GRANDVIEW – Overflow Church in the Kansas City suburb of Grandview, hopes to reach its community for Christ though a mission of “saturating (the) community with the overflowing love of Jesus.'” (See related story here.)
Pastor Alan Findley says the recent church plant is doing that by blending its congregation with another, and through partnerships with other established churches.
Overflow began in 2020 as a new church work of NAMB’s SEND program, and Blue Valley Church across the state line in Overland Park, Kans. Recently, Overflow and 70-year-old Belvidere Heights Church adopted each other to form one congregation.
Following COVID the older congregation had declined in membership to about 20 congregants. Funding suffered. The church could have closed its doors. Overflow had grown to about 50 members after starting small but had no permanent building. Today, the combined congregation of about 80 on a Sunday morning is a multi-generational church of young families and older adults representing several different nationalities from the surrounding neighborhoods and outlying areas.
Throughout its short history Overflow has relied on the resources of other churches. It held its initial planning and training meetings at nearby Martin City Church.
”When we officially launched our weekly worship gatherings in October of 2022, we met in the local elementary school,” Findley says, “but we discovered that we weren’t able to meet on holidays or bad weather days at the school.”
When Overflow couldn’t meet at the school on Easter it partnered with a local Free-Will Baptist congregation. That group allowed Overflow to rent its building and share space on Sunday mornings. After a new Free Will ministry launched there, Overflow was again forced to look for space.
“I shared our need with Gregg Boll (Blue River-Kansas City Baptist Director of Missions) and he recommended that I speak with Belvidere Heights Baptist Church.”
The church was located three miles from where Overflow had been meeting.
Findley says Belvidere Heights through its history had flourished but took “several heavy hits in the days following the COVID shutdowns.”
“Their pastor, Anthony Harwell, had done an incredible job faithfully shepherding the congregation through those difficulties,” he said, “but the church came to the point where they were running out of both families and funds.”
The two pastors began discussing renting Belvidere Heights space to Overflow for services. “But, we quickly came to realize that we might be able to make a greater Kingdom impact by joining together than either of us could individually,” Findley says.
“Pastor Anthony recommended (and Belvidere voted to affirm) that Belvidere would stop having their own worship gatherings and instead join Overflow’s each Sunday.” The two groups began meeting together in Belvidere’s building.
“It proved to be beneficial because it allowed us the time and opportunity to really begin building relationships with one another,” Findley says. “We held a few joint meals and outreach opportunities. And as we began carrying out the regular rhythms of life and worship, we saw the Lord really begin to knit the two congregations together.”
In the process Findley discovered the two congregations had much in common.
“Leading up to the adoption vote I began reading through historical documents I discovered at (Belvidere)—everything from old church directories, to newspaper clippings, to census data—and I learned that Belvidere had been planted…to reach the growing community in Grandview. I also discovered that the heart and mission that Belvidere was planted with lined up beautifully with the heart and mission of Overflow Church!
“Rather than just closing the book on Belvidere’s history, we recognized that Overflow is more of a continuation of what Belvidere had been founded to accomplish.”
Findley and Harwell also began studying the book Better Together: Making Church Mergers Work,” by Jim Tomberlin and Warren Bird. ‘That resource quickly became our playbook for much of the steps we took in the days and weeks that followed,” Findley says.
He says Boll, the associational DOM, was a great help also. “He had already been walking with Belvidere through some of the challenges they had faced, and he was a trusted voice to give advice and encouragement to both parties. We invited him to speak at our town hall meetings leading up to the adoption vote, and he shared how many other churches/associations in our area had benefited from joining together.”
After the merger, Findley serves as lead pastor with Harwell leading as discipleship pastor.
A transitional leadership team with leaders from both congregations was created to focus on building unity within the body.
“The greatest benefit in my eyes” for the merger, Findley says, “is that there is still a Kingdom-centered mission in that neighborhood. As we have gone door-to-door in the neighborhood, we have heard many people (both churched and unchurched) share how excited they are to see the church doing things again.”
The church building is located across the street from an elementary school with 300 students. Findley says the “school’s leadership is incredibly welcoming to our church.”
Two church members have begun teaching an after school dance and exercise class at the school, using Jesus-focused hip hop music.
The church focus now is on regular worship gatherings, kid’s ministry, small group discipleship, and local outreach. Findley says each of those areas has grown with congregational blending.
With over 800 residential homes around the church, plus a nearby 600-unit apartment complex, of many young families, Findley wants to equip church members to go into the neighborhood to show and declare the good news of Jesus, and begin small home Bible studies, make relational connections, and complete service projects.
Overflow is preparing also to train future church leaders, replanters, and ministry leaders through a residency program. Findley would like to see 10 churches planted by Overflow in the next decade.
A current challenge is upgrading and repairing the older building to embrace what Findley says is Overflow’s value of providing “outrageous hospitality.” Findley would like to accomplish some of the work with other churches.
Projects include repairing and updating the baptistry, electrical concerns, and the elevator to help members get between floors in the split-level building. An on-site parsonage could be remodeled into offices and housing for small groups.
For congregations that are considering adopting another church, or in being adopted, Findley suggests they should consider what the church might look like in 5-10 years without a partnership or merger. Conversely, consider what a congregational blending could look like in the same period for the church and community.
He also suggests using available resources from the local Baptist association, the MBC’s Resound Network, and other churches.
“Spend time praying for and reaching out to other churches in your surrounding area. Go out of your way to love on and encourage bi-vocational pastors who aren’t often able to be involved in regular associational activities.
“Offer to send someone from your church to lead worship or fill the pulpit in a nearby church to give a stretched-thin pastor and ministry leader a weekend to be refreshed. Continue to remind yourself that we’re on the same team. We’re working toward the same goal.”
He added, “We really are better together.’
Findley is interested in working with other churches and meeting other church leaders. You may reach him at: alan.findley@overflowkc.com.