What does missions and church planting have to do with one another? It comes down to call and presence.  Call is two-part: 1) God calling people to himself, and 2) God calling you (as he designed and gifted you) to a people.  When you have a heart for the people, live a life of being present with God and being present among the people.

This time of year seems like an apt time to reflect on how Ben and Emily Karwoski and Daniel Thompson are doing this in Champaign-Urbana, IL as a way of life for their church plant, The Well Community Church. None of them felt like they fit the traditional church model, though they tried.  The Karwoskis, having found Jesus in college while on a competitive swim team, finally heard the call of God after nearly five years of waiting.  God called them into a “deep dive of slow obedient steps” of a non-traditional church plant model in a transient population that needs community (a college town).

It’s all about community and discipleship, starting with our relationships with God and always including the communities in which we live. They live in a hand-up, hand-down reality: Always be discipled and always be discipling. Daniel strongly agrees.  He became a believer young; he even had a call to ministry when he was 14 years old!  His bachelor’s and master’s degrees were both with ministry in mind, and it was not until he started his M.A. in Intercultural Studies that he had his first experience in being discipled!  Always having worked in the church, Daniel still had a growing frustration with how “churches float in a parallel universe to their neighborhoods.”  He added, “American Christians are struggling to cherish one another.”  When a common friend introduced him to the Karwoskis (and The Alliance) and the conversation went immediately to discipleship, he threw his oar in with theirs and hasn’t looked back.

Ben and Emily point out that in today’s culture, the main challenge about reaching and discipling others is not if you are adequately equipped.  Far more important is if you have the relational capacity with your part of the world to share and apply Truth.  The Holy Spirit will equip you with courage and boldness, but be sure to examine your daily life to make sure you are living in such a way that you have opportunity for such courage and boldness.

What does that daily life look like? At The Well, they believe in being good neighbors and living in B.L.E.S.S. rhythms.  That’s the basic premise that they planted on, live out, and sustain their community with.  Daniel emphasized, “We are living this out over the long haul.  It’s more than an experience for a month; it’s more than a year… We will live this way until it becomes our way, and then we will move into planting house churches.”  Ben added, “Because the church service is no longer the front door for people coming to Christ.”

The Karwoskis heard about B.L.E.S.S. rhythms initially from some friends who were missionaries in Kenya, and then from KC Underground, a church in Kansas City.  These rhythms are five simple, straightforward practices that help us make loving our neighbor and sharing our faith a natural part of our everyday lives.  “I am passionate about God doing what he wants to do in us as a prerequisite to fruitfulness,” Ben says, leaning forward.  Emily summarized, “Lord, where are you at work and want me to join you?”

B.L.E.S.S. Rhythms

Begin with prayer and fasting

Intentionally set yourself apart for the direction and use of the Lord. Carve out sanctuary space in your life so that you don’t bring selfish ambition into God’s invitation.

Listen

Listening includes listening to what your Heavenly Father is saying to you, about you, and for you, and it also includes giving your schedule ample time to listen to those you’ve identified as your community.  By the way, when listening to people, here are four great categories you can ask questions about*:

1. History: Tell me your story. Where did you grow up? Go to school? First job?
2. Heart: What is your favorite (hobby, team, band, restaurant, vacation spot, etc.)?
3. Habits: What are you into? Good at? What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
4. Hurts: How are you doing with (name the situation)?

Eat

Eating with people is one of the most accessible ways to discover their stories because it’s a necessary daily function that everybody does!  If a meal intimidates you, start with just dessert or a beverage. Let the Lord navigate you around some immediate challenges that come up for you, and find ways to add one more person to your gatherings on a consistent basis.

Serve

This is a powerful business-building concept for entrepreneurs, so how much more for the kingdom of God?!  As you listen and discover the needs of your community, what are simple ways you can step in and serve?  May your service be characterized by humility, joy, and (above all else) love.

Share

Living this way with God and with others will invite questions.  Share the testimony that the Holy Spirit prompts you to share (he’ll make sure it’s relevant).  The focus should be giving glory to God for what he has done and is doing in your life. “Radical trust in the Holy Spirit will result in fruit,” Ben reminds us.

How does that shape The Well Community Church?  Every person on their core team in the church plant lives in B.L.E.S.S. rhythms.  Then, initially once a quarter, they come together corporately to share stories and testimonies resulting from this intentional living, dig deep into scripture, give intentional time for reflection on Scripture, worship, and eat together.  After parting from this corporate setting, they each return home and continue this pattern in their own homes. This is how they equip their saints for the work of the ministry. And, as of November 13, 2022, they have moved to micro-churches!  They will also transition to gathering corporately once a month.

What does your call and presence look like?

Remember, call is two-part: 1) God calling people to himself, and 2) God calling you (as he designed and gifted you) to a people.  When you have a heart for the people, live a life of being present with God and being present among the people. If you need structure, B.L.E.S.S. rhythms are a natural and life-changing way to go!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• The Well Community Church has an incredible library of intentional lifestyle and discipleship resources on their web site: https://www.thewellcu.com/discipleship.
• Alliance Missions has picked, “Be Present” as their theme for this year. Utilize your missions events to mobilize your local body for the rest of the year! National Office resources
• KC Underground has incredible resources for anyone looking to pursue discipleship in a Western context: https://www.kcunderground.org/resources
• *Further explanation, prompts, and ideas for B.L.E.S.S. rhythms can be found on New Community’s web site: https://newcommunity.us/bless