| GROW Magazine Spring 2009 Teaching Churches Host Training Weekends Three different churches across the USA will be hosting a practical weekend of ministry training this coming fall. These teaching church experiences have been designed for new church pastors, their launch teams and sponsoring churches. Here’s an opportunity to learn from some of the key leaders of our denominational family. Hosted by these three congregations, the Accelerate Conferences will open their doors to other church leaders interested in meeting with their leaders and staff. Each host pastor and staff will lead practical workshops and general sessions during these three-day leadership training events. Registrants will also attend the weekend services of the host churches, and observe their staff in action. These three host churches have distinguished themselves as effective missional ministries, and are regularly listed among the Top 50 Churches in the USA and Canada for the Church Weekendsof the Nazarene. These three weekends will be packed with practical resources and training from their experiences in starting and growing missional congregations. While these events are specifically designed for new church launch teams, any pastor or church leader from the Church of the Nazarene is welcome to register for the event. The registration cost of $29 per person is designed to cover the three meals during the Accelerate schedule. Travel costs, lodging and breakfast meals will be covered by each registrant.Some housing by member families of the host church is available on a first request basis. Specific weekend schedules, hotel options and registration forms are available online at www.NazareneNewChurches.org. The first Accelerate Conference will be held August 14 to 16 at the Goldcreek Community Church of the Nazarene in Bothell, Washington. The second Accelerate will be hosted by the Thorncreek Church of the Nazarene in Denver, Colorado on October 23-25. The third event for 2009 is being hosted by the Salem Fields Church of the Nazarene in Fredericksburg, Virginia on November 6-8. These three Accelerates Conferences have been planned to accommodate various regions of the country, and minimize travel costs. If calendar conflicts exist for the Accelerate closest to you geographically, the other events are open to any Nazarene pastor or church desiring to attend one of the other conferences. After a decade of starting new churches across the USA and Canada, the New Church Evangelism strategy has been further refined to assist sponsoring pastors, turn around churches, and developing more healthy churches. With hundreds of new churches started since 1994, this new series of New Church Teaching Church Conferences enable new networking opportunities for new church pastors and their leadership launch teams. This weekend event is designed to assist new church pastors in the process of designing their own specific ministry action plan, as well as provide insights into some of the best practices from other effective new churches. Regional New Church Leader will also lead workshops for launching new churches across district ministries. Leadership Team Development Each of these Accelerate Events will focus on training, networking and resources for each of church’s ministry teams and their leaders. While founding pastors are vitally important as vision casters of a new church, none can do it alone. Starting and growing healthy churches is a team activity, and requires training experiences for the whole group of local church leaders. Evangelism and Discipleship By bringing key leaders from new church launch teams, training and direction will be given for building a unified ministry team. Key staff members from each of the teaching churches will meet with their counterparts in workshops to network and discuss the details of their particular ministries in evangelism. New Church Sponsors Local church sponsorship remains one of the key objectives for future new church evangelism. This is one of the reasons for the sixth consecutive year, over a hundred new churches have been started in the USA and Canada. For potential sponsor pastors and church leaders, a weekend at the Accelerate event can provide a better understanding of the priorities in mothering a new church. The workshops and discussions among new church leaders also bring a new understanding of effective evangelism and discipleship strategies for leaders in existing churches. And, that’s been one of the additional blessings for local church sponsorship. We’re learning the experience of sponsorship can also become a process for renewal. Most sponsor churches have experienced increases in membership, income and worship attendance. The old axiom still rings true: “Baby churches birth healthier mothers.” Multiple Styles for Each Context In fact, as new churches continue to launch across the USA and Canada, varied and diverse expressions continue to develop. In addition to sponsor churches launching daughter congregations, just over half of our new churches are multicultural, most with sponsors that do not represent the culture of the new church. This becomes another reflection of a missional value system, intentionally sponsoring a new church that reaches an entirely new target group or culture. Some ministry models are developing in predictable demographic situations. Multi-congregational churches share church properties to house more than one congregation. Multisite churches are generating renewed interest as they share staff and other ministry resources to launch a range of worship venues designed to impact different unchurched groups in their ministry area. One approach shares their building to sponsor a congregation; another shares their staff to sponsor a congregation. Some new ministries are intentionally launching with a focus on the compassionate ministries needed in a given community. Some intend to become communities of faith from the very beginning, while others develop a fellowship that may never become a congregation. Rather than become too restrictive in definitions in the early stages, leaders are learning to allow time to develop each new ministry to its full potential. Eventually, as it becomes self-funding, self-governing and self-propagating, the new ministry may or may not choose to formally organize as a separate congregation. Others prefer to stay connected to the mother church, for a variety of reasons. While no one knows where all these new expressions of congregational life may take us, we are encouraged to see new people coming to faith in these emerging ministries. As God’s Spirit continues to do a new thing, we celebrate His work among us. For further details on the upcoming New Church Teaching Conferences and the Accelerate schedules, please visit the Web site at www.NazareneNewChurches.org or call the toll free number at 1-800-306-8294. Serving on the Front Lines “I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done. You are my God, and I will give You thanks. You are my God, and I will exalt You.Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.” —Psalm 118:17, 28-29 As Nazarene Chaplain Jeffrey Hawkins returned from his tour of duty in Iraq, these words from the Psalmist, Warrior and King David resonated in his heart. Here’s a portion of the chaplain’s “First Person Report” shared with the readers of GROW Magazine from his experiences and reflections on his time in military service. As I sit on the flightline prepared to leave 431 days, and nights, of Iraq behind—and all the blessings, challenges, and memories this combat deployment has held, I, like David, am overflowing with thanks to God. I am thankful for His protection. For rockets that have not found their mark where I slept, for mortars that have not exploded where I stood, for bullets that have not hit where I lay, and for IEDs that have not detonated where I’ve driven. I am simply a Chaplain grateful to God for having survived the crucible of true battlefield ministry. And with all that is within me, I want to make the most of whatever days He grants in the future by honoring His faithfulness in the past. It’s hard to replay nearly 15 months of memories. Some images are a blur, others seem to stand still, indelibly etched in time. At the beginning, I see a team of Paratrooper Chaplains, from the 2nd Brigade, 82d Airborne Division, “Task Force Falcon,” huddled and praying together in Kuwait. Perched on the edge of the unknown, alerted as the first unit of the President’s “Surge,” this team launched into Baghdad to stem the tide of ever-increasing violence propagated by Al-Qaeda insurgents and complicated by Sunni and Shia extremists. I remember thinking to myself, “What will this team of chaplains and chaplain assistants see? What burdens will they bear? What price may they, themselves, have to pay in order to do their duty to God and country?” Then more than ever, I felt both pride and apprehension. Pride in the bravery and fortitude of those who could have been somewhere else, doing something else, with someone else, but instead they chose to say “Yes” to God’s call to be missionaries in uniform and carry God’s presence and grace to those headed into combat. Apprehension in that each 2009and every one of them had families and futures—families and futures that would have to be put on hold and that would have to hang in the balance as we waited to see what a country’s war and God’s will would bring. I was proud of them, and I was apprehensive for them. Then thrust into the fray with the charge to “get off the FOB (Forward Operating Base) and into the streets”, our Falcons set about