In November of 2020 we gave away and sold virtually everything we owned to follow the Lords leading and pioneer a deeply vital mission for the modern-day church in America. To show up in strength for weary pastors and ministry leaders across the nation with no other agenda than “what do you need, how can we help?”
“2 OUT OF 5 (43%) PASTORS IN AMERICA HAVE SERIOUSLY CONSIDERED QUITTING IN THE LAST YEAR… ~Barna Group Research
Over the course of the next 18 months, we traveled to 25 different cities and ministered to over 55 pastors and ministry leaders. Our service ranged from construction help to marriage counseling, deep cleaning homes to babysitting children, worship leading and preaching to sharing heartfelt and safe fellowship at a table together. It was a WILD and fruitful ride!
In December of 2021 it became clear that in order to continue showing up in strength for these pastors and ministry leaders we needed to implement and pioneer two very important things.
1. A home base for our family to re-group and re-charge after pouring out.
2. A retreat space for ministry leaders and their families to “get away” and do the same!
Our dream with God began to grow into what it would look like to provide a space for these families to re-connect with each other, play together, be served and loved without any strings attached, receive counseling, rest deeply, get away from the crowds like Jesus did and meet with the Father.
“PASTORS WHO HAVEN’T THOUGHT ABOUT LEAVING THE MINISTRY SAY ‘THE IMMENSE STRESS OF THE JOB (34%), CURRENT POLITICAL DIVISIONS (32%) AND FEELING LONELY AND ISOLATED’ (18%) ARE FACTORS THAT HAVE NEGATIVELY IMPACTED THEIR ABILITY TO LEAD…” ~Barna Group Research
As we began to dream and seek God on the “HOW”, an abundance of dreams, prophetic words, and confirmation after confirmation came flooding in! THIS was the next step for the Missional Nomads! THIS was what the Lord was wanting to do but we had NO IDEA HOW he was going to do it!
After taking the Month of March 2022 as a sabbatical month and seeking the Lord together as a family, we decided to jump off that cliff of Faith again and dare to believe that the Lord was making a way for this next level of mission. We got in touch with the most AMAZING and Jesus loving real-estate agent, Rustin Carlson, and began to seek and knock on the door of purchasing a ministry base. The odds were more than stacked against us in EVERY way! On paper, there was absolutely no way we could pull this off. BUT GOD!
In June we began looking, in August we sold the tiny home that had carried our family across the nation, and in September of 2022, in a market that was deeply competitive, with houses selling in 3-7 days at 40k over asking, we made a low ball, faith filled offer on the home that we believed to be the answer to this next phase. It’s a glorious story full of miracles, but suffice it to say, on a Monday morning in September we received a call from our realtor and he was crying over the phone. God had done it! They had accepted our offer! 21 days later… in a supernaturally efficient manner, the keys were in our hands for The Missional Nomads new ministry base!
“OVER HALF OF PASTORS WHO HAVE CONSIDERED QUITTING FULL-TIME MINISTRY (56%) SAY ‘THE IMMENSE STRESS OF THE JOB’ HAS FACTORED INTO THEIR THOUGHTS ON LEAVING. BEYOND THESE GENERAL STRESSORS, TWO IN FIVE PASTORS (43%) SAY ‘I FEEL LONELY AND ISOLATED.’” ~Barna Group Research
Now we build! This wonderful home had been a rental for 30 years before we purchased it. It needs some serious TLC! We are embarking on a FOUR PHASE journey called “Project Revive”. Because this home needs some reviving and also because it will be used to REVIVE every heart that walks through its doors!
PHASE ONE: The Gathering Place – $20k
This phase is about the main living area of the base being brought up to speed in order to host hundreds around our table and in our living room. Here we will worship together, offer counsel, pray, share a meal, and simply show the holy gift of hospitality to ministry leaders and their families who are often overlooked and lonely.
