.Real.Greg.Lee.

Iglesia el Jubileo – Pachuca, Mexico

The Jubilee Christian Church, outside of Mexico City began on February 18, 2007 at the Del Valle Inn, a hotel on the far east side of Pachuca.   91 people participated in the launch celebration with many visitors, family and friends participating including a few visitors from the United States.  I actually got to preach for one of their services while I was with our Missions Team leader there a month later.

Beginning with a core group of 30 from the New Hope Christian Church of Pachuca, the church became of congregation of 60 each Sunday in the next month after the launch Sunday.  Growth has been good in the two and half years since that first Sunday.  The congregation has baptized 84 people and the attendance at the Sunday Celebration is now getting close to 200 and the church now meets in two worship services.  

The Jubilee church is a cell church and has also seen growth in the number of cells meeting throughout Pachuca.  13 cell now are meeting with three zones functioning.   A leadership training module is also functioning in two yearly cycles.  The Jubilee church is renting a facility in Pachuca, but is now looking at other options since the present building is becoming too small.

Posted in Suncrest

I’m doing a series that highlights the churches Suncrest has had a significant role in starting.  After highlighting one in the Chicago area and one in Poland yesterday, here are a couple from the New England Area:

Rockingham Christian Church – Salem, NH

This was our very first church plant, launching in November of 2001.  The “core group” in those early months was about 40 people, and the church now averages about 250 in attendance and is ministering to about 400 different people on a regular basis.  In these seven-plus years, we’ve baptized nearly 100 people and discipled many more. 

There are a lot of Suncrest connections beyond our financial and leadership support with RCC.  They have just about outgrown their current space (renovated three years ago with lots of help from SunCrest).  We send a team out to their “Camp Create” each summer as an outreach to their community.  And, their children’s minister, Amy Snyder is married to former Suncrest Youth Pastor Chris Snyder.

They have purchased an eleven-acre parcel of land on the north side of Salem, where we plan to build a multi-phase facility.  Also, they are “paying it forward” by partnering with Suncrest to plant the two-year-old Reunion Christian Church (Boston), the about-to-be-launched NorthPoint Christian Church (Rhode Island).

They pass along many thanks to the entire SunCrest family for all you’ve done to help make this possible!

The Ridge Community Church – New Berlin, WI

The Ridge CC was launched on October 1, 2006 outside of the Milwaukee area, again in a strategic area where there are very low percentages of people attending church.  They started with 30 people and now have over 440 people attending, with many of them currently not following Jesus. 

Uniquely, The Ridge specifically targets the unchurched male and we over 50% weekend attendance is men.  They have baptized nearly 70 people and are praying for more. 

Another Suncrest connection…one of our former interns, Becky Mroczenski is their Children’s Ministry Director.

Posted in Suncrest

Suncrest has a church-planting focus in New England, but the first two plants I’ll highlight are in the Chicago area (Minooka, IL) and in Poland.

The Village Christian Church – Minooka, IL

Launched Oct. 2004 with a core team of 25 adults and now sees stories of life change as most of 300-400 people who attend on a weekly basis are new to church or new to a relationship with God.

They already give back!  They budget to give 10% of their offerings to Missions and church planting and every year they have exceeded that.

At the same time, they are tracking to have their 10 acres of land paid off by the first part of 2010.  They project growing to a limit of 500 at the school they currently meet in and hope to have a building in place by the time they grow to that level.

TOMY Chrisitan Fellowship – Tomaschov, Poland

Suncrest sent teams and financial support to lay the groundwork for this new church 6 years ago that began as a community center (internet cafe, language school, social help program)  Officially launched as a church 3 years ago, TOMY Christian Fellowship has around 80-100 attendees each week in a part of the world that is desperately lacking churches that help people have a personal relationship with Christ.  

Suncrest’s role in supporting and encouraging a dream has developed into “regional church planting”.  In the radius of 40 miles there are around 1.5 million people with only a handful of churches focused on evangelism – maybe 200-300 believers total.  Suncrest helped lay a foundation that in the next years we hope will lead to new churches in this region – something never seen on this level Poland’s history. . .

 TOMY Church blog:  www.tomychurch.wordpress.com

Posted in Suncrest

On Sunday, we did our best to recast the vision Suncrest has for starting new churches…and we highlighted the one we are launching with some partnerships this fall in Providence, RI.  If you were there, you know I mentioned God’s bias toward the NEW…from new life to new churches.

The Truth:  as much as I’m excited about it, I often wonder if this Sunday each year could be a “dud” for attenders.  I don’t know anyone who thinks church planting is a bad idea, but I think most people come to church looking for a message from God for THEIR life and on this Sunday we really just try to remind everyone about a huge value for their community of faith called Suncrest. 

