Update - July 2015

       

       A couple of months ago Suz and I announced that we felt called to stay in Clark and continue our ministry here with North Routt Community Church. We wanted to give you an update on the church and how things are progressing here in the mountains. So let me walk through a few notable updates and share some events, pictures and happenings of our life and our wonderful rural mountain church.

Updates & Stories

Hi Everyone!

I hope you are all doing well! As I write this the sun is shining which is AWESOME - since most of February has been overcast. The Elk are out in full force as we drive to and from steamboat each week (they like to steal food from all of the cows). And things are going great. There is a lot to update you on as we move into March, so here are a few things to catch you up.

Christmas Eve (better late than never)

Many of you know already but our Christmas Eve Service went great! I preached at two services- one further north in the old Hahn's peak village school house, and one at NRCC in the charter school. For several years if has been a community tradition for some of the folks that live in Hahn's peak village to have a Christmas Eve service at the historic school house and this year I was asked to speak. It was a lot of fun and we actually used the school bell to call people in - which was ... Awesome! We had about 30 people show up to that at about 5PM. Then 2.5 hours later we had our service for North Routt Community Church and it was a blast! It was an absolutely packed house (We ran out of chairs) of a 100 people and we were able to join together and celebrate the birth of our King. It was really special. Here are a few pictures from the night.

A few people in the back (mostly from Vista Verde) were troopers as they stood most of the night. 

There is Andrew (left) & Bubba (Right) leading us in worship. (2 of 6 who helped lead us) 

More worship!

Singing "Silent Night" with candles lit

It was an awesome night to see the community gather like that! Right after service Suz and I packed up and jetted off to Indianapolis/Chicago for the holidays, which brings us into another story...

The nightmare that was Christmas travels (At least Denny's is open on Christmas day)

Suz and I were all hopped up on caffeine and ready to drive through the night (we had left Clark around 11PM). The plan was to drive straight to Kansas City so we could caravan with Suzanna's sister and brother in-law,  Bekah and Andrew. But sometimes plans don't work out. Instead we didn't even make it to Kansas before our Subaru said, "you know what? I don't really feel like driving anymore" - which sounded a lot like our engine popping, followed by a horrible clicking noise. Long story short we broke down at 6AM, Christmas day in Stratton Colorado - which with no disrespect, it is in the middle of nowhere... So we get the car towed to Burlington CO which actually had some shops. We get our car to 1 of their two shops and have our very nice tow guy drop us off at a mom and pop motel. It was so "mom and pop" that the owner (an older lady) came out in a bath robe because she had been in the shower (haha). After she heard our sob story (I also told her I was a pastor) she took pity on us and gave us a room for free. It was incredibly nice and took a little of the sting out of a pretty crummy Christmas. In between naps and HGTV  we tried to figure out how the heck we were going to get to Indianapolis without a car (The shop was closed for the day and I was pretty sure the engine was shot) and no rental car for 200+ miles from where we were. So we did the only thing we could- we walked to the nearby gas station/Dennys to eat our feelings...And because of the emotional state we were in - it was glorious. However, although we went back to our room full we still didn't know what to do. At this point the family knew we were stuck and Andrew (brother in-law) offered to come get us and drive us back to KC - A total of 12 HOURS! Even though we felt bad, we accepted and he came and brought us back to KC and from there we all decided to drive through the night again (I know, what were we thinking). They let Suz and I borrow their second car and we hit the road. Well to close the story we got to Indy and Chicago, so it all worked out. I turns out the Subaru blew it's engine and needed a replacement. We decided to go ahead and replace it since the cost was much less than its worth. We would have never been able to afford it if it wasn't for the generosity of family that graciously chose to foot the bill for us and we could not be more thankful! So that was the condensed Saga of our trip back to the Midwest

Since we've been back 

In the months that we have been back a lot has happened. We are so thankful for the ways that God has worked in and through our community here. We had one of my mentors Keith Carlson come and stay with us, which was a great encouragement. We are continuing to meet every week for service and every month for community dinners in each others homes. We now want to have a community outreach dinner at the charter school for anyone and everyone who wants to come and eat with us. We are thinking of doing that every other month and advertising it in the community. Also this month, I participated in a 2 day training program called ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) because suicide is a surprising, yet glaring issue within our community. Also NRCC is in the process of partnering with a group called REPS (Reaching Everyone Preventing Suicide) to run a clinic up in Clark for the whole community to be trained in ways to be aware of warning signs and how we can ask questions and connect others to help and resources. Suicide is such an area of brokenness here and we want the Church to step into that brokenness to offer love and hope to those who feel hopeless. And to close with, we finally got the internet at home!!! We were without the internet at home for about a month and a half, which was preeeetty awful. So since we are hooked up to the world wide web you can now expect more updates from us in the near future.

