April 2010

I put new roofs on three houses this past week (well...I managed the projects).

The life of domestic missionaries in Burleson, TX continues to baffle and astound us all. 2010 has gotten started with a whirlwind of seemingly random activity (unusual for our family, I know).

For starters, many of you are aware that the Christ Journey community and several friends in various locations decided to engage in a shared commitment to prayer and scripture reading. From January 1 to February 16 we spent six days a week reading through substantial passages of scripture and then processed our reading together on Sundays. During this time we read through Isaiah, Micah, Haggai, Hosea, Zechariah, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts and Ephesians. We also spent time each day reading and praying over Luke 10:2, begging the Lord of the Harvest to send out workers into the field, asking that we may be those harvesters and that we would encounter those God was preparing to become harvesters as well.

Words cannot describe the impact that this has had. It was incredible to witness the ways in which the Holy Spirit opened scripture to our community and opened our eyes to miracles occurring all around. We came to expect our worship gathering each week to be opportunity to replay the miracles of the previous week and to anticipate even greater transformations in the coming week...what a novel thought for the people of God!

During this season we witnessed no fewer than a dozen NEW connections with broken people in search of something. Friendships were begun with exhausted single moms, angry dads and frustrated grandparents. We “randomly” reconnected with a few high school friends and had “chance” encounters with strangers.

Coming into this season, Chris and I both had some friendships that had developed over the past couple years but which seemed stuck. We had no idea how to help these friends take the next step in their journey...until we began praying more regularly and more specifically. Some of those friends have now shared dinner and spiritual conversation at the Chappotins’ house. I spent a morning at Denny’s with another of those friends, describing what it would look like to begin a house church in his living room.

Chris and I have both had friends who are either avowed atheists or who have said they have no use for church (regardless of whether or not there is a God) say to us in the past several weeks, “That is a Jesus I could get behind. Why haven’t I heard of this before?”

Over the last couple months, I’ve gotten to know a young man who is trying to leave behind a life of selling drugs and stolen merchandise. He’s already spent considerable time in jail. This past week we had a conversation about the radical new kingdom that Jesus came to announce. A kingdom that functions with a different understanding of power, success and wealth. The reign of God announced by Jesus is a direct attack against the systems of power fed by greed and manipulation. His response, “I like this. Is this way ever going to be possible?”

Our first season of reading was so transformational that we and the Chappotins have now completed our second round...and we’re making plans for what we’ll cover in round three.

I wish I could say that this amazing experience has solved all our frustrations and struggles. It hasn’t. Not even close. But it has certainly strengthened our framework of faith in order to accept those struggles.

The reality is that to reach many of the broken and hurting people in our community, many of whom have been burned by “Christians” or the church, we must go to them. Creating the newest high impact worship gathering or glossy invitation mailer will not get their attention because they aren’t interested in attending any religious gathering. A rocking worship band is cool...for people who are looking for Christian worship music. A fantastic children’s and youth ministry is attractive to those who are looking for a Christian place to take their kids. But what about those who aren’t so sure they want Christians teaching their kids anything?

To reach these broken people, we need to have a presence of hospitality in our neighborhood. We must be actively praying for God to open our eyes to those he’s allowing to cross our paths. We need to be inviting our kids’ friends and their parents to the park, and if Sunday morning is when they are available...

There’s a question that Chris and I have been asking people lately, “How long do you need to sit and listen to stories of Jesus before you are ready to share those stories with others?” I’ve known of good, kind, loving people who sit in Sunday school classes every week for decades on end without ever feeling that they are ready to invite someone else to follow Jesus. Why is that?


We realize that our goal must go beyond merely planting churches. Our goal is to call people to become fully devoted disciples of Jesus. Fully devoted disciples of Jesus are those who hear the words of Jesus and put them into practice; they make disciples who in turn make disciples. These disciples certainly worship together (we are still planting churches!) but they refuse to simply form a club that meets weekly. They are on mission together to be like the one they worship.

This is much more difficult than just planting churches...which isn’t an easy thing to begin with! Please continue to join us in prayer for the harvest and harvesters in the south Fort Worth area.

Now back to that comment about roofs...

This school year I’ve been substitute teaching to cover the balance of our financial needs. We have been so blessed to have such a large group of friends and family supporting us financially - some of you have now been partners with us for two years! We know that many of you have been giving, not out of your abundance, but sacrificially. We cannot thank you enough. Truly there are times that I am kept from despair by the realization that so many people believe in us and are praying for us. It is an honor to be entrusted to this ministry by God and supported in it by you.

In addition to subbing I began the process for obtaining certification as a junior high/ high school teacher. However, it became apparent that we weren’t going to be able to make it to September before that more substantial paycheck would possibly come along. So we continued moving forward in faith, praying that God would provide an answer.

We believe that answer was provided through a phone call from a friend I haven’t seen since 10th grade. David works for Quick Roofing here in the metroplex and invited me to join his team as a sales rep / roofing contractor.

After some time of prayer and deliberation we decided to go for it. I’m still subbing some, but mostly I’m devoting a large amount of my time learning and developing a customer base as a roofing contractor. It has been so promising that my little brother has decided to join me as well.

After this summer I will only have 1 class remaining in my DMin work (with just my doctoral project remaining), I do not anticipate subbing next year, and as my customer base and referrals grow in roofing, time spent “pounding the pavement” will decrease. I am hopeful that a more healthy and stable lifestyle is within reach.

We feel called to devote our lives and our time to proclaiming resurrection in the midst of darkness and pouring ourselves out for those who are skeptical and wary of the Christians; for those who desperately need to hear the good news of hope and new life. It appears that, at least for the time being, to do so faithfully I need to develop a “tent making” approach as Paul did at different points in his missionary journeys.

