THE

PARADOX
CHURCH
re|FoCUS. RE|FORM. RE|SURGE.

Vision 2

DNA 3

Why Downtown Fort Worth? 5

Bio 8

Why Another Church? – appendix 1 9

What Is The Gospel? – appendix 2 10
Why The Paradox? – appendix 3 11
Money & Timelines – appendix 4 12
Partner – appendix 5 14
vision
Soon after I heard Godʼs call to plant a church in the heart of Fort Worth
the vision for the church became clear. I saw a church-saturated culture
that was inundated with men who seemed to go to church but lacked any
sort of passion or depth for the things of God and especially for God
Himself. So I began to talk with men – both Christ followers and those who
are not – about these things and ask questions:

What if there was a church that glorified God through lives transformed?

What if they served a God who was big enough to be worthy of glory, worship,
and praise and not just some nebulous deity who grants us three wishes if we do
well?

What if it was so raw, so gritty, so honest, that the deep, dark stuff we struggle
with could finally be dug up and dealt with?

What if the men would be real men and reflect the character of God and speak
into that darkness and bring the light of the Gospel? What if they werenʼt
passive, impotent, and fearful of failure; or brash, immature, or insecure – but
leaders, cultivators, builders, redeemers, and creators?

What if there was a church where they trained men in how to purchase real
estate, watch TV & movies through gospel lenses, make a budget, create a
business plan, love their wives, raise their boys to be courageous and godly, and
take their daughters on daddy-dates?

What if it wasnʼt a dispenser of religious goods and services but a place where
iron violently sharpens iron and real community and relationships took place?

What if the Bible is taught, read, and used to reveal the immutable, unmatching,
marvelous light of the glory of God and not some self-help, road map to life?

What resulted out of these conversations was a clear need to confront,

challenge, and train men with the Gospel – for a refocused view of Jesus,
work, family, and church; for a reformed view of authentic, raw, gritty
community and a love for the city; for a resurgence of men that fight for the
Gospel and its transformation of men and women.

I saw a desperate need for men who would lead and fight for their family
and the families in their church; men who fight their sin and join in the
battle with other men in the fight against their own– all for the glory of God.
So The Paradox Church was born.

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 2 :: the paradox church

our dna
refocus. reform. resurge.

The DNA of The Paradox Church describes our values, or family traits. By
instilling these six traits into our church from the beginning we can begin
the journey God has called us to; that as we refocus, reform, and
resurge, the Gospel will take hold and lives will be transformed for the
good of the city and the glory of God.

:: refocus – to focus something again

truth
The first and most important thing The Paradox Church will be about is
Jesus. We must refocus our view of the true Jesus, as one who holds all
things together (Col 1:17). Jesus is truth (Jn 14:6, Jn 16:13). He is
revealed in the truth of Scripture (Jn 17:17) and we seek to glorify Him in
truth (Ps 51:6).

worship
We all worship something. Your time, energy, creativity, money, and
resources go to something that is ultimate. The Cross frees us to refocus
our passions for the One, True, Ultimate. All of life is worship (Rom 12:1).

:: reform – to become changed for the better

deep community
Reform happens in authentic, gritty, raw community (Pr 27:17). Right now
our people meet in homes and celebrate life with good food and good
laughs. A community of reform has depth. We stir one another up to love
and good deeds (Heb 10:24). We pray together, struggle together, go
through miscarriages together, deaths, pain, hurt. Through grace and love
and truth the Gospel is made known and re|form occurs.

city-dwellers
We are called to bring about reform in our city (Jer 29:7). Not by railing
against it from the outside but by loving it from the inside; by caring for
orphans (and the poor), and widows (and single moms), and the homeless,
and the fatherless, and the oppressed (Jas 1:27) - like Jesus (Luke 4:18-
19).