Please let us know if you have anymore questions, comment below or email me at dbloom2388@gmail.com
We also have a Facebook page for the Church that will give some info on whats happening at the church, so be sure to check it out if you are interested!

Thanks so much for your love and support,

Dave & Suz

Church Update

Hi Everyone,

        I hope you are all doing well and had an awesome Thanksgiving! Suzanna and I are feeling the effects of our first winter in the mountains. We are happy to report that we're doing just fine after our first few weeks, which is a good sign because we have about 6 more months... But both of our cars now have snow tires on (I bet there are a few of you that didn't know those existed) and we have a full supply of canned goods for hot chili's and stews, so we are ready for it!

        It is hard to believe Suzanna and I have already been out here for 7 months. Time has flown by and we feel blessed as we look back on all that God has done out here. Here are a few updates on how things have been going up here in North Routt.

CHURCH UPDATES

Young Adult Group- We have been in the "off-season" for Vista Verde and lot of seasonal people are not returning and most of the winter returners are home until mid-December. So our group is about 1/3rd the size from the Summer. So we have decided to move from the charter school and instead we meet at our house or our friends place. There are 8 of us that meet every week to share a meal, worship, discuss the Book of Matthew, and then pray together. As we have moved into each others homes, with a smaller group we have grown a lot closer and the conversations are very rich. This group has been a HUGE blessing for Suzanna and I to build great relationships with people our age.

Community Gatherings- On the last Friday of every month we gather in someones home to share a meal, worship and pray together. We have had two so far and they have been a blast! Each time About 20 people were crammed into the downstairs of our cabin for a whole mess food and bunch of delicious sides. We worship together and spend time in prayer. It has been a really meaningful experience for us and we have had a lot of fun. The reason we started this is so that we could be intentional about how we do community. I had preached about community from the book of Acts and I thought that it would be good to actually try and live out the things that we read. We wanted to share our lives with one another in each others homes, with good food, worship and prayer. The plan is to continue this intentional practice more frequently as we share our lives together more and more as a community.

FUTURE GOALS

Discipleship- This has been a huge passion on my heart for the last few years. This passion has caused me to wrestle with the same question, Is the church in America making disciples of Jesus? Although, it is happening in pockets for sure, I would say as a whole, not so much. It seems as the church we have either neglected the great commission or we just assume we are fulfilling it through Sunday school and sermons. So I have been reading and developing (and taking notes from Grace Community Church) what it might look like if we got serious about making disciples like Jesus did. So the plan is to invite a handful of passionate disciples into a group study (with 12 core practices of discipleship) that we practice as a group, for about a year. Then after that year we are sent out to go and disciple 2-3 people in our lives through an intentional, consistent and committed relationship, where the "discipler" walks alongside, teaches and models what it looks like to follow Jesus in everyday life. For those of you who don't think this is suuuper boring here is an word doc that explains it in a little more detail. I am actually going to share this with the pastors of Steamboat in our next pastors meeting. My dream is that there could be "discipleship hubs" all over steamboat that are developing devoted disciples of Jesus. I think relational discipleship could could have a huge impact in a place like steamboat (which is 85% un-churched).

Small Groups- Another thing I am passionate about is small groups. Getting the church into close-knit groups that do life together and learn what it means to follow Jesus and live out the gospel in tangible ways. We want our community to be marked by the things have changed us, and shaped us as God's people. I think small groups are a great platform for a group of disciples to come together for fellowship, and to press into each others lives. I believe it is the kind of environment where the body of Christ can explore and practice what it means to be the church through gathering together and implementing the teachings of Christ in the context of genuine community (at least that is the hope!!)