Such a transition is difficult and slow. I’m working very hard to keep all the plates spinning, but I continue to need your help. We are in a particularly vulnerable position right now and over the next year. In order to get this new job off the ground without abandoning my church planting and evangelistic calling, I will need continued support during this period.

If you are currently a financial partner with us, we hope that you will continue with us over this next year. If you are not currently, would you please consider doing so? Perhaps you have friends or a congregation that would be willing to contribute to this specific goal.

There are people right here in our own backyard who have never heard the gospel. Our Lord Jesus has called me to announce the arrival of the Kingdom to these very people, to proclaim good news to the poor and oppressed. I readily acknowledge that I will not be able to fulfill my calling without the support of God’s people in this land - this is a call that must be lived out in and supported by the community. And I am convinced that God wouldn’t have it any other way.

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December 2009

O Come, O Come Emmanuel and ransom captive Israel, that mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appears. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!

This is one of my favorite songs and favorite times of year. I think what I love most about Christmas time (actually, the Advent season) is the anticipation. So often our life is simply the never-ending list of things to get done, bills to pay and problems to solve. Each day looks suspiciously like the one before and there isn’t much to look forward to beyond the weekend.

But Advent cultivates a much more appropriate attitude. Everywhere we look people, including many who have no idea why, seem to be waiting for something to happen.

For some it might simply be longing for the next shiny gadget or useless doodad. BUT, I think that even in the hearts of the most consumeristic and self-centered person, it is the Holy Spirit who is fanning the flames of anticipation.

The past couple months have been a challenge for our family and the Christ Journey community. Many of you know that I’ve had to take on another part-time job in order to make ends meet. I’ve been substitute teaching anywhere from 3-5 days/week in Mansfield. Adding this 25-40 hour/week job to my full schedule has not been easy, but it hasn’t been all bad either. I’ve been able to develop some friendships among teachers and students, particularly at Legacy High School where I try to do most of my subbing.

While the added work load has made family time a little more difficult, we’re slowly starting to develop some rhythms. The boys are all growing and doing well. The most life changing development has been Josiah’s decision to pursue a career as a super-villain. We are convinced that God blessed us with this talented and energetic mastermind to keep us from feeling too confident about our parenting skills!

Since my last update I’ve lead a Sabbath retreat for about 25 youth ministers, finished my CoachNet/Mission Alive certification as a ministry/missionary coach, completed another course for my D.Min. at SMU Perkins and applied for the emergency teacher certification program with iteachTEXAS.

Each of these play an important role in our process of working toward being self-supporting for the long-term. Retreats and coaching are important for work here in Burleson with Christ Journey and new house churches. However, they also provide an opportunity for some additional income from time to time and are a part of the leadership program I’m developing through SMU.

This spring I’ll be working with my project advisor on a guided study/reading course to dive deeper into issues of new monasticism and will write my first draft attempt at a 2 year proposed curriculum for training “lay leaders” in a new monastic/missional ministry context.

This will be the first concrete step toward launching what we hope will be both an accredited program for affordable missional/monastic leadership training within SMU/Perkins and also will serve the Christ Journey and Mission Alive communities as a residency program for church planting and missional leadership training.

The iteachTEXAS thing...well, we do what we must to continue living out this calling. We are very grateful for our friends and family who’ve supported us financially and for those who continue to do so. However, as we’ve begun year two of our work in this area, the reality of our financial situation has been less than optimum. The church that had partnered with us during year one was not able to renew this year. We were blessed last year with some substantial special one-time gifts and one year commitments. And as we continue to mourn the passing of some very special people in our lives, the pain and regret of not seeing their name on an envelope each month goes well beyond finances.

We rejoice that several more friends and family have teamed up with us financially However, we have not, as of yet, been able to connect with enough new partners for the upcoming year. Part-time jobs have filled in the gaps so far, but unless we have some unexpected breakthroughs in fundraising, we are going to need something more substantial.

I would not consider teaching high school to be my life’s calling and do not plan to make a long-term career out of it. With that said, I do have a deep love for teaching, a heart for connecting with teenagers and (I believe) a certain level of giftedness in both. The teaching schedule should allow me the flexibility to finish my work at SMU, continue worshipping with and serving the Christ Journey community on Sundays, and connecting (albeit less than I would like) with our friends in Shenandoah and other areas.

If I am able to find a job teaching this next fall, we will still have 9 months to cover financially. I hope to lead retreats and do some coaching this spring/summer, but as of right now we are in need of around $11,000 to make up the shortfall of our current support level and expected income from subbing (those summer months are a big question mark!)

We count on your prayers and we continue to ask (as a friend of ours is known to say) that, “the God who owns the cattle on all those hills will sell a few for us.”

In addition to our personal family struggles, the Christ Journey family has experienced some serious challenges due to finances as well.

Our desire is to emulate Christ - The One who ate with everyone, offered compassion and company to sinners and the broken but who issued a very strong challenge to those who would be called disciples. We are seeking to function as a community - involved and invested in one another beyond scheduled worship times. And we are truly concerned about connecting with those who do not know about the Community of God which is available through Christ.

We are connecting with people in racquetball courts, restaurants, classrooms and front yards. The development of relationships based on love for others is powerful. No one is required to get their act together before they’re welcome to share a meal. But the call to follow Jesus is still an invitation to “come and die.” And this message has always received a mixed response.

Make no mistake, ministry is happening, the good news is being proclaimed to those who haven’t heard and hurting people are finding a place of healing in the Body of Christ, but that doesn’t always translate into money in a bank account.

Because of our financial struggles Christ Journey is no longer gathering in Old Town on Sundays - currently we are meeting together at the home of Mike and Pam Toole, who have a wonderful house that was literally built for such hospitality. Also it has become necessary for Chris to take on a bi-vocational approach. In addition to a couple part-time jobs, he too is getting emergency teacher certification.

