Why don’t you state a denominational identity?
Why should people who don’t like church come to church?
New Vision Fellowship is basically a N.C. Baptist Church in a different wrapper. Our doctrine is identical to our 4,000 sister churches in our state. The only difference is that our format is more contemporary than traditional. We do this because it appeals specifically to young people who have no prior church experience.
Why don’t you state a denominational identity?
People who don’t go to church are usually turned off by big denominations. We have people representing various Christian traditions in our church, as well as people with no particular church heritage. We want all people to be welcome, so we chose a name that would hopefully not conjure up any preconceived negative ideas.
Dr. Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church in Mission Viejo, California, wrote a book called “The Purpose-Driven Church”. It documented the growth strategies of Saddleback Church over the last 20 years. He designed the church to be attractive to people in our contemporary culture with no church experience. We have simply adapted those ideas to our community.
Our pastor, Rev. Paul Hooker, has recently been licensed to the ministry. He has completed a Diploma in Theology through the Seminary Extension program of the Southern Baptist Convention. He is working on a diploma from Southwestern Seminary. He has extensive experience in Baptist relief work and is a veteran of many national and international mission trips.
Why should people who don’t like church come to church?
Surveys indicate that the two greatest complaints that unchurched people have about church are the need to dress up and the perceived plea for their money. We dress in casual clothes and we don’t stress the offering plate. We have found that many people dress up all week and they need a break on Sunday. We do teach Biblical principals of stewardship, but we believe that our first priority is to make someone’s first visit to church non-threatening and enjoyable. Therefore, when we take our offerings, we ask visitors not to give, but to accept the service as our gift.