Donuts Anyone?

Recently we took a trip over to San Jose for a little team bonding.  It was the first time that our team has been all together.  After playing at the park and driving around San Jose with our team mate and tour guide Thomas, we finally landed at a small local donut shop to debrief!  A good time was had by all, and I see this team being a prayerful and powerful force in the Bay Area!

Giving Birth

Church planters often times use the analogy of a "mother church" and a "daughter church".  We reference lots of comparisons to church planting within the context of this parental relationship.  As a mother I have related deeply to this connection and to the symbolism it embodies.  One of the most exciting things I've ever experienced in my life is the process of growing a child.  When you realize you are pregnant there is this sense of surrealism.  This stage lasts for a while even though there are subtle changes that all point to the reality of impending birth.  To the outside world you look the same.  The idea of motherhood only truly sank in when I felt the child move inside of me for the first time.  A flutter at first and then later nudges, and finally determined kicks and rolls (sometimes it felt like attempts at Kung Fu!).  This movement inside the womb, the indicator of life independent of myself, is what made me realize that I would indeed be a parent before too long!

This is how we feel about Basilea.  It has been a dream of our hearts for some time now.  We have desired it, and longed for it prayed earnestly that it would be God's will and even in the beginning stages it seemed surreal.  But now, though it may not be visible to anyone else, we feel movement and the dream is becoming reality!

This season of Advent (which means "coming") we pray God's richest blessings upon you and your family.  Pray with us that the coming of the Christ will happen more than just once a year.  That indeed the coming of Christ happens each and every day in the hearts of those who have not met Him yet.

We are...

It has been years in the making.  It has been the biggest decision in the ten years of our married life.  It has and will impact our lives, our children and our future more than anything we've ever done before.  The decision has been made...

We are church planters.

If you have been following our journey thus far, you will know that our path has been a slow and steady calling toward this day.  Eight and a half years ago we sat in a room off the cafeteria at Pepperdine University listening to a man share his dream.  This man was Stan Granberg, founder of the Kairos Church Planting organization.  At the time it was not called Kairos, he was wanting to call it C.P.N.W. or Church Planting North West.  At that very first vision casting, someone challenged him to think broader than the North West and to change the initials to mean Church Planting Nation Wide.  We went to that meeting to be a support to our former Cascade College professor and to see good friends from years past.  (Including Kevin Woods who was to be the first church planter for Kairos there in the beautiful North West!)  When we were giving hugs and chatting with friends after the meeting, it was mentioned that maybe God would someday call the Redelsperger family to church planting.  Very content in youth ministry with the Rancho Cordova Church of Christ this compliment was endearing, but certainly didn't cause too much pause for thought in our lives.  But yet, the seed was planted.  It would be six years(and three kids) later that we would travel to the East coast for Discovery Lab with Kairos, and then another eighteen months before we would attend Strategy Lab with them as well. By this point we were feeling a very strong pull toward church planting, but were still uncertain of our specific role in supporting this vitally important movement.  After another year of prayer, struggle, heartache and hard work it became clear that we needed to make a decision!  Either we are going to be church planters, or we are not.  Though it seems like such a simple choice, there have been a lot of factors working into the decision.  We felt the need to be financially responsible by getting out of debt, relationally responsible to transition our youth and church members after almost 15 years of ministry and spiritually responsible for our children's well being!  That's a lot of responsibility which means this decision could not be made lightly.

Please continue to pray for us as we take this next step in our church planting journey.  God has very clearly provided for us during this time of searching. I can't wait to see how He works as we take our giant leap of faith!

Strategy Lab

In September of 2011 we went to Strategy Lab with Kairos. Three things happened there. The first is that we finally concluded that we are going to become church planters. We felt God call us to take the step of committing to start new churches. It has been a long process to get to this point. We had been moving toward that decision for years without ever committing that we were going to do it. At strategy lab we finally took the last step.

The second thing that happened is that we decided upon planting in the San Francisco bay area (though probably not in San Francisco proper, but maybe). We feel pulled to the population density, the diversity of culture, income, religions, ethnicity and everything else. In Galatians 3:27-28 Paul said “ ²⁷ For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. ²⁸  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave^[g] nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  We are excited to see that vision happen in the Bay.