While our current situation may leave some things to be desired, we believe that this is a tremendous opportunity for the work of planting churches in this area. Christ Journey is being forced to think seriously about what it means to live out our faith in community; the opportunities for shared leadership abound and we have a perfect setting in which to imagine together.

I leave you with a condensed snippet from a book I read recently which heightens my excitement about what we’re experiencing together:

“[The desert monastics] knew something was wrong with the Church, but they couldn’t see any alternatives from where they were. Their location blinded them, holding their imagination captive...

Why does God call the people of Israel out into the desert to receive the Law and learn a new way of life?...I think it’s because God wanted Israel to learn to see something that they could not see from Egypt. They had been blinded and held captive by Pharaoh’s dominant system...

They needed to go into exile, to live as aliens and strangers in a land that didn’t belong to them so they could remember who God had called them to be...In a land that they did not own and where they were not in control, God’s people remembered the desert vision and imagined new ways of living it out in all the world.” From Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove’s New Monasticism, pg 77-80.

May the Lord expand our ability to both anticipate and experience life in the renewed Kingdom!

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August/September 2009

We are rapidly approaching the one year anniversary of our move to Burleson for the purpose of mission work in the south Fort Worth region. I’ve tried to send regular updates over the past months and on the eve of a new school year I submit this expanded description. (If you haven’t gotten our regular updates via email and would like to, let me know!) Great things have occurred in our lives and the life of our community and we’d like to tell you about some of that. I’ll also m

ention up front that our ability to continue in this ministry depends in part on the willingness of other Christians to partner with us. More on that in a minute...

Family

Its amazing how much Conner beginning school has affected our whole family! He loves it - his teacher, Ms Scarpello, is doing a great job helping him take assignments to the next level. Since he's already reading and spelling on a significantly higher level we were concerned about how much trouble he'd be getting into. 

Toward the end of the first week he'd starting making comments about the classwork being boring. As soon as his teacher caught wind she immediately began challenging him to do more. 

For instance, instead of writing the letter "A" he writes a word that begins with "A" and perhaps draws a picture of that word. We're so glad that God answered our prayers with an attentive and caring teacher for Conner's academic debut!

Micah is attending the pre-K at Burleson CofC (where Conner was last year) and he is also very excited. He is different from Conner in so many ways, but I think they both share a love for school and being around other kids in that type of environment. He is really coming into his own with his crazy imagination. There is no telling what that kid will come up with next.

As for Josiah...I think he is about to give his mother a heart attack. We absolutely love his personality: he's full of fearless curiosity. He climbs and jumps and falls and cries and runs away to climb, jump and fall again. Nothing is safe from this destructosaur anymore! But he is full of life and energy and is growing like a weed. We are a better family because of Jo-Jo.

Meanwhile, our mission work in the south Fort Worth region continues to progress in surprising ways. Our approach is different from that of many church plants in that we are not advertising or placing our focus on a high energy seeker-sensitive Sunday morning worship gathering. Our desire is to 1) reach out to our neighborhoods and community and to 2) connect with those people who would not attend a new church plant’s worship gathering no matter how well advertised or relevant. Many of the people that I’m cultivating relationship with have said in no uncertain terms, “I don’t trust Christians, Church or the God they worship.” 

We believe that it is the call of every Christian to live their faith in the midst of people such as these; to love them and to pour themselves out on their behalf. We believe that each Christian is a missionary. That isn’t to say that everyone is an evangelist and must be prepared to give a polished sermon or Gospel presentation. But we should be prepared to give an account of our faith to those who ask (Colossians 4) and mostly we should all be living INTENTIONALLY in such a way that people see our good deeds and are moved to glorify God (Matthew 5:16, 1 Peter 2:12). 

And let me tell you, I’ve seen this happen. I have heard it said of people here - as I did in New Orleans during disaster relief work - “If this is what Christians are supposed to be like I may need to rethink my assumptions about God.”

We don’t expect people to carry around gospel tracts or attempt to segue every conversation into a sales-pitch for church - in fact we discourage those inauthentic relationship-killing activities. However, being an undercover Christian isn’t the goal either. We want people to know that Jesus is forming us into precisely the kind of people that they enjoy inviting over for dinner.

Rachel and I are hoping to be able to afford to move into a home in a neighborhood soon where we can invest in relationships in these ways. Currently we are blessed to live on the same property with a Christ Journey family. We have really enjoyed this opportunity to live communally with them (the boys have really loved sharing a swimming pool!) and like the Kennemers in Corpus Christi, Thigpens and Prudes in Dallas, Coalwells and several others in Mandeville, the Myers have become surrogate parents/grandparents to our young family.

Christ Journey 

My role here in Burleson/south Fort Worth is primarily that of missionary and equipper of local church planters (more on that in the Shenandoah section). Christ Journey Church is our worshipping community and I am blessed to be able to use my gifts of teaching and preaching (and my still developing musical abilities!) to serve my family. 

This first year has given me a chance to work with our spiritual formation process. I’ve developed and implemented two new retreats; worked with Chris to develop a yearly spiritual formation calendar which focuses on the cultivation of rhythm and seasons, with each season anchored by a retreat event. We’ve addressed the focus and rhythm of our house churches, and Chris has done some great work this summer with formation groups (groups of 2, 3 or occasionally more that meet together for prayer, study and shared commitment to mission). 

Our formation groups focus on sharing the life of mission together. There is Bible study, discussion and often accountability, but what we’re really emphasizing is participating together in the life of faith. Our formation groups have thrown parties for their disconnected, not-yet-Christian friends; they’ve passed out water to construction workers, planned and instigated community picnics and perhaps most radically, gone across the street to meet their neighbors! 

Chris and I continue to share the preaching responsibilities and work together with Ryan Kimball and Debra Osborn in planning our worship gatherings. Chris and I are both ready to address the pastoral needs of Christ Journey and are richly blessed that this community does not sit around and wait for us to do it - caring for one another in times of need is something that Christ Journey does unbelievably well. 

