Droga do mistrzostwa
At 6:00 a.m. on Sunday, a band is setting up equipment for a large church service. Pastor Sam Pickens tells the performers of his theme to be less leader lead and more self-leadership and wants his mu…
Droga do mistrzostwa
At 6:00 a.m. on Sunday, a band is setting up equipment for a large church service. Pastor Sam Pickens tells the performers of his theme to be less leader lead and more self-leadership and wants his musician to reflect that. Then the worship team prays each speaking out their prayer simultaneously. In his sermon, Pickens focuses on the broken hearted and downtrodden to make a decision to change their belief system that very day and become a force of Kingdom and light. He calls them to leave their darkness, turn to Jesus and be the believers and the people they were called to be. A song of praise begins. C3 is an Evangelical church that began in Australia in 1980. It has grown to 500 churches around the world. At 18, Pastor Sam went to Bible College. It was there, in a prayerful way, Sam decided he would like to start a church in North America and help people know what he knows. Sam and his wife started C3 Toronto in 2013. It has quickly become one of the most successful C3 locations. Galen is a PhD candidate in cultural studies major at Queen's University. He greets everyone as he enters the church. Galen was very surprised and fascinated the first time he visited C3. He receives an ice coffee upon entry. His purpose is to do qualitative research on various aspects if contemporary spirituality. He says that millennials in very secular Canada, unlike immigrants or grandparents, have little concept of religion. He was amazed how many people in the church were his age and looked like him and that the location of the church was in downtown Toronto where people were singing and praising Jesus. It was an experience unlike any Galen had before. Pastor Sam chastises those gathered that they do not need to be over 30 to start obeying God. Galen was inspired with many questions. He was both very interested and deeply turned off by the whole thing. He was excited it was happening but concerned, given the large numbers of people in attendance and heavily invested in the church. He believes C3 methods tap into the millennial mind in a way that very few others have. At the C3 staff meeting, Pastor Sam speaks a prayer of thanks for Toronto, the building, the establishment of the church and the baptisms at Easter time. A woman continues the prayer thanking God for connecting people to Him in a healthy way and to the guidance to say no to things that do not connect people to God, even if it seems like a great idea. The church has grown from 8 people five years ago to about 1500 today in two locations. Pastor Sam desires to start a new location before the end of the year. Pastor Sam says in August and September people are moving in and establishing patterns in their lives. With a church in place in the East and the West, they focus on the North where there are many students and a Korean demographic. Pastor Sam said walking around the malls he felt like he already knew the people in that region of the city. Galen is interviewing Aimee for his thesis. Aimee is 28 and grew up in a religious Baptist home. Aimee's life changed when her dad cheated in her mom and the family broke up. Aimee, to escape small town life, lost her virginity at 16. At 18, she had her first abortion and led her into more self-sabotage. She was into cocaine. Coked out, at 6:00 a.m. in the morning, she would talk to God. One day in August 2915, a customer with "In His Strength " tattooed on her arm invited her to C3 in downtown Toronto. When she arrived, she said it seemed like the people were all the kind she could have been partying with the night before. Hands were raised and they were all praising Jesus. She had a sense that she had found it and she was home. When Galen asks, Aimee reveals she was looking for unconditional love at that time. She wanted someone to say it's okay to be not okay and you are enough, you are seen, you are validated, you are known and important. This was what she was missing in her life. David is having SEEK tattooed on his knuckles. The word is from one of his first Bible verses he learned about seeking the kingdom and its righteousness. He realizes that nothing in this life is guaranteed for anybody including career and relationships. David says most people do not have any kind of faith to hold onto. David is a member of the lighting team. He say that C3 pulls you in like a family and they have a lot of systems set up where everyone joins a team. From the outside it might look like free labor but they are setting a place for one to be part of the family. They make an emphasis that in their work others might see God in that situation. They try and equate church with being cool, a status church has not had for a long time. That, however, is starting to change. Pastor Sam discusses problems with light sticks at one or their churches and the need for homegrown lighting tech for their new campus. Sheldon is suggested as a problem solver to a challenge Sam rates as highly important. Sam is out in Toronto scouting locations for his new church. He is concerned with price, size, style and availability 52 Sundays a year. They drive up to a school with an amazing entrance. Ten minutes later they are back in the car realizing the property is too busy to meet their needs. Pastor Sam believes God is nudging them toward the right location. Sam compares tech startups to church startups. A great amount of ambition and drive is needed as well as working connections and meeting people to be successful Sam views another theater that just has had a microphone upgrade. Sam sees the sound and lighting potential. The property manager says what he thinks Sam wants to offer is a holy rock concert. Sam is excited that people in the neighborhood have no idea that the best thing they could ever do on a Sunday morning is coming their way. David has committed himself to doing a full-time ministry to help people in despair, hopelessness and doing self-harm, putting them on a path to find a better situation. In July, he will go to C3 College in Australia, but he will miss his girlfriend, Mona. He already knows communicating will be hard because of the time difference. In real time, he is preparing a fruit salad desert for his visiting g grandparents. When he sought the kingdom, his life came together with a girlfriend and college without him even praying for it. Mona says before she met David after she had three back-to-back relationships, the third of which introduced her to C3. She initially had a bad image of God who she visualized as terrible based on her ill-fated relationship. Within three weeks, she was