Jessica Hanewinckel

Jessica Hanewinckel is an Outreach magazine contributing writer.

A Mount Vernon Missionary Baptist Church Growth Story

Karen Smith credits much of that growth to how well the longtime members have welcomed new, younger members to Mount Vernon Missionary Baptist Church growth. Both groups have proven they're willing to compromise and adapt.

Alan Noble: Loving by Living with Anxiety

To follow Christ is to die to self. And when youre suffering mentally, dying to self looks like choosing to live, which is ironic, but there it is. Its choosing to embrace life and not to despair, especially when loving by living with anxiety.

Jamaal Williams & Timothy Paul Jones: A Multiethnic Ministry Culture

Ask yourself, "Who is in my neighborhood thats not in my church, and what are the barriers keeping them from feeling welcome in our multiethnic ministry culture?"

Renewal Inside and Out

The church has helped firefighters provide free smoke detectors to the community, built ramps to make buildings more accessible, provided meals to seniors, and spent “Serve Sundays” picking up trash around town.

Sewing and Reaching

The women involved in Loose Threads make pillows for kids being adopted, tote bags and clothing for children in foster care, and bibs for intellectually disabled people living in a local long-term care facility.

Love ’Em ’Til They Ask Why

Because the church is big on families, many events are geared toward kids, including bull riding for teens; Little Wranglers, an event that lets kids ride a horse, milk a pretend cow, “brand” goats with flour and a mop, and barrel race with stick horses; and a special needs kids rodeo.

Take Hold of the Vision

With all the racial tension in the last couple years, we decided this is an opportunity for us to take a stand and be clear about who we want to be as a church.

Mile-High Multiplication

Pathak sought a solution to reestablish the church’s identity as a truly local neighbor, of and for its community. He asked himself, What would it look like for us to build what amounts to a network of churches so we could share some resources, yet still operate like local churches?