We cannot believe it has already been 7
months. The last month here in Spokane has been really cold. We have seen the
single digits for the high’s during the days and dipping down into the
negative’s with the wind chill during the nights. Needless to say, there are a
lot of people staying in doors these days. Also, the snow has picked up a
little the past couple of weeks. As we have had some warm days (30 degrees) we
have ventured outside to play in the snow.
We are learning how we can be outward
focused when we are new to an area and know only a small amount of people. It
makes it even more difficult when the people we do know don’t want to get
together because all they want to do is stay inside because it is soooo cold.
Spokane is a different culture and mindset. We continue to pray and ask God for
wisdom in how God wants to use us to impact the city.
One way that we are currently pursuing is
through a business ministry model. Have you ever heard of Yaks? Haha, while we
are not looking to open up yet another koffee shop, since Washington is the
birthplace of Starbucks, we are looking at other food service minded ventures
to reach and impact Spokane. Long story short we would like to open up a
burrito shop, similar to Burrito Bandito. They have one chipotle up here and we
all know that Bandito is much better than Chipotle J
Our vision in all of this is to develop
relationships with thousands of people every week, love and bless our
neighbors, and develop a deep intimate authentic community. Church for us is a
Sunday morning and then some. Just like the Jewish temples in the Old Testament
were community gathering places we want Vineyard 509 to be a
community-gathering place. The building during the day will be used to be a
place where people eat, then in the evening we will use it to gather kids,
students, worship and prayer nights, inter-faith dialogues, sex and dating
seminars, marriage seminars, and whatever else God puts on our hearts.
Over the past couple of weeks we have
started talking with the realtor of a building that is right next to the
Gonzaga University campus and surrounded by multiple businesses and
neighborhoods. This is a prime location for what we are looking to do. Here is
a link to the site we are looking at.
I found a restaurant supply
company that helps with every aspect of start to finish in the restaurant
business. This is an absolutely insane venture to start out.
We are looking at other possibilities such
as doing a much smaller café (crepes & coffee) and also getting a house in
the Gonzaga area. This house would function as a ministry house where a few of
the folks in our church would live and we would do neighborhood functions,
prayer, and worship.
All this to say, we have many opportunities
to love and bless our community but we need God to show up in some major ways.
In order for any of the above to take shape we need owners of the buildings to
give us some really great deals, we would need some business partners to help
get us started, we would need a contractor to come along and work for free, and
the business side of things would need to flourish. Now, with all that being
said, let’s do this!!!!!!!!!!
Shifting gears, we have an awesome God story
to report. As
a church we volunteer at a local youth center in an impoverished neighborhood.
This last Tuesday while we were there I followed up with a young man who had
broken his foot a few weeks back. I (Jason) asked him how his foot was healing.
He said that it was actually worse because he kept walking on it. He said the
doctors took an x-ray and said the bones had separated even more. I told him
"that sucks". I asked him if a few of us could pray for his foot. He
said "sure". So, we go into a quieter room where we can all focus. The
first really cool thing that happens when I tell the young men that were with
us is that we are going to pray and heal Jacob's. All of these young teens
grabbed hands and then laid hands on Jacob. In just two short weeks, in praying
with this group of kids we have developed a culture of prayer. AWESOME. So,
before we prayed I instructed the boys what we were doing and I instructed Jacob
how this was going to go down. I asked him to put his foot up and we are going
to pray those bones together in JESUS name :)
So, we start to pray and I ask Jacob, "Are you feeling
anything?" I told him to answer honestly because we want God to be real.
He said he felt nothing. So, I told him that was ok but we are going to pray
some more. About 30 seconds later he tells us, "It's tingling". I ask
him where is it tingling? He says, "where the bone is". I said,
"cool, I guess those bones are coming together". His response to this
was, "Whoa, this is weird." So, we pray until the tingling goes away.
So, I ask him is there any way to test his foot. All the boys are tripping out
by now. So, Jacob takes his boot off and starts to feel his foot with his hand.
"Does it hurt?" Jacob's response, "No, this is so weird!"
The boys are getting even more amped. So, I ask Jacob to stand up and test it
more. He replied that he was scared. I told him I completely understand. I said
to test it easy. So, he proceeds to stand up, put more and more pressure on it
until he is standing on one foot... The foot that was broken. "Any
pain?" "No, this is so weird". Amen. So, we thanked Jesus. Now,
I get home and I get on Facebook to add these guys as friends and one of the
boys has already posted, "Some crazy shizz happened tonight". A
friend of his replied, "What happened?" He responds, "We healed
Jacob's foot."
Over the
last few weeks, in praying for our city and our church, an excitement continues
to build because I believe we are getting the opportunity to see a move of God all
around us. I (Jason) get visions of different events where the lives of people
are being transformed by the power of God.
There is
still much work to do as we continue to plant. We continue to work at in hope
of seeing a harvest that will bless the heart of God. Please continue to pray
for us and with us. As the Father speaks to you in prayer, please relay what
you sense in prayer. Thank you to all those that continue to help with finances
and all the special blessings.
Peace and Grace to you all,
Vineyard 509