trying to turn the battle for Baghdad and rescue a country caught in a seemingly downward spiral of bombs, blood, and hopelessness. Though we knew that effort could cost us dearly, I don’t think any of us we’re prepared to be reminded of that cold, hard, fact on the first day, first convoy, first mission outside the wire as the first IED stole the life of our first soldier. Any thought of being able to execute the mission without cost was dashed, and there was a collective sense of, “it begins”. And with this came the questions I, and our Unit Ministry Teams, would hear over and over again, as the months, and the toll in young lives given to the cause, mounted: “Why?” “How could God let this happen?” “Why him? “Why her?” “Why now?” “Why not me?” Of all the honors and privileges for a chaplain, perhaps none is so burdensome and so blessed as conducting Memorial Ceremonies for our soldiers. Task Force Falcon laid down 83 of it’s own warriors for the freedom, peace, and prosperity of Iraq. An infinitely high price, each counted in personal ways by personal friends. Our commitment, in only a way a soldier can know, is to simply have our lives honor their death. Thankfully, we leave Baghdad infinitely better and safer than when we arrived for deployment. The opportunity of the Iraqi people for peace and freedom is truly before them, having been purchased at dear cost. I’m not sure that all my lessons learned from this rotation of Operation Iraqi Freedom have yet been mentally, spiritually, and emotionally logged, but I am aware of several insights. The first is that God is sufficient. The phrase, “It’s when you discover that He is all you have, that you’ll find Him to be all you need” has more meaning now than ever before in my life. The second reflection is how proud I am of our young, American paratroopers, who when asked to do incredibly hard things, for indefinite periods of time, in austere and dangerous places, daily rose to the task and challenge courageously. Their ability to look fear in the face and do their duty on too many days to count was simply awe inspiring—I wish every American could have seen what I had the privilege of witnessing daily. The third insight is the tremendous generosity and outpouring of support from the American people. I was simply amazed by the gracious encouragement from people I never have, and likely never will, meet though their cards, letters, packages and gifts—it was beautiful, and it made a difference for all of us over here so very far from home. Fourth, I’m humbled at the sacrifice of our Unit Ministry Teams, particularly our chaplains. All of them were men who chose to leave the comfort and safety of their ministries and families at home to assume hardship and danger for the sake of young Americans of every shape and size dressed in camouflage. Chaplains were there because they want to be—not because they had to be. It would be easier to minister elsewhere, but elsewhere is not where they were called to be. They were called to be with soldiers . . . and that is where they were . . . every hour, of every day, and in every way. And for that, and so much more over these past nearly 15 months in combat, I say, as David did, “You are my God, and I will give You thanks, You are my God, and I will exalt you. Give thanks to the Lord; for he is good: his love endures forever.” Editorial: The Good News Works Everywhere A casual reading of the gospels reminds us how many times God shows up in the unexpected places. From a human perspective, it would seem only the unusual locations would be eligible for such Divine encounters. But scripture repeatedly teaches us otherwise. Faith-filled ministries can still be found in unexpected locations, little known towns and country settings across the nation. We all know the world class cities cannot be ignored in efforts for starting and growing churches. And impacting urban areas will always be a high priority in missional plans and practices. But Jesus recognized the need for going into “the next towns” and villages, and not just staying in Jerusalem. To make the point, Jesus explained, “That is why I came.” (Mark 1:38) Rural congregations across the USA and Canada reflect so much of who we are as the Church of the Nazarene. Our Research Department informs us that in the 82 districts and 5,250 local churches in the United States and Canada, 78% of the Nazarene churches run under 125 in worship. Many of these ministries thrive in town and country settings. As one of our Nazarene pastors said, “We found Ephesians 3:20 works here too!” Many stories in GROW are found in out of the way places, scattered all across the country. In some cases, they’re on the edge of their district boundaries. It’s surprising how many times exceptional stories of faith are tucked away in remote settings. And yet, God still rescues people in out of the way places. For many, it’s the first time they have really asked Him for help. Author Tom Nebel tells us a growing number of people are relocating back to smaller towns and communities to escape the hectic demands of the big city life. Many are downsizing intentionally to regain some focus for their lives, open to reinvestigate the gospel with a new interest. Many people now living in small towns need some big miracles. And, God still calls people of great faith to town and country settings. Many of their ministries reflect a great vision for bringing the Kingdom into their ministry context. Just because they’re in a small town doesn’t mean they’re not doing great things for God. Tom Nebel also reminds us that smaller towns and rural communities are excellent places to start churches. The relational networks already exist for getting out the word about a new church. In many of these places, the unchurched population rivals the percentages of the large metropolitan areas, with no real options for attending worship services. A new church could reach many within a reasonable driving distance who would be open to discuss relevant matters of faith. Another positive for reaching out to smaller communities with new congregations involves the lower risk factors. According to Nebel in Big Dreams in Small Places, these communities offer multiple options for home group meetings. They can provide helpful contacts from surrounding towns. Many offer rental spaces at much lower costs than the larger city requires. With a bi-vocational pastor and a reasonable rate for rented property, the two largest budget items for sponsoring a new church could be significantly reduced. And in these tough economic times, we’re all trying to do more with less. In every issue of GROW, stories are told about little known ministries which are having a great impact for the Kingdom. Smaller churches, like my own church home, can be as missional as any other church of any size. Life transformations happening in small churches are just as miraculous as conversions anywhere else. It’s almost as if God wants to continually remind us the Good News of the gospel can work anywhere. Today hundreds of smaller communities across the USA and Canada have no holiness church as a witness in their area. God’s word and Spirit can work in those places too – if we will just dare to trust Him. What’s the “next town” your church could impact by sponsoring a new church? There’s no place the gospel will not work; no person the indwelling Christ cannot transform. — Jim Dorsey, GROW Editor Staying Power from the Call: Fremont, NE The Fremont (NE) Church of the Nazarene started 26 years ago, when Pastor Tom and Becky Shaw graduated from Nazarene Bible College. Pastor Tom had grown up in nearby Blair, Nebraska, but sensed a call in his second year of school in Colorado Springs. “Not only did we sense a call to church planting, we also began to sense a burden for the community of Fremont. I was not raised in this community and really knew very little about it,” Pastor Shaw shared. “What I did know was that it had a population of approximately 24,000 people, and there was no Church of the Nazarene. “It was on a Saturday morning, while working on a class assignment, that God began to place clarity on His will for my life. My wife and I knelt together and lifted this burden before the Lord. When we finished praying, there was no further discussion, but we both left the room with an assurance that this was what God was asking of us. “During the next few weeks, not only did we continue to pray for guidance,we also began to make contact with individuals we felt would need to be part of this decision. Materials were secured from the Fremont Chamber of Commerce so we could begin to learn about this community. In addition, Dr. Jim Diehl, the district superintendent for Nebraska at that time, was contacted to request permission to move in this direction. “As we look back, we can see many doors God opened that reminded us time and time again that this was His will for our lives. In fact, I believe I can identify the one thing that has enabled us to stay through some difficult moments. When there have been temptations to give up, it has been the assurance that we came to Fremont in response to the call of God on our hearts. We are still here because we do not believe He has changed this call for us.” And sensing God’s call on his life, Pastor Shaw moved to Fremont with the intention of staying to start and grow a new Nazarene congregation. “As calls came with the opportunity to consider a different assignment,” Pastor Tom reflected, “I probably did not give as much time to praying about these moments as I should have. “I felt that God had called me here, that there was, and