WHERE HE LEADS | VISION NIGHT
The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come.' Let anyone who hears this say, 'Come.' Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life… He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, 'Yes, I am coming soon!' Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!"
REVELATION 22: 17, 20
Introduction
From the very beginning, we settled on something: this church does not exist to accomplish our vision. It exists to respond to His. We don't convince God to get behind what we're doing. We ask Him what He's doing and align ourselves with what He reveals.
That posture has shaped how we approach everything we do, including this conversation.
We have spent time seeking, praying, and sitting before the Lord, and we have a strong sense that He is leading us in the direction you're about to hear. But as always, we hold this with open hands. He can lead, redirect, remove, and add whatever He desires. Our only job is to stay close enough to hear Him and humble enough to follow.
Maranatha exists for one reason: the glorification of the Son. We are not concerned with our preferences, opinions, or our vision of what a church should look like. We have consistently stayed in the heart posture of laying down our lives so that whatever comes from
Maranatha is only by and for Jesus.
This Vision Night is an extension of that same posture. Here is what we sense the Lord doing, and we want to bring you into it.
BRENNAN JOHNSON | LEAD PASTOR
MARANATHA. COME, LORD JESUS.
Transformation
TILL NOW THE LORD HAS HELPED
We could share stories about our effort and sacrifice since the beginning of Maranatha. But this vision night is an opportunity to realize that it has only been by and because of the Lord. 1 Samuel 7 is a perfect example of what this heart posture looks like.
When Samuel set up a stone after the Lord moved on behalf of Israel, he named it Ebenezer and said, "Till now the LORD has helped us." Not a celebration of what Israel accomplished. A confession meant to keep the record straight. The stone existed so no one would walk away telling the wrong story.
This is Maranatha's Ebenezer.
What follows is not a report on what Maranatha has done. It is a record of what God has done among a willing people. Every life changed, every marriage restored, every person who met Jesus the person, not Jesus as an idea, none of that came from our strength. It came from His mercy, meeting us where we were and consistently calling us to return to Him.
Till now, the LORD has helped us.
30
BAPTISMS
105
IN GROUPS
375
avg attendance
Formation
We don't gather simply to exist as a community. We gather because we collectively pursue the Presence of God and through those encounters with the Living God, we actually become more like Him. Transformation is the whole point. And we want to be ruthlessly intentional about it.
Formation toward Jesus doesn't happen by accident or wishful thinking. It requires us to prioritize the things of Person of God, not as a program, but as a way of life. It requires showing up for one another even when it's inconvenient, and being willing to be known even when it's uncomfortable.
There's a moment in John 11 that captures this better than anything we could say. Jesus stands outside the tomb of Lazarus and calls him out. And Lazarus comes out, still wrapped in grave clothes, still bound from head to toe. Jesus does the miracle. Jesus does the calling. But then He turns to the people standing there and says, "Unbind him, and let him go."
That's the picture. Jesus is the one who gives life. He's the one who calls the dead out of the tomb. But He invites the community to do the unwrapping. That's what we mean by formation in community. Some of the grave clothes God has already begun loosening in your life, but He intends for the people around you to be the ones who finish the work.
You can't unwrap yourself. You need the church. And the church needs you.
THROUGH…
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Life lived in authentic community. Knowing and being known. This is where real formation happens, around tables and in living rooms, not just in a Sunday gathering. If you aren't in a group, we want to help you find one.
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We believe men and women face distinct battles and carry distinct callings. Discipleship that speaks directly to those realities matters. Generic formation only goes so far. We want to go further.
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We want to give you tools. Marriage, parenting, theology, apologetics, and more. We want Maranatha to be a place where people leave more equipped to live faithfully than when they arrived, and where the depth of what's offered keeps growing as the church grows.
location
PUTTING DOWN PHYSICAL ROOTS.
We believe the Lord is calling us to establish a permanent home, a place with enough space to do what He's called us to do and enough stability to do it for a long time. Where we are now has been a gift, and we've tried to steward it well. But we believe there is more ahead, and that the Lord is asking us to take a step of faith toward it.
Whatever the Lord does with our location, the need for generosity will not change. Location plans can shift, and God can redirect as He wills. That's why we hold all of it with open hands. But wherever He takes us, moving forward will cost something, and that cost will be carried together.
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We are currently in a position where we do not own the building we meet in. That changes with this initiative. We are believing God to own this property free and clear, no mortgage, no monthly payment hanging over the mission. Once that is secured, we can move toward expanding the facility from a position of stability rather than strain.
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We already have approval in place. The vision is to steward what we have well, building something that serves the church and the surrounding community for years to come.
This isn't about having a nicer building. It's about creating more space for people to encounter Him as He draws people near.
HERE'S WHAT THAT PATH LOOKS LIKE.
CURRENT
PROPOSED
What an expansion & renovation enables:
Immediate:
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This allows room for the church to grow. We refuse to let physical capacity become the thing that limits what God wants to do here.
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Because ministry to the next generation deserves more than a retrofitted corner. Our kids deserve an environment built for them, not around them.
Future:
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Serving families who are doing the hard, faithful work of raising and educating their children in the Lord. We want to be a resource to those families, not just a Sunday stop.
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Open space, no strings attached. Just Maranatha being a neighbor. A front porch to the community that says: you are welcome here, and we have nothing to sell you.
Generosity Initiative: $750,000
This is the number we’re believing God for. This will enable us to purchase the property we’re currently on. Once we've acquired the property, we will move towards our expansion. It will require us to give sacrificially together over time and to trust that what God has called us toward, He will also resource. We have seen Him do that before. We are trusting He’ll do it again.
We are not asking you to give out of obligation. We are not creating pressure or manufacturing urgency. We are asking you to pray, to seek the Lord, and to give as He leads. Some of you will give more than you thought you could. Some of you will give what feels small. What matters is not the amount. What matters is that whatever you give is given in response to what the Lord has asked of you. That's the only giving that means anything.
We believe this building is not an end in itself. It is a tool for the mission. Everything we do with it should point back to Jesus.
first fruit offering
April 12th is the launch. If you are holding this booklet, you are part of what begins tonight. Between now and Sunday, May 17th, we are asking every family at Maranatha to seek the Lord and ask what He is calling them to give. On May 17th, we will receive a first fruits offering together, an act of worship before we can see the whole picture. We believe that 25% of the total goal, $187,500, will come in.
Not because we are trying to make our own plans happen, but because we believe God's people respond when God speaks. From there, we move together into a one-year commitment, trusting that what He has called us toward, He will resource.
missions
Jesus said, "When you give, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing." That's our posture. We are not interested in being the heroes of someone else's story. We are not interested in the kind of mission work that exists to make us feel good about ourselves. We show up to serve, and then we get out of the way.
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The needs in our own city are real. One of the organizations we are committed to standing alongside is Life Services, a Christ-centered clinic right here in Spokane that has been serving our community since 1991. They offer pregnancy confirmation, well-woman care, and compassionate support to anyone navigating an unplanned pregnancy, walking with men, women, and families from a place of biblical truth and genuine love. They are 100% funded by the local community, and they share our conviction that every life is worthy of protection and care from conception forward. We want Maranatha to be a church that shows up for the vulnerable in our city, through organizations like Life Services that are already doing faithful, costly work in Spokane.
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We are planning a mission trip focused on two things: practical work in building and infrastructure, and encouragement by
standing alongside local pastors and churches who are laboring faithfully, often without recognition or support. We want to
be the kind of church that strengthens what God is already doing in other places, not one that shows up to plant a flag. We go as servants. We come home changed.
We get in, we serve, we leave, having pointed to Jesus and not to ourselves.