volunteering at the church because she wanted to have family. She met David, they started talking, and the rest is obvious. As David's family gathers, they toast to new beginnings. His mother states, "When God calls, He also equips. Praise God." While David's mother wants a beautiful granddaughter, David and Mona are avoiding sex before marriage. It wasn't a concept they were completely on board with until they had mentoring from the leadership of the church. In their discussions, they learned the church frowned in premarital sex, and they chose not to do it. David's family is proud that he is becoming a pastor. David and Mona review a website where David pastoral program is outlined. He shows Monas the yearly experiences of the Pastoral Care and Chaplaincy program. Among the classes is relationships and emotional intelligence. Mona expresses concerns like what if she is tempted when David is away. But the pastors and scriptures remind her that love isn't simply based off of feelings, but it is intentional and often based on decisions to say in the relationship one is in. Mona trusts David will come back, and he is only a plane ride away. Pastor Sam is in a coffee shop with his Bible. He explains that the Bible is written in layers where God speaks to you. He refers to a passage where people meet two men dressed in clothing as bright as lightening. Sam says this is true of most people who have an encounter with God. The people were living life one way and suddenly everything changed. Sam is with his wife Pastor Jess. Sam invited Christ into his heart at an event in January 2000 where a C3 pastor was preaching. His message was the Jesus does not want you to be in a religion, but in a relationship. A relationship is more than rehearsed religious traditions. Sam heard clearly that night that Jesus wanted a relationship with him. Later Sam is seen praying over the empty chairs in a huge banquet hall where the church will be hosting an event. He is thanking God for using him in this way. The meeting is for Vision Builders. San explains the direction of his church at the event and what love can build. He explains the kingdom is meant to be large, robust and reflect its king, Jesus Christ. The strengthening is not just meant for the west campus or the east campus. There is excitement and cheering in the room as he starts a video about the vision of the North Campus. Pastor Sam believes there will be $1 million in giving in the next twelve months. He offers the attendees commitment cards reminding them that both money and the building are merely tools to extend love's message of hope. Pastor Sam prays over the commitments that many people are in line to offer to the church. Singing and dancing ensue. Galen sits down to watch a video produced by the C3 church on their culture as they get broader and expand in all kinds of countries with their Christ centered, spirit powered and connect driven movement. The movement, Galen summarizes, is the church growth movement that has intense focus on growing the church and planting as many churches as possible. The leadership believes it is God's vision to build a church worldwide and is the top priority for this generation. Galen says the churches touch several continents and are dealt with like franchises. Aspiring young pastors at C3 go to their Bible College where you learn to brand, market and grow your church. Evangelical churches embrace celebrities like Kanye West and Justin Bieber. A celebrity endorsement can help a church go viral. Growing churches are seen as blessed. San Diego hosts the C3 global presence conference. Sam says the presence conference is like the peak of the C3 calendar year. Church leaders from all around the world gather and the level of expectancy is high. He says at such an event goes beyond knowing God in your head but to encountering Him and His presence. Phil Pringle is the founder of C3 Global. He announces that miracles are happening right now and there is a page turning right now in the history of America. He concludes his portion of the night's program with faith healing. Pastor Sam has the opportunity to address the crowd. He wants the followers to bring back other people they meet to fill every seat in the auditorium and give them the opportunity to turn their life to Christ. Later, Sam meets Mark Kelsey, head of C3 Global. Sam tells him about the location for his new church expansion. Kelsey compliments Sam on his efforts and encourages him to find other locations in Montreal and Nova Scotia. Sam is a speaker at an open invite room that has an interest in advancing the kingdom of God by planting local churches. Another speaker talks about how angel investors appreciate longevity. They do not invest in the business, but in the founders. Another speaker discusses the need for sacrificial involvement to get the job done. He says that bending of the will to the purpose of God is the greatest miracle. Another emphasizes having a target in mind. Urban young to middle aged adults who are attracted to a downtown buzz is the churches target audience. They end the session with a prayer of thanks. They thank God for putting people in place in the right geography to receive a liberator that can bring them hope and piece and purpose to their life. Galen meets with Conan to learn why he became interested in the church. Conan says he was looking for something new and different. When Conan experienced C3, he felt he could grow there. He has loved C3 for three months but he fears rejection of where he is in his spiritual life. At this point Conan lacks belief and faith that Jesus is the Son of God. He sees Jesus simply as a historical figure. But he sees the believers around him as transformed in some way and good role models for him. He says he would like to believe. Conan attends a small group book study. The leader prays before their discussion that they would be molded and changed by what God has made accessible to them. The chapter they are discussing is about evangelism. One says that they should be spreading God's love and not fear of damnation. Conan says when he tells the people at work that he is going to church, he wonders if he is damaging the church's efforts by his inability to always defend the questions and challenges his friends bring. This concern is echoed by a female in the room who is questioned why God let's natural disasters happen. The leader responds that Jesus was honest about the brokenness of the world. Though God allowed it to happen, He also created the solution. A black woman witnesses that in moments of despair, the honest answer is Christ. Once the world is passed away, He is the destination. Her words make Conan reflect. Conan plays a keyboard in his apartment. He says his mother told him God existed when he was 