Resets and Adjustments

Never let it be said that times of intense prayer aren't productive. The last several weeks have given a lot of answers on questions that need to be answered.

I have to admit, I was starting to get very discouraged. We're making progress, but at an excruciatingly slow rate almost to the point of appearing to be stationary. It's very frustrating for me, especially since I'm very much a results oriented person. If I'm working toward something, I have a hard time with delays, stalls, and setbacks. Nowhere is this more true for me than when it comes to Kingdom work. I came very close to giving up more than once in the last couple of months. Discouragement and despair are always at the elbow of anyone called to leadership in the Body and I am no exception.

Before I could give up, I hit my knees in prayer and for the last several weeks have engaged in a period of intensely seeking the face of God and sessions of fasting. I sought answers for a lot of questions that have been plaguing my thoughts. There are a few left I need answers and a couple I need further understanding but the primary queries have been answered.

I have been asking the Lord why Freedom Church is going so slow. Instead of one answer, I got three. One of them, I've already addressed in my personal blog and dealt with a sin issue that had been tolerated far too long. Yes, pastors can have sin issues in their lives just like everyone else. We can even have a modicum of effectiveness while allowing sin to have a hold on areas of our lives. However, the time is coming when the Lord isn't going to allow us to remain in bondage to the flesh and still serve effectively in His Kingdom. He was pretty clear that he wouldn't allow these seeds of destruction to remain and proceed with Freedom Church's launch. Now that this has been dealt with, placed under the Blood, and vigilance against it is in place (including accountability), the other answers have been given to us.

The next is that we are no longer going to be limited to a specific geographic location. When we decided to focus on Sunnyland, it was in the aftermath of the Washington Tornado. I was privileged to be used of God to minister to a number of people who were dealing with the loss of their homes, shock, and grief. In retrospect, I believe we were caught up in the emotion of the grief and pain of a community we belonged to and loved. The call to the Washington area (of which Sunnyland is a part) was for a specific time and season and that has passed. For many people, not being specific about a location is gong to sound a little nuts because it goes against the grain for many church plants. However, the fullness of the Lord's vision for FC makes more sense when we are no longer tied to a location.

The real truth is that we are called to a people rather than to a location and even that has been reshuffled a little. Our calling to the outcast, the people who don't feel like they belong anywhere else. That may not seem to be of a change since that's always been a part of the vision but the truth is we had a lot of the right people on the list but not in the right order. There are a lot of people who feel like they can't be themselves in a church because they feel condemned or judged because of who they are or what they enjoy. They need a place to belong.

There are a lot of people out there who need the Gospel. No one church can reach them all. The truth is, there are a lot of people out there who don't fit the mold of the "typical churchgoer." Many of them also feel rejected by larger society and need a place to belong. There are a lot of names people use for these people including freaks, geeks, nerds, losers, and flakes. However, these are among the most intelligent, creative and sensitive people out there. Lots of them are into metal, hard rock, punk and dress that way. They could be Goth, Cosplayers, or a whole host of so-called subcultures that feel out of place in traditional and contemporary churches. That is our calling. These are our people.

Does that mean that bikers and others are off the list? Absolutely not. Freedom Church is open to anyone who feels disenfranchised or cast off and needs to find the real freedom offered in Christ Jesus. This particular change appears to be minor but the focus shift is very real. We were close to the mark but not quite on the bullseye. It's the same list we've had from the beginning but the order has been shuffled a little bit. It's going to be a more difficult road to travel, but we must go down it.

When we were aiming at the wrong part of the target, the Lord slowed our progress to keep us from going too far down the road. It's so much easier to correct a course when you're starting out than it is when you're well underway. There are a few more things we need to clear up but they're relatively minor. With His help, things should start to accelerate very soon.

Pastor Mike

Coasting on Cruise Control

The last few months have been excessively busy to the point of insanity and exhaustion. I wrote about some of it in my personal blog last week. I have been mentally, physically, and spiritually exhausted. My lovely bride has been dealing with the effects of the mess herself. The stress has brought up a lot in our lives and shut down our brains. I think my son had to wipe some drool off my chin because I was nearly catatonic from all this junk. Some of it has been worthwhile Kingdom work (which I will never complain about) but a lot of it has just been steaming piles of garbage to sift through.

Unfortunately, Freedom Church and Jesus' Outsider have been in coast mode for over a month. I haven't had the time or energy to produce videos, write blogs, or record episodes in far too long. I will return to producing new material soon, likely as early as Sunday night. We are still going to proceed slowly for a couple more months. There are some key decisions to be made before we can truly ramp up. Yes, the lovely bride and I need to clean up a few things (also mentioned in my personal blog) but that is being dealt with using prayer, fasting, and some hardcore spiritual warfare. It will be overcome in short order.

