From Necessity to Commitment
“We came here out of necessity, but now we’re staying on purpose.”
On February 4th, 2024, Gospel Life Church in Wichita, KS, moved into a new space. This move has been the culmination of months of prayer, and the efforts of our people to follow God’s leading into a new chapter as a church. Our new space will afford GLC opportunities to reach our neighborhood for Christ. We can be the vibrant, connected and kingdom-minded church God has called us to be for our neighbors.
In 2020, when the world shut down, it seemed that perhaps our plans to launch a church in Wichita, KS sooner rather than later, were shutting down as well; or at the very least would need to be delayed indefinitely. However, that is not what God had planned. It was in that year, while the world waited to get back to “normal” that our little church planting team stepped out in faith to pursue leasing space to launch Gospel Life Church, amid COVID. The problem was that when looking at options for space, the best option was in a place that my family had been warned to stay away from by another church planter when we first moved to Wichita. As I write this, three things are abundantly clear: one, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into; two, what we did was far less heroic than I am making it out to be; and three, God graciously guided us to the Delano District (downtown & trendy) part of Wichita because he knows far more than I do.
The Delano District of Wichita is an extremely cool place to be, tons of great restaurants, lots of things to do and picturesque scenes. It is a part of our city that the local government has identified as worth investing in, and they are pouring money into Delano. Where we landed, though, was not that part of Delano. Within a 2.5-mile radius from our doorstep, there are a little over 54,000 people. Delano is extremely diverse in relation to other portions of Wichita, especially in lifestyles. Twenty-seven out of 50 different lifestyle segments are represented, which is very high according to the national average. Delano represents an immensely high non-traditional family structure; it is higher than the national average in divorce, widows and singles. Thirty-three percent of homes are headed by single mothers. Like I said, we didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into when we landed there; and if I’m being honest, we were just looking for a space in which to launch our church. After our Sunday launch, we had a difficult time gaining any kind of traction within the community. But in November of 2021 (10 months after our launch), God began to do something in my heart that I didn’t even know he was doing until much later. He began to grow in me a love for Delano; he began to slowly call me to have a heart for this neighborhood where we happened to do church. In June of 2022, that phrase which is quoted at the start of this article began to grow in my heart as we completed our Strat-Op with Regional President Jim Capaldo. However, as we assessed our future, we knew that, if we began to grow as we were asking God to grow us as a church, our current facilities would not last us for very much longer. The space was great, but parking was challenging. Thus, there was a lid on our future. Perhaps you’ve felt similar things in the places where you minister.
We began to pray and ask God for his wisdom. This summer an opportunity came to us, and it seemed we couldn’t say no. There was a local church about 3.5 miles south of us that closed its doors and we knew the owners of the facility. It was a great fit both financially and had much better parking. Most members of our board were very excited about the prospect of moving to this location. Then, when our landlord graciously allowed us an out to our current lease, it seemed as though God was telling us it was not only time to move, but to move on from our hopes of being a Delano church. Yet, even with all of this excitement, I was hesitant in my heart about the move, and it seemed connected to a growing desire and call to stay in Delano. I attributed it to jitters and nerves, but as the days passed, the hesitancy only grew larger and louder. Then, just two days before our initial announcement regarding the opportunity for our church to move to a new space, I received a phone call from a local church in Delano. They were moving to another space in the area and wondered if we’d be interested in moving into their space. Wow!!! In the end, God was doing something we could have never imagined. We would get to stay in Delano, in a space with much more parking and we would even save in the long run on monthly costs. So, after months of prayer and consideration, GLC voted to move locations. Praise be to God. Already, the sense of excitement, coupled with opportunities, is growing each Sunday. Our team is working feverishly, towards our grand opening on March 24, 2024. We covet your prayers as we work toward this date.
Again, as I sit and reflect on God’s goodness today, I am acutely aware of one more thing: Gospel Life Church has been blessed to be a part of the Converge Heartland family and we would not be in the position we are today without your prayers & support. So thank you, and may God richly bless you as you too seek to see your communities impacted by the transforming power of the gospel!