5. Later, he questioned the logistics of it all. Getting what he wanted in life did not satisfy him. The thought of an everlasting God does sound satisfactory. In worship, Conan says he feels emotional, but he cannot say God exists just because he wants him to. Aimee is working at a hair salon. She says by March 2016, she was convinced the church life would continue the rest of her life. A lot of her non-Christian friends had fallen away after she gave up weed and drugs. She felt isolated in 2016 until the Christians from C3 filled in their place. She felt everything from her family life was moved to her heart and began to heal in this safe place. Aimee made the church her first priority. She pushed her family away and found that her C3 church family were the people who really had her back. Aimee loved to sing and signed up for the worship team. One of the questions on the application was a question that asked her is there anything about her that C3 would question. At that time Aimee was dating a woman and she disclosed that on the form. Pastor Sam took her aside and put his hand on her Bible and told her this book forbids that kind of relationship. Sam asked her no longer to be sexual with her friend. Aimee said she was already feeling the relationship was wrong and broke up with her girlfriend that day. Pastor Sam is playing with his kids in the park. He describes his belief is that God's intends for a man to marry a woman. But the main message in his church is that you can have a relationship with Jesus no matter who you are and what you believe. If a gay person came into his church asking if he was in the wrong and needed to change, Sam tells them we are all wrong and need to change and Jesus is the answer. He simply wants them to be in the church, worship with them, and go on life's journey with them. They will discover the answers in Christ. In a sermon, Sam says the most insecure he could ever be is when he is lord over any area of his life. The world is too shaky when he is the master. When you surrender to Jesus who is at the gate, he finds the answer. He wants the congregation to question whether every thought, every temptation, every wrong you cannot conquer in this life gets filtered through the security found in Jesus. Galen says that one of the challenges that Sam and Jess faced when they came to Toronto is that many young millennials are quite socially progressive in their beliefs on abortion, homosexuality and premarital sex. Galen claims there is an opaqueness in delivery and a strategic decision of the church to be apolitical, unlike other churches around them that he sees practicing a form of discrimination. He says the ambiguity needs to be there if the church wants to keep growing. At the C3 Leadership retreat, David says that everyone at C3 elevates you and puts your mind in a more positive place. Sam introduces a personality profile and a spiritual gifts test that will allow participants to learn a lot about themselves. It is separated by the message of each of the four gospels. They state that the fact we all have different personalities is indicative that we all have a unique spiritual mission. Galen says the young people of today are bombarded with standards of beauty and wealth. The culture is fascinated with self-development. C3 does not challenge those things but they channel them. People on C3 feel empowered and are going to be their true selves there. Galen says it's a Christianized version of self-help. Later some of the participants in the survey discuss a question related to sin. One man sees sin as desiring things other than God. He is hyper aware of his own sin and has had to learn to be merciful to himself. Another woman says that because we are born imperfect, it is so important to become believers made righteous through Christ. We are made holy, blameless and above reproach. She states It is hard to fathom because of the mistakes we make all the time. Mona talks to Sam. She tells him that she is in three teams at the church, but something seems like it is still missing. She is on a variety of teams. Sam tells her that she is not focused and feeling unfulfilled because she is spread so thin. Sam prays over her for focus and direction. Mona is in tears. Mona says that she always knew God existed but she had a rough childhood and has been praying since she was six or seven. She was without her dad for her first eight years. Then he reappeared. He was getting her whatever she wanted and she had siblings with his new family. But then he started asking for things from her in return, including her body. This went on for a few years. When she wanted to stop, he refused and her mother did not want to hear any of it. Her own mother would not believe she was being abused. She ultimately felt she had to figure out life by herself. Her life grew dark and she questioned the purpose of her own life. When she left home, she saw other people making their way in life, even in the shelters and she knew she had the strength to also follow through. Now that she has more security, she no longer feels so alone knowing so many other people have gone through similar situations. She understands that meaning exists beyond what a person experiences in that moment. If she had ended her own life, she would not have the story to tell someone else. In order for God to use us, some people need to experience these things to be able to tell these stories after overcoming them. She believes God just used her for this story so she can inspire others. Aimee says she asked God what her identity was in Him. She learned what being his daughter really feels like. In the world, she had no identity. In C3, she found a purpose, a community, and people to do life with. They encouraged her, cared about her and saw a vision of her life she could not find alone. She sees every deep hurt from her pas has been made a platform to bring freedom to other people. Aimee however got very emotional watching those statements in a video. She no longer goes to C3. She thought those people would be with her the rest of her life, but she needs to be okay with the fact that they are not. Aimee says God takes us on a journey and the people she encountered were ultimately not who they said they were. Aimee is not where she thought she would be after watching that story. Aimee was in the church from August 2015 to February 2019. At the end she had a lot of anger and emotional breakdowns wondering if she could continue to be a part of the movement. She was a person with an addiction and she could not understand why her emotional roller-coaster was not leaving her. She felt she was doing everything they were asking her to do. They encouraged her to pray more and read her Bible. This caused Aimee to question C3 and what they were actually