Outreach- Over the past few months God has been showing me the different and unique needs up here for people. Almost every Wednesday I eat a pizza (pie and pint night!!) at the bar in the Roadhouse that is right down the road from our house (yes we have a couple of restaurants here). Every once in a while a local guy will share his life with me. A couple of them have given me a glimpse into some of the addiction, depression and loneliness that folks experience up here. There is a lot of hurt and brokenness that manifests itself in substance abuse and a crazy high suicide rate, which supposedly has continued to rise each year. So at NRCC we want to address these areas of brokenness and hopelessness with compassion, love and hope that's only found in Jesus. I have been able to connect with the principle at the charter school in Clark (where we meet for church) and he is excited about partnering in some way to address the needs of our community. In order to do that we want to develop an outreach team that can plan events, gatherings and initiatives that take intentional steps toward living out the gospel in more tangible ways and serving those around us, so that we can be salt and light to the community of Clark Colorado.

As we look back on our first 7 months here we can see just how much God has blessed us with relationships, ministry partners and loads of encouragement even in the face of challenges. We are so grateful for your continued support and prayer as God in his grace, continues to teach us how to lead others in humility. If you have any specific questions please don't hesitate to email me at dbloom2388@gmail.com.

Thank you all so much!

Dave & Suzanna

PS: Stay tuned for a picture update from Suzanna

A New Addition... And It's Not Another Puppy!!

Well, I bet you think Suzanna is pregnant... sorry to disappoint.

Even though our new addition to Colorado is not another puppy but a human being, he is in fact a full grown man.

Meet Andrew Fackler

This is us hiking in the Zirkel Wilderness! 

Some of you already know but a friend of mine from Indianapolis moved out mid-August to work at the Ranch and help organize and lead our worship team. 

Back Story

I met Andrew when I was an intern at Access the young adult ministry at Grace Community Church. He was the worship team leader during my internship and I got to know him more and more especially as he joined our small group. Over the past year, we became good friends. 

Last March I went backpacking in the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. It was a last hurrah with my Indianapolis hiking buddies, Andrew and Kyle Affolder. We hiked for a few days and it was a great trip, even in spite of some real nasty weather and cold nights. One day Andrew and I were talking and out of the blue I asked Andrew to move out to Colorado. Our Conversation went something like this...

Me- "Hey, you should move out to Colorado and basically do what you are doing right now and get paid for it and then you can help lead worship for the church"

Andrew- "Get paid to hike and stuff?" 

Me- "Yeah, like guide trips and stuff at the Ranch"

Andrew- "Yeah, that would be sweet... but I don't want to just give up on culinary school. I want to do something that would at least be in that field"

....3 Hours Later....

Andrew- "Hey, you said the Ranch has really good food there, right?"

Me- "Uh huh, like really fancy, hoity toity stuff...in a good way"

Andrew- "So they have chefs there then?"

Me- "yeah, really good ones!"

Andrew- "Hmm, maybe you could talk with the manager or something" 

-End Scene-

          Saturday August 17th Andrew hopped on a flight with Suz and I to Denver to start his new job as a line cook at Vista Verde Ranch. So far he loves it! In his first week he worked 60hrs, road a horse, rock climbed, hiked in the Zirkel wilderness and cliff jumped into mountain lakes and he led worship at church and for our young adult group. Since then he has continued to pour into the Church by leading worship and helping in any way he can. He has been a great addition to our ministry team. It is so cool to see how God has brought so many things together, so don't be surprised if any of you get called to come out here to help NRCC!

PS. He also fries up some mighty tasty trout while backpacking! 

Church Happenings... and a Puppy?!?

Hello Friends and Family,

          I'm really sorry for the major slacking on our blog updates! It has been crazy as we continue to get settled in, yet go full force into what God has for us out here. Let me give you a few updates on some of the stuff going on out here in northwest Colorado. This is the “Novel” version and Suzanna will come out with a “Picture Book” post with some photo’s documenting our adventures! So, for those of you who hate reading there are better things on the horizon…

NRCC- Sunday Mornings and General Church Development

First, let me give you all an update on how the North Routt Community Church is coming along.

Growth: It has been an exciting couple months as God begins to bring together a great community. The Church has been growing, although with some fluctuation between some weeks. Although, it’s never just about numbers, it is exciting to see the community that is starting to gather with us. There have been many weeks where we have to bring out more chairs, with a couple weeks pushing 60 people, with a full parking lot and a packed house! If we start having more people, I won't know what to do... Ha, just kidding! kind of...