still is, no limit to what He can do in this community, and I wanted to be part of growing with this church. There were times when I sensed that it might be good to leave Fremont and pastor in a new community. However, that attitude never came while I was feeling it was the right time to leave. Consequently, I believed that if God wanted me to pastor a different church, He would need to allow me to feel called and released at the same time. “I also believe that the long-term pastorate has made it possible for me to become a community pastor. Although many of the people I have met still have not come to a worship service, hundreds have passed through our doors for the purpose of a wedding or funeral. I see these moments as opportunities to begin to build a bridge. As a result, we now have a number of families in the church who were first exposed to our ministry and the church while attending a funeral or a wedding. “Another thing we have done is attempted to target different audiences. At the present time, we have a Saturday night and two Sunday morning worship services. Saturday is designed as a contemporary service with the services on Sunday being a traditional service and what we call a blended service. The format enables us to minister to different needs. There are individuals who attend our Saturday service who must work on Sunday. Another benefit of multiple services is that individuals can come and worship in one service, and then return to serve others at a different time.” While Pastor Shaw had some questions initially in this call to Fremont, he found a promise in the scriptures that has given him a foundation through these years of ministry. “It is found in Ephesians 3:20, ‘Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.’ “In this verse, I am reminded there is no limit, if we will just trust and follow Him. Standing on the bluff south of our community, I am reminded that all of this belongs to God. For as far as I can see, there are thousands who need to know the love of Christ and to be changed by Him if they are going to be saved. My vision does not necessarily include facilities or size of staff. What it does include is a church, filled with people who are either worshipping God or searching for answers, and they have come because of lives they have seen changed before them. “I see a church filled with people who have a deep love for God, a passion for the lost and a commitment to make a difference in their little part of the world. My vision for Fremont is an Acts 2 church, being lived out today.” And Pastor Shaw was quick to acknowledge that many of these answers to prayer came through key people who God brought into their ministry at just the right time. “As I look back I am overwhelmed as I think about the people God brought to help us with the different seasons of the church. “For the first service in 1982, He provided families like Mike and Linda Gless, Ernie and Pauline Stark, Jim and Sandy White, Athan and Paula Burch and Ed and Beth Anderson. When it came to a financial need, He provided people with the gift of giving. “When it came time to purchase our land, God provided the first seed for giving from Virgil Ramsey. When it came time to build, He provided individuals whom He had given the gift of construction. When we began our first phase at our current location, God provided Roger Negley for both leadership and encouragement. “When we needed some money to purchase a few extras, He provided Bob Rix. Today, all three of these individuals have gone home to be with Jesus, but God has been faithful in providing others who are willing to stand in the gap. “The scripture gives us a promise, ‘My God shall provide all of your needs.’ God has kept this promise by providing the right people at the right time, and He has done this beyond all that we could ask for or think about.” Through these 26 years of ministry, Pastor Shaw admits facing multiple changes. He says, “I still believe the greatest change has occurred in me. Some service formats may not be my personal preference, and growth has made it so that I do not always get to meet guests or their children. But I have learned, this is not about me. It is about the message of Jesus and lives being changed, and if this is going to happen, I will need to step back and trust His leadership. “One of the attitudes I try to live with regarding leadership is to learn what a leader or a church might look like at the next level of growth, and then start living there. From that point, it becomes a matter of helping to lift others up, not pull them back. “As a church, we are learning what it means to move beyond our doors and out into the community. It is not uncommon for our youth to be involved helping a family with a specific need. Our children’s ministry hosts a yearly car show which has not only connected with the community, but has opened the door for families to be reached for our Day-Care ministry. “At Christmas time, our choir finds a place on the Main Street of town where they can sing their Christmas music. Monthly, we go as a church to provide and serve a meal at the homeless shelter. Bible studies have begun in neighboring communities. Our goal is no longer just to get individuals to come to church, but rather, how do we get the church to people.” And these changes across Pastor Tom’s ministry have brought missional influences to Fremont. “Without question, Jesus has been faithful when it comes to lives being changed. Broken people have been made whole, lost people have been found and selfish people have come to surrender to His Lordship. But we are learning that it does not stop there. orgTime and time again, we have witnessed these same people stepping up to become the leaders of ministry in the church. “If you were to walk through our halls, you would find these redeemed people singing in the choir, teaching in a class, serving on the board or on a committee. They will be in the prayer room during the worship service or in the prayer meetings that go on throughout the week. You will find them involved in women’s ministry, men’s ministry, youth ministry or children’s ministry or in missions. They have received the love of Jesus and now they have become reservoirs of His love, spilling over onto the lives of others.” With all he’s experienced in these 26 years, Pastor Tom remains optimistic about the future ministry of the Fremont Church of the Nazarene. “I believe our greatest days are yet to come as people are making a commitment to pray,” he says. “Not only are there a number of individuals who are committed to prayer, but several times per week individuals are invited to the church or into the prayer room for prayer. We are currently about to begin our first 40-day prayer and fasting. “For several weeks, we have been bringing all our adult classes together on Sunday morning for the purpose of teaching on five major themes: sin, repentance, fasting, prayer, and the Cross. We will be sharing with the congregation three primary prayer requests we would like for them to focus on during this time, and then individuals will be encouraged to pray beyond that as the Spirit leads them. Although this is a 40 day focus, we are not suggesting that everyone fast the entire 40 days. We are asking everyone to look to God for the commitment that He may be asking of them. “I am thankful for the energy and blessings God has given over the past 26 six years, but I am really looking forward to what He has in store for us as we, the church, wait on Him.” The Front Line: She's Expecting It’s an odd idiom. “She’s expecting.” The first time I heard that statement about a lady, my natural response was, “What’s she expecting?” Perhaps we don’t hear the phrase used as much now but it used to be very common when referring to a pregnant woman. It didn’t mean that she was hoping to be pregnant someday. It meant that she was now in “the family way.” She was pregnant presently. She was elated; excitedly so. There was new life obviously moving and kicking and growing within her and she was anxiously expecting the arrival of the new birth. And I’ve been thinking about the Bride, the Church of Jesus Christ, the Nazarene Bride that is. Can a 100-year-old Bride still be “expecting”? Or has her womb grown tired and shriveled? Perhaps her desire for little ones has waned. Children are messy, you know. They require sleepless nights when they are sick and pacing the floor when they are wayward. The quiet house is now a well-deserved respite. Maybe in our tired moments, we begin to think that way, but it doesn’t last long. There is indescribable joy when new life comes. Why even an aging grandmother can find her way to the floor to frolic with a crawling grandbaby. The new life exhilarates even the elderly. I suggest to you today that the Church of the Nazarene in the United States and Canada is a century old but she is not past child-bearing age. She’s expecting. She is not just hoping to be pregnant. She is, this very moment, throbbing with new life. There are many among us who are praying and fasting for God to send new life to our church. He is answering our prayers. Even now, new churches are being birthed every day. New people are finding Christ and becoming members of the Church of the Nazarene, by the thousands, most every week. Our challenge is to make sure that God is bringing the increase and not we ourselves. You might remember an elderly woman in the Old Testament named Sarah. When she was ninety years old, God told her that someday she would give birth. She laughed. Then when it didn’t happen as soon as she thought it should, she