doing. Giving love, helping the needy, and representing Jesus in the world was kind of equal to making sure the lights were good, that the pastor looked cool enough. and the worship team was stylish. She felt the Jesus part should be significantly more important. She felt God took off her blinders, showed her what she was a part of, and allowed her to make a decision about C3 and a lifelong commitment. Pastor Sam is driving around his new church's neighborhood. He talks into his phone to his staff for a Huddle on the Road. Sam is excited for his North Campus Interest Meeting. He is optimistic. It is 6 weeks before the launch of the North Campus. They are working on placement of lights, projections and equipment in their new space. Sam is concerned about the placement of the chairs. He actually says if you do not get the chairs right, God cannot move. Sam says the purpose of this day is to get people to buy in. He wants to get them committing on a more regular basis, rather than just dropping by once a month. He wants to meet new people from the new community. Songs of praise ring out. Sam says they are looking to make the greatest possible impact in the north of Toronto and tells the people in the room that they are the catalyst that will make that happen. He says if they go to church, not for themselves but for others, they will see miracle after miracle. Sam calls out Conan in the meeting. He describes how Conan wondered if he could keep coming back to the church even if he was unsure about his faith. Sam says the church considers him family and he is always welcome. Sam says in this life the only thing he can picture himself doing is spreading the gospel. He says he is in the core team of tomorrow's revival. He says in the north, the people need Jesus. Some of the church's followers do physical stunts in the park in what they call parkour. Mona describes what they are doing with their body is illustrative of the leap of faith they do with Jesus. A follower says what they do in parkour is an important part of his faith. The leader says faith is muscle and this is a practical way to apply that. Mona wonders aloud if she really sees herself as a pastor's wife. Mona feels that God pushes you toward your purpose. With David going away, the couple has broken up. Mona feels more liberated and she can pursue what she needs to pursue. David says even within the church relationships come and go. Some people stay close. For others, their time is up and they move on and you move on. David says it is a bit of a rearranging process. He said prophetically, someone told him he would be pulled backward a few times before he finally moved forward and hit the target. David is leaving in two weeks for C3 College and will be gone for nearly a year. His mother helps him pack his clothes. She is supportive, feeling the best way to grow is to go. The production crew goes through a sound check at the new church location. The tech rehearsal happens one week from the launch date. Conan, a keyboard player, signed up for the worship team. He is amazed he was allowed to be part of it. Conan's life schedule has changed and is more centered around the activities and people in the worship team. Conan, however still struggles with his faith. He knows without faith he is not going to be sharing the same experience as his counterparts. Conan does say he knows that what Pastor Sam and the other profess is what they actually believe and he finds confidence in that. Pastor Sam is in a baptismal pool. He describes baptism is being totally doused in Jesus. He reminds the followers to be immersed or "all in" for Jesus. He promises no regrets if you live your life in that manner. Jason is the first one in. He says through life's ups and downs he found hope in God. He says without God he would not be alive right now. Jason holds his nose as he is lowered backward into the waters and is baptized. Those present cheer. The baptisms continue. Galen says focusing on the spectacle of the church misses what actually leads the church to be so popular. Many view it as a brainwashing cult type of thing, but that very cynicism is what makes people go there. Modern life is disenchanted without transcendent meaning. People feel lost, isolated and confused. They seek places where they can be reassured that the world is meaningful. C3 promises to enchant the world and give people purpose and a sense that they matter. It is what many people are looking for. Galen has heard stories of people, within his year of attending, go from getting by to thriving. But sometimes people feel squeezed and they are not allowed to admit it. People leave because the psychological pressure is too intense. People worry that they will not be welcome given their identities. In C3, Galen claims you could have both of these experiences. They point in different directions and lead to different conclusions. Aimee sees C3 as God's calling and the first baby step for her spiritual life. She does not regret going to C3. Like a baby gets milk, an adult needs food. She feels C3 focuses on salvation and joy, but that which is in between the sadness and joy is being looked over. She feels C3 has failed to equip themselves to deal with the messy stuff of life. It is launch day at the North Campus as Sam enters the building. Sam believes in the devil as well as God. In starting a church, he does feel that dark pushback. There is commentary around the church that nobody cares or wants to listen to you. Sam sees this as his opportunity to preach. With his trust in God, he believes he will overcome it. Sam is explicit in telling those gathered that the purpose of the work that makes his life crazy is his hope that more and more and more people can experience the grace he already knows. They will learn that the church is a place of refuse and safety and that God has got them and find the grace. They are going to sing and give gratitude to Jesus and heaven's gate will open. Sam says what they do on Sunday is not try and sell a product, but make a connection from the heart to the creator of the heart. That is a connection that lasts for an eternity. Eternity matter and lives are hanging in the balance. When the lights are dimmed, everyone is asked to bow their head and have a moment with themselves and Jesus. Sam seeks those who are experiencing Jesus for the first time or have come back to Jesus so that member of this church can pray over them. There is a celebration in heaven when the a person gives themselves over to the Lord. 6*
Droga do mistrzostwa
Documentary
Film Details
At 6:00 a.m. on Sunday, a band is setting up equipment for a large church service. Pastor Sam Pickens tells the performers of his theme to be less leader lead and more self-leadership and wants his musician to reflect that.
