This week on the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast, Carey Nieuwhof interviewed Noah Herrin, pastor of Way Church in Nashville, TN. The description for the podcast episode described Way Church as a relatively new church plant that had exploded to 700 weekly attenders in only 14 months. As a fellow church planter, I had a flood of emotions and thoughts after reading that description. At first, I was jealous. I know that isn’t how pastors and church leaders are supposed to feel toward other churches seeing great things happen, but I am human, and that was my first reaction. Then, I thought that there must be something off or weird or heretical about what was going on at Way Church in order to see that kind of growth. Finally, I caught myself (and was convicted by the Holy Spirit) and decided that I would listen to the podcast episode to see what was really going on. And boy am I glad that I did.
Pastor Noah Herrin described his congregation as a Gen Z church with an average age of 25 years old, but what was amazing was the philosophy of ministry that the church is built upon. Everything at Way Church is directed toward building and growing community and friendship. The church is not “attractional” except for the idea that true and authentic community is naturally attractive to a world filled with loneliness.
My favorite moment in the podcast interview is when Pastor Noah Herrin describes the genesis of their “community first” philosophy of ministry. This philosophy wasn’t developed through going to another conference or following a script on how to build a church from a well-known church leader. Instead, Herrin says that the genesis was in asking the question, “Where is the deep need in our city and how can we meet or engage with that need?”
Where is the deep need in our city and how can we meet or engage with that need?”
That question IS the missional question. That question IS the incarnational question. That question is one of the most important questions that any congregation can ask. “Where is the deep need in our city and how can we meet or engage with that need?”
For Herrin and Way Church, the deep need they were seeing in Nashville was an epidemic of loneliness, especially among young adults. This realization of the deep need in their community then shaped their engagement in ministry. Instead of focusing primarily on having a great “show” on Sunday morning, they intentionally have emphasized the importance of creating community and developing spaces where friendship can occur.
What is amazing is that this conversation has helped to give language and understanding to a similar phenomenon that we have seen at Restoration Church. Certainly, we have not seen the explosive growth that Way Church has experienced, and Frederick, MD is quite different from Nashville, TN, but the importance of community, relationship, and connection remain. Almost weekly at Restoration, someone shares with us why they stick around and love the congregation, and 9 times out of 10 it is because of the people. It is because of the community. It is because of friendship.
Let me encourage you to give the podcast episode a listen, and then begin to ask the question of where the deep need is in your community. From there, amazing things can take place as we connect the gospel of Jesus Christ to the deep hurts, pains, and needs of the world around us.
Podcast Link: https://careynieuwhof.com/episode702-2/