took matters into her own hands. She arranged for Abraham to meet with her servant Hagar. As a result, Ishmael was born, along with trouble and division. Our task today is to keep our eyes on Christ. We do not need to chase after the latest fads or programs or Hagars to bring new life to our church. We just need to move up closer to our Lord and in loving, intimate union with Him, we will find ourselves “expecting.” Pleased with the Prospects, Bob Broadbooks Revising the Outlook on Outreach: Gardner, Kansas The Trinity Family Church of the Nazarene started in 2005. Pastor Donnie and Erin Miller found a few friends to go with them to the small town of Gardner, Kansas. Thousands of dollars have been donated to this new ministry from other churches; a nondenominational church in Gardner, Pastor Miller’s home church in Iowa, Burlington First Church of the Nazarene and their sponsoring church, Christ Community Church of the Nazarene in Olathe, Kansas. Looking back on those early days of ministry, Pastor Donnie says, “I’ve changed in my approach to ministry and evangelism over the past few years.” He explained, “I was trained in the attractional approach to evangelism. The pattern was send out cool mailers, have a good band, fun children’s ministries and creative sermons so people would show up in droves. Unfortunately for us, our area was already saturated with churches like this, so the ‘come and see’ method didn’t work for us. This forced me to reevaluate our approach to evangelism.” Pastor Miller went on to describe why these changes in ministry became so necessary. “I’ve discovered a few things. Reaching people with little or no church background is very slow and very messy. Attractional methods don’t really work with completely unchurched people. Slick mailers or creative sermon series don’t impress people with no church experience. They haven’t yet been indoctrinated in the consumeristic mindset prevalent in our church culture. “It seems that attractional methods do work well in reaching ‘dechurched’ people, but assumes too much for people with no church background. We have to stop waiting for people to come to us and find a way to go to them. “And, traditional small group formats don’t work for completely unchurched, it’s too big of a step to go from fairly anonymous in a crowd to being in the house of an unknown person. What has worked better for us is one-on-one discipleship with someone the person trusts.” But these adjustments took some planning and preparation before they were implemented. Pastor Miller outlined several intentional steps he made in that process. “I started in the spring of 2007, during a sermon series entitled ‘Why Church?’ I was at a bit of a low point, frustrated that we weren’t reaching more people. In this series, I showed a clip from the film, Field of Dreams: ‘If you build it, they will come, Ray.’ “I compared the modern ‘come to us’ approach to ministry to the post-Christian (and was also pre-Christian) approach that says ‘We will go to you.’ I preached from John 17:18 when Jesus said ‘Just as the Father sent me, so I am sending you.’ I challenged our church to be okay with serving and loving people who may never come through the doors of our church. “We also spent the summer of 2007 praying for people who didn’t know Jesus. We wrote the names of people who didn’t know Jesus on index cards, put those names in a box and prayed for them every week. We even lit incense while praying since I was preaching from Revelation that summer and the author describes our prayers being lifted up like incense. After months of very little happening evangelistically, that fall was one our more effective seasons of evangelism. “For our first birthday celebration in September of 2006, we did a big event, and had a carnival for the kids with all kinds of stuff and sent out mailers to the community. A year later on our second birthday in September of 2007, we spent the day helping clean up from our city’s 150th Birthday Celebration. We changed from ‘come and see’ to ‘go and serve.’” These changes in ministry have not been without some resistance. Miller explained “Our approach to sharing Jesus’ love is so unique that we faced a little bit of opposition to our unusual methods of evangelism. It was mostly from people who thought we needed to have less grace and more judgment. We kept coming back to the example of Jesus, who loved people right where they were and, when they were open to a new way of living, He gave them the opportunity to change. We knew that to express even the slightest bit of condemnation would forever shut us out. “I’ve believed as pastor, I need to model before my congregation an intentionality in building relationships with people who don’t know Jesus. I’ve tried a lot of different ways to get involved in Gardner. I spent a year serving on a committee for city government. I coached football. These were good but not really what I was looking for. “Last spring, I began praying for a new opportunity to build relationships in the community. One day, we found a flyer for tryouts for Gardner Community Theatre’s production of ‘The Music Man’ crumpled up in a Wal-Mart shopping cart. Since I like that musical, I decided to try out for the chorus. “Well, I was talked into taking the lead role and my life was drastically changed. Due to my involvement in the theatre, I’ve had countless spiritual conversations with unchurched friends. We’ve had ten unchurched families show up at Trinity Family at least once. One good friend from the theatre, who is currently exploring Christianity, told us right after the final performance, ‘Thank God for Wal-Mart, because He answered your prayers there.’” Another special answer to prayer came to Pastor Miller’s family from this extra community involvement. “God even answered our prayers for a child through the theatre, as we adopted our first child through a relational connection within the theatre cast. “Erin and I went through some painful years of failed adoptions and failed fertility treatment. We were in the midst of another round of medical treatments when a Christian lady whom we knew from Gardner Community Theatre, and who happened to know of our struggles, called to tell us her niece was pregnant and considering placing the baby in an adoptive home. At that time, we were not ready for adoption. Through some amazing ‘coincidences’ however, many of which came through relationships within Gardner Community Theatre, God told us He wanted us to adopt this little boy. “The birth and adoption of Dawson has brought an outpouring of love upon our family. In addition to the church and family showers, one of the unchurched community groups we’ve ministered to, and Gardner Community Theatre, threw us a baby shower. I believe the love shown to us with Dawson’s birth demonstrates the impact one can have when committed to loving and serving beyond the traditional church boundaries. “While we were opening the gifts, one person told us ‘Nobody has ever loved us the way you’ve loved us.’ That might’ve been the highest point of my pastoral tenure.” And the person at the theatre who was thankful for Wal-Mart became another illustration of their new ministry efforts. Pastor Donnie shared more about her story. “We’re baptizing her son, she’s coming to a Bible study and even bringing other friends to church. She hasn’t yet made a commitment to Jesus. She also told me ‘I’m not so sure about faith, but I love yours, so there must be something to that, right?’” With the positive results from these innovative approaches to outreach and evangelism, Pastor Donnie has realized the value of ongoing adjustments in their efforts. “We’re always open to change. We’re currently asking our congregation questions about what’s really working and what might need to change. I’m convinced that how most churches ‘do church’ right now could be obsolete in a few years. “We can’t be tied to any one structure or method.” Insights: Being the Church when Christianity Is in Decline Recent studies show that a smaller proportion of Americans claim to be Christians.1 How does this impact the mission of a local church? First, national trends do not apply in every local setting. Any local church that wants to be effective in making new disciples is aware of its own surroundings. Pastors and people have a sense of what the neighborhood needs and responds to. There are local churches in apparently God-less neighborhoods. There are local churches in neighborhoods where “everyone” claims a church home. God’s effectiveness is not limited to areas where people already like Him. It is helpful to know that society’s attitude is changing. But local churches help the poor, present the gospel, teach disciples, baptize new believers, and reach out to their communities no matter what society thinks. This has been true for two thousand years and remains true in all cultures today. If a local neighborhood seems especially resistant to the local church, it is appropriate for the church to be sure its priorities are biblical. Is the first priority to make disciples, or to preserve programs? Board meetings need times for discussing outreach and spiritual development, not just parking lot repairs and financial campaigns. Even a parking lot can be seen as an outreach tool if the emphasis is on “What will help our guests?” rather than on “What do I think looks good?” What strengths has God given the local church? Are those strengths focused on the community? Those with the gift of teaching can offer learning opportunities, whether in outreach vacation Bible schools or in community-centered Bible studies. If