Then the worship team prays each speaking out their prayer simultaneously. In his sermon, Pickens focuses on the broken hearted and downtrodden to make a decision to change their belief system that very day and become a force of Kingdom and light. He calls them to leave their darkness, turn to Jesus and be the believers and the people they were called to be.
A song of praise begins. C3 is an Evangelical church that began in Australia in 1980. It has grown to 500 churches around the world.
At 18, Pastor Sam went to Bible College. It was there, in a prayerful way, Sam decided he would like to start a church in North America and help people know what he knows. Sam and his wife started C3 Toronto in 2013.
It has quickly become one of the most successful C3 locations. Galen is a PhD candidate in cultural studies major at Queen's University. He greets everyone as he enters the church.
Galen was very surprised and fascinated the first time he visited C3. He receives an ice coffee upon entry. His purpose is to do qualitative research on various aspects if contemporary spirituality.
He says that millennials in very secular Canada, unlike immigrants or grandparents, have little concept of religion. He was amazed how many people in the church were his age and looked like him and that the location of the church was in downtown Toronto where people were singing and praising Jesus. It was an experience unlike any Galen had before.
Pastor Sam chastises those gathered that they do not need to be over 30 to start obeying God. Galen was inspired with many questions. He was both very interested and deeply turned off by the whole thing.
He was excited it was happening but concerned, given the large numbers of people in attendance and heavily invested in the church. He believes C3 methods tap into the millennial mind in a way that very few others have. At the C3 staff meeting, Pastor Sam speaks a prayer of thanks for Toronto, the building, the establishment of the church and the baptisms at Easter time.
A woman continues the prayer thanking God for connecting people to Him in a healthy way and to the guidance to say no to things that do not connect people to God, even if it seems like a great idea. The church has grown from 8 people five years ago to about 1500 today in two locations. Pastor Sam desires to start a new location before the end of the year.
Pastor Sam says in August and September people are moving in and establishing patterns in their lives. With a church in place in the East and the West, they focus on the North where there are many students and a Korean demographic. Pastor Sam said walking around the malls he felt like he already knew the people in that region of the city.
Galen is interviewing Aimee for his thesis. Aimee is 28 and grew up in a religious Baptist home. Aimee's life changed when her dad cheated in her mom and the family broke up.
Aimee, to escape small town life, lost her virginity at 16. At 18, she had her first abortion and led her into more self-sabotage. She was into cocaine.
Coked out, at 6:00 a.m. in the morning, she would talk to God. One day in August 2915, a customer with "In His Strength " tattooed on her arm invited her to C3 in downtown Toronto.
When she arrived, she said it seemed like the people were all the kind she could have been partying with the night before. Hands were raised and they were all praising Jesus. She had a sense that she had found it and she was home.
When Galen asks, Aimee reveals she was looking for unconditional love at that time. She wanted someone to say it's okay to be not okay and you are enough, you are seen, you are validated, you are known and important. This was what she was missing in her life.
David is having SEEK tattooed on his knuckles. The word is from one of his first Bible verses he learned about seeking the kingdom and its righteousness. He realizes that nothing in this life is guaranteed for anybody including career and relationships.
David says most people do not have any kind of faith to hold onto. David is a member of the lighting team. He say that C3 pulls you in like a family and they have a lot of systems set up where everyone joins a team.
From the outside it might look like free labor but they are setting a place for one to be part of the family. They make an emphasis that in their work others might see God in that situation. They try and equate church with being cool, a status church has not had for a long time.
That, however, is starting to change. Pastor Sam discusses problems with light sticks at one or their churches and the need for homegrown lighting tech for their new campus. Sheldon is suggested as a problem solver to a challenge Sam rates as highly important.
Sam is out in Toronto scouting locations for his new church. He is concerned with price, size, style and availability 52 Sundays a year. They drive up to a school with an amazing entrance.
Ten minutes later they are back in the car realizing the property is too busy to meet their needs. Pastor Sam believes God is nudging them toward the right location. Sam compares tech startups to church startups.
A great amount of ambition and drive is needed as well as working connections and meeting people to be successful Sam views another theater that just has had a microphone upgrade. Sam sees the sound and lighting potential. The property manager says what he thinks Sam wants to offer is a holy rock concert.
Sam is excited that people in the neighborhood have no idea that the best thing they could ever do on a Sunday morning is coming their way. David has committed himself to doing a full-time ministry to help people in despair, hopelessness and doing self-harm, putting them on a path to find a better situation. In July, he will go to C3 College in Australia, but he will miss his girlfriend, Mona.
He already knows communicating will be hard because of the time difference. In real time, he is preparing a fruit salad desert for his visiting g grandparents. When he sought the kingdom, his life came together with a girlfriend and college without him even praying for it.
Mona says before she met David after she had three back-to-back relationships, the third of which introduced her to C3. She initially had a bad image of God who she visualized as terrible based on her ill-fated relationship. Within three weeks, she was volunteering at the church because she wanted to have family.
