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Three Church Plants – Different Paths to Same Goal
CHICAGO (March 18, 2000) - One church ministers to people in a movie theater, another serves the needs of those living near the beach, and a third targets a farming community.
The common thread? Planting seeds for Christ in the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC). Having been given funding for church plants on January 1, a trio of congregations are well on their way to making inroads into their respective communities.
Dublin, California
In Dublin, California, located about 20 miles from San Francisco, pastor Rob Bryceson and White Stone Covenant Church began weekly worship services Sunday (March 19) after conducting two preview services. More than 150 people on average attended the preview services and Bryceson has been encouraged by the support from the 50 adults and 30 children comprising his core group. The church meets at a movie theater in nearby Pleasanton and uses videos, Power Point computer presentations and a full-scale band, among other things, to help communicate the gospel message.
"I'm grateful for the advice I received from Dave Olson (the ECC's director of Church Planting) and others from the Covenant," said Bryceson, who served two area churches before joining the ECC. "I'm watching God do a work that defies the target market mindset," Bryceson observed. "We're finding that God's bringing us a lot of different people, a lot of ex-Catholics and burned-out cynics from the church."
Bryceson describes his services as multi-experiential worship, an attempt to involve people by helping them use all five senses. One interesting approach in Bryceson's church is a prayer wall that allows people to jot down prayer requests during the service, because "not everybody can sing or relate to music." Bryceson believes that this type of worship is necessary given the different expectations of certain generation groups.
"The under-35 crowd is saying, 'I want to feel this God you're telling me about, I want to experience that. And after I feel that, you can tell me what He's about,' " said Bryceson, who was raised in the Baptist General Conference. "Older people say, 'I'll come and you present your information about God and I'll decide if I want to follow Him.' "
Another difference in White Stone Covenant's method can be attributed to the titles and roles of the pastoral staff. Besides Bryceson, there is a full-time Pastor of Soul whose focus is to inspire the soul to worship God. There is the Pastor of Heart, a volunteer serving as the church's social coordinator . Another volunteer, the Pastor of Strength, is responsible for the life mission and spiritual gifts classes and helps coordinate local mission. Eventually, the church desires to add a full-time position called the Pastor of Mind, a coordinator of small groups, workshops, and other skill-development ministries.
The church is encouraging small groups meeting at the homes of core group members, including a believers class and a spiritual gifts class that helps people produce their own personal life mission statement. Monthly all-church social events have also been effective for building community.
San Clemente, California
Down the coast, the Shoreline in San Clemente, California, pastored by George Hulse, has a core group of 50 people and has met as fellowship groups since October 1, 1999. The church has conducted two preview services and will have weekly services beginning April 9. More than 200 attended the opening preview service.
Hulse describes his worship style as "a guitar-driven band with a big sound and a worshipful heart." Casual dress is the norm. Hulse, a former professional surfer, describes the church's vision as Biblical and alive, Christ-centered; mission minded, authentic, artistic, cutting edge, kid concerned, and sandy feet friendly. The latter component is especially poignant given that the church is located less than a mile from the Pacific Ocean.
The church's starting time of 4 p.m. on Sundays is also unique. Hulse says that the afternoon time slot may meet the needs of those who enjoy sleeping in on mornings or doing something active before the day heats up. Another factor was the unavailability of the community center that the church meets in at an earlier hour.
"Because I was a college pastor (eight years as associate pastor of Youth and Families at Crown Valley Covenant in Laguna Nigel), a lot of people would assume we'd be a Generation X church," Hulse said. "But what I've found is that our church would be described as 'young at
heart.' Some of our values have been genuineness, transparency, and being unashamed of preaching and teaching the word of God," he said. "Some of the words may be used as a Gen. X church. But, we've never set out to reach a certain age group.
"We've sought to do family ministry so well in San Clemente that we have a long-term effect," Hulse continued. "Hopefully, we can change the high schools by doing children's ministry real well." Hosts of people from local Young Life parachurch ministries are key leaders for the church in meeting the needs of kids and teens.
Small business ministry is another area of concern to Hulse - he sees business as a way to minister to the community. Given San Clemente's small-town feel, he and his congregation have targeted small businesses as a means of reaching others for Christ. A video production shop has owners that serve in The Shoreline's core group and Christian owners of a local coffee shop have also expressed interest in Hulse's vision.
Hulse is thankful for the help of Mercy Covenant Church in nearby San Juan Capistrano. The church has provided child-care and youth ministry during the church's previews services. White Stone Covenant also helped the church financially, and other local Southern California Covenant churches have been instrumental in supporting Hulse. "We've never felt like we're on our own - there has been a lot of support," he concluded.
Rockford, Minnesota
In Rockford, Minnesota, a town of 2,600 thirty miles west of Minneapolis, pastor Brian Johnson has been working with a core group of between seventy and eighty people in the hopes of starting
weekly services this fall. Covenant churches in nearby Plymouth and Buffalo have aided Rockford Covenant Church and Johnson has appreciated both the local church support and that of his fledgling congregation.
"People who are part of the core group share a common desire to be part of a progressive, contemporary ministry," said Johnson, who served 13 years as a Covenant pastor in Clay Center, Kansas and aided a church plant in nearby Manhattan. "There's a real good spirit among the people, they're ready to be what we want to be as our mission moves forward."
Rockford Covenant meets in a local elementary school every other week and is planning an outreach service for the community on Easter Sunday. Johnson says that the church plant should be aided by the fact that numerous subdivisions have been built during the past five years.
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