NYC Church Planting - February Floro Update!
7 Days of Focused Prayer
We started the month of February by asking you to pray specifically for us for seven straight days —You can read more about what we prayed for by reading this previous blog post—. As you can imagine, planting a church is extremely difficult. Even in this stage, there are so many things to worry about and grow discouraged from. While stress and worries are inevitable, knowing we have friends who have committed to praying for us is a huge encouragement. Throughout this month, there have been multiple times when I have felt discouraged and have had someone reach out that very moment to tell me they were praying for my family.
Thank you for praying for us. Please continue to do so! Charles Spurgeoun was on to something when he famously said, “No man can do me a truer kindness in this world than to pray for me."
Ohio Trip
The second week of February, I took a trip to Columbus, OH to share our vision at Jersey Church in New Albany, OH. On this trip, Pastor John Hayes invited me to share in each of their four morning services. We did a quick interview where I was able to briefly share how God led us to plant a church in New York City. The church then took time in each of their services to pray for our church. I was then able to lead the staff chapel for Jersey’s Ministerial staff on Tuesday morning. This time was so encouraging to me. It was exciting to hear how passionate their team is for missions and church planting! Then on Wednesday night, I was able to preach to the student ministry. After I finished preaching, I walked to the back of the room and was greeted by my former Youth Pastor, Horace Henriot! Horace was huge influencer in my life and I had no idea he’d be there! We were able to grab pizza after the service and spend some time catching up. The whole time was good for my soul!
Also on this trip, I was able to meet with a number of other churches and individuals to share our vision. One of those individuals was Dean Fulks. Dean is the Pastor of LifePoint Church. LifePoint was started 15 years ago and has a few additional campuses. In addition to pastoring LifePoint, he currently serves with the North American Mission Board’s SEND Network in a couple of different capacities. During this meeting, Dean shared with me insights from his time planting as well as his advice based on his work with church planters in the Columbus area.
This trip to Ohio was so fruitful for our church. I’m grateful to have been invited by Jersey and to have the opportunity to sit down with the other churches and individuals!
It was also great being in Columbus where I was able to stay with my parents and spend time with my sister, her husband, and my niece, Lenna! We even caught an NHL Hockey game!
The whole time was good for my soul!
————————————————————————————
During these next few months, I am setting up times to share with churches on Sundays and Wednesdays. If your church or student ministry is interested in partnering with us and would like me to either come preach or share, don’t hesitate to reach out! It would be my honor!
Feel free to email me at JordanFloro@gmail.com and we’ll set it up!
Making Connections
When we talk about partnership, we share how we’re looking for churches and individuals to partner in more ways than just writing a check. One of the best ways someone can partner with us is through promotion!
Since returning from Ohio, there have been so many Pastors in the Jacksonville Baptist Association who have been in contact with us asking how their church can get involved with this church plant. Many of these meetings have been set up by Pastor David Tarkington from FBC Orange Park. Pastor David, and others like him, have been so generous with their network of Pastors and churches to help us spread the word of what’s happening in New York City!
In the same way, one of our friends named Sharon Frain has been connecting us with a number of her contacts who might be interested in partnering with us. She has connected us with churches where her family used to attend and connected us with missionally minded friends who might be interested in supporting us.
It may seem like a small thing to share a post, send a text, or make a phone call to share what God is doing through us, but those small connections have the potential to go a long way! Both Pastor David and Sharon’s promotion have connected us with more people who could benefit by connecting their church to God’s work in New York City.
Thank you so much for connecting us with people and churches who would be interested in hearing more information about this church plant!
Generosity
Over the past month, we have had a couple of churches and a few individuals commit to becoming financial partners with us. We are grateful for their generosity and support! We still have a gigantic need for financial support and have already begun raising money. Soon, we will be transitioning to becoming fully supported through the financial generosity of our supporters. We are in need of supporters who are willing commit to give monthly. All of our financial gifts are going through First Baptist Church of Orange Park. They are tax-deductible.
We are praying that God would supply our upcoming needs I’ve listed below:
April - We will be transitioning from our current church’s payroll to becoming fully supported by your generosity and local part-time employment
June - Moving and Apartment lease expenses from Jacksonville to New York City
Beyond - We need regular monthly gifts to sustain our family’s needs during our one year residency where we will be trained by the North American Mission Board. We also have a financial need to help cover travel expenses for trips where we can gain additional support.
We are so grateful for your generosity. If God is leading you to give, please direct those gifts to First Baptist Church of Orange Park and designate them to ‘NYC Church Planting - The Floros’.
If you’d like more detailed information about what we’re doing so that you can be more informed before you give, please e-mail me at JordanFloro@gmail.com. I’d love to send you some information as well as set up a time for a phone call or face to face meeting where we can discuss.
You can give safely online by clicking here!
Looking Ahead
Please be in prayer for us March 11-12. We will be attending the North American Mission Board Assessment in New York City. During this time, we will be meeting with North American Mission Board leaders where they will assess our readiness for church planting. We’ve spent months preparing for these couple days and are excited to see how God will use it to guide and direct our future steps!
Thank you so much for all of your prayers and support! It is an honor to partner with you!
For the Kingdom,
Jordan and Melissa