In front of me are a series of choices that I need to make. I have already made a couple of difficult decisions. I had to learn how to say no to opportunities that would have derailed everything we've been working for these last several months. Kim and I need to figure out the next steps and make sure the Lord is in them before we make a leap.

Many years ago, the call of Elisha was laid upon my heart. (1 Kings 19:19-22) If you're unfamiliar with what happened, Elisha was plowing his parents' field when Elijah came up to him and placed his prophet's mantle on his shoulders. Elisha immediately broke up his plow and used the wood to sacrifice the oxen. He was leaving all of his old life behind to follow the call of the Lord upon his life. The Lord told me that a time would come when I would do the same thing. In the midst of the insanity, the Lord reminded me of His word to me all those years ago. I am seeking His face to determine if that time is coming soon.

In truth, even dropping to part time on my main job and gaining a couple of days, I'm still not finding all the time I need to recruit a launch team and raise funds. Something always seems to come up to eat my time or the tasks before me take more hours to do than I have time to do them. Some of that means I need more help but to find it,  I need more time. It's a huge catch 22. I am grateful for the help I already have but there's just so much to do. I fear that if I don't find more time, it's going to take years to get FC off the ground. The sense of urgency I have is much greater than that.

When we set out, I decided not to take a salary from FC in the early stages. Now, I'm spending a lot of time in prayer to determine whether or not that was the Lord and not my ego. I have to weigh some options to both build Freedom Church and provide for my family.

So, here's my options:

1. Leave one of my jobs and trust God that the income from the other will be enough.
2.  Replace one job with Deep Mystery Studio and work to bring in self employment income. This choice carries its own pitfalls and dangers.
3. Raise personal support along with the initial startup costs for the church either keeping one part time job (the least stressful) or eliminating both.
4. Leave both jobs and split my time between the studio and the church.
5. Continue as things are and keep working as time allows.

Each of these presents opportunities and challenges. I know what I would do in the flesh but I don't want to operate in the carnal. I need to know where Jesus wants me to be and follow His guidance. I'm a risk taker but I want my risk the rest on His shoulders. When He leads and we follow, that's the best option and the risk that brings a truly worthwhile reward.

So far, this has been a truly stretching experience. The financial options I just laid out are the tip of the iceberg of the decisions that need to be made. Regardless, I need to find a way to redeem my time and put more of it into building Freedom Church for His glory. Obedience to Him and Kingdom building has to come first. Some tweaking needs to be made to the vision to really convey what Jesus means to accomplish through the ministry He called us to so that we can fully communicate it to others who may bee feeling the same pull on their hearts to either join us or support us.

The lovely bride and I would appreciate your prayers as we seek the Lord's face in these decisions.

What Religion?

We get a lot of questions. This video answers one of the most asked, "What religion is Freedom Church?" For the exasperated answer and a special celebrity guest, give it a watch. Bonus points for the anyone who gets the special joke hidden in plain sight (or hearing).

Why Plant?

One of the questions I get asked a lot is, "Aren't there enough churches out there already?" The context of the question is usually to wonder why we're starting another one.

Setting aside the call of God to do so (which really can't be set aside for nothing succeeds without the call of God), there are some very good reasons to start new. First, with approximately 1000 people for every existing church in the Peoria Metro Area but with average church size closer to 80, the need is obvious. There are more people in this area who need the Gospel than the existing congregations will every be able to reach. People are perishing without Jesus at a horrific rate. Jesus words about the harvest being ripe but workers being few ring very true today. The vast number of people taken alone is reason enough to expand the tent of the Kingdom's presence in this area to strive to preach the Gospel as broadly as possible.

At the risk of sounding like a marketer, there are underserved people in our area. We have developed a church culture based on reaching people like ourselves. This isn't necessarily wrong. It's human nature. Since most pastors and church leaders are college educated with a white collar background, that's naturally who they connect with and are most effective reaching. Unfortunately, we aren't a predominately white collar region. We're still a manufacturing community with more than half of our population in that area or the trades.

Others just don't feel comfortable in most of the current congregations. Either they expect to be rejected because of their appearance, lifestyle, or history or because they don't see relevance to their life. In many cases, that expectation or rejection is based on real experience. A lot of these people have some past experience with the church. They may have felt cast off, excluded, or otherwise shut out for a wide range of reasons from questioning what they were taught, struggling with "one of those sins," or just being different from the group. There isn't a more difficult group to reach than these individuals often referred to as the de-churched. Pain gets in the way.

