Our Rural and Small Town Initiative is funded, in part, by a grant from Pepperdine’s Empower and Equip made possible by Lilly Endowment, Inc. At present we have three IFC sites that are part of this program: Lufkin, Texas; Bertram, Texas; Spartanburg, South Carolina. These IFC projects follow the same development approach as other IFC projects with two exceptions. First, they are located specifically in rural or small towns. Second, our RSTI work stems from our particular perspective that the mission of the church should prioritize the flourishing of their communities as a tangible expression of the gospel. So from our perspective, the best way to empower and equip rural and small town churches is to equip them to engage in transformational missional engagements that address the needs of their marginalized neighbors. We believe that when the church engages in this way their neighbors will experience holistic gospel flourishing and simultaneously the church will experience a fresh renewal. As part of our RSTI work, we will endeavor to build coalitions of local churches teamed to engage in specific missional transformations. This aspect of the RSTI work is just beginning to take shape.
In Lufkin, we are making plans to conduct our first RSTI Community Workshop to train, equip, and invite community-minded churches to partner in a significant missional transformation addressing homelessness. Jason and Sarah Hollinger have been working for several years through Lufkin Street Ministries 2540 to love and feed those experiencing homelessness and economic disadvantage. As part of our research efforts, we are moving towards plans to provide transitional housing coupled with supportive journey coaches.
In Bertram, Kelly Bolin and Emily Vincent, through their Made for More nonprofit, are launching a 3rd grade reading support ministry in an impoverished rural setting. In Spartanburg, Andre and Amber Ashford have been focused on completing their community research and discovering potential community mission minded partners. Their current focus is on serving a deeply traumatized housing development where most of the residents can no longer see a path forward.
In each of these settings, it will take careful missional work led by our IFC leaders in collaboration with local churches, non-profits, and government agencies to pursue transformative changes among their marginalized neighbors. Please keep these pioneering leaders in your prayers as they follow God’s call.