FENTON, MI – Years ago, my wife and I felt the Lord leading and prompting us in the direction of church planting. We prayed for an opportunity to do so and, for what felt like a lifetime, only grew more and more discouraged. Everything changed with a phone call. After hearing about a church in Fenton (right where we wanted to focus our efforts) being forced to make decisions about its future, we knew God was closing one door and opening another.
Months later, we launched The Way Church with the mission of helping people find and follow Jesus. We set out to reach young families, and God continued to provide. Since our launch we’ve celebrated with people who’ve come to know Jesus, and we’ve watched as individuals took the next step in their walk with Christ.
As a new church with a heart for our community, we’ve had our work cut out for us. So this summer we decided to put our hands to worship. On Serve Sunday we cancelled our gathering, and set out to serve Fenton. We painted park restrooms, cleaned up yards, wrote letters of encouragement to residents of local nursing homes, and took part in a road clean-up effort. A day later, township officials were calling us with more needs to fill in our community, and we’ve been busy meeting those needs ever since.
In the days following Serve Sunday, God opened the door for more service opportunities and opened our hearts to a deeper love for the people in our community. We even picked a couple of random mornings to show God’s love in a much sweeter way. By passing out donuts and coffee to community members who drove by our building. We were able to say, “we’re here for you.”
We’ve watched as God used service projects, and even something as simple as a donut to draw people towards Himself. People have been coming to know Jesus, but we’ve also been intentional about growing in our walk with Him. Take for example our FIVE52 Initiative, where we’ve challenged our people to read, pray, and give every week for an entire year. For 52 weeks we’re asking our people to spend time with God in prayer for 5 minutes, spend time in Scripture for 5 minutes, and commit to giving at least $5 every week. In doing so, we’re seeing people growing in their love for the Lord, growing in their understanding of Scripture, and being more open handed with the resources God has blessed them with.
Ten months ago we launched with the intention of reaching young families in our community. While we’ve experienced our fair share of obstacles along the way, this journey has been nothing short of encouraging. People have come to know Jesus, and we’ve seen them intentionally take that next step in their walk with Him. We’re helping people find and follow Jesus.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Scott Statson is the Lead Pastor of The Way Church. Prior to planting The Way Church, Scott held various positions in ministry in several churches throughout Michigan & Nebraska. Scott & Amanda reside in Fenton, MI with their two beautiful daughters.