Development (Church Mission): More importantly than just growth in our numbers, is how NRCC is developing as a church. That is my main goal and passion. In mid-June we had a leaders meeting after service and we went through the concept of Church mission. Trying to answer the questions, did God give the church a mission? If so, what is it? It was a great conversation and the meeting went great! I proposed that the mission of the church is to be disciples (to become like Jesus) and to make disciples calling others to a transformational relationship with Jesus, thus attempting to fulfill the great commission. Dealing with the “gathering” as a body to exalt our God and encourage one another to become more and more like our lord and savior AND our “scattering” going among our community to live like Jesus did and share the good news of grace, hope, love and reconciliation offered through Him. We want to call those near and far to put their trust in Jesus and continuing to walk alongside them, showing and teaching them what it means to follow Jesus in a relational discipleship process. Our leaders had great feedback and seem to be on board with this simple mission to be disciples and make disciples.

Preaching: Man, preaching every week (actually twice a week with Monday nights) is hard! But it has been incredibly rewarding. God has been teaching me how I should not take it lightly. He is reminding me that I am representing Him and His word and I better not try and twist it to make people happy or avoid the claims of scripture that are hard. For those of you who don’t know, I have had opportunities to preach at a few different ministries over the past 3 years but I never have preached back to back weeks before my coming here and oddly enough 3 years ago I used to be terrified of speaking in front of people. 3 years ago I didn't want to have anything to do with preaching. But it is funny how God slowly coaxed me into this thing. He has continued to shape me in this gift and give me joy in it! I am very thankful that he pushed me into this area of ministry, that if left up to me I would have avoided. 2 weeks ago we made it through an entire series about Jesus called the “I Am” Series (not so clever, I know…) about the I am statements of Jesus found in John’s Gospel. This past week I introduced a new 10 week series on the Church where we will look at the biblical church and try and discover what God has called us to as his people. I am very passionate about his topic and I have loved studying it more and more and I am really excited about how God will show up in our community and hopefully empower us to better be his Church, rather than just attend it! Last Sunday we shared in communion as a church for the first time, which was very exciting and meaningful for me to share that with these wonderful people! We will take communion as a church every month from now on, although I would actually like to do it every week (In my opinion we could never preach the gospel to ourselves too much!!) and we will try to move toward that.

Monday Nights- Young Adult Ministry

          We are continuing our young adult ministry through NRCC which has been incredibly fruitful and I love how God is choosing to work through our simple little meetings together.

For those of you who don’t know the general premise of our meetings together.

• We worship- We worship with a few songs in the beginning and it is plugged in worship which is pretty advanced for us in North Routt.
• 15 minute Teaching- I teach a short lesson that is discussion driven with a few questions to lead us into a time of group discussion. All the teachings are geared toward discovering what it means to be a devoted disciple of Jesus Christ.
• Discussion- We break up into tables of 5 or so and discuss and process the aspect of             discipleship that was just taught.
• We worship some more- Then we finish with a song or two.

        God has been working through our discussion and discovery process. We have had a few people come who are unsure of this whole Jesus thing and defiantly a little skeptical and searching. The discussion has led to some great opportunities, even for me to follow up with someone one on one and hear his story and present the bigger picture of the Christian world-view and the broader narrative that is written throughout scripture… the good news that God wants relationship with us even in spite of our brokenness and sin! So, please pray for continued opportunities and for hearts to be soften and receptive to God’s spirit!!

Children’s Ministry is up and Running- Suzanna and Company Are Awesome!

        After weeks of development and conversations our children’s ministry is up and running for our handful of kids. We wanted our children’s ministry to be intentional and not just shove them in a room so their parents could relax. We wanted it to flow out of our mission, to be disciples to make disciples and we think this can begin even at a young age. A woman from our church had the idea of teaching the kids a lesson that correlates with Sunday’s message so that there is continuity between what they are learning and what their parents are hearing on Sunday mornings. So we have crafts and a lesson that portray the “big idea” or biblical concept from the sermon on Sunday. Then we send the kiddos home with a few questions they can ask their parents to continue to unpack the truth they learned at home with their family. We want to encourage spiritual formation in the family dynamic. We are excited about the possibilities of these kind of interactions, which hopefully bear fruit in between Sundays and inside homes. Suzanna has been organizing the volunteers making sure there is always 2 or more each Sunday, and her and a couple other girls have been developing and teaching the lessons. 

Puppy???- I mean really, how long did you think that would take?

