Thirty-One Years Of Church With No Real Estate

We have a re-covenanting service at Pentecost each year.
(photos by Margie Vlasits, at their home this Sunday)

The house church of which Alma Jean and I have been a part since 1988 may never set any records for large numbers, but it has been a vital part of our spiritual journey for over three decades.

Family of Hope is a close knit group currently consisting of twelve covenant members and several associate members. This little group has provided a spiritual home to  many who have sought an alternative to conventional forms of church life.

Together, in each others' living rooms, we experience church stripped to its basic elements--Bible teaching, worship and fellowship, prayer, mutual aid, and the breaking of bread. We have no paid staff (everyone's gifts are needed and used), no organized committee structure (group decisions are made by consensus) and have no real estate to rent, own or maintain.

As a result, 100% of the giving we did through our church treasury last year could go to the various church wide and local ministries and charities we help support rather than for local expenses. We do provide financial help to members with large medical or other needs.

Weekly services consist of an hour of worship and sharing, an hour of Bible study (based on that Sunday's lectionary texts), and a third hour (or more) of fellowship, always with a meal together.

No one way of doing church is perfect, to be sure, but we think there's room for more home-based churches in our community and elsewhere. Meanwhile, we see our mission as not so much about having more people come to our services but to prepare and send people into the world as servants and emissaries of Jesus.