Simplicity Church Network

Comment by Carl Willis on November 15, 2008 at 11:21am

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Comment by Carl Willis on December 1, 2008 at 3:22pm

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Comment by Bethel Watt on December 1, 2008 at 5:46pm

Hi Carl,
'We' are in New Caney, TX - 30 miles north of Houston on 59. I just watched - or tried to watch with grandson distractions your video. I will be back tomorrow to watch again but thought I'd say hello.
We have been a church up here for over 2 years now, but didn't know to call ourselves that until after the conference in September.
I will tell you more about 'us' at another time.
Love to all the brothers and sisters in Simplicity Church from the church (ekklesia) in New Caney.
B

Comment by Joseph Chandler on December 2, 2008 at 2:11pm

Kathryn,

Shalom to you and your husband. Often the "Church" has forgotten it's Jewish Heritage. Hannukah is one that Jesus (Yeshua) also celebrated. So you are really walking more like Jesus as you celebrate this feast. As the Church starts to learn more of what they have been missing by not celebrating the Feast of the LORD I feel that many Simple Churches will start the feast at home and see the Messiah in them.

Shalom In Him,

Joseph Chandler
Jackson, SC

Comment by Joseph Chandler on December 3, 2008 at 10:09am

I agree with you. Shalom In Him : )

Comment by Rod on December 20, 2008 at 9:58pm

I would like to start one in Reston or nearby Vienna or somewhere in Northern Virginia. I have been reading Frank Viola and am excited about being more connected and relationships. I had read about Cell Church but that proved a false start in this direction. Email me at Sharpeningman@Yahoo.com and I'll call you back

Comment by Carl Willis on February 12, 2009 at 4:35pm

Mike,

Great question. We operate in both "house church" and "free standing" modes.

In the house church mode, I look for those Holy Spirit identified people of peace, I walk beside, equip and release (that's the church planting strategist role). In the group I am a participant the same as anyone else.

In our free-standing work, I work with a co-pastor. His role is missions & ministry, identifying and developing opportunities for the body to further the work of "going." I focus on reaching, nurturing, equipping and sending...we both share teaching roles. I believe that in our culture that the free-standing "location" can still be an effective tool for ministry. Ours is in a down and out drug & prostitution area and people know it to be a safe haven of people who care about them.

I hope that answers your question.

Comment by Ed Burley on December 7, 2009 at 9:53pm

would love to start something in the Traverse City MI area. Anyone out there from Northwest Michigan?

Comment by Carl Willis on December 8, 2009 at 9:30am

Ed,

I think Ryan Huling may be up close to you. He runs around the forum quite a bit. I would encourage you to get in touch with him. If I can help you get started, let me know.

Comment by Ed Burley on December 8, 2009 at 10:52am

Thanks Carl, actually Ryan lives in the southern part of the state, near the Indiana border. I have contacted someone name Joel Curliss, who lives in Petoskey, over an hour from TC, but haven't heard from him as yet.

It's funny, I've been a promoter of "simple church" for decades but my wife has always balked at the idea of "building a church:" she likes finding a local congregation in the area. After moving to northern Michigan, we began attending a Congregational church. We like it well enough, but it has huge money issues due to a building project they did years ago.

Last year, they had a Cong. Mtg. to discuss how to retire the debt. I suggested we sell the building, and become a series of house churches, still keeping the current leadership in place, just getting the "boat anchor" off of us, since we'd be able to pay off the debt with the proceeds from the sale. They thought I'd gone mad. LOL.

My brother's church just lost their building due to their Senior Pastor's unscrupulous handling of church funds. He demanded control, they gave it to them, and he squandered what they had. They didn't find out until recently when he left to go to another church. I suggested to my brother that they move to a house church model, but they want the big stuff. At least they are going to rent a facility, and have services in the local park, where they combine it with on the street ministry.

It is so sad how few Christians see the benefits of simple church. They think that having a simple church means that you are isolating yourself, but I feel the exact opposite - it opens up to a whole new world of association and fellowship that can be flexible and dynamic for the sake of ministry. Small, local fellowships are more responsive to needs, imho.

Thanks for letting me vent a little here. I'm glad I found this site.

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