On Sunday, September 9, Common Ground welcomed 255 worshippers for the launch of Tampa, Florida’s newest “urban, multi ethnic church.” Stadia’s Brent Foulke, who also serves as the church planting coach for Lead Pastor Danny Schaffner, recorded his thoughts on the morning.

I am happy to report that our attendance this morning was 255. Of this number we had guests and well-wishers from three Tampa churches and from Suncrest Christian Church in St. John, Indiana. We also had quite a few former members of Central Christian Church, the legacy church that made this launch possible by holding a memorial service at the end of 2005 and "turning over" the assets for this project. Their vision and Kingdom-mindedness made today possible.

The most exciting part to me is that our crowd of newcomers reflected the community demographic we've been praying for: 1/3 Latinos, 1/3 African American, and 1/3 white. It was quite a feeling to walk by a conversation in Spanish where Julio was getting to know a first time family, to see Nolan engaged in intense prayer with an older African American woman, and watch people line up to meet Danny! Julie's children's wing is undoubtedly the BEST facility for children we've ever had in a brand-new church. Sesame Street's set would be proud to look this good!

In the adult worship service, Chris and his band ROCKED – one of the best opening bands I've ever heard. And we all know Danny can talk; he was outstanding.

Please pray for this team. Nolan will be charged with getting the whole church outside the walls and serving the community. Julio will be building community through group life. Julie will be trying to get every child in the zip code engaged with Jesus. And Danny and Chris will continue to create an environment of celebration and growth for adults and teens. The real work now begins.

www.commongroundtampa.com

• Dan and Shannon Smith set the tone and got things started in Cleveland. Dan and Shannon are not Stadia planters, but they are our partners and we must give them credit for the good work they are doing. The Smiths have done a good job in developing a planting DNA in Cleveland, and have given people and resources to start several new churches.
• Scott and Vanessa Pugh left an exciting, successful, and growing local church ministry and moved to Cleveland a couple of years ago because God called them to do so. Their new church, Velocity, is knocking the ball out of the park. The Pughs have partnered with their community to provide youth services to thousands of kids.
• Mark and Evie Pratt came to Emmanuel School of Religion from Virginia where Mark was a State Trooper. Mark graduates from seminary in May. He and his young family will be moving to Cleveland to lead an urban new church.
• Kevin and Sondra Rush just finished a leadership residency with Dan and Shannon Smith at Momentum Christian Church. They will be starting City Edge Christian Church. Kevin came into ministry out of the market place as an engineer. We are thrilled he is using his God-given gifts for church planting transformation.
• Marques "Big Cleve" Evans and his wife Krista are starting Revolution 216. Big Cleve played college and professional basketball. He has lived in Cleveland for several years and has been called to reach his community. We are excited about the vision of Marques and Krista and look forward to seeing transformation happen through their new church.

• Heritage Christian Church, Fayetteville, GA
• Community Christian Church, Sharpsburg, GA
• Lifebridge Church, Kennesaw, GA (also an Atlanta CPN plant)
• Momentum Christian Church, McDonough, GA (also an Atlanta CPN plant)
• Christ's Church at Whitewater, Fayetteville, GA
• Christian Church Buckhead, Atlanta, GA (also an Atlanta CPN plant)
• Northridge Christian Church, Milledgeville, GA
• Peachtree Christian Church, Peachtree City, GA
• New Community Christian Church, Braselton, GA (also an Atlanta CPN plant)
• Lakepoint Community Church, Eatonton, GA
• One Community Church (also an Atlanta CPN plant) Douglasville, GA
• Bridge Christian Church (also an Atlanta CPN plant), Chattanooga, TN

• Lifebridge Church, Kennesaw, GA – Jeff & Lisa Bennett, Lead Pastor (Also a member of the Atlanta CPN)
• Christian Church Buckhead, Atlanta, GA – Derek & Micki Sweatman, Lead Pastor (also a member of the Atlanta CPN)
• Momentum Christian Church, McDonough, GA – Bart & Jodi Stone, Lead Pastor (Also a member of the Atlanta CPN)
• New Community Christian Church, Braselton, GA – Chris & Dawn Hoffman, Lead Pastor (also a member of the Atlanta CPN)
• Bridge Christian Church, Chattanooga, TN – David & Meghan Sternberg, Lead Pastor (Also a member of the Atlanta CPN)
• One Community Church, Douglasville, GA – Matt & Kristy Robison, Lead Pastor Opening in March 2011 (Also a member of the Atlanta CPN)

• Stadia: Together – with Our Networks – We Will...
• Atlanta CPN: Changing the Landscape of Georgia

For over a decade, Dan Donaldson, Senior Pastor of Legacy Christian Church in Orlando, FL, has consulted with church planters in various roles. Within the past year, he has come together with Stadia to serve as a Church Planting Coach, leading weekly coaching sessions with four planters across the country. With this Stadia E-news issue being focused on Coaching, we took some time to talk to Dan about his role.

1. Awareness of his situation and his surroundings. Planters need to see things as they really are and that's a challenge before and in the months immediately following launch.
2. Sense of responsibility and privilege in his role-- prompting him to positive action and leadership. So much of this involves helping the leader avoid the super highs and the super lows. Usually things aren't as bad as they seem or as great as they seem. God is blessing, directing, and preparing in the planter's context. Sensing that and trusting in His provision is a real key.

1. I'm passionate about doing life in an accountability group. At our new church we call them "2Seven Groups". Every lead planter needs to find a safe place to trust and be trusted, to know others and be known, to develop close friendships that are not dependent on his role as a pastor. I wouldn't be in ministry and probably wouldn't be sane today if not for a couple of dear friends God has used to bless me in these ways in the context of a "2Seven Group."
2. I'm an advocate for staying physically strong. Exercising in some form is great for stress relief and it is good stewardship of the resources God has given.

The 2004 "Annual Review," our first ever year-end publication, is now available. Our Annual Review features over three dozen churches and ministries from across the country, and highlights their involvement with CDF, Stadia and Visioneering.

Click here to download the Annual Review in PDF format, or call 1-800-233-3880 to request a printed copy.!!

From Tony Wood, Lead Pastor of Moment Church (Irvine, CA):

"At our inception service there were over 20 people taking a step toward Jesus ? over a dozen people actually came back for prayer, and the crowd cheered. It was a great moment and we hope God was pleased. But, the real special moment came after service ended.

"As the lights came up, a young girl walked back toward the cross and ran into one of our prayer counselors. The counselor asked, 'May I help you?' The girl replied, 'Yes, the man talking mentioned we could get a Bible here?' The counselor took her to the counseling room and then asked if she could be praying for anything.

"The girl shared that she came from a Muslim home, had received a door-hanger, and chosen to come alone. She said that her family would be very unhappy but she couldn't continue to live for a religion that condemned her. She desperately wanted the peace and hope Jesus offers and wanted to convert.

"If our little church exists for only a week, this makes it all worth it."

The Los Bajos Church Launches!
A brand-new church, with the support of Stadia and Compassion International, began serving the community we know as Los Bajos last month. This is extremely exciting, as we just met the church movement leaders, Pedro and Rosita Del Hierro in October of 2010. They are amazing leaders and the new church, under the leadership of Ivan and Narcissa Montehermosa, is already working with more than 150 people. This is because YOU in the Atlanta Network have demonstrated generosity and your love for God and His precious children. This new church would not be transforming lives and this poor community without you. Thank you. There are pictures attached for your use in celebrating this great movement of God.

And, through the generosity of RiverTree Christian Church in Ohio, there will soon be 50 young mothers and their babies being served in a Compassion International Child Survival Program using the facilities and personnel of the new church. You've seen and heard of the impact this program has around the world-and there is nothing more vital than releasing these children from poverty. In the words of Wess Stafford, "they're too small to ignore."

Over the next few months, the real fun will begin! The children who are 4 years old and older in the Los Bajos area will be invited to become part of a Child Development Sponsorship Program, or CDSP. This program will focus on the social/emotional, spiritual, intellectual, and physical well being of these children. It will also be held in the church facilities YOU helped build and employ workers from the brand new church family. Together, these faithful servants of Jesus, along with Compassion, will begin the most important work in the world-caring for children and helping them find their way to a lifelong relationship with God.

From the Jaramijo Church Plant:
Here are the first pictures of the new church building in Jaramijo. Our partners in Manta, Camino de Santidad, are making great progress. We are so blessed to have this relationship and shared mission. This would not be possible without God using you and your churches to transform lives and the entire Jaramijo community. This lot was a vacant, trash-filled space and now it is bustling with the excitement of a new place of worship, learning, and wholeness. THANK YOU for making this a reality. Please continue to pray for Felix and Jacqueline and the entire church planting team in Ecuador.

From the Las Lagunas Plant:
Santiago Del Hierro in Manta sends greetings from the entire Camino de Santidad family. As you can see, they are continuing to make progress on the facilities that will house the new church and the children the church serves through Compassion programs. Pray for their work on the well, which is taking longer and needing more depth than they hoped. "As of now we have dug over 40 meters and still have not reached water," is the current report. Thanks for all you are doing to make this new church possible.

From the Las Brisas Plant:
The worship space and classrooms are looking GOOD in Las Brisas. Praise God for our partners there-Camino de Santidad. They are making it happen in a big way. But they couldn't be doing this without God using YOU. Thank you for your church's generosity and for the partnerships and sponsorships your whole group is providing. Families will be released from poverty through the Compassion programs run from these facilities. Lives will be transformed by the Gospel of Jesus-and the entire community of Las Brisas will be transformed by the Church. Praise God. Please pray for Jose and Olinda Quintero and the entire team of Camino de Santidad in this pre-launch season.

• No new planter is alone.
• No congregation is responsible by themselves.
• No project lacks for healthy guidance and everyone benefits from shared learning.
• Each church is a church-planting church.

This year Stadia's new tag line is Together We Will... It focuses on the potential of us working in relationship. The transformation we work toward is a result of collaboration. Each month in their newsletter to church planter spouses, Bloom! features a story of how churches are working together, wives are supporting and encouraging one another and how fellow planters are becoming passionate about doing this work together.

This month they asked Stefani Klabunde (Restore Community Church in Sterling, VA) and Sarah Burnett (Revolution Annapolis in Annapolis, MD) to share about their friendship and how it has been a a source of support and encouragement on this journey of church planting.

BLOOM to Stefani: How did you and Sarah meet?

Sarah and I met three year ago, during our time at New Life Christian Church. Our husbands - both future church planters - had started hanging out, and it seemed only natural for us to connect. We have one of those instant connections where you feel as if you've know each other for years.

BLOOM to Sarah: How did you make time to hang out with one another?

In the beginning, my husband Josh and I lived near Ron and Stefani and so it was easy to get together with them. Stefani and I would meet up go to lunch on a regular basis. I looked forward to those lunches. I learned a lot from Stefani since she was about a year or so ahead of me in the church planting journey. Since we now live over an hour away from each other, we meet up in the middle a lot for lunch or breakfast. It's worth the time. It has been really nice to have someone I can be vulnerable with and I think she would say the same.

BLOOM to Stefani: How would you say you both invested in the friendship?

Sarah and I spent lots of time hanging out - shopping, eating, painting pottery, laughing - definitely lots of eating and laughing! Our conversations were about life, family, faith, and our future church planting endeavors. One key to our friendship is our shared values and passions - so many of the things we enjoy individually we share together. Our personalities and interests - while similar in so many ways - are complimentary. Plus, we desired to pursue a friendship - talking regularly, getting together regularly, sharing things openly and honestly. We've challenged each other's thinking - and not worried about walking on eggshells. And we've held each other up in prayer - on the spot, over weeks, and over miles.

BLOOM to Sarah: What has this friendship and support meant to you in the planting process?

It has been invaluable! It's been so awesome to have a friend that gets it, and what I mean by that is someone that gets church planting and all the things that come with that. It's also been amazing to have a friend that cares so much about how I am doing and prays for me on a consistent basis. We need each other in this journey. I know God doesn't want us to do it alone. Stefani has been there for me time and time again when I needed someone to pray for me when times have been tough. And she's been there to celebrate with me when things have gone great. She's been a friend, a true friend! Galatians 6:2 "Carry one each other's burdens."

BLOOM to Stefani: What has this friendship and support meant to you in the planting process?

To have someone who is a coach and more - someone who is truly a friend - who knows the good and bad - helps us work through the challenges and celebrate the joys of planting with greater intensity and sincerity. To know there is a true friend to call on the spur of the moment who gets where you've been, and where you are going - who is on the same journey - makes calling easier, makes sharing easier, makes advice, even the hard advice, more palatable. There is credibility in the counsel of a friend who can understand on so many levels.

BLOOM to Sarah: What would you say to someone out there who doesn't have this kind of support?

See if there is anyone that is in your region or close by that you can begin connecting with. Start small by going out to coffee or getting together once a month. You have to be intentional about investing in the relationship, but it's totally worth it!

BLOOM to Stefani: What would you say to someone out there who doesn't have this kind of support?

Do whatever you can to find it!

Church Planter Patrick Norris and Bridges Church of Winston-Salem, North Carolina was recognized by Forsyth County this week for recently feeding 600 hungry people in the community. The county thanked the church for its “generous contribution and giving spirit.”

www.forsyth.cc/?NewsID=1899

www.bridgeschurch.net

From Tammy Melchien, Campus Pastor
Community Christian Church - Lincoln Square Campus (Chicago, Ill.)

"Our Grand Opening Celebration Service was focused on the Big Idea: "I Heart My Community." As we prepared for this special day, we thought about how awesome it would be to see something different in our community next week as a result of this new campus starting today.

"A couple months ago I had a conversation with the principal at the venue we're renting, Chappell Elementary, and he mentioned that because of budget shortfalls they had not been able to buy new books for their library for the past 2 years. The librarian gave us a list of 150 books they would like to have for their students.

"If you were at our Grand opening, you know we challenged people to love our community by providing these books for the school. The Book Cellar, a local bookstore in Lincoln Square, partnered with us to sell the books at a discount.

"By the time the service was over, all 150 books were purchased! Also, the librarian was given an additional $260 to buy more books for the school. Chappell Elementary is feeling the love of Gods people and something will be different in Lincoln Square next week because we met today. Well done, COMMUNITY!"

Effective today, CDF's "Family Emergency Investment" offer has been extended indefinitely. If you don't have a family emergency fund, or if you're not already a CDF investor, you can get started with just $250. You’ll earn 2.25% APY*, and CDF will give you a $25 Barnes & Noble Gift Card (while supplies last).

Visit www.CDFonline.org/start to learn more, or to get started.

*APY= Annual Percentage Yield. Annual Percentage Rate (APR) = 2.23%. Interest rates are subject to change periodically. Interest yield assumes that all interest is left in the investment and compounded. The offered rate is valid only on Church Development Fund’s special flex certificate.

Offer not valid on dollars added to existing flex certificates. A minimum opening investment of $250 and minimum monthly investment of $50 is required to receive the offered rate.

Flex Certificates offered in Louisiana and South Carolina have a one-year term, and are not subject to an early redemption fee.

Barnes & Noble is not a sponsor or co-sponsor of this promotion. Please see back of gift card or visit www.bn.com for terms and conditions of use. Barnes & Noble is not liable for any alleged or actual claims related to this offer.

After nearly two decades of volunteer and professional service to the organization, Doug Crozier resigned as president of Church Development Fund this October. Doug was named to CDF's board of directors in 1993, and served in that role for four years before joining the staff as chief operating officer in 1997. He was appointed president in May of 2004 when his predecessor, Larry Winger, was named CEO of CDF's newly-formed parent ministry, Provision Ministry Group.

During Doug's 17-year tenure with the ministry, Church Development Fund made more than 500 loans totaling nearly $1 billion to independent Christian churches and ministries. As COO and president, Doug was instrumental in structuring many of those loans. Upon joining the staff in September of 1997, he led the process of updating the day-to-day operations at CDF, which included the outsourcing of loan documentation to better protect CDF and its borrowers.

Doug led many innovative ventures for CDF, including CDF's first line of credit with Tokai Bank, CDF's Advance Land Purchase program, and an enhanced loan funding model that allowed CDF to meet the growing loan demand from the fastest-growing evangelical movement in America.

The Advanced Land Purchase program helped several young and dynamic churches secure property even in their infancy. Real Life Ministries (Post Falls, Idaho), Summit Christian Church (Sparks, Nevada), Adventure Christian Church (Roseville, California) and more than 10% of the congregations on Christian Standard's megachurch and emerging megachurch lists were partners in the "ALP" program.

Doug's capital development initiatives, which included the first church loan securitization in history, loan partnerships and sales, generated approximately $500 million in funding for church projects that helped reach tens of thousands of people with the gospel.

In 2002, Doug led the Denominational Investors Lenders Association's efforts to revamp the regulatory document for the church extension fund industry. In early 2004, that new document (the NASAA SOP) was adopted; it is continuing to protect investors and borrowers throughout all denominations today.

Doug Crozier was uniquely suited to serve as president of Church Development Fund. In addition to being a licensed real estate broker, an experienced businessman and a successful entrepreneur, Doug is an ordained minister with a strong interest in starting new churches. In 1998, he founded the annual CDF Golf Tournament, which has raised more than $100,000 for new and struggling churches. In 2007, Doug unveiled a special grant program to allow CDF to tithe on its gains on real estate and loan sales - a program that has since granted approximately $250,000 to church planting, above and beyond CDF's regular Church Planting Fund grants.

With the onslaught of the economic crisis in 2008, Doug led CDF through one of the most difficult economic times in our country's history. During this time, CDF funded all of its commitments, paid off its $60 million line of credit, increased cash reserves, continued to originate new loans, maintained loan delinquencies lower than industry standards, and reported a positive surplus in both 2008 and 2009.

Brad Dupray, CDF's senior vice president of ministry development, has agreed to serve as interim president while the board of directors conducts a nationwide search for someone to fill the role permanently. Brad said, "CDF was blessed to have Doug Crozier at the helm; he led us to a very good place, especially considering the economic climate we have been facing for the past two years."

1. When Velocity first started, we had 14 people meeting in my living room. Over the past year God has blessed us so much that we have been averaging some where between 180 to 200 people every week.
2. We have had 42 people give their lives to Christ and get baptized in 20 months.
3. We have over 120 people who are a part of one of our small groups.
4. This year we have gotten to serve our city and our school district by creating and leading huge city wide events including:
   • XLR8 UR LIFE (Memorial Middle School) http://www.woio.com/Global/story.asp?S=13886133
   • 3 on 3 Basketball Tournament (City of South Euclid/Lyndhurst)
   • Skateboard Competition (City of South Euclid/Lyndhurst)
   • Mission Teams This summer we had several youth ministries come to Cleveland to serve with us. One of them was First Christian Church, Kernersville, N.C. Tim Bussey brought about 60 students from his youth ministry and they served the city in a great way. They handed out over 15,000 postcards for Velocity and did so many projects for the city that the Tri-County ran out of things for them to do. They were amazing.
   • Kidz Spring Spectacular (Cleveland Heights, South Euclid, Lyndhurst, Richmond Heights)
5. Several weeks ago I was contacted by Ben Watson (leading receiver for the Cleveland Browns) and his management group about a football camp in Cleveland. They heard about Velocity and they have agreed to do a FREE football camp for all students in South Euclid and Lyndhurst this summer on July 18-22.
6. Team Impact (a mission group that sends student missionaries on week long trips to serve hurting cities) has agreed to come to Cleveland's east side for the summer of 2011. Starting in June we will have 80 student missionaries serving on Cleveland's east side for the entire summer. They will be staying at John Carroll University and will be focusing their efforts in South Euclid, Lyndhurst, Cleveland Heights and Richmond Heights.

1. God loves the world. As John 3:16, the most quoted text points out God demonstrates that love by sending his Son, Jesus. But God's love is not limited to just the saving work of Jesus. Matthew 5:45 points out that we are to follow Jesus' example in loving our enemies. The text points out that, God "gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike." While this can frustrate us about God, it reveals his nature to love.
2. God Prepares the way for our ministry. God was working in Ninevah to prepare the way for Jonah?s ministry. In essence, God was already active in Ninevah before Jonah arrived to do his mission work. The principle here is that God prepares people to receive God?s grace. Acts 17 is another example of God preparing the way. Paul?s powerful preaching in Athens was based on the unknown God. The people of Athens were spiritual and religious. God used that spirituality to set the stage for Paul's ministry.
3. God uses the ungodly to accomplish His will. The story of the exile is tragic, but it reminds us that God was at work among pagans to accomplish His will. God was strategically subversive using the evil powers of the day to accomplish His will. While the Jews at the time probably felt no comfort in that, hindsight shows us that God was in control during one of the darkest times in the history of His followers. He worked outside the community of believers to accomplish His will and expand His kingdom.
4. God directs the actions of the church. There are also many evidences in Scripture of God directing the ministry of His people. The whole book of Acts reads like a play where the Holy Spirit is the director. One such example is the Macedonian call. The Holy Spirit literally prevents Paul and Silas from preaching in certain areas and speaks to Paul in a dream to direct him to Macedonia. The result was a church in Philippi. Acts 10:22 tells a similar story of God working in the family of Cornelius a Gentile. The Spirit directs Peter and through this experience the gospel is unleashed on the Gentiles. One could argue pretty easily though that this is God working inside the Church.
5. God?s work is more than just individual salvation. Western evangelicals tend to look at salvation from a narrow point of view. When we think of salvation, we think of it in terms of personal salvation. God's work is much bigger than that. The Old Testament law makes provision for the widows, orphans and foreigners. This gets back to the first point that God loves the world. Environmentalism, the good kind not the wacky nut job kind ;), social justice, feeding the hungry, clothing the poor, providing medicine to the sick, all of these are God?s work. Part of the subversiveness of God is that just as He used pagans to accomplish his will in the exile, we see today that He is using pagans to accomplish much good in the world today. I think we need to recapture the Jewish sense of shema and understand that God's work is bigger than just personal salvation but inclusive of creation. It's the restoration of creation, the fullness of God?s kingdom. God's work is not just salvific in nature, but also restorative. God can use these things to lay the groundwork for the church and for missional leaders who can proclaim the good news and the fullness of truth bringing true meaning to the good they do. The healings of Jesus are another example. They were God?s work but not necessarily salvific.