Rachel continues working with our preschool children’s ministry and we’re both very committed to the life of our church community. We don’t have a flashy children’s program here. What we do have is a commitment to raising our children as members of Christ’s body; as participants in the community, not merely a tool to attract their parents. It has been great to see our kids find opportunities to serve and worship and play right alongside adults. (The picture on the cover of this packet is from a trip to take cookies to the folks at Trinity Mission Nursing Home.)

The other notable area of Christ Journey ministry that we’re involved in is our connection to and friendship with Harvest House. We continue to volunteer to open the thrift store one Saturday a month and I am excited that word has spread and there is currently another church group considering taking responsibility for a different Saturday each month. 

We also continue to invite the volunteers, staff and clients of Harvest House to join us on the last Tuesday of each month at Rosa’s for a shared meal. We aren’t just feeding the poor, we are developing friendships around a shared table.

And, we have been able to take advantage of Chick-Fil-A’s First 100 event to benefit Harvest House and the poor in our area. Whenever a new CFA opens they give away 52 coupons good for a #1 combo to each of the first 100 people in line. It is a big event, people begin lining up 24 hours in advance and the CFA people basically host a big party for those willing to camp out in a parking lot. We decided that if a group were to attend a grand opening they could each give half of their tickets to Harvest House and be able to provide dozens of meals for hungry people, while still taking plenty of coupons home for their family. We’ve attempted this as a group twice now. 

We were thwarted the first time by scores of college kids who arrived incredibly early! However, when word got out that we’d driven to Austin only to turn around and drive home, a friend from Tammany Oaks went and told our story to the Covington CFA...and the manager gave her 25 coupons for us to donate to Harvest House! Were recently able to donate another 52. So far that means we’ve provided 77 meals through this little project!

Shenandoah

Our work with the Shenandoah Townhomes community continues to be a source of excitement and encouragement. If you haven’t heard before now, I’ve been working among families in this small community for the past several months. We’ve already planted one house church and the transition of leadership in that house church has happened and a local couple is about to be commissioned to serve as church planters in that community. I am also looking towards the establishment of some new discussion groups, Bible studies and/or house churches through other persons of peace in that community (Matthew 10). 

The property manager of Shenandoah is now a member of our current house church and has assured us that when the time comes for several house churches to gather together on a Sunday morning or some other time for worship, the clubhouse is available to them free of charge - provided the gathering is open to all residents of Shenandoah (which is a stipulation I think we can accommodate!)

Members of the Shenandoah house church have started a Neighborhood Watch and organized community picnics this summer. Last spring Robin Hunter (the Hunters are the hosts and new leaders of the house church) started an after-school homework club which we hope will happen again this year. There’s been talk of a support group for single mothers (there are a lot in Shenandoah) and an emergency care team which will help families who experience sudden job loss, serious illness or death, etc.

Our prayer is that through these efforts there will be light where before there was darkness, hope where there was despair and life where there was death. 

Denny’s

I love my time at Denny’s. I am now a well known regular; the waitstaff and managers not only tolerate but seem to enjoy my presence. We have great conversations. From what I can gather, for a while I was “that guy who always comes in and drinks coffee.” Then I was “that church guy that doesn’t get in your face about church.” And now to several folks I’m known as “Bret”, I am becoming a part of the community here. There are about 8 people with whom I have developed deeper relationships with and 4 or so that engage me in regular spiritual conversations. It probably isn't appropriate to give much personal detail on my friends in this public setting, but if you'd like to hear stories, I love to tell them!

Huguley Fitness Center

When we moved to Burleson I committed to taking better care of my body. I’ve tried to develop a healthier sleep schedule (which has amounted to waking up earlier...I’m still working on the going to bed earlier part), eating better (I hardly ever have a Dr. Pepper anymore...but I’m not going to research the impact of my coffee intake) and exercising regularly. Chris and I have been trying to play racquetball 4 or 5 days a week for nearly a year now and it has had numerous benefits. 

The most exciting part is that we have developed friendships with a large number of people who work and workout there in the mornings - some have even joined us for our Sunday morning worship! While some of our friends are Christians, several are not and I am honored that God has brought me into their lives and them into mine. Recently it seems that the relationships have launched forward and I’m praying that this is the precursor to greater opportunities for us to share in the life of Christ with them.

Since beginning my new work schedule (more on that in a minute) I'm not able to play racquetball much anymore. Hopefully I'll figure out a new exercise routine that will work. For now I pray that God will continue to bless Chris with the opportunity to develop these relationships. Please join me in this prayer.

Doctor of Ministry

This summer I began work on a degree in evangelism from SMU. This is considered a practical or professional degree (meaning its focus is on the practice of ministry more than research) and the whole program is structured around my doctoral project which is the development of a program of intensive on-the-ground training for people interested in church planting and missional/incarnational church leadership. I am very excited and have my eye on a location here in this region where I’d like to focus at least part of this project. More on that in a future update.

Some people have asked if it is a good idea for me to be taking on the expense of a degree at SMU right now, considering our unstable financial situation. It is true that my undergraduate degree came with a large side order of student loans. Since then I have worked very hard to keep my education from being any more of a burden on my family than it has to be. So we took the distance option for grad school which meant I had access to fewer resources but also received an 80% discount on tuition. 

SMU is even more affordable because my hard work has been rewarded with a full scholarship during the first half of my course work and a good chance for the second half to be covered as well. We, as a family, have decided that this is indeed a good time to pursue this degree.

Finances

The reality is that finances are an issue for us. When we moved to Burleson last October we had enough money pledged and on hand to cover our full support for four months. Our commitment to working in our neighborhoods and among skeptics and the broken/hurting folks we encounter “as we are going” means that it will likely be some time before Christ Journey is financially self-sustaining. 

