An Epic Journey

Below is my letter to Bible Christian Church. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to write:

Dear Friends and Family,

It has been six years since I began working as the High School Youth Minister for Bible Christian Church. I have had the distinct pleasure of working with many of your teenage sons and daughters and seeing them through those tough adolescent years. I would not trade one minute from those years with your students. Both Jenni and I have counted it as a true privilege to serve at Bible Christian Church.

Over the past six years, God has been growing inside of me an overwhelming desire to plant a new church. Let me tell you where this desire comes from and where it does not come from. IT DOES come from the fact that in the US there is not one county that has more people going to church in it now than it did 10 years ago (let that soak in). IT DOES come from the fact that Nearly 4,000 churches close their doors every year! GET THIS out of 194 nations, only 11 has more unchurched people than the United States. Churches are losing ground - fast. Lost people matter to God and church planting is one of the most effective means of evangelism. This is where the desire comes from, it comes from a true passion to see those who are disconnected and far from God come home to Jesus!

This desire DOES NOT come from some problem within Bible Christian Church, I love this Church and if anything, I want to take the great things about BCC with us! As a matter of fact, Jenni and I do not look at this transition to Church Planting as us leaving, rather we look at it as being missionaries sent from BCC. IT DOES NOT come from me being tired of youth ministry or our students, the kids in our youth ministry are the finest around, I would never leave them for anything but the call of God on Mine and Jenni’s life. IT DOES NOT come from some issue with the staff or elders, if anything I am closer with these guys and gals than ever! They are not only quality leaders but truly the finest leaders I have had the privilege of serving with! I hope you can see that this is not a decision based on some negative result flowing out from BCC, but an overwhelming desire to reach lost people. Peter Wagner (no relation) says that church planting is “the single most effective evangelistic methodology under heaven.” If that is the case, then I can see nothing more important than giving my life to that cause!

I know there are a ton of questions you may have, and I would love to sit down and answer all of them. I imagine that a few of you may be asking yourself, “Aren’t new churches competing with existing churches?” This is a common misconception among Christians - especially other leaders. The fact is that in any given community on any weekend if every seat in every church were full, 90% of the population would still have no place to attend. That is huge!

Some of you may have questions about the process or how all of this would work. The over-simplified version is that Jenni and I would raise prayer support and financial support throughout the next few months and then be sent off in January 2009 from BCC to begin the process of planting Epic Church (you can get more information on the church we will plant called Epic Church at www.epic4life.com) in the Kansas City area. We would work with area churches there to develop a launch team, do events similar to the day of service and build a group of people who are sold out to the cause of reaching disconnected people through the venture of a new church! We would have several events and preview services leading up to a grand opening in September 2009, hopefully launching with over 300 people in attendance!

Jenni and I know this is a lot to take in. I wanted to be able to say to the body of Christ at BCC how blessed we are to have you as family and friends and that we are excited about the future that God has here in Garden City and around the world. If there is one thing I know about Church planting, it is that we cannot survive without each of you praying for us and lending us your support and hearts. I want to thank you ahead of time for the generosity that I’m sure will outflow from each of you. We have been touched in such amazing ways and cannot wait to take that same spirit of love and care to people who are living in a hopeless existence in desperate need of Jesus!

Serving Christ,

Kent and Jenni Wagner

Church Planters