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Community Survey Prayer Spring Branch Church Plant PNC Information
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For 26 consecutive Wednesday nights 26 people climbed the stairs to room 203 to listen and learn about new church starts. Some were skeptical at first, not exactly sure why they felt called to come. But the Barnabas Team 2005, as the group was called, came to understand and then embrace a simple truth: if the body of Christ on earth is to flourish, churches must multiply rather than just grow larger. The comprehensive training challenged old notions and pushed aside misconceptions. As the weeks and months passed, fear of failure jumped ship under the weight of knowledge, fueled by prayer ("When we work, we work, but when we pray, God works.") and countless hours of hard work. They pored over demographic information, explored types of churches, methods of church startups and areas of need in the urban and suburban regions of the greater Houston The church of 007 would not be a "carve out," pulling members away from other churches. This would be place for the unchurched, non-believers, and the "spiritually abused" in an area adjacent to downtown Armed with an idea, energized by shared vision, the Barnabas Team turned ideas into action. They embarked on detailed “windshield surveys”, in-depth demographic studies, and, most importantly, prayer for an area that now had a name. They began to make contact with those who lived and worked in the area, meeting people through servant evangelism projects, focus groups, visiting coffee shops and gathering places, holding a prayer service for nearly 100 at the local YWCA and more. As they meet people the Barnabas Team collects names and contact information and sometimes stories that fuel the fire, stories that say, “Hurry! The harvest is plentiful. The hurts are deep. The desire is great. Bring the workers and build it now, for they will come!” A woman in a place of authority, hostile to the point of setting aside civility, presents a wall supported by a mountain of hurt, “I don’t have time for to meet with you.. . . What do you know about the poor? I don’t know what you want, but I’m not talking to you alone.” But she then pours out her litany of hurts filed under “CHURCH” and the Holy Spirit moves. “Cancel my next appointment.” Two hours later she follows her visitor to the car and asks to meet again. “_________________” The harvest is ready; the workers are few. In a neighborhood focus group, another woman of influence asks pointedly, “Why can’t we have a church we can go to here in our own community?” The desire is great. The time is now. Sitting with the administrator of the YWCA, the reception exceeds hopes as the meeting itself becomes a time of prayer and the site is offered for the first large prayer gathering. v The banquet is laid, the guests are outside.
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