T-NET is a ministry

to help churches

develop and implement their own process

of bringing people to maturity in Christ

by utilizing Christ's proven methods.

"T-NET" stands for the "Training Network" for Disciplemaking Churches. T-NET is an international Christian training organization serving churches coming from a variety of traditions.  Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist, Charismatic and "Willow Creek" style churches (just to name a few) have all found that T-NET maximizes their ministry without asking them to sacrifice their distinctives.

WHY IS T-NET NEEDED?

While most churches "believe" in making disciples, very few are effectively producing them. Consider the following statistics:

The average "evangelical" church in America wins 1.67 persons (less than 2) to Christ and their church each year for every 100 persons who attend that church.

Only 2/3 of the persons in the average evangelical church say they "feel" they are growing spiritually. Fewer still (just 1/3) say they have changed even one behavior to be more Christ-like in the last three years.

One-third of church members state their greatest individual needs are not being met by their church.

Less than 50% of church members pray for 5 minutes at least twice a week.

Only 11% of church members have shared the gospel even once in the last year, and 33% have never shared the gospel with anyone.

Most church leaders, when asked, cannot even define "Disciple," and hardly any have been trained to "Make disciples."

DOES T-NET WORK?

In contrast to other churches, the average church completing the T-NET process:

• Wins 80% more persons to Christ and their church per year than before the process.
•  Has five times as many persons involved in intentional discipleship than before they started.
• Has a written definition of a disciple and has trained their leaders to make disciples.
• Has an intentional strategy for using every program in their church to make disciples.
• Declares that the T-NET training was worth every penny and every minute they invested in it.
  
  If this happened in your church, wouldn't you be satisfied?

HOW DOES T-NET WORK?

T-NET is a "Coaching Process" for teams of church leaders.

In this process, 3 to 30 churches each bring teams of 3 to 50 leaders to a T-NET center to be coached. These T-NET centers usually meet in a local church or in a seminary.

The church teams come to nine meetings at the center. These meetings are held approximately every four months, so the entire process is about 32 months long. Meeting one lasts two days (Friday night -Saturday). Meetings 2-9 are held on Saturdays from 9:00-5:30.

In each meeting the T-NET trainer (usually a pastor who has successfully implemented the process in his church, or a T-NET staff member) teaches the leaders principles, which can be tailored and applied uniquely to each church for more effective and intentional disciplemaking. The trainer coaches these leaders on overcoming barriers they have faced in applying the principles learned in past meetings, as well as helping them plan effectively to implement the new principles they have just been taught. In addition, the trainer has at least two coaching sessions with the pastors between meetings.

This proven process, which trains a team over time with accountability, has resulted in leading over 1200 churches to be more intentional and effective in disciplemaking.

HOW DOES T-NET DIFFER FROM OTHER TRAINING APPROACHES?

In contrast to most other training approaches, T-NET:

• Wins 80% more persons to Christ and their church per year than before the process.
  
• Trains in a process over time, rather than simply offering two or three one-time seminars.
  
• Teaches principles which can be uniquely tailored to each church, rather than teaching a method that was used by one pastor or church and usually isn't transferable.
  
• Trains leaders to lead their churches through change, instead of just telling them what changes they need to make.
  
• Trains leaders to use their whole church to make disciples, instead of how just one or more individuals can make disciples.
  
• Trains leaders to first define the disciple and then create programming to make that kind of disciple.
  
• Coaches leaders to accomplish results, not just learn information.

The History of T-NET

The vision for T-NET began with Bill Hull a pastor committed to returning his church and others to their disciplemaking roots. While establishing his own church in disciplemaking, Bill wrote several books showing how the gospels describe in detail Jesus own method of making disciples and how we can use His method. Hull brought in church consultant, Bob Gilliam, to develop the process for instructing churches and in 1991 T-NET (short for Training Network) was born. Nurtured under the umbrella of the Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA) T-NET is now an independent interdenominational ministry.

The method Hull and Gilliam would use was to gather several churches each bringing a group of their own leaders to be challenged, inspired, and instructed in making disciples Jesus’ way. They began with three centers involving 42 churches. Then in 1998 Bob Gilliam took over as President while Bill Hull returned to the pastorate. T-NET continued to expand and develop under Bob’s leadership. “As we have progressed over the last 12 years,” Gilliam says, “we have learned a great deal about what works and what doesn’t in helping churches bring people to fullness in Christ.” Consequently the program has changed considerably over the years with eleven revisions incorporating new insights both from lessons learned in T-NET churches as well as those gleaned from other ministries.

Since T-NET helps churches apply biblical principles it is equally applicable to independent Bible churches, Charismatic churches or churches from mainline denominations. Over 1200 churches have completed T-NET. In 1999 Bob took T-NET to India and began a similar process of learning what principles were applicable in that setting. T-NET has formed a partnership with TOPIC, Trainers of Pastors of Pastors International Coalition whose goal is to facilitate pastoral training for the 2 million pastors overseas who have no formal equipping for ministry. Paul Landry, founder and CEO of TOPIC has served on T-NET’s board and is currently its Chairman.

HOW CAN MY CHURCH LEARN MORE ABOUT T-NET OR GET INVOLVED?   Click here for our White Paper a comprehensive guide to T-NET