We're Here!

This weekend was a moving extravaganza! I rode to Aurora with my father-in-law on Friday morning to meet our landlord at 11:00. As we started to unload the trailer a downpour began, which finished about the time we threw the last box in the garage. After that we spent the afternoon helping Megan, Michelle's sister, move into her new place which is only about five minutes from us! My favorite part of that move was that we had to take the railing off her balcony and hoist her box spring up while standing on the U-Haul trailer because it wouldn't fit up the stairs. Michelle, our kids, and my parents arrived safely in Aurora around 3:00.

We spent the bulk of the day Saturday moving all our stuff out of Cory's garage and spare bedroom. It was pretty hot, so I soaked through about four shirts, but we got it done. Many thanks to Cory, Megan, Michael, Steve, Twyla, and Jacki for all their help.

Here's the top five things I learned from the weekend:
1. I'm not meant to be a mover.
2. Stairs are evil.
3. People make jokes about the humidity in the Midwest, those are not funny.
4. If you ever want to move it is best to just have folding chairs as furniture.
5. You always have more stuff than you think!

Church Plant FAQs

(Below are frequently asked questions that have been asked of us as we're preparing for this church plant. Hopefully it'll help you understand more of what we're planning, however, we realize that the Holy Spirit will direct this.)

What is a missional church?

It is a group of Christ-followers who organize their lives individually and corporately around the two-fold mission of spiritual and physical redemption in the world.

Why are missional churches like Infuse needed?

American culture has undergone major changes in relation to Christianity over the last fifteen years. There are about 100 million unchurched Americans, and the church only reaches about 35% of the demographic range of the population.

As Jim Peterson says in Church Without Walls, "We must take into account the fact that we live in a society that is, in many ways, reverting to paganism. Biblical beliefs and values are becoming increasingly foreign to popular thought."

In the past people have come to the church for guidance, relationships, and spiritual insight. For many, this is no longer the case. The United States is following in the footsteps of other Western countries, such as Australia and England. Those countries are now considered to be largely spiritually dead.

What are your hopes and dreams with Infuse?

Our hope is that the Holy Spirit will move in a mighty way through our efforts to bring people into a relationship with Jesus Christ that will result in lifelong discipleship. We desire that out of this movement there would be three primary outcomes:

--A missional church planting movement would be spawned that reaches outside of Aurora. Many other networks similar to this are being formed all over the country.

--That the prayer Jesus told us to pray, "Your kingdom come," would be increasingly answered as we change our world by serving and loving people in practical ways.

--We would foster true discipleship that leads people back into their own world as missionaries.

What will you be doing through Infuse?

Much of what we do will center around cell groups. We view these as a cross between a house church and a small group. They will be given a great deal of freedom to self-organize around the values of worship, community, and mission. We want them to take a unique shape based on the people participating in them and the segment of culture they wish to reach. We do not see them as being controlled by a centralized leadership, rather they will be networked to each other through open communication and bound together by the common values.

When we have more than a couple groups, we’ll also start a weekly gathering for all those involved in the network. This gathering will not be used as a front entry to the church—that’s what the cell groups are for. This will be a place to worship together, communicate our vision, and hear stories of life transformation.

Are you working with a church, denomination, or church planting organization?

Yes, we’re partnering with Christian Resource Ministries and their missional branch, Missio. They’ll provide training and lead us through these beginning stages. You can find more information at these links: http://www.crmleaders.org and www.missio.us. We’ve also established a board of directors that will guide and support us, and provide accountability. Finally, we are setting up missionary-type relationships with a number of existing churches.

Where can I get more information about what you’re doing with Infuse?

We will consistently be updating our church website and our blog. You can find more at these links: http://infusechurch.com and http://infusing.blogspot.com. Or, of course, give me a call or send me an email.

How will your day-to-day life change?

My day-to-day life won’t change a lot. I’m still working full-time at Christianity Today, but my time away from work will be focused on Infuse. My service will focus on meetings and strategy, practical community service, and relationship-building.

What are your financial needs?

Trevor will be spending the most time with Infuse. We’re praying that he’ll only need a part-time job and the rest of his family’s needs will be subsidized by support that we raise together. In addition, our support will go to community service and outreach in Aurora. An example of this might be a tutoring program at a local housing complex. There will be some overhead, like office supplies and a computer. In total, our goal is to raise $100,000 the first year with that decreasing as people join us and tithe to the church network.

I want to learn more about the missional church movement. Do you recommend any good books?

Yes, definitely! Here are a few of the books that have shaped what we’re doing.

Church Without Walls by Jim Peterson.
The Forgotten Ways by Alan Hirsch
The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church by Reggie McNeal

Also, Leadership journal recently dedicated an entire issue to missional churches. You can find a summary here.

Church Plant Update

(Below is my update letter I sent this week about Infuse. We ask for your prayers.)

Friends,

In college my closest group of friends often talked about serving in ministry together, but it was more of an unrealistic dream than something that would ever come to fruition.