The March 22 issue of Christian Standard magazine includes an article on troubled church loans. CDF President Doug Crozier is quoted extensively in the piece. Click here to read the full article:

http://www.christianstandard.com/articledisplay.asp?id=1186

The Downtown Raleigh Alliance has taken notice of Lifepointe Church's impact on the community before launch of their downtown campus. The Alliance, a network of business leaders, restaurant owners, CEO's, Non-Profit owners and 100's of mover and shakers in Downtown Raleigh, recently shared this feature in their member e-newsletter:

Q&A With A.J. and Cynthia Viola of Lifepointe Church (Downtown Raleigh)

Q. What interests you about downtown Raleigh?

A. We first fell in love with this city on our first encounter 18 months ago. After a meeting in one of our favorite coffee shops of all time (Morning Times), we took a walk down Fayetteville Street and were simply overwhelmed with everything. The smell of the hotdog vendors, the cool spring breeze, and our first encounter with all the beautiful, tall buildings were perhaps the first things to blow us away, but then people happened. From that moment on we scheduled everything in the city - every meeting, every meal. We made it our purpose to get to know as many people as possible. Every person we met introduced us to a new dynamic of the city. This place was overflowing with people who lives had converged on this place for an unexplainable, specific reason. The city drew them here and they were in love with it. So were we.

Q. Tell DRA members about your church.

A. We moved to Raleigh two years ago specifically to work with Lifepointe. We had other offers of churches to work with, graduate school to finish, and a successful photography business to maintain but we knew the moment we set foot in Lifepointe that it was home. In several years of ministry we have never come across a more genuine group of people who love God, but make it their passion to serve him by serving and loving every person they come across. We could tell you about the details of what a Sunday morning looks like, but each campus is different, and the Downtown campus will be even more different still. The thing that makes Lifepointe, Lifepointe - is the people. You just have to come and meet them.

But, Lifepointe is a church anyone can come to. You don't have to dress up. You don't have to be any particular age. We don't care who you voted for in the last election. It's a place where people can connect with God. That means anyone is welcome, no matter where they are on their spiritual journey. Lifepointe is one church that meets in two locations...for now. On September 18th we will be launching our third campus, Lifepointe - Downtown in the Lincoln Theatre.

Q. How would you like Lifepointe Church to impact downtown Raleigh in the future?

A. From the moment we knew God was leading us to start a new church Downtown we knew that getting to know the people and serving the people was our first priority. The church with it's building could come later. Twelve months ago we dove headfirst into serving. We have focused on four organizations with the intention of building relationships. Eight months ago we moved Downtown with our roommates in order to truly be a part of this beautiful community. We still have five more months until we "officially" start, but we started long ago. We want to be so immersed in this community, loving people, that it's just assumed that we've already started. And when we actually start, people are surprised that it doesn't already exist. We don't want to be another church that drives 30 minutes into the city for the "cool" building and atmosphere. We want to impact this community, because it is our community, because we are a part of it, and because we love it.

CDF is currently funding construction work at various school sites in Chile for Christian World Mission (CWM). Following the earthquake, CWM reports that construction resumed after a brief 48-hour delay. The lack of water and electricity has impaired work in Curico, but work on the other sites is moving forward. CWM's school in la Serena, which suffered no damage, has already begun its new school year. (Schools in the Southern Hemisphere traditionally open in February / March, their summer.)

All damage to CWM's schools, offices and churches is expected to total less than $50,000 dollars. Please join CWM and CDF in praising God for his protection over CWM's ministry, and please continue to pray for southern Chile, where the devastation is severe.

"Glocal" is a word Stadia has been getting very excited about lately.

Glocal ... as in glocal anesthetic? Not.Glocal ... a sticky substance you get on your feet in a pasture? Not even close.

Glocal is the term we've been using when referring to our thinking, praying and acting both locally and globally.

Over the past year, over 50 of our Kingdom-minded multipliers -- read "church planters and network partners" -- have traveled to Ecuador with Compassion International to become glocal church planters. In April, 2011, Stadia partners will help open four churches in villages near the city of Manta, Ecuador.These villages have approximately 5,000 people each. But NO churches of any kind.Several lack wells to provide drinking water; they all lack schools and health care.The average wage is about $30 per month.

Our Stadia partners will be teaming up with Camino de Santidad to begin a church, drill a well, and provide education and health care for the families in these villages. They will also partner with Compassion International to sponsor children and also to sponsor a Child Survival Program that helps babies make it to the age when they can be sponsored.

We think the benefits of this type of partnership are many. First, a church gets planted. Second, a village gets transformed. Third, there is some type of outreach for every member of the church. Some will help drill wells, others will provide medical missions, others will help with job training and still others will sponsor children. We think this will help unify a church’s mission’s emphasis and involve a larger percentage of people in hands on service.

These four churches in Ecuador are only the beginning. There are many more villages not only in Ecuador, but around the world in which to partner.

For example, a network of churches in the Midwest are coming together to plant a church (location to be determined) in the US. This network will also partner at the same time with Stadia and a mission agency in the Philippines to plant a church. Again, two churches get planted glocally, the international church has a group of US disciples who are committed to praying and serving with them, and God is glorified. What’s not to celebrate about that!

So, if you are interested in becoming a glocal Christian, contact Brent Foulke at bfoulke@stadia.cc and We'll make sure that your dentist uses a glocal anesthetic on your next visit or you get to help with an international church plant.

This summer has been “absolutely amazing” at Restore Community Church in Kansas City. Church planter Troy McMahon shared his favorite memories and victories from the church’s first summer…

Is it August already? I can't believe that summer is nearly over and my kids will be going back to school on Wednesday. Our first full summer in Kansas City is coming to a close and it has been one of great adventure and memories. It is absolutely amazing watching all the God Things happen here at Restore.

On June 3rd, we were informed by the school district that the air conditioning for the auditorium and the classrooms we use would be unavailable for the majority of the summer. Not the phone call you are looking for. However, our incredible staff and leaders stepped up to make a little “lemonade” from our “lemons.” We purchased fans... both the electric rotating type and the old school hand fans. We bought great big coolers and filled them with water each Sunday. And we did Church…every week. And people came... many for the first time… and they came back. We have had over 40 new families visit Restore this summer and our attendance has averaged more than 260 people each week. What a God Thing. Hopefully, this weekend the a/c will be back on just in time for school.

What has been so incredible to experience is the life that Restore has taken beyond Sunday mornings. We have reproduced three new adult small groups this summer and now have 12 groups with over 100 people doing life together and learning how God wants to transform their lives and the community around them. Also, Restore is becoming a church that loves to reach out into the community. To date we have had 40 different outreach/serving events from large events such as collecting food supplies for a homeless shelter and school supplies for under resourced families and providing water for the local walk for the homeless and 4th of July parade to small events like raking leaves, neighborhood block parties, and taking food to the high school administration.

At our last Serve Fest, we handed out cold Coke and a Repay card at a busy intersection. As the last of the 200 cans were being given out, a car pulled up and dropped off four additional cases of cold pop and the driver said that earlier in the day he was given a Coke and a Repay card and wanted to pass along the joy to others. What was even cooler was the very next day at our Sunday service a different person showed up at Restore for the very first time because they received a Coke.

Our mission at Restore is to help people find their way back to God, mobilize Christ followers to change the world, and reproduce leaders, artists and churches. God is absolutely doing these things and we have a front row seat to watch him change eternities. To date, 15 people have been baptized at Restore and already six are scheduled for our next baptism service on September 7th. This summer 14 Restore attendees (including myself and my two boys) traveled to Haiti to explore potential partnerships there. It was a life changing trip and God is opening some incredible doors for global church planting. I would never have dreamed that opportunities like these would be available or possible so early in the life of this new church.

www.restorecc.org

April 4, 2007 – CDF is pleased to announce the launch of “Retirement Central,” a comprehensive new online tool for investors with questions about investing for retirement.

Retirement Central provides detailed information to help investors of all ages begin to plan for their retirement. For investors just getting started to investors in retirement, the Retirement Central has helpful information to answer any questions about retirement and investment opportunities.

Retirement Central also provides comprehensive retirement planning tools to assist the investor in all planning and investment stages, including investment calculators and CDF investment forms.

Click here or look for the Retirement Central link in the right margin to visit Retirement Central any time.

On Sunday, August 27, church planter Bruce Logue (Merced, CA) spoke to New Life Christian Church in Auburn about the mandate we have from God to share the gospel. Afterward, New Life – a threw a “baby shower” for Bruce’s new church

New Life is a new supporter of LifeSpring Church, the church plant that Bruce and Bev Logue are undertaking in Merced, California. The "baby shower" equipped LifeSpring with office supplies, a first aid kit, a coffee carafe, and a number of other things that are helpful for a baby church. LifeSpring's launch team had a lot of fun opening the gifts and celebrating the new partnership.

www.lifespringchurch.net
Bruce Logue's Blog: http://mercedian.blogspot.com

Amanda Bates and Tom Bustos of LifeSpring show the notes of support from New Life’s children’s class.

Church planter Chris Hoffman and New Community Church of Braselton, Georgia celebrated the baptism of two women -- including one former Wiccan -- on Sunday, July 27. Chris writes:

One grew up Methodist and had never been immersed. She decided after our baptism teaching that is was time; she had been a Christ-follower for three years.

The second was a professed Wiccan before she connected to New Community. Very cool story -- over a four-month conversation about spirituality and Jesus. She started attending during our spiritual warfare series, "Livin’ on the Edge," and I took her confession in her office (where we rented space as well). We baptized her the next Sunday. Pretty cool stuff!

www.newcommunityonline.com

Kaleo Fellowship is scheduled to launch in Bakersfiled, California this fall. Church planter Brent Colaw shares how God provided an incredible meeting space for the new church rent-free.

Wow. God continues to amaze us with His incredible provision. This is the facility where we’ll be meeting when we launch. We will be able to use it Rent Free! This is an enormous blessing, as most facilities that would meet our needs charge $800 to $1400 per week! This could save us roughly $50,000 a year! We’re not sure exactly how we’re going to use all the space yet, but it should more than adequately meet our needs. There are two large spaces that are possibilities for our gatherings and three large classrooms, plus a large gathering area upstairs we can use for children’s ministry.

View more photos and read the story of how God lead Kaleo to this building in Brent Colaw’s blog.

August 24, 2006 -- Church Business Administrators work behind the scenes to help local churches address issues that can be critical to a church's ability to function in today's climate. Insurance, personnel, law, technology and leadership are just a few of the areas where the "CBA" has to develop some level of expertise to help the church minister effectively.

CDF is hosting two Church Business Administrators conferences to help CBA's deal with issues that are critical to their ministries -- in Indianapolis on October 25 & 26 (co-sponsored by Milligan College) and in Irvine, California, the following week, November 1 & 2.

After last year's conference CDF conducted a survey of those in attendance and used that feedback to shape the conference around just what CBAs were looking for. You can get all of the conference information, including a schedule of events, accommodation and registration information at www.CDFonline.org/Administrator.

They call it the "Light Club."

That's because West Ridge Community Church in Elgin was built to look like a nightclub -- the House of Blues in particular, according to co-pastor Darren Sloniger.

The West Ridge Worship Team performs Feb. 25 as lyrics are projected on a screen.
(Al Podgorski/Sun-Times)

Worshippers take communion during
a service at West Ridge Community Church's new facility in Elgin.
(Al Podgorski/Sun-Times) Last month, the nine-year-old congregation christened its new facility, which includes a full-fledged coffeehouse with uniformed baristas, muffins and even fresh paninis, and a dimly lit sanctuary in the shape of a piano, flanked by cafe tables, couches, and comfy chairs.

The stage, where on one recent Sunday morning a dozen musicians played everything from tribal rhythms on Irish bodhrans to U2-ish sounding praise songs, is swathed whimsically in earth-toned drapes. And throughout the service, the flickering light from a couple of dozen pillar candles on the stage and tiny tea lights on the cafe tables gave the sanctuary an almost romantic feel.

'Feel free to be authentic, to be real'
"We decided to start a church for people who don't like church, a church where people can feel free to be authentic, to be real, and that's an overriding theme of what we do," said Sloniger, 39. Whatever Sloniger and the rest of West Ridge are doing seems to be working. In the first week the new building on U.S. 20 was opened, attendance doubled from 300 to 600 and is growing weekly.

"For the past 14 years or so, I have traveled all over this country and been in a lot of church buildings . . . and this is the best church facility I've ever been in, period," said Gordon Venturella, a guest speaker who delivered a sermon titled, "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight."

"Architecture is important, and you've got that down," he said. "But the [goal] was really to build a community of people -- an extraordinary community of people that could experience the love of God through Christ in a way that very few other places could offer. So my prayer for you today . . . is continue to make this place a place where other people can come and see the mercy of Jesus. That's becoming more and more rare today."

Courtney Reed, 23, of Chicago, who started attending services at West Ridge last summer while the congregation met in a facility at Elgin Community College, said the new space makes a difference in her worship experience.

"The places I've really found my faith along my journey have been really aesthetic, and I'm a very aesthetic person. So, I think as much as I want to be resistant and all, 'No, I'm going to worship wherever,' I think it does make a difference, and it does make it more attractive," Reed said. "When the lights are down, there is that feeling of security, that you have a little more space to be yourself and do what you want to do, than when all the lights are on and everyone can see you."

Reed's boyfriend, Tim Tanner, 24, has attended weekly services at West Ridge for two years, since he was a student at Judson College. "Part of me wants the hip space and part of me is resistant, because, oh now it will be discovered," he said. "Because there's something cool here, everyone else is going to discover it."

If more and more people discover the Light Club, would the church somehow lose its cool?

"No, I mean, I guess I'd rather have them doing this than not," Tanner said. "Before we were in an old gym. I mean it was real gnarly. So I'd rather have these really neat clay colors and great drapes and a black ceiling. The lighting's great, and I do appreciate that."

Scot McKnight, a professor of biblical and theological studies at North Park University who for years has been tracking "emergent" churches such as West Ridge, said many of these new evangelical Christian churches are focused on the importance of sacred space.

'Come as you are'
"Space matters, and most people are not aware of the impact of space on what we do, what we think, how we think," said McKnight, author of The Jesus Creed. "So what they're doing is trying to create a space that permits different kinds of activities. Conversation, fellowship. It's leisurely.

"I applaud with all the intensity that I can give you for the young generation to think about building buildings for churches that can be used other than one day a week," McKnight said. "I think it's fantastic. Then it becomes a gift to the community."

That was precisely the idea of the Light Club and its adjoining Encounter Cafe, Sloniger said. The cafe is open seven days a week from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., and the church building is used every day for one activity or another, including a center for the arts that offers lessons from percussion and piano to guitar and drawing.

"We designed the building to give the cafe the best market window," Sloniger said. "We actually carved the cafe space out exactly like a Corner Bakery is carved out of a Maggianos. The cafe is like the front door. The biggest barriers for people to come to church is actually walking through the front door."

In the weeks leading up to the grand opening of West Ridge's new building, the church sent fliers inviting neighbors to come. One of the fliers said, simply: "Come as you are."

cfalsani@suntimes.com
 

Chicagoland’s Community Christian Church Celebrated the launch of its ninth campus on Sunday, March 2 with over 600 worshippers in two services. Campus Pastor Brad Punty called it “an incredible morning.”

It was an incredible morning and God truly poured out his blessings on this new church. All of our teams were in place and ready to go by about 8:30… and so we prayed and waited for people to show up! We had so many great conversations with new individuals and families that are far from God. I cannot wait to see the changes that God brings about in their lives.

We had two services…one at 9:30 and one at 11:00…and between the two services we had 642! Praise God!! I will be posting pictures and stories on my blog as people send them to me.

Thanks so much for all your prayers and support.

http://www.communitychristian.org/locations?view=flexipage&id=9

January 24, 2007 – Current CDF borrower Community Christian Church (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) is featured in the print and online versions of the January 28, 2007 issue of Christian Standard magazine.

The article, by Senior Pastor Scott Eynon, details the struggles the church experienced in its decade-long attempt to relocate to a larger property. Community Christian expects to finally open the doors of its new 15-acre campus this April.

www.christianstandard.com/articledisplay.asp?id=504
www.communitycc.com

For a limited time, Church Coaching Solutions is offering free meals and accommodations for church planters who register to attend the August 2006 Equipping LAB at William Jessup University in Sacramento, California. The Equipping LAB features a state-of-the-art training program that equips church planters with the best knowledge of how to plant a church and then coaches them through the process, resulting in a high-quality strategic plan for the new church.

THIS OFFER EXPIRES JUNE 15, 2006

Presenters include Dr. Ed Stetzer, Dr. Bob Harrington, Todd Wilson, Dave Smith, and current Stadia church planters.

For more details, or to register, e-mail coaching@church-coaching.com or call (615) 517-5500.

April 24, 2007 – Earlier this month, CDF completed the documentation and initial funding for its second international loan, to Christian World Mission (CWM) in Chile.

This unique financing will provide much-needed operating and expansion capital for CWM, a ministry that has started over 10 private Christian Schools in Chile with a total student population of over 6,500 students. CDF’s financing of $1.9 million (U.S.) encompasses four schools, all located within 100 miles of Santiago, in the cities of Quillota, Quilpue, Los Pinos and Curico. The new loan will enable the expansion of almost 20 more classooms on two sites and is expected to save CWM several thousand dollars per month in debt service.

President Doug Crozier shared his excitement over the partnership with CWM: “I had the opportunity to visit Chile in January, which is their summer, to tour all the sites. I was thrilled to be able to complete this financing as their school year started just over a month ago. Our new ministry partner, CWM, has been led by Steve and Colleen Phillips for the last thirty years. Their dedication to this mission is very evident and I have seen first-hand the tremendous impact they are making for the Kingdom.”

CDF’s international expansion is expected to continue as the ministry’s board and leaders allow God to connect the organization with key ministry opportunities throughout the world. Doug Crozier adds, “We will be very prudent to insure our investors are protected and also keep our ministry focus fine tuned.”

Thanks to CDF’s investors for making this exciting new project possible!

Citywalk Christian Church, a new network of house churches in downtown San Diego, held its first community worship service on Sunday, March 11. Stadia’s Bruce White called it “a perfect day.”

Citywalk is striving to penetrate the heart of downtown San Diego, which is in the midst of a multi-year renovation project. As many as 50,000 people are expected to move downtown in the next decade, so this is an urban emerging community.

Planter Steve Denney and his wife, Ali, are adopting some innovative strategies for connecting with the unchurched who are flocking to the city. Citywalk is creating neighborhood "house churches" (perhaps "condo churches" would be more technically accurate) that meet weekly in strategic parts of the city. The house churches will come together monthly for a time of connection, community, and corporate worship. The emphasis will be on "organic" growth by building long-term relationships with spiritual seekers.

Three of the house churches are in place, and this morning was the first monthly corporate gathering for this young congregation. This was not at all like a typical "launch" Sunday. Advance promotion was modest, because the goal was to build community among the members of the house churches. Furthermore, Steve's desire is that new people will come primarily through a relationship with a member, rather than from reading an ad or getting a mailer.

The goal for this morning was to have at least 30 people in attendance, and that goal was reached with 32 people on hand for this inaugural event. Steve did a great job of articulating the vision and values of Citywalk, and people felt truly welcomed and at ease. A solid base is being laid for future growth and impact.

It is a privilege to be able to support and work with people like Steve and Ali, and it will be exciting to watch as this unique ministry bears fruit for the kingdom.

www.citywalkchurch.org
 

August 8, 2006 -- When Parsippany (New Jersey) Christian Church and senior minister Tom Hart were hit with a law suit, they turned to CDF for a loan to help cover legal fees. The law suit was settled, but the legal battle cost the church over $200,000 – a large sum of money for a small church. Parsippany Christian Church expected to deal with their debt for years to come, but last week a generous donor came forward with a gift that allowed the church to pay off the entire loan of $204,585.18.

The leadership at Parsippany is understandably thrilled to have the entire ordeal behind them, and CDF is thrilled, too. Tom Warner, vice president and relationship manager, said, “This was an unusual situation and an unusual loan. It was definitely out of our ‘sweet spot.’ But it had a wonderfully positive outcome.”

Last week I offered Stadia East church sites as potential internship sites to several hundred Lincoln Christian College undergrads.  Crossbridge Christian Church in Tallahassee gets first crack at the list—but I will also make the list available to anyone who wants to explore the possibilities.

Does your alma mater have an internship program? I’d love to do the same thing I did at L.C.C. at other schools. Let me know if you have a recommended contact at other colleges.

The thinking behind this internship effort should be obvious. We need a farm team. For every church planting project, nearly every multi-site expansion, someone calls us and asks “who do you have who could work for our needs?” Unfortunately, some projects have been waiting for months and we still don’t have the right leader. Newly minted interns are not the answer for our immediate needs—but if we all work to develop the farm team, the situation might improve in the next decade or so. Those of you who are already in the major leagues of world changing are the best possible trainers for the next generation. Please help as you can.

