The Tampa Project Partnerships

2009 Mission Trips Announced

2009-03-05T15:52:00.001-05:00

Look who is coming to Tampa. After the largest mission trip recruiting of our history, Common Ground will host a record number of mission trips and students for 2009.

Here is a looks of groups and dates when they are coming.

Date Church
3/28/09 - 4/4/09 Indian Creek CC, Indianapolis, IN
3/28/09 - 4/4/09 Clermont CC, Indianapolis, IN
6/20/09 - 6/26/09 FCC - Newburgh, IN
6/20/09 - 6/26/09 FCC - Florissant, MO
6/27/09 - 7/03/09 Dover Christian Church, Lebanon, IN (tentative)
7/12/09-7/18/09 Northside CC, Springfield, MO
7/18/09/ - 7/24/09 CIY/ Plainfield Christian Church, Plainfield, IN
7/25/09 - 8/1/09 Hillside Church, Amarrillo, TX

Currently over 175 people are registered to attend a mission week at Common Ground. We have seen God grow our mission trips from 60 people our first year, 100+ our second year and now 175+ in 2009. Yeah God!

What a great year to make an impact in our neighborhood and open student's eyes to the kingdom possibilities!

If you would like to bring your church on a mission week/ weekend to Common Ground, please contact Danny at danny@commongroundtampa.com or call 813.232.1400.

Community Impact/ Mission Trip Partners for 09

2009-03-05T15:21:00.000-05:00

Each year brings new churches and new partners for us to work with and 2009 is our best year for making connections.

2009 will have our regular partnerships like...

Somebody Cares Tampa Bay

Paint Your Heart Out Tampa (South Seminole Heights)

CareFest 09

but 2009 will also bring some new partnerships to the table as well. While we have worked with these groups in the past, 2009 is targeting a more intentional and strategic partnership this year.

We are making plans to work with these community friends

Broward Elementary: Thru tutoring and community events to serve our families.

Second Harvest: By providing and targeting some food relief to individuals and families.

Metropolitan Ministries: By helping feed, clothe, and rehabilitate homeless families in our community.

These groups will be our primary ministries as we mobilize for community impact through Common Ground and the partners who come and serve on mission trips with us. Tampa is so fortunate to have so many great ministries and organization who are making a real difference in our communities.

Thank You Suncrest Christian Church

2009-03-05T14:58:00.003-05:00

Thank you so much to Suncrest Christian Church. They came and served the weekend with us from Oct. 30 - Nov. 2, 2008. They served in a variety of areas, but mostly got a chance to experience our Fall Festival as over 400 came on our campus.

Suncrest Christian Church is from St. John, IN and has been a major supportor to Common Ground since our beginning. We thank God for partners like Suncrest Christian Church.

Coming to INDY Friendraiser Event

2008-05-22T20:53:00.001-04:00

Common Ground is coming to Indy June 15th - Avon, IN technically. Why? To connect with all of our prayer and financial partners. We want to make a face-to-face connection so that you can see and hear first hand how God is working in the heart of Tampa.

We are calling this night our "Friend-raiser" event. It will be a night of update, vision casting, and communication about how you can continue to help Common Ground move forward.

Info:
Crossroads Church in Avon (Click here for church web site.)
7:00 PM - 8:30 PM

If you want to make sure you get to this event or have someone you would like to invite, e-mail the office at office@commongroundtampa.com or call us at 813.232.1400.

We are anticipating several churches, businesses, friends and family attending. You will not want to miss this night!

Hunger Free Ministry - our new friends

2008-03-28T15:31:00.003-04:00

I made some new friends with Greg and Douglas here. They work with Hunger Free ministry out of East Tampa Christian Church.

During our RoK week: Revolution of Kindness, we collected 93 bags of groceries to be given to our friends at Hunger Free. They picked the items up this week and plan to serve the homeless and oppressed of Tampa.

Thank you friends and neighbors for partnering to make a real impact in Tampa!

Mission Trip 2 - Christ In Youth

2008-03-19T20:20:00.003-04:00

10 high school students from Christ's Church of Oronogo in Missouri came to serve in Tampa, March 15 - 22.

What have they done? Handed our 2000 postcards, 2000 water bottles, 2500 doorhangers, painted, prepped for Spring fling and headed to the beach.

It is a great privilege to work with Christ In Youth. Thank you to Aaron Molesky and Pat Francher for your help!

