We are so happy to have you travel alongside us on the internet highway! Exciting things are happening as we ‘go live” with our new webchurch. Keep reading to discover more details below. If you’d like to be part of history in the making, please join us as often as you’d like. DisciplesNet is a way for you to put your personal gifts to work in helping us build this new church without walls and with doors that never close.

As you visit www.disciplesnet.org, we invite you to look around and join in any part that you like.  Our beginnings are only a small bit of what we will eventually have, but if you keep coming back, you will discover a new feature every few days and weeks.  All along the way we will keep listening to your feedback and asking for your help in reaching out in faithfulness to the ways God is calling you and the rest of us to grow and serve.

Before going on, I wanted to tell you a little more about us. DisciplesNet has grown up as a grassroots movement in response to God’s call to build here on the internet.  Our starting budget has been bare-bones, with the funds coming out of our pockets, some borrowed, and a little coming from well-wishers who have believed in our work sight unseen. Much labor has also come from a number of clergy leaders who have given freely of their ideas, time and talents simply out of faithfulness to God’s call to help.

DisciplesNet Church is free for all who come here. We are completely not-for profit and we will never charge money, whether it is to visit once or to join us for a lifetime.  Our simple purpose for being is serving:  helping people get in touch with God, their faith, a loving community, and chances to serve God and God’s people. We grow by networking, staying connected to God and each other.  Other than the strong tie that binds our network together—God’s love— no other strings are attached to belonging here. No hitches or fine print.

Our pastors are well-trained and know how to respect your privacy and keep pastoral confidences. We won’t sell or give your information to anyone.  Have you heard the saying that “there is no such thing as a free lunch”?  Well, here it is simply not true. We follow Jesus’ ways of doing things, and as we read things (as in Mark 6:41), what matters most is seeing that hungry people get fed. The world may not understand this, but if you already know of Jesus’ life and grace, you probably have a sense of what we are talking about. If you don’t yet know Jesus or about God’s extravagant and unconditional love for you and the people of the world, we are here to help you find that love for yourself.

As we grow, we will appreciate prayers for us to be faithful to our calling and God’s continuing guidance in all we do.  We would love your feedback, participation and help. And yes, we do take donations—actually, we depend on them to keep going and growing.  As with any physical church, we are made of members serving God by sharing our gifts that God has given us.  We do want you to know that we value being good stewards with money entrusted to us, seeing this serious trust one that we don’t take lightly, no matter what amount. We use best practices in managing gifts entrusted to us, direct them back into ministry with little overhead, keep sound records, and send donors receipts for tax purposes.  We have a wise oversight team who manages and directs gifts so that they can do the most good and be true to what God is calling us to do.

Now I’ll tell you about several links you will find on our opening site, followed by more information about what’s to come.

Prayer Room:  DisciplesNet is a praying church. We believe in the unstoppable power of prayer at work in the world. We encourage you to use our Prayer Page often. Here is a place where you can write your joys, worries, heartaches, celebrations, troubles, thanksgivings, or anything else you would like to put before God and have people help you in praying about. We believe in the strength in numbers!   You can also post private prayer requests that only our ministry staff will see.

Soon on the page you will also be able to be a prayer-giver, too, adding your own words to peoples’ requests writing in your own encouragement and care to the prayers others have shared. One way we can serve God is by serving one another, and praying for and with each other is another important ministry we all can do.  Much more will follow in our Prayer Room.

Devotionals: DisciplesNet is a spiritual church.  Our devotional page is designed to help you find a few moments in your day to connect with God and God’s creation. Here you can meditate on a scriptural passage while listening to a music clip, reflecting on scenic photography as real as if you are there, and read thoughts of one of our pastors, members, or guests. Our devotionals will be varied and we hope meaningful. If you would like to join in the ministry of helping write devotional material, send them to us and we will use all we can.

Pastoral Blog: Visit our blog page to get to know more about DisciplesNet and our leaders.  By reading these short conversational pieces you will be on the inside track on what our leadership team is doing and thinking, and learn some of the places that God is leading our church. As we continue to add new parts to our webchurch, you can read more about them in our blogs. Finally, we will have guest blogs that you want to be sure not to miss. If you would like to submit as a guest blog, we will take these from all ages, and use all that we can fit in.

Email alerts:  Our webchurch is designed to notify you with an e-mail when new items are posted to DisciplesNet. We hope these e-mails will help you keep up with all the new and exciting ways we are growing as a church.  We will hold your e-mail address in confidence and never share your information with others without permission. Additionally, should you decide you no longer want to receive these e-mail notifications, you may simply click the link at the bottom of any e-mail from us to unsubscribe.  If you haven’t already signed up for the email notifications, you can do so on the right side of this page.

These are exciting times for us at DisciplesNet Church!  We have many more features under construction and coming soon, so be on the look-out for more announcements.  We look forward to building together this faith community mending, tending, and extending our nets in the name of Christ along this internet highway, sharing your gifts and talents as we travel along.

Hints of what’s coming soon: weekly worship. communion, children’s message, Café, Chapel, Clubhouse, and MissionNetWorks.

Finally, we want you to know how important you are to us. Although we may not have met, we see each member here as a beloved child of God.  We value you and love you unconditionally, just as you are, no more, no less.

Rev. Dr. Deb Phelps

I am an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the Senior Pastor of DisciplesNet Church.