So I was VERY pleasantly surprised to read some of the comments on the connection cards that came in on Sunday. 

One about our church being unselfish to start other churches:  “We have so much pride in calling Suncrest home!”

One about new life someone has found since coming:  “I’ve noticed that since coming to Suncrest and choosing to be a Christ-follower a peace has come over my life…Thank You!”

One from part of the group that closed their church in Hobart and linked with Suncrest to launch a new campus:  “Greg, we never really thought about the risk we were taking, but we sure thought about the potential and we were not disappointed.  I am personally so happy we went for the new!”

Over the next few posts I’m going to share some updates on the new churches we have launched (highlighted in the google earth video Sunday and below).  I know you’ll love their stories!

Posted in Suncrest

I hugged Robert and Nikki good-bye after our second service yesterday.  Not that much different than a lot of Sundays…except that this really was good-bye.  They are moving “home” to Texas after being part of our church for their 4 years or so in Chicago.

Every person at our church has a story…Since I got to know Robert and Nikki personally, let me tell you about theirs.

I met Robert and Nikki on their first Sunday.  Two Texans arrived on a very snowy Sunday.  They weren’t married yet…both straight out of school at UT and living in apartments in Schererville.

They are both super-sharp and Rob was on the fast-track with his work in corporate finance.  I had some early morning breakfasts with Rob and my favorite conversations were with him about how and where he was going to figure out how to take Bible/Ministry courses while also doing his MBA.  He told me Sunday, he’ll complete the coursework he started at Moody by distance learning as they move back to Texas.  I’ve wondered out loud with him whether his future was in ministry somewhere or being a solid Christ-follower as a corporate exec.  He’ll do great either way.

When they decided to get married, they asked me to do their wedding…in Texas.  I did and it was a wonderful expereince.  I love to give them a hard time because through an odd scenario I gave up my ticket to Game 5 of the 2006 World Series and watched it on TV at their rehearsal dinner outside of Houston.  Yes, the cardinals won the world series that night and my brother used my ticket (and now owes me for life).

Rob and Nikki moved to downtown Chicago  then almost two years ago, but they loved Suncrest so much it remained their church home.  They had some great experiences with their community group…and you would often see them serving as greeters or doing hospitality.  I actually encouraged them to find a church downtown…but they kept coming back.

NIkki told me she just started crying about 2 songs into the service on Sunday.  I’m confident we’ll miss them as much as they will miss us.  They were going for lunch to some friends’ house…friends they made in their Suncrest community group.

Posted in Suncrest

I love traveling and have done my fair share of it this summer.  I have some short trips left, but I’ll be in town 12 of the next 13 Sundays.

-Two big trips: Our family saw 6 states plus the District of Columbia in June.  On this recent trip, I saw 8 more in both the Midwest and New England. 

-Craziest Day:  Last Friday…Got up at 3:30 central time in New Hampshire.  Flew through Detroit and landed at 9:30am central time in St. Louis.  Performed a wedding at 10:30am for Jenny’s uncle and hit the road after lunch for a 7 hour drive to Arkansas to hang with my parents and brother’s family.  Somewhere in there…got a speeding ticket (I said craziest day, not best day).

At the end of the travel, here are the simple objects of my affection…

-Love our minivan (never thought I’d say that)…It isn’t even 3 years old yet, but crossed 61,000 miles this week.

-Love worshipping different places and I almost always go to NEW churches if I can. Worshipped with one that meets in a school in Alexandria, Virginia; one that meets in a warehouse in Concord, NH; one that meets in a Hotel in Boston, MA; and one that has its own building (but still isn’t that old) in Hot Springs Village, AR.

-Love my parent’s place in Arkansas…room for all of us, incredible lake and 5 championship golf courses within 10 minute drive.  Late night card games, play station with my nephew, mini-golf with our kids, and…mom’s home cookin’.

-Loved the Lobster…most of my week in New England was focused on ministry development with high school students, but we did go out for dinner with the adult leaders on my birthday last week and I enjoyed a lobster dinner on the coast of Maine.

-Love the diversity of our country.  Each region is unique…and not just in how we refer to soft drinks (pop or soda or coke), though I did find the graph above fascinating.

-Love my wife.  She is so prepared for everything we encounter traveling as a family.  And she is a champ to make it possible for me to travel for ministry stuff on my own.  I take it for granted too often.

Posted in Suncrest

Not that you hang on by a thread waiting for me to post something, but if you follow this blog you have noticed I checked out for a while over the weekend.  It was a great time away with family in Arkansas after spending that week with top-notch teens in New England.  I might post some reflections on it in the future.