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 3 :: the paradox church

:: resurge – to rise again into life or prominence

intentional living
Reconciled Christians are to resurge, living out the ministry of
reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18). Knowing that God appoints the time and places
in which we live for His purpose (Acts 17:26), we herald the Gospel (Rom
10:14-15) and live it out being intentional in everything we do. Hobbies,
work, dinner, marriage, music – everything - is done on mission for the
Gospel and for the city, and for the people of the city, like Jesus did (Jn
1:14, 17:18) – even as we seek the city to come (Heb 13:14).

trained men
For any of this to happen our men must resurge. Men need to be
confronted, challenged, and trained. They will be raised up and instructed
to love and lead their wives and family (Eph 5:25-29), lead their church (1
Tim 3), lead and teach other men (2 Tim 2:2), fight the good fight of faith (1
Tim 6:12), and build a paradox culture within the city.

“Glorifying God through lives transformed and a city transformed”

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 4 :: the paradox church

why downtown fort worth?
Like Paul in Acts 17, I have sought to exegete our culture in general and
the city of Fort Worth in particular in preparation for The Paradox Church.
In doing so I discovered three elements of Downtown Fort Worth that
confirm the need for The Paradox Church – culture, growth, and
brokenness.

:: culture

As a church we feel called to bring about a paradox (counter) culture in the

city. Downtown is where the businesses are, the hospitals, colleges, the
media outlets, the arts, music, bars, restaurants, theaters, government, etc;
culture emanates from downtown. To transform the city for the glory of God
and to bring about a paradox culture we must be in the city – living,
breathing, working, playing, serving, eating, drinking, watching, and loving.

:: What if there was a church where local artists and musicians came to the church to
learn from a creative God and creative people who “image” the Creator?

:: What if there was a church that had infiltrated every domain of a city – government,
medicine, law, business, arts, education – and transformed it from within for the
betterment of the city and the Glory of God, ushering in His City?

:: What if there was a church that was for their city and not indifferent to it? Where the
revitalization and growth of Fort Worth is greatly influenced by the Gospel?

:: What if there was a church where city leaders and city government came to the church
to seek advice on how to care for the city – the poor, homeless, city development,
leadership, and/or understanding its culture and values?

“Once in cities, Christians should be a dynamic counterculture. It is

not enough for Christians to simply live as individuals in the city.
They must live as a particular kind of community. Jesus told his
disciples that they were “a city on a hill” that showed Godʼs glory to
the world (Matt. 5:14-16). Christians are called to be an alternative
city within every earthly city, and alternate human culture within
every human culture, to show how sex, money, and power can be
used in nondestructive ways.” — Tim Keller in “A New Kind of Urban
Christian,” Christianity Today, May ʻ06, p. 38

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 5 :: the paradox church

:: growth

Fort Worth is the fastest growing large city in the country and it can be
used by God to change north Texas, the South, the US, and the world. But
what kind of influence do churches have in Fort Worth and can it improve?

• Fort Worth is the fastest growing large city (pop. 500,000+) in the U.S., with a
population increase of 25% between 2000 and 2007.
• In 2008 Fort Worthʼs population passed the 700,000 mark, and is projected to
reach over one million by 2030.
• The average U.S. church size is about 250 people. Just to keep up with the
population growth over the past eight years, Fort Worth would need 600 new
churches.
• The DFW metroplex is the second-fastest growing metropolitan area in the U.S,
with a projected population of 10.1 million by 2040 (in 2000, it was only 5.2
million).
• 74% of people in the DFW metroplex do not attend church on Sundays, and in
Fort Worth, only 52% affiliate themselves with any religion.
• Only 25% of churches are located in urban settings, like downtown Fort Worth.
• Over 5,000 new living units are currently being built along the West 7th St.
corridor into downtown Fort Worth, with another 5,000+ units planned northeast
of downtown. A total of over 10,000 new living units are headed downtown,
whose target audience is post-college single and young married professionals
• Excluding this growth, over 80,000 people live within three miles of downtown
Fort Worth.

