A Westpoint member sets up microphones in preparation for Sunday morning worship at Whispering Oak Elementary. The church has been meeting in the school since 2005.
The pastors at Westpoint Church in Winter Garden, Fla., are focused largely on “living sent.” They believe this call on each follower of Christ involves impacting those around him/her for the sake of the Gospel while going through daily life. For the congregation as a whole, this translates into meeting in a local school.
During the summer of 2005 Westpoint was outgrowing its current location–a neighborhood community center–as Whispering Oak Elementary was preparing to open its doors. A church member connected with the school’s principal and the two parties worked out an agreement that allows Westpoint to use the academic facilities on a weekly basis.
Co-pastor Jim Collins oversees Westpoint’s worship gatherings, small groups and community service projects, and believes planting in schools is something all churches should look into as a key opportunity to connect with a “ready-made mission field” in the surrounding area.
“A school is part of the heart of a community. There are over 1,100 students who attend (Whispering Oak),” he said. “Our church meeting there gives us a great chance to build lots of relationships with administration, faculty, staff, students and families.”
Jim also pointed out how this location choice comes with financial benefits.
“Meeting in a school can be the most economic way for a church to host a weekly worship gathering,” he said.
Westpoint has no building management or maintenance concerns to eat up time or money. The church gathering is easy to find, since nearly everyone in the community is familiar with the school’s location, and it’s reproducible.
“We are finding that meeting in schools can be one of the most effective ways to establish multiple churches in a community, and one of the fastest,” Jim said.
Whispering Oak transforms from a school to a church setting for Westpoint's weekly worship service.
Westpoint is six months into discussions with another local school regarding planting a church within its walls. The pastoral staff dreams of believers gathering for worship in every school in West Orange County, throughout Orlando, and eventually in all of Florida.
“Being in the school isn’t a stepping stone until we find our own spot,” Jim said. “We see how in many ways this is an opportunity to be involved with a touch-point in our community. This is much bigger than trying to find a space (to meet). It’s, ‘Let’s see how we can engage missionally and transform a community.’”
Jim admitted setting up for worship each week can drain resources. If a teacher needs a room the church typically uses for worship, or if the person who unlocks the school doors arrives late, those with Westpoint quickly have to adjust their plans. However, while these setbacks can be realities, Jim said they are “very minor compared to the payoff for us.”
Jim recommends churches looking to plant in schools allow a large amount of time for the transition to occur, beginning with establishing a positive relationship with the school’s principal months in advance. This may involve presenting a written proposal that includes not only the needs of the church, but also how the body of believers wants to actively be a healthy and positive presence in the educational community. He suggests asking what the school’s needs are, noting they may have many volunteer opportunities. Earning credibility will help make the idea of the church not being there a displeasing one for the school administration.
“Let them know you’re looking to make the school a better place, not just to rent out the spot and have no other interaction with the school,” he said.
But first, Jim said, to pray, asking God to allow a good connection with the school faculty and staff. The relationship with the principal, especially, will largely determine how the church and school get along.
In Westpoint’s case, the Whispering Oaks principal was supportive from the beginning, and Jim said church members make sure to maintain that trust in the way they conduct themselves on school property. If the school leadership is hesitant to consider hosting a weekly gathering, Jim said suggesting a probation period would allow the church to demonstrate how it wants to serve the faculty, staff and families of the school.
During the week Westpoint members host small fellowships called SENT Groups that meet in locations throughout the surrounding community.
Written by Natalie Bunch. Natalie is a freelance writer for The Upstream Collective and lives in North Carolina. She served as a missionary writer based out of Prague, Czech Republic, from 2007-2009, and plans to return to full-time international mission work with her husband in a few years.
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