We’ve discovered that missions committees are struggling to view domestic missions as legitimate place to use missions funds and thus often want to see a thorough business plan leading rapidly to self-sufficiency. While I believe the tide is turning there, it may not happen soon enough. Part of my investment in the D.Min is an attempt to broaden my ability to augment my income. I’ve already had been approached by folks at SMU regarding the possibility of serving as adjunct faculty upon graduation. 

I’ve also been involved in training for certification as a church planting/ministry/life coach through Mission Alive’s partnership with CoachNet. This will allow me to invest in church planters and potential missional leaders and also earn some additional money. 

Chris and I are also working to offer our 4 retreats to churches and groups outside Christ Journey. We feel that these events, developed to address important areas of spiritual formation, can be beneficial to others. More information on these retreats and their impact is available.

In addition to doing retreats (and weddings!), coaching and (soon) apprentice training it has become necessary for me to consider other part-time employment as well. So I’ve begun substitute teaching as much as 5 days a week in Mansfield. 

This means that I don’t have as much time to spend at Denny’s, Starbucks, BABS, Huguley during the day, which has caused a certain amount of sadness and frustration. While I will find other times to invest in these places, the people I’ve gotten to know over the past year are not just numbers to me - they are actual real people; friends who are in these places during the day, that I am already beginning to miss. 

I do believe that God will open the door to relationships with faculty and staff in Mansfield ISD, not to mention the connection with the students. If we are able to raise all of our support through fundraising, I still plan to sub once or twice a week as an opportunity to connect with folks in Mansfield. I hope that in a future update I will be describing the growing ministry in Mansfield and the house churches/incarnational communities that have been planted there. I do though, solicit your prayers and support so that we can keep the doors open to ministry begun and invested at Huguley Fitness Center, Denny’s and to a lesser degree JJ Mocha’s, Starbucks and BABS deli in Burleson and hopefully at some point in the near future expand our ministry in Shenandoah and pursue new work in the Upper Westside area of Fort Worth.

Thank you for being a part of this exciting journey with us.

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June 2009

My first summer as a church planter is under way.

Prepare for a shocking statement: a lot has happened since my update in April. Our house church in Shenendoah (which I commented on in the previous update) is engaged in some amazing ministry. More than that, I am happy to announce that the ministries have risen from within the community. I continue to lead our Thursday evening gathering, but thankfully that has not been the primary expression of God’s people in this neighborhood.

In addition to the Neighborhood Watch and homework clubs that Robin started, there are two community cookouts already scheduled for this summer (inspired by the front yard barbecue held at Chris and Heidi’s house each Wednesday). Robin and some other folks from the Neighborhood Watch have also decided to form a crisis team that will minister to folks in the midst of job loss, divorce, death of loved ones, life as a single mom, etc.

As I mentioned in a recent blog post (www.ancientjourney.blogspot.com) we have not had more than 9 people gathered at one time on a Thursday and already this group of people have begun living as participants in the Mission of God in the midst of Shenendoah. I have been extremely humbled to watch these new missionaries at work proclaiming good news in the midst of darkness.

We have made plans for the full transition of leadership in that house church to take place in August. We’ll continue to surround the Hunters in prayer and support them through our monthly house church leader coaching group as well as weekly one-on-one coaching sessions.

Chris has been able to start around 7 formation groups this summer and is preparing for the launch of a new house church in the coming weeks. He too is transitioning the leadership of a house church to members of the community. We are excited to see the development and growth of these new missionaries.

I have also been blessed to begin work on a doctor of ministry degree from SMU. The doors for this opportunity have continued to burst open. Of course finances have been a concern, but we are convinced that the time is right and the potential blessings are worth the cost.

Rejoice with us that our prayers have been answered. I recently learned that I was selected as the recipient of a grant through the Barr and Lewis Endowment that covers the full cost of tuition for the first half of my program!

I am beginning the development of my doctoral project which involves the formation of an apprenticeship for church planting/missional living. The benefits for our mission work here in the south Fort Worth area are obvious and we are very excited.

Things on the home front are going well. Conner is so ready to start kindergarten in the fall that he can barely stand it. We are continually astounded at the near daily developments in our three wonderful sons’ maturity, intelligence and all around awesomeness!

Rachel has begun working part-time as a web admin for Mission Alive. She is managing and updating their website and facebook page. She has organized a series of book reviews to be written by different church planters (mine is coming in August) and she’s already increased Mission Alive’s presence on the web.

Rachel continues to watch Grace a few days a week - that little girl is bringing some much needed cuteness and non-aggressiveness to our male dominated household! Rachel finally has an ally!

And then in addition to all this, Rachel has applied to teach preschool in the fall. If these folks know anything at all they’ll snatch her up quick.

Finances remain tight, as they do for many people, but we’ve been blessed to eliminate some debt (credit cards are paid off and student loans are going back into deferment!) and we’re picking up a little extra cash here and there.

Things are still moving forward on our plans to offer retreats for other congregations and interested groups. We have scheduled several for this summer and the fall and are looking to get more booked. If you know of a church or group that may be interested in one of our retreats or who may be interested in partnering with us in the ministry of planting new churches, please feel free to contact me anytime.

We ask for your continued prayers on behalf of our mission work here in North Texas. We’d love for you to visit us here in Burleson. Many of you have supported us financially and all of you have supported us through prayer and friendship. That means that you are a part of this ministry.

I would love to buy you a cup of coffee at Denny’s and introduce you to Robbie, Brandi, Jessica, Anita, Rita, Virgil, Keith, Roccio and Mary. Or we could spend some time at JJ’s and talk with John about running a coffee shop that has become an incredibly popular place for bible studies. We could prayer walk through Shenendoah and spend time with Jeanie, Robin, Ronnie, Adrienne and Paula or we could head over to Harvest House and meet Alice who can tell you amazing stories of oppression and redemption right here in suburbia. You’re welcome to join us for a bring-your-own-meat cookout in the Chappotins’ front yard - there’s no telling what spiritual conversation you’ll get dragged into in that driveway...or it may be an impromptu football game with the kids on the block.

