Joe Manafo

Dear theStory,

pernell from the FRWY offers generous words in his Open Letter to theStory. here’s what he said:

This past weekend I visited theStory [a new church plant of The Free Methodist Church in Canada] in Sarnia, Ontario with my family. The point of our visit was that Joe Manafo [he, along with Nathan Colquhoun and Darryl Sylvestri are planting the church] asked me to come and meet with their new little community and tell them the story of The Freeway in order to encourage, inspire and warn them what the deal is with planting a church like they are endeavoring to plant.

Here is an open letter of encouragement and critique for theStory… and for all of us who are trying to create new forms of church in this new culture we find ourselves in. I hope we can continue to learn from each other:

After my weekend at theStory, there are several words which have been rolling around my head which help to describe our experience with this new church community… words which I think will also be key to explore as the church community continues to bring God’s shalom to the people of Sarnia. While our trip was only a weekend long, I believe it provided a snapshot of what this community is and is becoming.

Generosity
This brand new community put my whole family up in a nice hotel for the weekend… in adjoining rooms even. And they offered to give me money on top of that [which I did not accept]. That was huge. It may not sound like a big deal, but it is a huge generosity principal.

As a new community, tons of money isn’t just sitting in their bank account waiting to be spent. I have traveled a lot further and spent more time “working” for other churches and they have given far less in terms of “taking care of us”. Usually, t-shirts, cheap gift certificates, books, and cards are the “thank you” for hours and hours of preparation, and time away from my family [because they don’t offer me to bring them] to help them out. Which is one of the reasons I am very picky as to what I travel to do now… I have to be. I simply haven’t the time to do more… and I have a family to take care of.

If theStory can find a way to show outrageous generosity, they will raise people to a new plain. As The Red Hot Chill Peppers say: “give it away, give it away, give it away, give it away now.” Bringing shalom into a neighbourhood/city requires generosity. Money, time, talents, dreams, life.

My advice: Live with less. Give away more.

Hospitality
When we arrived we were treated to a huge Italian dinner at the Manafo’s house. Sarah Manafo is an amazing hostess. We ate delicious food in an incredibly comfortable environment with very warm, relaxed people. We told stories and laughed and just plain felt good.

Every Sunday morning the church gathers at the Manafo’s house at 11:30am and enjoys a potluck lunch together. Again, very warm people in a very welcoming environment with loads of flex time to chat, catch up and really talk. I met some incredible people [who I will briefly describe in the next section] who welcomed us and made us fell like a “million bucks” - part of the family.

If theStory can find a way to be hospitable in this way - to create a space for people to feel welcome, and to eat and share their stories regardless of who they are - they will find that hospitality becomes “like the new preaching,” opening up a door to real life transformation in the lives of those who receive and show hospitality.

My advice: Even when the church community grows, keep hospitality at its core. Eat together. Invite people over. Get in each other’s lives.

Diversity
When we gathered on Sunday morning there were likely twenty adults [plus 10 or twelve children] or so there - a very good size for a church planting core team, I think. What was amazing was the diversity already present in that community. There were several young adults, some young families, high school students, university students, parents with their grown children, single parents, two adults with developmental disabilities, etc.

There was, however, not much cultural or ethnic diversity. That’s often the way it is, it seems. But looking back on The Freeway’s story I really wish that we had thought through cultural issues and been intentionally seeking to be in community with people from different backgrounds way back when. But we simply didn’t. It’s hard to start later. I think it is key to learn from and be in community with very diverse people… and have diversity change us. It will be essential for theStory to think through these issues and make some moves to broaden the community.

If theStory can continue to welcome people of all shapes, sizes, backgrounds, etc. they will see the Kingdom in ways many church communities simply will not.

My advice: Start thinking through these issues now and start making intentional decisions in this regard.

Teachability
The leadership and the community at theStory are active learners:

* Nathan did an internship with us at The Freeway, even living in my family’s house, for three months this past summer, just so he could gain church planting experience. That’s a big commitment. He is an active learner who asks lots of questions and thinks deeply about the gospel and the Kingdom of God and actively tries to live it out.
* Joe called “cold” and “out of the blue” two years ago. He heard about what we were doing and was anxious to learn from me. He asked great questions. Since that time, although he is a rock star leader in his own right, I have found him to be far more eager to learn than to teach. It is an admirable leadership quality which he possesses.
* The church community asked us questions on Sunday when we were telling The Freeway story. They were observant, deep and reflective questions. The whole group were active listeners who value the story of others.

Teachability can not be… as George Dubya would say… “misunderestimated”. It is a much needed [though not entirely common] trait of a community hoping to start a church community in this culture.

My advice: Do the best you can to always ask lots of questions. Don’t ever “arrive”. be more anxious to listen than to talk.

Fun Loving
I’m not kidding. This is essential. Church planting [and life for that matter] is often hard, tireless, thankless work. Jokes, laughter and good times are essential.

theStory already has developed a fun vibe. They smile a lot and really seem to enjoy each other’s company. They seem to be able to laugh at themselves and let loose and have a good time.

My Advice: Throw parties. Do fun things together. Build laughter and fun into the “program” of the church community.

Jesus-y
I know it’s not a real word… but it should be. The folks from theStory really seem to love Jesus and his community, the Kingdom. They are interested in establishing a church community that loves Jesus and lives out his message of love, justice, peace and transformation in the city of Sarnia. In their own words, theStory is:

A Jesus community intent on playing its part in the social fabric and spiritual landscape of the lives it connects with. In short, we would describe ourselves as:

* A community built on relationships instead of strategies, opportunity in lieu of felt needs.
* A community immersed in disciplines instead of fads.
* A community where health is expressed by reflection and redemption, not size and assets.
* A community where Q&A is eschewed for dialogue, and where justice and equality are understood as pure religion.
* A community that understands the atonement of Jesus as more than a transaction, and their lives as more than entities that consume or are consumed.
* A community of diverse individuals pulled together with a common purpose: To love God, love others, and to tell His story.

My advice: Continue to follow Jesus.

I love theStory. I love what they are about. I love who they are. I will pray for them as they continue to build the Kingdom in Sarnia. Will you?

Filed by Joe at December 15th, 2006 under Cool Links, Church Planting