Scotty Harrison has been around church most of his life, joining different denominations in different places, always restless about settling in.
He began attending Hope City Church in Fayetteville, Arkansas before it even officially launched, as people gathered for worship, small groups, and community outreach.
This time it's different—and there’s a reason.
Something happened a while back that changed his concept of God and church. When “church kids” bullied him at school and in the neighborhood, he saw a giant disconnect between what happened in church and real life. In his experience, church kids were no different, maybe worse, than others. He wanted none of that.
He came to Hope City Church with doubt.
Hope City Pastor Adam Berry understands that. Disconnect is part of his story, too. It changed the kind of church he’s launching.
“We want to be a community where we’re all working through our stuff,” he said “Nobody has it all together, even me. Hope City is for people who have given up on church, even been burned by church. It’s a safe place for people to come with all our stuff.
“No matter where they’ve been, what they’ve done, or what’s been done to them, we want to remove every barrier possible to get people up close to Jesus and see if He is who He claims to be.”
Hope City Church is located in one of the fastest growing communities in the nation. People are drawn to beauty and opportunity in Fayetteville. It’s part of an area that is home to big corporations like Walmart, Tyson, and J.B. Hunt, as well as the University of Arkansas. It’s a hot spot for mountain biking, art, and music—a destination for people who want a suburban lifestyle with all the amenities of a big city.
But in Fayetteville, more people are leaving the church than joining. People describe themselves as spiritual, but not religious.
“We’re convinced reasons people are leaving have more to do with church than Jesus,” Adam said. “Many people have experienced church, but maybe haven’t experienced Jesus. We believe everybody is looking for something. People want something real they can hang their faith and life on. A community where it’s okay to have questions, where they can relate to leaders in the church.”
Scotty was surprised at how easy it was to fit into the new church.
“I never thought I would be part of a church regularly,” he said. “I’ve stayed for (several) months when I didn’t think I’d last a week. I still don’t know what it means yet, but I’m around.”
Scotty is one of many who are searching for real community.
“We spend time with a lot of people like Scotty,” Adam said. “We trust God has him where he needs to be. We don’t have to push, nag, or guilt him back. We’ll continue to hang out with him and trust God with the rest.”
Planting a new church is a huge undertaking, a lot of stress if success rests on numbers, but that’s not how Adam sees it.
“We can’t rely on a great strategy or program,” he said. “That amounts to nothing unless people get to experience Jesus through us in conversations and interactions. Jesus gives life through that.”
Adam said staying connected to Jesus is the heart of everything they do at Hope City.
“What truly makes this a safe community is our shared need for Jesus,” he said. “We’re all in the same boat. Apart from Him, we can do nothing.”
Southeast Christian Church has helped plant 68 churches. Click here to see the list.