We got a puppy!!! Yep it’s official and he is officially adorable. His name is Scout, he’s 10 weeks old and he is a border collie/ lab (we think) mix. We adopted him a few weeks ago from a shelter in Fort Collins, north of Denver. We love him but HOLY COW, a puppy is a lot of work!! They are like furry little infants, only we can’t slap a diaper on him. At first he needed to be let out every 2 hours, so we weren't getting good sleep for a while. But he can almost sleep through the night so we are no longer zombies.  Here is a pic to hold you over until Suzanna puts together our next “picture book” post.

The Blooms are Headed Back to the Flatlands- Indy Bound!!

First off Grace Community Church is awesome! Let me explain why. Each year Grace, hosts a national (maybe global) leadership conference called Leadership Summit which is put on by Willow Creek Church, outside of Chicago. I was able to go last year as Grace Intern and this year they have generously chosen to fly Suzanna and I out for the conference and almost a week of personal development with my 3 mentoring Pastors at Grace (David Bell, Keith Carlson, Aaron Elliot). This will be the week of Aug 4^th- 9^th. This is such a blessing for Suzanna and me to be poured into for about a week. Since we will be in Indiana we will take the week after the conference to spend time with friends and family. We are so excited!

So like I said this is the Novel(y) version of our blog post and Suzanna will follow this up with a picture book version to show you some of the stuff we have experienced (Mostly animals, and nature stuff but hey who are we talking about here?)

Thanks for your love, support and prayers. God is doing some cool work in Clark Colorado and we are just happy he has let us come along for the ride!

David & Suzanna Bloom

Calling All Chicagoans!!!

Friends and Family,

        This blog has been a great way to keep people updated and informed on the process and journey of the NRCC plant.  However, there is still so much that can be said and shared about the journey that God has us on and it is difficult to express through blog posts alone. With that said, I thought it would be nice to hold an event where I could share in greater detail the things that are unfolding and the way that God is working though Grace Community Church (my Indianapolis home Church) and North Routt Community Church, the church I get to help serve and develop. Therefore, my family (Rick and Suzy) and I want to hold an event/presentation where people can learn more about the story of North Routt, how Suz and I got involved, and what our hopes and goals for the future are. In this we will try and elaborate some important aspects of the upcoming church plant in Colorado. These will include...

• Our roles: Breaking down the nature and responsibility of my pastoral role and Suzanna's role working at a nearby Ranch
• What we have learned about the culture of North Routt (mainly Clark but also Steamboat)
• The vision and ministry opportunities for the church
• Ways that you can be involved 

This event will take place this Tuesday, April 16th at 7:30pm on the east campus of First Baptist Church in the Chapel Room (near the gymnasium). Here is the Address:

East Campus 

2300 South Street

Geneva, IL 60134

and map for your convenience 

You can go through the front double doors on the north side of the building, take a right and the chapel is down the hall on your right.

Also, did I mention there will be cheesecake and coffee!?!?!

If you are able to join us could you please contact me at dbloom2388@gmail.com, facebook or comment on this blog post below to let me know.

We hope to see you there,

David & Suzanna 

Scouting Trip to North Routt

Hello Friends,

Suzanna and I will be making one last trip out to Colorado before our big move in late April. We will be leaving Indianapolis March 23rd and be traveling through March 31st. This trip has a few goals attached to it.

1. Exploring housing options: To be honest it has not been going well, in fact that may be an understatement... our lead option has been rented and our other rental option (in close second) recently accepted a housing contract from a buyer. However, there are a lot of logistics and loans that need to be approved, so we will know if it goes through within the next week. All this to say, housing has been frustrating for us and we greatly appreciate your prayers in this process. 
2. Visiting Denver Seminary: I am very seriously considering beginning seminary during my church-planting residency in Clark. I would start classes in Spring of 2014 and take one (two tops) courses each semester. This trip is a great opportunity to visit Denver Seminary to explore financial options, scholarships, and just get a better feel for the school. 
3. Meeting more people from the community: Any chance we get to hang out with the community and build relational foundations before we move is a definite plus! We will also be able to explore the town and get a better idea of our needs for the move.  
4. Seeing the Jones': We also get the privilege of seeing family along the way! We will see Andrew and Bekah Jones (Suzanna's older sister). 

Suzanna will try to take lots of pictures and post them to the blog to give you guys a better idea of Clark and North Routt as a whole.

