Where We’ve Been, Where We’re Going, and How We’ll Get There

Billy Gifford, Senior Pastor — 02.18.26

1. Looking Back with Gratitude

Over the last few years, we’ve walked through a lot together as a church. We’ve had leadership transitions and uncertainty at the top, a brand-new elder team trying to find its footing, staff changes, and a lot of behind-the-scenes strain that many of you have felt even if you couldn’t see all the details. And yet, in the middle of all that, the Lord has preserved some really precious things here at Antioch. When I hear people describe this church, they still talk about real community—about friendships that feel like family, about honesty and vulnerability, and about being known.

There’s a genuine heart for mission: we care about the nations, we care about our city, and we care about people who are far from Jesus. Our Sunday gatherings are still centered on Jesus—worship is alive, the Word is preached, we respond in prayer, and God really does meet people. And maybe most importantly, there is a core of faithful members who have stayed, prayed, given, served, and endured the tension of a transitional season with patience and hope.

As I step into the Senior Pastor role, I want us to know that we are not rebuilding from rubble. We’re building on a real foundation of grace, history, and faithfulness that many of you have helped lay with your lives. At the same time, we have work to do. If we want Antioch to be a healthy home for the next decade—for our kids, our college students, our long-timers, and those who haven’t walked through our doors yet—we’re going to have to make some changes, tighten some systems, and clarify where we’re headed. My heart in all of this is to honor what God has already done here and steward it well in the years ahead.

2. Where We Are Right Now

2.1 Our People and Ministries

Sundays

Our Sunday service is spiritually strong. We gather, worship, share communion, listen to the Word, and respond in prayer. People linger and talk. There’s life in the room.

Kids

We have around 100+ kids on a typical Sunday. That’s a huge gift. It also puts pressure on our space, our volunteers, and our systems. Our Kids team works very hard, but we know we need (and have been working on) clearer processes, better communication, and more support so Kids can be a place of confidence and joy for parents and volunteers.

Lifegroups

We currently have 24 Lifegroups, and we’ve recently put Section Leaders in place to care for and coach leaders (College Lifegroups have been thriving with Section Leaders for some time now). This is a major step forward from a few years ago, when our group structure was more fragmented. Lifegroups remain a core way we do discipleship and care.

Youth & College

Our youth ministry is smaller but steady, reaching not only Antioch families but also friends from outside the church. Our college ministry has around 120 students connected through Lifegroups (more that come on Sundays), with overall healthy systems and strong leaders. We want to grow both in depth and in outreach over time.

Missions

Our missions department continues to send teams overseas each summer and support long-term workers on the field. We are part of Engage The Nations and have helped base teams in various countries. This is a part of our DNA we want to keep strong.

Other ministries

We have the Antioch Discipleship School (ADS), Discipleship Cohorts, Premarital (Rock On), Men’s and Women’s ministries, Freedom Prayer (new), and more. Many of these are largely volunteer-led and do really well, even if some of the systems behind them need ongoing refinement.

2.2 Our Finances (Snapshot)

I want you to have a clear picture of where we stand financially.

• In the last year, we received about $1.05 million in income.

• For the coming year, we are projecting about $950,000 in income.

  • We chose that number on purpose to be conservative, knowing that the uncertainty of major transitional seasons could cause some to be hesitant to commit to giving as the new season gets established.

Our budget for this next year is about $1.01 million, which is slightly more than we expect to bring in. The main categories are:

• Staff & Payroll – our largest expense (salaries, taxes, some health benefits).

• Operations – rent for our building, utilities, insurance, basic tools and supplies.

• Ministry Expenses – Kids, Youth, College, Missions, Lifegroups, and other programming.

• Giving Outward – money we give beyond ourselves (missions, external generosity).

We are able to budget slightly above projected income this year because:

• We currently have around $1.5 million in reserves/savings.

• We also own 32 acres of land debt-free, purchased for a future facility (est. at about $1.5M)

So we are not in a financial emergency. But we are in a season where we want to:

• Be wise and careful with spending.

• Make our staff and systems more efficient and focused.

• Increase, over time, what we invest directly into ministry environments, tools, and discipleship—not just payroll, as well as more outward giving opportunities.