Mission Trip 1 - Sherwood Oaks CC

2008-03-19T20:15:00.002-04:00

March 8-15 Sherwood Oaks from Bloomington, IN came and brought almost 25 people to Common Ground. They did some major painting and building prep as we got ready for Easter.

Thanks to all the high school students who came and helped. Sherwood Oaks was the original group to come and work with us in 2007. They helped rebuild our stage and create our sound booth.

Community Impact: Student Edition

2008-02-26T13:26:00.001-05:00

This last weekend was a great weekend. Our student ministry hosted its first event. It was an area gathering of students. Their purpose was to come together and clean up neighborhood parks and celebrate in worship.

Over 110 people gathered that day! FCC, www.fcc.edu , was represented by Kenny Beers and the New Ethos as the worship band and Bruce Humphrey spoke.

Even though I ma not a youth minister, I will always be one at heart. I continue to be amazed at what God can and will do through students.

Special thanks goes out to Central Christian Church in St. Petersburg, First Christian Church in Seminole, Discovery Christian Church in Tampa, and New Beginnings Christian Church from Tampa as well.

What might God be up to?

2008-02-26T13:25:00.000-05:00

Today I had a conversation with a young man who would like to be our intern. God continues to bring all sorts of people to our church from all parts of the country and world.

He was brought to us because of our diversity of community and church. He has worked with the Salvation Army and other benevolent organizations. He is soon to be married and living in St Pete. His desire is to work in a multi-ethnic, urban environment in hopes of planting a church in the future.

His own personal background is that his family, being Armenian, immigrated to the US. He has always grown up with a more global perspective. His fiancé is Nigerian.

What amazes me is he desires not to be a financial burden on our church. How amazing is God that he is sending self-funded leaders our way to serve with Common Ground.

New mesages for the new year

2008-01-02T17:27:00.000-05:00

We have had some great sermon series as of late. We love our graphic artist - "Tim."

Fresh Start is a new year's series I helped brainstorm in Brownsburg, but we are taking it a little different direction.

Christmas 101: getting back to basics was an emphasis of love, joy, and peace in this time of the season.

Before that we did a study of Moses and did "Breaking Free: an exodus from mundane living."

So far, I have been really pleased with our response from those who have attended. Thanks to all of you who help support our ministry so that our neighbors can hear our message.

Friends from Brownsburg vist

2007-12-27T15:47:00.000-05:00

A little bit of home showed up in Tampa this last weekend. It was great to see the Klunzinger and Eder families come to services on Dec. 23rd, 2007.

They came bringing stories, a former student ministry shirt, and some CD's of their favorite pastor -Pastor Steve Reeves of Connection Pointe.

Connection Pointe serves as one of our leading partnering churches and is the home church of the Schaffner's and Scott's.

Thank you so much for your encouragement and support!

church robbery

2007-11-11T21:01:00.000-05:00

So on Tuesday, November 6th we found our A/C units in pieces. Apparently we have been victims of a copper robbery. People remove the copper and dismantle the units.

A potential $50,000 worth of damage was committed. However, it appears only about $16,000 of damage was done.

All in all, this has been a good thing. Several new families showed up this weekend. Our insurance will cover most of our damage. Also, we believe the criminal may be caught as well.

What have we learned?
1. God is good - all the time.
2. We are where we need to be.
3. We need to upgrade our lighting and security.
4. Money fixes a lot of issues.

Thanks for your prayers and thoughts through these tough days. If you want to contribute to help us bounce back from this, go to our website and click on the on-line giving.

Critical Hurdles

2007-10-12T08:53:00.000-04:00

While many of you know that I am not the greatest detail person in the world, you will have to admit, by in large, we always get the big rocks in the box first.

That has been my mantra for this new work.
1. Get the building ready for people.
2. Have a staff that is the integrated target we need to address our community.
3. Live it out daily.

However, in the midst of that we have fallen behind financially. Money is no friend of mine. It is not the air we breath but it may be the ground we walk on.

Raising a baby urban church has been an adventure for me. But it has also stretched me beyond capacity.

We have cleared the 200 barrier which was a surprise to most of us. We have cleared the integration battle, which was essential to our success. (We are 35% hispanic, 35% african-american, 25% caucasian, and 5% asian, indian, and other.) But the financial hurdle will probably allude us for years.

We need support to help us sustain our growth. There are items we need to truly address.
1. Staff salaries.
2. Building needs.
3. New ministry projects.

