In the midst of a typical night in suburbia, surrounded by sitcoms and sofas there’s a fire that lay dormant for some time.  At this moment in time my family and others like ours have embarked on a new adventure, pioneering a new work: - a church called Habitat Christian Community.

Some might ask if there’s a need for another church in the area.  Let’s face it, there are plenty of churches, both mega and mini in our communities who are doing great work both at home and abroad.  Yet all around us there’s brokenness, degradation, depression and despair.  Even in the midst of success and status symbols, there is an overwhelming sense of lack and emptiness.  It’s this need that has driven us to leave the comfort of conformity and be a part of history; a new church committed to the Gospel and what it means to our existence.

Quite simply, we believe in more.  We believe that the Bible is Truth, and it’s messed us up.  This Story, the Scriptures, is more than history, its yesterday, today and tomorrow.  Its the story of God, a good God, who has created all things in order that we might be called “His kids” and be a part of His eternal family.  This means we’re not alone, we’re not neglected, not abandoned.  When we come to the realization that this Gospel, proclaimed in Scripture is truth, we have no choice but to respond to it.  Our response includes coming to an understanding of our need for forgiveness and finding it in Jesus’ death and resurrection, our very nature changes.  We are no longer orphans and victims of the curse of sin, rather we are adopted into God’s family and shown mercy, forgiven and loved by God.  It’s this God, and this act, that we call the Gospel, that has caused us to embark on God’s dreams and desires for our world.  

We feel the best way to live this out, to make a difference in our suburban existence and the world beyond is by starting a new church.  Its a chance for families and individuals to join a community of forgiveness, a community of love and a community of hope.  Its more than a hymn and sermon: Habitat is a church made of people that have the boldness to believe that through God, and for God, we can change the world.  It’s His change that happens when men and women start finding hope.  Change happens when individuals find an identity beyond their failures and successes.  Change takes place when husbands and wives truly love and commit to one another, even when the passion may not be present.  Change occurs when moms and dads become dedicated followers of Christ and teach their kids to do the same.  Change, real change, happens when we live the Christ-centered life, person-by-person, and family-by-family.

This is what we’ve committed to.

I’m writing this to you, my friends and family, to both inform and appeal to you.  This idea of change, of a new church and all that we feel we should do is so beyond our ability and means that it would be foolish to think we can do this on our own.  So, in boldness, humility and the utmost of appreciation, I’m writing in order to ask that you would consider joining us in this venture.

As we approach our launch, Easter Sunday, April 4th, there are three ways you can be a part of history, something bigger than any of our individual dreams.  If anything that was written above is tugging at your heart, I invite you to consider one of the following courses of action.

First, pray for us.  I can’t begin to express how much this is needed.  We serve a God who is moved by our faith.  We have seen prayer accomplish much more than we ever thought possible.  I ask that you would commit some time over the next two weeks and beyond to pray for Habitat.  It doesn’t have to be big or well-recited, rather just a simple request that God would accomplish much through our time, efforts, and energy.

Second, join us.  If you live in the area, I would love to see you join us this Easter Sunday morning, 10 AM at our Prospect High School location.  You’ll be among a community of the friendliest, most genuine and imperfect people in the world.  These families and individuals make up the body of Habitat, and they’re awesome people.  You can expect to be greeted with sincerity and joy, a good cup of coffee or tea, and an environment that is much more than an empty high school on Sundays.  Rather, it’s a destination of hope.  

Finally, partner with us.  I would like to ask you to help resource us by giving.   As we have examined what it will take to successfully launch this new church we’ve arrived at $110,000.00 in order to do well during our first year.  To some that figure is overwhelming, to others, its not a very large sum of money at all.  To us, that figure represents the basic elements we need to faithfully fulfill what God has put before us this year.  It covers rent and equipment costs.  That $110,000 is not money that I or the other leadership, have earmarked for salaries or personal gain, as we all have committed to work jobs in our professions as this church is still in its young and formative years.  In fact, we don’t plan on pulling salaries as long as we can in order to not cripple the church with that amount of overhead.  I can’t begin to tell you how appreciative we, the leadership of Habitat Christian Community, are for your consideration and generosity.  We’ve already raised $25,000 and we believe the additional $85,000 for this year will be made possible through the continued support of those just like you, willing to believe that lives can be changed and people can be restored.

If you desire to partner along with us and give, there are a few ways to do so.  You can make a check out to Habitat Christian Community and send it to our way, the address will be listed below.  Another way is to go to our site and on the partner page, click the donate button which will allow you to then use a credit card through our PayPal account.  Finally, if you’d like to make a donation in kind or in resources, please contact us at life@habitatcc.com and we’d love to talk to you about your ideas.  One of the biggest items we need is a reliable 17 ft. box truck to haul our portable church set-up, so if you’ve got an extra one lying around, that would be incredible.  We’re grateful for you generosity and all gifts are tax-deductible.

Thanks for taking the time to read about our story so far.  Feel free to pass this on to other friends and family.  We believe the future of our church is HUGE, but its not to build up any of our personalities or reputations, rather we cannot wait to see men, women and generations changed because of the work we’re engaging in today.  

God’s best,

Mike Handler
Lead Pastor - Habitat Christian Community

The address to send any donations is:
Habitat Christian Community
PO Box 1755
Arlington Heights, IL
60005