As the lead church planter prepares spiritually to move to a new city, they are also preparing a core team of individuals to move with them as well. When building a core team, the goal is for approximately twenty-five individuals to commit to being a part of the core team. These are individuals who have been identified along the Resonate Leadership Pipeline and are praying towards moving with the church plant. Nine months before the team officially leaves, the lead church planter will begin having church planting interest meetings with the individuals who are prayerfully considering moving. The lead church planter will eventually make a personal ask inviting individuals to join the core team. These are individuals who exhibit attributes as a developed disciple-maker, a mobilized missionary, a healthy human, a culture keeper, and as a sacrificial servant. Once the ask has been made of them, the potential core team member will then sign a core team covenant, which is a contract stating their responsibilities for the coming year as a core team member.

Because Resonate plants churches in collegiate cities and on university campuses, the average amount of income that the congregation receives is less than a church filled with working professionals. While some of the resourcing for Resonate church plants comes from congregant’s tithes, Resonate also relies on funding from partners such as the North American Mission Board.

 
Because of this, every church planting couple is required to complete an assessment through the North American Mission Board prior to being sent in order to receive funding for the church plant that evaluates the spiritual, emotional, physical, and relational health of the couple. This ensures that they have the character, competency, capacity, and calling to lead a church plant. This assessment also allows for the couple to receive external affirmation, encouragement, and wisdom from experienced church planters outside of the Resonate Network.

 
In addition to receiving funding from partners outside of the Resonate Network, all Resonate staff members support raise for their paychecks so that all tithes and gifts towards Resonate church planting goes directly towards the development of the site rather than towards staff members. Support raising for staff paychecks allows the staff to share how the Lord is moving through Resonate Church to others outside of the Resonate Network, as well as to build a team of individuals supporting them not only financially, but also through prayer in their ministry.