Send Columbus

In part 2 of our conversation with Dwight and Luke, we continue our deep dive into their team's communication lab. We talk about the importance of the 5 C's of communication and how leaning on a team can make a good communicator, great.

Dwight and Luke Peterson are not only co-laborers in a church plant but also Father and Son. In this episode, they discuss their call to Columbus and OSU as well as their strategy for communication. Developing their church planting team through a "Communication Lab" that helps create better on stage communication has become a key part of their team culture.

Steve Markle has been the Lead Pastor at Sycamore Creek Church since August 2011. Steve has been in full-time pastoral ministry for over 29 years. He also serves as a communications assessor with Send Columbus.

Few things are more important in a church plant than the preaching and teaching of the Bible. But what place should communication have in our churches and in our leadership? What should I do to continue to grow as a communicator? What tools and resources should I consider as I become a weekly preacher? We hope to answer these questions and more in our new series on Communication and Church Planting!

Kristy Shotwell serves as the Network Team Lead for Gloo. Gloo's mission is to "help churches and people connect to each other, and then power those connections with the right tools, to extend the Church's capacity to reach, know and move every person it serves." Through her work at Gloo, Kristy has her finger on the pulse of the church in America. In this episode, she talks about how Covid has affected the church at large and what unique opportunities it has provided as well.

Isaac is the Planter and Pastor of Chroma Church in Dublin, OH. Isaac and his wife Hannah planted in the spring of 2020. Just days before Chroma's first preview service, the Covid shutdown took effect. Despite all the planning and prep work, the church couldn't meet in person. After almost a year of online ministry they have now launched in person meetings and are reaching people despite the challenges they have faced.

The church is a place of spiritual, social, intellectual, physical and emotional development. When Covid prevented gatherings of any consequential size, we had to learn how to go from finding our identity in doing to being. In this episode, retired pastor and counselor Brett Castle joins us to talk about the importance of mental health and how covid exposed a crisis in our culture.

Being a pastor is difficult in normal circumstances but how much more in a global pandemic? Trying to pastor a church that thrives on a weekly gathering when gatherings are limited was especially taxing. Not to mention the polarization that ensued around masks, gatherings, and other pandemic related issues. Dean Fulks, pastor and planter of Lifepoint Church discusses all of these challenges and more with us in episode 2 of this series.

Welcome to the all new Send Columbus Podcast! We are updating our format to series. Up first, we are exploring the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the church and church planting. Enjoy this intro episode from Jason and Chad on the inspiration for this series, how the church has been impacted by Covid, and what will effects be going forward.

Will came to Christ as a college student and now lives on mission in the context of the college campus. He's from California but now calls Columbus home. Before planting on OSU's campus, he was a church planter in Pittsburg. In this episode, Will talks about how pivotal his time in college was for him and why reaching college students for Christ is such a huge opportunity. Will is married to his wife Chris and they have 2 kids.

Dan Ghramm is a Church Planting Catalyst and Pastor in Cleveland and will forever be a Cleveland fan. In 2006, he won a Ford Mustang from the famed baseball franchise. In this episode, we talk about baseball, last name originations, Washington state geography and even church planting!

Brad Lewter has been the Lead Pastor of Grand Avenue in Fort Smith, AR for 9 years. In those years, he had led the church to partner with Columbus the whole time. Grand's partnership with church planting in Columbus has been invaluable. In this episode, Brad shares insights into why longterm partnership is crucial for gospel advance in metropolitan areas as well as the challenges with working in a city for the long haul.

Shamus is the Director of Ministry Initiatives for Finish Line Ministries. Finish Line exists to equip and empower church planters in Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Before coming to Finish Line, Shamus was a church planter with the Send Network in Columbus. In this episode, Shamus talks about his new podcast, Orthopraxy. He also talks about the highs and lows of church planting and the opportunities God is giving Finish Line in remote villages in Africa.

Dino Senesi first got into coaching by being coached himself. "It was absolutely transformative for me," he recalls. Dino has coached and worked with church planters through the South Carolina Baptist Convention and with the North American Mission Board. In this episode, he shares the differences between coaching and other popular forms of self-leadership (i.e., mentorship, discipleship, counseling) and how coaching uniquely helps an individual figure out where they want to go.

Travis has been the pastor of Lakota Hills for over 16 years. He also serves as the Send City Missionary for Cincinnati. He and his wife Robin developed a heart for the nations around them that led to an ESL class being started in their church. From there, God has used Lakota to plant several ethnic churches through their church and from within their church. In this episode, Travis talks about what planters most need and how to get started reaching the nations that have become our neighbors.

Charles Campbell is a Send Network Trainer and serves as the Director of the Send Network Equipping Team. In this episode he talks about the various kinds of training methods that good trainers employ. He talks about how the process of equipping can lead to calling rather than calling being the entry point into equipping. He also shares his aha moment he had that led him to be so passionate about raising up leaders.

One episode wasn't enough for the great Troy Palermo! In part 2, Troy shares his wisdom on which staff to hire first in your church plant. He also gives practical advice about what to look for in volunteers when you can't afford to hire someone. In addition, he gives 20 year's worth of church planting wisdom to us.