The last thing that happened was that we agreed upon a clear vision of lots of churches in the bay. We Want to 50 churches in 30 years around the bay. Churches of Christ on the West Coast are dying, not growing. More and more churches close their doors every year. The way we see it there are three options.

1. Ignore the issue and watch the Church die.

2. Attempt to revitalize established churches.

3. Build new churches in new places for new people.

We are obviously choosing the third option because we think it is the best chance we have for churches to reverse the trend of shrinking, dying churches.

                I believe this post will stir up lots more questions for those who read it. I will be continuing to write about our process, and I think many questions will be answered as we go. I also believe more questions will be stirred up along the way and on we go. 

Anniversary

Could it be possible that we are coming up on our one year anniversary of Discovery Lab?
One year ago on April 10th I was filled with so much anticipation it created butterflies in my stomach.  We were building towards an unknown and asked you to partner with us in prayer and financial support.  
 Discovery Lab truly was a time of discovery for both Aaron and myself.  We anticipated explaining to the team there that we were not quite ready to plant, that we needed some time to figure a few things out.  The reality check came when they told us that they thought we were not quite ready to plant and needed to figure a few things out!  They gave us some coaching, and we have thoughtfully put that coaching into practice over this past year.
We've prayerfully considered how God might use us in the world of Church planting.  We've even been contacted by a few families telling us that they are praying for us.  We've labored with our home congregation through a time of transition, providing some much needed stability during the absence of a full time preacher.  And we've grown, a lot...but, I don't think we are ready yet.

What else is there to be done?

Oh dear friends, there is so much.  When I think to the future of "church", I think about all the hurting people, and all those that have no idea how much love there is in store for them.  I ache and long for the time to be right.  Please pray for a people and a place to be prepared for us.  Ask the Spirit to be working among those that He is anticipating.  And then, if you would be so kind, could you ask Him to show us?  We are seeking for His guidance knowing that in His perfect time and His perfect way we will be affirmed in when and where to plant.

And for now...pray for patience and preparation. (oh and did I mention patience?)

Yes, but not yet...

If you have been following our journey thus far you know that we have recently participated in the Discovery Lab assessment process. And I'm sure that you are wondering about the results of that assessment.

While at Discovery Lab, we went through 13 different interviews with six sets of interview teams. We each had to give our testimony or "personal story" and participate in a group project. Each couple also had to plan and lead a time of worship. During these four days every area of our lives were highly scrutinized.

The last interview was our "exit interview". To say we were surprised with the outcome of this interview would be an understatement. The affirmation we felt throughout the assessment process really lead us to feel that we were very ready for Church planting.

During our exit interview from Kairos they expressed that they think our personalities and natural giftedness for leadership are perfect for Church planting; however they would not partner with us at this time. They thought that our chances of a successful plant right now, before coaching, would be slim. However they gave us three areas to work on in this next year. They want us to intentionally work on these areas and feel that if we do well under their "light coaching" this year that we will be ready to plant after another time of assessment.

I feel strengthened knowing that God has directly guided this entire process and is looking out for the well being of our family as well as preparing us fully for a future in church planting.


Please contact us if you have any further questions.
Aaron
Amy

Affirmation and Challenge

Two words describe my experience at Discovery Lab so far. Affirming and challenging. Amy and I have felt affirmed specifically in our marriage and family. I believe that Amy and I are a great team. The interviews and activities have endorsed this belief. We communicate well, we view our home and family as ministry tools and we work to understand and compliment each other’s gifts and strengths. Before Discovery Lab we had a bunch of tests and references from people who know us, and they all say that we have a strong marriage and family. What an encouragement!
This second area I feel affirmed in is also where I feel the biggest challenge. Everything we have done so far has suggested that I have strong leadership potential and ability. The challenge in that is to stretch myself and take the lead. I have potential that is unused. My thought on that is if I don’t use it, I am wasting a gift from God that he gave me to use for Him.
Lord, guide me in responding to the feedback we receive from this experience. May I use my blessings and abilities to honor You. Guide me and give me wisdom.