We are seeking to live the With-God life together here in Burleson and the surrounding communities. You are already a part of this, though from a distance, and each of you have the opportunity to live a similar life in your own neighborhood. It may seem too risky or too ambiguous - our response is, “come and see.”

Grace and Peace,

Bret, Rachel and the WellsBrothers

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April 2009

Dear Friends and Family,

I’m sorry that it has been so long since our last update. Life and ministry here in Burleson have been exciting and exhausting (in mostly good ways) over the last couple months.

We are just a couple weeks away from the 1 year mark since beginning to fundraise and vision cast for the Wells family church planting endeavor and its now been 6 months since we moved to Burleson.

Many of you are already aware that Rachel has begun organizing the preschool ministry at Christ Journey. We don’t have many teenagers, but our little community is chock-a-block full of nursery, preschool and elementary aged kids! Recently one of our friends with a mere 2 children commented that they were feeling pressure to join the 3 kids club - a prestigious society of which most of our families are a part!

Last month Rachel noticed (with the help of Conner) that our children’s worship/Bible class did not have Bibles! Rachel put out a request on facebook and the world renowned wellsbrothers blog for financial help to procure some Bibles. Within just a couple days we had enough money to purchase the Bibles with some left over to replace them as we have opportunity to give them away. We feel very strongly that we have no right to keep those sacred Words to ourselves...if someone worships with us who doesn’t own a Bible the message is explicit: if you need one, take one.

To those of you who contributed to this need, we cannot sufficiently express our gratitude! Your partnership in this ministry is so valuable.

We’ve had the privilege of seeing several house churches planted recently. Let me tell you a little about two that I’m especially excited about. There is a government assisted townhouse/apartment community here in Burleson known as Shenendoah. Christ Journey connected with folks in this neighborhood in the past through a kid’s camp that was apparently a great success. Recently we reconnected with some of the folks from Shenendoah and began asking what it would look like to host a house church (and eventually a series of house churches) in this community. That has become a reality. In addition to myself, the family hosting and one couple from Christ Journey, we also have made connection with several other families in the neighborhood, including the director of Shenendoah and the director of Harvest House ministries.

Robin, one of the hosts, is in the process of organizing a neighborhood watch (which we’ll participate with in some way), a safe house/after-school/summer program for teens, and a neighborhood block party with free hotdogs for everyone! People from all kinds of backgrounds are interested in what we’re doing because it is more of a Christlike lifestyle in the midst of the community than just a Bible study (as great as Bible study is!)

Also, on Wednesday nights we are participating in a new “house church” in the Chappotins’ front yard. Basically we gather around the grill and invite all the neighbors to bring something to put on the pit. There’s always plenty of extra for anyone who may not have anything and we make sure they know they’re welcome to it! We also invite a few families from Christ Journey to join us - in part to hang out, in part to model community for Chris and Heidi’s neighbors and in part to model communal living for our own folks.

This past Sunday we were able to do a neighborhood barbecue at the home of Jimmy and Debra Osborn and have had several other families ask how to get this going at their own houses. Our goal is for as many of our families as possible to reclaim their front yards as sacred space - where the love of Christ is displayed and strangers are welcomed in. IT IS HAPPENING!!!

I’ve just begun the training/certification program to serve as a coach for Mission Alive. We’ve already found coaching techniques to be helpful in our continual training and equipping of house church leaders and plan to use this more and more in the future. This will also provide me with an opportunity to bring in some additional income to augment our financial needs.

Speaking of finances, after much prayer and discernment regarding fundraising and funding options, Chris and I have made the decision to research and pursue opportunities to lead retreats for other churches and groups. We don’t anticipate this fully supporting either of our families, but it will give us a setting to bless others with some experiences which have already blessed our community. In doing so we hope to connect with potential partners in our ministry and raise awareness regarding the value of church planting movements.

Right now we have four retreats that we are using cyclically with Christ Journey. Two of these retreats - Marvelous Light, a spiritual cleansing and renewal retreat and City on a Hill, a leadership identification and equipping retreat - have been a part of Christ Journey’s spiritual formation process for a while now.

The addition of Foundations to the retreat schedule has already proven valuable. We recently participated in this event, which I converted from the previous format of a series of evening discussions. It focuses on reading, hearing and telling the grand narrative of Scripture.

We also believe that Sanctuary, an experience in ancient Christian disciplines and spirituality, will also be powerful. Sanctuary is based on retreats that I’ve led, participated in and cultivated over the past several years. I'm indebted to Shawn Small, Molly Wren and those with the Converge Youth Ministers Network in Dallas where I first experienced a retreat like this around 5 years ago.

We hope to be able to serve and encourage other ministries with these experiences which have been so important to us and the Christ Journey community.

Rachel and I (and the Chappotins as well) are seeking to be creative, diligent and discerning in our continued process of funding this mission work. Over the last few months we have made tremendous relationships with our neighbors - many of whom would be classified among the “suburban poor,” working families that are barely keeping bill collectors at bay (and often haven’t been able to do so).

The reality is that these families contribute much to our community; we are richer because of their friendship. But their contribution is not financial. We are reaching out to the hurting, the broken the forgotten and overlooked. But Chrysler still wants us to make our car payments, student loans sit quietly in the corner grinning and the Wellsbrothers expect to eat multiple times each day.

As humbling as it is to say this, I cannot do this alone.