For instance, our baptistry has broken down and needs several things done. It needs new plumbing, a new heater, and a new pump. We do not have money for all of this.

For staff, we are trying to sustain our full staff. Why? We believe our integrated staff has been key to helping us reach our community. A diversity of leadership has allowed us to think more openly and creatively based on the cultures we are reaching.

"Steven T" is the nick name of a ministry mentor of my past. He would share pieces of advice to me and one was, "As Senior Minister, you will always have 3 things on your plate. Facilities, folks, and finances." I now live in that world.

As a team, we are trying to raise $50,000 by the end of the year. If you would like to help use reach this endeavor, go to http://www.commongroundtampa.com and click on the online giving or drop us a check at:
Common Ground
4207 North BLVD
Tampa, FL 33603

Thanks for you time.

Love - Danny

Did you see the article about Central Christian Church?

2007-08-07T17:00:00.000-04:00

This article was in the Christian Standard. It helps understand how we came to be. Click the link below to read it all.

Christian Standard - How One Church Is Leaving a Legacy

All Hands on Deck

2007-08-07T15:33:00.001-04:00

Two really great teams wrapped up our latest work days - Horizon Christian Church and Journey Christian Church. Their Sr. Ministers, Scott Riggs and Dan Donaldson both jumped in and over saw some of the more strenuous work. (Yes - I am applauding the efforts of these two men.) Their crews helped us wrap up some majorly needed landscaping. Yet we are not done.

As our launch day approaches, we are starring in the face of projects left half done. We need all and any people within driving distance to pick a work day to come and help us.

Please go to http://www.commongroundtampa.com/events/ and pick a prep work day that you can bring your team/ friends to come and help.

The end is near. We're gonna get there one way or another!

Urgent Needs

2007-08-07T15:19:00.000-04:00

As we head towards our launch date of Sept. 9th, there are several items we are in dire need of. If you can contribute or no someone who can, let me know. Here is our list of needs.

1. Workers to replace light fixtures and do minor painting.
2. Workers to help with yard work and removal of branches.
3. Clean up crews for a dirty facility from drywall construction.
4. $5 gift cards from Starbucks. (These are to give away to first time guests.)
5. Prayers for open hearts in the people of our neighborhoods.
6. Support for our ministry. We are recruiting Florida churches to help financially as well as churches nationally.
7. Our staff to make lasting relationships with the people of our neighborhoods.
8. We will be providing several servant evangelism projects to our community through our "lunch on us" or "neighborhood clean up" projects.
9. Volunteers to help with our Children's Ministry.
10. Leaders to take on significant roles within our ministry.

Pray for all of these needs. Some can be solved pretty simply, while others will take some considerable commitment and thought. Either way - consider helping us in our time of need(s).

Launch Dates and Preview Services

2007-07-23T10:13:00.000-04:00

As we near August, we have realized that we have some details that must be wrapped up. Our team is now on campus and our events are starting to come together.

It has been a great summer. We have enjoyed the mission teams who we able to help us set our foundation. We have enjoyed seeing Emilie’s artwork take shape in our hallways and children’s area. Now comes the nitty gritty and wrapping up all those loose ends.

The construction projects have slowed, as we have had to reroute some of our needs. We have also begun to really revamp some more servant evangelism projects.

Therefore, we have decided to make certain dates concrete and draw a line in the sand.
• We are pleased to announce that Common Ground will launch our 1st preview service on Aug. 19th. Services will be at 9:30 AM with servant evangelism projects to the community to immediately follow at 11:00 AM.
• We are also pleased to announce that our Grand Opening to the community will be Sept. 9. Services will be held at 9:30 AM & 11:00 AM with childcare provided at each service.

Please make plans today to join us as we begin. God is doing a great work here in Tampa. I believe the intention of our hearts and giftedness of our team will help transform Tampa and we “pursue life as family through Jesus.”

July = Mission Trips & Work Groups

2007-07-01T17:12:00.000-04:00

July was filled with so much help. Here is who all pitched in to make a difference at Common Ground.

Crosspoint Christian Church
Tomoka Christian Church
Harvest Christian Church
Life Spring Christian Church
Greenwood Christian Church

Over 50 people put in considerable time and energy to see our building take another step forward. People from elementary age to senior adults have contributed on major levels of clean up, construction, kids outreaches, and cookouts.