Fort Worth is among the most strategic cities in the nation right now. It
offers a great arts culture, a strong economy and job base prompting
growth, and a substantial college-aged population, including TCU, TCC,
and Texas Wesleyan.

With a minimal presence of Jesus-centered, missional, bible-preaching

churches, downtown Fort Worth is already in need, but with the current and
expected growth, Fort Worth must have The Paradox Church and others
like it. While, perhaps, the previous generation was largely raised in
church, the current generation moving into the city is becoming more and
more un-churched and de-churched. Statistically, planting churches is the
best way to reach them.

*for more information on this see Appendix 1 – Why Another Church?

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 6 :: the paradox church

:: brokenness

While Fort Worth is growing, in large part because of all the good the city
has to offer, there are points of concern that The Paradox Church will
address as Godʼs people seeking the good of the city.

• 1 out of every 6 males and 1 in every 4 females in Fort Worth are sexually
abused before the age of 18. There are 5,000 registered sexual abusers in
Tarrant County.
• 40% of boys in Fort Worth go to bed without a daddy.
• There are at least 17 strip clubs in Fort Worth, employing hundreds of women
in the sex industry.

The common denominator within these statistics (and there are more*) is
the lack of strong male leadership. In our vision to confront, challenge, and
train men with the Gospel we are, by no means, disregarding women and
children. On the contrary, we believe strongly that the best way to love
and serve our wives, moms, sisters, and children is by raising up godly,
Jesus-centered, husbands, fathers, and brothers.

As intentional observers of our city it is not difficult to pick out other areas
of need and concern in Fort Worth. The school systems need great help in
all areas – caring and ministering to teachers, beautifying the grounds,
mentoring/tutoring students. Families consistently move out to the suburbs
where there are better schools. We have already partnered with the Fort
Worth Pregnancy Center and are continually seeking ways in which to
bring the Gospel to Fort Worth.

“…but seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile,
and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your
welfare.” (Jeremiah 29:7)

*SOURCE LIST:
U.S. Census Bureau; North Central Texas Council of Governments; Texas State Data Center; Hartford
Study on Religion in America; efca.org; Olson, David T. Ten Fascinating Facts about the American Church,
CD-ROM (2004), The American Church: www.TheAmericanChurch.org; Barna, George. “Church
Attendance,” Barna by Topic, 2005, The Barna Group, barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=Topic&TopicID=10;
The Rooted Church, Fort Worth: http://www.therootedchurch.com; Fort Worth Start Telegram, “Fort Worth
population tops 700,000” (June 26, 2008); Fort Worth Texas Magazine, Oct 2008, Wagner, C. Peter, Church
Planting for a Greater Harvest: A Comprehensive Guide (Ventura, Calif.: Regal Books, 1991), 11.
Olson, Dave, The State of the Church, www.theamericanchurch.org, 2004.

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 7 :: the paradox church

bio

Lead Planter
Jim Essian

I grew up in Detroit but traveled around with my family as my dad played

and managed in professional baseball till I was 16. My own professional
baseball career started at 18 and brought me to Fort Worth, TX to play for
the Fort Worth Cats. It was in Fort Worth where I met Heather; the
greatest gift God has given me besides Jesus. We married in 2004 and
are expecting our first child in November. Our passion is to see Jesus
glorified and lives transformed by the
Gospel.

After eight years of professional

baseball I retired and entered
vocational ministry as a youth pastor,
menʼs minister, and multi-media
director at Hope Works church in
Fort Worth. I left Hope Works in
2009 to follow Godʼs call to plant a
church.

For the past two years I have been a

resident church-planting intern with
City View Church in North Fort Worth. City View is an Acts 29 daughter
church of the Village Church in Flower Mound, TX. I have gone through an
extensive eldership process at City View and the elders are overseeing
The Paradox Churchʼs launch.

