Call to Plant
My call to Portland began subjectively as God grew a desire to plant in an under-reached city. Portland, Oregon is an Evangelical Donut. 10% Evangelical in the Suburbs, but only 2% Evangelical in the Urban Core. We are planting in the urban core, a place that desperately needs more churches.
I am increasingly convinced that God has wired me to be a “directional/visionary leader” in a church. I come from an entre-preneurial family and much of the day-to-day in church planting comes intuitively. I am a good fit for Portland because I am adaptive and open to new approaches and strate-gies. The traditional-attractional approach has been largely ineffective in Urban Portland the past 20 years, evidenced by the low percentage believers in the city (2%). My wife and I have very little problem in building relational bridges with unbelieving Portland. We have some shared values and are comfortable and effective in building relationships with unbelieving hippies/hipsters/artists/homosexuals/and eco-Pharisees.
Involvement in Acts 29
I have been friends with Kevin Cawley, Hunter Beaumont for several years. They were A29. Over the past year I have gotten to know Jeff and Caesar at Soma Communities. We are of the same tribe and I have learned a ton from them. I have benefited at the “brotherhood” level and at the tactical/strategic level.
God’s Grace
- God has provided laborers to help with the work in Portland.
- A dude I haven’t seen in months sent me a check for $15,000 a couple of weeks ago.
- God has given us favor with people.
- God has drawn unbelieving, skeptical Portlanders to Himself and we have baptized them.
Prayer
Pray that I would continually preach the Gospel to myself, my family, my church, and my city.
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