Our out-of-the-norm approach to ministry will create an atmosphere that will help bring people to Jesus. Our purpose is to proclaim freedom through the Good News (hence the name Freedom Church) to any and all. That means using different methods than what most would expect. Nontraditional styled services, intentional hospitality, and music are among the tools we'll employ to connect with the community. We'll promote relational evangelism and discipleship by equipping those the Lord sends with the tools and confidence in the Holy Spirit they'll need to be His witnesses in a dark age.

We've been called a subculture ministry. That's a label that we embrace as it speaks to our desire to reach those who don't feel comfortable in most churches. Our motto, "In Christ but out of the box" and credo, "A church for people who don't know how to do church" both speak to the call we feel. To reach cultures that are challenging for the established church to reach is what we need to do. Our methods, by necessity, are going to be different but we will NEVER compromise on the Word of God.

By adding to the mix of existing congregations, Freedom Church is being launched to work as a partner to the rest of the local church so that we can together preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ as effectively as possible. The unique flavor we have been called to create is to improve the overall reach of the Church of The Peoria Metro Area. Paul wrote that he strove to be all things to all men. The greater the variety of styles we offer, the more easily we can do that. The Kingdom is advanced when we all do our part. We will, by the grace and power of God, do all that we can to fulfill whatever part we play in rescuing the Hell-bound and adding to the Kingdom.

Pray for us and that we will find the increase necessary to fulfill His mission. Perhaps, this vision is what you've been seeking. Please, feel free to comment or contact us and let us know.

Updates Long Past Due

To say that 2015 has had a rough start would be stating things mildly. Health issues and the financial challenges they brought about have set back our time table a lot. By this point, the first of the small groups was to have started, a new promotional video release, and a location for the seminar set. Unfortunately, none of that has happened. There are a lot of people we need to meet with to get the ball rolling again that we have not been able to make happen.

First and foremost, to reassure all of you, the fire has in no way diminished. Our passion for glorifying God and preaching His Gospel to those not currently being reached still burns with a bright flame. The trials of the last few weeks have done nothing to deter the vision the Lord has given us. Freedom Church is still coming.

The seminar we've been planning is still the plan. The more research we do, the more people we ask, the more convinced we are that we need to move forward. The need is tremendous. However, for obvious reasons we are moving the date back until May. The final date will be set once we have a location. We need help finding one. To keep consistent with the planned location, Washington or East Peoria would be ideal however, locations in Peoria are not out of the question. The preference is for a host church that we can partner with that sees the need but, failing that, other locations are options that will need to be considered.

Thanks to an overly busy holiday season and the trials of the last several weeks, most of the needs have not changed. The list (copied here from a previous post) hasn't changed.

1. Final legal filings for incorporation as a religious corp. We have most of the funds for this but need the rest. This is the smallest part of the need.
2. Promotional expenses. In addition to press releases, we are going to produce radio spots to run on both Christian and secular radio stations. We can produce the spots in-house using Deep Mystery Studio, the facility used to record Jesus' Outsider. The cost will be to air the spots.
3. Mailers to churches with information about the conference and fliers that can they can post.
4. Participant hand-outs
5. Speaker fees for outside speakers
6. Fees for the host church or facility.

However, we are no longer promoting the GoFundMe campaign. They charge too much. I would rather have the normal charges of credit card processing through PayPal than the additional cost of a crowd-sourcing service. I have been less than impressed with the service. They haven't done anything to warrant the fees they impose. Contributions can be made through PayPal either on this page or on the FC site.

Work continues. I hope to have my voice back soon so that I will start recording soon and be able to create the promotional videos for the church and for the seminar. The storyboards for the seminar video are almost complete.

Prayer support is greatly appreciated. The trials that have slowed our progress are not finished yet. The vision continues, the fire burns as bright. Trials cannot stop the plans of the Lord.

One Year Ago

One year ago, the community of Washington, IL was changed forever. On November 17th, a monstrous tornado cut a swath of destruction through heart of the town. Around a third of the population was left homeless. No one came out unchanged.

Washington came together in a mighty way. In the aftermath, local churches were the center of recovery efforts. Denominational labels no longer mattered as the Body of Christ worked to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and shelter the homeless. The church was to busy being the church to worry about the arguments that keeps us separate. It was an incredible experience.

Freedom Church was changed. In the aftermath, our plans were altered. The original vision for Freedom Church was to start in one of the blue collar neighborhoods in Peoria. Roughly a week after the storm, the Lord starting to speak to us about moving to Washington, specifically Sunnyland. It was hard to miss His clear voice. I was privileged to serve in very small capacities meeting needs and praying with people who crossed my path. Although we weren't even close to starting, I was welcomed as a part of the Washington ministers as if I had always been there.