Brent Foulke, Director of Special Services

Stadia East

July 1, 2007 – For a limited time, Church Development Fund is offering a Five-Month Special Time Certificate with an annual percentage yield (APY) of 5.55%.<br><br>

The promotional offer is valid only on new five-month time certificate investments postmarked on or before December 31, 2007. A minimum investment of $1,000 is required to open the investment. When the time certificate matures, it will automatically renew at CDF’s prevailing six-month time certificate rate.<br><br>

Complete this form or call (888) 540-7112 for more information, or check “Special Time Certificate” and write in “Five-month certificate” on your CDF purchase application.<br><br>

*APY = Annual Percentage Yield. Annual Percentage Rate (APR) = 5.44%. Interest yield assumes that all interest is left in the investment and compounded. Interest rates are subject to change periodically and without notice. Penalties may apply for early redemption from time certificate investments.

The purchase of CDF securities is subject to risks, which are described in CDF’s Offering Circular. This is neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation of an offer to buy Church Development Fund securities. Such an offer is made only by an Offering Circular and only in those states where the Church Development Fund securities may lawfully be offered or sold. CDF securities are not F.D.I.C. or S.I.P.C. insured nor are they bank deposits.

Brian Chock has been hired to plant a church in the beautiful northern California city of Santa Rosa, 55 miles north of San Francisco. Brian was previously employed as the connections and children’s pastor at Gateway Christian Church in nearby Rohnert Park.

Since being born again in 1996, Brian has witnessed the Lord heal and strengthen his marriage with his wife, Bobbi. God walked them through the gift of giving a child to another couple through surrogacy; prepared their hearts to be foster parents to over 50 children in Sonoma County; and allowed them the blessing of adopting three children: Izaya, Zoe, and Noah.

From first hearing the call to ministry in January of 1997, Brian and Bobbi have watched in wonder as God has led them through doors only He could open. Brian and Bobbi believe that God gave them a vision of a facility that would serve as a child care center during the weekdays and a Bible Study, evangelistic center, and house of worship in the evenings and weekends. In 2006, they opened an in-home child care facility, which led them to organizations that have been providing financial support for Bobbi to complete the necessary college courses that will enable them to open a child care center as part of the church.

Last month, Bobbi and Brian signed a lease in the name of Construction Junction Child Care Center on a 5600-square-foot, former legal medical marijuana growing facility. Construction Junction will be open from 6:30am to 6:30pm, Monday through Friday. Foundation Christian Fellowship has in turn signed a sub-lease with Construction Junction to use the building on weeknights and weekends. Renovations begin this month to convert the facility into a church/child care. The child care center hopes to be open in August. Brian says:

“To see how God has brought this entire dream together is truly a testimony to His sovereign grace and glory. In May, Bobbi will have finished all of the pre-requisites necessary to obtain a (child care center) director’s permit. When we first opened our in-home child care business, we had no idea that one needed a director’s permit to open an outside-the-house child care business. God has arranged it so that we will be the first out-of-the-house child care facility in the entire church plant zip code. In addition, we are situated within walking distance of the largest, low-income apartment complex in the entire city. We have been informed by an agency that pays for transitional child care (people coming off of welfare and into the workforce) that there are 25 families in this particular housing facility alone that qualify for their voucher program but do not use it because they cannot find child care in the area.”
Construction Junction’s mission statement is, “Providing the Building Blocks for a Christ-centered Life.” This dovetails perfectly with the mission statement of Foundation Christian Fellowship, “Building a Better Body in Christ.”

“My wife and I both have a divorce in our past,” says Brian. “We know what it’s like to come from broken homes, and we know what it is like to experience the saving grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ. From our individual lives to our blended family, God has built us into a better body in Christ. The goal of the union between Foundation Christian Fellowship and Construction Junction will be to demonstrate to the community what God can do to those who repent and put their trust in the savior. We are not interested in making life easier for sinners while they are here on earth just so they can burn in hell when they pass on. Construction Junction will provide a way for the church to earn the privilege of sharing the gospel. We want to be externally focused for Christ in the child care center, the new elementary school that just opened this past year, the community and beyond.”

Planter: Brian Chock (wife Bobbi, eight children)

Personal interests: Seeing the lost come to a saving relationship with Christ. Brian has also coached high school baseball and soccer, conducted fast-pitch softball pitching clinics, officiated baseball, basketball, and soccer.

Church Name: Foundation Christian Fellowship

Location: Santa Rosa, California

Launch Date: October 2008

April 10, 2006 -- Christian Standard magazine recently published an extensive report on independent Christian Churches in the United States with average worship attendance over 1,000. 12 of the top 30 fastest-growing churches in the report are (or were) CDF borrowers, and the #1 fastest-growing church, Real Life Ministries of Post Falls, Idaho, has borrowed from CDF for all three phases of their campus development!

Visit ChristianStandard.com to order your copy of “The 2005 Megachurch Analysis.”

Introducing the Investment Contact Center
CDF is pleased to introduce a new toll-free number dedicated to serving investors: (888) 540-7112. When you call, you will be connected with the first available investment representative – no confusing phone tree, no speaking with an operator. The Investment Contact Center is open Monday through Friday, from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm Pacific Time.

Journey 2L2 held its first service Sunday, February 25, in the South Brunswick High School in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey. 150 worshippers came for the launch of the new church. Lead Pastor Bob Cushman shared his excitement for the new church in a weekly email sent out to the Journey 2L2 community.

Last Sunday morning, I woke up and prayed that God would push through people’s resistances. That He would actually bring people, and that they would want to collaborate on this Journey with us. God has a way of out-doing what I think will happen. I am sure He is always laughing at me, making sure I do not - for a split second - think I was the cause of any of it.

Journey 2L2 wants to be a church that “gets it.” We want to do more and more for our community. We want to be the kind of people who are constantly thinking of ways to love people, and we want to continue to create avenues for the truths of God.

Sunday, February 25, 2007 was just the start of a Journey of faith, hope, and love. I cannot express how excited I am about what we will become. It is grace that has brought us here, and it will be His grace that will lead us home.

Visit Journey2L2 online at:
www.Journey2L2.org
 

In the words of church planter Patrick Norris, “God got Bridges Church up and running” on Sunday, September 30. 182 people witnessed the birth of Winton Salem, North Carolina’s newest church. Patrick Norris shared his thoughts and photos.

God got Bridges Church up and running; Launch Day was a great day as we witnessed the birth of a new church. We weren't sure who would come but we knew if God was there it would all be all right. God was there and it was awesome.

How exciting it was to see people come in and join us and to see our team do everything within their power to make them feel at home. I wondered what was going through the minds of the people as they came in for the first time to see what was going on. I was proud of each of them for having the courage to try something new and getting out of their comfort zone to come and check us out.

Overall we had 182 people and were glad for each one to be there because each one is important to God. He is building His church one person at a time.

The times of worship were incredible as we heard voices lifted up to God in love and saw the faces of the people as they worshipped. At one point the band cut back and you could hear the voices of the people and it was beautiful and exciting to hear. The Children's Ministry did a great job welcoming in new children and sharing the love of God with them. Their areas looked great and it was fun to see how they transformed hallways and theater auditoriums into vibrant environments for children.

As a church we decided to give away our first offering to Crossroads Missions to be used to frame a home for Habitat for Humanity of Forsyth County. Over $3, 300 was given for this project which was very encouraging. We want everyone to know that Bridges is not about us - it is about Jesus Christ and His mission in this world.

A special thank you for all who have had a part in getting Bridges launched - our incredible launch team - each faithful member of our Prayer Team - the great staff and all who have in some way participated in this project. Thank you to Stadia to helping to make this happen – we are all very excited about what is going on and what God will do next.

http://www.bridgeschurch.net

On Wednesday, April 30, 2008, CDF funded a loan to Rochester College in Rochester Hills, Michigan (near Detroit) in the amount of $19,950,000. With the funding of that loan, CDF’s estimated (unaudited) total assets surpassed $500,000,000 for the first time in the organization’s 54 year history!

On the morning of the historic accomplishment, CDF President Doug Crozier wrote, “God continues to bless our ministry. CDF has doubled in size every five years, growing at an estimated rate of 22% per year since 1953. With the addition of our third party capital, the rate of growth has actually increased as our total assets under management are approaching $730,000,000.”

Read more about this ministry milestone on Brad Dupray’s blog: www.CDFonline.org/CDFguy.

Club 740 – one of the hottest and edgiest clubs in the heart of L.A. – took on a totally different look and feel on Sunday morning, September 14, as New City Church of Los Angeles invited the residents of downtown to come and check out “the real Jesus”. 191 people (170 adults and 21 children) responded to that invitation.

As people streamed into the club, it was apparent that the vision of Pastor Kevin Haah for creating a “multi-ethnic, multi-socioeconomic” church was becoming a reality: Asians, Latinos, Blacks, Anglos. Young, middle-aged, old. Students and blue-collar workers and managers and business professionals. Skid Row residents. Loft dwellers. Singles and families.

New City Church truly is a church that “looks like downtown.”

Club 740 is an integral part of that downtown scene, and it’s definitely a unique place for a church. Located on Broadway, in the heart of the historic “Core District” of LA, this site formerly was the Globe Theater, a classic drama venue for Shakespearean stage productions. The beautiful balconies and gilt railings remain, but during the evenings this is now a place for loud music, dancing, drinking, and raucous behavior. In other words: this is where lots of unsaved people hang out to party, so it’s a safe and familiar environment for them. Many of these people would never visit a traditional church on Sunday morning, but they just might stop by the club to check out New City.

By choosing to “do church” in such an environment, New City Church is making a bold statement about taking the gospel into the heart of the city. About becoming a church where everyone is welcome. A church that is willing to engage the world. A church that is available and accessible to lost and hurting people.

In such a setting, with lots of unchurched people coming in, it might be tempting to soften the message…but Kevin tells the story straight. He shared his vision for the church – and his heart for the city – in a very personal and touching way, and he invited the crowd to join him in a spiritual journey to meet and know “the real Jesus”. He gave a humorous, insightful, and compelling message, straight from Mark’s Gospel.

In addition to Kevin’s sermon, attendees heard a powerful testimony of life-change from Eugene, a former drug addict. They enjoyed great food (New City lays out fruit and pastries every week), friendly interaction, vibrant worship (even alternating between English and Spanish verses during one song), and a reflective time of communion.

The morning concluded with some personal sharing, as Kevin had everyone get into groups of 4 to introduce themselves to each other and to reflect upon the morning. This is risky for a new church, but it’s a great way to get people to break down the barriers and make some immediate connections.

The core team of New City Church did a wonderful job of making everyone feel welcomed and included. And throughout the morning, as Kevin watched over the “up front” ministry, his wife, Grace, handled a variety of “behind-the-scenes” details.

Back in April, New City did a “soft launch” and began holding services with a small core congregation. This group has been meeting weekly to build community and to lay a solid foundation for future growth. The Grand Opening now takes New City to the next level and extends their reach into the city. We are excited to see what God is doing in downtown L.A., and we covet your prayers for Kevin and his team as they continue to engage in life-changing ministry in the name of Jesus.

New City Church of Los Angeles is becoming a reality not just because of the vision and commitment of Kevin & Grace Haah, but also because of a growing church-planting partnership that includes:

•  Young Nak Celebration Church (Los Angeles) http://www.ynccla.org
   

• Eastside Christian Church (Fullerton) www.eastside.com

• Stadia: New Church Strategieswww.stadia.cc

 Even though New City Church has now “launched”, many challenges and opportunities lie ahead. The more players we have on this team, the greater the chances for long-term health and success. We invite you to consider joining this partnership to help make an eternal difference in the heart of Los Angeles.

http://www.newcitychurchla.com.

March 23, 2007 – North Christian Church of Cheyenne, Wyoming celebrated the grand opening of its expanded worship center on Sunday, March 11. CDF’s Steve Walker was among the 390 worshippers in attendance.

CDF provided funding for North Christian to add a fellowship hall, expand classroom space and expand its worship center. Following the grand opening, during which he worshipped and celebrated with the congregation there, Regional Credit Officer Steve Walker wrote, “This is the only church I've attended with cowboy hat racks!”

Thanks to CDF’s investors for making this project possible!

www.northchristianchurch.net

May 5, 2006 -- On Friday, May 5, our Board of Directors unanimously approved CDF’s first-ever international loan. The loan will allow Churchill Meadows Christian Church in Toronto, Canada to continue its effective ministry to the half-million residents in the area. In four years the church has grown from a few families to more than 400 people. Churchill Meadows has already launched a new church, and helped create Impact Canada, a significant church planting venture.

Churchill Meadows will use the CDF funds to buy a property with clear visibility from a major highway. To eliminate risks associated with the exchange rate, the church will make payments to CDF in U.S. dollars.

www.churchillmeadows.org

Chris Hornbrook has been hired to plant a church in Chula Vista, California (near San Diego) – the 19th largest city in California. Chris has been serving as a pastor to various ministries for over a decade.

Chris is a passionate follower of Jesus Christ. In 1998, he began serving as the Middle School Pastor at his home church, Mount Pleasant Christian Church, in Greenwood, Indiana. In 2002, God led him to start a college/young adult ministry at Eastview Christian Church in Normal, Illinois. Then, in February of 2006, Chris and his wife, Lyndsey, returned to Mount Pleasant to lead the High School Ministry.

Chris and Lyndsey have been married for over three years. Together, they have a beautiful little pup named Jazz. Chris loves sports, anything involving competition, and reality TV. Lyndsey owns her own photography business, where she loves telling people’s stories through her art.

Through a time of fasting and prayer, Chris and Lyndsey felt a burden for the people of Southern California. Two days later, through an email, they heard about Stadia and the need for churches in Chula Vista.

Together, they are so excited that God has called them to be a part of planting Momentum Christian Church in South San Diego County. Momentum’s dream is to be a reproducing church that moves people towards the heart of God by passionately pursuing Jesus and authentically loving one another.

Planter: Chris Hornbrook (wife Lyndsey and dog Jazz)
Personal interests: All sports, competitive events, photography, art, TV (“24” and “The Office”)
Church Name: Momentum Christian Church
Location: Chula Vista, California
Launch Date: October 12, 2008

by Tom Jones, Regional Director, Stadia East

 As you can see by the graph, Stadia East has grown steadily over the past 4-5 years.  We have 29 churches and very likely can launch another 10-12 in 2009.  I want to thank all of you planters and your wives for making this possible.  Every week over 5000 people attend our churches.  It is hard to measure how many marriages are being saved, how many children are being directed toward God, and the many other ways communities are being transformed. 

The struggling economy is a problem for all us and our families, but I want to suggest that these next several months will also present an opportunity for all of our churches to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.  People will be asking hard questions.  We should not shy away from these questions, but look at them as opportunities to share Jesus.  I encourage you to think about what is going on in our culture and society as you think about your preaching and teaching.  Residents in your communities will be struggling to make sense of it all.  Remember that the church should be an outpost of light in a dark world.  I think we have a real opportunity to do something significant for the kingdom.  I look forward to hearing about your stories.

Hundreds of Ministry Leaders Expected for One-of-a-Kind "United" Event

Fort Worth, TX (August 15, 2004) Following the success of last year's Ministry Impact conference at Crossroads Christian Church in Grand Prairie, Texas, Provision Ministry Group has announced that "Ministry Impact '05: GO" will be held at the Richland Hills Church of Christ in Fort Worth, October 26-28.

Over 300 Christian leaders attended Ministry Impact '04, and as many as 500 ministers and elders are expected for this year's event, which is being hosted by the largest a capella church of Christ congregation in America.

Ministry Impact is the only conference of its kind, designed to train and inspire leaders from the independent Christian churches and a cappella churches of Christ. Other conferences have focused on the topic of unity between the two groups, which were legally separated in 1906, but Ministry Impact is not a "unity" event; it's a united event. It is a one-of-a-kind, once-a-year opportunity for Christian church and church of Christ leaders to come together for ministry training.

Since 1906 believers from both streams of the Restoration Movement have written papers, preached sermons and hosted debates on the subject of unity between the churches of Christ and Christian churches. After nearly 100 years of talking about unity and praying about unity, Ministry Impact provides ministry leaders with an opportunity simply to be united. This year's conference theme, "GO," was inspired by Christ's Great Commission in the gospel of Matthew.

Rick Atchley, senior minister at the Richland Hills Church of Christ, made his support for unity clear when he spoke at the 2003 North American Christian Convention – an event primarily attended by Christian Church members. There he told nearly 10,000 cheering attendees, "I plan to devote the second half of my life to seeing reconciliation among the a cappella and instrumental churches of Christ and Christian churches."

Now Atchley and the church he serves are making good on his promise by preparing to welcome hundreds of Christians – both from a capella churches like their own and churches from which they have long been estranged. By doing so, they hope to become more successful at fulfilling the commission that inspired this year's conference: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."

More information about "Ministry Impact '05: GO" can be found at the conference website, www.MinistryImpact05.com.

Click here to download this Press Release in PDF format.
 

On Sunday, October 9, three of us from the Stadia Southeast team had the privilege of attending the launch of Highland Christian Church in Asheville, North Carolina. As we walked into “The Orange Peel” (a downtown concert hotspot) it was obvious that we were headed for an incredible worship experience. From the hospitality, information center, parking team, and nursery/ preschool class, every aspect of the morning was presented with excellence.

When the worship team opened the service you could feel the presence of God moving among the 200 people who had come to check out this new church. Then the lead pastor, Shannon McCready, did an amazing thing. As a cross was carried down the aisle to the sound of bagpipes playing Amazing Grace, Shannon knelt on one knee, read an excerpt from “St. Patrick’s Prayer,” and dedicated Highland Christian Church to the Lord.

Throughout the morning the question was asked: “Where are you going?” What a relevant question to such a lost and hurting community! Using all forms of artistic expression – drama, video and interpretive dance – Highland Christian Church staff did an outstanding job of drawing all of us into communion with our Lord.

Every time I witness another church opening in a community like Asheville I realize that God is faithful. I thanked God for the partnership and commitment of The Smoky Mountain Christian Men’s Fellowship, the East Tennessee Christian Convention Churches, and Stadia that made this plant possible. As I looked into the eyes of people as they walked into this downtown building, I knew it had been worth it! All of the months of work, preparation, and financial giving by churches would impact these people’s lives forever.

Congratulations to Shannon and Sherri McCready and their entire staff for an incredible launch. I am confident that the Lord has big plans for Highland Christian Church.

Debbie Jones
Southeast Associate Regional Director

On Tuesday morning, September 4, Crossroads Christian School of Corona, California, celebrated with the city of Corona in a ribbon cutting ceremony at its new campus. Executive Director Roger Harris (center, with scissors) and Corona Mayor Eugene Montanez (to Roger’s left) celebrated with hundreds of students, families, community leaders and supporters of the school upon the completion of its relocation to a new campus immediately adjacent to Crossroads Christian Church.

For years, Crossroads School has been divided between two different locations – one on the Crossroads Christian Church campus and the other at a school site about a mile away. Beginning with this school year, all students (pre-school through 8th grade) will be housed in one place. Besides 39 classrooms, the new school features a chapel, cafeteria, library, computer lab and onsite offices. Additionally, there are three areas with outdoor play equipment, a baseball field and basketball courts. It’s a full-service campus for a vibrant, growing school.

Church Development Fund financed the school’s expansion, working in coordination with sister ministry Visioneering Studios, which provided the architectural plan. Thanks to CDF’s investors for making this exciting new project possible!

Irvine, CA (September 2, 2005) Stadia and Journey Christian Church of New Orleans have created a disaster relief fund to assist people in the New Orleans area affected by Hurricane Katrina. All of the proceeds collected will be distributed through Journey Christian Church’s non-profit inner-city ministry, “Building Better Communities.”

Stadia produced a 90-second video on Journey’s planned response to the disaster. If your church would like to use this resource in connection with a special offering this weekend, visit www.stadia.cc to download the free 90-second video.

In addition, CDF will be redirecting all proceeds from this year’s CDF/Ralph Dornette Golf Tournament to the disaster relief fund established by Stadia and Journey Christian Church. Proceeds from the Golf Tournament are expected to exceed $20,000.

For more information on the Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief Fund, or to make a personal donation to the fund, visit www.stadia.cc.

Donations may also be mailed to:
Stadia: New Church Strategies
ATTN: Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief
P.O. Box 19700
Irvine, CA 92623-9700
 

Bob Harrington, our Southeast Director of Planter Care, reports: "Sunday, February 27 was a really good day in Charlotte as Kinetic Christian Church was launched with 248 in two services at the Starlight Theatre. Congratulations to Dave and Anne Milam and their team for a great job!"

Visit www.kineticchurch.com to see their outstanding website...

October 24, 2006 – The exterior of Discovery Church in Simi Valley, California (a converted office/industrial structure, financed by CDF in 2004) was featured in a recent episode of NBC’s “The Office.”

Lead Pastor Todd Clark said, “It took about 150 people and 12 hours to film those 20 seconds! Whew!”

www.discoverychurch.com

Irvine, CA (January 20, 2006) Stadia: New Church Strategies, a Provision Ministry Partner, today launched an all-new website, featuring a new logo and detailing the organization's new decentralized, "newtork-centric" model of church planting.

www.stadia.cc.
 

