Sending Pathways
churches working together to develop and deploy members for Great Commission tasks
Deployment - Development = Depletion
Traditional church sending models recruit the “best” members to become pastors, planters, and missionaries.
Without ongoing leadership development, this practice depletes the local church of missional health.
The Sending Problem
Sending Pathways helps churches develop and deploy members on the path that has called.
Sending Solutions
Access for Everyone God Calls
Developing Great Commission leaders can feel difficult for most normative-sized churches.
Churches might lack the resources or expertise to fully equip and support those God is calling from within their context.
How it works
UBA helps church leaders develop and deploy through their church’s current ministries. We also help fill in any gaps through collaborative equipping and sending.
Develop
Identify the called. Every church can identify the called by praying for God to send out laborers, teaching on the need to go, and personally challenging one another to take the next step.
Equip the identified. By working together, churches can fill in equipping gaps that exist across the city.
Deploy
Send the equipped. Every church can send people of character and competence. Good assessment helps churches make sure they're send the right person to the right place at the right time.
Support the sent. Churches work together to support.
Become a Sending Pathways church that both develops and deploys.
5 Critical Pathays
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Paul tells us, "If anyone desires to be an overseer [elder/pastor], he desires a noble work." (1 Timothy 3:1, CSB) Yet, fewer leaders desire this noble work. Increasingly, pastors of existing churches retire with fewer pastors trained to continue preaching and shepherding the church.
An example pastoral pathway
Identify - Provide pastoral ministry opportunities and watch for those who desire to do more.
Equip - Mentor those who feel called. Share teaching opportunities. Join a UBA leadership cohort (Lideres Transforadores, The Leader’s Collaborative, etc). Establish an equipping cohort in your church.
Send - Conduct diligent and thoughtful ordination reviews. Connect those called to churches needing pulpit supply. Commisison and commend your people to churches looking for pastors.
Support - Some pastors will serve full-time. Others will serve co-vocationally. All need continued support and encouragement from their sending church and the church they serve.
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About 250 people a day move to Houston. The average church in America is around 100 people. We need 2.5 church plants every day just to keep up with the population growth. We need church planters and church planting teams.
Example church planter pathway
Identify- Adopt or sponsor a church plant. Provide members regular opportunities to serve. Watch for those who want to do more. They are potential church planters and church planting team members.
Equip - Encourage potential planters to complete a church planter assessment. Houston has a wealth of training opportunities through: organization like North American Mission Board, Baptist General Convention of Texas (Texas Baptists), Send Network SBTC, and Houston Church Planting Network
Send - Commission the planter. Include his family. Consider sending some of your members to join them as they plant, even if just for a limited time. Take mission trips to support the ongoing work.
Support - Adopt or sponsor these new church plants. Take good care of the church planter's family.
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Cities change faster than churches. In time, churches can look drastically different from the communities around them. Eventually, these churches get to the point that they no longer have the internal resources to maintain good health. These churches need to be replanted to make a gospel impact.
Example church replanter pathway
Identify - Preach and teach about the need for church replanting. Offer the Replanter and Revitalizer Survey to those interested.
Equip- Join the Replant Collective to get the latest updates on resources and training.
Send - Commission the replanter. Include his family. Consider sending some of your members to join them in the work, even if just for a limited time.
Support - Adopt or sponsor these church replants. Take good care of the replanter's family.
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Houston is home to 1.7 foreign-born residents. From among these we've identified 350 people groups, speaking 220+ languages. These families live in all parts of Houston, placing them in the neighborhoods of our churches. Each church is a strategic outpost for the gospel. We need missionally healthy churches who will reach the nations coming to us.
Example of a diaspora sending pathway
Identify - Discuss the need for local cross-cultural engagement. Look for those interested in missions. Offer IMB’s Self-assessment
Equip - Deepen Discipleship (en Espanol)
- Who's My Neighbor? (link to schedule and registration/interest form?)
- Cultural Intelligence Workshop (link to registration/interest form?)
Send - Learn to do good candidate assessment. Hold a church-wide missionary appointment service.
