If we took every church that currently existed in Eastern PA and pushed them to their limits in terms of leaders, programming, or building capacity, we wouldn’t come close to reaching the 9.2 million people in our district who still need the Gospel of Jesus. This is why disciple making through church planting is essential. May we each commit ourselves and our churches to being disciples that make disciples.
As of today, we have five developing church plants in our district reaching the communities of Harrisburg, York, Upper Darby, Scranton, and Lock Haven. We want to share stories from three of those plants and let you know how to pray for each plant in specific ways.
You can also pray (or give) to two other new multiplication efforts: Foundry Church in Berwick and the Philadelphia Church Planting Initiative.
Common Place Avenue, Lock Haven
Church planter Chad Long has been surprised by the number of people with a Catholic background finding a home at Common Place Avenue, especially since their atmosphere couldn’t be further from their previous experience. “There seems to be a level of freedom and curiosity that they experience among us, leading them deeper into Jesus’ church here,” says Chad. “I actually had the privilege of re-baptizing two ladies from a Catholic background in July. I’m not sure what all Jesus will do in this area, but we always enjoy welcoming new family members home at Common Place.”
Bill Corbin, who oversees the college ministry, shared a story about a young woman who started coming to their church last year. As a Doordash driver, she kept getting sent to the Wendy’s next to the church for pickups only to have the orders canceled once she arrived. Finally, after another canceled order on a Sunday, she decided “on a whim” to head over to see what this coffee shop church next door was all about. She is still attending today, and the church is seeing Jesus transform her story.
“I have rarely been more challenged and even more encouraged in my calling to shepherd Jesus’ church as in this time. Jesus is pursuing His Church!” says Chad.
Steamtown Español, Scranton
We celebrate that Steamtown Español is receiving new visitors almost every week. One of the factors is an increase in the Hispanic population moving into the area from New Jersey and New York. For a powerful story of transformation, a brother who came into their church had a long history of child abuse and a homosexual lifestyle. He has since given his life to the Lord, left his past lifestyle, and is discovering his identity in Christ. He continues to be a faithful servant, and his commitment to the church is a great example to others.
Mosaic City Church, York
One newcomer at Mosaic City Church took steps into discipleship this year and has felt Jesus’ presence in real and powerful ways. At a Sunday worship service, he vividly saw a man walking through the sanctuary waving at him to come and follow him. He had no idea what that meant but shared it with his small group.
Later that week, while reading his Bible, he came across the passage where Jesus invites the disciples to come and follow Him and He would make them fishers of men. As he read the passage, he felt the Spirit telling him that that’s what the vision was about. Jesus was inviting him to follow Him and He would make him a fisher of men! Our brother is both excited and nervous about what this means but has started stepping into opportunities to help those in need around him.
“We praise God for the way He is transforming the lives of His people!” says the Mosaic City team.
In their community, every Friday night a team of six individuals from their church meet at Albemarle Park to engage and invest in the lives of teens who live in the local community. Over the past year, the team has become close with a handful of middle school boys. They have spent countless hours playing sports, cooking dinners, and engaging in various topics of conversation with these kids. Over the summer, they created field trip activities with the purpose of challenging them in various ways and providing opportunities to speak into their lives.
“We have realized, even the more, that it is not our labors that create success, but the Lord enlists us in the work of building His house. We truly understand that our labor is in vain unless the Lord builds the house,” says Eric Cox, church planter.
Here are specific ways to pray for our church plants:
Common Place in Lock Haven
Pray for the Avenue campus to grow in generosity and to become financially stable
Pray for a committed college ministry student leadership team
Pray that missional families will take root and multiply
Steamtown Español in Scranton
Pray for marriages in the church as the enemy seems to be attacking them
Pray that God will raise up leaders
Pray that they can continue to create a DNA of multiplication and evangelism
Mosaic City Church in York
Pray as they develop a pathway for making disciples
Pray that God would have an impact on the young teens from the community who meet on Friday nights at the Mosaic building
Pray that the Lord would use Mosaic to help restore strained and broken relationships in their urban community through the power of the Gospel
Citylight Delco in Philadelphia/Upper Darby
Pray for the three new elders coming onboard
Pray as they work towards accreditation early next year
Pray for growth. Specifically, that God will send those who do not yet know Him
The Rock Church in Harrisburg
Pray as they look to expand the Rock Learning Center in the Fall
The Alliance family celebrates Church Planting Sunday in September. Learn more.