Three new churches are scheduled to open their doors by Valentine’s Day! Momentum Christian Church, Crossings, and Journey 2L2 are counting down the days…

Journey 2L2 (Kingston, New Jersey)

Linda and Bob Cushman need our prayers this week! Linda writes:

“This week is crucial as we need a place to meet for our launch Jan. 28th. A decision has to be made this week because the four mailings have to go out starting next week. We are all praying hard!”

Launch: January 28, 2007
Website: www.journey2l2.org

Momentum Christian Church (McDonough, Georgia)

A Message from Bart & Jodi Stone:

“I hope you had an awesome Christmas with your family and friends. I can’t say enough what a great day it was for Momentum on Christmas Eve. With no advertisement, except our website; no signs, just word of mouth; we had 80 people for worship. We were so pumped! Seth had two of our building inspections today and they went well – we are so very close to final certificate of occupancy! Keep praying.”

Launch: January 21, 2007
Website: www.momentumcc.org

Crossings (Knoxville, Tennessee)

Keep praying for Mark and Monica Nelson. They are in the middle of fundraising so please pray that people would catch the vision of their ministry and generously support them.

Launch: February 11, 2007
Website: www.crossingsknoxville.com
Mark's Blog:http://standingonthedesk.blogspot.com

December 14, 2006 – First Christian Church of Canton, Ohio recently welcomed 2,600 worshippers to the first services in its new facility – an increase of almost 900 over the previous Sunday!

CDF provided nearly $15 million in financing to help facilitate the relocation to, and the construction of, First Christian’s spectacular new campus, a former golf course.

On opening weekend, one young boy was overheard saying, “This church is the coolest place on earth! I want to stay here forever!” Matt Chambers, executive director of ministry operations, said, “I can't say that I disagree with him.” Matt called Sunday’s services “one of the highlights of my ministry.”

The “official” grand opening is scheduled to take place on Christmas Eve. Still, the congregation at First Christian is celebrating the ministry that has already taken place in the new building. 45 people were baptized on December 12, and more than 50 new members have joined in the last four weeks.

Matt Chambers was overwhelmed as he tried to sum up what the new facility means to the church: “I can't begin to describe the deep sense of satisfaction and joy in seeing that awesome building being fully utilized as we intended.”

Thanks to CDF’s investors for making it possible!

www.firstchristian.info

Exponential Conference brings the Stadia family together for our biggest reunion of the year.

Whether you're already part of the Stadia family or you’re just entering the world of church planting, look for these opportunities to connect with Stadia staff, network leaders, planters, spouses and donors at these Exponential venues:

Stadia Pre-Conference "Spring Fling" (by invitation)

Tuesday, April 26, 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

We're excited to kick off this year’s conference with the Stadia Spring Fling event – a high-energy, high-impact day of discovering how we can work TOGETHER to transform even more lives and communities. Attendees should have received an email with all the details. Contact us with questions.

Stadia Banquet (by invitation)

Stadia Booth:
Stop by the Stadia Booth throughout the Exponential Conference. We'll be located in Faith Hall.

Stadia Document Preparation Services Give-Away:
Churches planted with Stadia benefit from project management and document preparation services. But other churches will definitely want to check out these services Stadia can provide. Time is valuable and the church's mission is critical. Church leaders can let the Stadia Document Preparation Team take burdens away so they'll be freed up to spend more time with people.

Stop by the Stadia booth to learn more about these valuable services and to enter a drawing to win the Document Preparation Services for free (a $3,000 value). Winner announced Friday, April 29. Service does not include any state/federal fees.

Workshops led by the Stadia Team Members:

Pre-Launch Track, Workshop 2: Wed 4:15 - 5:15pm
Best Practices in Discipleship/Spiritual Formation
Facilitated by Dr. Bob Harrington (Stadia and Relational Discipleship Network) and Cally Parkinson (Willow Creek Association and co-author Move, the follow-up to Reveal)
You heard about Reveal ... now after further research on over 250,000 Christ followers and over 1,000 churches a clear picture is emerging. Bob Harrington and Cally Parkinson will share with you what really changes people and makes them growing and developing disciples. Lets be honest, everybody wants to practice discipleship, but who is really doing it effectively? "Move" is a summary update on churches that are doing just that. "Move" tells you what has been learned since the early days of Willow Creek's "Reveal." Several leaders of model churches will present the best practices - culled from solid statistical research - found to be involved in real life transformation in churches. "Move" has identified five key practices in churches that produce true discipleship and spiritual formation. Join us to learn how these churches uphold the five key practices of 1) Being Christ-centered Leaders, 2) Moving people down a discipleship path, 3) Embedding the Bible in everything, 4) creating church wide ownership, and 5) pastoring the local community. Bob Harrington, a veteran church planter, trainer of church planters, and church planter coach will help us see how these principles can and should be put into practice in church plants.

Pre-Launch Track, Workshop 4: Thurs 2:45 - 3:45pm
So God Called You to Plant a Church... Now What?
Led by Pat Furgerson & Doug Foltz
God may have even given you some passions and ideas about what the church should look like. But how in the world do you get from here to there? So much to do… so little time… so many people to meet. In this session we'll discuss how to bring focus and clarity to your pre-launch work so that you be doing the right things at the right times to build a church that brings Glory to God and doesn't kill you in the process.

Pre-Launch Track, Workshop 5: Fri 9 - 10am
501(c)(what???) And All Those Headaches...
Led by Pat Furgerson & Doug Foltz We know... the last thing on your mind is all the legal paperwork that has to be completed in order to get this church started. But the reality is if you want to be a good steward and obey the laws of the land, there is a lot that has to be accomplished and a lot that should be accomplished. Join us to get your hands around the basics and at least understand the what's, why's and some of the how's of the legal requirements of starting a church here in the U.S.A.

Spouse Track Workshop 4: Thurs 2:45 - 3:45pm
On the Verge of Becoming a Reality TV Family
Led by Debbie Jones, Sue Ferguson, Tom Jones & Dave Ferguson.
Do you ever feel like your life as a ministry family is being lived out in the public eye? How do you serve your church family and community and still protect your family and maintain some sense of privacy? This session will allow you to ask questions of, and interact with two veteran church planting couples, Tom and Debbie Jones and Dave and Sue Ferguson. Tom and Debbie have planted two churches, Southbrook Christian Church in Dayton, Ohio and Princeton Community Church in Princeton, NJ. They also helped to pioneer Stadia: New Church Strategies, a national church planting organization. The Joneses did all of this while raising two kids to adulthood. Dave and Sue Ferguson launched Community Christian Church as well as multiple campuses while raising 3 children who are now 13, 18, and 20. While these leaders do NOT have all the answers they do have a heart for family and are willing to share some of what they feel they did or did not get right along the way as couples and parents.

Planter Next Step Track Workshop 2: Wed 4:15 - 5:15pm
Two workshop options, each led by the Stadia Team:

• What Can I Expect?
• Am I Cut out To Plant?

By Brent Foulke, Associate Executive Director for Mobilization

We've been having some great discussions among the Stadia staff lately. I'm excited that it's time to share those with the rest of you in our Stadia family.

Over the past six months, we've talked about who we are as an organization and what we aspire to be. We've wrestled with what makes us valuable and how does God want to use us.

Through this process, we landed on this Vision Statement:

While this statement reflects all that Stadia values, it focuses our energy and resources toward the life and community transformation that can only take place when we work together.

"Together": It's all about relationships

• Collaboration: Everything we do is within the context of relationships. No one works on his/her own. We encourage, support and communicate with one another so we make each more effective.
• Credit: It's not about us. It's all about our networks, donors, church planters and their spouses. Stadia brings these people and churches together and resources them in the best way possible so THEY create churches that lead to transformation.
  • Together with our NETWORKS, we plant high-potential churches by sharing resources, best practices and support.
  • Together with our PLANTERS, we create the healthiest church-planting environment possible by providing the best planter and spousal care, coaching and project management.
  • Together with our DONORS, we provide vital resources to transform lives and communities.

"Together We Will...": The Goal is Transformation
Over the next few months - and especially if you're coming to Exponential - you'll see and hear a phrase associated with all things Stadia: "Together We Will..."

This declaration points us toward our ultimate goal … changed lives. We measure progress through numbers and tangible results. But we evaluate impact by looking for real life and community transformation. We celebrate the stories of how lives and communities are changing because they have encountered Christ's love.

Stories of Transformation

Together with our Networks, Planters and Donors, we're planting churches that bring about life and community transformation.

Click through the links below to see and read a sampling of these stories. Then help us in celebrating what we're doing TOGETHER by submitting your stories of transformation (in writing, video or photo) at info@stadia.cc.

• A powerful video testimony of one woman's life change and baptism at New City Church, Los Angeles, Ca.
• A montage video of many lives being committed to Christ through baptism. At Journey Church, Medina, TN
• A Muslim girl attends the launch of Moment Church, Irvine, CA, and requests a Bible.
• CCC - Lincoln Park shows generosity and love to their community.
• Lifepointe Church draws attention from Downtown Alliance.

This summer, CDF President Brad Dupray will host the first-ever President's VIP Night at Dodger Stadium: a fundraising event to benefit Church Development Fund's quasi-endowment, the Church Planting Fund.

The President's VIP Night will be held on Saturday, July 30, 2011, and all proceeds will benefit the Church Planting Fund, which generates annual grants for new Christian Churches. Ticket packages for the "Hollywood" suite range from $1,000 to $10,000, and seats for the "CDF section" on the infield reserve level are available for $100.

If you choose to purchase a ticket for the Hollywood suite, you will enjoy the unique decor of Dodger Stadium's premiere luxury box, which features theater-style seating in Herman Miller Aeron chairs, Dodger-blue leather recliners and Frank Sinatra's stadium seat, as well as a Dodger-themed pool table and private restrooms. As an added bonus, you will have the opportunity to meet and have your photograph taken with a Dodgers legend.

All Church Planting Fund donors in attendance that evening - both in the Hollywood suite and the CDF section - will meet CDF President Brad Dupray and receive a commemorative President's VIP Night gift.

Visit http://www.CDFonline.org/VIPNight to review the ticket packages, or to donate to the Church Planting Fund. (Donations may be made in any amount beginning at $25.)

320 worshippers filled Rancho Cucamonga High School in Rancho Cucamonga, California for the launch of Christ’s Church of the Valley / Rancho on Sunday, February 25. CCV / Rancho is a satellite plant of Christ’s Church of the Valley in San Dimas, California. Stadia helped train the church planter and provided consultation to the new church, which launched with great success. Pastor Rick Schoon shared his excitement over the launch of the new church plant.

The sense in the room was very positive and Marco Sassoon, our worship / associate pastor, really has done a phenomenal job with the worship team and the decor for the room.

Overall I am so incredibly humbled at what the Lord is doing in the hearts of all who have jumped on board with this project. I am really convinced that this isn't a human effort looking for God's blessing, but is a "God appointed" venture. We are all just along for the ride!

www.ccvrancho.com

July 1, 2007 – For a limited time, Church Development Fund is offering a Five-Month Special Time Certificate with an annual percentage yield (APY) of 5.55%.

The promotional offer is valid only on new five-month time certificate investments postmarked on or before December 31, 2007. A minimum investment of $1,000 is required to open the investment. When the time certificate matures, it will automatically renew at CDF’s prevailing six-month time certificate rate.

Complete this form or call (888) 540-7112 for more information, or check “Special Time Certificate” and write in “Five-month certificate” on your CDF purchase application.

*APY = Annual Percentage Yield. Annual Percentage Rate (APR) = 5.44%. Interest yield assumes that all interest is left in the investment and compounded. Interest rates are subject to change periodically and without notice. Penalties may apply for early redemption from time certificate investments.

The purchase of CDF securities is subject to risks, which are described in CDF’s Offering Circular. This is neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation of an offer to buy Church Development Fund securities. Such an offer is made only by an Offering Circular and only in those states where the Church Development Fund securities may lawfully be offered or sold. CDF securities are not F.D.I.C. or S.I.P.C. insured nor are they bank deposits.

• Dates: Monday, February 2nd (starting at 8:30 am) – Tuesday, February 10th, 2009
• Location: Post Falls, ID
• Our Partner: Real Life Ministries.  For more information Real Life visit, www.reallifeministries.com.
• Cost: $1,000 for training (this price includes up to five participants on one planting team but does *not* include travel, food or housing expenses)

Real Life Ministries has 8,500 in weekend attendance, but more importantly 8,000 in small groups and around 800 baptisms this year.  Committed to “Relational Discipleship,” The church is the fastest growing church per capita in the USA and the 66th largest in the country.

Visit www.church-coaching.com for more info or to register.

Click here to read Dr. Bob Harrington’s white paper on the discipleship process at Real Life Ministries.

On Sunday, February 27 I had the privilege of attending the launch of our newest church in the Phoenix Valley: EPIC Christian Church, in Queen Creek. As always, I got goose bumps as I watched a brand new witnessing community for Christ being born. What an awesome privilege to be a part of this!

In the midst of one of the rainiest winters in Phoenix in many years, God provided an absolutely gorgeous day for the Grand Opening. The Lord was so gracious to prevent poor weather from being an excuse that kept people away.

Lead Pastor Jeff Myal recruited a core team of about 50 adults to help kick off the ministry of EPIC, which is meeting at an elementary school. There were 375 people in attendance for the inaugural worship service! Chrissy Myal (Jeff's wife) did a wonderful job with the Children's Ministry, providing a quality program for more than 100 children. Worship pastor Mike Rogers provided leadership for the musical portion of the worship service. Jeff preached on “The Beginning of the Story” and emphasized that everyone's story is important to God...no matter where they have been, no matter what they have done. And seven small groups are being launched immediately to draw people into Christ-centered community.

While there were many people in attendance from the supporting churches, there were a number of truly new visitors and unchurched people. Several people walked to church from their homes in the neighborhood around the school. Central Christian Church of Mesa – one of EPIC’s partner churches – sent over their food service team to provide a free barbecue lunch after the service; it was great to see people sitting on the grass enjoying fellowship with one another, while the kids were able to use the school's playground equipment.

We are so grateful for the willingness of Jeff and Chrissy to take a huge step of faith to launch this new ministry. We appreciate associate Mike Rogers and his wife Charity joining them in this journey. And we are thankful for all of the supporters who made this possible, particularly the Partner Churches (Central, Spring of Life, Broadway and Chandler Christian Church), Jeff's Coach (Kevin Carlson), Jeff's Mentor (Don Anderson), and Chrissy's Mentor (Brenda Carlson). The story is just beginning of how this church will change eternity for many people!

Bruce White
Southwest Regional Director

Click here to view photos of the launch.

September 1, 2006 -- Former Church Development Fund Chief Executive Officer Ralph Dornette passed from this life on Thursday morning, August 31st at his home in Hemet, California.

Mr. Dornette was called to lead the fund in 1968 and served as its CEO until his retirement in 1994 with a brief, 2-year hiatus in 1976 and 1977 for a teaching stint at Cincinnati Bible Seminary.

A graduate of Cincinnati Bible College, Ralph's first full time ministry was with the Indian Creek Christian Church in Cynthiana, Kentucky - a church that recently received funding from CDF for a building expansion project. As an evangelist he started 50 churches in Ohio, Oklahoma and California.

Ralph was called by the Southern California Evangelistic Association (SCEA) to serve as its Executive Director in 1958. The Dornette family moved from a ministry in Muskogee, Oklahoma to begin planting new churches in Southern California, one of which was Eastside Christian Church, in Fullerton, which Ralph founded and led for six years.

In 1968 Ralph was asked to lead the Churches of Christ Building and Loan Fund, which later came to be known as the Church Development Fund (CDF). Under Ralph's 26-year leadership CDF grew from $750,000 in total assets to nearly $70 million, funding 300 loans for a total of approximately $60 million.

Upon his retirement in 1994 CDF had established itself as a model church extension fund. At that time the Board of Directors of CDF honored Ralph by naming a quasi-endowment fund in his honor. The Ralph Dornette Perpetual Gift Fund has now received approximately $3.6 million in gifts and generates over $200,000 per year in interest that is given to churches to help them achieve their dreams.

Ralph Dornette is survived by his wife Betty, daughter Cindy and son-in-law Bob Orndorff and their two children, Jennifer and Jeffrey.

Messages of condolence can be sent to:
Betty Dornette
2133 Begonia Ct.
Hemet, CA 92545

A viewing (11:00am) and funeral (1:00pm) will be held on Tuesday, September 5 at:
Eastside Christian Church
2505 Yorba Linda Blvd.
Fullerton, CA 92831
714.871.6844

Charlotte, NC (July 24, 2007)

Lifepointe Christian Church, which launched in Charlotte, North Carolina on September 12, 2004, recently celebrated its 100th baptism. Church planter Matt McGue shared photos and his thoughts on the “significant milestone.”

This summer we crossed a significant milestone in the life of our church here at LifePointe. Baptizing our 100th person into Christ was amazing to say the least. We have 100 stories we could tell ranging from a single mom who was invited by a coworker, to a teenager who came out of a gang, to a professional race car driver and his wife who relocated to Charlotte.

Though from vastly diverse backgrounds, each now have Christ in common. LifePointe is a grace-place for many searching for the truth, and we couldn’t have done this without the support of Stadia. Last Sunday we baptized six more people, so now we will look forward to the day when we celebrate 200!

www.lifepointecc.com

"God is seldom early...but never late!"

I don't know where I first heard that quote, but it certainly rings true. And this aspect of God's character often is very evident to the people that God calls into the ministry of church planting.

Ranchland Church held its first public worship service on Sunday, January 15, after more than a year of planning and preparation. Unlike most of the churches we help to plant, Ranchland was a "re-formation" and "re-launch" from the former Allied Gardens Church of Christ in San Diego. Under the leadership of pastor/planter Wayne Monroe, Allied Gardens sold their building and moved to 4-S Ranch in north San Diego County. Wayne asked Stadia to assist him with Training, Coaching, and Mentoring and we have been privileged to partner with him to help implement his vision.

Instead of buying a new building, they leased a facility. This freed up funds not only for re-launching their church, but also for investing in kingdom expansion by launching other churches. The first church – LifePoint Christian Community – launched last September in the Mission Valley district of San Diego. Ranchland now is up and running, and the vision is for at least one more church to be planted with the money from the sale of the Allied Gardens building. And then these three churches can be a nucleus for church multiplication throughout San Diego County.

I am so touched by the faithfulness of the Allied Gardens congregation that caught the excitement of this vision and has joyfully invested their time, energy, and resources to help these new churches get started.

Getting Ranchland to Opening Day was quite a journey, and this is where God tested their faith...but also showed His faithfulness. In San Diego, obtaining a conditional use permit for a church is an arduous and expensive process. So Ranchland leased a building where a church had already been meeting, and therefore the occupancy permit was a non-issue...or so everyone thought.

On the Wednesday prior to launch, an inspector walked in and "shut down" the building. Evidently, the previous church tenants had not completed the permit process and several critical items remained unfinished from four years earlier. Wayne rushed to the city, re-applied for the permit, and was told that the inspector would return the next day to make a final determination. So Wayne mobilized his core team to pray, along with friends and colleagues across the country.

The next day the inspector arrived and made a list of all the items that would have to be completed before he would allow the building to be used. The items were not onerous, but they would take several weeks to complete...and launch was now just 3 days away. Knowing that people were praying, Wayne was politely persistent. He asked for some grace since Ranchland was not the one who had caused these problems. He explained that the church was primed to open its doors on Sunday. But the inspector would not budge, and he walked away. He had his hand on the door...ready to open it and step outside...when he turned around and said, "If I let you open, will you give me your word that this work will be completed?" Wayne said "yes", they shook hands, and the inspector gave his approval to open the church.

"God is seldom early...but never late!" And the power of prayer to soften a man's heart was clearly evident. What an incredible moment!

Launch day went off incredibly well. 181 people turned out and enjoyed rich worship, along with a vibrant and practical message from Wayne. And the new facility was inviting, attractive, and user-friendly.

Over lunch, Wayne read me a comment from one of the visitor cards that went something like this: "A new church is just what our community needs. I've never been to church, but today I felt like I came home."

That's why I love being involved in church planting. We have the privilege of reaching new people and drawing them into our community of faith. What a great adventure we are in together!

Bruce White
Southern California Network & Planter Care Representative

Click here to view photos from the launch.

March 9, 2007 – The Christian Church of Burlington in Burlington, Kansas celebrated the grand opening of its new worship center last weekend. The event drew front-page coverage in The Coffey County Republican.

CDF provided just under $1M in financing for the construction of the facility. The new building features a prominent brick entry topped by a tall white cross.

To read the article, complete with photos and quotes from pastor Gordon Van Zile, click here or visit www.coffeycountyonline.com.

Thanks to CDF’s investors for making this project possible!

The first of three regional North American Christian Conventions scheduled to take place this summer will be held May 24-26 on the Visioneering Studios-designed campus of Crossroads Christian Church in Corona, California. The 40-acre campus, which features fountains, a prayer garden and palm-ringed court, was developed around a "Circle of Light" theme. Crossroads' 3,500-seat auditorium opened in April, and the church has since seen an increase in attendance of more than 1,000.

Crossroads was one of the first church campuses developed using Visioneering Studios' "architectural evangelism." It is also the church home of Visioneering President Mel McGowan. The ultimate master plan for the campus includes a traditional prayer chapel (complete with stained glass and pews) and a retail center. In the meantime, Crossroads growing attendance is proof that architectural evangelism works!

Visit www.crossroadschurch.com to view photos of Crossroads' remarkable facilities.

Visit www.NACCtheconnectingplace.org for more information on the 2005 NACC.

Citywalk Christian Church, a new network of house churches in downtown San Diego, held its first community worship service on Sunday, March 11. Stadia’s Bruce White called it “a perfect day.”