Support - Discover their needs. Work with their sending agency and other churches to fill the gaps.
Become a Sending Pathways church that both develops and deploys.
Contact us
Coaching and Cohorts
Coaching and Cohorts
As part of our Collaborative Pathways initiative, we’re connecting African American leaders to cohorts and coaching to dialogue through, address, and meet the needs specific to their communities and churches.
If you’re interested in joining a cohort, contact our team.
Leader's Collaborative
Leader's Collaborative
Leaders Collaborative gatherings aim to equip and sharpen African American and multicultural leaders for gospel work. Each monthly workshop includes breakfast and a discussion of a key topic relevant to our leaders and their context.
These events are completely free, but registration helps us order materials.
Upcoming Dates
Sat, February 22
9 - 11 am
UBA Offices
Developing a Leadership Pipeline
To be sustainable, churches must raise up healthy leaders from within. How can churches establish a discipleship culture that cultivates quality leaders ready to step into leadership roles?
Sat, March 21-22
Fri, March 21, 7 - 9pm
Sat, March 22, 9am - 12pm
African American Leader’s Mission Weekend
Join us for a weekend session to give churches what they need to start a glocal missions movement.
Sat, April 26
9 - 11 am
Maximized Worship Service
Sunday worship is the cornerstone of God’s work in and through God’s people. This session will help leaders make the most of the opportunity the Sunday service provides for maximum gospel impact.
Testimonials
Our Consultants
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Church Consultant
Bryant was born and raised in St. Louis, MO, and is the founding and Senior Pastor of Higher Expectations Church in Humble, Texas. He has a passion for mentoring bi-vocational church planters and pastors reaching urban areas.
He is a well-decorated soldier who served well both in combat and in times of peace prior to his retirement from the U.S. Army after twenty three years of service. Bryant holds a Bachelor of Bible Studies from Survine Ministries Bible College, a Bachelor of Science in Multidisciplinary Studies from Grantham University, and a Master’s of Theology from Liberty University.
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Church Consultant
Lawrence is the founding and Lead Pastor of One Church at Harvest Point and a church consultant for UBA. He is married to Shannon Scott, and they have six children: Kaelyn, Leah, Eden, Lawrence III, Zachary, and Raegan.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the University of Houston, a Master of Theology (ThM) degree from Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS), and a Doctor of Ministry in Leadership and Church Health from DTS in Dallas, Texas.
Lawrence seeks to serve the unique needs of new and existing African-American congregations.
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Church Consultant
Pastor Darrell Jackson is a church and conference speaker/teacher who is passionate about developing transformational leaders. He is a native Houstonian with over 30 years of ministry experience as Lead & Assistant Pastor, Adjunct Professor, Church & Business Consultant, Pastoral Care Director, Minister of Music, and Chaplain.
Currently, Pastor Jackson serves at Crossover Bible Fellowship as the Pastor of Ministry Operations and as a Church Consultant at the Union Baptist Association as well as the San Felipe Baptist Association.
He is the president and founder of IFOGG Music and the Levite Collab. He is a Billboard Gospel Recording writer and Producer who has received a one-time Grammy consideration and a two-time Dove consideration.
Pastor Darrell Jackson shares his passion for developing leaders through organizations such as Texas Baptists, the John Maxwell Group, and as the president and founder of both Raise Performance Group and The Equippers Theological Institute—organizations focused on equipping leaders and assisting church leaderships to creating & refining their systems and processes, staff development, recruitment, and retention.
Pastor Jackson is a Board-Certified Chaplain with the Association of Professional Chaplains. He also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Christian Leadership from the College of Biblical Studies and a Master of Divinity from Faith International University & Seminary.
In his spare time, Pastor Darrell Jackson enjoys playing basketball, fishing, and spending time with his family. He and his wife Marsha are members of Crossover Bible Fellowship in Houston, Texas. They have been married since 1993, and they have three adult children, one son-in-law, and five grandchildren.
On the Blog
Allow me to share with you a realistic regimen that can reverse the spiritual condition of a wayward heart.