Troy is from south Louisiana but has lived in Ohio for the past two decades. He came to Ohio to help plant Lifepoint Church and has served in various roles since. Currently, he is the Executive Pastor and serves in a cross campus role as well. In this episode, Troy tells his story about God's call and process for bringing them to Ohio to plant Lifepoint.

Ryan Johnston is the Church Planting Leader for Kansas/Nebraska for Send Network. Before leading church planting there, he was a pastor in Akron, OH. Ryan has helped over 300 churches in the last year start residencies. In this episode, Ryan talks about what a residency is, how to build one, and that it's easier than you might think!

Rivers Partin is the Spouse Development Specialist for the Send Network. She is also a church planter's wife. She and her husband Dave planted Neighborhood Church in Kansas City in 2015. In this episode, Rivers shares about her own church planting experience and how planters can best care for their spouse while planting.

Ryan Jones is from Ohio but spent the last 7 years planting churches in Las Vegas. He was on the planting team of a couple of churches in Ohio and now is the Lead CPC for Ohio. He also works in Western Ohio helping plant churches all over the state. In this episode, Ryan talks about the importance of planting churches in the non-send city areas and the enormous opportunities there.

Reggie Hayes has been a pastor in Columbus for over 2 decades. He has also served in leadership of several SBC entities. He currently works with the SCBO in the area of community development. In this episode, Reggie talks about the need for church planting in the urban community and the unique opportunities to reach people there.

Buzz grew up in the rural community of Bucyrus, OH and is now planting churches all over rural eastern Ohio. God is using him to plant churches in Urban and Suburban settings as well. The need is so great in Ohio that every community needs a church plant. Before serving as a Church Planting Catalyst for Send Network he was the College and Young Adult Pastor at Lifepoint Church in Lewis Center.

Jim grew up in Vegas before he planted there. He was a Church Planting Catalyst in Reno before moving to Columbus. As the Ohio Valley's Regional Equipper, Jim helps churches and church planting leaders develop leadership pipelines and residencies for the starting of new churches. Jim is also a power lifter. He is married and has 7 kids.

Morgan is a mother of 3 (soon to be 4) and husband to church planter Kale. They started Lifepoint Delaware 5 years ago. In this episode, Morgan shares about the joys and the challenges of church planting. She reflects on how the Lord has stretched and grown her along the way and how he is using her now in the lives of young women in her church. She most recently developed a 4-week study for young women on anxiety.

Paul Priddy attended church for the first time as an adult on March 27, 2016. Six years later to the day, he's planting a church. On this episode, Paul shares the story of how he and his wife came to active faith in Christ and how the Lord has been leading them toward church planting ever since. Theirs is a great story of redemption, multiplication, and restoration all wrapped up in one.

Hannah serves on the board at She Has a Name, an organization that exists to fight human trafficking through education, advocacy, and care for those locally impacted. She is also a church planter's wife. When Chroma Church launched in March of 2020, she had no idea what to expect but a year of online church wasn't in the playbook. Despite the challenges, Hannah and Isaac are doing a great job reaching people in Dublin and are leading Send Columbus when it comes to issues of justice.

Luke and Kyle moved to Columbus in the summer of 2021 after two years in Iowa training to be church planters. Friends for the last several years, the dreamed of working side by side in a new work. They started the Capital Church in Columbus and a Salt Company College ministry that work together to reach students at OSU. In this episode, they talk about the unique opportunities the campus provides in reaching people. College students are in a unique position to leverage their lives for the gospel like few other age demographics.

Chad and Jason look back at 2021 and ahead to 2022. They highlight all the good things that God has done through Send Network and how the future looks. New leadership, new plants, and multiplication are featured in this episode as well as their favorite Christmas traditions.

Jenny Regalsky is the Executive Assistant at Lifepoint Lewis Center. She also has an expansive prayer ministry that helps women find healing for their wounds in Jesus. She is also a founding member of SFLT (Super Fun Lunch Time), a laid back lunch time gathering of Lifepoint staff. On this episode, Jenny talks about the importance of mental and emotional health in church planting and how it can often be overlooked in the church at large.

Nathan has been at Lifepoint for over a decade and a half. He has served in volunteer roles and is now the Community Life Pastor. Nathan wears many hats in his role including coordination of the small groups ministry at the church(at Lifepoint they are called Lifegroups). Lifepoint boasts over a 90% participation from its members and regular attenders in Lifegroups. In this episode, Nathan shares about how to get that kind of participation, the centrality of groups in Lifepoint's mission, and the most strategic way to multiply groups.

Jeremy is the new Executive Director of the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio (SCBO). Before coming to Ohio he was a church planting and multiplication leader in Florida. He planted Living Hope Marysville in 2008 and has a heart for pastors in Ohio. He longs to see a church planted in every community in Ohio. He is passionate about multiplication and planting churches everywhere for everyone.

What is the role of a church planter's spouse in planting? It's a question we don't often ask and can more often assume. Angie Fulks has been a church planter's wife for over 20 years. She shares her wisdom and experience for how planter's and their families can have realistic expectations and firm boundaries while planting.

