Archive for Acts 29
Acts 29 Year in Review
Mars Hill Church in Seattle is a supporting church of Project 2 Pillars. Recently, Mars Hill released their annual report which they graciously make available to the public. While there are a number of things that are amazing about what God is doing in and through the ministry of Mars Hill, I want to draw specific attention to one specific page of the annual report which documents some stats about Acts 29 and the growing breadth of a movement of the gospel through this church planting network of which we are apart:
- 70,000 – Visits to acts29network.org during April (monthly record)
- 62,000 – Average weekly worshipers across all Acts 29 churches
- 2,450 – People attended one of six Acts 29 boot camps in the past year
- 2,417 – Members on Acts 29′s Facebook page
- 800 – Pastors trained internationally in the past year
- 499 – New applicants in the past year
- 339 – Current applicants
- 256 – Total Acts 29 church plants (173 full members, 83 current candidates – we’re one of the 83)
- 135 – Church planter assessments in the past year
- 53 – New churches planted directly through Acts 29 churches in the past year
- 22 – New church planting coaches being trained this year
- 7 – Board members working in unity
- 1 – Approved Western European church planter
Strategic Partner Spotlight: Core Community Church
This post is intended to introduce you to our newest Strategic Partner – Core Community Church. Core is an Acts 29 church in Omaha and as of a few weeks ago, joins the ranks of Coram Deo and The Summit as well as Acts 29 as strategic partners of Project 2 Pillars.
Core was planted roughly nine years ago by Ethan Burmeister. I first met Ethan at an Acts 29 bootcamp here in St. Louis and to be honest, my first impression of Ethan was that of an eclectic mix between a pretty boy and a biker. I really wasn’t sure what to do with him. Over time, we began to converse more and Ethan eventually invited me up to introduce Project 2 Pillars to the folks at Core after one of their services. Following service that Sunday, I shared lunch with and got to meet the other pastors at Core. At that time, they expressed their interest in supporting the work we were up to in Lincoln, but really needed some time to pray and seek God’s will regarding what exactly that would look like.
As things have developed, I’ve also gotten to know Doug Stevens, the executive pastor at Core quite well and even was invited up to preach at Core on the topic of church planting a few weeks ago. Following my sermon, my family and I got to spend some time hanging out with several of the people of Core and have grown to deeply repect and appreciate the work that God is doing in and through His people there.
As a strategic partner, Core is helping Project 2 Pillars in some specific ways – namely through financial support, informal mentoring and coaching, as well as networking and connecting us with folks in Lincoln (because as I’ve said before, everyone in Omaha knows someone in Lincoln). In addition, I’m grateful for the brotherhood that exists between our two efforts which are really the same effort to glorify Jesus and proclaim the gospel.
Core meets at the Omaha Playhouse on Sunday mornings. You can learn more about Core by visiting their website and by following their Pastor’s Blog. In addition, I would also encourage you to check out the Core Vision Video linked below and listen to an especially helpful sermon on the history of Omaha and the history of Core preached by Pastor Doug Stevens which you can find on their Sermons Page (the sermon is entitled “Omaha” and was part of the ‘Movement’ series they just concluded).
New Strategic Partner: Core Community Church
I am excited to announce a new strategic partner for Project 2 Pillars. As of this week, Core Community Church in Omaha has been added to the ranks of Coram Deo, Summit, and Acts 29. After spending some time with the folks up at Core this past weekend, I’m really excited to see how this relationship develops as we, as churches, work to advance the gospel in the Lincoln/Omaha area.
Watch for a Strategic Partner Spotlight post coming soon on this new partner.
Mars Hill Church Partners with Project 2 Pillars
I received news over the weekend that Mars Hill Church in Seattle will be supporting Project 2 Pillars. Mars Hill Church is lead by Pastor Mark Driscoll whom started the Acts 29 Network of which we are a part. As Mars Hill has grown to what it is today, it has not lost its central focus on church planting — committing over $710k total to multiple church planters all over the world this coming year (via).
The partnership will consist of a relationship with one of the specific campus of Mars Hill (I have not yet been told which one). They will provide some financial support while we advance the gospel in Lincoln and report back to them how it is all going. In addition to financial support, a loose-knit coaching relationship will develop between myself and the supporting campus pastor.
Please join me in welcoming Mars Hill to the growing list of supporters of Project 2 Pillars.
Please join me in
Strategic Partner Spotlight: Coram Deo
This post is intended to introduce you to one of the strategic partners of Project 2 Pillars, namely Coram Deo. 
Coram Deo is a church plant that was started in downtown Omaha by Bob Thune in the fall of 2005. I first met Bob through the Acts 29 Network when looking for A29 churches in or near Lincoln. The initial email exchange (back in ~April of 2008) went something like this:
Me: You don’t know me…I’m from St. Louis…I think God is calling me to plant a church in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Bob: Sweet – I’ll be in St. Louis next week, let’s get together over coffee.
As it turned out, Bob had originally felt called to plant in Lincoln but later felt God turn him towards Omaha. Over coffee we talked about church in general, my calling, and Acts 29. Through that conversation, he encouraged me to submit to the assessment process of the network which I underwent last fall. Bob then led the assessment team (there were three others on the team) that went on to grant us conditional approval to plant with A29. Over the last year then, the relationship with Coram Deo has grown to what it is today. Bob and the other guys at Coram Deo (Will, Kendall, Justin) have all been a huge source of encouragement and coaching during that time.
As a strategic partner, Coram Deo is helping Project 2 Pillars in some very specific ways. First and foremost is an informal coaching and mentoring relationship where I can simply bounce ideas, seek counsel and wisdom, and learn from someone who has done this before. The second way in which Coram Deo is helping is by way of financial support. It has been a huge blessing to have a church like Coram Deo come behind us so quickly and willing to support us financially at the level that they are. It took an initial hefty load off my shoulders (and provided some hefty encouragement) for Coram Deo to agree to support us in this way.
Beyond coaching and financial support, Coram Deo is also helping dramatically in the logistics of fundraising allowing us to do all of our fundraising under their existing non-profit status. They are also helping to keep track of contributions made, generate reports, and provide year-end tax documentation to all of the contributors of Project 2 Pillars. Finally, they have been willing to share their color copier which, according to my calculations, has saved Project 2 Pillars at least a couple of hundred bucks thus far (thanks, Barb).
Everyone in Omaha knows someone in Lincoln: they either grew up there, went to school there, have family their, friends there, etc. As such Coram Deo has served as a great help in providing some early contacts in Lincoln. Some have been potential launch team folks, some have been fellow pastors in Lincoln, and some have been simply good people that we’ll connect with to discuss God’s kingdom and the gospel in Lincoln.
The final way in which Coram Deo has been a partner in this is simply through brotherhood. It has been a joy to visit Coram Deo with my wife and family, stay with the Thunes, and get to know their family. It has also been a joy to talk shop with Bob at the pub and engage Will and Justin through seminary.
Through coaching, mentoring, financial support, logistical support, and brotherhood, Coram Deo has modeled what it means to be partners for the gospel.
You can learn more about Coram Deo by checking out the Coram Deo Website, the Coram Deo Blog (also listed in the far right column under Relevant Feeds), and the Coram Deo Vision Video below:
