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Experience Epikos
I’d like to introduce you to a few friends.
Meet Chris. About 10 years ago, Chris responded to an appeal when he attended an Easter program at a nearby church. But he never settled into a church home or took his commitment to the next level. Six years later, while working as a fitness equipment designer for Nautilus in Vancouver, Washington, he became friends with Donovan, the company’s human resources director. Donovan had been attending Epikos Church, and his 16-year-old daughter recently had been baptized. In March, Donovan invited Chris to check out Epikos, and he and his wife began to attend. In April, Chris enrolled in the Alpha Course at Epikos to explore the basics of the Christian faith. In May, he was baptized for the first time in his life. He and his wife are deepening their faith, connecting with new friends, and happily serving in their new church home.
Meet Chad and Aimee. Chad has been free from drug addiction for a year. For some time, he and his wife Aimee looked for the “perfect church” -- a grace-filled, Christ-centered community in which to grow in Christ and raise their family. In March, they received a postcard advertising a message series at Epikos Church, and they checked it out. The first week, they knew they had found the spiritual home they had been looking for. They began to attend every Saturday, and they met several times with the lead pastor (Sam McKee) and Next Step director (Pat Hart). Last month, Aimee was baptized in the Pacific Ocean and their one-year-old daughter Olyve was dedicated to God in a joy-filled celebration at the Oregon coast.
Meet Rob and Jane. They have been supporters of Mission Catalyst since it began in 2004. Over the years, they have sent up prayers and they have sent potential church leaders and words of encouragement our way. And, a couple of months ago, they started to send their tithe to Mission Catalyst. They were inspired to do so after one visit to Epikos Church. They don’t live close enough to make Epikos their church home, but they experienced something in that one visit that they want to see flourish and spread, and they are happy to invest financially so that more prevailing churches can be started.
Meet Carrie. She is a leader in her local denominational church. She believes in its core teachings but feels hampered by the system. She prayerfully searched for another church but could not find one that has a message she believes in. In August 2009, a friend sent her an article aboutEpikos Church. Carrie knew this was what God had been speaking to her about, and she was thrilled to find that it was out there. She contacted Mission Catalyst, we connected her with others in her area, and they are laying the groundwork for a Mission Catalyst church in their city.
Their stories are different, but they share the experience of being inspired and changed by Epikos Church. What’s so special about Epikos? The world has many churches that are patterned after the Pivotal Design. And the world has many churches that share the Mission Catalyst theological niche. But Epikos is the only church (so far) that combines the message and the design. We’ve never experienced anything like it and, as you can tell, we love to talk about what God is doing in and through Epikos.
How can you experience Epikos?
Firstly, if you live in the Portland/Vancouver area, we invite you to attend. If you live elsewhere, we invite you to become a virtual member. As a virtual member, you can watch weekly messages and feature videos online, receive our weekly e-newsletter, join our Facebook community, and share your prayer requests with our prayer team.
Secondly, you’re invited to participate in the Leadership Practicum, held atEpikos September 25-28. The Practicum is four fun-filled, leadership-intensive days taking a look at the heart, the ethos, and the passion behind Epikos.
Lastly, we encourage you to be part of a team that starts a prevailing church in your city. As of today, Epikos is unique. But we trust that it won’t be for long. It’s just a matter of assembling the ingredients, and there is nothing we would like more than to cheer on a new church that sets its sights on a God-sized vision.
P.S. We cannot express enough thanks those who give a faithful tithe or other contribution to make the next prevailing church a reality. Find out how to give.
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