Introduction
Once two house churches have formed a house church fellowship, they continue to evangelize, disciple and reproduce to form new house churches which are added to the fellowship. Once again, until there are three house churches and at least three elders, the church planters task is probably not done. Normally these are born in nearby communities, as new social circles are touched by the house church fellowship. We have found that 3 or 4 house churches networking together make an ideal sized fellowship. They can easily find a hall for their monthly meeting, at reasonable cost. A fellowship of this size will have an FOB consisting of 5-10 leaders. This size allows for different perspectives, yet is intimate enough for relationships to deepen and misunderstandings to be bridged.

Once the fellowship grows to 5 or 6 churches, the logistics become much more complicated. Administrative and maintenance activities begin to drain the vitality of the fellowship and the leaders. The size of the FOB begins to be problematic and the group often degenerates to a committee with no one taking responsibility or initiative. For this reason, we encourage a fellowship to begin planning to reproduce a new fellowship when a 5th church is reproduced. Normally the next church that reproduces is encouraged to couple with its new daughter church to form a new fellowship, perhaps taking a third church along for stability (a three stranded chord is not easily broken). This often happens in the geographic periphery of an existing fellowship.

When a house church reproduces within a town we encourage them to begin a Community Intensive House Church Fellowship. Ideally each house church fellowship will eventually be in individual towns. They can cooperate as well with the larger churches in the town. Often this will happen with the most mature church in the previous fellowship, so it actually takes the nucleus out of an existing fellowship. This regrouping requires a great deal of adjustment by the remaining churches in the older fellowship. This chapter traces such a development in the life of the East Providence Fellowship of House Churches. It begins with the vision.

Developing a Vision in a House Church Fellowship
As a fellowship of house churches continues to grow, it needs to develop a vision which focuses intensely on a particular town as well as the outlying areas. Thus House Church Fellowships need to develop a vision for church planting by the entire fellowship (as opposed to simply church by church). This enables each house church to gain insight into its place in the plan of God to saturate the area with the gospel. The leaders prayerfully evaluate goals, opportunities (and needs), and provisions. As the vision is shared with the existing churches, there may be an exchange of resources as people feel they can be better used in pioneer works. Sometimes such a vision results in closing down a house church to redistribute resources to other house churches to penetrate new geographical areas.

The following Fellowship Vision Statement was written with these things in mind. When it was written the Fellowship consisted of 5 churches, 3 clustered closely in East Providence and one in Providence, and one in a more distant suburb. None of these churches was growing substantially. Shortly after adopting the vision, the Providence church took itself out of existence, distributing its members to the other three churches. They, in turn, started a new church in a nearby town as well as targeting a new area in East Providence. The result was invigorating; rapid growth in all the new house churches of the fellowship. The other 2 churches in the outlying areas each showed reproductive potential and were encouraged to separate into a new fellowship.

Fellowship Vision (an example): East Providence Fellowship of House Churches
When a house church begins, its goal is simple: reproduce in order to form a cluster of house churches which can network together. Often this in non-directional; i.e. the church follows up on whatever new believers God might add to the church trying to see if God might nucleate a new house church. Our experience is that this usually leads to extensive church planting; i.e. these contacts often come from nearby towns, and new churches are usually planted in the surrounding towns.

However, once a fellowships formed, it needs to evaluate God's goals for them both from an extensive perspective (constantly moving out to penetrate new communities), as well as from an intensive perspective (e.g. intensively focusing on a particular community, reproducing house churches in a single town to form a town intensive house church fellowship, THCF).

Thus the East Providence Fellowship of House Churches should have a two-fold goal: Extensively expanding and establishing new house churches in every surrounding town where God would provide believers who desire to be involved in house churches, and Intensively penetrating East Providence, establishing new house churches which would become a THCF. The former would lead to new fellowships of house churches, the latter to building up the existing house churches in East Providence and starting some new ones.

There will be opportunities both intensively and extensively, and God's will should prayerfully be sought based on receptivity of a particular area, burden on the part of members to start new churches, desire of people to network to try such an effort. We have seen such efforts begin in Warren, North Kingstown, etc. New efforts should be encouraged to intensively reproduce in East Providence.

Provisions are usually people (often leaders), and can come from any of the churches in the fellowship. The church planting team can also be approached to provide help. They would best be used in extensive works, although they could provide training for intensive house church planting. Obviously, communication must be fostered to assess opportunities as well as provisions. This should happen fairly regularly at FOB meetings. The opportunities can then be brought back to the participating churches for prayer for guidance as to God's provision. This could certainly be a part of the Fellowship meetings where all the churches can be exposed to and updated on the vision .

The result of this would be developing vision in which all the churches in the fellowship share. Church planting should go on extensively and intensively as God directs. The ultimate goal should be THCF in all towns that have a sufficient population.

Implementation (grows out of Vision Statement): East Providence Fellowship of House Churches
Intensive House Church Reproduction: EPFHC, having had a house church presence in the community for several years recognizes the responsibility to seek to penetrate this town with the gospel and reproduce house churches here. The Riverside House Church takes responsibility for initiating this and requests help from the other house churches who either have people living in East Providence or resources which can help in establishing a house church fellowship made up of house churches in East Providence Networks (A Community House Church Fellowship). We would hope that by the end of 1992 EPFHC could be a house church fellowship intensive to the town of East Providence.

An initial gathering effort is planned for the Nodine's neighborhood. Mark and Misty need another family to network with to help in evangelism and gathering efforts. Additional families would enable a house church to be formed while endeavoring to penetrate this neighborhood (and perhaps Vivian's).
Extensive House Church Reproduction: EPFHC recognizes it's ongoing responsibility to follow up on new believers added through contacts outside the town of East Providence, and establish house churches in new towns. This will parallel the establishment of other Community Fellowships (in addition to EPFHC), as other house churches become rooted in the town in which they exist and see their need to intensively penetrate their town. The house churches outside of the town of East Providence (Warwick, Assonet, 9th Street, ex-Wickenden St.) will continue to pursue extensive house church planting. As God leads, some from Riverside (especially those living outside East Providence) may be engaged in these efforts as well. Presently there are several areas of potential gatherings:

1. Warren: at the Morrell home. Jon and Sherri Neuner helping.
2. 4th Street (Prov): at the Leung home. Helpers needed.
3. Pawtucket (Federal St): Dean with help from the team.

Other gatherings are occurring more geographically distinct under the oversight of the team. These are likely to form new Fellowships ASAP:

1. Assonet HC: gathering in Assonet and Milford MA.
2. North Kingstown: gathering in Coventry (Brocks, Mark C.)

Key Principles
1. Churches should have a comprehensive vision.

2. It should include both intensive and extensive outreach.

Questions for further thought
1. Why is it important to have an extensive as well as an intensive vision?


2. What are some ways you can get the church to see this?


3. How early should these principles be taught?