ABOUT US
We are a community of tentmakers.
In the book of Acts, we see the apostle Paul making tents in order to support his ministry. He had a “day job” outside of the church. Everyone you see serving on Sundays – from the worship team and pastor to the hospitality and kids teams – everyone is a tentmaker. It’s a little different than you may be used to, and that’s okay. Ask us if you have questions. We’re fully committed to the mission that God has given us, and we’re in this for the long haul.
We are Kin-dom of God focused.
We talk about the Kin-dom of God, this nonhierarchical reality, because Jesus talked about it. There is much that can be said about this, and one paragraph just isn’t enough. But what we mean by this phrase is that we believe that the Kin-dom of God comes through demonstrating the words and works that Jesus declared. This means praying for one another, seeking justice for all, listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit, and inviting everyone into God’s ever expanding Kin-dom.
We are a worshipping community and an active community.
In addition to traditional Sunday practices, we incorporate nontraditional ones from time to time. You’ll also hear us talk about outreaches and community events. We believe the Church is a community of believers doing the stuff that Jesus did, together, beyond an hour on Sunday. You’re invited to be a part of that!
Our People
Christopher Heintz
Director of Christian Education
Bud Winderweedle
Pastor of Spiritual Formation & Elder
Tiffany Good
Elder
Our Story
Ekklesia Christian Fellowship is an independent local church in relationship with like-minded churches nationally. Our community began as a church plant in 2000 with the Vineyard USA (VUSA), a charismatic, evangelical denomination. In 2015, Bud and Melody were ordained as Co-Pastors of the church. Since then, we have worked to dig our roots deeper into God’s love as an interconnected community. It has also led to some difficult changes. Part of that process has been to rename our church Ekklesia Christian Fellowship as a reflection of our growing identity. After much listening, prayer, study, and simply walking alongside and as queer members, our church made the decision to disassociate from the VUSA at the beginning of 2022 due to its non-affirming stance. As Ekklesia, we are committed to being fully affirming of diverse gender and sexual identities within and for our community.
Our Mission
We are a Christ-centered community of people going about the business of Jesus.
Our Vision
We want to be a Christ-centered community who partners with the Holy Spirit to be transformed into the likeness of Jesus. We work to bring the Kingdom of God to Chattanooga (and wherever else we may find ourselves) just as it is in the heavenly realm, transforming our communities into loving and peaceful spaces. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray and work against the powers and principalities of this world. We preach good news to the poor, freedom to the oppressed, and God’s love to all.
Some Questions
How should I dress for a Sunday Service?
Well, that’s up to you. Most people will be dressed very casually – jeans, t-shirts, stuff like that. But if you want to put on your Sunday best, no one’s gonna stop you.
I have kids. Is there programming designed specifically for them during the Sunday morning service?
Yes – We love having the kids with us during worship! Then there will be some time for the kids to get settled into their separate space for an activity/lesson so the adults have a chance to relax and listen to the sermon for a little bit. Then we typically invite the littles to join us for communion at the end of the service.
What are your core values?
It seems like every organization has a list of 15 core values, and most of them read like “We value water because it is wet.”
…Yeah. When we sat down to outline our values, we wanted to keep it simple and practical:
We proclaim the words and do the works of the Kingdom of God.
In other words, we invite and include people, train them to read and understand scripture, equip them to participate in the work of the Holy Spirit, and empower them to minister in their communities.
We believe that everybody gets to play.
When we look at the church at the New Testament, we don’t see a handful of professional clergy doing the ministry on their own through a bunch of strict programs. The church we see in scripture is a community, with people ministering to people. We believe it’s the pastoral staff’s job to oversee, teach, and encourage all of us to be active in the ministry of the church.
We seek to be an authentic, Christ-centered, faithful community without pretense.
We want what we preach to be based on sound doctrine. We try to practice what we preach. Sometimes we don’t live up to it, because we’re human. But we believe that God can even use the broken stuff in our lives, and demonstrate His remarkable grace.