ASSEMBLIES OF GOD
21st Century Church Starts with a New Blueprint
21st Century Church
Cincinnati, Ohio
“There is absolutely no way we could have done what we are doing now at 21st Century Church without the help of the AGTrust Matching Funds, provided in cooperation with The Church Multiplication Network. Thank you! Those funds have helped us as we continue to pace our growth and handle current needs.”
After serving almost 15 years on staff at two churches and gaining ministry experience, Dele Okuwobi had a yearning to plant a church in Cincinnati, Ohio.
In September 2020 in the middle of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Pastor Dele and his wife, Oneya, launched 21st Century Church and about 50 people attended.
21st Century Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, pastored by Dele and Oneya Okuwobi, is one of 613 church plants to receive AGTrust Matching Funds to help jumpstart the church.
The greater Cincinnati Area has a population of about 2.5 million people, and Pastor Dele says there is a significant spiritual need for the move of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the believers there.
The congregation currently meets at Vineyard Chapel in Springdale, Ohio, and serves the communities in the greater Cincinnati area including Hyde Park, Madisonville, Mount Lookout, Norwood, Oakley, Pleasant Ridge, and others.
“Our vision for 21st Century Church is that it will become a mature congregation based on Jesus’ intent for His church to impact society with the gospel,” Pastor Dele says.
“We’ve invested much of our time in developing leaders and allowing our roots to grow deep in preparation to spring forth new life. We undertake practices that prepare us for growth. We uphold the need to continually study. We are serious about meditating, praying, and waiting. In doing so, we lay the groundwork for future growth.”
Leadership training is a major focus at 21st Century Church in an effort to be prepared for the future growth of the church.
A primary focus of the 21st Century Church members since the beginning has been to minister to the surrounding communities, so during the pandemic their inability to have a Sunday gathering did not affect them much, says Pastor Dele. In addition to participating in church online, during the week the members actively supplied food pantries. They also fabricated face shields and delivered them to urgent care facilities to help protect the healthcare workers who were caring for patients.
Two young women have accepted Christ at 21st Century Church and been water baptized. One of them comes from a Muslim faith background and the other is a young adult college student. They and several others are being discipled in the faith.
"At 21st Century Church,” Pastor Dele says, “our vision is to start with a fresh blueprint of what the church was, what it is, and what it will be. And remember, the church needs whatever you will bring to the table.”
This young couple, discipled at 21st Century Church, planned their wedding as an evangelism outreach during a Sunday morning service and invited their friends. The inscription of the Hebrew word MIBTACH means “confidence, assurance, trust, hope.” Their ceremony demonstrated that a relationship with God creates the Mibtach that comes from knowing true love and the power of an unbreakable promise.
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