3. What We’re Focusing on in the Next 12–18 Months

Rather than trying to improve everything at once, we’re going to focus on a few key priorities that will help the whole church.

Before we jump into priorities and language about “systems,” I want to be clear that we are not trying nor wanting to turn Antioch into a machine. This is about pastoring people better. When our systems are weak, people fall through the cracks, families carry unnecessary stress, volunteers burn out, and staff is scrambling instead of pastoring. When our systems and structures are healthy and simple, it actually frees us to be more present with people, not less. So when you hear me talk about structures, processes, and pipelines, I hope you hear that this is one of the main ways we’re trying to love, protect, and pastor this church well for the long haul. We want to play the long-game.

3.0 Rebuild Eldership and Local Governance

A healthy church needs biblical, trusted, local spiritual oversight. Over the last season, our elder structure has gone through disruption and transition, and part of rebuilding health at Antioch means re-establishing a stable, unified, and spiritually mature elder team who can shepherd, protect, and discern wisely alongside the staff.

This year, we will:

• Take time to pray, discern, and identify men who meet biblical elder qualifications and are already living as shepherds among us.

• Rebuild the elder team slowly and intentionally, prioritizing character, unity, and spiritual maturity over speed.

• Clarify how elders, pastors, and staff work together in shared spiritual oversight, accountability, and care for the church.

• Ensure the elder team is aligned with our mission, vision, theology, and direction as a church.

In the Meantime: A Local Advisory Team

While we are prayerfully rebuilding our elder team, we will also have a Local Advisory Team (LAT) in place for this season.

The Local Advisory Team is a small group of trusted, spiritually mature members of our church who walk closely with me as Senior Pastor to provide wisdom, accountability, prayer, and perspective. This ensures that I am not leading in isolation and that there is meaningful local input and feedback during this transitional season.

It’s important to be clear that the Local Advisory Team is not an elder team and not a governing body. They do not make decisions, manage staff, or oversee church operations. Their role is relational and pastoral in nature—helping reinforce spiritual health, discernment, and unity as we move forward.

In short, the Local Advisory Team exists to help stabilize and strengthen leadership now, while we take the time needed to rebuild a healthy, biblical elder team for the long term.

Interim Elder Team

During this time, we also have a group of External Advisors who are helping serve as interim elder-level oversight while we rebuild and establish a healthy local elder team. They are not here to run day-to-day ministry, but to provide wisdom, accountability, and spiritual covering during this transitional window so that we move forward with integrity and stability. Our goal is still to establish local elders as soon as reasonably possible, and we’ll keep the church updated as that process develops.

Our External Advisors are:

• Carl Gulley, Antioch US Director

• Drew Steadmen, Executive Director of Antioch Movement, Senior Pastor Antioch Hawaii

• Zach Daniels, Executive Pastor of Ministries, Antioch Waco

3.1 Strengthen Pastoral Covering

For Antioch to be healthy, people need to be known, cared for, and discipled, not just attending on Sundays. The primary way we do that is through Lifegroups, supported by Section Leaders who help care for leaders and make sure needs don’t fall through the cracks.

This priority is about more than “better groups.” It is about ensuring there is real pastoral coverage across the church so needs are noticed early, leaders are supported, and care escalations happen in a consistent way.

What we’re strengthening

• Making sure every Lifegroup is clearly connected to a Section Leader.

• Supporting Lifegroup Leaders so they’re not carrying things alone.

• Creating consistent rhythms for check-ins, prayer, and follow-up.

• Ensuring care is proactive, not just reactive.

We want everyone to know where to go when they need care, prayer, or guidance:

• Start with your Lifegroup Leader. They know you, walk with you, and are your first point of care.

• If more help is needed, your Lifegroup Leader connects with a Section Leader. Section Leaders are trusted, experienced leaders who support Lifegroup Leaders, help discern next steps, and involve pastoral staff when appropriate.

• Staff pastors are involved when needed. This allows care to escalate wisely and consistently, without anyone being overlooked.

In simple terms:

You → Lifegroup Leader → Section Leader → Pastoral Staff / elders (when established)

This does not mean we (as pastoral staff) don’t want to meet with you—the opposite is true. We want to know you, walk with you, and meet with as many of you as we can, and we want you to have confidence that there is a healthy structure in place to pastor and care for all of our people well.