the church is good at organizing pot lucks, it can invite the community for special celebrations. Do some attendees have entertainment abilities? Then dramatic or musical presentations can be offered to the community. Some churches organize food pantries or clothing closets for neighbors in need. Others open their buildings to after-school activities, from supervised sports to computer labs. Influencing the Larger Society But society itself is difficult to change. In fact, very few churches or groups of churches have much influence beyond the immediate neighborhood. Through the centuries, Christian-based societies seem to have been the result of large numbers of individuals becoming Christian. Of course, prominent Christian leaders have played a role, from the Ethiopian eunuch and Emperor Constantine through John Wesley and Billy Graham. But local believers in Ethiopia, Rome, Britain, and the United States were key to transforming those societies. A local church can sponsor new churches, perhaps built on new models. Those currently outside the church are not a single cultural group. Some need new approaches to respond to God’s message. Others would be more comfortable in the kind of church they remember from their childhood. A single church can rarely offer both approaches. New churches, or at least new services, allow Christian leaders to develop their own strategies for reaching a segment of the community. A local church, new or existing, can reach out to the next generation through children’s Bible clubs or youth programs geared to reach beyond the church. The areas where Nazarenes are strongest today tended to have very strong Cradle Roll programs fifty years ago. Looking for ways to tell the good news to the next generation has long-term implications for the gospel. Facts Behind the Reports But whatever the larger trends, and however they are interpreted, the call to local Churches of the Nazarene remains the same: To make Christlike disciples in the nations. —prepared by Dale E. Jones and Rich Houseal On a Collision Course with Culture: Lone Tree, CO When the launch team from Lone Tree (CO) heard Erwin McManus teaching on people’s lives colliding with the claims of Christ, they knew they had found their calling. They began work on their mission statement which read: “Our vision is to reach out to spiritually disconnected people and lead them to Christ through the power of authentic relationships in the context of small groups.” Although the group had been together for several months, they had searched for that unifying mission, as they searched for pastoral leadership. Lay leader Dennis Carter had started small group meetings in February 2007 in Lone Tree, Colorado with some success. What started as four couples soon grew to 20 families attending their small group gatherings. And, most encouraging to their group was half of these 20 families were unchurched and looking for real answers to their questions about faith. When Pastor Kris Hayne came to be their founding pastor in October of 2007, there were approximately 40 people meeting in small groups at a local elementary school. Pastor Kris agreed with their launch team in their focus for helping “people come into direct contact with Jesus’ grace, forgiveness and love.” Based on that concept, they chose the unusual name for their new church: “The Crash.” When other churched people hear their church’s name, they ask what “The Crash” means. But their actual target group of unchurched people don’t really seem concerned about the name, one way or the other. “Our demographic is so wrapped up in the acquisition of stuff, and status, and achievement” said Pastor Kris. “When they meet Jesus, incarnated through us, His church, it is a true collision of worlds. So far, people are meeting that collision with openness and sincerity. They find that The Crash is a place of authenticity of faith and relationships. No one here expects that you have to ‘believe’ before you ‘belong.’ That’s just not our language.” And their mission seems to be working. Now there are nine small groups meeting each week, with over 120 enrolled in these groups. Nearly a dozen first time conversions have taken place in these small groups meetings. Two entire families have accepted Christ, and soon after had their children dedicated. One of the small group leaders recently led a young couple to faith. And Pastor Kris has enrolled both his next door neighbors to be in a small group. “So many people are just one question away from faith in Christ,” said Pastor Kris in his interview. So every couple, and each child, is enrolled in a small group for fellowship and spiritual formation. Pastor Hayne rotates between all the groups, visiting a different one each week. He said, “I think the key to our growth thus far has been the hardest part of this journey; staying laser-beam focused on our vision. It has meant saying no to a lot of programs. We have to fight against the tendency to say, ‘OK, that sounds great. We’ll do whatever we need to do to reach people.’ There is nothing inherently wrong with that statement, but it also comes with the side-effect of diluting the vision and mission of what we are trying to do. We have a single-minded focus on the need to grow leaders and reach new people through small groups. As a result of that focus, we grow leaders and small groups.” And the groups are not all the same. Some use the Alpha resources to help process the questions of seekers in their group. “Others center on growing great kids,” explained Pastor Kris. “Some groups may focus on Bible 101, while another wrestles with today’s cultural hot topics. We use many different tools to accomplish the one goal—grow strong small groups, which grow strong leaders, which drive us to reach more people.” And the life changes have been dramatic. “One of our greatest stories is Eric and Kerri Krell. This family was really disconnected from God, yet had searching, questioning hearts about spirituality and God. “Eric had experienced some hurt in college from religious people, and was just not interested in matters of faith. Pam, who is married to George (on our leadership team) had a relationship with Kerri and was feeling the Holy Spirit prompt her to be more intentional with Kerri. “As a result of that obedience, Pam led Kerri to faith in Jesus. She was baptized a few weeks later. This touched Eric’s heart in a big way. He has since committed his life to Jesus in one of our large group gatherings. Now, Eric is our chief sound man—one of the most committed guys on our team, and Kerri is one of our elementary ministry teachers on Sundays. They both lead one of our new small groups. “As The Crash moves forward, we look to see where God’s spirit seems to be moving and put ourselves in that stream of supernatural activity. Right now, we are following His lead as we pursue with greater intentionality the dream to start a second site for The Crash in Parker, Colorado. “Parker is a bedroom community of Denver that is experiencing some of the adverse effects of our failing economy. Yet, there is receptivity among the people of Parker that has really intensified in the last couple of months. This has gotten our attention and we are currently looking to strengthen the two small groups we have there, as well as start up three more by the fall of 2009. In Lone Tree, about seven miles west of Parker, we have our strongest presence and are seeing groups becoming stronger there as well. Currently, we meet for our worship gatherings in Lone Tree in an elementary school.” As he closed his interview Pastor Kris admitted “This has been the hardest thing I have ever done; certainly in ministry. This is the third church I have pastored, but the first church I have ever started. I thought I knew what faith was. Then I got here. This has been a whole new experience for me and my family. “It has stretched me in my leadership capabilities and in my spiritual journey like never before. I have had deep moments of frustration and sometimes wondered ‘What in the world is going on?’ Yet, these have also been the greatest days of my life in knowing God’s call to ministry and that I am exactly in the place He has prepared for me. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.” To Whom Honor is Due The scriptures teach “Render therefore to all their dues; tribute to whom tribute is due; . . . honour to whom honour.” (Romans 13:7) When Pastor Ronald E. Webb included this verse in his letter to GROW Magazine, he expressed his deep appreciation for two faithful members in his congregation. He pastors the Memphis Friendship Church of the Nazarene, which was the first black congregation in Memphis, Tennessee. “If Ora Mae Jackson and Juanita Atkins had not endured the anguish of their trials and travails in the birthing of Memphis Friendship Church of the Nazarene, I doubt that the Nazarene Church would be having the success that it has experienced in Memphis today. We owe these two ladies a debt for their service and their devotion to the cause ‘before it was popular.’ These women are truly trailblazers.” And their work has provided a strong foundation for the growing inner city ministries and black Nazarene congregations across the City of Memphis. As of the 2008 District DueAssembly, there are now 12 black congregations on the Tennessee District. The total membership of these congregations is 1,193, with an average worship attendance of 896. The twelve black congregations now in the Memphis area include:
