Jason and Betsy Patrick are co-pastors of the Streamwood Vineyard in Streamwood, IL, planted out of the Elgin Vineyard in 2019.  High school sweethearts, Jason and Betsy met in youth group, were married at 17 and now have six children through birth and adoption.    In this episode of the How to Plant a Healthy Church podcast, Jason and Betsy share about hearing the call to church plant and the emotional honesty, vulnerability and patience required in the discernment process. As champions of leaving the sending church well, Jason and Betsy are a wealth of helpful tips on how to n ..read more

In this season of quarantine and subsequent lockdown, we’ve discussed many tools and tactics. As we re-emerge into this new season post-lockdown churches and church planters are faced with even more new issues. This conversation with Amos and Alison Groenendyk is helpful in a number of ways. Their inspirational origin story as church planters in Michigan begins our conversation followed by their journey with the Chester Springs Vineyard taking over the church from the founding pastor. They done many creative things vitally connected to the mission of their church in this season of COVID-1 ..read more

On this episode, return guest Jared Boyd provides a counter-intuitive posture for those seeking spiritual formation in a time of global pandemic. Knowing how and what to fight against begins only when we can move from thinking we are in isolation to embracing solitude.   This is very personal look into what God has been doing at Jared’s life as well as his local church, Franklinton Abbey, a contemplative faith community in a low-income neighborhood of Columbus, OH in this season.  ..read more

Pacific City Church was planted in 2018 by Chris Meekins and his team in Santa Monica, CA. In this episode Michael and co-host Liz Moore (also a church planter in Princeton, NJ) talk through the issues facing church planters in the era of COVID-19. Chris and his team have tackled these new challenges with lots of creativity. This episode is a look back at the last couple months as well as a look forward into the future of the church and church planting post-quarantine ..read more

Vineyard of Harvest Church is a multi-generational, multi-lingual, and multi-cultural church in southeastern Los Angeles County in Southern California. Pastor Dennis Liu has recently transitioned into a co-lead pastor role with the founding pastor (and Dennis’s father-in-law) Kenneth Kwan. Vineyard of Harvest is an amazing church community on many fronts but in this season of COVID-19 they have faced an additional set of challenges. One of these challenges deals specifically with the anti-Asian racism that has come to the forefront in this time.    There is a lot to glean from this c ..read more

On this practical episode, Michael Gatlin and our co-host Liz Moore talk with Dave Runyon, co-author of “The Art of Neighboring”, an initiative that mobilizes churches toward building relationships with the people who live the closest to them. This episode is particularly relevant in this new landscape created by the COVID-19 pandemic.    So much helpful information in this episode ..read more

On this practical episode, Michael Gatlin and our co-host Liz Moore talk with Dave Runyon, co-author of “The Art of Neighboring”, an initiative that mobilizes churches toward building relationships with the people who live the closest to them. This episode is particularly relevant in this new landscape created by the COVID-19 pandemic.    So much helpful information in this episode ..read more

The Elm City Vineyard in New Haven, CT is an urban, multi-ethnic, church that bridges across the socio-economic strata. This is a “behind-the-scenes” look at the early days of the planting of ECV. Baked in to their early DNA was the idea of ECV being a church community modeled after a teaching hospital where both failure was acceptable as a teaching tool and raising up new generations of leaders was the norm. This is an inspiring and very accessible conversation for everyone in the trenches of church planting or considering a plant.    Producer’s note: This interview was recorded bef ..read more

It’s been said that all ministry comes out of relationship. First between us and God and then between us and those around us. It is these relationships that help to form and shape us into who God has called us to be. The churches that we plant are also an extension of our personal relational health. Our host Michael Gatlin and licensed family counselor and lead pastor Kurt Attaway explore this helpful topic on today’s episode.    Producer’s note: This interview was recorded before the COIVD-19 quarantine.  ..read more

This is a fun episode! Last fall, our host Michael Gatlin was invited to speak at the annual White Out National Youth Conference in Colorado. This is a long standing and powerful event every February that draws youth together from the Mountain West and beyond. At first, Michael was reluctant to take the invitation but then he wondered what it would be like to invite a group of five high school students along with him to teach and minster together. What happened next is found in this inspiring episode.    For now, meet Noah, Mason, Mercy, Abby, and Anika along with Michael and Clint&n ..read more