“This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes” Psalm 118:23

In February of 2013, Harvest Bible Chapel was nothing more than a pipe dream. Jeremiah captures the calling God placed on my heart well when he wrote, “If I say, “I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,” there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot” (Jer 20:9). We had six interested adults and 4 of them had my last name, so not exactly the best start in the history of church planting. We set up our first vision meeting at the Woodcreek Golf Course and a whopping 17 people came; made up of my family, extended family, and a few bold individuals. While it was nice of the family to pad the attendance, I left with little promise and found myself back in the Word. “Be of good courage, and let us be courageous for our people, and for the cities of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to him” (2 Sam 10:12). In the end, I could be content in that. I could be content being spent on the passionate pursuit of building His church and allow Him to decide the depth and breadth of His use of me. Staying encouraged is easily one of the most critical battles of the early stages of church planting. I had to continue to remember that “he who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it” (1 Thess 5:24). I had to remember to commit my way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act (Ps 37:5).

We didn’t have any money (or people for that matter), so we met in Little Bliss Cakery’s side room that sat about 20 people comfortably. There, the Lord began to draw some of the key members of our launch team. Some way, some how God was beginning to spark an interest in people’s hearts about what we were doing; about a vertical church committed to God’s glory where we believed if you went after God’s design for church, our joy would be made full. Less man-centered. More Christ centered. This vision didn’t necessarily seal the deal, but it created some interest. Enough interest that we had to move out of the Cakery and into the Event Center at Raley’s because it fit our price range…free! My brother was the tech guy, we played worship music on an iPod, and I preached my heart out to 13 people. It was at Raley’s that the Lord began to see fit to build this idea into something more. But far be it from us to do more in our own strength, so we continued to stay on our knees and plead passionately to a Savior who loves and promises to build His church (Ps 116:2; Matt 16:18).

By the start of the summer, we found a way to grow to 25 committed, contagious, and courageous adults. By God’s grace, I began to befriend more people and learn about more local ministries until I happened to get an email from KFIA about being interviewed on Pastor to Pastor. It was an amazing experience because it blended a passion of broadcast journalism with my passion for church planting. I had a wonderful time on the show, and it opened up an opportunity to teach on the radio. Is anything too hard for the Lord (Gen 18:14)?

The summer had some ups and downs. Getting so close to the fall made the downs seem really down. “Your way was through the sea, your path was through the great waters; yet your footprints were unseen” (Ps 77:19). This was exactly how I felt towards the end of August 2013. By September, we were committed to launching despite starting the month with the need for more servant volunteers. In only the way God can, and when nothing seemed like it was moving along, our core group doubled in the month of September, which prepared us to launch on October 6, 2013. I’ll never forget that morning. I must have thought about what that day would be like for several years, and it was finally in front of us. And the truth is, God showed up in a powerful way and Harvest Bible Chapel would never be the same again.

2 years later there have been 50 people baptized, 12 small groups launched, 10 sermon series completed, 7 staff members hired, 2 services starting, and 1 church planted. And this is only just the beginning. We want more of His glory to be on display in His church. Truly, this is the Lord’s doing, and I marvel at it all.