In addition to these black congregations, approximately 30 future black leaders are preparing for ordination at the Memphis Bible Institute. The plans call for most of these new pastoral leaders in training to launch new black churches across the City of Memphis and the Tennessee District. Pastor Ron Webb emphasized in his letter to GROW Magazine, “the need to pay homage to these great women who started the first black Nazarene Church in Memphis. These women have been very active in the ministry of their church, Friendship Church of the Nazarene, for 54 years. They helped organize the church in 1954. “Sister Ora Mae Jackson, her husband and sister Juanita Atkins started this church in their home during a time when blacks and whites were not allowed to worship together. “The Nazarene Church was an oddity to those in the black community, but they persevered through the years by making personal sacrifices of their time, money and talents to keep the ministry of the Church of the Nazarene alive in the black community. “To God be the glory for all He has done.” A New Place for a New Congregation: Newark, OH The leadership at Newark (OH) First Church of the Nazarene made a pivotal decision three years ago. With their existing property seating less than 300 in a service, and a congregation that was growing to nearly 900 in worship, several tough choices had to be made. The staff and lay leaders already conducted three worship services each weekend, and adding additional services just wasn’t an option. Newark First had owned 48 acres on the edge of town, with the possibility of relocating to a larger, more comfortable building. But after considering their options, the leadership agreed they didn’t want to abandon their present site and risk losing the families their ministry was impacting so profoundly. They sold the 49 acres and began to consider other options. “With the decision to stay came the challenge of what to do with the continued growth we were experiencing,” explained Campus Pastor Tevis Austin. “We started thinking about what it might be like to be in more than one location, and soon we discovered that there were churches around the country already doing this.” So, the leadership team of the church began to immerse themselves in learning about the multisite strategy. They read all the books they could find on the topic, met with other church leaders using this approach and even made special trips to visit churches that were using the multisite approach. “We have found a number of great advantages to the multisite model” Pastor Austin said in his interview with GROW. “With this model, we were able to ensure that each location has the same DNA. Each location may have its own unique feel, but the heart of who we are remains the same. Our core values and our mission to lead people into a growing relationship with Christ stay the same as we strive to connect with our neighbors and care for our community.” At about that same time, Newark First made arrangements with the Central Ohio District to assist a sister congregation on the other side of town, that had been struggling for several years. They offered leadership and staff to help turn around this smaller congregation in serious decline. “Real Life Church, at the east side of Newark, became our second worship site,” recalled Pastor Austin. But they also admitted it would be a mistake to abandon the neighborhood where the church is currently located. “There are many needs in this area of town,” explains Pastor Wes Humble, “and we have come to believe that we are responsible to affect our surrounding community by addressing its needs and not just move away from them.” But the solution of the second worship site didn’t last long, as the church continued to grow, raising again the issues of inadequate space. That’s when someone mentioned the old firehouse for sale just a few blocks from their original property “Originally we thought,” Pastor Tevis explained, “we could use the building for extra meeting space, but we soon realized that it could become the third location for people to worship. We spent the next couple of years casting vision, renovating the building, developing leaders, getting more people involved in ministry, and preparing to start a third location. “In July of 2008, we started putting together our core launch team for The Firehouse. The first few months, we began talking to key people already serving at Williams Street about leading some of the main ministry areas at The Firehouse. We needed key leaders who understood who we are and who had experience in serving. Communication between these individuals, the campus pastor, staff, and ministry leaders at Williams Street was critical so that any leadership gaps could be filled at Williams Street when The Firehouse worship services started. By August 2008, others in the Newark congregation began to join the launch team for The Firehouse. Pastor Austin agreed to serve as the Campus Pastor at the Firehouse location. “We had several important meetings for training and communication, and in September 2008, we spent two Sundays having a celebration only for those who had committed to serve at The Firehouse. We also had an open house and special dedication ceremony for The Firehouse to encourage anyone to see what we were doing, including those in the community involved in renovating The Firehouse. In addition to the Firehouse serving as a worship location, new efforts were launched to better connect with their new families in that area. Pastor Tevis went on to explain their strategy. “As we have been meeting our neighbors, some of them have eventually made their way to The Firehouse. We continue to look for ways to connect with our neighbors through block parties. We also have a food pantry located there that serves area families every Tuesday and Thursday. “As we have made other connections with people in the community, school teachers and administrators have used The Firehouse as a place to meet—at no charge. A veteran’s group meets there each week. Teens gather there on Wednesdays. We are even making plans to use The Firehouse for an open mic coffee house to share music and poetry, and for a music and arts festival involving the community.” And this new congregation has taken on their own identity in this process. “We have tried to be environmentally and health conscious at The Firehouse,” says Austin, “by incorporating recycling bins, serving healthier food, and by serving coffee that helps provide a living wage to coffee growers and micro-finance loans to widows in Rwanda. “Another unique aspect about The Firehouse is that it is a video venue. There are times when I teach, as the campus pastor, but many times Lead Pastor Wes Humble’s sermon is shown on a video screen after our worship in music. We are very intentional about making this feel very natural by our transitions to and from the video and by having the teacher on a center screen and additional TV’s displaying video clips and slides. And their service is different from the other two worship sites of Newark First. “Here the children are part of the service the whole time,” explained Lead Pastor Wes Humble, “instead of going somewhere else for their own service.” And even though Pastor Humble’s morning message is used on the big screen, many of the children remain with their parents in the service. Campus Pastor Tevis Austin picked up on that family focus by adding further, “One component of the vision we have at The Firehouse is that ‘together we are family.’ We try to communicate a orgfamily focus which says that we must be intentional about knowing and caring for others. We have designed things to feel more like a family environment by incorporating kid centers with games, books, art, and things to build. “We hope it will be a place where adults naturally connect with each other, kids, and teenagers. We have a nursery and an area for preschoolers, but we have designed the worship celebration to include kids of all ages. Kids, teens, young adults, and adults are involved in various parts of the celebration from the band to serving behind the scenes. We intentionally incorporate songs for kids and other experiences that involve entire families. “It has been exciting to see how God has been using our ministry at the Firehouse,” says Tevis. “We have been able to reach more people and remain smaller at the same time. We have been able to move to other locations without leaving our original location. We have been able to be better stewards by doing more with less cost. This model has enabled our locations to share resources and staff, and this model has enabled more people to get involved in serving. “As we become more engaged in our neighborhood, hopefully we will also have more than one service on Sundays at The Firehouse.” Research & Trends: We all know that stock indices have taken a beating this past year. But did you know that the Association of Nazarene Sociologists and Researchers (ANSR), in cooperation with the Global Ministry Center’s Research Center, have developed a Nazarene Composite Index to help answer the question, “How is the Church of the Nazarene doing in the USA?” Unlike stock indices that are constantly changing because of new data, the Nazarene Composite Index is updated just once a year because statistics are only collected annually. So how is the Church of the Nazarene in the USA and Canada doing? The overall composite index shows that the Church of the Nazarene was up 6 points (1.3%) to 431 in 2008, but the reality is that we’ve been in a steady, fairly narrow range. In fact, for the past 25 years the spread between the high (459 points in 2000) and low (424 points in 1995) has only been 35 points (8.2%). (See the solid black line with yellow dot in Graph 1 below.) The overall composite index is the average of four other indices. These indices—shown in dashed lines on Graph 1—include Participation (attendance and membership data), Financial (per capita giving and property values), Outreach (the number of new churches and church closures, new Nazarenes, Work & Witness participation, etc.), and Nurture (small groups, VBS, CLT credits, etc.). Three out of four of the component indices were actually down in 2008. The Participation Index declined because worship and Sunday School attendance were down, although membership increased slightly. The Finance Index declined mainly due to a drop in per capita giving and increased indebtedness. This reflects the difficult economic situation throughout the USA in 2008. The Nurture Index was lower because of a drop in the number of local church officers and teachers, and because fewer of our Nazarene college age students are attending a Nazarene university. The one index to show an increase—the Outreach Index—did so mainly because of an improvement between the number of churches started and the number of churches closed. The Nazarene Composite Index cannot measure everything the Church of the Nazarene is doing, but it gives a more complete picture than looking at just worship attendance or financial giving. The 2007 results were near the bottom of the range the church has been in for 25 years, but the 2008 results moved us up within that range. It would be great if the 2009 results break through the top of our 25 year range. Planning for Retirement— Nazarene Pensions and Benefits USA emphasizes the importance of ministers and church-employed laypersons building savings for retirement by putting money away, tax-deferred, through the Nazarene 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan. These investments, along with Social Security, can make the difference between adequate funds for retirement or being forced to continue employment beyond retirement to make ends meet. This plan is especially important since ministers may receive Nazarene 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan distributions as housing allowance, thus, in most cases, completely avoiding the payment of income taxes on their distributions. But how many pastors and churches really contribute to their ministers’ 403(b) Retirement Savings plans? (Note: The following information should not be confused with church contributions to the Pensions and Benefits USA Fund, some of which actually underwrites the funding of a portion of these plans.) Graph 2 below looks at the Nazarene 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan and whether or not pastors are contributing to some similar plan. It may not be a surprise that only a small percentage of churches averaging less than 100 in attendance either match contributions by their pastors or make contributions on their pastors’ behalf. But it is equally surprising (and disappointing) that less than 1 in 3 churches (averaging 500 or more in worship) match their pastors’ 403(b) contributions—and less than 40 percent of the congregations of this size contribute anything to these accounts. It may be that the percentage of churches matching 403(b) contributions is low because pastors themselves do not contribute in the first place. And the percentage of pastors who say they contribute to some other retirement plan (such as an IRA) is just 23.8 percent overall. What’s more, over half of our pastors (55.6 percent) are not involved in the 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan at all, even though contributions may be made to their accounts by Pensions and Benefits USA, based on the giving of their churches to the Pensions and Benefits Fund*. This is especially true (and discouraging) for pastors in small churches, where 64.4 percent serve congregations that make no contributions to the Nazarene 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan on their pastors’ behalf, nor do the pastors contribute to other plans. The 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan was created to assist ministers to live comfortably in their retirement, but contributions by participants and their congregations are vital to make sure these retirement funds will be adequate. No one wants or is able to work forever. The principle of Deuteronomy 12:19 reminds congregations that it is their duty to care for their shepherds—today and later. Contributing toward their retirement is a vital part of this care. 27th General Assembly and Conventions: June 24 - July 3 In a few weeks Nazarenes from all over the world will join together for the start of the 27th General Assembly and Conventions in Orlando, Florida. The General Assembly Arrangements staff trusts God to move in a powerful way as Nazarenes gather together, and they hope you are making plans to be a part of this great gathering. Below is a brief checklist to help you in your planning.
—General Assembly Arrangements Office General Assembly IDEA fund With the Church of the Nazarene’s 27th General Assembly and Conventions, a special need has arisen for the international delegates. As was announced in February, the Church of the Nazarene has created the International Delegate Expense Aid (IDEA) Fund to provide financial assistance for world area delegates who incur great financial costs to be a part of the global celebration. As the face of the Church of the Nazarene becomes increasingly global, the presence of these international voices is absolutely necessary when discussing the important issues that are brought before the General Assembly and Conventions. The news of this fund has spread and donations are already being received. The General Assembly Arrangements staff has developed a bulletin insert and a short informational video to help you spread the word and encourage your local congregation to get involved in this great cause. These resources can be found by entering “IDEA” into the Web site search engine at www. NazareneMediaLibrary.org. Donations will be accepted through June 1 and can be mailed directly to the Church of the Nazarene Global Ministry Center (see the following contact information). Please consider sharing your resources with brothers and sisters in Christ all over the globe. Donations may be sent to: General Church of the Nazarene Global Treasury Services, PO Box 843116, Kansas City, MO 64184-3116. Make checks payable to: “General Treasurer” Include in Memo: IDEA Fund #AMS1084 and your church name, in order for your church to receive 10 percent credit for your gift. Note: You will receive a receipt for tax purposes. —General Assembly Arrangements Office New Church Assessments Provide Direction At the most recent New Church Assessment Center in Kansas City, an experienced team of eleven church leaders served as the assessment team. The Assessment Center was held March 16-19, at capacity enrollment for candidates. These New Church Assessment Centers are provided as an evaluation service for potential new church pastors and pastoral couples, sponsoring churches, and USA/Canada districts. These New Church Assessment Centers are four-day events during which ministers and spouses are observed and evaluated to determine their ministry gifts and graces, and their potential for serving as the founding pastors of a new church. The New Church Assessment Center experience includes worship, inspiration, fellowship, network building, personality analysis, self-discovery of individual strengths and weaknesses, private interviews, sermon presentations, case studies, and initial Ministry Action Plan (M.A.P.) development experiences. This recent New Church Assessment Team represented a wide range of ministry professionals, including sponsor pastors, new church pastors and spouses, a district superintendent, denominational leaders, GMC staff and a licensed psychologist. Each assessment enlists these kinds of capable teams to evaluate and encourage new church leaders in their future ministry pursuits. New Church Assessment Centers sponsored by Evangelism Ministries in the Global Ministry Center are periodically offered across the USA and Canada. These proven evaluations provide credible support for the Church of the Nazarene in starting healthy new churches by selecting the right people as leaders. Personal guidance is offered for every ministerial candidate who attends one of the New Church Assessment Centers, in considering their future ministry options. New church pastors who are scored as qualified new church leaders are given steps toward launching a new church and encouraged to pursue specific training for starting healthy new churches. Information regarding future assessment centers can be obtained from the New Church Evangelism offices at the Global Ministry Center at 800-306-8294, or enrolling on their Web site. New church Training at Nazarene Bible College Nazarene Bible College continues to offer the new training program for new church leaders and those interested in sponsoring healthy, new churches. NBC President Harold Graves Jr. says, “We are thrilled to serve the church in this way. We are excited about helping new churches get off to a good start.” A combination of campus and online courses will make it possible for the new church leader or prospective leader to learn the skills and develop the plans necessary to launch a healthy new congregation. Through four core courses and new church assessment, a student can earn a “Certificate in New Church Leadership” within a year or begin a Bachelor of Arts in Ministry. The program will emphasize practical application, solid