Citywalk is striving to penetrate the heart of downtown San Diego, which is in the midst of a multi-year renovation project. As many as 50,000 people are expected to move downtown in the next decade, so this is an urban emerging community.

Planter Steve Denney and his wife, Ali, are adopting some innovative strategies for connecting with the unchurched who are flocking to the city. Citywalk is creating neighborhood "house churches" (perhaps "condo churches" would be more technically accurate) that meet weekly in strategic parts of the city. The house churches will come together monthly for a time of connection, community, and corporate worship. The emphasis will be on "organic" growth by building long-term relationships with spiritual seekers.

Three of the house churches are in place, and this morning was the first monthly corporate gathering for this young congregation. This was not at all like a typical "launch" Sunday. Advance promotion was modest, because the goal was to build community among the members of the house churches. Furthermore, Steve's desire is that new people will come primarily through a relationship with a member, rather than from reading an ad or getting a mailer.

The goal for this morning was to have at least 30 people in attendance, and that goal was reached with 32 people on hand for this inaugural event. Steve did a great job of articulating the vision and values of Citywalk, and people felt truly welcomed and at ease. A solid base is being laid for future growth and impact.

It is a privilege to be able to support and work with people like Steve and Ali, and it will be exciting to watch as this unique ministry bears fruit for the kingdom.

www.citywalkchurch.org

The 2008 CDF Offering Circular, which is now available for download, includes a simplified investment form (Purchase Application) for individual and joint investors. The new, single-sheet application eliminates the need for a separate signature card, substitute W-9 and bank authorization form, making investing at CDF faster and easier than ever before.

The new purchase application is shorter, simpler and more intuitive than the old form – and it can be completed electronically in under five minutes.

Churches and organizations (as well as individuals opening custodial investments) should continue to use the standard purchase application. If you are not sure which form is right for you, call CDF’s investment contact center at (888) 540-7112.

Common Ground Christian Church in Tampa, Florida was vandalized earlier this week by thieves who stole copper piping out of the building’s heating and air conditioning system. Common Ground launched on September 9, 2007.

The local ABC affiliate ran a story on the damage, which included an interview with church planter Danny Shaffner. The Tampa Tribune also published an article on the story, featuring a quote from Danny:

On one hand, it's heartbreaking. We clearly don't want to be taken advantage of," Schaffner said. "At the same time, we came to help the wounded. This is just affirmation that we are where we need to be. … If we can empower and transform this community, we've done what we came to do."

Please keep Danny and his church planting team in your prayers as they try to recover from this setback. Click the links below to view the news pieces or to visit Common Ground’s web site.

ABC News Clip

Tampa Tribune Article

www.commongroundtampa.com

287 people celebrated the first anniversary of Crossings in Knoxville, Tennessee on Sunday, February 10. Attendees were treated to over 50 pieces of original art and Eli’s Cheesecake. Crossings’ weekly prayer newsletter included all the details.

Crossings celebrated its 1st birthday yesterday with 287 people there for the festivities!

Eli’s cheesecake was served following our service and we even had a slice or two left over. The service was wonderful with the Holy Spirit’s presence all over the theatre. When we walked in to the area where we hang the weekly pieces of art, what a blessing it was to have 50 pieces up for display! What a ministry! What talent!

The stories shared were so meaningful. God is doing amazing things with Crossings; please continue to lift Crossings up that we as a community continue to stay focused in keeping to our mission (Helping People Find Their Way Back to God).

www.crossingsknoxville.com

The full energy of the Provision Ministry Group was at work on Sunday, October 21 when New Day Christian Church in Eastvale, California held its property dedication service. New Day was started by Eastside Christian Church of Fullerton, California in partnership with Stadia in 2003. More recently, Church Development Fund provided financing toward the $2.5 million purchase price of the church’s 4.7 acre parcel of property. In addition, Visioneering Studios has worked with the church on initial master planning. Visioneering has helped New Day to form a working partnership with an adjacent land owner to maximize their space through a shared parking agreement and lot line readjustment that will provide a benefit to both land owners.

On Sunday, October 21, the scheduled day of the property dedication, Southern California’s infamous Santa Ana Winds came blowing in from the dessert with gusts at tropical storm force. The tent which the church had erected on its property the night before was blown down and the prospects of meeting on the property were literally blown away. New churches are known for flexibility, however, and New Day moved quickly to the rented office suite it uses for worship most other Sundays.

The congregation that normally meets in multiple services squeezed into one large celebration of praise. Three buckets of dirt were brought over from the property to symbolize the land, and church members were given small containers to take home a bit of dirt as a remembrance of their day, just as the children of Israel used stones of memorial in the 4th chapter of Joshua.
 

215 people attended the first service at Crossings in Knoxville, Tennessee on Sunday, February 11. The launch drew the attention of two local television stations, both of which ran stories on their evening broadcasts. Pastor Mark Nelson shared some of his personal excitement in a blog posting the next morning:

Yesterday’s launch of Crossings was an incredibly exciting day. Our Kids’ City leaders were amazing…12 leaders in all led by my wife, Monica. They were so prepared and so ready to care for the kids God brought to them.

Our aesthetics team went far and above creating an environment that feels comfortable, inviting and safe to come and find God. They literally are transforming different areas of the theatre each and every week.

Bill Wolf and the band were unbelievable. They sounded great and their hearts seemed so focused on simply leading people to worship God…Everything was great, especially their version of Pierce Pettis’ “God believes in You.”

God is so good.

Watch the news report from WBIR channel 10:
http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=42140

Read Pastor Mark Nelson’s Blog:
www.standingonthedesk.blogspot.com

Visit Crossings Online:
www.crossingsknoxville.com

April 28, 2006 -- CDF's May 2006 investment rates were posted today, and short-term certificate rates are at their highest levels in almost five years. Effective today, some One-Year Time Certificates are now earning over 5%.

Visit the Investment Rates page and use our rate calculator to find the best rate for you, or download a complete list of rates.

Dan Shields, former executive pastor at Adventure Christian Church in Rocklin, California, has been hired to plant a church in Gilbert, Arizona (near Phoenix) in the fall of 2007. Dan says, “I kind of knew that one day we would be doing this.”

Dan is the latest in a line of pastors in his family. He grew up in Seattle, attended Pacific Christian College, and graduated with a BA in youth ministry and an additional AA in preaching. While at PCC, Dan met and married his wife, Carolina. During that time, Dan also served as youth pastor at First Christian Church of Bell California, where he started a Hispanic outreach. Upon his graduation, Dan joined the staff of Adventure Christian Church as an intern and later in a full-time position overseeing college and career.

This month, Dan and Carolina, with their sons Josiah (4) and Alex (1), are headed to Gilbert, Arizona to plant The Bridge: A Christian Church. Dan says:

Church planting has been part of the DNA of Adventure, so I kind of knew that one day we would be doing this. We chose Gilbert because we didn't feel peace when we went on prayer drives around the greater Sacramento area. I asked Stadia where they would plant and the response was that we needed to look at Phoenix. We didn't know anyone there but are excited about partnering with some great churches down there like Central, Spring of Life, Chandler, Epic and Broadway.

Our vision for the church comes out of our name. We tried to come up with a name that represented what Jesus is for us, what we as a church need to be to our community and what I personally need to be to those around me. So the name of our church is The Bridge: A Christian Church and our mission is to "Connect people to God and one another."

I am convinced that with this age of technology and information there is easy access for anyone who wants to hear a better sermon than what I can give or hear better praise music than what we will provide, etc. But the two things that I believe the church has to be in order to survive (if you are not already a mega church) is a return to genuine family-like relationships and reaching out to people who still don't have a relationship with Jesus. So here we go.

Planter: Dan Shields (wife Carolina, sons Josiah and Alex)

Personal interests: Anything that has to do with sports, especially football, basketball and golf.

Church Name: The Bridge: A Christian Church

Location: Gilbert, Arizona

Launch Date: Fall 2007

While I was attending Pacific Christian College, the pastor of my home church moved to Cerritos, California to start a new church. My wife and I were a part of the group that founded the church. This was our first experience with ministry in a brand new church, and we found it exhilarating. We later moved to Tennessee for further education at Emmanuel School of Religion, but never lost our enthusiasm for church planting.

After graduation, I moved to my first full-time pastorate in Saltville, Virginia. I moved my books into the pastor’s office of Main Street Christian Church and sat down at my desk, excited to begin the work of the ministry. Armed with only my Bible College training, the excitement waned quickly as I looked around the office…and then listened. There was no one else around, and it was very quiet. Two thoughts raced through my head: “What am I doing here?”…and “What do I do next?” I have never felt so completely alone as I realized that I had no one to turn to for advice or for encouragement. I learned to press on without support, but it made the work much more difficult.

After nearly four years in Saltville, my next ministry was in a new church: the Deer Valley Christian Church of Phoenix, Arizona. What I found was not what I had been led to expect. When I arrived, the church was only nine months old with just 17 members. But I immersed myself in the work, and the 17 people had grown to an average of 56 people by July. We had grown in spite of being in a school cafeteria with only a swamp cooler to control the summer heat of Phoenix.

At this point, the original 17 members began to criticize me as the pastor, because they wanted the church “how it used to be.” The growth of this little church was causing them to lose power and influence, and they were fighting back. I was still young and lacked experience, so I needed counsel and encouragement. I turned to the leader of the evangelistic association that had sponsored this church plant. We met for lunch, and as I described the situations…the confrontations…the problems. I expected advice, or – at the very least – some encouragement. But after listening to my story, this leader’s only response was, “That is what ministry is like!”

Once again, I felt very alone. I thought I had a place to turn for wisdom and insight, but I came away empty. Once again, I had to try to press on without support.

After staying and struggling with the church for more than three years, I resigned in frustration and found a job in a cabinet shop. A few months later, the sponsoring organization closed down this unhealthy church. At that point, I thought that my ministry was over. Who would want to hire a guy who had a church close under his leadership?

Fortunately, God was not finished with me. I still had a passion for new church work. So it wasn’t long before I joined Don Wilson, Richard Bloodworth, and Don Lawrence. Together, our four families planted Christ’s Church of the Valley in Phoenix. Don was the senior pastor and the three of us served as his associates. This was an entirely different situation than I ever had experienced, because we started as a team. No one was alone…everyone had support. Mutual encouragement sustained the effort and created momentum immediately. As a team, we coached and mentored each other. The church survived…and more importantly…it thrived.

This personal journey showed me the vital importance of coaching and mentoring. The challenge of planting a church is significant, and few pastors can do it on their own. Our church planters need Coaches and Mentors if we want them to start churches that survive and thrive. With a Coach and Mentor involved in his life, the planter never feels alone…he has resources to help him address ministry issues as they emerge…he has someone watching over him and his family…he has wise counselors to serve as a sounding board so that he can create life-changing ministry that reaches unchurched and lost people.

Starting a new church requires a substantial investment of dollars and personnel. It is tragic to waste either kingdom dollars or pastors. Jesus teaches us that “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” (Luke 10:2). We continue to pray for workers to go into the harvest. However, we cannot just pray for God to raise up workers for the harvest…we must keep the workers in the harvest. Therefore, we must ask God to raise up the Coaches and Mentors who will stand with our church planters and help them succeed in Great Commission ministry.

Early in my ministry, it was a lack of coaching and a lack of a team that destroyed a church and almost destroyed my career in ministry. Serving on a team helped to restore my ministry because I learned first-hand the value of support.

That is why I am committed to supporting our Stadia church planters as a Coach. By supporting our planters, I have the privilege of helping them start healthy, self-supporting, church-multiplying churches. And together, we are increasing the population of heaven by reaching lost people for Jesus Christ.

Dr. Gary Scheer
Senior Minister – Victor Valley Christian Church
Hesperia, California

March 23, 2007 – North Christian Church of Cheyenne, Wyoming celebrated the grand opening of its expanded worship center on Sunday, March 11. CDF’s Steve Walker was among the 390 worshippers in attendance.

CDF provided funding for North Christian to add a fellowship hall, expand classroom space and expand its worship center. Following the grand opening, during which he worshipped and celebrated with the congregation there, Regional Credit Officer Steve Walker wrote, “This is the only church I've attended with cowboy hat racks!”

Thanks to CDF’s investors for making this project possible!

www.northchristianchurch.net

Restore Community Church in Kansas City, which launched on March 2, held its first baptism service on Sunday, April 27. Eleven new believers were immersed that morning, including church planter Troy McMahon’s daughter. Troy writes:

Sunday was one of those marker events. We are in the middle of our Reverberate series talking about who we feel God has called us to be as a church at Restore. Sunday we talked about "Celebrate." Tommy did a wonderful job leading worship and he also shared is own story of walking away from God and how God brought him home thru music.

Right after service we had this processional of a couple hundred people make their way to the Aquatic Center, just behind the high school. There we all witnessed 11 people being baptized and taking their faith public. There were fathers baptizing adult children, parents baptizing younger children, sisters baptizing brothers, small group leaders baptizing small group members and more. Each person had a story to share. Before we ever moved to Kansas City, I had dreamed of this day. It blew my pitiful little dreams out of the water...literally. After each personal was baptized there was this incredible roar from the crowd celebrating this life change. I can't wait to do this again. Here are some picts of the event. 

  

  
 
 

 

 

 

After a three-year hiatus as the Director of PR & Advertising for the Provision Ministry Group Brad Dupray has returned to the CDF Team as Senior Vice President of Investor Development. During a large part of his first fifteen years with CDF Brad proudly displayed his "CDF GUY" license plate on the highways and byways of California as he drove from church to church telling the CDF story. Now as he comes back to lead Investor Development Brad has once again tagged his car with the CDF GUY moniker. When Brad was an eleven year old boy his father opened a CDF account for him, and now thirty-five years later (you do the math!) Brad continues to be one of CDF's strongest proponents. "It's great to be back on the winning team! I couldn't be happier -- working with our investors to continue to encourage them to invest in something bigger than themselves."

Highland Christian Church in Asheville, North Carolina celebrated the baptism of five more new believers on Sunday, August 12. Highland’s Sherri McCready wrote about the joy of witnessing life transformation.

After Church we headed out to a local park for our second H20 gathering. It was a great honor to baptize five people into Jesus! It such a joy that cannot be expressed with words to see the journey that the Holy Spirit leads. We are watching as many among us are truly experiencing life transformation. It is rewarding because this is what we set out to do: “Change life as we know it through the Love, Loyalty, and Friendship of Jesus Christ.”

www.highlandchristian.com

February 20, 2007 – Earlier this month, Rolling Hills Christian Church in El Dorado Hills, California christened its new auditorium in an inspirational fashion. Over 2,400 visitors celebrated the opening of the new church building, the product of a two-year building project.

The RHCC project added 47,000 square feet to the church campus, including a 1,500 seat auditorium. The cost of the project totaled $15.5 million, of which over $15 million was made possible by CDF.

Senior Pastor Jeff Bigelow started Rolling Hills Christian Church in 1995 and has been instrumental in the church’s development. He was excited to see the church making such tremendous progress and shared his excitement the day after the grand opening.

“We are grateful to CDF to help make this awesome new tool a reality,” Bigelow said. “We know that buildings don’t change lives, but what happens in them can!”

Thanks to CDF’s investors for making this project possible!

www.RollingHillsCC.org

Real Life Christian Church opened its doors to the people of Gilbert, Arizona on Sunday, October 28. Stadia President Marc Bigelow was among the 405 worshippers in attendance that day who witnessed five people give their lives to Christ! Marc writes:

Real Life Christian Church opened this morning in Gilbert, Arizona at the William Fields High School in South Gilbert. Dan and Carolina Shields are the lead planting couple. They had a wonderful opening: 13 Life Groups have already been started, 95 people are on the launch team, and the facilities are absolutely wonderful (probably the best high school for a church I have ever seen).

The set up was done 30 minutes early. The children’s area is outstanding, with great graphics, a wonderful staff, and a great registration system. The mechanics were all well done. The sermon was good and cast vision for what the church could become. All in all, one of the best openings we’ve had.

The opening services (2) had 405 total in attendance, and five people made a decision to accept the Lord! I would say that Real Life is on their way.

www.reallife.cc

The 2008 CDF calendar is now complete. It was mailed to churches and households across the country on Wednesday, December 5.

This year, as always, the calendar features striking photographs from Christian churches and ministries all across the United States. Inside you will read about new church plants, a Christian school, and one of the oldest existing congregations in our brotherhood.

CDF has featured scores of Christian churches in its calendar over the past decade, and today some of those are among the largest and fastest-growing Christian churches in America. Please join us in praying that the 12 ministries featured in 2008 will enjoy the same blessings as those that have come before.

If you did not request a copy of the 2008 CDF calendar, it’s not too late! Just complete this short form to reserve your calendar.

August 1, 2006 -- CDF's August 2006 investment rates were posted today, and for the fourth straight month short-term certificate rates are on the rise. Many One-Year Time Certificates are now earning 5% or more.

Visit the Investment Rates page and use our rate calculator to find the best rate for you, or download a complete list of rates.

On June 22, Restore Community Church celebrated as four more people were baptized! Since the church’s launch in March, Troy McMahon and the team have celebrated 15 baptisms. Troy shared the following testimony from Linda, one of the four new believers who were baptized on June 22:

I have always been a believer in God because my wonderful parents strongly believed. However it was not until coming to Restore and getting involved in a small group that I realized that I had not totally given my life to the Lord. I was baptized as a baby, but thanks to all my friends at Restore, I have decided that I want and need to commit myself to God and Jesus. He has changed my outlook on life...I am still not perfect and will never be, but praise God I am trying to be more Christ-like and He is helping me change more each day.

www.restorecc.org

On Tuesday, July 26, sixty-two bowlers, many of them Provision Ministry Group employees, came together to show their support for Stadia at “Gutterpalooza ‘05” – a charity bowling tournament in Southern California.

$24,632 was committed for the event, and last-minute gifts received since the day of the tournament have pushed the total over $25,000, making Gutterpalooza ‘05 the second highest-grossing fundraising event in Stadia’s history. Alan Cech, our top individual fundraiser, collected $1915 in sponsorship pledges. (Way to go, Alan!)

Thanks to all of our bowlers, everyone who pledged their support of those bowlers, and especially our generous corporate sponsors:

• Abound Fundraising
• CPR Construction & Painting
• Financial Planning Ministry
• Goehner Accountancy
• Hands On Mailing
• Hayden Design
• IPG
• Mayer Litho
• McDermott, Will & Emery
• People Driven Software
• PlainJoe Studios
• Provision Ministry Group
• Senior Quote Insurance
• US Bank
• Yocum Business Furnishings

October 1, 2006 – CDF is pleased to present a Relational Discipleship seminar in partnership with Stadia: New Church Strategies and Church Coaching Solutions later this month in Massillon, Ohio.

Real Life Ministries of Post Falls, Idaho is a phenomenally innovative church that has had a dramatic impact on their community through Relational Discipleship. They are a relatively new church plant (7 years old), yet are running 6,600 on weekends, with 6,000 in small groups – in a town with a population of just 18,000!

Founding Pastor Jim Putman and Small Groups Pastor Aaron Couch will share how churches nationwide can develop relationships and leadership to move people closer to Christ at this special seminar: October 19, 2006 at RiverTree Christian Church in Massillon, Ohio.

Registration:
$100 per person (lunch included) for up to 5 people, or
$500 (plus $10.00 each for lunch) for 5 to 30 people (from one church)
Email coaching@church-coaching.com or
Call (615) 517-5500

Click here to download a registration form (PDF).

Location:
Rivertree Christian Church
7373 Portage Street NW
Massillon, Ohio 44646.
For maps and directions, visit www.rivertreechristian.com/portage/about/where.asp

Highland Christian Church (Asheville, NC) celebrated its first anniversary last Sunday with a record crowd of more than 300. Sherri McCready, wife of church planter Shannon, said: “Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you to Stadia!”

Highland’s congregation celebrated in the rain and in The Orange Peel (where they have met since last fall’s launch). Gel leaders, the worship team and children alike shared in the festivities with joy, dancing…and cake!

After the event Sherri McCready wrote: “Thank you with all our hearts to Jesus Christ. Last year our hands were full of hope. This year they are full of thanks. You are our good King and our Lord – we pledge to you our love, our loyalty, and our friendship.”

www.highlandchristian.com

January 22, 2007 – Want to apply for a CDF loan or open a CDF investment but don’t have the time to complete the paperwork right now? CDF’s online loan application and purchase (investment) application were recently upgraded to include a feature that allows an applicant to save the document and complete it later.

Each application now includes a “Save to E-mail” button on the last page. When that button is clicked, the application is e-mailed, in its current state of completion, to the e-mail address specified by the user. This simple, convenient feature allows applicants to save a partially-completed application when they become interrupted or need to search for a piece of information requested in the application.

The “Save to E-mail” feature can be used as many times as necessary, freeing applicants to complete the forms in multiple sittings and allowing churches to pass a single loan application to multiple individuals who complete individual sections depending on their area of expertise. Best of all, this new feature requires no special software.

Just click “Apply for a loan” or “Invest now” in the upper right corner of this screen to get started.

On Sunday, August 13, Highland Christian Church of Asheville, North Carolina baptized 14 new believers. Among those baptized was Elec McCready, son of church planters Shannon and Sherri McCready! Sherri McCready shared all the details:

Sunday we welcomed 290 people into the Orange Peel. After church, Highland loaded up into our vehicles and headed to an area park for baptisms in a large creek. This was so awesome! 14 people were baptized into the name of Jesus. Their stories were various, but precious and powerful all the same.

