BeBold

A Church’s Quest to Bless Others

Most people in the Acworth and Kennesaw communities know of NorthStar Church. It’s the one on Blue Springs Road, around the corner from North Cobb High School. But you may not know about the church’s BeBold program, and how it has given to not only local and international ministries, but also to other churches just a few miles away.

The Background

Aug. 26, 2018: NorthStar launched the BeBold Global Impact Program at the conclusion of a four-week sermon series by senior pastor Mike Linch entitled “BeBold.” The program was created in response to a significant milestone the church reached due to the faithful giving of its people. After a six-year giving campaign, NorthStar was debt free.

In 2012, the church had accumulated $6.8 million of debt in 16 years. This was due to purchasing land and constructing buildings and parking lots, all things the church needed as it grew.

Linch addressed the church in 2012 saying, “We’re going into the valley as a church, and we’re going to do battle with our giant. And we are going to watch him fall.”

Despite making its payment every month, the debt seemed insurmountable. So, NorthStar began a giving campaign call “Bold” to tackle the debt situation. As a visual representation of the amount owed, large boxes were stacked on stage during the sermon, one for each $1 million.

“Could you imagine what we could do if we didn’t give the bank $46,600 a month?” Linch said. “What would life be like? Who are the people we could bless? What are the things we could do? And not just put it in our budget, but re-appropriate that money to go back into our community and world. What’s that day going to be like?”

Aug. 20, 2018: The giant was slain and NorthStar is debt free. When this was revealed in the Aug. 26 service, the people of NorthStar watched as all those boxes came crashing down as a result of their faithful giving. The money that was going to the bank each month could now go to bless people in their community and around the world.

“There was just a lot of things we couldn’t do,” Linch said. “There were times we wanted to go ‘Man, I love you and we’re here for you,’ but we had a giant. We had a giant who was called debt.”

A New Beginning

NorthStar’s BeBold Global Impact Program redeploys church giving into life-changing community projects, globally and locally. The goal was to be able to say yes, whenever and wherever God calls.

The BeBold program launched almost a year ago with the commitment of 17% of the church’s monthly budget going back out into global and local impact projects. During the last 12 months, BeBold has given more than $210,000 to dozens of worthy causes in the community, as well as internationally.

“Back in 1997 when we started (NorthStar), we wanted to be a church for the community, not just a church in our community, and BeBold is a great opportunity to do that because we get to come alongside some incredible people and help make their lives a little bit better,” Linch said.

The reach of BeBold in the community is undeniable, but none of this would have been possible without the generous and faithful giving of the people of NorthStar and the local community. For more information on BeBold visit, www.NorthStarChurch.org/give/#BeBold.

BeBold Impact Projects
(not a complete list)

• $10,000 checks given to NorthStar Haiti, Star Point Church in upstate New York and Greater Church, which meets at Barber Middle School in Acworth.
• International missions: Hosanna Helping Hands, which helps children in Haiti, and Morning Star Society, which helps people in red light districts in India.
• Medicines and supplies given for a medical trip to Haiti earlier this summer, and assisted an FCA group traveling to Puerto Rico to provide toiletries and underwear.
• Local north Cobb family received an over-the-top Thanksgiving after losing their mother to cancer, and two police officers and three YMCA families have been blessed.
• Thanksgiving meals for 40 families.
• Assisted a local family needing help with the after-school program for their elementary-age child.
• Threw a Christmas party for the families of the Marietta Housing Authority in Acworth, complete with a visit from Santa.
• Local organizations/ministries: Power of Peace Project’s Selma project; Cobb DFCS; Wellspring Living, which helps women escape sex trafficking across our state; FCA huddles at West Cobb, Cobb, Paulding and Kennesaw State University; Young Life in Paulding; Navigators and 925 Athletic Ministries at KSU.