For these seven years since graduation, I’ve worked at Christianity Today International. I get to help create resources that equip churches and their leaders, and I’ve grown more in love with the church and convinced that it is the hope of the world.

Lately, through my professional and volunteer church work, God has shown me that one of my unique gifts is apostleship. Apostles are entrepreneurial and often seen using their gifts on new frontiers of ministry like church planting or creating new ministries.

With this in mind, I want to share with you some exciting news in my life.

On July 27, one of my best friends from college, Trevor Lee, and his family will move from Denver to Aurora, Illinois to follow a call God has grown in us—the call to be missionaries to our own culture. We’ve chosen Aurora because of its diversity and its great needs, and Trevor has seen the passion and commitment I’ve developed for this city over the last several years I’ve lived here.

Statistics show that people are detaching from church and becoming increasingly unfamiliar with what it means to be a Christian. You’ll probably notice this just in your circle of influence. I’ve noticed this as more people my age stop being part of a church or never show an interest.

We’re starting a church called Infuse. We want to take time to develop relationships and to understand how to reach those who have had little or no contact with the church. We’ll simply serve and love people more intentionally throughout Aurora.

Infuse is a non-traditional church plant, based on an organic model that is gaining momentum in the States. Practically, it looks like going to a new country to be missionaries. This means taking the time to really listen to people, gain an understanding of what the Church would look like for them, and empower them to live out faith in Christ within their cultural setting. We don’t expect quick, tangible results because we know that relationship-building takes time.

We cannot fulfill God’s call on our lives without the support of our friends and family. We’re looking for partners in this missional church plant, and I thought it was important you know what we’re doing so you could pray with us in these beginning stages.

Because we are starting with a small group and pursuing a model that will take time to make an impact, we will also need financial support to make this work. If you feel led to support us financially in this start-up ministry, you can fill out the card below and mail it in the envelope provided or sign up for electronic funds transfer at www.InfuseChurch.com under “Support.” If you are willing to pray for us, please also let us know on the card so that we can keep you updated on what is happening.

I love talking about what we’re doing so please ask me questions. Attached is an FAQ page that provides more detailed information. We’re excited about this new spiritual journey and look forward to you being a part of it with us.

Trusting in Him,

Cory Whitehead

Praying for Puppies?

One balance I've often struggled with in prayer--especially group prayer--is taking everyone's issues seriously but not making prayer some kind of trite grocery list of suggestions to God. What do you do when someone says their dog needs prayer because it's going to get a shot? Or that their grandma got a bad watermelon at the store that she can't take back?

On the side of accommodating, and even encouraging, any and every request are a few things. One, I believe that God is intimately involved in the world and that there isn't anything that escapes his awareness. So on some level, anything that is a concern to someone is a concern to him. Second, I don't believe I have the right to judge the validity of someone else's experiences. So if someone says they are anxious, sad, or angry about something, my reaction shouldn't be to dismiss it as stupid. It may be something that wouldn't matter to me were I in their shoes, but apparently it does matter to them. Third, I believe that God answers prayer. Prayer is not just something God uses to shape us (though it can do that), he has invited us to shape his involvement in the world through prayer.

On the side of not wanting to accomodate seemingly trite prayers are a few other things. One, the Bible doesn't give us many examples of the kinds of prayer. Prayer in Scripture is rich and is far more about the things of the kingdom of God than it is about minor inconveniences or pains. Two, prayer requests like these tend to make group prayer time less meaningful and more routine. It's easy to make a list, check it twice, and talk out loud about it under the pretense of it being prayer. Sometimes it may be prayer, but I know that there are many times I've just prayed for someone's request without passion or desire because I thought I had to. Many times these requests seem to come out because someone really wants to say something, just give an update on their life and not know when else to do it, or spread some gossip. Third, this reinforces that Christianity is all about "me" and God giving me what I deserve. I don't have time to write about all the things that are wrong with that and how that thinking has neutered Christianity.

Something that motivated this is an article I came across by JoHannah Reardon on group prayer. Again, there's no hyperlink button on this computer, but if you're up for cutting and pasting it's at http://www.christianitytoday.com/smallgroups/articles/artofgroupprayer.html.

Your thoughts on the topic?

Article Worth Reading

This article (http://www.theofframp.org/emerging.html) (sorry, my hyperlink button in blogger isn't working) by Brian McLaren was brought to my attention and I think it's worth reading. A few of my favorite lines to entice you into reading it are:

"So, this quest for community challenges us not to seek community as a commodity, but rather to pursue love (which is patient, kind, not rude, etc.) as a practice, which yields community as a byproduct."

We have massive systemic problems, one of which is "Our transience , which means right about the time we, against all odds, get close to a circle of friends, half of them will up and move away."

"Old categories merge in what I believe is a radical shift in our theology, from a system in which "missions" is one department of theology, to a new place where theology is one department of mission."

"In contrast, missional Christianity says, "God is expressing his love to all outsiders through our acts of kindness and service. You're invited to leave your life of accumulation and competition and self-centeredness to join us in this mission of love, blessing, and peace. Want to join in the mission?"

Any thoughts?