilitate<br \/>\ngroups of eight pastors. These pastors will help each other develop their skills<br \/>\nto be more effective in ministry. The mentoring process is just getting under<br \/>\nway, but we believe it will pay big dividends in the near future.<\/li>\n<li>Pastoral Coaching \u2013 The next sign on the road to the future is pastoral coaching.<br \/>\nWe plan to develop 50 to 75 coaches who will commit to serve three to five<br \/>\npastors in leadership development and in leading their churches to grow. Since<br \/>\nthis coaching can be done by telephone, it will be available to most of our pastors.<\/li>\n<li>M-Group \u2013 Finally, plans are under way to train pastors who have the passion<br \/>\nand potential to break the 1,000 barrier in worship attendance or membership.<br \/>\nWe now have several churches at this stage, and we want to do everything<br \/>\npossible to help them stay on track. This will be known as the Millennium<br \/>\nGroup (M-Group).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These new resource ministries are seedlings, but I am expecting them to help<br \/>\nproduce a great harvest in the years ahead. Two of our objectives are that no pastor be<br \/>\noverlooked and that no church be left behind as we move forward in this first decade of<br \/>\nthe 21st century. With God\u2019s help, we will do it.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a wonderful journey of God\u2019s direction and blessing. We pause today to thank<br \/>\nHim for helping us reach this place in His providence. We now look to the future as God<br \/>\nleads us beyond the boundaries of our own ability to dream, down a road we\u2019ve yet to<br \/>\nwalk. Today is wonderful, but tomorrow will be even greater.<\/p>\n<p><em>Bishop James D. Leggett, General Superintendent; ministries in his portfolio include<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Publications, New Evangelism Technologies (N.E.T.), World Intercession Network<\/em><br \/>\n<em>(WIN), and the Archives and Research Center (ARC).<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"excerpt","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","filesize_raw":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":{"0":"post-1310","1":"page","2":"type-page","3":"status-publish","5":"entry"},"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/Pb62Bx-l8","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1310","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1310"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1310\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1310"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}