New Location Updates
A letter from Pastor Brian:
The vision for church planting was seeded in our hearts in 2021 when Branch Church initially began. Our Vision from the beginning is: to see communities rooted in Christ that glorify God and bless the world. What started as a small launch team of 40 has quickly grown to over 900 people being connected to Jesus and each other through the Truth of God’s word. As we have thoroughly enjoyed 5 years of God's faithfulness in growing physically and spiritually, He has prepared us for a new chapter. It's time to take action on this vision by starting a second location of Branch Church.
The first step in seeing the vision of church planting come to life is to find the right person. As I look back on those who have joined our team - God has always given us the right people at the right time. This chapter is no exception. In order to move forward with a new location, we need another leader. Someone who can take the vision and implement it. Branch is also a highly relational church. We love being together and we love getting to know each other!
Therefore, it gives me great pleasure to announce that someone known by our church family is stepping into the calling of leading the next location. Starting on April 20, Derek Swanson has been hired to fill this role! Derek has worked in ministry for both large and small churches. He has been both on staff and a highly engaged volunteer who has done everything from leading youth to adult small groups, helping with the creative process, and leading at the level of deacon. He’s also an entrepreneur who knows what it takes to implement a really big vision. He has experience transforming physical buildings and setting up large scale experiential gatherings. He’s worked in the worship music and video production space. Above all, he is DEEPLY relational and committed to discipleship, including most recently serving as a sports chaplain for a Christian high school. He’s a wonderful shepherd. Those of you who have been in a community and Branch Home under Derek’s leadership can attest. He cares so much about seeing people be drawn closer to the Truth of who Jesus is. He’s a wonderful dad and husband and we just couldn’t be more thrilled to have him say YES to this tremendous calling to lead another location of Branch Church.
One of Derek’s first objectives as he begins this role is to find a venue for the new location. He will be leading the team of volunteers who are called by God and say “yes” to the next step. We will be sharing a lot more about what this looks like in the coming weeks. Join us for our family meeting on Sunday, May 17th to learn more. In the meantime, please join me in welcoming Derek and congratulating he and Michelle (and their daughters) in this new role!
NEW LOCATION FAQs
Will the new location have live stream teaching?
No! Derek Swanson will be the location pastor which means he is also the primary teaching pastor at this location. However, the message content and themes will follow the Minnewashta location so each site has consistency throughout the year.
Where will the new location be?
We feel the Lord leading us WEST. Many of our existing regular attenders live in the western suburbs and towns. We believe God is calling us to meet a need for community west of our current Minnewashta location.
Will the worship music and style be the same?
We are working to develop consistency across our locations in many areas of ministry - including music. We believe style matters and we will aim to replicate what we’ve come to know and love at Branch Church while still allowing the gifts of the Holy Spirit to shine through each individual musician.
Will kids programs be the same?
Yes! Branch Kids will be offered for ages 1-5yo. We believe teaching older kids to be part of the regular Sunday worship experience is a big part of what makes us “Branchy.”
What will happen to Branch Homes?
Branch Homes are a big part of the DNA of Branch Church. We anticipate the need for more homes to be available especially near the new location site. Our hope is for people who attend the new location to be in Branch Homes together, sharing life and doing more things together outside of our regular Sunday experiences.
What will be different about the new location?
We are excited to see how God brings a uniqueness to the next location! There will be some physical differences for sure, but “church” is a group of people. It’s not a location. The difference might be in the people you stand shoulder-to-shoulder alongside. But our hope is to help the next location grow in the commitment of being a church family - like the branches of a family tree - abiding in Jesus and bearing fruit to bless the world around us.
When is the new location starting?
Once God shows us the right place on the map and the physical space we’ll be rolling up our sleeves and quickly getting to work. We are praying for willing hearts and helpful hands to be part of the launch team so that we can replicate serving teams and ministry functions. We want to lay a good foundation for the next location and we trust God’s timing in this process. He is never late!