Emmaus Church | Denver, CO

• Andy Beams
• Oct 19, 2012
• Series: Church Profiles
• Categories: Church Planting Articles, Latest News

Briefly describe your story of your call to plant a church

Throughout my walk with the Lord, I have had a strong desire and gifting for evangelism and missions. The real question for me was how God was going to lead me to express this calling. About 5 years ago, I spent some time with a good friend of mine who is a planter among West African Refugees in Harlem in New York City. I was able to spend time with him as he worked wi

How did you build up your core? What advice would you give to guys in the core-stage?

I followed the method that Hunter Beaumont and Kevin Cawley describe in an session they taught on gathering a core team at an Acts 29 bootcamp. I asked everyone I knew (church, friends, social networks) in Texas for connections they had in Denver. I began following up on these connections even before moving to Denver. Once I arrived, I made networking a priority and was able to expand these connections into further ones. As far as advice, I would encourage guys in that phase that they need to be aggressive and take advantage of every opportunity and connection they come across.

What advice do you have for men who are wrestling with the decision to plant? 

Spend time with planters, and if you can, spend time volunteering at a church plant. Everyone seems to be inspired by an idea of what church planting is, but I think you have to get a taste for the experience and begin to develop the unique competencies for planting prior to hitting the ground.

What’s the most important thing you’d want to share with a new church planter?   

God is probably more interested in the sanctification of the planter than He is with planting a "successful" church. Although there are external challenges, the primary challenges are internal. I think that planting in a post-Christian city has been incredibly challenging, but I've learned the real challenge, the real fight, is the fight for my joy. I have found I can not fail to spend time cultivating my heart in the gospel for my joy, because the challenges are so pressing in this venture.

How do you pastor your family in the midst of starting a church?

I think that blocking off time to be with the family is essential. This isn't easy and there's always going to be pressure to short change your family. We block off a Sabbath, a family day, once a week. We do a lot of resting and playing with our kids on that day, and we really focus on making that time special. Mindy and I also block off time (and money) for about 3 date nights a month, and we have found it is so important to have this time to re-connect. Blocking off time and being intentional about making those times special are the big keys.

Outside of the Bible, what is the most helpful book you have read for church planting?

Total Church- Steve Timmis, Tim Chester

Church Profile: Emmaus Church
Launch Date: October 2012
Location: Denver, CO

Mission, Vision, Values of Church 

Vision: To be a community shaped by the beauty of the gospel.

Mission: To redeem all of life for the glory of God

What are some examples of God's grace that you have seen in your life and/or the life of your church?

We are so thankful for the depth of the relationships in our community.  We have had some members struggle with health issues, and others with unemployment, and our church body has stepped up and served each other compassionately time and time again. It has also been amazing to see the growth missionally in our church body. We have adopted a refugee family from West Africa, and it has been so amazing to see our body come together to serve and show compassion to this family.

How can we pray for you?

Pray that Emmaus Church will be a light in a dark place. Ask God to empower us for faithfulness to the gospel and compassion for the city around us. Pray God will call men who will step up to lead in this mission to lead people to live for Jesus Christ.