I am amazed at the volunteerism show by areas believers and the desire to transform a local community.

It is in moments like these I see God's hand showing up to make a real difference.

Someone's Been Busy

2007-07-01T16:56:00.000-04:00

Things are getting crazy around here. A whole new building is shaping up underneath our eyes. And what's even worse, is we have a new partner in crime to help Emilie! Emilie's mom - Bessie, has made her way here from Grapevine, Texas and the tandem is dangerous.

I have included two pictures, one from before and one after. What you see is the emergence of the fire house. There are many details and changes to come, but you can already see the transformation beginning.

Julie has been totally excited to see the progress and is giving pointers along the way of what we want. Truth be told, the synergy between Emilie and the team is amazing. She is a great servant and it is obvious where it comes from. Her mom serves with complete humility too.

I find myself in a hurry to the building each day to see the progress. This is such a great tool for our community. I can begin to hear the excitement in our children's voices as they come to Kid City and hear about Jesus.

I am so thankful God has brought Emilie into our lives and the mark she is making on us goes well beyond the walls and paint.

Adopt a Room

2007-07-01T16:48:00.001-04:00

Harvest Christian Church has been involved in our "adopt a room" program. This is a partnership where a church would take on a room or two and give a financial gift to supply the resources needed to update the room. For about $1500 any church can supply the drywall, paint, and carpet for a children's room.

Once the money is collected, a date is set for the work and construction. Harvest Christian Church adopted 3 rooms for drywalling and used their VBS and missions teams to help provide for the process. We love this partnership because it is not just a gift of finances, but a gift of coworkers helping impact the kingdom together.

Thanks to Harvest for helping us prepare our infants room and toddlers classrooms. Your help makes a major difference in our ability to make our facility an exceptional resource to the community we serve.

Thanks for being our friends and partners.

Emilie starts her magic

2007-06-20T21:39:00.001-04:00

Emilie Porter arrived at Common Ground on June 19th and started the next day to unleash her gift. There are some things that can only be appreciated by experiencing it live. Watching Emilie create a mural is one of those things.

Emilie is in charge of converting our hallways and children's area into a "kid's city." You can get a feel for an urban landscape from a child's perspective. The hallways are being completed this week and the new fellowship hall design will be started soon.

Stop by on a Wednesday night as we host Common Ground Connection to see all of the progress. Only 2 months before we launch our new work.

Patrners in Crime

2007-05-31T21:23:00.000-04:00

Emilie Porter has agreed to come help paint our facility. Well actually not just paint, but design our children's area. We intend to create a children's area that is not only urban in it's feel, but true to the culture of our neighborhood.

If you have been to Seminole Heights, you have seen the bungalow and historic nature of our community. Our desire is to convert the children's wing into a version of the historic buildings and river walk while maintaining a kid friendly area called "kid city."

Starting in mid-June she will begin to make her mark. Emilie is partnering with us to make this happen and has asked to people to underwrite her project. If you would like to make an online donation to see this artist transform our children's area, please click HERE.

Thanks

Hanging with George

2007-05-10T16:33:00.000-04:00

Last night I had agreed to speak for an event in St. Pete with Central Christian Church called "May Day." It was a night of hope for the homeless and underpriviledged of the area.

The night was suppose to be this: Feed everyone who showed (hot dog, burger, chips, and drink)
Chris Cook led some worship/ did a mini worship concert
I spoke
Brian Larue gave direction and connected people
& Tons of volunteers form Central cooked, served, and hung with the crowds until 200+ were fed.

I walked into the park at the corner of 4th St and 2nd Ave. There were people everywhere from every walk of life. The event started and people showed up by the 10's and 20's.

Events like this either succeed or fall flat on their face. I was concerned as right in the middle of the park sat a heckler. He had been hollering things out all day as they set up, sound checked, and especially once we started.

My time came to walk to the stage and speak. I spoke from John 9 and talking about "Hope found in Jesus gives us hope to share with others." The talk was only about 15-20 minutes which is amazing in and of itself, but I could hear George hollering throughout my message. He was trying to get my attention and I knew my time was short.

I wrapped up my message and went straight into an extended prayer. (Hoping to get him to pause so I could finish everything I still needed to say.) I said amen and went to get off the stage and connect with the crowd.

