How we will get our church started
Starting a church means that the beginning phase won’t reflect what people have come to expect from an established church. Many volunteer teams like youth, childcare, couples counseling, etc… just have not had the time to develop. So what does a new church look like in its early stages? I’ve tried to capture our plan in three phases to help people understand how everything will unravel over the next 6 – 9 months. Feel free to ask questions below!
Phase One: Dinner and Praying I am Not Alone
When we start in June we are going to be eating a lot. Big dinners and small dinners. I deeply value community and I found that hanging out over meals and song has been some of the best times I have had with people. Those are the people that become family.
So that’s what we are going to do. Once a month we will have a big dinner with lots of people. We will sing, share vision, eat, and have fun. Each week in between we will have smaller dinners in our homes. Community with God and with people. It has to start that way. And to be honest, my prayer right now is just that I am not alone. It’s scary starting something. But what is comforting is knowing this is what you are supposed to do.
Phase Two: Goodbye Summer, Hello Services
Once the summer is over we want to start having what we will call ‘Preview Services’. These will be once a month for a few months where we start to get a feel for what we want a Sunday service to look like. What type of music will we have? What will God center us around as a community? How will our values, vision, and creativity start to take form?
It’s also a time to work out some of the kinks before we go weekly. Putting on a slamming event that is prayerful, done well, and leaves people excited takes a lot of effort. We want to do it right. That means people are experiencing who God is and are sharing that experience with others. I am hoping to get into one of the schools in the neighborhood with larger auditoriums. Otherwise we will be looking for a church to rent out on Sunday nights. Suggestions welcome!
Phase Three: We Are A Real Church!
Phase three is when we are doing weekly services, have a few volunteer teams already established, and are in full church mode. I cannot wait!! I remember when I started my business. I would think ahead to a day when I would be a ‘real’ business. That meant having employees, steady work, and a great product. It felt great when we got there.
This is so much more.
God is redeeming his people and this city. We are joining Him in that work. The lonely will find family, the lost will find home, and the broken will be restored. How exciting! We will be doing daily work to see this happen. Our prayer from this point on will be that God multiplies His work through us. That His name is glorified in us. And that we learn to lay down all that we are for Him.
We are all a part of this new start up, whether in the building team or still here at Pappa Ress. A family of families, loving, praying, supporting and sharing all we are and have to continue to spread the gospel of Jesus to our great city.