We were planning for eight baptisms, but six of them were spontaneous – like the Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts who said, "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?" Our son Elec was one of the spontaneous ones. On the way he said, "Mommy, I want to get baptized." I led him to the creek and grabbed his daddy, who led him to a rock to have a man-to-man talk. Then off came shoes and socks and shirt and into the water Elec went. Several children were baptized with Elec, each of them with their daddies standing near.

The other spontaneous baptisms were from one family. They heard at church that we were baptizing and they ran home and changed clothes and headed to the park. They literally waded into the water as a family and I didn't even know their names. I don't think I had ever met them. I wondered if that is how John the Baptist felt when he stood in the water and the people just came to say something to God – something about their lives. Shannon met them and welcomed them. It was like in Acts when a whole household was baptized into Christ, first the daddy, then the mom and the children.

The 14 joined hands and came out of the water together to the thunderous applause and the whooping and the hollering of the Highland observers. Then we shared wet sloppy hugs and high fives and we gathered our picnic baskets and blankets and enjoyed a wonderful lunch together. Ahh…the joy of the love, laughter, and friendship of Jesus Christ.

www.HighlandChristian.com

Valley Center (Kansas) Christian Church began worshipping in its new facility on December 9, 2007. Senior Minister Chuck Terrill shared how the church ministered and thrived in the weeks that followed, despite severe weather.

Dec. 2 - Our last Sunday at 100 S. Park, there were 220 in attendance. It was a great time of praise and testimony.

Dec. 9 - We had a bad ice storm. At 6:00 am I thought about canceling our first service. I didn't, and to God's glory, we had 220 hearty souls slide in. There were absolutely no parking spaces left. Some parked on the dirt and we had to pull them out of the mud after the service.

Dec. 16 - We had seven inches of snow to deal with, but 216 in attendance. We had parking problems, including one fender bender, but we only had to pull one car out.

Dec. 23 - Seven more inches of snow. Winds on Saturday were 45 mph, and five foot tall drifts had to be removed from the parking lot. Again, I thought about cancelling, but waited and 160 came for worship.

Dec. 24 - Christmas Eve, we didn't know what to expect. 282 in attendance! Some people walked 1/4 mile to get in.

We are rejoicing despite the weather. Offerings have been over-the-top generous. We have requested a bid for 50 more parking spots, and are waiting for that. We have many first and second time guests to follow up on, and our folks are enthusiastic. We praise the Lord!

The dedication service at Valley Center is scheduled for January 13, 2008. Thanks to CDF’s investors for making this project possible!

Highland Christian Church in Asheville, North Carolina recently rented a vacant storefront in downtown Asheville to host their 24 days of prayer. The “Prayer Gallery,” which has been open four hours a day for just over a week, caught the attention of local television station WLOS (Channel 13) and inspired an evening news report. Highland’s Sherri McCready, who planted Highland in 2005 with husband Shannon, explains:

This week, as one of our prayer captains was leaving the Prayer Gallery, he was able to get the attention of a local news crew that was driving by. They called us in the middle of staff meeting to set up an interview. Tuesday evening, many of our Gel Groups huddled around TV's to see the report and IT WAS AMAZING! They talked about the gallery like it was a great and needed place for Asheville. We knew that, but we didn't know that they would feel the same way.

We have only been down there one week, and for reasons known only to the Lord, God decided it was time for Asheville to know about the place set aside for them to come and meet with Him. This is HIS gallery, and He arranged it for the city to hear about it.

Watch the TV news report at http://www.highlandchristian.com/prayergallery.html.

October 16, 2006 – When Valley Center (Kansas) Christian Church decided to use a simple, old-fashioned plow for their ceremonial groundbreaking on October 8, they accidentally created a special moment symbolic of the entire building process.

Valley Center’s elders planned to pull the plow, but they were unable to move it alone. The church deacons and pastor Chuck Terrill added their strength, but the plow still would not budge. Finally, the entire congregation joined in and managed to pull the plow. Valley Center’s Coleen Ryan said, “It takes the whole church to build this new church, not just one person or the elders and deacons. It takes all of us.”

The Ark Valley News, Valley Center's local paper, featured a detailed story on the groundbreaking, complete with quotes from Chuck Terrill and a description of the upcmoming building project, the next day.

www.VCChristianChurch.com

March 29, 2007 – After four years of searching for a location to expand its ministry, Woodland Park (Colorado) Christian Church dedicated its new 26,000 square-foot building on Sunday evening, March 25.

CDF provided nearly $3 million in financing for the new building, which includes a worship center, offices, classrooms and an unobstructed view of the north face of Pikes Peak from the front doorstep.

CDF’s Steve Miles, Bob Williams and Steve Walker joined Senior Minister Barry Park and the congregation at Woodland Park for the building dedication on March 25. Grand Opening festivities will continue through the month of April.

Thanks to CDF’s investors for making this project possible!

www.wpcchurch.com

Just after Christmas, Church Planter Mark Elliott shared why he was encouraged about the first weeks of Hope Christian Church, which launched on November 11 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, despite “the additional challenge of starting a church during the Holidays.”

Hope Christian Church launched November 11, 2007 with 112 people present. The post-launch number committed to the Hope family is 65 with children.

We are very encouraged by the start and our new meeting place. The additional challenge of starting a church during the Holidays is great, so we are anticipating things to settle in as we establish effective outreach, small groups, regular (staff) worship leader to develop worship and praise community, and building the HCC family in 2008.
 

www.hcctn.org

You can still help with ongoing Hurricane Relief and Rebuilding efforts in New Orleans. Journey Christian Church and Building Better Communities are seeking volunteers to work in their warehouses for distribution of supplies and materials.

Rick Grover, lead pastor at Journey Christian Church shares additional needs: “We also need churches who are willing to donate gas cards. We have nine vehicles that are now being used to transport work teams all over the city, but the cost of fuel is hitting us hard (not even to mention the insurance and maintenance costs)! We're trying to keep our overhead down so that more funds can be used to help people.”

Other immediate needs include:

• Professional drywall finisher (Journey can work with individuals on arranging transportation and housing)
• 1 Deep freezer (used for feeding volunteer teams)
• 1 Large refrigerator (no freezer compartments)
• 1 Commercial ice maker (used for teams while working in the field)
• Sound System/equipment to provide a full worship service for up to 200 volunteers at one time
• 700 ceiling tiles

If you or your church are interested in volunteering or making a donation, please contact Sydna Peterson, Church Coordinator with Journey Christian Church and Building Better Communities, at (800) 957-3563.

See the News Archive at right for additional Hurricane Relief Updates.

On behalf of Journey Christian Church, thank you for your recent donation. We are extremely grateful for your willingness to help us during this difficult time. We’re continuing to minister to our community with Katrina Relief Aid and Assistance while at the same time gearing up for a “re-launch” of Journey this spring.

Journey lost half of her regular attendees as a result of Katrina, but those who have remained are committed and ready to move forward in reaching people for Christ and serving others in this city!

Concerning our Katrina Relief efforts, we are now receiving as many as 70-80 applicants a day who need help! All of this has come with no advertising or publicity, but simply through “word of mouth.” We have an application process to assist people in need, and since all of this is connected to the church, we have a great ministry opportunity! God has opened more doors for us as a result of Katrina than we ever imagined possible!

One of the families in our church we have helped have a little boy with Muscular Dystrophy. The family has struggled greatly as a result of Katrina, and through assistance from you and churches and individuals like you, we have been able to step in and help this family meet their basic needs.

The challenges are great. The needs are great. But all of this translates into incredible opportunities that God is placing before us. We hope to have our “housing hub” completed by the middle of January (a flooded church we have gutted for housing work teams). This hub can accommodate up to 200 people per week. We also have over 18,000 sq. ft. of warehouse space now in the same location. Thus, we need long-term partners—churches who are willing to send teams over the next one, two, or three years to help in the rebuilding. There is still so much work that needs to be done!

Please continue to pray for us. Pray that God will give us strength and wisdom. Pray that God will open the doors for us to work with city leaders who oversee the rebuilding process of New Orleans. Pray that God will use Journey and Building Better Communities (the non-profit we started to help with Katrina Relief) to make an eternal impact in the lives of hundreds of thousands of people who are coming back to New Orleans to call this place “home.” If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me!

For the cause of Christ,
 
Rick Grover
Lead Pastor
Journey Christian Church

Impact Community Church (Sacramento, CA) recently hosted national comic Brad Stine at the “Impact Comedy Club” to kick off a series called “The World According to Jim Carrey.” Almost 700 people attended three shows over two different nights.

Worship Pastor Shawn Struckmeier shares more:

We had a great night as we spent our evening bustin’ a gut hearing Brad Stine share jokes from a Christian perspective. From that event we kicked off a series called, “The World According To Jim Carrey” that challenged people’s perspective of God using Jim Carrey movies as a reference point.

It was exciting to have people from the comedy club come and join us on a Sunday morning and hear about what it really means to be a believer in Christ, using clips from various Jim Carrey movies. It was a great weekend and has been an incredible series for us!

www.ImpactCommunity.com

www.youtube.com/lifepointchurch

Stadia’s John Wasem will be featured in the July 22, 2007 issue of Christian Standard magazine. Author Brad Dupray shared an advance copy of the article, expanded from the version scheduled to be published in the print magazine:

John Wasem has been at the forefront of the church planting movement for nearly all of his thirty-plus years in ministry. As Minister of Outreach at East 91st Christian Church (Indianapolis) in the early 1980’s, he crafted a plan for the church to start twenty churches in twenty years – a goal the church has far exceeded. John planted Suncrest Christian Church, St. John, Indiana (East 91st Street church plant number seven) in 1994 and since then has taught church planting at Lincoln Christian Seminary and Emmanuel School of Religion. John currently serves as the Director of the Emmanuel Institutes including the Institute for Church Planting as well as Director of Planter Care for Stadia East. John and his bride of 34 years, Leslie, have three children and one granddaughter.

How do you define a church plant?
A church plant is the biblical and natural byproduct of a healthy New Testament church.

What makes for a successful church plant?
A church plant is successful when it reaches people who are far from Christ and reproduces itself. New churches are creative, relevant, intentional “beachheads” in a culture that needs to be transformed.

Is there too much emphasis on the number of people that are reached?
My impression is that there’s been a positive transition to more emphasis on healthy churches, than simply large churches – an emphasis on qualitative vs. quantitative assessment. New churches that are effective at transforming lives and multiplying ministry for the kingdom’s sake are truly successful.

Is there more church planting taking place now or is it just that people are more aware of it?
It was about 25 years ago that church planting, all of a sudden, became prominent on the “radar screen.” It has become higher profile because churches are starting to realize that to be a true New Testament church you must be committed to, involved in, and successful at, the reproduction of your ministry. That means the reproduction and multiplication of leaders, resources and outreach expressions.

In addition, there seems to be a far greater entrepreneurial emphasis on Christian leadership than I remember experiencing in the beginning of my pastoral career. There’s less dependence on patternistic ministry and more focus on true kingdom creativity and responsiveness. Church planting is not formulistic any more. It was when I first became acquainted with it.

Is there a culture of church planting or is it just the culture of the church to start new churches?
I wish it was naturally the culture of a church to reproduce itself. The new church planting movement has opened the eyes of an increasing number of churches to see that the reproduction ministry is a God-ordained core value.

How does a church arrive at that culture?
It does so by making an intentional effort to understand its context as a church. To become acquainted with, and participate in, the lives of people that need Christ, that need hope. The missional emphasis that has become front and center for churches today is helping churches to be more responsive and credible. One of my mentors was Dr. Robert Fife. Dr. Fife frequently commented both in the classroom and informally, “To be effective ministers of the gospel we must earn the right to speak and to lead.” I believe that the church today “gets” what Dr. Fife meant when he spoke of incarnational ministry.

How are new churches different than established churches?
A new church, generally speaking, is going to be a much more agile, responsive and pro-active organism. Many established churches have those same characteristics, but it requires them to exert far more energy and intentionality to be entrepreneurial. The decision making process in a new church tends to be flatter rather than hierarchical. Therefore, the speed of both strategizing and implementation seems to be greater. It’s not automatically the case, but in most new churches innovation is not only welcomed and applauded, but it’s viewed as expected and necessary.

Do new churches hold a monopoly on innovation?
The established church and the “cutting edge” do not have to be incompatible. Some of the most cutting edge churches in our movement are established churches. Those churches owe a debt of thanks to newer and more innovative churches that are actively attuned to the people they are trying to reach with the gospel.

Is church planting a reaction to / against the institutional church?
Over the years whenever I’ve interacted with a person that was interested in church planting, early in that conversation my goal has been to try to ascertain motivation. If motivation is primarily a reaction the established church, then I would be quite concerned about that individual’s readiness and maturity for the arduous journey of church planting. On the other hand, if the person communicates a heart that burns for following the way of God, and reaching people for God, then we need to keep talking, because that’s a person whose core values can fuel church planting.

How do you weed out potential planters who are angry at the institutional church?
One of the best developments in the church planting arena has been the role of leadership assessment. Organizations like the Church Planting Assessment Center (CPAC), which is part of our movement, have been studying how to effectively increase the probability that people chosen for church planting leadership will be well suited for the role. Part of the mission of quality assessment for church planting is to identify core motivations of the potential planter. Assessment is much more than skill evaluation; it’s an examination of character, passion and Spirit-influenced instincts.

Is there a danger of new churches chasing after false doctrine or easy doctrines in their passion to reach a wider audience?
There is definitely a danger, however, my own experience and observation tells me that the pre-conceived idea that a newer, growing church is selling out to pragmatism is normally a misnomer. It does happen, but very rarely. A church planter must guard against employing methodology just because it works. A church planter is a “theological translator.” He must do the hard work of translation so that the method that is employed is compatible with the gospel. Translating methodology and strategy into the life and expressions of the church in ways that glorify God is the job of the planter.

What made you think “church planting” earlier in your ministry years?
I was the new Minister of Outreach at East 91st Street Christian Church in 1980. The church had just broken 1,000 and was located on ten acres with no expansion possibilities known at that time. The elders asked me, as the new Minster of Outreach, to address the crowded parking lot issue . One of the deacons came to me with the idea that we should meet to study and pray through the book of Acts as a way of addressing our church growth. That resulted in a new awareness of church planting for me. I became acquainted with church planting through humble Bible study with a group of men, once a week, in my office. That led me to the Fuller Institute where we attended the first church planting seminar offered in 1982. The elders wanted a solution to the parking lot problem and ended up with a church planting strategy!

Did Suncrest always feel like a new church to you?
Yes. When I left Suncrest after eleven years and handed off to my very gifted associate who took the helm, it was still a new church – and it’s still a new church today.

What makes it a new church?
An attitude of constant learning. Listening carefully to God. Seeking His wisdom on things that are in the category of an experiment or a pilot ministry. Never being content that the perfect formula for ministry effectiveness has been reached.

How did Suncrest change in your eleven years?
A new church definitely goes through a life cycle, just like a human being. We went from the birthing phase to the entrepreneurial phase to the sustaining phase. As opportunities for ministry increased, the leadership challenge became more complex. Change is continuing and will always be a welcome part of the culture of Suncrest. The current staff, eldership, and ministry leadership of that church along with a culture that views change as an inevitable blessing enables Suncrest to stay young, yet increasingly effective.

What would you do differently now than you did then?
If I knew then what I know now, I would have been far less impulsive with strategic decision making and would have been more intentional with regard to waiting upon, and listening to, the leadership of God. A new church project is so dynamic and fluid that it’s easy to get momentum and end up coming back to God after the fact. On occasion you need to repent and do the hard work of correcting some impulsive decisions. You get so caught up in the dynamic nature of a new church that you can, all of a sudden, realize that you are way downstream, and not realize that you have moved ahead of God.

Can church planter lead a new church without being a personal evangelist?
A church planter must set the pace and lead by example. A church planter is not a dictator that sits in the “lifeguard chair” and tells everyone when they can get in the pool or not to run. A church planter is a player-coach. So if you’re going to be most effective at motivating your congregation to be involved in, and effective at, lifestyle evangelism you must set that pace. The same standard applies to spiritual disciplines, personal godliness, spiritual growth, and servanthood.

What do you see as the future of church planting?
As I gaze on the immediate horizon, my sense is that over the next generation we will experience an unprecedented degree of partnership and collaboration among churches of all varieties in the effort to fulfill the kingdom mandate to go and make disciples. I would say that, among other things, technology has increased the connectivity of Christian leaders and that is an asset we would be foolish to ignore.

Besides sending money, what can established churches do to support church planting?
Existing churches can greatly enhance their own ministry and vitality by taking the initiative to build relational bridges with new churches. Those bridges are two-way bridges that can take the established church to the world of the new church and welcomes the world of the new church into the exchange of ideas, leaders, services and resources.

What would you say are the most important lessons for the church planter himself?
First, invest yourself in other people for the sake of developing emerging leaders and secondly determine that you will never, ever stop learning.

The members of Journey 2L2, which launched on February 25, 2007, recently shared some summer fun bags – and the love of Christ – with boys and girls at the local shelter. Teresa Vann, Journey 2L2’s executive director, explains.

Through our connection with the local shelters, we found that most shelters do not have summer programs for the children that are staying with them – no sports camp, no vacation bible school, no cheerleading camp – nothing! And the kids spend long summer days with not a lot to do. We asked everyone to bring in some fun summer items such as squirt guns, unfilled water balloons, butterfly nets, crayons, coloring books, construction paper, glue, scissors, markers, sketch pads, sports balls, card games, sidewalk chalk, jump ropes, hula hoops, frisbees, kites, water bottles, etc. After worshipping in the auditorium one Sunday, we continued worship out in the hallway as we filled up backpacks with all the goodies.

Later that week a few of us loaded up our cars with balloons, popcorn bags, popsicles, and the Summer Fun Bags, and then headed for the shelter to have some fun! The faces on the kids as we gave them their bags was a true treasure, and we got many, many hugs and thank you’s from their moms too!

www.Journey2L2.org

Journey 2L2 held its first service Sunday, February 25, in the South Brunswick High School in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey. 150 worshippers came for the launch of the new church. Lead Pastor Bob Cushman shared his excitement for the new church in a weekly email sent out to the Journey 2L2 community.

Last Sunday morning, I woke up and prayed that God would push through people’s resistances. That He would actually bring people, and that they would want to collaborate on this Journey with us. God has a way of out-doing what I think will happen. I am sure He is always laughing at me, making sure I do not - for a split second - think I was the cause of any of it.

Journey 2L2 wants to be a church that “gets it.” We want to do more and more for our community. We want to be the kind of people who are constantly thinking of ways to love people, and we want to continue to create avenues for the truths of God.

Sunday, February 25, 2007 was just the start of a Journey of faith, hope, and love. I cannot express how excited I am about what we will become. It is grace that has brought us here, and it will be His grace that will lead us home.

Visit Journey2L2 online at:
www.Journey2L2.org

On Thursday, November 8, the front page of the South Brunswick (New Jersey) Post featured an article on Stadia church plant Journey 2L2, which remodeled a townhouse for a local single father of two.

The church offered to help David Berner, an apartment maintenance worker, who is attempting to sell his home so he and his boys can move to more affordable housing. He told The Post, “The state wouldn’t help me, but the church has really stepped in.”

Read the South Brunswick Post article here. (PDF)

www.Journey2L2.org

Dave Milam launched Kinetic Christian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina on February 27, 2005. Now, more than two years later, Dave writes about the ways that the church makes him feel and act like a proud father.

MIND IF I SHOW YOU A FEW PHOTOS?
by Dave Milam

I love our church! I feel like a proud father; the one with a hundred baby photos, the one who expects everyone he meets to indulge his boastful pleasure. Sometimes, it’s a little embarrassing.

This past Sunday, I had the opportunity to officially meet with some of the most authentic, God-following leaders that I know. These are men and women who are willing to do whatever is required to accomplish God’s will and introduce others to Him. At the beginning of our “meeting” (as I always do) I asked this question: What is God doing in the life of our church right now?

I saw snapshots of how the uninvolved at Kinetic are connecting to ministry and how Kinetic regulars are beginning to take leadership positions. I heard of unchurched, faith-seeking people initiating weekly Bible reading groups in hopes of finding God. What a picture!

Can you see the image, yet? We have Small Groups that have formed in Huntersville and Pineville. Kinetic guests are being invited to small group meetings on their first visit to our church…and connecting! We have twenty something small groups challenging people to take the next step spiritually and one small group has even initiated a once-a-month worship time as part of their regular small group schedule. (Imagine that…worship in small groups!) Kinetic is growing!

These stories underscored my love for our church and make me feel like that crazy papa that talks about his children all the time. Kinetic Church, without a doubt, is the most incredible church that I know.

Whenever I think about our church, I can’t help but pull out my wallet and ask, “Do you mind if I show you a few photos?”

www.kineticchurch.com

Church Planter David Limiero from Life Journey Christian Church in Bakersfield, California shared how the congregation reached out to the community with a practical display of love for the neighbors and the neighborhood on Sunday, October 28.

Our outreach project this Sunday was an overwhelming success. We cleaned a terribly littered alley that was a block long. We filled two tractor trailer sized dumpsters and two trash trucks. God watched over us.

Although there were many potential safety issues, there were no injuries and no problems with the neighbors. In fact we got to talk to some of the neighbors over the fence as we cleaned the alley behind their houses. They were grateful for making their neighborhood look a lot better, and the city workers were amazed at how hard we worked and with such happy spirits.