"HEY!" I heard coming from the park heckler. "HEY COME HERE!" I walked to the edge of the stage to get down and started to say "Hi, my name is..." He said "I DON'T CARE WHO THE "#$@#" YOU ARE. I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW YOU ARE GOD'S MAN AND YOU ARE LOVED BY GOD!"

I was floored - not because of his smell of B.O. or alcohol and not even because of his intimidating presence. I was floored because the message he had for me, was exactly what I was trying to share with him. This 20 year Navy Vet and father of two said to me with an authenticty and genuiness - though completely unorthodox - a message of love from the most raw portions of his soul.

While I stood and spoke I wondered, "Am I making an impact. Is anyone really listening?" The question wasn't were they, but am I?

So George walked back to his bench and took a seat. I got down from the stage and walked right back to his bench and sat down. He smirked, handed me a hot dog, and for the next 20 minutes I listened to his story.

Thank you to Central in ST. Pete for sharing this experience with me.
Thank you George for being you and speaking to me.
Thank you God, for helping me realize my hope is in you so I can share this hope genuinely with others.

An artist's rendition

2007-05-04T09:56:00.000-04:00

Emilie Porter is coming for part of the summer. Who is she? She is a young adult from Grapevine, TX. She started painting at the age of 17 and shares her work with people like Kanye West and Eryka Badu. She has a knack for drawing people of other ethnicities. She is a member of Highland Meadows Christian Church and has a huge heart for God's work in the city.

Emilie will be transforming our fellowship hall into Kid City. We plan to create a Seminole Heights like look for our rooms. I cant wait to see what she will do for our facility.

For those who come to work with our project this summer, there will be a good chance you will be able to help make Emilie's project a reality.

Tomoka Christian gets involved

2007-05-04T09:47:00.000-04:00

On May 2nd I drove to the other side of the state to connect with Tomoka Christian Church. They have decided to support The Tampa Project and I was truly blessed in our time together.

While I was there, they showed me a couple of their outreach ministries. They do a Jesus clinic which provides basic medical coverage for the working poor. They also invest in the Daytona Outreach Center. It works with the under privileged and hurting of the streets of Daytona. Both were great examples of the type of ministry needed for an urban environment.

One thing that struck me hard was that this was no ordinary mega church. Tomoka is one of the many christian churches that are 2000+. However this church is nuts. They run 5 services on the weekend to accommodate everyone They give 30% of their budget to missions and outreach.

Tomoka will be partnering with us in the future. They will be bringing a work team in June and helping us with launch weekend. They have also committed to giving financially which will make a major difference as we become the church God has intended.

Thank you to Tomoka - Mike Waers, Mike Gaunter, and Joe Putting for being instrumental in getting this partnership going.

BBQ at Hankos

2007-05-04T09:41:00.000-04:00

Common Ground held another backyard BBQ on the St. Pete side of the bay on April 22nd. It was well attended and Sonny's catered for us again.It was a great night of friendship and new acquaintances. Dan and Colleen Hanko invited a ton of friends to hep us cast a vision of Common Ground and ask for their involvement.

A huge thanks goes to everyone who helped make the night a success. God is doing a great work already on both sides of the bay. Can't wait to bring it all together.

We need partnerships! part 2

2007-04-09T16:37:00.001-04:00

The financial portion of the church work is coming into focus and we need help.

Construction to update and clean up our facility is happening. Several needs have become evident. Here are some thoughts.
1. 4 A/C units need replaced.
2. 1 set of bathrooms are being expanded.
3. The portable building on the side of the church propert needs removed and disposed of.
4. Much of the trees and greenery are over grown. Several concerns beyond the look of it have come to be seen.
5. Providing resources and furnishings for each room in the children's area and auditorium.

While many of us have experienced the generosity of God's grace in many ways, it is amazing how much of ministry comes down to financing. If you would consider giving a gift this month, we could certainly use it.

All gifts need to be sent to:
The Tampa Project
312 Crosstown Road # 232
Peachtree City, GA 30269

All gifts are
1) sent to Peachtree City directly to our accountant,
2) tax deductible, and
3) given directly to the project itself.

Big Thanks to NECC in St. Pete

2007-03-29T09:41:00.000-04:00

Recently I had the chance to cast the vision for The Tampa Project to some local friends. They took the vision and ran with it. The word spread to the their friends and to there former church.

Northeast Christian Church is formerly from St. Pete, in FL. The church had been land locked for years and the land around it was changing to commercial lots. Realizing that they were in a "no win" situation they sought God and a new direction. What they found was a need to "let go."