3.2 Make Kids Ministry Stronger and More Sustainable

We want Kids to be:

• Safe and educational

• Fun and exciting

• Well-led

• Communicative with parents

• A place where volunteers feel equipped and cared for

Over the next year, we will:

• Improve and grow our documented processes and ensure proper training (how rooms open and close, safety steps, check-in/out, incident reporting, program execution, lesson planning, etc.).

• Strengthen our volunteer team with clearer expectations and better support.

• Improve communication with parents about what kids are learning and how to get involved.

• Get a better handle on our room capacities so we know when we are over-full and what options we have.

This can all sound logistical, but it is one of the main ways we want to shepherd families better—so parents feel supported, kids are discipled, and volunteers are cared for instead of stretched thin.

3.3 Rebuild a Healthy Communication Rhythm

We want everyone at Antioch to be able to answer three basic questions:

1. What’s happening?

2. Why does it matter?

3. How can I participate?

To get there, we will:

• Restart a more consistent weekly email with key updates.

• Keep our website up-to-date with current events and next steps (the “Current” page).

• Have printed bulletins with upcoming events readily available each Sunday.

• Limit Sunday morning announcements to a few focused items, and use other channels for details.

This should reduce confusion and help all of us feel more informed and aligned.

3.4 Clarify a Pathway from Visitor to Engaged Member

Even though we don’t use the word “member” formally yet, many of you function that way — you’re committed, you give, you serve, you belong.

We want to make that path clearer for the next wave of people God sends.

In simple terms, we envision a journey like this:

Visitor → Newcomer → Lifegroup → Formal Membership Process (new) → Serving → Deeper Discipleship

That will look like:

• A clearer follow-up process for new people.

• A simpler way to help people find a Lifegroup.

• A basic membership course that explains who we are, what we believe, and what we’re inviting people into, with clear member expectations.

• A regular New Members lunch where we get to know people and they get to know us.

• Oversight to the membership system to keep everything up to date.

• Clear on-ramps into serving teams and discipleship environments.

We want people to know:

“If I want to go all-in at Antioch, here’s what that looks like and here’s how I do it.”

3.5 Build a Healthy Leadership Pipeline

We have faithful leaders all over this church. What we haven’t always had is a shared, intentional way to develop new ones—and to care for the leaders we already have.

Over the next season, we’re going to build a simple, church-wide leadership pathway that makes it clear:

• how someone grows from “serving” into greater responsibility,

• what support and training comes at each step, and

• how we identify and shepherd leaders over time so they don’t burn out.

In the past, a lot of leadership development has happened organically—good people noticing other good people and pulling them in. That’s beautiful and needs to keep happening, but it hasn’t always been consistent or clear. A healthier pathway is one way we intend to pastor and develop people more intentionally, not just those who are loudest or closest to staff.

Practically, we’ll build basic rhythms to:

• Notice and invite emerging leaders earlier.

• Equip them with simple training and clear expectations.

• Provide coaching, encouragement, and accountability as they grow.

• Create healthier handoffs so ministry doesn’t depend on a few people.

This will strengthen every part of church life over time—Kids, Home Team, Lifegroups, Youth, College, Missions, and more—because it helps us raise up people in a consistent way, with clarity and intentional care.

3.6 How We Intend to Lead This Forward

Over the next season, we’re not just clarifying ideas—we’re also clarifying how we lead and carry them together. In simple terms, my role as Senior Pastor will be to stay focused on the Word, prayer, shepherding people, and setting direction. That means preaching and teaching, guarding the theological and spiritual health of the church, rebuilding and walking with our future elders, and being present with people as a pastor—not just an organizational leader.

To support that, I have asked Clayton Fraley to step into the role of Director of Ministries. We have clarified and redesigned this role to where Clayton will focus on leading the staff team, building and maintaining healthy systems, and making sure our plans actually get executed. In practice, we’ll be working closely together and there will be overlap for as long as needed, but the basic idea is simple: I will primarily lead in vision, preaching, and shepherding, and Clayton will assist in leading operations, execution of staff priorities and development, and church systems.

