New Beginnings at the ARK in Panama City Beach

(Rev. Corey Truett) - Starting a new church will have its challenges and be done in multiple phases. The Ark hasn’t had a United Methodist presence in several years, so the first phase has been getting to know the ministry, staff, and residents of The Ark. I feel this is crucial to developing the trust and relationships required to start a new church with strong, healthy DNA.
 
Because one of my passions is relational discipleship, it was apparent that there was a need to reestablish a mentor program at The Ark. If you aren’t familiar with our ministry there, the Ark is a faith-based housing and working program that provides a safe, sober environment for those seeking to turn their lives around. We see this as a wholistic journey that encompasses the healing of the mind, body, and soul together. Many of our residents are coming to us from some combination of addiction, incarceration, and street living. Because of this, there is a strong need for accountability and structure to help residents successfully make the next steps. This is where the mentor program comes into play. My goal is to eventually be able to supply each resident with a mentor that will walk with them through their journey with us and beyond. Those mentors will prepare, train, equip, and empower each resident to reestablish their personal foundation to reenter society as a spiritually healthy, self-sustaining, productive individual. 
 
After spending ample time researching previous records, interviewing leadership and residents, plus leaning into a myriad of experiences of others and myself, I have constructed the foundation to the program. It is easily scalable to allow us to reach the goal of helping all residents. We began implementing the program slowly, with just a small handful of residents and mentors. It has quickly grown to more than a dozen mentors and almost 50% of our residents being paired up with someone. It has been such a Holy Spirit movement to see this dream take shape and grow in such a short time! I have been very grateful to receive support from Brad Zimanek, Juddy Stephenson, and others from Gulfview UMC as this has come together. 
 
Now that the mentor program is underway, the second phase will be starting soon: open mic nights to get to know the community of Panama City Beach. The dream is to establish regularly scheduled open mic nights for the spoken word and musicians to come and showcase their talents in a positive environment. I believe there is a need for that in this area and I can’t wait to get these going. More on that in the coming articles!
 
At Hiland Park UMC, though it is not officially a new church start, the congregation has agreed to treat it as such and to include the Transformational Recovery Ministry (TRM) in that process. TRM is similar to The Ark, though on a much smaller scale, as it is transitional housing for women (and their children if needed) to have a safe place to turn their lives around. Recently they have expressed a need for a time of worship as most of our residents work on Sunday mornings. Therefore, we have started an informal worship every other Sunday evening that involves a meal together, a time of personal development, as well as music and a biblical message. Members of the church come to encourage and develop relationships with our residents to help them know that they are more than a “mission” to us, but people who we care about and love in the name of Jesus. It has been very well received and worship has been powerful!