Soul City Church

SoulCityChurch2

This post is officially letting everyone know that Soul City Church is going to be Brenda and I’s new church home come Spring 2010. First off, I have been going to First Evangelical Free Church for the past five years—and I’ve loved it. The senior pastor, Bill Shereos, has become not only a good friend and one of only a handful of people whom I trust my life with, but a man who has prayed with me, stuck with me and encouraged me all they way from when The Marin Foundation was barely a vision all the way to now. I can never express the amount of love I have for him, and my family at First Free. However there are bittersweet moments in life when, even though you have so much love for someone and something, you also know it’s time to make a change. That change is here.

I have been captivated by the vision of Soul City Church and their founding pastors Jarrett and Jeannie Stevens. Their concept is ‘7 days is greater than 1’—that community transformation happens when Christ and service is alive and active seven days a week; not just once on Sunday or twice if you include a Wednesday night gathering as well.

Jarrett and Jeanne understand that when it comes to making a significant impact for the Kingdom, there isn’t much balance in a person’s life. Try as hard as many of us do for balance, it ultimately can’t just be as easy as a 9-5 job. Nor should it be; and from my perspective that is one of the biggest misgivings in the Church today—they’re striving to be the wrong thing!

Church is not a business, and shouldn’t have the mindset of one nor should it be run like one. Soul City Church has the passion I love. They have the huge goals I gravitate towards. They are the ones giving me hunger again about the Church and I can’t wait to for it to kick off. And one other thing has really caught me: Jarrett and Jeanne from the very first donation that ever rolled in for Soul City Church, been donating 10% of ALL the church’s money to ministries already doing God’s work. They are building this church in the right way: based on love and giving and commitment. Unfortunately it breaks my heart to say that not many other churches would be so bold. Here is the place you can go to check more out about them; and this site for their start-up cost—including their Community Giving, which The Marin Foundation will be a humble recipient starting next year.

It is sad to me that The Marin Foundation only has four churches across the country who are bold enough to donate to us as missionaries (more on this later). Thank you Soul City for recognizing a need and stepping in the gap that helps to fill a seemingly impossible losing battle of finding funding for this unique bridge building work.

But beyond just funding, I believe in Jarrett and Jeannie’s vision, because it’s Christ’s vision. 7 Days Are Greater Than 1 – I can’t wait to start life together knowing what it means to live out the Gospel as a permeated lifestyle, rather than just another style in life.

Much love.