Many of you have partnered with us financially over the last year and because of you there is a 19 year-old single mom working at Denny’s who just began school to become a medical assistant; who didn’t have to choose between paying registration costs or buying food for her baby (which was exactly what she was doing until you helped her).

There is a family from up north who wouldn’t have had any friends to turn to when the husband ended up in the hospital with pneumonia, but now they have meals being provided for them every night this week.

There are a group of people who’ve rarely eaten in a restaurant who now sit down with new friends at Rosa’s each month to feast on tacos.

People who didn’t know their neighbors are sharing hotdogs and hamburgers in their front yards; children who didn’t have Bibles have one of their own; darkness that seemed so oppressive is obliterated by light...despair is struggling to hang on as hope creeps in to places for the first time. If you haven’t seen or heard it yet, let me encourage you to check out the sermon from Christ Journey’s worship gathering on March 15 (message transcript - www.christjourneylife.com/2009/03/crisis.html or links to podcast of gathering- www.christjourneylife.com/2009/03/crisis-foundations-week-3.html )

We are experiencing a community where the effects of the Fall are being rejected by the call to reclaim community in Christ.

And we need the continued financial support of our friends in order to continue in this mission. At the one year mark of our fundraising efforts, there are some who have the decision to renew a one-year commitment and others who made special gifts who have the choice to do so again. If that is you, we ask you to prayerfully consider your partnership in this ministry.

We need you.

We need your friends, family, neighbors and congregations. You may not be in a position to drop everything and begin planting churches - and yet you can. You can help this network of house churches, worship gatherings and Christ-formed relationships continue to expand through this region and beyond.

Feel free to print this out and share it with others whom you believe may be interested.

Also, if you know of a church or group that may be interested in participating in a Sanctuary, Foundations, Marvelous Light or City on a Hill retreat - or something similar - please help us get in touch with them.

Thank you for serving as our co-laborers in the gospel.

Grace and Peace,

Bret, Rachel and the Wellsbrothers

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January 2009

My allowance is gone until Friday. That means I canʼt really get in my office. If you are

wondering about whether North Texas office spaces charge an admission fee, its all a

matter of perspective. When your office is the booth near the plug (around the corner in

the prep area) at Dennyʼs, then yes, there is a per visit fee for office usage. While Iʼm

out of cash, Iʼm still okay thanks to the grand opening event held whenever a new

Chick-fil-A opens (like the one in Frisco that I attended in November) I have (er...had) 52

coupons for a free #1 combo...which comes with free refills on, you guessed it, coffee.

So today I write this update from my temporary perch at the Burleson Chick-Fil-A.

Weʼve created an office in our bedroom at home and believe or not the wellsbrothers do

a pretty good job not disturbing Daddy when heʼs “at work.” But there is very little

separation between us and to be honest, I have a hard time not coming out to play. So

most days, after Chris gives me a liberal dose of humility on the racquetball court, I

shower and head to my home away from home: Dennyʼs.

For those who know me well, this shouldnʼt come as much of a surprise - Dennyʼs was a

favorite study spot through college and grad school. But nowadays it has taken on even

greater significance.

I developed an appreciation for a “public office” in Mandeville - Starbucks and IHOP

were the prime locations back then. Our building at TOCC was quite lonely and TOO

quiet during the day and so I would often pack up and head out to get a cup of coffee.

Katherine, Emma, Parvis and Brim are now friends of mine connected to Tammany

Oaks thanks to those little trips.

Here in Burleson Iʼve been blessed to get to know several members of the waitstaff at

Dennyʼs. I havenʼt asked them if I can share their names yet, but Iʼm sure youʼll hear

more about them in the future.

One is a young woman who should have delivered her baby by now - nobody at

Dennyʼs had heard anything yesterday. Conner and I were able to attend her baby

shower last Wednesday (at Dennyʼs) where I met her mother and sisters. We talked

about life in this area, what its like to have young children and the importance of family

and friends. It was a great couple hours.

Another is a young man who moved to Texas from the Northern US just last year.

Yesterday he and I had what I believe was our 4th multi-hour conversation about faith -

he is a searcher whoʼs been studying with some friends but just isnʼt sure he can trust

that the Bible is true in what it says or that he can even understand what that is. I met

him because Rachel spent some time there working on her computer one evening and

told him to look for me when I came in...he remembered my name when I saw him.

Another wonderful lady has lived in the same house for 21 years. She is full of energy -

to the point that her conversations can be quite difficult to follow! However, she is

always ready to serve everyone, not just the customers but other waitstaff as well. I like

that about her. She has some interesting ideas about life and has certainly had some

difficult experiences, but her desire to love and serve others is something that we can all

learn from.

The first two folks I usually see, a young hispanic woman and a young man who is

probably around my brotherʼs age, do a good job of getting me into “my” booth as soon

as possible. I asked them once if I could move somewhere there was an electrical outlet

and since then theyʼre always looking out for me. There is something about both of

them that I immediately liked a lot (beyond their technological assistance) and Iʼve

noticed our conversations beginning to go beyond the typical restaurant niceties.

These relationships typify what I believe to be the greatest signs of success in our

ministry here. Iʼve had the opportunity to develop actual friendships and relationships

with people who are not going to stumble into the coffee shop on a Sunday morning...at

least, not yet.

However, these arenʼt the only progresses weʼve made since October - not by a long

shot! Chris and I are very excitedly preparing for the planting of 3 new house churches,

hopefully by Easter. I will (initially and Lord willing) be leading two of these and Chris the

other. Weʼve cultivated relationships with several families who are either disconnected

from church or have never had any significant connection to begin with.

Our Sunday morning gathering - what we refer to as “the gathering of the House

Churches” - has outgrown the JJ Mochaʼs coffee shop and we are excited to announce

that on February 15th weʼll move to a new gathering spot, just around the corner from

our present location. This is a great story that would take too long to tell right now

(though Iʼd love to tell it to you over a cup of coffee or even the phone if youʼre

interested), but suffice it to say weʼre very excited about this development.

