Recruiting the Team: Who’s Playing This Game With You?
Over the past few weeks, we’ve been walking through the Change the Game Framework, a way of reimagining faithful presence in a moment when the very purpose of the church feels up for grabs.
We’ve tried to name the game, define the field, set some new rules, and started to explore what it means to practice mission and formation together.
Now, in Part 4, we’re asking: Who’s playing this game with you?
A Hidden, Disconnected, Invisible Church
Here’s a wild thought:
If you could hit “pause” on your block, your neighborhood, or your town (like freezing the frame of a movie) and then identify every Christian in that place who genuinely loves it, who longs to see it flourish because of their faith…you’d probably discover a hidden, disconnected mega church. (“Mega” in the sense of there being way more people than you thought!)
They aren’t all under one roof, attending to a particular Sunday schedule. They are present, but scattered, invisible, unconnected.
This is why Parish Collective exists: to help those people find one another and become more than just scattered individuals. We want to connect people to become a team - the Church.
Why Team Matters
We’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating: the infinite game of God’s Kingdom is not a solo sport.
Faithful presence requires people who are willing to practice faith together. To discern together. To experiment together.
That doesn’t mean you need dozens of folks to start. A team might just be three, four, or five people who share a commitment: We want to follow Jesus in this place, not just by going to services, but by being the Church in our everyday lives.
How to Recruit the Team
So how do you actually recruit the team?
Look around. Who’s already here in the neighborhood and loves this place?
Pay attention. Where do members of your congregation actually live?
Shift the question. Instead of asking, Which church service do you attend? Start asking, How are we being the Church together in everyday life?
Start small. A handful of committed people can begin experimenting with rhythms of common mission, formation, and relationship.
The goal isn’t to build a perfect roster. It’s to find companions who will take the risk of showing up together in the neighborhood, and keep playing the infinite game, even when it’s messy, small, or slow.
“The task is to discover who is already here, willing to follow Jesus in this place, and to begin living into that story together.”
The Hidden Challenge
Why is this step so difficult?
Because disconnection is real.
Many of us have been trained to think of church as a place we drive to, not a team we live out faith with in our neighborhood.
Recruiting the team means breaking through that isolation and building trust, one conversation at a time.
A Different Imagination
Here’s the invitation:
Recruiting the team might be the hardest step, but it’s also the most hopeful. Because once people find each other, once that hidden mega church starts to connect, the possibilities for renewal multiply.
This week, the question is simple: Who are the people on your team?
A Discernment Exercise: Notice · Name · Invite
If “recruiting the team” feels overwhelming, here’s a simple way to begin:
1. Notice
Who already shares your love for this place?
Where do you see faith quietly at work in your neighborhood?
Who seems to carry affection, hope, or prayer for the flourishing of this place?
2. Name
Who are the “hidden disciples” around you, those living faithfully but not yet connected?
Who are the hidden disciples you’ve overlooked?
What would it mean to name and honor the presence of other faithful people in your place?
What fears or assumptions keep you from imagining yourself as a recruiter of the team?
3. Invite
What small, practical step could you take this week to invite someone into a conversation?
How might even 3–5 people begin experimenting together with faithful presence?
Who might surprise you by saying “yes” to walking alongside you?
