VITAL Work, Initiator Forum

In the evening of Wednesday, October 21, at Fremont Community Church in Fremont, CA, Q Place presented VITAL Work: Bridging the Mission-Marketplace Gap. VITAL Work is a panel discussion that explores how to work in a way that points people to Jesus. One of the most compelling presenters for me was Victor Ho. Victor, CEO and Co-Founder of FiveStars, shared about his own struggle to battle the voices of the world.

When Victor left his previous job to begin a new company, he found himself with very little income and was living off his savings. The voice of the world told him that he didn’t have to tithe or give back to God at this time because he wasn’t making any money, but God’s voice said something different. God asked Victor to trust Him. So Victor did, giving much of his savings to a need he became aware of from a missionary who spoke at his church.

It was only a few months later that Victor learned that his company had been selected to receive an investment of $150,000.

God had provided.

Victor went on to say that living God’s way naturally makes our lives distinctive, and that can be a natural on-ramp to spiritual conversations about the reason for this different way of living.

His story made me ask myself, How distinctive is my life, and whose voice am I following? And Is the way I live distinctive enough to compel others to want to engage with me in a spiritual conversation?

Jeff Klein, National Church Partnership Director

In mid-September we launched the Initiator Forum as a new way to support Q Place initiators across the country. The Initiator Forum is a one-hour weekly call with a network of Q Place initiators for direction, support, and encouragement. Each call features a specific topic presented by a Q Place catalyst, with plenty of time to discuss questions, troubleshoot challenges, and share ideas and stories. We piloted the forum internally through the summer, and now it is available to all Qplus and Qplus church members. It’s a great time of connecting and learning from other initiators as we all are on the same journey of facilitating Q Places.

Recently I helped to facilitate an Initiator Forum call with Susan Burbank, Q Place’s Northwest Regional Leader, who lives near Seattle, Washington. One of the forum participants was a woman named Lora. As soon as Lora introduced herself, Susan exclaimed, “Hi Lora, how are you?” It turned out that Susan had coached her as a group initiator when she lived in Washington. Recently, Lora had moved to Illinois, and then we discovered that she lives just one hour away from me!

After the Initiator Forum call, Susan encouraged me to follow-up with Lora. When Lora and I talked on the phone, I was so excited to hear that she has already gathered a group of six Christian women who are going through The 9 Arts of Spiritual Conversations together. I answered some of Lora’s questions and told her about our 7-week Initiator Coaching calls for helping Christians start Q Places. I also offered to meet with her and the women in the 9 Arts group, and then we prayed together. A new friendship has been formed! Susan, Lora, and I all feel encouraged by the moving of God’s Spirit between us. This is just one example of the connections that are being made during the Initiator Forum call each week!

Nancy Klaassen, Midwest Regional Catalyst