The FPI currently has six centers, and one is the center for church planting/church revitalization. As a part of this center, we’re raising up a new generation of Native Church leaders with particular emphasis on church planters. To accomplish this purpose of raising up new Indigenous church planters, FPI leaders have created a first Native church planters/pastoral cohort. Our focus is finding Native followers of Jesus who have an interest in and sense of calling to plant a church. We are also willing to work with Native Christians who recently started pastoring an existing church. We have sent invitation letters to 11 individuals to be a part of our first cohort.

Our plan is to bring these aspiring or existing leaders together as a cohort, so that they can mutually encourage, support, pray for, and learn from each other. And, for leaders of the FPI to also invest in them by taking them through a church planting training curriculum as part of the cohort experience. This curriculum is adapted to a North American Indigenous cultural context. The plan is to have three cohort gatherings a year over the course of two years.

The final cohort gathering will be longer (about 5 days) with spouses and/or children attending as well. During this final cohort gathering, cohort participants will include their spouses in some final training and discussions and there will be time for relaxation and rest in more of a retreat setting. The final cohort gathering will include a formal graduation and commissioning ceremony of these cohort graduates. These graduates will eventually serve as mentors to future church planting/church leaders cohorts as well as FPI leaders focus on leaders multiplying leaders through the FPI.

The cost of doing it

The First five cohort gatherings will cost a total of $76,450. This cost includes round trip flights for participants, lodging, food, materials and resources, and other specific experiences that have associated costs for each cohort gathering.

The final cohort gathering, gathering six, will cost more than the first 5 cohort gatherings being that it will be longer and will include spouses and/or children. The total cost of cohort gathering 6 is $27,995

The total 2 year projected cohort costs: $104,445