Who We Are
We are Chad and Kirstin Magnuson, and we both grew up in Oshkosh, Wisconsin and met each other in high school. After marriage and many years of hard work, we felt we had “arrived” at our dream life.
But then the Lord plucked us out of our American Dream and sent us on mission back to our homeland to rebuild a spiritual home for the Fox Cities.
Our
Story
We are Chad and Kirstin. After growing up in Wisconsin, we married one another and dove head first into our careers. Our work took us to Virginia, where we chased success. We thought we had it all: fulfilling vocations as a university professor of psychology and licensed marriage and family therapist, three delightful children, close friendships, and a thriving family life. Like Nehemiah, we enjoyed this “palace” life in a distant land.
Then came the holy disruption: we received a sudden, surprising call to pastoral ministry. During the next 3 years of prayerful discernment, the Lord confirmed this call through visions, dreams, and prophetic words.
Finally, in 2018, after 9 years of Chad’s teaching in higher education, our family embraced a new level of sacrifice, leaving our comfortable, stable, predictable life for a life of Gospel risk to prepare for pastoral ministry. We relocated our family to the suburbs of Chicago to train in a church planting residency at Church of the Resurrection.
Resurrection is a vibrant, missional Anglican church that raises up leaders to send into the Upper Midwest. In this residency, we gained vital theological training, ministry experience and confirmation of our calling—like Nehemiah—to return to our homeland and bring renewal by planting a church there.
why
the
fox
cities?
- As the third largest population center in the state (400,000), the Fox Cities serve as the cultural, economic, and educational hub of East Central Wisconsin.
- Under the facade of safety and comfort resides much pain. Appleton and Oshkosh/Neenah are #1-2 in highest rates of binge/heavy drinking in the U.S. (CDC), and many have co-occurring mental health problems (WDHS).
- Although the area boasts a strong religious history, many who grew up in mainline or Great Tradition churches have left the faith, viewing the Church as irrelevant. An anemic form of the Gospel has inoculated them against it.
- The Barna Group ranks the Appleton area as the 52nd most post-Christian area in the U.S. Less than 15% are part of a Gospel-centered church (ARDA).
Neenah, WI
Appleton, WI
Oshkosh, WI
Appleton
Neenah
Oshkosh
Cultural
Educational
Economic
why
church
planting?
Believe it or not, we actually need more churches. Why?
- MISSION
It’s the best way to reach people who don’t know Jesus.
In the experience of several Christian denominations, the majority of people who join a church plant are people who currently don’t attend church (Keller).
- MULTIPLICATION
Our Vision
We have a heart to rebuild a spiritual home where people find renewal in Jesus and His Church. We envision coming alongside other faithful Gospel churches in the Fox Cities to provide a spiritual home where people find a new freedom in Jesus and a new family in the Church.
Our Timeline
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
Our Network
The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is part of a global communion with 85 million members in over 165 countries.
Our sending church is Church of the Resurrection, which leads our regional Anglican church planting movement in the Upper Midwest. Resurrection is the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of the Upper Midwest, which is a regional network that covers Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota, and Missouri.
Join Us
Would you consider partnering with us to rebuild a spiritual home where people find renewal in Jesus and His Church?
We’d love to talk with you more. Email Chad at chad@churchrez.org, or call or text 434.665.7648.
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