KEY METRICS

 

+75 NEW PARTNER CHURCHES

2021 has been our largest year of numerical growth to date. The Lord has blessed us greatly by leading many like-minded congregations to partner with us.

 

~$863K GIVEN TO SUPPORT PLANTS/REVITALIZATIONS

In 2021, our network processed the most funds in our history on behalf of our partner plants and revitalizations, totaling $804,395.60. This amount also includes roughly $186K from our ministry fund in the 2021 Pillar budget which helps support new gospel works.

+10 NEW CHURCHES PLANTED

Despite the challenges of COVID-19, we still had 10 new gospel works officially launch in 2021! We originally had a few more slated to launch this year, but some of those have decided to aim for 2022 instead due to various factors.

 

+7 NEW REGIONS LAUNCHED

Given our numerical growth, we were able to forge multiple new regions this year where pastors and church leaders gather together regularly for encouragement, prayer, strategizing, and fellowship. Our regional strategy is a significant element in our Great Commission efforts.

+18 INTERNATIONAL CHURCHES JOINED

In 2021, Pillar went from being roughly 2% international to 10%. We hope to see this trend increase all the more in 2022.

 

MERGER WITH
RED 1:8 NETWORK

A major component in our international expansion is our merger with the RED 1:8 Church Planting Network, a group of like-minded Spanish speaking congregations mostly in North & South America.

 

 

YEAR-TO-YEAR NETWORK GROWTH

This chart highlights Pillar’s numerical partnership growth since our inception in 2012. In the last 3 years, our growth rate has significantly increased. In 2022, Lord willing, we will continue to see network growth.

2022 PROJECTED BUDGET

This chart depicts our projected budget and the 4 main spending allocations for next year. The total budget for 2022 is expected to be approximately $911K. The monies given to plants/revitalizations that Pillar helps process are never factored into this budget.

 

2022 ACTUAL BUDGET

This chart depicts our projected budget and the 4 main spending allocations for next year. The total budget for 2022 is expected to be approximately $911K. The monies given to plants/revitalizations that Pillar helps process are never factored into this budget.

 

2022 ACTUAL BUDGET

This chart depicts our projected budget and the 4 main spending allocations for next year. The total budget for 2022 is expected to be approximately $911K. The monies given to plants/revitalizations that Pillar helps process are never factored into this budget.

 

500+ ATTENDEES AT 2021 UNITE CONFERENCE

The Unite Conference is Pillar’s flagship annual event featuring 2-days of preaching, teaching, fellowship, worship, breakouts, good food, and enjoyable company. Each year, the theme for this conference comes from one of Pillar’s six DNA points. In 2021, we focused on healthy church leadership by exploring elder plurality.

It was such an encouraging time to gather with over 500 attendees for Unite 2021 - our largest conference attendance to date. Last year’s conference was our first time hosting this event at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (SEBTS), whose team did a stellar job hosting. Unite 2022 will again commence at SEBTS on October 4th & 5th. Tickets will go on sale later this winter.

 
 

~75 PASTORS EQUIPPED AT PILLAR INTENSIVE

In 2021, we launched a new annual spring-time event called our New Pastors’ Intensive (NPI). This event focused on bringing in seasoned pastors & established church planters to lead a rigorous 2.5-day conference covering a wide variety of topics needed for planting and leading healthy churches. Subjects covered in the NPI included leading elder meetings, team dynamics, fundraising, exposition, pastoral leadership, marriage & family, networking, evangelism, and personal discipleship. In addition to quality instruction, through the generous contributions of a donor, we were able to provide numerous free books to our attendees along with a free evening of Top Golf. We are hosting another Intensive in early March of 2022 that will focus on building healthy residencies and internship programs in the local church.

INCREASED PARTICIPATION AT THE SBC/OTHER GATHERINGS

It was great to see so many Pillar pastors and church members at this year's SBC. While this can sometimes be a contentious meeting, we are thankful for Pillar's ongoing involvement in helping direct where millions of missions and ministry dollars are spent. We were also encouraged by the number of Pillar pastors that attended our annual Pillar Fellowship during the SBC as well as our strategic partner's events such as the B21 Lunch panel and 9Marks at 9.