NECC closed it's doors and sold the property. The irony is that through their sacrifice they are providing for local churches, regional ministries, and helping this work get started.

To date, NECC has given the largest gift to The Tampa Project as a church. This gift has helped us continue forward with our vision and slow the process of incurring debt.

Thank you NECC of ST. Pete for investing in Gods work here in Tampa. May your sacrifice bring life to our "Bay Area" and bring countless lives into the kingdom.

Uncovering more needs

2007-03-29T09:24:00.000-04:00

This last month we hosted a group of students from Bloomington, IN - Sherwood Oaks Christian Church. The mission trip was a great success. However, the more they worked, the more it became apparent that this facility needs a bit more than a little TLC.

In an attempt to level the stage and make it more usable, we found some damage. Both minor termite and water damage were there. Then with some work in the kitchen, we found our outlets "kicking out" only to find out they "died." We knew that two of the A/C units were not working, but after some checking - we have found that four of the six need to be replaced.

It is clear that the more we repair, the more we find to fix. Our hope is to stay on track and address each need one by one. However, there is only one real obstacle stands in our way - money.

People have asked "Can you do without A/C?" I chuckle to my mid-western friends and say "In Florida, A/C is as important for us as heat is for you in the winter. And did I mention we launch in August?"

It is so crucial for people to begin to understand the gift and the responsibility of this new work. There is no doubt I am hugely thankful for this facility. While these repairs can be a frustration, I trust that this is just another chance for God, His people, and His church to respond.

If you have a moment, and can spare the time, would you please offer a word of prayer on our behalf. And if you are so moved would you give a gift? Please mail it to:

The Tampa Project
312 Crosstown Road #232
Peachtree City, GA 30269

All gifts are tax deductible.

Thanks for your time. Don't forget to say a prayer for us today!

Mission Trips

2007-02-19T10:11:00.000-05:00

For 3 different weeks, we will host 3 mission trips. We are excited to announce these dates and partners.

March 10-17
Sherwood Oaks Christian Church HSM
Anderson University

Goals: Basic demolition and construction. Community connections and service. See Tampa and connect with churches.

June 10-17
Greenwood Christian Church

Goals: More construction and maintenance. Local VBS to nearby apartment complexes. See Tampa and connect with churches.

July 7-14
Connection Pointe Christian Church of Brownsburg

Goals: Local VBS to nearby appartment complexes. Basic landscaping and construction. See Tampa and connect with churches.

Please pray as these groups prepare to come help our new church a kingdom success.

2 Nu Partnering Possibilities

2007-02-19T10:01:00.000-05:00

Recently, I have found myself with ideas on how to best connect local churches to our work. We have put together a cleaning day for March 10. It is a day for individuals to come and prepare some basic repair and cleaning in our facility. If you are interested in getting more information on this - please e-mail me at schaffattaq@earthlink.net. The second possiblitity is our Urban Impact day on March 31st. It is for local student ministries. Feel free to contact me at schaffattaq@earthlink.net as well for more information.

Hoping to hear from you.

Danny Schaffner
Lead Pastor

3 day 2 night adventure with an Extreme Makeover

2007-01-13T13:20:00.000-05:00

In recent weeks, we have started a new partnership opportunity call Extreme Makeover - Common Ground edition. This is a chance for churches to come and really invest in our ministry.

As you may know, we have a facility that needs some TLC. Common Ground needs you help with everything from painting walls, removing carpet, cleaning out rooms, and the like. Churches are coming as family groups, college teams, or whatever combination they chose to bring based off of their project of choice.

Churches have begun to partner with us already. Ho do they do this?
1. Target a day to take a special offering and then do so.
2. Pick a weekend after your offering has been taken and come serve.

What can you expect if your church partners with Common Ground?
Friday night you can come to the church buliding and hear the need and see the projects. (Housing can be provided.) Saturday will be spent working hard on the room your church has resourced along with other needs within the building. Saturday night we will have a special outing for your group. Sunday we will host a worship service for you and your team. This service will include a time for music, teaching, testimony, and a short prayer walk. All of your construction needs will be provided per the special offering. Meals and housing will be provided for a small fee per person. (Each trip is customized for each church's need but estimated cost would be $20-30 per person.)

For more information, please contact Danny Schaffner at schaffattaq@earthlink.net or 217.816.3638.