Contact:

Feel free to contact me at 817.458.6667 or email james.essian@gmail.com

http://theparadoxchurch.com
info@theparadoxchurch.com

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 8 :: the paradox church

appendix 1

why another church?

So why do we need more churches?

* Between 50 and 75 U.S. churches close their doors every week.

* More than 80% of the churches in the U.S. have plateaued or are
declining.
* In the United States alone, there are over 200 million unchurched
people, making the U.S. the third largest mission field in the world.
* Since 1991, the number of adults in the U.S. who do not attend church
has nearly doubled.
* The largest unreached people group in America are the twenty-
somethings.
* 51.9 million people in the U.S. between the ages of 20-38 are not
connected with the existing churches. (Gallup Poll)
* Eight million twenty-somethings alive today will no longer attend
church by the time they turn 30.
* Our nation (a Christian nation) leads the world in every category of
violent and domestic crime and social decay. (NationBuilder.com)

We do not need more of the same type of church, but we do need new
churches! As Rick Warren says, “We need all kinds of churches to reach
all kinds of people!”

What about the existing churches? Why not spend our energy and
resources helping revitalize declining churches? Some of the existing
churches that are in decline can be revitalized. Unfortunately, most cannot
because of established forms, traditions, mindsets, cultures, etc.

Every healthy organism lives, reproduces, and eventually dies; therefore it

is natural that churches should be born, reproduce themselves into new
churches, and then eventually die. The greatest church planter of all time
was probably the Apostle Paul, yet none of his churches exist today.
However, the Church continues to exist because it reproduced by planting
new churches.
*Unless otherwise stated, these statistics are used with permission from Barna Research Online.
http://nciglobal.org/morechurches/index.htm

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 9 :: the paradox church

appendix 2

the Gospel “ For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for
salvation to everyone who believes…” Romans 1:16

The Gospel has largely been hijacked and redefined by American

evangelicalism. What once was a beautiful term with a paradox of
simplicity and depth now has been rendered impotent, indifferent, and
quite meaningless. The greatest enemy to the Gospel in Fort Worth is
religion.

Tim Keller has wonderfully juxtaposed the very slight, yet profound
differences between the two. The following is an adaptation.

Religion says that if we obey God, He will love us. The gospel says that God
has loved us through Jesus so we want to obey.

Religion says that the world is filled with good people and bad people. The
gospel says that the world is filled with bad people who are either
repentant or unrepentant.

Religion says that you should trust in what you do as a good moral person. The
gospel says that you should trust in the sinless life of Jesus because He
alone is the only good person who will ever live.

The goal of religion is to get from God such things as health, wealth, insight,
power, and control. The goal of the gospel is not the gifts God gives, but
rather God as the gift - given to us by grace.

Religion is about what I have to do. The gospel is about what I get to do.

Religion sees hardship in life as Godʼs wrath. The gospel sees hardship in life
as Godʼs grace that makes us dependent on Him.

Religion is about me. The gospel is about Jesus.

Religion leads to an uncertainty about my standing before God because I never

know if I have done enough to please God. The gospel leads to a certainty
about my standing before God because of the work of Jesus on the cross.

Religion ends in either pride (because I think I am better than other people) or
despair (because I continually fall short of Godʼs commands). The gospel ends
in humble and confident joy because of the power of Jesus at work for me,
in me, through me, and sometimes in spite of me.

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 10 :: the paradox church

appendix 3

why the paradox?