The Picture?  My view from the tee of Hole number 1 on Isabella in Hot Springs Village…the top-rated golf course in all of Arkansas.  I shot a respectable 88.  Next day was better with an 84.  Can’t believe they are only the 3rd and 4th rounds I’ve played all summer.

Posted in Suncrest

We had a little celebration last Friday.  OK…it wasn’t so little.

Sue Hertzfeldt (commonly known as “Miss Sue”) was the focus of a surprise party with hundreds of friends (we tried to get every one in this picture, but still missed a few).

The occasion?  Sue has been on the Suncrest staff now for 15 years!  Yes, it’s a little unusual to celebrate this since the church isn’t even 15 years old yet, but that’s the point.  Sue was on the Suncrest staff before suncrest even had it’s first service.

I won’t get long and sappy here, but it’s worth letting everyone know in this forum a bit of what sue means to suncrest…and to me.

1.  Sue has been used by God to change hundreds and hundreds of lives.  Even as the church has grown (and the children’s ministry has expanded incredibly), Sue stays personally in touch with more people than I could ever imagine.  She prays with them and for them, she writes to them, she visits them in the hospital and goes to their baseball games.  She teaches children and encourages parents.  It is simply who she is.

2.  Sue has the biggest heart of anyone — anyone — I know.  If you know her, you know that.  If you don’t know her, I could never explain it to you sufficiently.  Do you know anyone who loves people like she loves people?  I’d love to meet them.

3.  Sue embodies suncrest.  Our mission is her first concern.  She sacrifices every day to invest in people’s lives.  She thinks outward, not inward.  She has high standards.  And then there is that huge heart again…

4.  Sue thinks beyond our walls.  As much as she embodies Suncrest, she isn’t stuck in church-mode all the time.  Everyone knows her love for the Cubs and other sports teams from NASCAR to IU Basketball to Da Bears.  She also makes sure we are in the loop about community events, loves the NW Indiana Symphony, volunteers her own time for hospice, and more. 

5.  Sue made it possible for me to come here.  She started in a part-time role and volunteered to delay coming on full-time in year 2 with the church so that they could have a little money to bring on another staff member.  That was me.

6.  This church has largely been built on children’s ministry.  Our children’s ministry has been largely built on Sue.  Enough said.

7.  Whenever I think of how Sue invests in all of our children, MY children are the faces I see.  YOUR children are likely the faces YOU see.  She has created a context for my children to grow in knowing their Bibles and loving Jesus.  Is there anything more important to me?

Sue,

I love you from the bottom of my heart.  For who you are…for what you represent…and for the sacrifices you have made for 15 years to serve our church family.

A very grateful leader…

Greg

Click here to listen to John Wasem’s (our founding pastor) video message to Miss Sue.

Posted in Suncrest

I spent the evening with some people I’ve become a raving fan of…the staff of the next new church Suncrest is helping to launch.

Why am I such a fan?

-All three of these families picked up and moved from the Midwest to the challenging field of New England.

-All of these families are committed to creating something out of nothing.  Before churches are built, they are born…with only faith and a mission.

-All of these families are raising their own financial support.  Not only are they, moving to an unfamiliar place to start something out of nothing…they are fully dependent on financial supporters to carry them through.  Raising support is a humbling experience…and practically it is a TON of work.

So with all of this….why would people do it?  Because they trust God will use them to change the spiritual landscape of New England.

Tonight, I had the great privilege of telling them the “Suncrest Story” and imagining that on a night much like this 15 years ago, a Suncrest launch team gathering was being held in someone’s backyard.  It was a humble but faith-filled gathering that now is the story of people finding Christ, lives being re-shaped, marriages being restored, broken people finding wholeness, and hurting people finding a church family that cares.

I’m confident that 15 years from now…their staff will sit in a launch meeting for another new church and tell very similar stories.

Posted in Suncrest

I’m teaching this week in New England to a group of high school students from around the country.  They are some of the best, brightest, most spiritually mature, and ministry-focused students that you would ever find together. 

They come from all over — near Evansville, IN; Pittsburgh, PA; Portland, ME; Dallas, TX; Quincy, IL.  I’m sharing the teaching with some very accomplished pastors/teachers from Indianapolis, Evansville, and Springfield, IL. 

What brings us together for such a purpose?  All of the leaders/teachers believe that:

-Youth should be invested in more than critiqued.  The best ideas for ministry (and most everything else) are going to come from them.

-We want to lengthen the runway for high-potential students when thinking in terms of leadership, worldviews, and ministry (especially church planting).

-We think changing this region of New England is a critical element to changing the world.  I love Chicago and the midwest, but Suncrest has a major church planting focus in New England because it is a center of influence culturally and a bellwether for the country.

Posted in Suncrest