Freedom Christian: Washington Launch

Wow, this past Sunday was an epic day at Freedom Christian. The commissioning of the Washington Launch Team was both powerful and emotional. And now we’re on our way to September 18^th, the official launch of the Washington Campus. There are still many details to work on, things to think about, and adjustments to make.

One of those adjustments will be the use of video for preaching. We’ll be looking at Pastor Aaron’s mug (sans makeup?) on a video screen most Sundays, and perhaps a few of us wonder what the video experience will be like. You may even be asking: “Why video?”

Here are some thoughts to the question of “why?”

Video allows us to:

·         Promote a unified vision—Connect-Grow-Serve across two campuses (and multiple cities).

·         Reach and disciple more people.

·         Expand local community involvement of the Freedom Christian folks who live in the Washington area.

·         Provide excellent pastoral care – the campus pastor, the leadership team, and Life Group leaders will be an extension of Pastor Aaron and the great pastoral care he provides.

“OK John, but a video sermon still seems uncomfortable to me.” Well, here’s what I know:

·         Most of us get the majority of our info from a screen these days.

·         When attending any church that uses screens to make it easier to see the preacher, most people end up looking at the screens and not at the pulpit. When I was at District Council in Grand Rapids earlier this year, I found myself watching the enhancement screens instead of looking at the preacher behind the pulpit. Pretty sure I’m not the only one who does this.

·         We’ve been blessed with some awesome video teaching in the past – Andy Stanley, Mark Batterson and Francis Chan, just to name a few. The anointing of those men was not diminished by the video. People attending those sessions at Freedom were moved to action as though those men were physically in the room.

So… here we go! Laura and I are excited to take the journey alongside you!

Written by: Pastor John Opalewski

Edited by: Tamara Sturdivant