The Spokane Blessing Network Overview

In August of this year (2005) I wrote a “House Church Manifesto” regarding an apostolic strategy for planting 10,000 house churches in the greater Spokane area. It was born out of a question posed by Wolfgang Simson , namely, “How do we prepare for a ‘spiritual wildfire?’”  Many of us have been fasting and praying for a genuine outpouring of God’s Spirit in the form of a revival of historic proportions. But are we preparing for God to answer our prayer? One of the questions or challenges that the spiritual wildfire of revival would create could be this: Where could the average person or house church go for help and resources to solve some of the practical ministry problems that might result from such a revival (large numbers of new converts who need counseling, discipleship materials, drug or alcohol rehab help, food or clothing assistance, etc.). As part of the “House Church Manifesto”  I talked about the need for a networking resource hub that would link various ministries together and enable people to easily and quickly access information about the ministries, the services they provide and how to contact them.  

Well, over the past couple of weeks God has dropped one of those “burning coals” He is known for into my pocket and I haven’t been able to put it out yet. So, in obedience to what I believe God has shown me we are now launching an internet-based ministry networking resource hub which I am calling The Spokane Blessing Network. Several years ago a ministry friend named Kristen Grace (who has since graduated to be with the Lord) had a vision for linking the various local ministries together into "ministry hubs" of similar or related ministries. The Spokane Blessing Network is dedicated to Kristen's vision. Our goal is to bring ministries together in an  "internet resource hub" so that people in need of particular ministry services can have a central location where they can find those ministries which work to  meet those particular needs.

Here’s How To Get Started

If you will provide us with this information we will construct and post your web page!  You can do this by clicking here, following the instructions, filling out the Worksheet and clicking on SUBMIT when you are done. SIMPLE!

Conclusion

Someone who responded to our first Announcement made the observation that “Everything has a cost factor. How much does it cost ­to be listed, interviewed, aired, archived, to have a web page, etc. What’s the duration & how long is the listing good for?” If you’re asking the same questions, allow me to re-iterate. There is no cost to the ministry(!!!). The listing is free, permanent and "updateable". We are offering this as a free service to the body. We are also launching "The Spokane Market Place Transformation Network" which will be a similar project aimed at the Christian business and professional community. We are already beginning to post it at  www.marketplaceprayer.org. We will do the same thing for them (web page, networking, etc.) only we will challenge the business and professional community to give an annual gift which will pay for their webpage AND provide the needed funds to keep The Spokane Blessing Network solvent and functioning (i.e., pay web hosting fees, pay for radio program, pay for our time, etc.). I regard this as mutual encouragement and networking to the benefit of all and the growth of the kingdom (And if you should decide that you want to donate something toward this project we certainly won’t object, or at least not toooo strenuously!).  

There currently is no internet-based ministry resource hub in Spokane like this yet (although I’ve heard rumor of other projects in the works). As other such projects come on line (both secular and Christi an) we will include them and link to them so that this remains a genuine hub (or as I like to say, “a River rather than a swimming pool”!). Whether or not it succeeds long-term will depend upon . . . YOU! We are presently hosting this on our ministry website, and are happy to do so. But if God chooses to bless and prosper this hub, I plan to spin it off onto its own separate domain and site and give it over to someone else to manage. I don’t need to own or control it – I simply want to see the vision fulfilled by people who share the vision and have experienced the same “burning coal in the pocket” encounter with the Lord.

Friends, it’s time to begin preparing for the spiritual wildfire of revival that we have all been praying for! May this be one more step in preparation for the coming spiritual wildfire of revival, the planting of 10,000 house churches and the extension of Christ’s Kingdom here where we live!