From Hostility to Hope: Stephen Leston Reveals how Trust Transforms Communities into Churches

Church planting expert urges planters to slow down, serve humbly and let indigenous leaders shape the church

CHICAGO, Oct. 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- After more than 30 years as a pastor, church planter, and now as the Vice President of Training at mission agency To Every Tribe, Stephen Leston has dedicated his life to spreading the word of God across the Globe. He now equips others with the interpersonal skills to do the same with his new book, "From the Ground Up: The Relational Art of Church Planting."

"From the Ground Up" acts as a field guide to relational, trust-centered church planting. It trades speed for depth, transactions for presence, and imported models for local ownership so that disciples form churches that truly belong to their communities. The end goal is indigenous churches led by affirmed local leaders, with the planter stepping back.

Based on Leston's eight-phase framework, the book teaches planters how to adjust their pace to match the reality of their relationship with the community, avoiding over-reaching too soon or under-reaching out of fear. Leston distinguishes the differences between "church starting" and "church planting." He emphasizes the need to "go slow to go fast" to avoid common early-stage mistakes, respect cultural differences, and adapt as the community changes.

Leston argues that effective church planting, especially in resistant or hostile contexts, moves "at the speed of trust." Rather than launching services and hoping disciples emerge, church planters should build relationships first, make disciples, and see locally led churches form "from the ground up."

"Church planting is never about programs or buildings, it's about people," Leston said. "When we slow down to build trust, serve with humility, and walk with others through their questions and struggles, we see disciples of Jesus form communities of faith that truly belong to them."

Leston plans to continue sharing his expertise on church planting in future books.

"From the Ground Up: The Relational Art of Church Planting"
By Stephen Leston 
ISBN: 9798385042258 (softcover); 9798385042265 (hardcover); 9798385042272 (electronic)
Available at WestBow Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the author
Dr. Stephen Leston is Vice President of Training at To Every Tribe, a mission agency that equips and deploys missionary teams to establish churches in complex and unreached regions worldwide. His three decades of experience include work as a pastor, church planter, and trainer in church planting. Leston and his wife, Heather, have four children. He has previously published "The Bible in World History" and "Illustrated Guide to Bible Battles." To learn more, please visit https://toeverytribe.org.

General Inquiries:  
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Ashley Fletcher
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SOURCE WestBow Press