Our present series of messages, which impact our time together on Sunday morning,

our house church gatherings and even the new Christ Journey website/blog -

www.christjourneylife.com - is titled “Navigating the Suburban Wilderness.” Weʼve

already witnessed several actual, real life relationships experience reconciliation

through this challenging call to live into authentic community. Christjourneylife.com

contains snippets, teasers and discussion guides as well as the podcasts from our

Sunday messages - check it out!

Iʼve also launched a new personal blog found at www.ancientjourney.blogspot.com,

titled “Modern Traveler: Ancient Journey.” My personal goal is to maintain a connection

to the great story of God and His people throughout the ages while still faithfully

navigating my own contemporary culture - all with the purpose of being formed in

Christʼs image and inviting others to do the same.

Weʼve been incredibly blessed with over 60 individuals/families whoʼve partnered with

us financially in some way (special gifts, memorials and/or monthly support.) Weʼve also

been blessed to have someone step in at a tremendous level to cover some of our

needs temporarily until we can find a congregation or more individuals to get us closer

to that 100% mark. If you know a church or a family that would be blessed to partner in

the ministry of planting new churches could you help us get connected? Weʼve already

seen way too much evidence of Godʼs hand on this effort to question calling or timing -

we believe fully that God has prepared us for just such a time as this and that God has

prepared others to serve as patrons and co-laborers - as many did for Jesus, Paul and

others.

In other, less impressive news, hopefully youʼve noticed that I do have a new email

address - bret@christjourneylife.com. Rachel is still blogging away at

www.wellsbrothers.blogspot.com (if youʼre one of the three people in America who

arenʼt already hooked on the tales of the intrepid wellsbrothers!) If youʼre surfing the

web please stop by our blogs and CJ Life to get up to the minute reports...well, not

exactly, but still!

As usual, Iʼve gone on way too long, but this is just the tip of the exciting iceberg around

here! Thank you so much for your partnership in the gospel, you have already been

such a great blessing to us.

Grace and Peace,

Bret, Rachel and the Wellsbrothers (Conner, Micah and Josiah)

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July 2008

It is happening!

After spending a couple weeks in prayer and discussion with our elders here at Tammany Oaks we announced to the congregation that Rachel, the Wells brothers and I are going to be relocating to the Burleson, TX area to plant new churches. This has been an emotional time with our church family here, but I’m so excited that we are walking through this transition together. Over and over as we’ve had the opportunity to tell people more about what we’re doing the response has been overwhelmingly supportive. It seems that this call on our lives is evident and that has been very encouraging to me personally.

May and June have been incredibly busy for us. I spent a week in Abilene taking (hopefully) my last leveling course before starting a doctor of ministry program sometime in the next year (depending on when we get transitioned to Burleson).

I had the honor of performing the wedding ceremony for my little sister and new brother-in-law the weekend following my class in Abilene. Then we were back home for a little over a week before packing up again and heading back to Texas for our first fundraising dinner (in Granbury) and then a week of Mission Alive Strategy lab in Plano.

The dinner went quite well. It was the first time I’d addressed a group of people regarding our desire to plant churches and I didn’t come away with the impression that people thought this was a huge mistake!! Everyone was very supportive and Mike and Susan Blevins ministered to us tremendously through opening up their unbelievable home. I have to throw in this plug for my in-laws too; Bob and Bonnie have been incredibly supportive. They have been some of our loudest cheerleaders and their vote of confidence has meant so much to Rachel and I.

Our week in Plano was good for several reasons. Of course training and chances to think strategically are always helpful, but the main benefit was actually more relational. We stayed with our good friends Tod and Candace Vogt (and Hannah and Lucas!). For those that don’t know, Tod was the preacher who hired me at Tammany Oaks. The Chappotins (our co-workers in Burleson) stayed there also as they were helping facilitate the strategy lab. It was good to see old friends and to begin to grow closer with new ones as well. I came away extremely encouraged about the potential for our families to not only work well together, but to experience a real friendship and community.

I realize that this is a pretty long note…but both of you who read my blog will likely have suspected nothing less! Thankfully, there’s a lot to update!

Here’s a brief look at what’s coming up for us and some areas over which we’d like you to be in prayer:

In the next week we hope to send out a fundraising letter to over 100 people. About a week later (once folks have gotten the letter) I’ll begin following these up with phone calls.

We’re going to be updating our blogs (and obviously facebook) with specific information on our efforts to raise support.

We are in the process of planning a couple more fundraising dinners (with the added possibility of a 2nd dinner in Granbury!)

I’m continuing to work with Chris and Christ Journey in whatever ways I can. I’m also going to be working with Ryan Porche (a church planter in Dallas) to put together a retreat focused on worship, spiritual disciplines and the blessing of ancient Christian practices.

I ask for your continued prayers as we work through this transition with Tammany Oaks and Christ Journey. While we are ready to invest in lives in the Burleson area, specifically those who do not presently enjoy the blessing of life with Christ, we also want to bless Tammany Oaks in every way possible.

To those who have partnered with us financially, we again thank you. Your support allowed us to travel to Texas for the fundraising dinner and strategy lab without putting more money on our credit cards! We were also able to purchase supplies for presentation materials at the dinner, as well as for the fundraising letter we’re about to send out.

If you have not made the decision to support us financially in this ministry, Rachel and I would like to ask you to prayerfully consider doing so. If you are interested in hearing more, or if you know someone who may be, we’d love the chance to talk in person or over the phone.

Thank you all for your prayers, encouragement and support!

Grace and Peace,

Bret, Rachel and the Wells brothers

www.wellsbrothers.blogspot.com / www.ancientjourney.blogspot.com

email us!

bret@christjourneylife.com / rachel.wells@yahoo.com

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