Also, thank you so much for your support. We have already received over $1,000 so far! Your generosity is has been a tangible manifestation of God's provision. However we still have a long way to go! We need to raise $9,000 more dollars in the next month for us to be able to move out! If you feel called to support us financially please click here or click on the donation link in the right hand corner. Or if you don't want to give online or you just really like writing checks you can address a check to North Routt Community Church and send it to:

                                                                     11122 Rolling Springs Drive
                                                                     Carmel IN, 46033

Finally, if you want to be on a monthly email list to hear about ways you can pray for us and what God is doing in our lives and the life of the church, send me an email at: dbloom2388@gmail.com.

Thank you all for your prayers and support!

Dave and Suzanna

Fundraising Details

Hi everybody,

I just wanted to write a short post to further explain/clarify our fundraising needs, and elaborate on our time-frame goals. Our financial support needs are broken up into two categories.
   
The first category is for start-up costs -$10,000 

This includes...

• A new (well, new to us) all-wheel drive car- Honestly, it feels weird to call this a need because generally with cars, phones, computers and clothes, oftentimes "needs" are actually confused with "wants." However, after visiting North Routt this winter, we quickly realized an all-wheel drive car is actually a need, trust us!
• Housing security deposit- The town of Clark has no apartment complexes or condos to rent; the only renting options are single family homes. The few that we are currently looking at have some hefty security deposits (a little over $1,000) that are due before we move in. 
• Moving expenses- We will be using a moving truck to haul out our furniture and belongings and that can be pricey ($1,000 not including gas). 

These needs are more time sensitive since they need to be funded in order to make the move. In other words, these will get us there! We need to raise this $10,000 goal before April 27th which is the day we pack up and leave for Clark, Colorado. 

The second category is a portion of my salary over the next two years - $20,000

• The reason I am raising my salary is because I want to be able to pastor full-time.  Although I respect and understand bi-vocational pastoring, I believe (as does the leadership in CO) that the church needs full-time leadership to invest into the vision and development of this new and growing church. As of right now, NRCC simply does not have the resources to support a salary for me and Suzanna to live on. That is why I am relying on the broader church (you guys) to use your gifts and resources to partner with us. Your generosity allows us to play a role in what God will do through this church plant as it aims to bear witness to his love and glory in a town that has recently been church-less.

So again, if you feel called to partner with us in this ministry we will humbly and gladly accept your donations. You can give by going to the donation "widget" on the top right of the blog page which will send you to our Razoo page where you can use your debit or credit card to give. Or if you would rather write a check please send it here:

11122 Rolling Springs Dr. Carmel, IN 46033.  Please make it out to "North Routt Community Church" and in the Memo line write "David Bloom."

Thank you so much for your prayers and support!

David & Suzanna

The Blooms Are Heading To Colorado!!!

Hello Friends and Family (maybe some strangers),

         I write to you with with great anticipation because I have some exciting news. Suzanna and I will be moving to Colorado!!! Wait, what? When? Why?
        Suzanna and I are moving to a small town, Clark, to help develop a new church in a rural community. If you have made it this far, I will go ahead and explain how this came about, describe the church and location, as well as share some of the planning and logistics. Here is some of the story...

"How the heck did this happen?"

              For me it all goes back to my internship at Grace Community Church (outside Indianapolis). My time at Grace was marked by growth, stretching and amazing community. As my internship began to wrap up in August 2012 I had little idea of what I was going to do. The only thing that was certain was I had a place to stay and I was marrying the love of my life in about a month!! So life was great, yet I was still uncertain about what God had for me. In early August I received a phone call from my friend's mom telling me about a pastoral opportunity in Colorado. I found a link to the job posting and read the description. When I read it, I thought to myself, "ehh, another senior pastor position I'm not qualified for..."  and kind of shrugged it off. However, for whatever reason, I felt prompted to explore it further. I found out that Keith Carlson, who is a pastor at Grace, actually had a connection with this church in Clark, Colorado and had been out there to work with them to help develop the church which now goes by the name North Routt Community Church (NRCC). So I went into his office to pick his brain. Little did I know there had been a dream for this church brewing for years, and it was greatly connected to Grace Community Church. He thought I may be a good fit for the position so some exploratory conversations began in later that month.  As the conversations continued through the months two more pastors, David Bell (my mentor) and Aaron Elliot (pastor of leadership) were brought into the dialogue to help discover if this was a good fit for me and Suzanna and for NRCC. Over time a job description (explained below) began to take shape and we felt more and more like this was where God was directing us. I talked with the leadership in North Routt, shared with them my heart and philosophy for ministry, and quickly learned that we share very similar visions. Suzanna, Keith, and I flew out to visit the area this past January in order to meet the leadership and the community and finally see if this was what God had in store for us. The trip was incredible. We felt very welcomed by the community and  overcome with the sense that, "this is right".We saw how much God had been doing in and through the community in North Routt and we knew we wanted to partner with Him in all that He was doing. So, Suzanna and I have committed to NRCC for the next two years and we are quickly preparing to move out there by May first of this year! 