That being said, we have asked Cody Hunter to step in an become our new College Pastor. Cody has been faithfully leading our Home Team over the past 2 years and we are excited to have him on staff.

4. The Bigger Picture: 3–10 Years

We aren’t trying to lock ourselves into a rigid long-term plan, but we do want to give a sense of direction.

4.1 In the Next 3–5 Years

Over the next 3–5 years, our hope is to see Antioch become a stable, spiritually mature, and well-shepherded church, marked by depth, clarity, and long-term health.

Specifically, we are focusing on:

• Deepening discipleship across every stage of life, so that kids, youth, college students, adults, and families are formed in Scripture, faith, and obedience—not just participation.

• Providing families with confidence that Antioch is a place where their children are being discipled, parents are resourced to parent well, and marriages are supported to grow and thrive.

• Strengthening Lifegroups and pastoral care, so that people are truly known, cared for, and supported, and no one is walking alone.

• Growing a visible, shared prayer culture, with regular rhythms of prayer that shape the spiritual life of our church together—not just behind the scenes.

• Encouraging intergenerational discipleship, where wisdom, faith, and spiritual maturity are intentionally passed down from one generation to the next.

• Helping people discern and live out their God-given calling, whether in their workplace, family life, local community, or overseas missions.

• Building clear, sustainable structures and systems that support shepherding, discipleship, and leadership in a way that is reliable and not dependent on any one person.

Financially, this season also includes continued stabilization and wise stewardship, with the aim of:

• Maintaining healthy payroll ratios,

• Gradually strengthening ministry budgets as the Lord provides,

• And preserving appropriate reserves for long-term faithfulness.

Overall, this is a season of refining and strengthening what we already do, not chasing constant new initiatives—so that Antioch can remain healthy, resilient, and faithful for years to come.

4.2 Longer Term: Facilities & Multiplication

We own 32 acres of land that was initially purchased for a potentially future more permanent home. But we will not rush into a building project.

Before we do anything significant with facilities, we want to be sure:

• Our elders, staff, and systems are healthy and stable.

• Our Families Ministries (Kids, Youth) and communication are strong enough to receive growth well.

• Our financial trends show that we can sustain and steward more.

If, in time, those pieces are in place, we will revisit what it might look like to:

• Build a facility that truly serves our mission.

• Multiply Lifegroups, ministries, and possibly even send or plant in new ways.

But the building will follow the health, not the other way around.

5. How You Can Pray and Participate

If you’ve read this far, you already show the kind of commitment that makes a church healthy. Here’s how you can walk with us in this next season:

1. Pray for deeper pastoring, not just better organization.

• As we work on systems and structures, pray that it would actually result in better care for people—more presence, more follow-through, and more discipleship.

2. Stay engaged in community and Lifegroups.

• Lifegroups are one of the main ways we pastor this church. If you’re already in one, stay engaged and lean in. If you’re not, consider making that your next step.

3. Serve, especially with Kids and on Sundays.

• If Antioch is your church home, we’re asking you to serve somewhere regularly. In this season, our Kids Ministry and Sunday teams (Home Team, Production, Worship) are especially important as we strengthen our systems. Helping hold a baby, greet at the door, or run slides is not “just volunteering”—it helps create an atmosphere of worship and is part of how we shepherd people as they walk through our doors.

4. Continue giving faithfully and, if the Lord leads, stretch towards generosity.

• Your giving is what allows us to fund staff, ministries, missions, and future planning. We are committed to using those resources wisely and transparently. If Antioch is your church, we’re asking you to see your financial giving as part of how you participate in what God is building here.

5. Give clear, honest feedback—with hope.

• We can’t grow or stay healthy without honest input from the people who actually live in this church week to week. If you see something confusing, unhealthy, or just not working, we want (nay, need!) to hear it. The kind of feedback we’re asking for is truthful and hopeful: come close, assume the best, and speak plainly so we can respond, repent if/where needed, and adjust.

6. Guard unity by how you talk about the church.

• We’re not pretending everything is perfect, and we welcome honest conversations about what’s hard. At the same time, we want to guard our hearts and our community from drifting into a pattern of grumbling. We want to be the kind of family that can talk about hard things without tearing each other down, even if unintentionally. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to us for a conversation.

