Printable PDF of this page (excluding FAQs) HERE.
A Life Team is a group that equips your church as a gospel-driven champion of the sanctity of human life. The right-hand column in the box below clarifies what a healthy Life Team looks like whereas the left-hand column clarifies what an unhealthy Life Team looks like. Healthy Life Teams should be increasingly characterized by the traits in the right-hand column.
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Typical “Pro-Life” Ministry
(What we don’t want, Point A)
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General Life Team Picture
(What we DO want, Point B)
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1. Anger/Other-Driven
2. Disjointed
3. Sporadic
4. Single-Faceted
5. Mistrusted
6. Impoverished
7. Independent
8. Reckless
9. Solitary
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2. Unified
3. Consistent
5. Trusted
6. Resourced
8. Careful
9. Multiplied
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This is a picture of the healthy Life Team. It’s the mirror opposite of the list below.
- Gospel-driven - Motivated by ongoing gratitude for being rescued by Christ in the gospel
- Unified - Works harmoniously with God and each other
- Consistent – Provides regular opportunities to grow as champions of life
- Multi-faceted - Equips in various facets of the life arena
- Trusted - Considered credible and reliable by those served, especially church leaders
- Resourced - Provided with financial/other assets by the church to pursue mission
- Interfaced - Manages reciprocal relationships between your church and Christ-centered, life-affirming agencies (i.e., a local pregnancy care center)
- Careful – Equips with grace and truth at an appropriate speed
- Multiplied – Enjoys expanding impact by equipping their church and other Life Teams
This is the picture of an unhealthy Life Team. It’s the mirror opposite of the list above.
- Anger/Other-Driven - Motivated by anger, merit-earning duty, guilt, or other sub or anti-Christian compulsions
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Disjointed – Individual(s) working alone, or as a disconnected member(s) of a group
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Sporadic – Provides only erratic opportunities to grow as champions of life
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Single-Faceted – Equips congregation in only one aspect of the life arena, usually opposing abortion
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Mistrusted – Considered suspect and unreliable by those served, especially church leaders
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Impoverished – Denied resources necessary to pursue mission
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Independent – Shuns outside assistance and relationships to accomplish mission
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Reckless – Disregards content and speed when equipping
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Solitary – Frustrated as the “dedicated, exhausted few,” the only champions of life in the church
Sound great? We think so! That’s why Churches for Life specializes in starting and growing Life Teams. If this sounds as good to you as it does to us, check out these basic next steps:
- Read “What does a Life Team do?”
- Read “How is a Life Team built?” This will give you our basic roadmap to starting a Life Team.
- Get started on the roadmap. Contact us for help at info@getintolife.org.
Life Team FAQs
Q: What does a Life Team actually do?
Q: How is a Life Team built?
Q: What is CFL’s role in starting the Life Team?
A: We help you build a trust relationship with pastoral oversight, and once they fully grasp the Life Team concept, help you and them share it in search of a trainable leader. CFL then works personally with the leader(s) to build the Team. For a more detailed roadmap, click HERE.
Q: What is CFL’s ongoing role with the Life Team?
A: We are a trusted coach and encourager. We especially invest in mentoring Life Team Leaders.
Q: What if we don’t have teams and committees in our church?
A: We can work with you to build a group that fits the culture and structure of your church.
Q: Do all Life Teams look and act alike?
A: Definitely not. We train Life Teams to reflect the unique gifts, talents and stories of the Team members, the unique culture and values in their church, and the unique sensitivities, needs, and opportunities of their local community. Your Life Team should fit comfortably within your church’s existing personality and direction, becoming a welcome and trusted part of your spiritual community.
Q: Is a Life Team a political action committee?
A: Absolutely not. We explicitly train Life Teams to not be political hotbeds within their churches. We coach them in this regard from a number of angles. At the same time, we affirm that a Christian worldview encompasses all parts of our world, including politics. If a legislative issue arises in our culture that overlaps the life arena, we train Life Teams to consider it in context of a trust relationship with their pastoral oversight, and from a posture of gospel-driven humility, grace, and truth.
Q: Is a Life Team only "anti-abortion"?
A: This is a common question. CFL works hard to help Life Teams equip the church in a holistic biblical ethic of life that includes a wide range of applications. We counsel Teams make it a priority to lean against the default perception that to be life-affirming only means one is anti-abortion. Click HERE for a list of the kinds of things a CFL Life Team might do to equip a congregation holistically.
Q: Is this CFL’s Team or our church’s Team?
A: It is definitely your Team. We are merely a catalyst and coach to help the Team start and grow. Your Team is led and populated by indigenous church members. Think of us as a trusted pastoral consultant for this very specific purpose.
Q: How long does it usually take to start a Life Team?
A: It varies, but in general it takes about one year from the time the vision is first cast with pastoral oversight to the time a Life Team is trained and has built enough trust and relationship with their pastoral oversight to implement approved initiatives to equip the congregation.
Q: How much time and effort with this require of me as a pastor?
A: Not much! On the front end, your help will be needed to champion the vision and identify a trainable leader(s). CFL trains the leader. Then, CFL and the newly trained Life Team leader will do most of the work. From beginning to end, someone on the pastoral team will need to be a Life Team liaison – a link between the Team and the rest of church leadership, and a person to provide input and/or approval for the Team’s ideas and progress. This liaison can be a pastor, ministry director, elder, or someone in a position of oversight within the church.
Q: Does CFL charge for their ministry?
A: No. We believe, however, that the Bible affirms that those who benefit from the ministry of the gospel should reciprocate financially to those who bring that gospel (1 Cor. 9:9 & 14, 1 Tim. 5:18). If your church partners with us in the journey of building a gospel-driven Life Team, it is honorable and reasonable to expect financial reciprocity as the ministry takes root. These specifics can be worked out in your ongoing relationship with us.
If you have more questions, please let us know at info@getintolife.org. It is very important to us that you understand and can fully embrace the vision for a Life Team at your church before beginning your journey to build one.