New Emerging Communities
From the beginning of time, God has called new things into existence. We fondly remember the Christian church forming as recorded especially in Acts. There was a holy energy and excitement around new faith communities then, and that excitement still exists today. Below you will find some innovative and exciting new faith communities that are forming through the work of the Western North Carolina Conference.
The Lakeshore Collective (E. Lincoln/S. Catawba Co):
Amy Vaughan, Catawba Valley District
The Lakeshore Collective reaches out to those who have been hurt by the church, through disaffiliation, exclusion, or perceived lack of relevancy. In our geographic area, many UMC churches disaffiliated, there are few resources for faith for those in the LGBTQIA+ community, and the population growth in the area means many may have been displaced from faith communities recently or experienced life changes that cause them to seek spiritual formation in new ways. We believe that the resources, connection, and place to belong can be life-giving and lifesaving to many in our community and beyond, through our online ministry and in person worship, service, and spiritual formation activities.
In addition to weekly worship (9:00 a.m. Sunday mornings at Connor Rec Center 4015 McGee Pt. Rd, Terrell), we meet in coffee shops for current events from a faith perspective discussions, have a monthly support group called Allies for Love for LGBTQ+ persons and family and friends, and have other events, such as a Banned Book Club, a community-based grief and loss group, and Hops 'n' Hymns events.
Links to websites/social media:
(all social media) https://linktr.ee/revamyleev
Website: http://thelakeshorecollective.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheLakeshoreCollective and https://www.facebook.com/amy.vaughan/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLakeshoreCollective
Substack: https://pastoramyleev.substack.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/revamyleev/
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@revamyleev
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AmyLeeV83
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@revamyleev
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/revamyleev83/
South Point (Eastern Gaston County: Laura Auten, Catawba Valley District 
My work is about helping new expressions of faith gatherings emerge. In addition, my work aims to strengthen the connections between pastors and churches, especially United Methodists, for the sake of sharing the love of Jesus Christ with our community and world. I seek to notice what God is doing in our community. I have faith conversations with all kinds of people, and I listen without judgment.
Also, I am working with others to develop South Fork Commons as a place of blessing, hospitality, and wholeness in the Cramerton community. Currently, there are 6 mental health counselors leasing space at South Fork Commons, seeing up to 100 people per week.
Campfire Collective: Susan Ewing,
Yadkin Valley District
Conversation, Connection, Community: A collective where everyone is welcome to gather around, where strong friendships are kindled, new ideas fan the flames, and the greatest story of time is shared.
I am excited about the opportunity to partner in the creation of a vital, inclusive community in North Davidson/Southern Forsyth County. Campfire Collective is a place for conversation, connection, and community. We welcome anyone who has lost their (United Methodist) church through disaffliation, has been harmed by or excluded from the church, or is new on the faith journey.
Follow us on Facebook or Instagram to learn more about our gatherings in coffee shops, restaurants, wineries, parks, living rooms, back patios, and even on-line. Together, we look closer at God's story and sort out how our story connects to it.
God called Moses out of the fire of a burning bush. Jesus called the disciples to come for breakfast by the campfire on the beach before their mission into the world. The Spirit came with flames of fire among the people to unite them together despite their differences."
Links to websites/social media:
Facebook: Campfire Collective
Instagram: Campfire Collective Community website: http://campefirecollectivecommunity.com
Mosaic: Bridget Thornton, Appalachian District 
Mosaic United Methodist is an emerging community that connects those who aren't part of a church for lots of reasons. We connect in communities throughout the Statesville area. These communities provide a place of spiritual growth and connection with others. Each community is a part of the larger Mosaic of communities being formed. All communities worship together once a quarter. In this way, we can find our fit in a small community and our place among the larger community. We work towards justice, serve the greater Statesville area, care for one another, worship, and share life together.
Southeast Guilford: Andrew Baten, 
Northern Piedmont District
We are an emerging and experimental community of faith where you can experience the radically inclusive love of God. If you have ever wondered if the church really wants you, our answer is a resounding YES!
Links to websites/social media:
SoutheastGuilfordUMC.org
Facebook.com/SoutheastGuilfordUMC
Grace Junction: Angela Burris
Metro District
Grace Junction seeks to provide places of calm/peace amid the chaos by being authentic, inclusive, and loving in all we do. Currently, we do this by gathering at Table Talk on Sunday mornings at The Brew Room Locust, where ordinary people talk about spiritual things while enjoying good food & atmosphere. On the first Sunday of each month, we host Beer & Hymns in an effort to invite the community to put aside divisions and bring their voices together by singing old favorite hymns. We also offer Faith & Art, an experience of creating various types of expressive art and finding the intersection between art and the Divine. Lastly, we sponsor the Readers Collective, a book group that explores spiritual themes in fiction books.
Links to websites/social media:
https://www.facebook.com/gracejunction
https://www.gracejunction.org/
https://www.instagram.com/junctionsofgrace/
Stanly-Davidson: David Talbert, 
Uwharrie District
The Stanly-Davidson Emerging Community is a nebula of ministry opportunities and communities. It is a birthplace of ideas, works of mercy, fresh expressions of church, and discipleship. Hallmarks of the work are compassion, inclusivity, grace, and authenticity. God is glorified as we guard the dignity and self-worth of all with whom we serve.
Expressions within the EC include: Open Hands, a comprehensive worshipping community made up primarily of homeless and marginalized persons in the Lexington area. There are daily devotions, weekly meal and worship, daily breakfast, and many opportunities for assistance for all in need.
Grace Place. Located in Albemarle it is a sister work of Open Hands. Grace Place meets our neighbors in their moments of greatest need. We are doing the work of harm reduction to bring healing to those living with substance abuse disorder. Through partnerships with public health officials we have seen a tremendous decrease overdose deaths in Stanly county. We see lives change daily as people choose to move from addiction to recovery.
First Street UMC in Albemarle is a longstanding congregation that is in the midst of a sea change. It is becoming a fully inclusive and welcoming church.
The EC hosts frequent gatherings such as brewery meet-ups, grief groups, prayer sessions, and more.
The near future will hold some exciting new ministries. A full production of the musical Jesus Christ Superstar is coming in 2025, drawing upon the arts community from across central NC. This summer will see the launch of “Pickleball for All God’s People”, an eclectic gathering of recently incarcerated, addicted, homeless neighbors along with mature Christian disciples. The vision is to create community through fellowship, with the hope that mentoring relationships will develop. There are other expressions of church and community that are already in our plans as well.
Link to website: openhandsofnc.org
Game Faith Collective: Rick Jones, Metro District
Game Faith Collective partners with UMC’s in the Metro District to host video gaming events with a focus on faith formation. At a gaming event in March, a young woman praised the ministry for having an event designed for people like her. She is a young adult, a recent graduate, and lover of Nintendo! Game Faith Collective has expanded church partnerships to three, and is grateful to Waxhaw UMC, Faith UMC at Indian Trails and Hickory Grove UMC. We are excited about future gaming events and connecting with others in a new and exciting way!
We are also organizing a Video Game Camp for elementary and middle school students at a local church for this summer. Here, they will explore various ways to learn Bible stories while playing video games! We are also excited that we will have a game room setup at the annual conference on Friday, June 21st. We invite you to come by, play some games and hear how God is moving in the gaming world.
Links to websites/social media: https://www.at-the-table.org/
These new faith communities are made possible in large part due to the faithful giving of our United Methodist Churches through apportionments.
If you would like more information about church planting in Western NC Conference you can reach out to:
Rob Hutchinson, Director of Church Development at: rhutchinson@wnccumc.org