We stayed longer than we anticipated, but cleaned the entire alley in three and a half hours. It was a great partnership with the city that we hope to continue. Thank you so much for your prayers.

www.lifejourneychurch.com

Lifepointe Christian Church, which launched in Charlotte, North Carolina on September 12, 2004, recently celebrated its 100th baptism. Church planter Matt McGue shared photos and his thoughts on the “significant milestone.”

This summer we crossed a significant milestone in the life of our church here at LifePointe. Baptizing our 100th person into Christ was amazing to say the least. We have 100 stories we could tell ranging from a single mom who was invited by a coworker, to a teenager who came out of a gang, to a professional race car driver and his wife who relocated to Charlotte.

Though from vastly diverse backgrounds, each now have Christ in common. LifePointe is a grace-place for many searching for the truth, and we couldn’t have done this without the support of Stadia. Last Sunday we baptized six more people, so now we will look forward to the day when we celebrate 200!

www.lifepointecc.com

Lifepointe Christian Church in Raleigh, North Carolina celebrated its fourth birthday on Sunday, February 24 by launching a second campus in nearby Wakefield. Stadia’s John Wasem was one of 595 worshippers present at the birth of Stadia East’s first “grand-daughter church.”

Lifepointe Christian Church in Raleigh, NC celebrated its fourth birthday today in a big way. A very big way. Simultaneous with celebrations at its Six Forks Theater location where the church began four years ago, Lifepointe launched its first extension site in the Marquee Cinema in Wakefield. The praying, strategizing, planning, and laboring over the past year paid off!

I arrived at the second service at the Wakefield site about 30 minutes early. The parking lot was loaded. The lobby was buzzing, colorful, and filled with energized people. The theater was over-flowing with literally every seat taken and people sitting on the stairs or standing along the perimeter. The worship and music was great. So engaging. When Lead Pastor Donnie Williams had the Six Forks service skyped onto the Marquee screen, both places lit up with joy!

A powerful video regarding truth, hope, and destiny preceded Donnie’s compelling message based on Ecclesiastes 1:2 and the Parable of the Rich Young Ruler in Matthew 19. The preaching was so articulate and captivating, especially in light of Donnie’s flu and bronchitis the days leading up to this launch. Donnie’s core thought was awesome and will bring people back next week – “My soul cravings are designed by God to lead me back to Him.”

The song that closed the 55-minute service was a special by the worship band and sung in an eerie minor key that captured the theme of the day and the weeks to come in a powerful way. Lifepointe nearly doubled in one week, as the total attendance at both venues was 950 – 595 at Wakefield and 355 at Six Forks. Wow! The Lifepointe staff and volunteer teams did a fabulous work for God, and as we like to say: “God showed up in a very big way!”

www.lifepointechurch.com

Video: Lifepointe Wakefield launch Sunday

Video: Lifepointe Wakefield promo

Lifepointe Christian Church in Raleigh, North Carolina held its second annual women’s retreat April 20-21. The theme for the retreat was “Barefoot” and focused on the subject of holiness. Lifepointe’s Cinda Williams shares her experience at the retreat.

Our theme for the weekend was taken from Exodus 3:5, "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." We packed a lot into the small amount of time we had together (less than 24 hours!). We had two women share briefly to get the sessions started, but then we used mainly small group time to dive into the Word together. By the end of the second session, the Holy Spirit was busy! We laughed together, cried together, prayed together, and worshipped together!

I know personally for my group, a trust was formed and women felt free to open their hearts to God and to each other. They were able to share some deep hurts that they were tired of holding onto, and tired of Satan stealing their joy, and were able to let go so God could work for the good! Praise God! We had a special time of prayer with a prayer walk that ended at the campfire, with s'mores of course!

Saturday we continued our lesson with a team building experience, a low ropes course! We also held a beading project, to express ourselves creatively, which for some we don't often get to do when we are home busy being moms. There was so much more, but to see it all come together with so many gifted women who want to serve God is such a blessing!

Thank you for all your encouragement and support!

Visit Lifepointe Christian Church at:
www.lifepointechurch.com

Michael and Kimberly Cottle married nearly 14 years ago while they were students at Cincinnati Christian University. Both blessed by strong Christian families, Mike and Kim have been involved in churches, including two new church plants, as long as they can remember. They have a passion for helping others grow close to Jesus and since 1993 have served churches in Ohio, Indiana and Missouri.

Their journey to church planting began with a brochure at the National Youth Leaders Conference in 2000. However, it was not until the summer of 2006 that God made it clear that now was the time. Michael says:

After much prayer and discussing various church planting opportunities, through Stadia we learned of the need for a new Christian Church on the rapidly growing northeast side of Columbia. From the first visit there in October 2006, it was obvious that Columbia was the right place and soon preparations began. Our church’s values will include depth & authenticity, adventure & teamwork, sacrifice & challenge, and innovation & creativity.

Planter: Michael Cottle (wife Kimberly, dogs Max and Montana)

Personal interests: Harley Davidson riding, music, reading, watching football and NASCAR races

Church Name: Crossmark, a Christian Church

Location: Columbia, South Carolina

Launch Date: Fall 2007

250 people attended the first service at Momentum Christian Church in McDonough, Georgia on Sunday, January 21. Lead Pastor Bart Stone shares pictures and all the details from a day when one visitor said, “I think my prayers have been answered.”

What a day!!! God is up to something great here! We had 250 in attendance and we figure we can count about 200 of that as our community. We were just blown away. The energy level was incredible and just a wonderful atmosphere. Words just don’t seem to describe it very well. We are contacting people who wanted to know more and we will be offering our first More on Momentum gathering Sunday, February 11 from 4 PM – 5:30 PM to share our story, vision, what partnership is, and what it means to be a follower of Christ.

We are so pumped up and I can’t tell you how proud I am of our team. They are incredibly gifted people who did an outstanding job. Plus, we all have spouses who are totally sold out to what we are doing. Our core team was top notch and we are so grateful for the incredible number of weekend warriors who served from Community Christian and Northeast Christian. We could not have done it without them.

We are so excited to be off the ground and running and now trying to keep up with what God is doing. We thank you all so much! Chapter 2 has begun. It was worth the wait and God’s timing, again, has proven faithful! Most importantly I want you to know that your investment in the kingdom will have a greater impact than we could ever imagine.

This is just one of the emails we received from a young guy:

“I attended Momentum Christian Church today and i have to say it was great. Over the past few months i have had a difficult time with my walk with god and just lately i have been trying to get back to who i was. I have been praying for the right church to go to and i think my prayers have been answered. I just wanted to say i am so glad this church was planted and i see amazing potential for it. I think this church will be life changing for me.”

It was an amazing day and God deserves all the credit. We, again, are just thankful to be a part of the ride. Thank you again for your belief in the vision here!! You are a part of this!

www.momentumcc.org

Momentum Christian Church, which launched in McDonough, Georgia on Sunday, January 21, celebrated its first three baptisms this Wednesday. Church planter Bart Stone shared photos and details from the “incredible” and “awesome” night.

Last night was Momentum’s first baptism service. We had three guys, and about 60 people from our church, gathered together at a backyard pool on Wednesday, May 9, 2007.

One of the new believers was a man in his late 40's. Momentum is the first church he's ever been in twice! We had another man who had been wrestling with this decision for a while. Intellectually he understood it, but could not get it in his heart that God would still love him and offer him grace after all he's done. Eventually he decided he many never have all the dots connected and that it was time to just surrender. Last was a 17 year old high school student whose family has become a part of our church.

It was an incredible night for these three guys, and a very important night for our new church. It was awesome. This is why we are here, and this is why you have partnered with us!

The Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States have traditionally not been reached in large numbers by Christian Churches. However, this region is arguably the most influential one in the world. Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland are strategic cities for the cause of Christ.

The Baltimore/Washington Church Planting Network has been created to plant outposts for the Kingdom that will claim Washington and Baltimore for Christ. The first church planted by this network will be in the Northern Virginia area of Washington, D.C. It is scheduled to launch the fall of 2007.

Any church or individual interested in financially supporting this important network should contact Dr. Tom Jones, Stadia East Regional Director.

Kevin Haah is a Korean-American church planter, starting a church whose goal is "to look like downtown Los Angeles." On Easter Sunday, Kevin held a “soft launch” of New City Church and welcomed about 70 people from multiple races and socio-economic groups.

Stadia’s Bruce White shared the details of this important day in the life of the young church:

We're partnering with a very exciting church plant in the heart of downtown LA. New City Church of Los Angeles is very different than most of our Stadia plants. The Planter, Kevin Haah, is Korean-American, and is planting a church whose goal is "to look like downtown." So far, he is succeeding. He has gathered a core team of 20+ people, and this group covers multiple races and multiple socio-economic groups (from wealthy loft-dwellers to those living on skid row). It's really something!

On Easter, Kevin did a "soft launch" to bring in more people so that he could enlarge the size of his core team. About 70 people showed up, and it was an amazingly diverse crowd. His plan is to connect as many of these people as possible to the church, and continue to build toward a launch in the fall.

They took 190 pictures on Easter. You can check out the church’s funky meeting location and see the diversity of the crowd by visiting the links below:

http://picasaweb.google.com/kevinhaah/NewCityChurch
www.newcitychurchla.com

Braselton Georgia’s New Community, which launched on February 25, 2007, celebrated its first three baptisms on Sunday, July 29. Church planter Chris Hoffman provided photos of – and the stories behind – New Community’s inaugural immersions.

Nancy and Lesslie are mother and daughter; two of a family of six that I met about two years ago while doing student ministry at NorthView Christian Church. Nancy’s daughter Sam was involved in our student ministry, but Nancy wanted nothing to do with church. Like many Americans, she walked away 20 years ago embittered, confused and hurt by the Catholic Church and she swore off religion and church forever. She was shocked to hear that NorthView was a safe place for her and her children if they ever wanted to “re-engage.”

Their family began visiting the church, and shortly therafter, Dawn and I began working on the church plant (the “Jackson County Project”). As it turned out, Nancy and her family lived in Jackson County and even if they didn’t know what they were getting in to, they felt like they wanted to help us start this church. As time went on in preparation to launch New Community, Alex (Nancy’s second oldest daughter) let me know that she wanted to be the first to be baptized at New Community. Through the months of starting this church, Nancy has been on and off the fence regarding baptism. She really was apprehensive but through our July Indescribable Series, she became ready to make this decision and take this next step in her faith. On July 29, we baptized this mother and daughter that helped start New Community.

Ed walked through our doors three months ago. You could say he stuck out because he is so tall (compared to me that is). And he had the typical “I’m a new person” look. We connected, and immediately he began telling me everything that is going on in his life. I have never experienced a first-time guest pouring their heart out like this. Ed was going through a pretty bad divorce and was completely distraught.

He grew up as a Jehovah’s Witness. When he was 18, he wanted to go into the military and was ex-communicated because of this. Ed walked away, never to return to any form or religious affiliation. Fifteen years later, after living life hard and having all kinds of issues with substance abuse, his marriage was falling apart and he had given up all hope. Ed told me that he literally had a plan to take his life, but when he got our direct mail, he decided he would give life one more weekend and he walked through our doors. The teaching that day was on how God wants to carry each of us through the storms of life…what amazing holy spirit timing! Ed walked in looking for something new, and walked away feeling hope for the first time. Two months later, I took his confession at a local Mexican restaurant, and on Sunday July 29, we immersed him into Christ.

www.newcommunityonline.com

Despite poor weather conditions, 251 worshippers attended the launch of New Community – A Christian Church, in Braselton, Georgia on Sunday, February 25. Lead Pastor Chris Hoffman described it as “one of the coolest things I have ever been a part of.”

I had no idea what to expect on launch day. We had done everything possible to get ready for this day. Our entire team was trained, ready and anxious for what God was going to do.

Friday’s forecast came with the news that a storm would in roll in Sunday morning at 9:00 AM and last until 11:00 AM. We were nervous and realized at this point it was all up to what God was going to do. Sunday morning came, the rains poured down and one family after the other showed up. It was absolutely one of the coolest things I have ever been a part of. We prayed for 200 people and 251 showed up. God completely exceeded our expectations and confirmed once again, our calling to Jackson County.

Our journey was different than most being that we spent only six months ramping up to this plant. But my coach, Mont Mitchell, is the man, our training at Assessment and the Equipping Lab through Church Coaching Solutions was incredible and Stadia was pulling for us the entire way.

The idea of planting started years ago while I was a student pastor, and eight years later it is hard to believe that the vision that God planted in my heart has come to fruition through New Community. What an unbelievable journey and it is just getting started.

www.newcommunityonline.com

New Heart Christian Church in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, after setting a non-Easter attendance record of 140 last Sunday, is looking to break the 150 mark in a big way this weekend with their first "Biker Sunday."

Church planter Caryl Strange explains:

Summer has been awesome for us. We had a record summer crowd Sunday of 140. Last night I baptized a man and he and his family joined the body. We will baptize another young lady tomorrow evening.

We have quite a growing biker fellowship. This Sunday will be our first "Biker Sunday." Our band will be playing biker music from 10:00 until 10:30. Our band can really kick it! We have several biker venders that will set up booths – the new local Yamaha dealership, the Harley dealership, Bikers for Christ ministry, BACA (Bikers Against Child Abuse) – and a biker safety course. We will have several motorcycles on stage and in the grand hallway for display. We will be having both local newspapers cover this and the excitement is high.

Following the service we will have a special "blessing of the bikes" and we will all ride off to lunch together. To open the message our band will be playing "Born To Be Wild," with a video of Phyllis and me riding away from our house. Just as the song comes to an end, we will fire up and ride my bike down the aisle to the stage. I will be preaching on Riding with Jesus. This should be an awesome weekend.

www.NewHeartCC.com

Northern California’s New Life Christian Church is scheduled to launch on October 1, but the church’s volunteer efforts are already attracting the attention of the local news media, including the Tri-Valley Herald newspaper.

Read the article here (.pdf).

The 2006 National New Church Conference is now less than three months away and current registration rates suggest the conference will sell out.

Conference coordinator Todd Wilson of Passion4Planting shares, "We've not yet decided where to cap the conference attendance – probably in the 800 to 1000 range – but based on our current registrations, I'm told that we will almost certainly sell out and have to shut off registrations."

"The interest in workshops has been larger than we initially anticipated. We had planned 36 workshops during 3 different breakout sessions. We are increasing that to at least 42 with 5 different breakout sessions. Additionally, we are adding large group Q&A sessions in the auditorium during the breakout sessions. This will provide extra time for attendees to spend with the conference speakers and leaders."

Early bird registration of just $99 per person is available through March 1. Don't miss your chance to be part of this incredible event! To register, or for more information, visit www.startingchurches.com.

On Sunday, September 9, church planters Dave and Anne Milam received the answer to “a prayer that we have prayed for over 10 years” when their son Noah came forward to be baptized. Noah’s was the first of 23 baptisms in two weeks at Kinetic, where Anne Milam said they were “front row to a miracle.”

The day after Noah’s baptism, Dave Milam wrote:

I’m not quite sure what to say. After this past Sunday, I am simply speechless. Sunday, hands down, was the most amazing day in our church’s short history!

At 2:00 AM that morning, we had a team of guys show up at the Starlight Cinema to help move in a 575 gallon baptistery into our movie theater. The baptistery arrived on a flatbed trailer and took several guys to just maneuver. After removing the door’s hinges to get this monster through the doorway, the baptistery was set in place.

It was at that moment that I got pretty nervous and honestly somewhat skeptical about what God might do with this pool of water. Apparently, I was not alone in my skepticism. My son, Noah, had talked about baptism earlier in the week, but his upcoming baptism was the only one of which I was aware.

After a short nap, my 6:30 AM Sunday morning ritual began. And so did Satan’s attacks. Basically, if it could go wrong, it did. But God had a plan…and God’s plans always prevail.

As I began my message, I honestly wasn’t sure if Noah was really going to be baptized. I mean, I really wanted baptism to be his decision. So, we made an arrangement: if he wanted to choose baptism, he was to come forward after I entered the baptistery water. If he changed his mind, he was to stay seated and I would give an alternate ending to my sermon.

I finished my talk. I entered the water. Noah didn’t move. So, I began my alternate ending (with great fear and trembling). Finally, Noah came forward and ushered in over 20 minutes of baptisms! What an amazing moment! It would have only taken one baptism to completely juice me, but this was unreal!

www.kineticchurch.com

Canton Georgia’s newest church opened its doors to the community on Sunday, October 7. Northern Hills Church, “a church of Christ family” that received training and other assistance from Stadia, launched with over 225 people in attendance. Church planter Tim Broadwell recorded his thoughts on the “much anticipated day.”

The much anticipated day of launch came with success! Every area in the children's program was filled. Sprout and Shout (0-24 months) had many more babies than arms...nine to be exact. Creation Station (2 to 4 years) had 17 kids and five adults and it was crazy. Spin City (K to 5) had 25 kids and they learned a new rap song about Joseph's life.

In the main worship, the group Broken came and led worship and inspired us all.We enjoyed great film clips and music videos, a brief testimonial from Adam Genger about his recent Walk to Emmaus, a Biblical message about pollution in the church (irrelevance, hypocrisy, and boredom) compared to the pure water that comes from the original source of God and His Son, and a powerful communion.

The majority of everyone present were people from the community seeking to find out more about Northern Hills. We couldn't believe how well our postcards connected!

The great Northern Hills launch team did an awesome job of set-up/take-down, greeting and reaching out to everyone who came. It has been a great year.... culminating in a wonderful public launch today.Now it's time to begin!!!!

www.northernhillsfamily.org

Helping Churches Plant Churches
Stadia Serves Alongside Other Ministries Dedicated to Church Multiplication

Irvine, CA – August 11, 2005 – Stadia: New Church Strategies announced plans today to join a new collaborative network of church-planting ministries with one common goal: to help churches plant churches.

As part of their ongoing effort to encourage a church multiplication movement in North America, Stadia will team up with other successful church-planting organizations – including Passion for Planting and Church Planting Assessment Center (CPAC) – to assess, train and coach church planters.

This decentralized approach will allow Stadia to reorganize its national staff and delegate more authority to its three widely-respected regional teams. President Marcus Bigelow will continue to cast national vision and serve external constituents as President-at-Large while Stadia pursues a new Executive Director to set ministry strategy and to assume oversight of daily operations. Larry Winger, CEO of Provision Ministry Group, Stadia’s parent ministry, will serve in that role on an interim basis during the search for a full-time Executive Director.

In addition to collaborating with other church-planting ministries, Stadia announced that they will continue to seek a growing number of partnerships with existing churches to create an expanding network of new churches.

Stadia has helped plant over 100 churches in its history, often by working with local churches to start their own “daughter” and “granddaughter” churches. Now, more than ever, Stadia believes they can truly multiply the number of Restoration Movement churches in North America by working cooperatively with other ministries to help churches plant churches.

Download our press release.

On October 26, with fires still burning throughout Southern California, church planter Wayne Monroe from Ranchland Church in San Diego County announced the church’s plan to establish a relief fund for its community of Rancho Bernardo.

As far as I know right now, everyone in on our church is safe and taken care of. Many of us were within a block or two of the fires. Some are waiting on electricity and some will have some smoke damage. But overall, God protected and blessed all of us.

I have been receiving calls from many, many places, friends, churches and organizations to offer us assistance (we have received calls from as far away as Iraq Peru!). Today, we will open a special bank account to receive funds to assist people. If you want to contribute this coming Sunday, you can make out a separate check to “Ranchland Relief Fund.” These monies will be accounted for separately from our church operational fund, but will be handled under our church’s non-profit status.

As we receive funds, anyone you know that has needs as a result of these fires can apply for funds. This is a time for us to help not only those in the church but in our community as well. Among churches that have called and offered assistance are: Saddleback Church in Lake Forest CA; Canyon Ridge Christian Church in Las Vegas NV; and local churches such as Citywalk, Lemon Grove, and North County

Three church-related organizations have called to offer assistance: Stadia and its parent company, Provision Ministry Group; Building Better Communities out of New Orleans; and International Disaster Emergency Service (IDES) out of Indiana. Also, one of our former members who now lives in Fresno has done extensive relief and benevolent work and he is coming to town to see how he can assist as well. This will be a time of ministry and it’s heartening to know we are surrounded by a bigger brotherhood willing to help

Overall, a disaster came our way and God’s protection was evident. But almost 2,000 homes were burned in our county, and it’s time for us to thank God for his mercy and mobilize our church family to help as many as possible.

www.RanchlandChurch.com

Stadia is pleased to present a Relational Discipleship seminar in partnership with Church Development Fund and Church Coaching Solutions coming up July 4th-6th at the North American Christian Convention in Kansas City, Missouri.

Real Life Ministries of Post Falls, Idaho is a phenomenally innovative church that has had a dramatic impact on their community through Relational Discipleship. They are a relatively new church plant (8 years old), yet are running 6,600 on weekends, with 6,000 in small groups – in a town with a population of just 18,000!

Founding Pastor Jim Putman and Small Groups Pastor Aaron Couch will share how churches nationwide can develop relationships and leadership to move people closer to Christ at this special seminar: July 4-6 2007 at The North American Christian Convention in Kansas City, Missouri.

Registration:
Email coaching@church-coaching.com or
Call (615) 517-5500
Location:
Kansas City Convention Center
301 W 13th St
Kansas City, MO 64105
For maps and directions, visit http://www.kcmo.org/cec.nsf/web/home

Stadia is pleased to present a Relational Discipleship seminar in partnership with Church Development Fund and Church Coaching Solutions later this month in Massillon, Ohio.