Christmas Wish List

2006-12-18T10:48:00.000-05:00

Well everyone is making their wish list and as church planter, I thought I'd list you a few things we are asking and praying for this year. What would we be asking for this year? Just a few things here and there. Here is our top 10.

10. A second car - not too old, 4 door, medium sized that is dependable.
9. A Christmas snow. We would love one last big snow before we head south.
8. Church partners. Know any churches that want to partner with a multi-ethnic church plant?
7. Good movers. We have hired a moving company and pray it all gets down there the way we packed it.
6. An Iowa Hawkeye Bowl victory. What a terrible year for a team that had so much promise.
5. An enjoyable drive south. We will leave Christmas vacation and the mid-west and head to Florida on about the 30th. It will be part vacation and part "just get down to Florida."
4. Staff. We may have found our Children's Minister, but we are still searching for a Worship Minister.
3. All A's. I am wrapping up my first 9 hours of seminary and I may hope to have scored "A's."
2. Year end gifts. Final letters went out last week and we are praying for year end gifts to help create momentum as we move to Florida.
1. Family. This transition will be tough for us all. From Ricky starting a new school to Waylon heading back to the Navy, we all are wrestling with different anxiousness and concerns. May we all be able to celebrate the gift God has given us, which is the gift of being together as family.

Hope all is well. Take care and God Bless!

Danny

Special Gift Partnerships - ways to partner #4

2006-10-21T09:41:00.001-04:00

The "Special Gift Partnership" can be the most fun way to directly impact a church pant because it adds "spontaneous" momentum. SGP's are random gifts that go directly to the ministry of The Tampa Project but do not happen monthly or through mission trips. They occur through individuals or churches and are often represented through special offerings or end of the year gifts.

Let's say Bob runs an investment firm. It has been a great year. he has seen the benefit of supporting his church directly and has enjoyed the generosity he has been able to share. But this year he landed a new client. A pro athlete recently moved into his area and business is booming becuase this sports star has reccommended Bob to his friends. For this first time, Bob's business finds itself with a greater chance to give. These are the moments where God's creativity can come into play and maybe Bob could give an unxpected gift to a new church work in Tampa.

Or Sherry does the books for the family farm. For the first time in decades, they are finally debt free and have a chance to take this year's crop and share the fun with others. She could decide to support something extra this year.

Outside of individual's who help us, there will be churches who partner with us. Churches can take up a special offering like at Thanksgiving or Christmas. Or churches can hold a baby shower and people can support by giving funds to help provide for the children's area or worship center. Items like sound equipment, cribs, toys, books, tables, chairs, all need to be provided for our new work.

Either way, we all give from different pockets. One pocket may support the local church while another supports the homeless man at the corner. SGP's allow you to do something outside the norm of your giving and provide for a new ministry for a work like The Tampa Project.

How can a SGP help The Tampa Project?
1) We can hire new staff to take on new innitiatives.
2) We can sponsor kids to camps adn summer programs.
3) We can replace needed HVAC air conditioning systems.
4) We can plan for future growth like becoming self-supportive or building innitiatives.
5) We can provide some constructional additions for community connections. (I.e; basketball goals, playground, or an open patio on our campus.)

How do I make a donation to a Special Gift Partnership?
Send your taxdeductible gift to:
THE TAMPA PROJECT
312 Crosstown RD. #232
Peachtree City, GA 30269

If you have any questions, please contact Danny Schaffner directly at 217.816.3638 or schaffattaq@earthlink.net.

Monthly Partnership - ways to partner #3

2006-10-21T09:21:00.001-04:00

Each month we decide to invest in specific items that we believe in for our quality of life. They are represented in tithing to our local church, car or house payments, and paying off credit cards for buying those last pairs of shoes we could not live without.:-)

Monthly partnerships are the bread and butter of our developemnt strategy. This is where individuals and churches can commit to undergird the work of The Tampa Project.

Partnerships help us maintain our vision on a day-to-day basis. Any staffing, office supplies, potential community services, or programs to families that we want to begin actually start with motnhly giving.

What specifics can I count on impacting, if I were to partner in monthly giving?
1) The support of a weekly salary for our staff
2) The quality of equipment we could supply for the offices and staff (i.e; computers, desks, chairs, etc...)
3) The potentialto start ministries like a daycare to local families or after school tutoring programs.
4) The curriculum to teach families and children through our Sunday morning ministries.
5) The upkeep and development of our facility (aka our light bill and furnishings)

How can I become a monthly partner?
You can begin by making a tax-deductible gift to;
THE TAMPA PROJECT
312 Crosstown RD. #232
Peachtree City, GA 30269

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Danny Schaffner directly at 217.816.3638 or e-mail at schaffattaq@earthlink.net .

