October 22, 2024
By Rev. Dr. Scott Field
The vanguard of Methodists leaving the United Methodist denomination are seeking a more faithful and fruitful future than they can see if they remain where they are. One way or another, these congregations and individuals are choosing to leave. Our WCA Outlook is highlighting some of those who have emailed the story of their experience as a witness to God’s grace and a witness to others who may be considering a similar path.
Here’s one of them from New Vine Community Church, a new Global Methodist congregation, in Lena, Illinois. Rev. Doug Carroll, the pastor, shares their experience.
Pastor Carroll shared the following:
“New Vine held its very first worship service on a Sunday night in June,2023. It was a trial run.
“Why a trial run? Because New Vine is a new church start in Lena, IL, made up of church members that chose to leave their life-long home churches so they could worship God with integrity of heart, mind, and spirit. Our practice run was a success even though it meant setting up in a gym that had a third of its space filled with deadweights and other exercise equipment. It served as a way for us to be prepared for our first Sunday’s worship the following weekend.
“Did this just happen? Absolutely not. In 2022, when we, which is about eight churches in the Northwest IL area, realized that the disaffiliation process was going to finally take place, we created a network of laity from any church that wanted more information on how to go about disaffiliating.
“Each church had to decide what they wanted to do. As several churches moved through the UMC process, it became clear that some people would have no other option, finally, but to walk away from their beloved church buildings.
“Four of the eight churches were able to purchase their buildings and retain their regular worship services and ministries that they had. This left about seventy people with the decision to either join another church or start a new church. From November 2022 through March of 2023, about twenty people made up of people from those various churches began to meet to prayerfully determine whether or not it was possible to create a new church start with the Global Methodist Church.
“We narrowed our group down to a leadership team of a dozen people so we could work through the details, paperwork, and application forms necessary for us to be a non-profit organization. We met weekly in order tocheck off all the necessary steps. We chose a name, board members, a tentative budget, and a possible location to worship.
“If you had asked us two years ago if this is what we knew we would be doing today, we would all probably say, ‘no’. If you were to ask me that question, I would definitely say that I never dreamed God would use me to be a part of a new church start.
“Who am I? My name is Pastor Doug Carroll, and I was an ordained clergy with the UMC. I am now an ordained clergy with the Global Methodist Church. My wife and I purchased a home in Lena in May of 2023 before we knew whether our new church plant would be a success or not. The journey that our New Vine church has gone through has had its challenges and yet I have to say that it has also been wonderful. Our average attendance is about 60 people each Sunday.
“The fact that our place of worship is a small gymnasium located on the premises of the Lena Golf & Grill restaurant parking lot doesn’t matter. All that matters to us is that we are able to gather with like-minded brothers and sisters in the Lord to worship God wholeheartedly and join God in what He would like to do through each of us. We are not currently able to have Sunday school, but a majority of the church members attend small groups. Over the course of our first year, we went through the GMC Catechism so that our members all knew what they believed and why. Currently 58 of us are making our way through the “Christian to the Core” adult discipleship journey. We’re focused on building a solid foundation for the future of NewVine Community Church.
“How are we doing a year and four months later after our launch? We are doing great! Our worship services are filled with joy. God is ever faithful! His Word is preached! And lives are being shaped and molded into Christ’s likeness.
“If God is calling you to start a new family of believers in your community, you will not be left to figure it out on your own. The Lord will take care of all the nitty gritty details step by step.”
Considering starting a new church? Want more information about the New Vine Community Church experience? Contact Pastor Doug Carroll at carroll.douga@gmail.com
For more resources available for local churches praying into the “leaving and re-launching journey”, see the special resource section of the WCA website. Our Congregational Resource Coordinator, Rev. Jan Dillard, has produced and assembled a variety of pertinent presentations and contacts that provide both an overview and the detailed next steps you might consider.