Joseph Gibbons and his wife, Kristen, had been involved in youth ministry in Alabama for a while when God started tugging on their hearts about church planting.
“We just sensed that God was expanding our heart for the church and giving us a burden we didn’t quite have a name for yet,” Gibbons said.
They also had a heart for the next generation, and when they took a trip to Las Vegas to lead a youth weekend at a church there, the burden began to take shape.
“One of the things about Las Vegas — it’s our nation’s capital for teenage homelessness. That was very alarming to us,” Gibbons said. “Then when my wife had a young lady in her small group who was homeless, that stat became a story, and that made it real.”
‘Loving and gracious’
In August 2020, the couple and their two children, Canon and Riley Jo, touched down in the city with plans to plant a church.
They’re among many Alabamians who have planted their lives in other places to start churches with the North American Mission Board’s Send Network. Alabama Baptists are scattered all over North America, though some places are definitely becoming frequent landing places for church planters from the state. Montana is one — several planters have moved there from Alabama in the past decade.
And Las Vegas is another. Ryan Ivy and his family — featured in the March 4 issue — moved there from Mobile in 2018 to plant Image Church.
And now the Gibbons family is there too, along with several other Alabamians who felt God leading them to help plant Favor City Church.
For Gibbons, his family’s move to the city was a moment he felt God had been preparing him for his whole life. His dad, John, is Alabama state director for Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and Gibbons came to faith in Christ as a middle schooler in the FCA context.
As he grew in his faith, he served at his church — Thorington Road Baptist, Montgomery — and then went to the University of Mobile. That’s where he met Kristen. They got married right after college, and he served at Dayspring Baptist Church, Mobile, as student pastor.
After a while, they moved to Tuscaloosa for Gibbons to serve in student ministry at Valley View Baptist Church, then back to Dayspring Baptist. Along the way, he crossed paths with a church planter from Las Vegas, and God used his story to clarify Gibbons’ call.
Then after the visit where Gibbons and his wife met the homeless teenage girl, they knew where they were supposed to be.
“We wanted to be in a place where the harvest is plentiful and the workers are few,” he said. “And we really sensed through relationships God had given us and through His word that He had confirmed this was our next step.”
Dayspring Baptist came alongside the Gibbonses as they explored that call and supported them in every step, he said. “They’ve been so loving and gracious to us.”
Another family who had served with the couple at Dayspring — Joseph and Cyndi Eades — also felt God calling them to help plant Favor City Church with the Gibbonses. They also moved in 2020 with their two daughters, Ansleigh and Cadyn.
And Julianne Patterson, who was discipled by Kristen as a teen at Dayspring, also moved out to join the launch team.
“God has been gracious to grow our team,” Gibbons said. “Our launch team is up to about 20 adults now, and we’ve got others engaging who don’t know Jesus and who are checking out our community to see what it’s all about.”
He asked for Alabama Baptists to pray for his team to have continued favor in the city and for them to have wisdom about where to meet and serve.
Missionary support
He also asked for prayer for God to protect the team and their families from spiritual warfare and for continued financial provision. Some of the Gibbonses’ funding comes from support raising and some comes from funds given through the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions.
Every year, 100% of the AAEO goes directly to fund missionary work like the Gibbonses’ work in Las Vegas. The national offering goal this year is $70 million, and the Alabama goal is $6,250,000.
This week — March 7–14 — is the Week of Prayer for North American Missions, which features the stories of seven church planters like the Gibbonses who are investing their lives to reach the lost with the hope of Jesus Christ.
Prayer guides and videos with these stories and more are available for free. For more information visit anniearmstrong.com.
For more information about Favor City Church, visit favorcitylv.com or find them on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter at @favorcitylv.
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