When I shared this change with some of them, I think they restrained themselves from saying something to the effect of, "What took you so long to figure it out?" I'm pretty sure they figured this out long before I did. A hard head does have it's disadvantages.

I have to admit, at first, Washington didn't make a lot of sense for the vision we've been given for Freedom Church. There are already several strong ministries. It was only after looking around Sunnyland with fresh eyes that I saw the huge need. I knew the area well already but had never looked at it through the eyes of the Lord. I saw the very people the Lord had been speaking to us about everywhere I looked. I could feel the palpable need for the Gospel, the chains of sin needing to be broken, and the emptiness of the people's hearts to be filled by Jesus.

This past year has been one to remember. Washington is slowly but surely being rebuilt. Homes are going up all through the devastation area and people are returning. Although things are far from normal, the healing and restoration are well underway. The community will always be different than it was one year ago with a new normal taking over, one closer knit than before. There's a greater appreciation for one's neighbors, friends, and families. A sense of closeness and belonging permeates the town as a whole. Washington has become a truly extraordinary community where a good town once stood.

It's a great honor to be called to serve this area. As we build, we feel fortunate to be welcomed as a friend and brother in Christ by the established congregations and ministries.

The Conference

As we posted last week, we are planning seminar to launch the church to the public. After a lot of prayer and research, we believe the Lord has called us to launch an unusual church in an unusual way. If we're going to pull this off, we need help.

One of the most important needs is a host church. Yes, it's a lot to ask but we want to partner other ministries to fulfill the mission God has given us and help them fulfill theirs. The launch of Freedom Church is built on a cornerstone of unity in the Gospel. If all goes well, the host will have the opportunity to share their vision with people who they may never have come into contact with outside of the seminar.

We really aren't asking much of the host. We need the facility, a few tables for the foyer, sound system, and at least one liaison so we can find what we need to clean up when we're done. We can provide a sound tech but would be more than happy to have the church use their own. Our volunteers will handle the rest. We would like the host to have a table with information about the church and their ministries with someone to share their vision with visitors. We would welcome more participation from the host.

We need more help than just a host. We need some funding to cover the initial expenses we're going to encounter. Unfortunately, even to build a fundraiser we need some resources to properly promote it and to produce materials for the attendees. We recently updated our GoFundMe campaign to target it specifically to the money we need for the seminar. The new video is also aimed at this goal.

In detail, this is what we need.

1. Final legal filings for incorporation as a religious corp. We have some of the funds for this but need the rest. This is the smallest part of the need.
2. Promotional expenses. In addition to press releases, we are going to produce radio spots to run on both Christian and secular radio stations. We can produce the spots in-house using Deep Mystery Studio, the facility used to record Jesus' Outsider. The cost will be to air the spots.
3. Mailers to churches with information about the conference and fliers that can they can post.
4. Participant hand-outs
5. Speaker fees for outside speakers
6. Fees for the host church or facility.

Admittedly, this doesn't sound like a lot of money for a seminar on this level. We are keeping a lot of expenses down by doing most of the work in house using talents we already possess.

Please prayerfully consider helping us get this off the ground. If you cannot help us financially, please share this with someone who might. We can't fulfill the mission the Lord has given us without help.

Stalling and Restarts

If you're wondering, yes we've stalled out at Freedom Church. Any momentum we've had has been lost over the last several weeks. Unfortunately, all of my personal time has been spent trying to make enough money to pay the bills and purchase groceries. In addition to FC, I'm working three jobs, two for other people plus Deep Mystery Studio. As you can imagine, that leaves nothing for FC. There are videos to produce, people to meet with, and a huge list of other tasks that aren't happening right now. If you're reading this and I owe you a coffee meeting, I truly apologize. I am trying to stabilize things so I can make those happen.

Some things are going to hold off until some decisions are made and actions taken. Until I have more control of my time, the small group/Bible study will have to wait. It needs to happen, but as long as I work most weekends at one job or another and can't predict what time I get home at night, we can't schedule it. At the moment, I don't feel like I have the room to breathe much less get anything important done.

However, if we are to meet a goal, something has to happen. We are planning to hold a seminar as both a fundraiser and introduction to the larger church. There are areas of knowledge that many people in the church are lacking that are putting our kids and ourselves are risk. Essentially, it's about what the world is throwing at us in the realm of sexuality and how to remain pure in the midst of it. We'll be teaching about social media, especially apps that parents aren't familiar with that are used for all sorts of activities that we don't want anyone to engage in. The changing face of porn is also an essential topic. We need to know where it's coming from and how it's getting into our homes. It will be more than just a presentation of facts, we'll talk about how lives are destroyed on multiple levels, including the lifestyle romanticized by Fifty Shades of Grey by someone who lived it.