Steve joins us for a second time on the podcast, this time to share insights about prayer. Steve not only has a personal passion for prayer but leads workshops on prayer throughout the state of Ohio. In this episode he shares resources, practical next steps, and his experience with prayer.

Before planting Lifepoint Westerville, Ed was a collegiate church planter at Ohio State. Ed is a gifted storyteller and evangelist who shares the gospel regularly. In this episode he shares stories and methods for sharing Jesus with others. Come learn how to listen well and ask good questions when starting conversations about faith with others.

Dave Perkins is the planter/pastor of Lifebridge Church in Baltimore, OH. Since it's beginning in 2016, Lifebridge has been about serving their community. In this episode, Dave shares the Lifebridge story and practical ways they have loved Baltimore and how we can apply these principles to our church planting context.

Ben York planted Guide Church over a decade ago. In this episode, he shares stories and principles from his early day as a planter. He talks about what he calls "desperation church planting" and a "do whatever it takes" mentality for reaching people. Guide Church has its genesis rooted in door to door evangelism that yielded fruit with just the fourth door Ben knocked on. From door to door to exploding easter eggs, it's been quite a ride for Ben & Guide over the last 10 years!

Jeff Beisel, Fear Factor champion and church planter, joins us on this episode to recount his success on the TV show and how the Lord has used him in church planting. Jeff is one of the best leadership developers in the city and he helps us see a clear method for discovering, developing, and deploying leaders from within.

Jackie Taylor serves the Send Network in the area of Assessment. She has served alongside of her husband in church planting and now works with planters in the Ohio Valley and Midwest. In this episode, Jackie gives church planters practical advice about how to navigate race issues in their context.

Ohio Valley Assessment Regional Trainer, Jackie Taylor joins us to discuss family difficulties and how to navigate them amidst church planting.

Josh joins us for part 2 of our conversation, this time around the subject of urban church planting. Josh shares the dynamics of the urban context and how it is both similar and different from suburban and rural contexts.

Josh Shortridge is the Pastor/Planter of Salt and Light Church in Columbus, OH. Salt and Light meets at Stowe Mission where Josh serves as the Director of Outreach. On this episode, Josh shares his story around the Send Network value of restoration. He fleshes out the example of Jesus in meeting both spiritual and physical needs of those around him.

George Ross is a professor, church planter, and City Missionary for Send Network in New Orleans. He has been married to Joy Ross for 20 years and they have 6 kids, two of which they adopted from New Orleans. George has been facilitating NAMB's Pipeline for 6 years now and helps us see how it's best used and how to make it fit your church's context.

Isaac Surh is the Lead Pastor of Chroma Church in Dublin. Chroma planned to launch public services the week of the Covid lockdown in early 2020. Since then, they have been meeting online and are involved in several justice projects in the city, with plans to launch public worship services in the near future. Isaac joins Chad and Jason today to discuss recent events regarding Asians in our country and how the church can respond.

Chris Warszawski serves as the Family Ministries Pastor at Lifepoint Church in Lewis Center. He recently released a book called, "Primed to Lead," about developing new leaders. Chris helps us think through the importance of raising up leaders from within the church and how coaching can transform our leadership.

Should you get a job while planting? If so, how do you balance the work of a vocation with the work of the plant? In this episode, Rob Kane of Citizens Church in Columbus shares his experience with us. He is living the BIVO life and shares what he has learned in the process.

Kale was born and raised in Ohio. He joined the Lifepoint team in 2012, serving for three years as the Student Pastor for the Mount Vernon campus. Kale now serves as the Teaching Pastor for Lifepoint’s Delaware campus, which launched in April of 2016. In this episode, Kale tells his story of how he was sent out to start a campus of Lifepoint and how he is now multiplying a team member of his to Marion, OH. Multiplication was modeled for him and now he is a leader in it. In his story we hear practical principles for how our church can embrace a culture of sending.

Rick is the Planter and Pastor of Watermark Church. Originally from Ohio, he and his family moved back to plant in Worthington. He has been married to Wendy for 25 years. They have 3 grown children who are all serving the Lord is various ways. In this episode, Rick shares his experience, with several decades of ministry, on how to keep your family first.

Ryan has served as the Lead Pastor at Central Baptist Church in Marion, OH since 2009. Whether through teaching, preaching, counseling, or serving in some other way, he desires people to truly know the only One who will lead to their transformation--Jesus Christ. In this episode, he talks about recently stepping into a sending church role. He talks about the blessings and challenges of leading a church to send out.

Scott is the pastor and planter of The Bridge in Lancaster. During the pandemic, The Bridge moved its services outside and never missed a Sunday. The church has grown and continued to reach people, in spite of all the challenges of 2020.

Rick Duncan has lived in Cleveland, OH since 1987. He planted a church before it was cool and shares his experience with us around what measures really matters in planting. He helps us tackle questions like, “What does success look like?” and “How do you set goals around that?” He serves the North American Mission Board as the Ohio Valley Regional Equipper.