The Future of the Church Is Presence

Our community is probably very different from yours. Our church is in Newberg, Oregon, about forty minutes from downtown Portland. It is a blend of agricultural wine country and Portland-style creativity and quirks. Honestly, we love it.

We held our first church service on September 21, 2025, but long before that first gathering, we were already trying to listen well. We met people, asked questions, paid attention to the needs around us, and looked for ways to partner with other churches and organizations in the community.

Two things from that early season have especially shaped our newborn church.

First, we gathered local leaders and community members and asked some simple questions: Why don’t people come to church? What needs in our community are not being met? Their answers were eye-opening. We learned there were no evening church services in town, and many people in Oregon spend weekends outdoors, hiking, or attending their kids’ games. We also heard recurring comments about a lack of community, connection, and joy.

Second, we met with Christian nonprofits in the area and asked what needs they were seeing that were still going unmet. Through those conversations, we discovered there was a need for a small furniture ministry to help local families move from transitional housing into more stable housing.

Over the last year as we’ve continued to get to know our community, we have tried some things. A few attempts have failed embarrassingly badly, and a few have felt like moments when God was opening a door a little wider. As a baby church that still feels like it is learning to crawl, I am sure there will be further adjustments as we continue discovering how we fit into God’s work here.

One thing that has worked well is starting Sunday evening services and serving a meal beforehand to help people connect intentionally. Some of our best moments of community have happened around those tables as we have literally shared food and life together. Of course, not every meal has been a success. One memorable failure was when I served my “famous” nachos with curdled, congealed queso sauce. People were gracious, but when the kids won’t even eat it, you know it is bad.

The furniture ministry has also become a meaningful part of our church’s new life. We rented a small, and I mean tiny, storage unit and filled it with enough furniture for one household. Once a month, Love INC. Newberg (an organization that mobilizes local churches to provide holistic support to individuals in need) sends us a referral for a family, and we get to deliver furniture, connect personally, and pray over them in their new home. It has been a beautiful way to bless families while also giving our church people a practical opportunity to serve and grow as disciples.

Recently, our leadership team worked through Carey Nieuwhof’s article, “Seven Disruptive Church Trends That Will Rule 2026.”  As a church with only six months under our belt, the article gave us helpful things to discuss and pray through. Some of the trends felt encouraging; others felt sobering.

One point that especially stood out to us was “Preaching is shifting from presentation to encounter. Content is everywhere. People can listen to almost any sermon from almost anywhere in the world for free. What has become scarce is community, connection, and the experience of being present with God and with one another.”

That idea resonated deeply with what we are learning in Newberg. We have tried to make room for presence and encounter in the life of our church. Sharing a meal before service has opened space for conversation, testimony, and response to what God is saying.  At times, we have even opened the microphone for people, including kids, to share what the Lord is doing in them. We have also held a consistent monthly worship and prayer night where we gather simply to seek God together and rest in His peace.

Ministry is not about putting on a show or hosting an event. It is about encounter. It is about presence. We are trying to practice the gift of being present with God and with one another. And in an age of distraction, that is no small thing. We are all tempted to split our attention a hundred different ways — watching a show while scrolling on our phones at the same time. (Why do we do that? Pick one, people.)

What works in our context may not work in yours. In fact, it probably will not. But that is part of the beauty of ministry. Each of us gets to seek the Holy Spirit as we engage the unique people and needs in our own communities. So, try some different things; maybe some of them will stick. But the essential thing remains the same: the presence of the Holy Spirit.

And what always works, in every context, is the love of Jesus.

About the Author

Jordan Bemis earned his Bachelor’s in Pastoral Studies from Eugene Bible College (now New Hope Christian College) in 2006. During that time, God called Jordan to the mission field, and he earned his master’s degree in Cross-Cultural Communications from Fuller Seminary. In 2012, the family moved to Spokane, WA, where Jordan worked with World Relief for twelve years resettling refugees and equipping the church to serve immigrants. Throughout his time in ministry, Jordan has worked in youth, worship, and small group ministries. Now, God has called Jordan and Hannah on this new adventure of pastoring in Newberg, OR. Jordan and Hannah have three amazing kids: Asher and twins Elynora and Abel.