The plan is to hold the event the first Saturday in February, just before the Fifty Shades movie hits theaters. All we need is a host church, preferably in Washington or East Peoria. We will provide snacks and all materials, handle ticket sales, and everything else involved. Whoever hosts is encouraged to participate and to have a table of their own. The purpose of the seminar is to help people in the Body of Christ understand what we are up against and how to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to bear to bring freedom to those who need that bound in the world's chains. Yes, funds above the costs of the event go to starting FC, but our aim is to equip the Body to protect itself and serve the hurting.

We would also like other related ministries and organizations to be represented. Any ministry is welcome, but we would especially like to have Christian counselling services on hand. Youth ministries are encouraged to set up as well. We want as many resources as possible for the attendees to be able to make use of the information and stories they'll hear. We're praying about whether or not to charge for tables or ask for a voluntary donation.

Until then, we need to raise $1000 for some expenses we have yet to cover including finishing the incorporation and other needs we have to get started. There's a PayPal link on this page and our homepage. If you prefer, we have a GoFundMe campaign that you can use to make a contribution.

Freedom Church has slowed, but we are not out. The Lord is still in this work and we need your support and prayers to accomplish His mission.

Moving Forward - What's Next for Freedom Church?

The meeting we held was very educational for us. It's often been said that we learn more from failure than from success. The informational meeting stands as proof of that. For those who are curious, no one came, not even a couple of people who had offered to help do some of the work at the meeting. Not one person joined us. To say the least, we were disappointed and a little hurt. However, from such beginnings and missteps, we learn to go forward. That is precisely what we are doing. So, first what did we learn?

In truth, we weren't ready to hold a meeting yet. We hadn't generated enough interest in helping nor had we shared the vision with enough people. In order for anyone to want to help with a ministry, they need to hear the vision. Our initial hope was that by holding a meeting to share the vision, we would connect with people of like mind but that was not the case. Of course, it didn't help that we were foolish enough to hold it on one of the most traveled weekends of the year. When the date was set, it was simply because it coincided with a vacation that was already scheduled not even thinking about Labor Day being Monday. Oops.

Second, we didn't promote it well. The thinking was that if we did the first with people we knew, it would be a friendly audience for the first one. Call it a test run. We did try some promotion using Facebook which was an utter failure. Let's just say that the expectation set by the ad manager and the reality were something entirely different. We will still use it but not to promote an event. Since trying it, I've checked for results with people who did the same thing and the results were always less than stellar.

This is hard. We knew there would be stumbles and missteps. We expected opposition from several directions. On neither count have we been wrong. That doesn't alter our resolve to see the Glory of God in what He called us to do. It does mean that we need to check our methodology and make certain we're doing this the way He told us to do it. Some changes are being made but the vision and direction are not.

Going forward, we are not going to hold informational meetings like the one we just attempted, at least not until the Lord tells us otherwise. We are looking for other opportunities to share the vision with congregations to raise funds and support for the mission. Local churches may hesitate to let us in as perhaps they see us as a competitor for people and tithes, but that isn't our heart. What we have been called to do is so unique that most of the people in any given congregation may support our efforts and encourage us but are not likely to join us. That was the experience we had when we were serving in the inner city of Peoria and there is no reason to expect a different reaction now. We need the help and the finances that they can provide either in one-time offerings or a monthly support as a mission organization.

In the short term, we will be starting some of the ministries that Freedom Church will be offering to allow us to connect with people better. One of the first will be the small group ministry. Soon, we'll be starting at least one group with more to be added as leaders and hosts become available. Not only will this provide the opportunity for people to come and join in Biblical teaching and discussion, but also a chance for someone who doesn't know Jesus to be introduced to Him in a safe and less intimidating environment than a traditional church service. We'll be announcing other ministries as they come on line.

As often as time allows, we'll also be posting short video messages. These will be more than just updates on our progress or vision casting. The message of Freedom Church is more than a vision. It's the law of liberty, the freedom brought by the shed blood of Jesus. That's what we'll share. Simple Gospel messages and short teachings. There will be updates and vision videos periodically, but the Gospel is the heart of our mission so that's what we'll share.

As  a true launch, we are planning something very special. No details quite yet, but it will be all about finding freedom in Jesus and provide the church at large with some real teaching and resources. When we are ready, we'll share more details here and all over the place. When we say it's something the church in this area needs and is right up Freedom Church's alley, we aren't kidding. Even if someone has no interest in joining us, they will want to come to this.