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A need became apparent: The rebirthing of a movement through the spiritual renewal of older churches as they plant a generation of new churches. After studying processes of church planting in North America for three years, Gailyn gave up his position as a tenured Professor of Missions at ACU in December, 2003, for the uncertainties of beginning a church planting movement.
Over the last four years Mission Alive has matured into an effective church-planting organization. Numerous Christ-formed, outreach-focused churches have been planted.
Mission Alive has also teamed with Genesis Alliance, led by Sixto Rivera, to plant Latino churches at Highland Oaks (Dallas) and Highland Oaks (Plano). We are also cooperating with the Duncanville Church of Christ to plant another Latino church in either Grand Prairie or Oak Cliff in the Greater DFW area.
Un-churched and de-churched people are coming to Christ because of the incarnational, kingdom-focused strategies in these churches. They are planted to be externally-focused—distinctive, growing communities of the kingdom of God.
Numerous partnering churches are either funding Mission Alive or one of our church plantings. We are also funded by a number of individuals who believe that the future of Kingdom growth will primarily be through church planting.
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The seeds of Mission Alive were planted in the spring of 2000, when Abilene Christian University gave Gailyn Van Rheenen a sabbatical to study missions in Churches of Christ. During those six months Gailyn found that Churches of Christ tend to be inward focused. They lack processes to help searchers come to faith and grow to maturity in the Lord. Frequently they are more concerned with their distinctiveness as a religious group than with the central themes and theologies of the Christian faith.