The Church 

              The founding of North Routt Community Church was a dream of many coming to fruition. Perhaps the greatest catalyst was the purchase of a guest ranch by Jerry Throgmartin and his family, longtime members of the Grace Church community. When they purchased Vista Verde Ranch over six years ago, Clark proved to be a perfect location but they soon noticed a need - the town had not had a church in over one hundred years. Through the years the dream to form a church began to develop and a core community was established. However, in early 2012 Jerry tragically passed away. This was a massive loss for Vista Verde, Grace Community Church, and for the growing church in Clark. Even in Jerry's absence, his dream continued and the church began to grow, which brings us to the present. 

           The church currently meets every other week with about 40 people gathering for service. They meet in an old restored school house during the summer and the town's charter school in the winter. Right now it is led by a Denver Seminary grad, Ben Martin, who is also the general manager at Vista Verde Ranch. Due to the high demands of his full-time job he does not have the time and energy he knows the church needs to develop and meet more consistently. Despite the limitations, the church is in a good place. The community is eager to gather and worship and hear from God's word together on a weekly basis. This is why they have called in some help (us) to get that started. We are so excited and feel so blessed to be apart of the growth and establishment of a church body in a place that had previously been church-less for over a century. 

           

The Location 

If you squint real hard, you can see the question mark under population

          Suzanna and I visited Clark January 17th-20th. We went with Grace's pastor of outreach, Keith Carlson. The trip was amazing! During our brief time there we got a taste of what living and ministering in North Routt might look like.When we drove into town we were greeted by a wooden sign welcoming us to Clark (See above). It was like any other town sign you might see, telling us when it was established and the elevation, but we noticed under the word population it had a question mark. Now we knew going in that Clark was small but this was an unsettling first impression. However, throughout our visit we were reassured that there are, indeed, humans that live there.  In fact, more than we originally thought and they were some of the most welcoming people we have met. I will try and give you a picture (and some links to pictures) so you can visualize the area in which we will be living and working.

             Clark, Colorado is a small "unincorporated" town in North Routt county, tucked away in the mountains of the Routt National Forest, just north of Steamboat Springs. Clark has one store, the Clark Store, which sells most anything you would need. It also houses the town's post office and library. This seems like a great place to meet a lot of the community; we visited there for about an hour and watched dozens of people pick up mail or groceries. Next to the Clark Store is a recently built charter school called North Routt Charter school which is considered the main community center. The school is K-8th grade and has about 75 kids enrolled. Another spot that the community gathers is the only dedicated restaurant in the area, Hahns Peak Roadhouse. We ate there during our visit and it was cool to see so much of the community there conversing and listening to live music. In addition to some lone ranches and homes, there are two good-sized neighborhoods within Clark that are a mix of vacation homes and year-round residences. 

The Position

           The position we landed on will be defined as a "church-planting residency". Sounds official, huh? Well it also sounds vague so I will explain. It is a two year commitment to come to North Routt and take on the majority of the responsibilities of the church leadership. Although I will be the only paid staff person and take on most of the roles of a head pastor, I will not be the "senior pastor." Rather, for the next two years I will be partnering with the community and leadership that is already established and partnering with the work that God is already doing in this church. Also, I will be receiving continual development from the church that is helping to send me - Grace Community Church. They will not only help to train and develop me before I leave, but will also continue a mentoring relationship via phone, email, and Skype. Most importantly, there will be quarterly visits from one or more of the three pastors that are training and mentoring me during my time in Indianapolis.  I will be working full-time to help develop the church, specifically in a few key areas. Though our focus may change as we come to better understand the culture and needs of the area and church body, these are some of the general areas we will strategically focus on. 

