Radiant Church KY

In the fall of 2019, Radiant Church KY launched a two year journey called “IMPACT”.

This two year campaign launched with amazing energy and response. The challenges of a church plant were prominent: cars parked everywhere, more people in one room than any fire marshall would ever approve, kids crawling up the walls.

Radiant Church wanted to be permanent in the community. A new facility - designed for how they do ministry was critical for the next season of ministry. WATCH MY CONVERSATION WITH JEFF HACKERT.

Pastors Jeff and Dina Hackert are an inspiration. After meeting those two, it’s easy to understand why this is such a life-giving church!

Even with a pandemic shut down, Radiant Church was able to continue with the project.

Full transcript:

Mark Slabaugh 00:03

Welcome. My name is Mark Slabaugh. I am with Ministry Renewal. It's a company I founded in 2013. So we're on a decade here of working together with churches. And I'm with my, who is now my friend, Jeff Hackert. And he is the pastor of Radiant Church in Kentucky. And we're just gonna talk a little bit about the experience of working together and where radiant church is at now. So, Jeff, if you can tell me a little bit about the growth, that radiant was experiencing a very young church. And you kind of came back to hometown area, planted this church and things kind of quickly took off, what were the problems that surfaced as a result of that growth?

Jeff Hackert 00:50

Well, I think I think, you know, we, the hometown is really Dina's hometown. So I moved her home. I'm originally from Michigan. But when we planted the church, it was the first church I think, planted in Meade County in 25 years. And it was the timing of the Lord. And what we saw was, we saw a real steady, steady growth, and we repurposed a church that had closed. And that brought some challenges. But it was very good to plant in a existing facility, we weren't set up and tear down, which was monumental. But as we saw steady growth, we realized on the on the horizon that we had to do something. So we looked at, you know, do we add on to this facility, we, we've learned, we're not experts at this, but we've learned that if you don't stay ahead of future growth, that you can really hinder the ability to reach people in the future. Its ability getting into the facility, and so forth, and so on. So we even went to three services. That was very difficult. It was hard on our staff, we weren't very effective, we actually then retreated back to two, we lost a little momentum. But what we realized was the space we were in, was defining the church. And we needed to take a real step of faith of that next step, which is a very critical point in in churches, what's the next step without overextending oneself? So we really sought the Lord and prayed about it, and got around some really smart people and yourself included to help us with that process.

Mark Slabaugh 02:25

Was there any was there any point where you looked at? I know, you said, you know, as a church, we needed to we needed to take this step of faith. What was your own faith like in that process? I imagine you had to kind of deal with your own faith first, before challenging your people to step out in that faith?

Jeff Hackert 02:46

Oh, absolutely. You know, we were pretty comfortable. We, we were meeting the means we're meeting the ends. So everything everything was we didn't have any debt. We didn't borrow any money. It could have been, we could have just cocooned right there. And yeah. But we decided, we decided that there was such such a hunger in the land, spiritually that we, we wanted to help satisfy that the best we could, and kind of with all the all the churches in our area, we sensed an awakening that we're still sensing today. So we, we really said, Hey, let's, let's take the flag. And then let's run up the hill and put the flag, the top of the hill and let's see what's going to happen. Faith wise, big step, big, big step because it really put a bigger anchor out. Obviously, that bigger anchor does many great things. But it's it's a little bit of a challenge from a heart perspective, how nimble are we? In 22 years of ministry, we had never borrowed money, and it's not a negative thing or a positive thing when I say that, but it was gonna be a new, a new weight for us that that probably Mark, for Radiant Church Brandenburg was probably our biggest step of faith was we knew we wouldn't have the resources to do what we needed to do. Therefore, the people helped push us along with our faith. Yeah.

Mark Slabaugh 04:22

So historically, the word is capital campaign. I think as you and I talked, I like to use capital campaign for a little bit. And then I like to think about it in a different term. So what did you think about capital campaigns prior to us working together? So there was this idea that, okay, we need we need a building that that we can continue to grow into, because we're we are capped; we are kind of suppressed by it, our current building space. And so the idea of capital campaign is obviously a place where you landed on this is what we need to do. What did you think about capital campaigns prior to us working together?

Jeff Hackert 05:02

Well, I think I think for one, Ministry Renewal was very instrumental in having us take the step. So capital campaign in my days going up, it was like, on the side of the front of the wall, the front of the church, there was like a little thermometer thing that had the money being raised. And when it was where it was void of vision, you didn't really know what it was, it was like for infinity. So I knew I knew that that's not what I wanted. But I think what what, what helped me with Ministry Renewal was cast vision the people will give to vision. And then capital campaign is kind of like, I don't know, it's like going to the dentist. I don't think anybody likes to do that. I love dentists, and all that I got great friends that are dentists. But you helped us really frame the process, which was a generosity initiative, to impact lives that we'll never know. And as we as we framed the world, our world for this process it, it totally changed the whole landscape of how people's hearts were open, because I think most people's mindset to have capital campaign is like, oh, boy, here we go again. But boy, you guys helped us, it was so phenomenal of giving us the words from the heart to communicate to the people that I think I think that was the single greatest thing that happened for us through the campaign was the was the not the technical language, but the heart language of the process.