Mission Trip Partnerships - ways to partner #2

2006-10-21T08:58:00.000-04:00

We have been blessed with the chance to be in student ministry for the last 15 years. One of the greatest blessings has come to us through mobilizing the church in missions.

We are in need of mission trips during Spring break and Summer vacations. The need is two-fold in that we need help in preparing our campus and we need help reaching our neighbors.

The Tampa Project has begun to create a strategy to reach the community first and that is through mobile VBS (vacation Bible school) camps. We are targeting local apartment complexes and taking a VBS to them. With portable tents, crafts, music, and churches coming to help us, we believe this can be a viable relationship builder.

How would it work? Each church would be reponsible to implement the VBS during the morning hours of 9:00 AM- 12:00 PM. You would spend your time reaching youth - K-5th grade. Classes would be split into smaller groups and would experience worship, teaching, crafts, refreshments, and recreation.

The afternoon's, church teams would spend at the church campus. There is plenty to be done from landscaping to decorating the children's areas. Other options will include some city work within Tampa and will be at your discretion

For more information on how to get in on this trips, contact Danny Schaffner directly at 217.816.3638.

Quick facts:
Cost would be $40-50 a day (special rates for adults who bring student trips)
Includes housing, meals, transportation, and supplies
Groups will experience all the aspects of mission and partnering in Tampa
We will have specific worship and devotional times
Each group will have a specific schedule
The church building can house up to 50 at a time
We can take more than one group at a time
Any personal recreation to Busch Gardens, Disney World, Yankees games, will be at your own expense.

Prayer Partnership - ways to partner #1

2006-10-16T17:59:00.000-04:00

The #1 way we need help with The Tampa Project is through prayer. The impact of this ministry hangs in the balance of our prayer life. Not that God will not move if we don't, by why should He if we don't. This His work for His credit and glory.

We need as many people as possible uniting in prayer with us. Though excitement is what we feel for Tampa, be also feel anxious. The Bible say that we should "not be anxious about anything" and "cast all of our burdens on Him." We want you to hep us hand over our needs, concerns, and agenda to God.

What specifically do we need prayer for?

The move to Tampa
The security and unity of our family
The growth of the boys
Strength for Kristi and me
The purchase of our home

and we haven't even started talking ministry needs like...

The people we will reach
The financial support for us to put together a great ministry
The remodeling of the church building
The initial relationships we need to make
The spring and summer work camps provided in Spring and Summer
The staff we need to hire
The resoucres we need to buy
The finances we need to raise

If you would like to be a part of that rayer team, e-mail me at schaffattaq@earthlink.net . But you must e-mail me directly as our prayer list circulates only via e-mail. Please let me know if you would like to help hrough prayer.

Danny

What are we asking for in partnerships?

2006-10-10T12:41:00.000-04:00

When we use the phrase partnership we are asking you to "make a relational investment in the work that God is doing" through The Tampa Project.

There are 4 specific areas that we can use partnerships. The next 4 "posts" will outline specifically how you can help partner with us. The 4 specific areas are:
1) Prayer: We need people who will consistently bathe our ministry in your prayer time.
2) Mission Trips: We need groups to come and sere a week with us to impact our neighborhoods.
3) Monthly Partnerships: We need people who can consistantly give financially to our ministry.
4) Special Gifts: We need people who can give one time gifts or end of the years gifts to help us plan and project what kind of ministry we can do in the months to come.

Feel free to click through the archives as we outline how you can specifically partner with The Tampa Project.

PS - Any financial gifts that will be given are first and foremost tax deductible and should be sent to:
The Tampa Project
312 Crosstown Road #232
Peachtree, GA 30269

Looking for partnerships!

2006-10-10T12:28:00.000-04:00

The Tampa Project is looking for partnerships. Many people have asked "How can we help?" and "What's the best way to stay involved?" This page is to help help show the many ways you can partner with The Tampa Project as an individual, family, or church.

If you have any direct questions, feel free to call me at 217.816.3638 or schaffattaq@earthlink.net.

Danny Schaffner
Lead Planter