She met David, they started talking, and the rest is obvious. As David's family gathers, they toast to new beginnings. His mother states, "When God calls, He also equips.
Praise God." While David's mother wants a beautiful granddaughter, David and Mona are avoiding sex before marriage. It wasn't a concept they were completely on board with until they had mentoring from the leadership of the church. In their discussions, they learned the church frowned in premarital sex, and they chose not to do it.
David's family is proud that he is becoming a pastor. David and Mona review a website where David pastoral program is outlined. He shows Monas the yearly experiences of the Pastoral Care and Chaplaincy program.
Among the classes is relationships and emotional intelligence. Mona expresses concerns like what if she is tempted when David is away. But the pastors and scriptures remind her that love isn't simply based off of feelings, but it is intentional and often based on decisions to say in the relationship one is in.
Mona trusts David will come back, and he is only a plane ride away. Pastor Sam is in a coffee shop with his Bible. He explains that the Bible is written in layers where God speaks to you.
He refers to a passage where people meet two men dressed in clothing as bright as lightening. Sam says this is true of most people who have an encounter with God. The people were living life one way and suddenly everything changed.
Sam is with his wife Pastor Jess. Sam invited Christ into his heart at an event in January 2000 where a C3 pastor was preaching. His message was the Jesus does not want you to be in a religion, but in a relationship.
A relationship is more than rehearsed religious traditions. Sam heard clearly that night that Jesus wanted a relationship with him. Later Sam is seen praying over the empty chairs in a huge banquet hall where the church will be hosting an event.
He is thanking God for using him in this way. The meeting is for Vision Builders. San explains the direction of his church at the event and what love can build.
He explains the kingdom is meant to be large, robust and reflect its king, Jesus Christ. The strengthening is not just meant for the west campus or the east campus. There is excitement and cheering in the room as he starts a video about the vision of the North Campus.
Pastor Sam believes there will be $1 million in giving in the next twelve months. He offers the attendees commitment cards reminding them that both money and the building are merely tools to extend love's message of hope. Pastor Sam prays over the commitments that many people are in line to offer to the church.
Singing and dancing ensue. Galen sits down to watch a video produced by the C3 church on their culture as they get broader and expand in all kinds of countries with their Christ centered, spirit powered and connect driven movement. The movement, Galen summarizes, is the church growth movement that has intense focus on growing the church and planting as many churches as possible.
The leadership believes it is God's vision to build a church worldwide and is the top priority for this generation. Galen says the churches touch several continents and are dealt with like franchises. Aspiring young pastors at C3 go to their Bible College where you learn to brand, market and grow your church.
Evangelical churches embrace celebrities like Kanye West and Justin Bieber. A celebrity endorsement can help a church go viral. Growing churches are seen as blessed.
San Diego hosts the C3 global presence conference. Sam says the presence conference is like the peak of the C3 calendar year. Church leaders from all around the world gather and the level of expectancy is high.
He says at such an event goes beyond knowing God in your head but to encountering Him and His presence. Phil Pringle is the founder of C3 Global. He announces that miracles are happening right now and there is a page turning right now in the history of America.
He concludes his portion of the night's program with faith healing. Pastor Sam has the opportunity to address the crowd. He wants the followers to bring back other people they meet to fill every seat in the auditorium and give them the opportunity to turn their life to Christ.
Later, Sam meets Mark Kelsey, head of C3 Global. Sam tells him about the location for his new church expansion. Kelsey compliments Sam on his efforts and encourages him to find other locations in Montreal and Nova Scotia.
Sam is a speaker at an open invite room that has an interest in advancing the kingdom of God by planting local churches. Another speaker talks about how angel investors appreciate longevity. They do not invest in the business, but in the founders.
Another speaker discusses the need for sacrificial involvement to get the job done. He says that bending of the will to the purpose of God is the greatest miracle. Another emphasizes having a target in mind.
Urban young to middle aged adults who are attracted to a downtown buzz is the churches target audience. They end the session with a prayer of thanks. They thank God for putting people in place in the right geography to receive a liberator that can bring them hope and piece and purpose to their life.
Galen meets with Conan to learn why he became interested in the church. Conan says he was looking for something new and different. When Conan experienced C3, he felt he could grow there.
He has loved C3 for three months but he fears rejection of where he is in his spiritual life. At this point Conan lacks belief and faith that Jesus is the Son of God. He sees Jesus simply as a historical figure.
But he sees the believers around him as transformed in some way and good role models for him. He says he would like to believe. Conan attends a small group book study.
The leader prays before their discussion that they would be molded and changed by what God has made accessible to them. The chapter they are discussing is about evangelism. One says that they should be spreading God's love and not fear of damnation.
Conan says when he tells the people at work that he is going to church, he wonders if he is damaging the church's efforts by his inability to always defend the questions and challenges his friends bring. This concern is echoed by a female in the room who is questioned why God let's natural disasters happen. The leader responds that Jesus was honest about the brokenness of the world.
Though God allowed it to happen, He also created the solution. A black woman witnesses that in moments of despair, the honest answer is Christ. Once the world is passed away, He is the destination.