theory, and interaction with experienced practitioners. The courses for New Church Orientation are scheduled online and on the beautiful campus of Nazarene Bible College in Colorado Springs, CO. The courses will be taught by Joe Warrington and Jim Dorsey. For more information or to reserve a place in the course, contact Joe Warrington at 719-884-5155 or jrwarrington@nbc.edu. Starting All Kind of Churches: Last year the Church of the Nazarene participated in an extensive study by the Leadership Network in surveying over 100 denominational leaders, 200 different church planting churches and 45 different church planting networks. The purpose of the research was to obtain an accurate picture of new church evangelism across the USA today. What they discovered revealed that North American Christians today are more interested in new church evangelism in a way not seen for many decades. For the sixth year in a row, over a hundred new Nazarene churches have been started in the USA and Canada. That’s an increase of two to three times as many new churches, in comparison to the annual averages over the previous five decades. Approximately half of these new churches sponsored across the USA and Canada have been either culturally specific or multicultural new congregations, with many of them sharing a property with an existing Nazarene church. Many English speaking white congregations have been effectively sponsoring Hispanic, Korean, Black, Haitian and Native American Nazarene churches. Some of these mother congregations have been able to share their property to help start a new congregation. In the best situations across the USA and Canada, each new congregation strategically positions for ministry in the community to impact particular segments of the unchurched population. They serve as referrals to each other, raising the visibility of the Church of the Nazarene in every community where multiple congregations serve. New churches like the Restoration Church of the Nazarene in Tucson (AZ) illustrate the multiple ways healthy new congregations are being sponsored. Pastor Abraham Parada began to see the needs in his community, and he sensed something had to be done. “I saw the need to provide some kind of outreach family based orientation for supporting families. I invited my neighbors to our home for informal gatherings to have conversations about family life,” he said. “My wife and I have been involved in the work of the church since our early teenage years. Both of us had been involved in showing the Jesus Film in Mexico. A week after we got married we received our first church assignment in Mexico. Since that time we have been serving God in Mexico and now in Tucson.” They began in their present assignment in November, 2007. Shortly after, they were able to move to the present rented facility, where they have been meeting since April, 2008. Pastor Parada explained the move by saying, “Our home became too small to hold the meetings there.” This new church is located south of the Tucson airport, in a strategic place to reach the already rapidly growing community. Pastor Abraham said, “We started the church with no money—only with the vision to reach our neighbors. God has been providing the resources for this ministry. We have learned to depend on and trust Him for the needs of this ministry.” Pastor Parada was quick to acknowledge his sponsoring church family and pastor, who have been a source of encouragement and spiritual support. “The Torre Fuerte Church in Tucson and Pastor Guillermo Martinez have been a mentor for me and for this new church.” In the same way, this new church is now mentoring and discipling others in their faith. “The church strongly believes in discipling the new believers. Each new believer has to take a seven week beginning discipleship class to affirm them in the faith. We now have about 20 families enrolled and we average about 60 in Sunday School and an average of 70 in the worship service. “Most people in the church are new in the faith of Jesus Christ. In our culture, we celebrate ‘Las Posadas.’ This is a very strong tradition in the Roman Catholic Church in Mexico. Las Posadas has to do with the birth of our Lord Jesus, when Mary and Joseph were looking for a place for the birth of their son Jesus. “I saw an opportunity to bring this festivity to my neighborhood, and invited my neighbors to celebrate Las Posadas. To my surprise about 40 people showed up and I shared the scriptural meaning of Las Posadas. I invited people to have room in their heart for Jesus, and 12 people gave their lives to Jesus on that occasion. I started discipling them and they became the core group of the new Restoration Church of the Nazarene.” Now they are looking toward their future ministry together. “We are praying for the funds to buy the rented facility where we meet. The church is envisioning renovating and expanding the facility for its growth. “We are committed to reaching our community and providing leadership for evangelism and new churches. Please pray for us, that we might be able to continue to share the real meaning of the story of Jesus Christ with our neighbors, family and friends of the Restoration Church of the Nazarene.” Discipling New Leadership: Vista California Hope Church of the Nazarene in Vista, California has enjoyed a rich history of pastoral leaders and faithful members. Started in 1953 by Pastor Velma Cruzan, their journey into ministry has been linked to her leadership by a succession of visionary leaders. When the church considered their first property 11 years after their initial launch, the members agreed to purchase land that would border the future development of a proposed highway. Two years later, they built their first building on that site, which now overlooks the busy Highway 78 through the city. Looking back at those early years, Pastor Matthew Palm says, “Over the last 55 years, many positive things have happened in the life of Hope Church. The wonderful thing about the church is the faithful men and women who established the church. “We still have several charter members who have been at the church since 1954. They have built into the core of this church a sense of commitment to serve. One of the key leaders of that group is Neil Madsen. He is one of the finest Christian men I’ve ever met. He loves God, loves his pastor and is humble man. He raised his family here, and it is because of men like him that we have any success at all.” As a direct product of the ministries of Hope Church, Pastor Matt has a deep appreciation for his spiritual roots. He recalls when he first attended Hope Church in 1988. “My girlfriend, Melissa, was attending the church with her parents. We were married a year later and we moved back to the Vista area to attend Point Loma Nazarene University. “The church nurtured us and encouraged us for the next eight years. We started out as janitors and eight years later we joined the staff.” And Pastor Palm remains enthusiastic about this community of faith that first discipled him. “The heart of the church revolves around making disciples. All we have done is evaluate how we were doing in the area of making disciples, and then change whatever we had to change in order to better accomplish the task of making disciples. “I’m not just talking about being seeker friendly, or socially acceptable, but we asked ourselves ‘What is an authentic disciple of Jesus the Christ and how do we become more effective disciple-makers?’ “Everything that we have been doing from our new ‘Celebrate Life Ministry,’ to the School of Ministry that we’ve established, has been centered around making disciples. We’ve taken to heart the mission statement of the Church of the Nazarene, ‘Making Christlike disciples in the nations.’ We want to be training and equipping leaders for the church, so they can build the kingdom of God.” And they are serious about their disciple making mission. From the long list of ministries and their leaders to the testimonials of new believers, new disciples continue to emerge from Hope Church. This year, seven leaders are pursuing their various levels of ministerial training: licensed local ministers are Andrew Palm, Gregory Dewindt, Wanda Rivera, Tim Shaw, Lester Abrams, and Chuck Rose. Paul Gibbons is a district licensed minister in their church. And the miracles of grace reflect Hope Church’s priority for making Christlike disciples. Pastor Matt described just one of those stories. “Not too many years ago, Larry Benedict was a homeless drug addict. Now he is truly a miracle of God’s grace. Today he has a new life, steady job, and helps lead an incredible ministry here at the church. Larry and his wife Susan are in charge of our Celebrate Life Ministry. Each Saturday night, this ministry continues to bring new families to Hope Church and faith in Christ.” Hope is more than just a name for the Vista congregation; it summarizes their whole outlook for the future. Pastor Matt seemed to speak for their church when he said, “Our greatest areas of progress have been navigating the needs of the generations that we serve. Our Easter weekend attendance with all the combined services was 601, and our average attendance last month was 304. “As a pastor I serve the needs of all five generations in our church, and they all have very different ways of looking at life. Methodology, music, and ministries are in a continual state of flux. “We have chosen to make a commitment to each generation’s needs and be as committed to the charter members of the church, as we are to the person who made the commitment to be a disciple of Christ last week.” |