Strike The Match With J. D. Payne

In this episode of Strike the Match, my guest is Matthew Ellison, president of 16:15 and co-author (with Denny Spitters) of When Everything is Missions. When I read this book, my initial reaction was that every (yes, every) North American pastor should read this book in the next year. What happens when everything the Church […]

What time is it? It is time for season 4 of Strike the Match! After 50 episodes, I kick off this season by addressing my recent transition to Samford University. Earlier this summer, I announced this move on the blog. However, I thought it would be good to provide an expanded version in this podcast. […]

My guest in this episode is Bryan Galloway, Senior Researcher for the Diaspora Peoples Initiative of the International Mission Board. We discuss his forthcoming book Reaching the Nations: Carefully Examine, Naturally Encounter, and Intentionally Engage Diaspora Peoples. If you are looking for a guide on how to understand and reach the strangers next door, then […]

Japan is a very influential country and home to one of the world’s largest unreached people groups. John Mehn is my guest in this episode of Strike the Match. His new book, Multiplying Churches in Japanese Soil, sheds light on what the Spirit is doing among this great people. Can churches multiply eleven-fold and increase by […]

Roland Allen (d. 1947), best known for Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours? and The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church, was one of the most influential mission thinkers of the twentieth century. As a High Church Anglican, he had great respect and value for Church tradition but was quick to confront cultural preferences when they appeared to contradict […]

The Moravian Church has been described as “one of the most remarkable missionary churches in Christian history” (Ruth Tucker, From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya). In a day and time when few people were thinking about missionary activities, the Moravians were going to the most remote places on the globe and working among the most resistant […]

The Church at Brook Hills, by God’s grace, sends about 40 short-term teams to 10 countries every year. In this episode, my guest is Fox, Director of Short-Term Missions with our church. Some of the questions we address include: What is The Church at Brook Hills doing when it comes to short-term missions? How do […]

The Church is growing the fastest throughout the Majority World. And with any growth comes the need for leadership development. This need is not a contemporary creation but a biblical expectation. Pastoral training is one of the most important issues facing the Church. David Sills and I discuss this topic in this episode of Strike […]

Who pastors missionaries? Who provides care for those sent from local churches? We think about member care when it comes to the members we see every week, but often forget about those making disciples and planting churches across North America and throughout the world. Pastors, member care does not end at the borders of our […]

Season 3 of Strike the Match begins with this post! Be sure to subscribe (iTunes, Android, RSS) so you will not miss an episode! Ramadan 2017 begins Friday, May 26. I thought it would be appropriate to begin our third season talking with Dr. John Klaassen about Islam and reaching Muslims. Dr. Klaassen served for […]

Two of the most influential missiological books of the twentieth century were Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours? and The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church, both written by Roland Allen. Even today, Allen’s missiology greatly influences missionary activities. In this episode, Steven Rutt and I continue our two-part conversation about Roland Allen. What were his views about church planting […]

The influence of Roland Allen on missionary activity continues today. Valued by pastors, missiologists, missionaries, and New Testament scholars, Allen’s writings are constant calls for the Church to return to the New Testament for guidance with apostolic endeavors. In this two-part episode, Roland Allen scholar, Dr. Steven Rutt is my guest. We take time to […]

Missiologists and mission agencies operate from two unreached people group lists: 1) global unreached people groups; and 2) global unengaged-unreached people groups. The global unreached people group list receives a high strategic priority when it comes to global disciple making. The global unengaged-unreached people group list receives an even higher strategic priority when it comes […]

Church multiplication strategies must include pastoral training. Though some people believe pastoral training gets in the way of making disciples and planting churches, the bible advocates otherwise. “After church planting, what?” asks my guest, Dr. Ramesh Richard. In this episode, we discuss the importance of pastoral training throughout the world. We address the global conversation […]

Evangelicals have been asking questions related to the ministry of apostles for several years. Some of these conversations have been unhealthy and unhelpful while others have been edifying and resulting in Kingdom advancement. Do apostles exist today? If so, who is an apostle? If so, are they different from the Twelve? Is there an ongoing […]

Good research and healthy mission strategy should go hand-in-hand. How can we be wise stewards with Kingdom resources in view of 7 billion people in the world? Jim Haney is my guest in this episode. Jim is the Director of Global Research with the International Mission Board. He is also the registrar of the Harvest […]

Jeff Sundell has been involved in Great Commission activities for many years. After serving in South Asia and seeing the multiplication of disciples, leaders, and churches, he returned to the United States in 2009, contextualizing what he learned. Now, many churches across the United States benefit from Jeff’s vision and training. Christians are becoming aware […]

Last week, Baptist Press released the article by Carol Pipes: “ACP: More Churches Reported; Baptisms Decline.” Media sources across the country quickly ran stories on the information found in the article. The Southern Baptist Convention added 294 churches in 2015. However, our membership declined by more than 200,000 people, with average weekly worship attendance now […]

The concept of church multiplication movements is often discussed in missiological circles. Kingdom citizens desire to see “the word of the Lord. . . speed ahead and be honored” (2 Thes 3:1) and for new churches to be taught the “whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27). Nathan Shank is my guest on this episode of […]

  This episode of Strike the Match kicks off season 2. In this podcast, I share insights from eighteen years of training pastors in both the academy and the church. The pastor is the most important and influential person in a local church when it comes to leading that congregation to participate in the mission […]