Why name the church The Paradox? If you think about it the church, God,
and followers of Jesus are a paradox. A paradox is something that would
seem to be one way but is actually another. Paradox literally means
“contrary to opinion”. At The Paradox we seek to be a counter-cultural “city
on a hill” – a paradox-city.

the paradox of Jesus

The whole of Jesusʼ life on earth was a paradox. As a man he came to a
small nation, Israel, not the powerful empire of Rome. As a religious leader
he ate and drank with sinners, and consistently railed against the religious
elite. As a King he came to serve, not to be served. Don Carson, in his
book, Scandalous, writes,

“The [paradox] of the Cross is that…if Jesus is to save others, he

really cannot save himself…the only way he could save others was
precisely by not saving himself.”

the paradox of a Christ follower

From a Puritan prayer, The Valley of Vision

Let me learn by paradox;

that the broken heart is the healed heart,
that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,
that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,
that to have nothing is to possess all,
that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,
that to give is to receive

“God works by contraries. When God is about to justify a man he damns

him. Whom he would make alive he must first kill.” (Martin Luther)

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 11 :: the paradox church

appendix 4

money & timeline

A reasonable goal is for The Paradox Church to be completely self-
sustaining by year four. This means to get this new church off the ground,
we need to raise $200,000 for our first year and a total of $550,000 for the
first three years, all from outside sources.

This money will go towards a downtown facility rental, salaries,

administrative costs, staffing strategic leaders, training, and equipping
once we launch. (To request a copy of our budget please email me.)

The chart below shows how we will transition from being primarily a church
supported by outside financial partners to becoming a self-sustaining,
reproducing church.

*blue = outside donors

*green = the paradox church giving

100%

90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

yr 1 – 2011 yr 2 -2012 yr 3 – 2013 yr 4 - 2014

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 12 :: the paradox church

:: timeline

May ʼ10 – Oct ʼ10:

• Continuing to meet, disciple, and love the people God has graciously
already brought us.
• Have two “vision” nights
• Secure a downtown or West 7th location to meet in for weekly
services.
• Continue fundraising
• Find and hire a worship leader or staff elder

Nov ʼ10 – Dec ʼ10:

• Have two monthly preview services

• Secure an office space if needed
• Refine childrenʼs ministry
• Add 2-3 more City Groups

Jan ʻ11

• Launch weekly services!

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 13 :: the paradox church

appendix 5

partner
join. pray. give.

There are three significant ways that you can partner with The Paradox
Church. Perhaps God is calling you to be a part of this mission; maybe to
fight with us; maybe to pray; maybe to give.

:: join

What breaks your heart for the people around you? Are they hurting? Are
their marriages suffering? What breaks your heart for Fort Worth? The
schools? The sexually abused? The single moms? The passive, impotent
men who do nothing to lead their wives and children?

Perhaps God is calling you to join us in our mission.

:: pray

Whether youʼre considering direct involvement in The Paradox Church or

not, please pray for our new church; for our mission, vision, development,
and leadership over the next several months, as well as for Fort Worth and
its people.

:: give

In order to meet our three-year goal of $550,000, The Paradox Church is

looking for churches and individuals to join us as financial partners. Some
have the resources to give boldly and consistently over the entire three-
year stretch while others can only commit currently to a one-time gift. In
the life of a young, city-loving church, truly every dollar makes a difference.

Your gift is tax-deductible, and you can contribute in one of two ways:

Either fill out the attached card and send your check to the address below,
or donate online at www.theparadoxchurch.com

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 14 :: the paradox church

 THE
PARADOX
CHURCH

___ Iʼm interested in being a part of The Paradox Church, or at least getting more
info, as it takes shape over the next few months.

___ Iʼd like to receive prayer requests/updates and commit to praying for The
Paradox Church each week on this day: _______________

___ I commit to supporting The Paradox Church financially (check one)…

___ monthly (May 2010- ____________ 20_____) [*please note month & year]

___ annually (2010-ʻ12)

___ with a one-time gift

in the amount of $________________ [*details below; all donations tax-deductible]

Name ___________________________________________________

Email ___________________________________________________

Address _________________________________________________

City/St/Zip _______________________________________________

Ph # __________________________________________________________

[*if supporting us financially, you may (a) donate online at

www.theparadoxchurch.com or (b) make checks payable to “The Paradox
Church” and mail to: 4001 Summerfields Blvd, Fort Worth, TX, 76137 ]

refocus. reform. resurge. :: 15 :: the paradox church