Real Life Ministries of Post Falls, Idaho is a phenomenally innovative church that has had a dramatic impact on their community through Relational Discipleship. They are a relatively new church plant (7 years old), yet are running 6,600 on weekends, with 6,000 in small groups – in a town with a population of just 18,000!

Founding Pastor Jim Putman and Small Groups Pastor Aaron Couch will share how churches nationwide can develop relationships and leadership to move people closer to Christ at this special seminar: October 19, 2006 at RiverTree Christian Church in Massillon, Ohio.

Registration:
$100 per person (lunch included) for up to 5 people, or
$500 (plus $10.00 each for lunch) for 5 to 30 people (from one church)
Email coaching@church-coaching.com or
Call (615) 517-5500

Location:
Rivertree Christian Church
7373 Portage Street NW
Massillon, Ohio 44646.
For maps and directions, visit www.rivertreechristian.com/portage/about/where.asp

Rick Gunn, former associate pastor at Yucaipa (California) Christian Church, has been hired to plant a church in Redlands, California in the fall of 2007. Rick has been ministering in Southern California for nearly three decades.

Rick became a Christian in High School and joined Crossroads Christian Church in Corona, California, where he was involved playing the drums in youth bands, and did summer internships working with junior high ministry. He attended Pacific Christian College (H.I.U.) and graduated in 1978 with a degree in youth ministry.

After taking a sabbatical last year and reading John Eldridge’s book, Wild At Heart, Rick was challenged with the question: "What would you want to do for God if you could get past your initial fears?" For Rick, the answer kept coming back, "Start a church!" The opportunity to do just that came at the same time. His wife, Sharon, felt the same calling at the same time, as did several others who encouraged them to pursue the vision. Rick says:

For the last 23 years my wife and I have spent nearly all of our days off in Redlands. We feel a connection to this community. It is a college town and has an emphasis on arts and young families. After my experience in youth work, young families and young adults have been a focus group in my ministry. I formerly taught in a coffee house style worship service at my past church, and Redlands seemed like a good fit for that style. It is a growing community. My desire to serve there matched well with Stadia's goal of planting a church in that same community.

My vision is "to help anyone seeking after God to become a whole hearted Christ follower." We want to create an environment and train people to have a heart to reach out to a community in a way they can relate to. We are willing to use all kinds of methods that would help an unchurched person feel an immediate connection without compromising the message.

This will be a very approachable church with a lot of chances to ask questions and build healing relationships with coffee and food in the service and have it be casual and fun. You can come in your T shirt and jeans and never feel out of place. Our focus is to present Christ in a very realistic and clear way anybody can understand. We want people to come out saying, "Of course. I can believe and embrace that. That makes perfect sense. No wonder God did things that way." We are calling it "Solid Ground Christian Fellowship," not only playing off of the coffeehouse atmosphere, but because we want this to be a safe place where people can share struggles, grow through them and build a foundation for a life that matters.

Planter: Rick Gunn (wife Sharon, sons Jason and Joel)

Personal interests: Walking, hiking, mountain biking, snorkeling, playing guitar, piano or drums, reading, movies (and playing the occasional video game)

Church Name: Solid Ground Christian Fellowship

Location: Redlands, California

On March 18, Impact Community Church in Sacramento, California celebrated its seven year anniversary. Pastor Barry Smith shares how, that morning, the church reached its goal of averaging one baptism a week for its first seven years.

Our seven year anniversary was celebrated on March 18, 2007. About six months ago or so, I decided to have a goal for baptisms (which I would normally not do). I set it at 364…which equates to one baptism a week, EVERY WEEK, since we opened our doors – for seven years straight. We were only five baptisms short going into the March 18 service, and we had three scheduled for that morning. It was the 2nd service and we ‘encouraged’ anyone that hadn’t been baptized, let’s do it TODAY! It was sort of tongue-in-cheek, but we really did push…and sure enough, during communion – another person came forward and got ready for their baptism.

So now we’re just one baptism shy of the goal. Are you kidding me? So Ernie and I were both saying, ‘who’d like to be a hero’? It felt like John Maxwell’s story of his goal to hit 300 in Hillham, Indiana. Sure enough, at the end of the service a gal came up and got baptized to close out our service. It was electric. It was one of the coolest feelings of accomplishment I’ve had in a while.

Congratulations to Barry Smith and the entire Impact team on seven years of life-changing ministry!

Visit Impact Community Church Online:
Impact Community Church

Shane Adkisson has been hired to plant a church in downtown St. Louis, Missouri in the fall of 2007. Shane is a native of Chicago, but he and his wife, Dee Dee, are graduates of St. Louis Christian College.

While attending St. Louis Christian College, Shane and Dee Dee served with the First Christian Church of Malden and then later with the Parkwood Christian Church in the St. Louis metro area. Upon graduation, they stayed in the St. Louis area and eventually ministered with O'Fallon Christian Church.

Most recently, Shane served as the Senior Associate Minister at Deer Creek Christian Church in the south suburbs of Chicago, the church he attended as a child, and the church he credits with sparking his dream to plant a church. Shane says:

When I was about three years old, my family hooked up Deer Creek Christian Church. Being a part of a dynamic, thriving, vibrant young church marked me. My family moved out of state during my teen years, but by then, I think I already had the bug and the dream has always been with me.

There were times that I struggled with whether this ministry dream was just my dream or if it was a Godly dream that He'd inspired. I went back and forth about that for several years. Along the way, the door of opportunity for involvement with a church plant seemed to crack a little for us. But, each time, as we prayed we became convinced that we weren't supposed to walk through those doors.

It wasn't until we came to a point of really surrendering the church plant dream that it seemed the Lord gave it back to us. Everything came together with Stadia and a handful of churches in St. Louis who have formed a Church Planting Network.

I wouldn't say it's been easy; however, it's been a ministry journey that's uniquely ours and one that would have been impossible without His intervention.

The St. Louis Project exists to develop and unleash a community of believers who are on mission with Jesus to reach St. Louis. It seems the renovations downtown are providing us with a visual metaphor. As these old buildings are being renovated into lofts, beauty and vitality are being created from decay and brokenness. The beauty in these structures will eventually pass away, but as followers of Jesus, we know that He specializes in taking the broken pieces of our lives and shaping them into something beautiful. I’m convinced that this beauty is not for our future in Heaven, but to hold out hope to the world in which we live.

We will be a people of faith who are known by love and are a voice of hope for St. Louis.

Planter: Shane Adkisson (wife Dee Dee, son Riley, daughter Shelby)

Personal interests: Coaching his kids’ soccer teams, watching "LOST" and (until it was canceled) "The Contender"

Church Name: TBD

Location: St. Louis, Missouri

Launch Date: October 2007

On Sunday, September 26, “Shepherd-Woodland Hills” celebrated its grand opening. Stadia’s Bruce White was one of more than 500 worshippers in attendance. He shared details – and photos.

The San Fernando Valley, north of Los Angeles, is one of the most ethnically diverse parts of Los Angeles County. Furthermore, this region of about 1.5 million people is increasingly unchurched…and underchurched. Churches of all kinds have been closing their doors in “the Valley” for the last 30 years.

As a result, there is a desperate need for new preaching points for the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Valley is also a strategically important place, because it is home to large numbers of people in the entertainment business. In addition to those who work in television, movies, or the recording industry, the Valley is one of the world centers for the pornography business. So if we can reach the Valley…we can have the kind of impact that will transform our culture.

Shepherd of the Hills Church in Porter Ranch is extending their reach throughout Los Angeles, and they have a vision for making an impact in the Valley. This past Sunday, September 23, they took another significant step in implementing that vision as they launched a new satellite campus: Shepherd-Woodland Hills.

Under the direction of lead pastor Caleb Kaltenbach, the Woodland Hills campus opened with a big splash. Anticipating a large crowd, the church launched with a two-service format. That proved to be a wise decision, as 564 people showed up for the first Sunday of worship.

The church is meeting at Woodland Hills Academy, a public Middle School located just off the 101 Freeway on a major street. Visibility and access are excellent! The church has plenty of space for worship, a greeting area, and rooms for children and youth.

Caleb has assembled a core team of more than 50 people, and their enthusiasm and energy are contagious. They created a very welcoming environment for all who came. The worship was rich and inspiring, presented by a multi-ethnic worship team. Following the worship, we listened to the morning sermon preached by Pastor Dudley Rutherford via video feed from the main campus in Porter Ranch. The Woodland Hills site will not be just a “video venue”; Caleb will preach live on a regular basis.

Stadia was able to assist Shepherd of the Hills in this important project by providing Assessment and Training for Caleb, and also by making a financial investment in the new church. We are excited at the potential impact of this new campus, and we are pleased to have the opportunity to work with the leadership of Shepherd as they reach out to a region that desperately needs the Savior.

www.shepherdwoodlandhills.com

Six new believers were immersed at Momentum Christian Church’s second baptism service earlier this month. Church Planter Bart Stone shared photos of the event and a few e-mails he received afterward.

We had our second baptism service a week ago. We had six people get baptized: Two guys, four ladies. It was awesome. One lady was 60 years old and she said, "It's about time I do this."

Here was one of the emails I received from a lady named Stephanie...
I hope you’re doing good. I just wanted to let you know that I would like to join in on the next baptism service. I think I am at a point in my life where I am ready to be a Christ follower. I really don't know of any other way to live now. I haven't mentioned anything to Pete about it yet, but I hope maybe he will want to join too.

Pete did end up getting baptized also and that was huge answer to prayer.

Here's another email we received afterwards...
I can't thank you enough for today. It feels like my relationship with Christ is so much stronger. I have been struggling with the concept of Baptism for about two years now and when you announced your plans for today, I knew God was calling me and telling me that it is time. I am so happy that God brought Momentum into my life. You probably have been told this by many of people but it never hurts to hear. God is doing great things with you and your messages are some of the best I have ever heard as a Christian.Thank you so much.

www.MomentumCC.org

In the midst of Stadia’s work to assist Journey Christian Church and the relief effort in New Orleans, God continues to bless us as we strive to plant new churches to reach new people. Three more Christian churches in the Southwest US opened their doors this past Sunday, September 11, 2005!

Life Spring Christian Church
Beaumont, California (Dwight & Carol Addleman)
213 people in attendance.

This is a “typical” Stadia church plant in an emerging community. Dwight Addleman is proving that age is not the defining issue in church-planting; he is one of our two 60-year old church planters and he has been doing a great job. September 11 was Week 1 of Life Spring’s multiple-week “Grand Opening Month.”

LifePoint Christian Community
San Diego, California (Ken & Tonya Hensley)
112 people in attendance.

This is a very atypical Stadia plant. LifePoint is a very laid-back, “artsy” church. They are meeting in a coffee-bar style worship environment. Perhaps most interesting of all, most of the people that have made a connection with the church had their first contact on the Web via Craig's List or MySpace.com. Like the church in Beaumont, LifePoint is in the midst of a Grand Opening Month.

Breath of Life Christian Church
Oxnard, California (Jose & Raquel Martinez)
140 people in attendance.

Another atypical Stadia project, Breath of Life is a CMF missionary church plant; Stadia have been assisting with Coaching and Training. Jose is striving to reach the established Hispanic population of Oxnard, so this is an English-speaking Hispanic church!

These three new churches reported seven decisions for Christ on Sunday, September 11. The most interesting one: a young man in Beaumont was driving down the street, saw a sign on a corner for Life Spring, and decided on a whim to stop in. He listened to Dwight's message, realized that he needed Jesus, and came up after the service to ask the question, “What must I do to be saved?”

Abundant Life Christian Church is set to launch January 27, 2008 in Sevierville, Tennessee (near Knoxville) but the church is already heading up a Community Partnership Food Drive that caught the attention of State Senator Raymond Finney. He wrote to church planter Jason Nida in appreciation.

Dear Pastor Nida:

I thank Abundant Life Christian Church for putting "legs" to its words about the love of Jesus.

Christmas should be a time of rejoicing, but it can be a time of sadness for persons in need. Thank you for helping to meet Sevier Countians' needs and providing hope for a better tomorrow.

I live in Blount County, but I will try to bring some food to your church, if I happen to be in Sevier County next week. Whether I am able to make it to your church, though, know that I am grateful for the love and concern of you and your church members.

Respectfully yours,

State Senator Raymond Finney

www.abundantlife.cc

After receiving attention from both the local news media and the general public, the Prayer Gallery begun by Highland Christian Church in downtown Asheville, North Carolina is looking to move from a temporary experiment to a lasting establishment. Highalnd’s Sherri McCready shared her excitement over the success of the Prayer Gallery in the HCC weekly update:

The Prayer Gallery is continuing! I think I have the faith to say, indefinitely. This week I arrived Monday at noon to five men waiting for me - they had a scheduled prayer gathering! Tuesday night, another group had a scheduled prayer gathering. Thursday, perhaps the biggest news of all, three Methodist pastors from the area came and prayed at noon and another came Thursday night! Praise the Lord!

This, my friends, is an answer to Our Lord, Jesus’ prayer for unity in John 17! We are always asking Him to answer our prayers; well, how about us answering His! We are always asking Him to heal our bodies; well, how about us healing His! This is evidence that the Holy Spirit is at work among us and we are thrilled at the potential of this Prayer Gallery becoming a house of prayer for Asheville and for the area churches to help in sustaining it! Please pray for this. Unity is one of the Major strong holds in this city; any crack in its foundation is a great sign of the Kingdom of God advancing here.

For more information about the Prayer Gallery, visit:
www.highlandchristian.com/prayergallery.html

306 worshippers filled George Greenaway Elementary School outside Vancouver, British Columbia for the launch of Westcoast Christian Church on Sunday, January 28. Pastor Kurt Kuykendall called it “amazing.”

I want to express our deep gratitude to God and to all of you who prayed Westcoast Christian Church into existence. We had a great day thanks to the incredible help from the people on our launch team and other sister churches who sent people to make everything work really well, especially our children's ministry.

God is indeed good, and He certainly had a plan to reach all kinds of people not connected with a church. We had 306 people show up altogether. Once both parking lots filled up, we knew we were in for something special. The atmosphere was pretty amazing. Please pray that many will return and continue their journey towards Christ.

We've just finished delivering cookies to each household that gave us their address info. It's a lot of fun to see the excitement in the eyes of the folks on our Launch Team...wow. That's the power of the mission of Christ when people get on board with it, and what a ride it is. Thanks again, everyone, and we appreciate each one of you.

www.westcoastchurch.info

On Sunday, September 2, The Tennessean newspaper ran an article on church plants in the Nashville area. Stadia's Bob Harrington was quoted at length, as was Stadia church planter Andy Hudelson. Bob and Andy shared about Stadia’s ministry and their own personal involvement in the life-changing ministry of new church evangelism. To read the complete article, with photos, click the link below.

http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007709020364

Kaleo Fellowship began changing lives in Bakersfield, California on Launch Sunday, January 13. Two new believers accepted Christ that morning! Jan Limiero, wife of Stadia’s David Limiero, was there to celebrate with the new church – and shared all the details.

Kaleo Fellowship made an impressive entrance into the Kingdom of God on January 13, beginning with a series entitled “The Elephant in the Church.” Lead Planter Brent Colaw took an honest look at the church today and the taboo topics that we too often ignore when they are glaring us in the face demanding a response.

The new church’s personality is obvious from day one. It intends to be different and make a difference on an individual level, a church level and a community level. And the church has already made a difference; two individuals were inspired on Kaleo’s first Sunday to make a decision to follow Jesus.

Kaleo’s bounce house outside the gymnastics facility gave families a relaxed chance to get to know each other after church while their kids played. Kaleo’s ice cream truck, with huge smiling faces of kids and families on the side, was parked nearby ready for the next community service event of giving away free ice cream and water. Table tents in the gym’s caf? tell about the church’s “Ten Grand for Good” grants (www.tengrandforgood.org) that will give ordinary people a chance to give back to the community by funding their ideas for making Bakersfield a better place.

Brent and Becky Colaw, lead planters, and Eric Star, associate pastor, have an obvious heart for Bakersfield and for the Church in Bakersfield. This new church is poised to make a deep impact on the heart of the community.

www.kaleo.cc

Who: Lead Presenters (DVD/Internet)

• Dr. Bob Harrington, President and Director of Church Coaching Solutions
• Todd Wilson, Director of Passion 4 Planting
• Pat Furgerson, Church Planting Solutions
• Jim Putman, Real Life Ministries
• Various current church planters who are doing it right now

What: A state of the art training program that equips church planters with the best knowledge of how to plant a church and then coaches them through the process which results in a high quality strategic plan for the new church at the end of the lab.

When: Tuesday, December 5th through Friday, December 8th, 2006

Where: Nashville, Tennessee

Why: A unique high quality of training in church planting. Church planters need to be trained and develop a good strategic plan:

• The best outline system ever produced to guide church planters through every step of a church plant (Converge by Passion 4 Planting)
• National leaders in training church planters (Wilson, Harrington).
• A cutting edge system of DVD and Internet training to prepare planters before they arrive at the Equipment Lab.
• An interactive training program that results in a high quality plan for the new church.

Cost:

• Church Plant Project: (Up to 5 participants)
• $999 for training (DVD/Internet and live)
• $150 for Converge Online Systems

For more details, or to register, e-mail coaching@church-coaching.com or call (615) 517-5500.

The National New Church Conference is the largest gathering of church planting leaders in North America. The 2007 conference, “Exponential,” is a cross-denominational gathering designed to connect, inspire, equip and challenge church planting leaders.

Speakers include Bill Hybels, Wayne Cordeiro, Ed Stetzer, Dave Ferguson and Bob Roberts.

Dates: April 23-26, 2007

Location: Orlando, Florida

www.exponentialconference.com

Use discount code 2007NNCC to get $20 off the early-bird rate of $129 when you register before February 15.

Who: Lead Presenters (Live or on DVD)

• Dr. Bob Harrington, President and Director of Church Coaching Solutions.
• Pat Furgerson, Church Planting Solutions
• Jim Putman, Real Life Ministries
• Todd Wilson, Passion 4 Planting
• Various current church planters who are doing it right now.

What: A state of the art training program that equips church planters with the best knowledge of how to plant a church and then coaches them through the process which results in a high quality strategic plan for the new church at the end of the lab.

When: Monday April 9th (8:00 am) through Friday, April 13th, 2007 (4:00pm)

Where: Nashville, Tennessee

Why: A unique high quality of training in church planting. Church planters need to be trained and develop a good strategic plan:

• The best online system ever produced to guide church planters through every step of a church plant (Converge, by Passion 4 Planting).
• National leaders in training church planters.
• A cutting edge system of DVD and Internet training to prepare planters before they arrive at the Equipping Lab.
• An interactive training program that results in a high quality plan for the new church.

Cost:

• Church Plant Project: (Up to 3 participants)
• $999 for training (DVD/Internet and live)
• $150 for Converge Online Systems
• Food, Lodging, and Travel Not Included

Preparation:
Participant needs to prepare for at least 3 weeks before the Lab - there will be online systems to utilize, video training to review, and books to do.

For more details, or to register, e-mail coaching@church-coaching.com or call (615) 517-5500.

Presented in partnership with:

Church Coaching Solutions is hosting two events in November: a bootcamp for church planters and a basic and certification training for those interested in the art of Coaching.

1. November Equipping LAB for Church Planters
   
   What: A state of the art equipping program that trains and coaches church planters through a process which results in a high quality strategic plan for the new church at the end of the LAB.
   
   Where: Nashville/Brentwood, Tennessee
   
   When: Monday, November 12 – Friday, November 16, 2007
   
   Why: A unique high quality of training in church planting. Church planters need to be trained and develop a good strategic plan:
   • The best online system ever produced to guide church planters through every step of a church plant (Converge, by Passion 4 Planting).
   • National leaders in training church planters.
   • A cutting edge system of DVD and Internet training to prepare planters before they arrive at the Equipping LAB.
   • An interactive training program that results in a high quality plan for the new church.
   
   
   Cost: Church Plant Project: (Up to 3 participants)
   • $999 for training
   • $150 for Converge Online Systems
   • Food, Lodging, and Travel Not Included
   
   
   Preparation: Participant needs to prepare for at least three weeks before the Lab. There will be online systems to utilize, video training to review, and books to do.
   
   Presenters:
   • Dr. Bob Harrington, President and Director of Church Coaching Solutions.
   • Todd Wilson and Pat Furgerson, Church Planting Solutions
   • Other church planting leaders including (live or on DVD) Jim Putman, Real Life Ministries, Vince Antonucci


2. Coach Training
   
   This November 16th and 17th in Nashville, Church Coaching Solutions is offering two levels of coach training: Basic and Certification Training. The basic training is included in the certification process, although some choose to participate only in the Basic Training.
   
   Basic Training ($650; 3 month process) includes:
   • Coaching 101 by Logan and Carleton
   • Three sessions with a coach-mentor
   • Six hours of training
   
   
   Certification Training ($2,500; 7-9 month process) includes:
   • Four days of on-site training in coaching
   • Nine sessions of professional coaching as "you are coached" and "as you coach others"
   • Coaching materials/handbooks
   • Online coaching tools
   • Coaching feedback systems
   • Self-understanding tools
   • Individualized coaching development plans
   
   
   Lead Presenters:
   • Dr. Bob Harrington, Church Coaching Solutions and Stadia
   • Ted Cornelius, National Coach Trainer

*Want to participate in both? Those who are interested in the Equipping LAB and Coach Training can easily both the Equipping LAB (12th-16th) and coach training (16th-17th).

Registration and Support:

Chad Harrington (admin@church-coaching.com) or 615.440.7585