· New flooring throughout (just materials because we can DIY)
· Main Bathroom Reno (there was sub floor rot, water damage and mold in this bathroom! Again… just material costs)
· Paint (30 year rental = needs some fresh love)
· New (to us…we buy everything second hand) appliances in Kitchen (they are 30 years old and not really functioning)
PHASE TWO: The Retreat Space - $30-40k
We specifically purchased a home with an unfinished, walk out basement that we intend to turn into a two-bedroom apartment/retreat space for ministry leaders and their families! It needs everything from drywall and texture to plumbing and appliances and all the furnishings to provide a holy place of retreat and rest. We want to lavish love on these families! They are often used to squeezing in, cutting costs, settling for the bare minimum. That is NOT what we want to do here! We want to lavish them with a gift that they would normally never experience. And we want to provide it FOR FREE! This space will be the prototype. The big dream is to partner with Christian airbnb’s all over the nation that would partner with us in providing retreats for Ministry leaders that maybe can’t make it to Colorado but really need some time away and do not have the extra resources to do so.
PHASE THREE: Shore Up The Foundations - $25k
We want to preserve this place of rest for many years to come and it is quite weathered from the harsh Colorado Climate.
· It needs a new deck where we will host meals, worship gatherings, create room for all the kiddos that come through to play, and establish an outside sanctuary to pray and meet with God.
· It also needs new exterior paint at a minimum but hopefully new siding as it has not been well maintained and could bring about some serious consequences to the interior if left untended.
PHASE FOUR: Building The Retreat Network - $20k
· We will hit the road again to oversee, pioneer, and pastor these different retreat spaces across the nation. This will require a part time travel home on wheels… so, much smaller than we had before. This way we can “house ourselves” while pioneering, administrating, and managing these different retreat spaces across the nation.
· This will also include a means to continue showing up in strength for the SOS calls of pastors and ministry leaders across the nation.
"AS REV. DR. GLENN PACKIAM - AUTHOR OF THE RESILIENT PASTOR- WRITES IN BARNA’S THE STATE OF YOUR CHURCH, ‘WE NEED SAGES TO ADVISE US, LEADERS TO DIRECT US OR HOLD US ACCOUNTABLE, PEERS TO REMIND US THAT WE AREN’T ALONE, HEALERS TO DRESS OUR WOUNDS AND COMPANIONS WHO CARRY US WHEN WE CAN’T CARRY ON.’” ~Barna Group Research
We are undone by the faithfulness of the Lord in leading us to this phase of the journey. We have already had a flood of pastors confirming this desperate need and how much their hearts leap at the idea of having a whole network like this!
What if, instead of fainting hearts and burnout, we proactively were able to cultivate accessible places of retreat and healing?!
What if, instead of 42% of pastors in America wanting to quit and walk away from their callings because of loneliness, stress, and financial and political pressure, we started seeking them out, calling them to rest, creating safe places of fellowship, and providing emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual support?!
What if we didn’t just shake our heads at all the mess we’re in, as a church in America, but we responded with compassion and action to change the pattern, to shatter the stereotype, to champion the weary leaders with intentional support so they, in turn, could continue to lead with strength and wholeness?!
IT WOULD LOOK LIKE A HEALTHY BODY! It would look like a bride made ready! Will you help us get out in front of this?! Will you help us champion and pioneer this change?! Let’s do it together!
We are asking the Lord for 25 comrades to link arms with us and commit to partner on a monthly basis! This will allow us to cover our ministry expenses, free our time to be able to fully serve these pastors and ministry leaders, develop material, advance our personal training, and travel for ministry without being a financial burden to the ministries we visit (Come WITH a blessing)!
Sow a one time gift into cultivating The Missional Nomads ministry base into a true sanctuary and refuge for hundreds of pastors and their families!
We have put together a list of practicals and gift cards (hello Lowes supplies!) to advance the retreat space of Phase Two! It’s a quick and easy way to partner with this project that hopefully would be fun to participate in as well!