Outside of the SBC, Pillar also hosted multiple interest meals at major conferences this year, such as TGC and the For The Church Conference. Additionally, Pillar partnered with Reaching & Teaching to host a panel at this year’s Cross Con' ‘21.

 

+2 NEW TEAM MEMBERS

In 2021, our team grew by 2 with the hiring of Dave Kiehn & Sarah Goldie. Dave is no stranger to our network as the church he pastors, Park Baptist, has been a member of Pillar for years. Dave serves our network in his role as Regional Coordinator, helping to lead and further our regional strategy. Sarah comes to us from another Pillar church, Pineview Baptist, near Columbia, SC. Sarah previously served with the IMB and is a current student at SEBTS. Sarah works mostly with Nate Akin serving as his Administrative Assistant.

 
 

Dave Kiehn
Regional Coordinator

 

Sarah Goldie
Admin Assistant

 
 

8 LOCALIZED BIBLE CONFERENCES HOSTED

One of the developments in 2021 we were excited to see flourish was the number of localized bible/pastors conferences hosted by Pillar churches and regions. From exposition, to apologetics, to pastoral ministry, these conferences covered important topics for pastors and are a great way to encourage and equip believers. We hope to see even more of these conferences take root in 2022.

PILLAR LADIES UPDATE

One of the developments in our network over the last few years has been a ministry entitled “Pillar Ladies”. This group, led by Sarah Rogers, seeks to connect, equip, and care for the various pastors’ wives, women’s ministry leaders, church staff, and female seminary students in our family of churches. Below is a brief overview from Sarah about some of the things Pillar Ladies has implemented in 2021 and future hopes for 2022.

 

2021 brought many encouraging interactions, building of relationships, and a narrowing of focus for ministry to Pillar Ladies. Hosting quarterly Zoom calls has been a highlight of this ministry as many women from all over the US and UK connect with each other, are equipped through content, and are cared for through prayer. This year, we’ve engaged around the topics of discipleship, the SBC annual meeting, prayer, and furthering education through certificate programs and leadership development. Another highlight this year has been connecting with Pillar women in person at events like the SBC Annual meeting, Fellowship Raleigh’s Women’s Retreat, the Unite Conference, Feed My Sheep Pastor’s Wife conference, and the Whole Woman Conference at SEBTS.

It’s been a joy to connect with these ladies in person after the challenges of 2020! These encouraging interactions with women in the Network provided the context for relationships to build. Women, who previously didn’t know anyone’s name, now know ways to pray for each other and are following up to ask how the Lord has been faithful.

Moving into 2022, we hope to see many of the same fruitful endeavors from this ministry continue and expand. One specific area we hope to focus more energy is our regional meetups. These gatherings allow various women in our network to meet face-to-face locally for fellowship and encouragement. Next month, we have a planning retreat scheduled which should help us towards these ends.

I’m looking forward to seeing the Lord grow this ministry and the fruit that will result from healthy, supported women leaders in the church!

Sincerely,

Sarah Rogers
Women’s Ministry Coordinator

OUR ONGOING MISSION

  • EQUIP.

    We serve and equip pastors and church planters to establish and lead faithful and healthy churches.

  • PLANT.

    We partner with churches to ensure their success in planting new churches that share our convictions/DNA.

  • REVITALIZE.

    We partner with churches to see them move from surviving to thriving to reproducing congregations.

OUR SHARED DNA

  • Gospel Proclamation

    We proclaim the gospel of our Sovereign Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

  • Bible-Based

    We submit to the Bible as our final authority in matters of life, faith, and doctrine

  • Live Exposition

    We promote live, expository preaching to equip the church

  • Elder-Led

    We encourage churches to be led by a plurality of male elders/pastors

  • Confessionally Baptistic

    We cooperate as Southern Baptists (GCB) & International Baptists to fulfill the Great Commission

  • Kingdom Minded

    We commit to kingdom multiplication through church planting and revitalization

OUR VALUED STRATEGIC PARTNERS