Mark Slabaugh 06:38

I appreciate that. That's great feedback. Uh, one of the things that, that I recall was, I would, I would send you some, like short snippet videos of some things. Okay, Jeff, when you go into this, here's what I want you to say. And I would try to like, present it as if I was presenting it and giving you I think you said, you know, heart language. I do that with a lot of my churches. Now, as a result, just to kind of number one, I think sometimes when you hear voice inflection, when you hear me kind of add value to different words and use them in those ways. It's not that I'm trying to give you word by word scripting, as much as just trying to bring some, some wind behind your sails and help you capture the hearts of your folks. I remember Dina saying that she's heard my voice several times late at night, as you had kind of reviewed some of those videos and were taking some of that in. So I'm glad to know that it added value.

Jeff Hackert 07:41

It added tremendous value. And I think I think we all we all know the bad stories of in the church world of with money. I don't know that we know a lot of good stories. So when I got into the ministry, I, I asked I asked the Lord, I said, Lord, I've never I'll do this and help you find your lost kids, but I'm never going to ask for money. And he said, You don't have to ask for money ever. You just cast a vision. And the people will give and, and so but when you got to the campaign, it was pretty evident the need. But what what Ministry Renewal did for us was it, it gave us the ability to heart words. It's a great, it's a great term heart words, that translated vision. And that hands down. That was the key. And then transparency. You know, we we we we just did a State of the Union last week. Oh, it changed our people. To see where we're at it's miracle. And when I do it again, I'd do it again. I would I would go to back to that dentist again. It was a great experience. So So I hope that I hope that but no. You know, in business in the business world, I didn't really become a great business person until I got around people that were smarter than me. So people asked about the church process. We got around people that had done it before Ministry Renewal, and then the builder made us smarter than we were in. We owe it all that but it all started with the engine of the campaign.

Mark Slabaugh 09:31

Well, the last thing I wanted to talk about was this idea of culture and a lot of churches really kind of get... a lot churches get sensitive to the idea of you know, hey, our church culture is a little bit different. We want to make sure that we kind of, you know, I don't know if protect is the right word, but there is kind of a protection to church culture. Especially in this idea of dealing with like raising money, capital campaigns. Can you speak to a little bit of of how we reflected your culture in the process? Did we connect the dots between who you are, who you want to be? And were we able to honor that through the process?

Jeff Hackert 10:21

Yeah, I think I think, you know, kind of subjective. You know, as you start out, you, you also you guys helped us really hit us think about who we are? And where do we want to go? Not, not, in staying humble, staying so humble in the process? So, I think I think you helped us with, you know, what is your what is your tagline? That we're like, We'll think about it, you know, then what's your slogan for the campaign? So, so ours, ours was, and you really helped us with this,"IMPACT". You know, that was our, our charge line, and then we're gonna put down roots to impact lives for eternity. So I think, I think the other mindset that really helped us as we as we then got to that point, mark with with Ministry Renewal was, it allowed us then, to see into the future that we'll never see in, you know, we won't be here. But we, we've, we've said this, people are gonna look back and say, Who are those people that built this church on this hill, they were, they must have been crazy in love with God, that they did this for us in this generation. And so I think it put such a big vision in our people's hearts, that this is really not about me. It's about those that aren't here yet. Yeah. And so that, so that those steps that you helped us with, and then and then the pivotable dates, that you staged for us to hit, that this is what you got to do these steps. And so then when we got to the, to the big give, or to the pre commitment night, it was it was just phenomenal. It was beyond expectations, in how you helped us get to that point in a very personable, so it's not, here's for people we're going to have you talk to it was, you know, I was talking to you, and that meant a lot to us.

Mark Slabaugh 12:22

Good. Well, it's always a treat to be able to work with churches who are in this space, because I mean, in some ways, you're you're trying to walk in God's favor, and and he's bringing blessing to your church. And so that's why you kind of have these, these opportunities, right or problems opportunities. However, however, you have that perspective there. So and just a treat for me personally to, to walk you guys through that. And really just appreciate you and Dina and the radiant church, lots of people there every time I come on site, your people just embrace me, and I appreciate that. Thank you,

Jeff Hackert 13:03

yeah no, your family to us. And you said, you said one of the thing, and this may not be true in every case. So the campaign was ending in October of '21. That's right. And so, so most of the pledges came in, you know, we had some backfill with some new people. So I called you and I said, Hey, I'm getting ready to do the '22 budget. I don't really know what to what to kind of lay on paper. And you said, you should but you should you should budget, you should enjoy current giving that you've received in the last two years. They will they'll it'll continue. And I said no way. You said no, you should. You should, you should. You should expect that not not expected. But you should, you know, it should be a part of you. So and you were wrong, because they gave more. And that's a man, but I wouldn't have known I wouldn't have known that at all. And so so the sacrificial giving in the generosity campaign, it changed the people. It changed our people, like you can't believe that. They just folded it into their life. And most of them have maintained that level. change their life. Change your whole family. Thank you.

Mark Slabaugh 14:23

That's a good word. I appreciate that. Yeah, I firmly believe in the power of biblical generosity and, and what it does to our souls. So that's why that's why I'm in this work is because I believe firmly in that.

Jeff Hackert 14:35

Yeah. No, right. Right. Thank you so much. Thank you, Jeff.