To Summarize:

We believe the next season is about growing health, not just size — building a church where Jesus is exalted, people are discipled, families are strengthened, and the nations are reached. For the staff, I have summarized in one word what I think this year and the following years will look like, and I want to share that with you:

• 2025 — Transition

• 2026 — Alignment

• 2027 — Stabilization

• 2028 — Growth & Multiplication

This year, our primary focus will be get in alignment and to clarify who we are and how we’ll lead—re-integrating mission/vision/values, strengthening pastoral covering through Lifegroups/Section Leaders, and rebuilding core systems.

I want to end by revisiting our vision and mission together to remember where we have been and to set our eyes on where we ultimately are going:

PURPOSE FOR ADOPTING AN OFFICIAL VISION STATEMENT:

When Antioch Community Church was planted in 2009, it was fueled by people who carried a passion for Jesus and His purposes on the earth. This passion was infused to those who would soon call Antioch their home church. With this natural drive, momentum was created, and the church began to grow. It wasn’t long before there was a vibrant community called Antioch filled with disciples of Jesus taking on an identity of its own. As this identity began to form and as new members began to join, it became evident that the church needed a common mission that would clearly state the main thing that the church was doing. This led to the creation of Antioch’s mission statement:

To make disciples of Jesus who transform towns and nations.

This mission statement put words to what was in the hearts of the men and women who called Antioch their family. With this in place, people began to rally around the principle and command of Jesus to make disciples. This began to take place in a variety of ways with discipleship taking place across the city. Antioch was a place where you could become family and a place where you could become a disciple of Jesus. Not only that, but you would be a disciple of Jesus who then went forth to make other disciples of Jesus.

However, as the church continue to mature, we are finding that having a common mission isn’t quite enough to define who we are. We have confidence in what we are doing, making disciples of Jesus, and are always working to improve how we are doing it. But for us to continue to mature and equip the saints for the work of service, the question we must answer now is: why?

Just like in the beginning when we were able to put to words that which was in our hearts to do—making disciples of Jesus who transform towns and nations—now we must put to words why it is in our hearts to do so. Our hope and prayer is that in making the vision of Antioch clear, answering why we are doing what we are doing, describing where we are going rather than just how we are going to get there, members of this body will latch on to this vision, hold it before them the rest of their lives, and thereby press on to perfection and the upward call of God, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.

Vision Statement

To present to Christ a radiant Church, ready for His return

About our vision statement:

Often in the Gospels, Jesus would share parable after parable in reference to the future Kingdom of God and His Second Coming.  Jesus was undoubtedly a matchless teacher, and in His wisdom, He saw it wise to not only teach on what His disciples were to do and how they were to do it, but also why they were to do it.  This was passed on to the apostles who would also write about it in their letters.  What we learn from them is this: Christ was preparing a people to be His Bride, the Church, and He wanted them ready for when He would return to establish His kingdom on earth forevermore.

HIS RETURN

The Old Testament saints, prophets, New Testament apostles and Jesus Himself repeatedly emphasized a day in which God’s Kingdom would reign on the earth with Christ as Lord of Lords and King of Kings.  Not only would the Messiah come as a Sacrificial Lamb and offer forgiveness of sins through His death on the cross, but He would also return as a Conquering Lion to reign and rule for all eternity.  Therefore, having in mind His return seemed vital to set before us, reminding us that we are not just living for today, but living for that Day in which He comes again and the mortal puts on immortality, the perishable puts on the imperishable, and death is swallowed up in victory (1 Cor. 15:54).  We conduct ourselves in godliness, looking for and hastening the day of His coming (2 Peter 3:12).  If the parables and teachings of Jesus and the apostles were not enough to convince us of this reality, Jesus repeats Himself to make it abundantly clear that He is coming again—"Behold, I am coming quickly…yes, I am coming quickly” (Rev. 22:7,12,20).

