01/11/2025
This past Wednesday was the 13th anniversary of our first meeting. I’ve been thinking about how and why we started and some of the amazing experiences we’ve shared.
Stonebrooke was founded on this principle…there are plenty of churches for the already convinced, what if there was something for the rest of us…what if church was different?
What if we focused solely on the outsiders? We called it…
Church. For People Who Don’t Like Church.
The concept was wildly successful. 655 people showed up opening day. Over 500 folks made confessions of faith in Christ in the first couple years with over 350 being baptized.
Stonebrooke grew faster than any church I’ve ever heard of with a surrounding population this size. The Easter following COVID hitting would have seen us pass 1000 attendees for the first time.
It was fun. It was exciting. I believe it was helpful.
Even with the opposition from many “insiders”.
The amount of effort, energy, time, and money necessary to launch and sustain such a mission was immense and ultimately unsustainable.
The level of self-sacrificial concern and action necessary from a rather large group of believers is something I underestimated. My family and I gave everything we had along with other friends who seized the mission and poured their lives out to fulfill what we believed was a mandate from Jesus himself.
I believe the principle is true and needed. Perhaps a better mechanism in a more populous area with a less transient base would fare better.
A couple years ago we went a different direction and significantly, intentionally downsized and focused on my favorite thing…drilling down into the life and teachings of Christ with a small group. This has been the most fun I’ve had at “church” in my 40 or so years of ministry. I’ve learned a lot.
At this time I need to focus on some other things. I’m not sure the interest and support is there at present to justify the continued effort, energy, and expense.
I may shift to some online interactions to reach a larger audience with a message I believe is needed, in a more efficient way.
Thanks for listening. We’ll keep you posted concerning any changes or developments. 😊
~ Mark
