If I were planting a church again, I would build around three pillars from day one.
I know that because I didn’t. Not intentionally, and not all three at once. The gaps showed up eventually, and some of them took a decade to fix. Building them in from the start would have saved time, energy, and some real pain.
Those three pillars come from one of the shortest books in the New Testament. If you want to know what a healthy church looks like, Titus is a good place to start. It’s three chapters long. Paul is writing to a young pastor on the island of Crete, a hard place to plant anything, and giving him a framework for establishing healthy churches there. Each chapter carries one pillar.
Titus 1: Develop leaders
Paul’s first instruction is direct: “appoint elders in every town as I directed you” (Titus 1:5). Before programs, before events, before outreach strategies, Titus is told to find and raise up qualified leaders.
Look at the qualifications Paul lists in Titus 1:6–9. Almost all of them are about character. Above reproach. Faithful in marriage. Managing his household well. Not arrogant, not quick-tempered, not a drunkard, not violent, not greedy. Hospitable, self-controlled, upright, holy. Holding firm to the trustworthy word.
Character, not competence, is the foundation of church leadership. And character takes time to develop and time to observe. That’s why Paul told Timothy, “Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands” (1 Timothy 5:22).
I broke this principle more than once in the early years, out of pragmatism. We badly needed help, and someone was willing. I shortened the evaluation. Later I found out I hadn’t seen them under enough pressure to know who they really were.
Picture a small church where the man who runs the sound board also becomes an elder simply because he’s always there. He may be a fine man. But nobody has watched how he handles conflict, money, or disappointment. When pressure comes, that is exactly what the church will need to know.
Build for leadership development from the beginning. Know who you’re developing. Create structures that form leaders on purpose instead of hoping maturity happens by osmosis.
Titus 2: Disciple across generations
Titus 2 is one of the most structured discipleship passages in the New Testament. Paul spells out what should be taught to older men, older women, young women, young men, and bondservants. Different content for different stages of life.
It is intentional, generational, and relational. Older women are to “train the young women” (Titus 2:4). Older men are to model faith for younger men. Discipleship isn’t mainly a program that happens on Tuesday nights. It’s faith passed from one generation to the next through sustained, intentional relationships.
This is where Living Faith was slow. We got missional engagement right from the start. Intentional discipleship came later. Our weekly worship was forming people, but we didn’t have the structures for the kind of generational passing-on that Titus 2 describes. We had to build those in our second decade.
If you’re starting something, don’t wait that long. Ask now: who is walking with whom? Who are the older believers in your church, and which younger ones do they know by name?
Titus 3: Engage the world
Titus 3 describes the church’s posture toward the world. Paul tells Titus to remind believers “to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people” (Titus 3:1–2).
Not withdrawn. Engaged, winsome, and practically present.
Then Paul gives the reason: “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray” (Titus 3:3). Before grace, we were exactly like the people we’re now serving. That memory is supposed to produce humility and compassion, not moral superiority. And it ends in grace: “he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy” (Titus 3:5).
A church that is engaged in its community, fixing cars, hosting dinners, tutoring students, helping families in crisis, is living Titus 3. That has been our strongest leg from the beginning. It’s why The Garage at Living Faith exists at all.
Why you need all three
Think of the three pillars as the legs of a stool. Neglect any one and the stool tips.
- A church with mission but no leadership development burns out its few leaders and collapses when they leave.
- A church with leaders and mission but no discipleship stays shallow. New believers come in the front door and never grow up.
- A church with leaders and discipleship but no mission turns inward and forgets why it exists.
Most churches are naturally strong in one pillar. That’s fine. The danger is assuming your strength makes up for the other two.
A question for your leadership team
Here’s a question from the couples’ discussion guide in Second Fiddle, and it works just as well for an elder board or planting team: Of the three pillars (leadership development, intentional discipleship, missional engagement), which comes most naturally to you? Which will require the most intentional effort?
Answer it honestly. Then pick one concrete step for the weakest pillar this quarter. Name one person to start developing as a leader. Pair one older believer with one younger one. Or plan one practical way to serve your neighbors.
Read Titus together first. It takes about ten minutes. Few ten-minute investments will shape your church more.