READY

In view of His coming return, disciples of Jesus are called upon not just to know and be aware of this, but to be ready.  Ready like the wise virgins who had their lamps trimmed and oil stored (Matt. 25:1-13).  Ready like the faithful servant put in charge of his master’s household (Matt. 24:45-51).  Ready to open the door when He knocks (Luke 12:35-40), not sleeping, but alert (Mark 13:33-37).  Knowing He is coming doesn’t necessarily make you ready, but actively preparing yourself does.  Like a bride preparing for a wedding is the people of God, His Church, to prepare Herself for His coming.  Everyone who has the hope of His coming purifies themselves (1 John 3:3) and makes sure they are ready to give account for their life.  This opens us up for constant sanctification from the Holy Spirit, as we are always growing and maturing in our walk with the Lord.  Even the apostle Paul later in his ministry admitted that though he was ready to depart and be with Christ (Phil. 1:23), he had not yet attained or become perfect, yet pressed on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God (Phil. 3:12-14).  We must follow in his example and continue to make ourselves ready all the days of our lives by pressing on to perfection (Heb. 6:1) in every area of our lives.  Then we will be ready and confident on the day of His coming (1 John 2:28, 4:17), without blemish, holy and blameless (Eph. 5:27, Col.1:22).

CHURCH

Jesus is not coming back for organizations, denominations, or individual people.  He is coming back for His Church.  And time and again the Scriptures reveal to us that the Church is to be the Body of Christ, with Jesus as our Head (Col. 1:8).  As disciples of Jesus, we are called to be one Body (1 Cor. 12:12).  Not only that, a mature body, build together in love (Eph. 4:16).  This can only be accomplished through genuine and authentic relationships created within the local church.  And when the church functions together in unity as one body, each member playing their part in fellowship with the other members, the gates of hell will not prevail against what God can accomplish through that church (Matt. 16:18).  Church is not a building nor an organization, it is a local community of disciples of Jesus fitted and held together by what every joint supplies (Eph. 4:16).

RADIANT

If we are convinced Jesus is coming back for His Body, the Church, then we must ask the question, what kind of body?  The answer is given to us clearly in the Word of God—a holy, blameless, spotless body that appears as a light in the world amid a dark and crooked generation, holding fast to the Word of God (Phil. 2:15).  Jesus taught that His disciples would be the light of the world, a city on a hill that cannot be a hidden, a lampstand that gives light to all (Matt. 5:14-16).  We are called to shine forth the glory of God in every area of our lives.  Like the sun radiates light for all to see, we too must radiate God’s glory for all to see.  As the author of Hebrews says, Jesus is “the radiance of God’s glory”, allowing us to see the exact representation of His nature (Heb. 1:3).  Jesus Himself said, “if you have seen Me, you have seen the Father” (John 14:9).  A radiant church looks just like Jesus.  Full of light and flowing with life (John 8:12).  And this can only be accomplished by the power of the Holy Spirit (John 7:38-39).  A radiant church is a Spirit-filled and Spirit-led church filled with abundant life.

PRESENT TO CHRIST

Even in the very beginning of Creation in the garden of Eden, when God walked in the cool of the day with man, He saw fit to give mankind a purpose.  In paradise, Adam was to cultivate and keep the garden (Gen. 2:15).  As humans, we must have a purpose in life.  And as a local church, we also must have one single purpose that we can rally behind.  And we want to hear at the end of it all, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” for being faithful with the “talents” we have been given (Matt. 25:23).  As ministers of the gospel and as disciples of Christ, we have work to do.  We want to present our lives before God as pure and righteous.  We want to present the work of our hands as a wise master builder would, not with wood, hay, and straw, but with gold, silver and precious stone to be revealed by fire one day (1 Cor. 3:10-14).

Finally, we must acknowledge who it is that we are presenting our lives and all we have done to.  It is none other than our Lord Jesus Christ.  Our Redeemer.  Our Savior.  Our Master.  The One who was, is and is to come.  The Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning, and the End (Rev. 1:8).  We know that we will not stand before some earthly king or worldly government whose wisdom and knowledge only spans the breadth of their small life, but rather we will stand before the Ancient of Days, the Judge of the living and the dead, Almighty God Himself.  He is the Lamb of God by which all things were created, both in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him.  He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.  He is the Head of the body, the Church; and He is the beginning; the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have the first place in everything (Col.1:16-18).  May Christ be glorified forever and ever.  Amen.