The Missional Incubator Today
Missional: Loving people. Engaging community on their terms and their turf.
Incubator: Space to dream. Growing dreams into reality.
Unless it is the LORD who builds the house, the builders’ work is pointless. (Psalm 127:1)
The work of those engaged in the incubator is to do faithful listening to the Holy Spirit. God works in each church community in different ways and at different speeds. Today there are 11 churches participating in the Missional Incubator and each is at a different place in the process. The goal is that by May of 2025 each group has a clearer sense of the compelling business or social enterprise God is asking them to explore. The goal of the Missional Incubator is to dream and then move from dreams to implementation.
Here are the leaders and the churches engaged in the Incubator today:
- Alice Tewell – Clarendon Presbyterian Church:The congregation voted to partner with True Ground Housing Partners (formerly known as APAH) to redevelop the entire church property less than half a mile from the Clarendon Metro station to build separate Affordable Senior LGBT+ affirming housing run by True Ground. The redeveloped space will also have space owned by the church to include a church space and preschool space for 40-50 children. The church is in active prayer asking within the church space, What is God asking us to do alongside the affordable housing venture?
- Bob Melone – Mount Vernon Presbyterian Church: Concerts on the lawn and opening a children’s music program in the barn, one of three buildings on our campus, is just the beginning of engaging our community in new ways.
- Casey Thompson – Idylwood Presbyterian Church: This Fall, four artists have moved into newly renovated rooms above our fellowship hall. Is it time for us to create a coffee café in the fellowship hall combing arts and coffee to create community?
- Casey Thompson – Knox Presbyterian Church: We have opened a five day a week Bible School for the community and yet there are so many possibilities around us and more that can be done to leverage our facility for a compelling business or social enterprise that creates greater collisions with those not engaged with our church.
- Sarah Johnson – New York Avenue Presbyterian Church: Close to the White House with a building rich in history in an area with many needs and possibilities, we are exploring how God can use where we are located and the facility that we own.
- Diane Walton Hendricks – Clifton Presbyterian Church: Located in an historic town we are exploring how we can leverage our beautiful manse to create something that brings people together for something they want.
- Amanda Brady Vella – Faith Chapel: Faith Chapel offers the Lucketts Community a place to gather for community building, concerts, classes and workshops, meetings, tabletop games, birthday parties, special events and Messy Church. It is the home of the Lucketts Community Food Pantry which provides nourishment and hope to our community.
- Gloria Yi – Hope Presbyterian Church: We are off a busy street and our electronic signage gets over 30,000 daily views. We have a neighborhood on one side of the property and a farm on another side. On Sundays we have a full house and run out of parking spaces. During the week, aside from food pantry operations, the building and beautiful serene 3 acres of land sits empty!
- Campbell Hackett – Kirkwood Presbyterian Church: There are many churches and even many Presbyterian churches in our community, so, we are asking what is the unique thing God wants us to do with our beautiful property.
- Matt Nabinger – Oaklands Presbyterian Church: What does a 3rd space, a space where everyone feels welcome, look like in Laurel, Maryland?
- Casey Wait – John Calvin Presbyterian: We have a park-like setting, a beautiful fellowship hall and sanctuary. We host a pre-school but what else can we do with the land and facility God has provided so that we can positively impact our community?