• Corporate Gatherings: The church wants to start meeting every week. In order to help make this happen we will focus on developing a preaching team that will form sermon series and consistently teach the word of God to the community. We also want to construct a worship team that can lead the community in corporate praise through music, prayer, and other means. 
• Community: It is our goal to create environments in which people can figure out how to follow Jesus together, as one body. Small groups can help to create these environments were community is formed and and people are coming together to learn what it means to love God, love others and be the Church. 
• Leadership Development: We all have a place and a role in God's kingdom. I believe as a church it is our responsibility to identify gifts and build up leaders so that they can be equipped and launched into the kingdom role that God has for them. 
• Discipleship: For this we will focus on intentionally raising up and equipping leaders with a heart for discipleship, giving them ways in which they can practically and effectively walk with others into the life that Jesus calls us to. The church's job is to make disciples and we would like to follow Jesus' example of intentionally walking alongside people in everyday life and relationally teaching them the truth and vision for God's kingdom. 

If you would like to see my in-depth philosophy of ministry click here 

How you can get involved

           Suzanna and I believe that God is going to stretch us, teach us, and use us over the next two years. He is giving us an amazing opportunity to roll up our sleeves and labor on behalf of His kingdom. I have no doubt that God will do extraordinary things during our time spent in North Routt. We have the privilege of working alongside some wonderful and godly people who desire to see God's name be known in their town. Now, I am inviting you to partner with us in this ministry. Just as we have the opportunity to be sent and partner with this church plant, you too have an opportunity to partner with what God is doing in Clark, Colorado. Here are some ways that you can get involved. 

1. We need your prayers!- This is something that we know God has been putting together piece by piece. With that said, we want to continue to rely on Him and come to Him in prayer. We need prayer for...

• Provision- There are a lot of things that need to be taken care of before our move. We need to find a place to stay, an all-wheel drive car, and raise enough support. 
• The Community- Please pray for the power of the Holy Spirit to transform lives in North Routt Community. Pray that their hearts would be receptive to the Gospel of Jesus and his Kingdom.
• Against fears and insecurities- This a big step for me and Suzanna.  And although it feels right and we sense God's blessing, there are many changes, unknowns, and lies that can cause fear and insecurities. Please pray that we allow "Christ's peace to dwell in us richly."

• If you want to be added to a monthly prayer email list please send me an email at dbloom2388@gmail.com. I will send out prayer requests, updates and praises. 

1. You can partner with us financially- This is a unique church planting opportunity because we already have two financial supporters who feel very strongly about this church in North Routt and they are supporting a large portion of our salary. However, Suzanna and I still need to raise a considerable amount of support, $30,000 to be exact. This is the break down:

• Start-up costs: $10,000- There are several costs that are involved in this move. The big ones include a different car (my Mitsubishi Mirage won't cut in mountain country, no offense buddy), moving costs, and a security deposit for a rental. This also covers some of my developmental costs while I prepare and train (through Grace Church) in Indianapolis for the next 2 months. So that is a big way you can get involved, by actually getting us there!
• Salary: $10,000/year for 2 years- Once we get to North Routt, I will be working for NRCC full-time and will not have any other supplemental income (beside Suzanna working part-time).  Therefore, I need to raise my entire salary. We have been incredibly blessed to have a good chunk already funded by two sources and we are very thankful, however, we still need to raise the remaining portion of our salary. That is one of the ways you can get involved - by helping us live in North Routt. 

•  Two ways to give- 
• One way in which you can give is by writing a check to "North Routt Community Church" and putting "David Bloom" in the Memo line.

                                                 You can send it to this address: 11122 Rolling Springs Dr.

                                                                                                    Carmel, IN 46033

• The second way you can give is through a fundraising website we have set up through Razoo. If you would rather use your debit or credit card, then this is a great option. You can access the site here or just click on the Razoo donation widget in the right-hand corner of the blog. 

            In order to keep this post relatively short I have not gone into all of the details about the church, community, job description and preparation that will be involved in this process. I will continue to use this blog to post more information in the future but in the meantime, if you would like to know more about some specifics please feel free to call me at 630-346-8041 or email me at dbloom2388@gmail.com. Also, I would love to get together over lunch or coffee with anyone who wants to hear more about the church plant, so let me know if you are interested in that. 

Thank you all so much for your love, prayers and support.

David & Suzanna Bloom