Her words make Conan reflect. Conan plays a keyboard in his apartment. He says his mother told him God existed when he was 5.
Later, he questioned the logistics of it all. Getting what he wanted in life did not satisfy him. The thought of an everlasting God does sound satisfactory.
In worship, Conan says he feels emotional, but he cannot say God exists just because he wants him to. Aimee is working at a hair salon. She says by March 2016, she was convinced the church life would continue the rest of her life.
A lot of her non-Christian friends had fallen away after she gave up weed and drugs. She felt isolated in 2016 until the Christians from C3 filled in their place. She felt everything from her family life was moved to her heart and began to heal in this safe place.
Aimee made the church her first priority. She pushed her family away and found that her C3 church family were the people who really had her back. Aimee loved to sing and signed up for the worship team.
One of the questions on the application was a question that asked her is there anything about her that C3 would question. At that time Aimee was dating a woman and she disclosed that on the form. Pastor Sam took her aside and put his hand on her Bible and told her this book forbids that kind of relationship.
Sam asked her no longer to be sexual with her friend. Aimee said she was already feeling the relationship was wrong and broke up with her girlfriend that day. Pastor Sam is playing with his kids in the park.
He describes his belief is that God's intends for a man to marry a woman. But the main message in his church is that you can have a relationship with Jesus no matter who you are and what you believe. If a gay person came into his church asking if he was in the wrong and needed to change, Sam tells them we are all wrong and need to change and Jesus is the answer.
He simply wants them to be in the church, worship with them, and go on life's journey with them. They will discover the answers in Christ. In a sermon, Sam says the most insecure he could ever be is when he is lord over any area of his life.
The world is too shaky when he is the master. When you surrender to Jesus who is at the gate, he finds the answer. He wants the congregation to question whether every thought, every temptation, every wrong you cannot conquer in this life gets filtered through the security found in Jesus.
Galen says that one of the challenges that Sam and Jess faced when they came to Toronto is that many young millennials are quite socially progressive in their beliefs on abortion, homosexuality and premarital sex. Galen claims there is an opaqueness in delivery and a strategic decision of the church to be apolitical, unlike other churches around them that he sees practicing a form of discrimination. He says the ambiguity needs to be there if the church wants to keep growing.
At the C3 Leadership retreat, David says that everyone at C3 elevates you and puts your mind in a more positive place. Sam introduces a personality profile and a spiritual gifts test that will allow participants to learn a lot about themselves. It is separated by the message of each of the four gospels.
They state that the fact we all have different personalities is indicative that we all have a unique spiritual mission. Galen says the young people of today are bombarded with standards of beauty and wealth. The culture is fascinated with self-development.
C3 does not challenge those things but they channel them. People on C3 feel empowered and are going to be their true selves there. Galen says it's a Christianized version of self-help.
Later some of the participants in the survey discuss a question related to sin. One man sees sin as desiring things other than God. He is hyper aware of his own sin and has had to learn to be merciful to himself.
Another woman says that because we are born imperfect, it is so important to become believers made righteous through Christ. We are made holy, blameless and above reproach. She states It is hard to fathom because of the mistakes we make all the time.
Mona talks to Sam. She tells him that she is in three teams at the church, but something seems like it is still missing. She is on a variety of teams.
Sam tells her that she is not focused and feeling unfulfilled because she is spread so thin. Sam prays over her for focus and direction. Mona is in tears.
Mona says that she always knew God existed but she had a rough childhood and has been praying since she was six or seven. She was without her dad for her first eight years. Then he reappeared.
He was getting her whatever she wanted and she had siblings with his new family. But then he started asking for things from her in return, including her body. This went on for a few years.
When she wanted to stop, he refused and her mother did not want to hear any of it. Her own mother would not believe she was being abused. She ultimately felt she had to figure out life by herself.
Her life grew dark and she questioned the purpose of her own life. When she left home, she saw other people making their way in life, even in the shelters and she knew she had the strength to also follow through. Now that she has more security, she no longer feels so alone knowing so many other people have gone through similar situations.
She understands that meaning exists beyond what a person experiences in that moment. If she had ended her own life, she would not have the story to tell someone else. In order for God to use us, some people need to experience these things to be able to tell these stories after overcoming them.
She believes God just used her for this story so she can inspire others. Aimee says she asked God what her identity was in Him. She learned what being his daughter really feels like.
In the world, she had no identity. In C3, she found a purpose, a community, and people to do life with. They encouraged her, cared about her and saw a vision of her life she could not find alone.
She sees every deep hurt from her pas has been made a platform to bring freedom to other people. Aimee however got very emotional watching those statements in a video. She no longer goes to C3.
She thought those people would be with her the rest of her life, but she needs to be okay with the fact that they are not. Aimee says God takes us on a journey and the people she encountered were ultimately not who they said they were. Aimee is not where she thought she would be after watching that story.
Aimee was in the church from August 2015 to February 2019. At the end she had a lot of anger and emotional breakdowns wondering if she could continue to be a part of the movement. She was a person with an addiction and she could not understand why her emotional roller-coaster was not leaving her.
