Our Strategy: Launching As A Process, Not An Event

*Updated on August 25, 2020 to include more details.

I’m excited to give you this update on our launch strategy for Redemption Church! But, we have to hold this plan with an open hand since things can change quickly, as I know you’re well aware. So here is our tentative strategy for launching Redemption Church in Roanoke, Virginia, over the coming year.

Launching As a Process, Not an Event

We’re looking at launching the church as a process, not as an event. That means we’re going to be taking things one step at a time, probably one month (or even one week!) at a time. So we’ll add on to and change what we’re doing as we need and are able.

The Event

Yes, we do envision a future “launch event.” But that event will most likely not come until Easter (April) 2021. Hopefully things will be back to a more normal state by then and we can make a huge deal out of being a new church in Roanoke. I’m talking swag, invitations… the works! Easter is a very appropriate time to celebrate a new church plant and invite new people, especially people who don’t follow Jesus.

One Step At A Time

But for now, we’re taking it one step at a time. So this September, we’re taking one of our next steps. On Sunday, September 13th at 4pm, if nothing changes with the virus and trends are heading in the right direction, we will begin our Sunday worship gatherings. How exciting! We will be meeting at the Kirk Family YMCA in downtown Roanoke. Check out our Visit page for more details.

For us, this next step in the launching process means at least three things:

1. The language will change from team meetings to worship gatherings.

Common language creates culture, so how we talk about what we do matters. That’s why we’re steering clear of using the term “launch” for these new gatherings in September. If the full launch is Easter 2021, then this is just the next step in the process. Going from “launch team meetings” to “worship gatherings” is simple, but strategic.

2. Hosting worship gatherings that are accessible.

We have had our launch team meetings in a gracious team member’s home, with a virtual option for our team members. And it has worked well for us. But when we start our worship gatherings on September 13th, we need a more publicly accessible, in-person location. We thought this would be one of the unique challenges during the coronavirus moment, because some meeting spaces aren’t allowing groups to meet in their facilities yet. But God provided the YMCA for us! Thank you for praying for this with us.

We will also provide an accessible online streaming option for our worship gatherings since many people are not comfortable or able to meet in-person. Our virtual option has, so far, been limited to the launch team only. As we take this next step, we want to include others who may be interested in helping us plant Redemption Church. 

This will be big for us because we want our Sunday gatherings to be open and welcome to anyone, including those who need to remain at home for health reasons or who feel most comfortable at home through the pandemic.

3. Provide a welcoming environment.

With more accessibility (both in-person and online) comes the need to welcome guests who aren’t on our team. So we’ll do everything we can to show them hospitality at this stage in our launch process. It doesn’t mean we’ll be adding on a lot of things, but it does mean that whatever we’re doing now will take the next step in development.

For example, as we meet in-person it means making sure to take further safety precautions to slow the spread of the virus and follow state law and safety guidelines (see our COVID safety page). We’ll also take the next step in our current volunteer teams and add essential teams for gathering in-person, like a first impressions team.

Online, it means we’ll make our gatherings accessible via our website and social media. And we’ll ensure that those gathering with us online can experience our worship production with personal engagement and minimal distractions.

Help Us Launch

As we navigate these issues, I hope you’ll consider helping us launch by partnering in one, two, or all three of these ways:

1. Pray

Please pray for us! It’s obviously been an extraordinary time to plant a church. Yet God continues to use it for his glory and our good. Pray that we’ll make connections with lost neighbors, friends, and coworkers. Pray that God’s Spirit will persuade many people to put their faith in Jesus and that we’ll get to be a part of that “harvest” (Luke 10:2). And pray that we’ll be wise in what steps to take, and when, in our launch process.

2. Provide

Please consider giving to fuel God’s mission through us. Having raised $120,000, we’re nearly halfway to our goal of $250,000. If you’re able to give generously during this tough economic time, please visit our giving page to learn more about partnering with us financially: redemptionroanoke.com/give.

3. Plug-In

Please consider plugging into our team here in Roanoke! It takes at least 100 Jesus-followers to launch a healthy church. We have about 50 people on our team as I write this post. So by the time we launch, we’re praying for at least 100 people. It could be you! It may help to ask yourself, not Why should I go? but Why shouldn’t I go? God may want to use you to introduce someone here in Roanoke to Jesus.

“Building” A Church Isn’t the Point

Thanks for continuing to partner and follow along in our church planting journey. It’s really exciting what God has already done to build our team; it’s exciting to think about what he will continue to do in the future. Of course, as our team is learning from the Old Testament book of Haggai, building “God’s house” is important, but it’s not the point!

In Haggai, the exiles from Israel return to Jerusalem to build “God’s house,” the temple. But in Haggai’s prophetic writing, he explains that as great as it is to build a building, the temple is actually not the point. Being close to God is! That’s the whole reason for building the temple in the first place.

So as we plant Redemption Church, we’re trying to remember that the point isn’t to grow big, or build a building, or do cool church stuff, as good as some of that can be. The point is be close with God and to invite others into that closeness with him. It’s about knowing and being known by the Creator of the universe, and introducing other people to their Creator, as well.

I hope that encourages you today as much as it has encouraged me! We’ll live out God’s mission when we remember that God is with us and he simply wants us to know him.

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

Matthew 6:33

If you’d like to continue following our launch process, please sign up for our monthly email updates, follow us on Instagram and Facebook, or check out my weekly video updates on our YouTube channel. Thanks again for your partnership!