FMConnection

Reprinted from FMConnection, July/August 2002

Note: This article was sixth in a seven-part series on FM churches selected as "Excellent" in an independent, nationwide survey

THE MISSION:

To win people to Christ establish them in their faith and equip them for ministry

Santa Barbara FMC’s four Sunday worship
services are led by nine praise bands and
40 musicians in rotation.

THE VISION:

To establish the church as the center of the community

THE METHOD:

A full array of evangelizing, establishing and equipping ministries

THE RESULT:

A vibrant, healthy, growing congregation cited by Paul Wilkes in his book Excellent Protestant Churches

When Denny and Cheryl Wayman first came to Santa Barbara FMC 26 years ago – to the beautiful Cliff Drive property a stone’s throw from the Pacific Ocean – the vision had already begun to take hold. And they’ve never turned back from pursuing it, to the glory of God.

The preschool at Santa Barbara FMC was just getting started when the Waymans arrived, and Denny recognized it as a perfect way to reach out to the children in the community. Today, through Cliff Drive Care Center, the church runs a wide variety of community-outreach children’s programs for kids from two to 12. Offered in a clearly Christian environment, these activities are meeting needs and drawing entire families into the life of the church.

Youth are another targeted group. Under the direction of Associate Pastor Doug Ranck, Santa Barbara FMC involves some 150 youths in a wide variety of activities weekly – from a Youth Drop-In Center (an after-school hangout that serves in part as an "open door" to unchurched youth) to community service projects and short-term mission trips to help youth learn to focus on others. Pastoral staff members also help young people explore and identify their gifts and callings. "Today there are people in seminary because of this," says Wayman.

Seniors are a third area targeted for outreach. Working with several other community agencies, Santa Barbara FMC holds a bi-weekly activity program in the community center of the senior citizen housing complex across the street from the church. The seniors enjoy fellowship, Christian teaching and a variety of outings.

To facilitate its community-outreach programs, Santa Barbara FMC runs a small fleet of vehicles: a school bus, 15- and 17-passenger vans, and a wheelchair-accessible van.

Cliff Drive Counseling Center is another "Weekday ministry" offered by Santa Barbara FMC. Director Cheryl Wayman and Dana DiSalvo are state-licensed marriage and family counselors who see clients from all over the city – only one in six from inside the church. Services include a variety of support groups, for everyone from parents to those struggling with codependency, and both individual and group therapy sessions.

The church holds four Sunday worship services, has nine praise bands and 40 musicians in rotation. The philosophy of ministry is that every person has a gift and every person should use his or her gift. "We work very hard," says Wayman, "to assist all of our people in identifying their gifts and using them – either in the church or in the community at large."

A full discipleship program has been designed for multiplication (each disciple becomes a discipler) and some 150 people have gone through the 18 months of training. Wayman says the goal is to get the entire congregation of 750 discipled and discipling.

Seniors are special at Santa Barbara FMC.
Here, along with Pastor Wayman, they enjoy a
delicious buffet and a sweet time of fellowship.

The goal of counseling, says Wayman, is often to help hurting people find Christ and through Him transformation and healing of the deeper wounds of the soul.

Small groups, women’s ministry, a full Sunday school...from 18 months through adulthood, Santa Barbara FMC establishes its people in ministry and is dedicated to bringing every member to maturity in Christ.

A cornerstone of Santa Barbara FMC’s equipping ministries is peer counseling. "Unhealthy people are always coming into the church," says Denny, whose doctorate is in pastoral counseling. "Through peer counseling, we train people in the dynamics of healthy human interaction. We teach them how to be more than just a friend." And when peer counseling isn’t enough, he spends between 25 and 30 hours a week providing direct counseling. Or there’s always the option to refer someone to the church’s own Cliff Drive Counseling Center or to appropriate outside agencies who stand ready to help. The goal of counseling, says Wayman, is often to help hurting people find Christ and through Him transformation and healing of the deeper wounds of the soul.

Church members can deepen their relationships and grow in faith through a number of youth and family camps and retreats. Youth participation is especially encouraged.

Giving is a sign of spiritual growth, and last year alone the church gave some $65,000 for missions including Free Methodist World missions, local and parachurch missions efforts. Through the years, they have adopted nearly 100 children through Free Methodism’s International Child Care Ministries. "One of the girls we helped raise is now a missionary to Madagascar," says Wayman. "And we continue to support her."

With ocean-facing decks that serve as the perfect setting for fellowship before and after worship, Santa Barbara FMC is the only protestant church in this 13,000-person section of the city. As testimony to the community’s embrace of their presence and involvement, the city council has repeatedly supported the church through the completion of nine building projects in the years the Waymans have been there – most recently a $1.4 million education and office wing with a playground.

Ultimately, the goal at Santa Barbara FMC is winning people to Christ. "We are always asking these questions," says Wayman. "How can we win, establish and equip people for the Kingdom?" Looking at the way this Free Methodist church operates, one would have to agree with Wilkes’ assessment of excellence. People are being won to Christ. And then they are being nurtured and encouraged to maturity. From mission to vision to method, the results speak for themselves.