She felt she was doing everything they were asking her to do. They encouraged her to pray more and read her Bible. This caused Aimee to question C3 and what they were actually doing.
Giving love, helping the needy, and representing Jesus in the world was kind of equal to making sure the lights were good, that the pastor looked cool enough. and the worship team was stylish. She felt the Jesus part should be significantly more important.
She felt God took off her blinders, showed her what she was a part of, and allowed her to make a decision about C3 and a lifelong commitment. Pastor Sam is driving around his new church's neighborhood. He talks into his phone to his staff for a Huddle on the Road.
Sam is excited for his North Campus Interest Meeting. He is optimistic. It is 6 weeks before the launch of the North Campus.
They are working on placement of lights, projections and equipment in their new space. Sam is concerned about the placement of the chairs. He actually says if you do not get the chairs right, God cannot move.
Sam says the purpose of this day is to get people to buy in. He wants to get them committing on a more regular basis, rather than just dropping by once a month. He wants to meet new people from the new community.
Songs of praise ring out. Sam says they are looking to make the greatest possible impact in the north of Toronto and tells the people in the room that they are the catalyst that will make that happen. He says if they go to church, not for themselves but for others, they will see miracle after miracle.
Sam calls out Conan in the meeting. He describes how Conan wondered if he could keep coming back to the church even if he was unsure about his faith. Sam says the church considers him family and he is always welcome.
Sam says in this life the only thing he can picture himself doing is spreading the gospel. He says he is in the core team of tomorrow's revival. He says in the north, the people need Jesus.
Some of the church's followers do physical stunts in the park in what they call parkour. Mona describes what they are doing with their body is illustrative of the leap of faith they do with Jesus. A follower says what they do in parkour is an important part of his faith.
The leader says faith is muscle and this is a practical way to apply that. Mona wonders aloud if she really sees herself as a pastor's wife. Mona feels that God pushes you toward your purpose.
With David going away, the couple has broken up. Mona feels more liberated and she can pursue what she needs to pursue. David says even within the church relationships come and go.
Some people stay close. For others, their time is up and they move on and you move on. David says it is a bit of a rearranging process.
He said prophetically, someone told him he would be pulled backward a few times before he finally moved forward and hit the target. David is leaving in two weeks for C3 College and will be gone for nearly a year. His mother helps him pack his clothes.
She is supportive, feeling the best way to grow is to go. The production crew goes through a sound check at the new church location. The tech rehearsal happens one week from the launch date.
Conan, a keyboard player, signed up for the worship team. He is amazed he was allowed to be part of it. Conan's life schedule has changed and is more centered around the activities and people in the worship team.
Conan, however still struggles with his faith. He knows without faith he is not going to be sharing the same experience as his counterparts. Conan does say he knows that what Pastor Sam and the other profess is what they actually believe and he finds confidence in that.
Pastor Sam is in a baptismal pool. He describes baptism is being totally doused in Jesus. He reminds the followers to be immersed or "all in" for Jesus.
He promises no regrets if you live your life in that manner. Jason is the first one in. He says through life's ups and downs he found hope in God.
He says without God he would not be alive right now. Jason holds his nose as he is lowered backward into the waters and is baptized. Those present cheer.
The baptisms continue. Galen says focusing on the spectacle of the church misses what actually leads the church to be so popular. Many view it as a brainwashing cult type of thing, but that very cynicism is what makes people go there.
Modern life is disenchanted without transcendent meaning. People feel lost, isolated and confused. They seek places where they can be reassured that the world is meaningful.
C3 promises to enchant the world and give people purpose and a sense that they matter. It is what many people are looking for. Galen has heard stories of people, within his year of attending, go from getting by to thriving.
But sometimes people feel squeezed and they are not allowed to admit it. People leave because the psychological pressure is too intense. People worry that they will not be welcome given their identities.
In C3, Galen claims you could have both of these experiences. They point in different directions and lead to different conclusions. Aimee sees C3 as God's calling and the first baby step for her spiritual life.
She does not regret going to C3. Like a baby gets milk, an adult needs food. She feels C3 focuses on salvation and joy, but that which is in between the sadness and joy is being looked over.
She feels C3 has failed to equip themselves to deal with the messy stuff of life. It is launch day at the North Campus as Sam enters the building. Sam believes in the devil as well as God.
In starting a church, he does feel that dark pushback. There is commentary around the church that nobody cares or wants to listen to you. Sam sees this as his opportunity to preach.
With his trust in God, he believes he will overcome it. Sam is explicit in telling those gathered that the purpose of the work that makes his life crazy is his hope that more and more and more people can experience the grace he already knows. They will learn that the church is a place of refuse and safety and that God has got them and find the grace.
They are going to sing and give gratitude to Jesus and heaven's gate will open. Sam says what they do on Sunday is not try and sell a product, but make a connection from the heart to the creator of the heart. That is a connection that lasts for an eternity.
Eternity matter and lives are hanging in the balance. When the lights are dimmed, everyone is asked to bow their head and have a moment with themselves and Jesus. Sam seeks those who are experiencing Jesus for the first time or have come back to Jesus so that member of this church can pray over them.
There is a celebration in heaven when the a person gives themselves over to the Lord. 6*.