In May 2010, 65 people hit the streets of the South Side in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to take part in Project 10,000. Led by planters Jack and Jamie Thomas, the goal of Project 10,000 was to invite every single person in the community to LifeStone Church’s grand opening on June 6. “We didn’t just canvas,” says Jack. “We knocked on doors and prayed with people. We saw divine appointments and connections happening.” One team member was even impacted by the invitation outreach. “Getting to pray for someone totally shifted her view of evangelism,” Jack explains. “Not only were we able to bless people in the community, but our team was motivated and excited by it.”

On launch day, Jack, Jamie and the LifeStone Church (LSC) team began setting up bright and early at 7:00 a.m. With service not scheduled to begin until 10:30, they were surprised to have 15 or 20 people show up at 9:00. “They were all really excited,” says Jack. “People were even showing up early just to get a seat.”

As 10:00 a.m. approached, the building began to fill up. There was already excitement inside of the building, so Jack and the team decided it was time to create a buzz outside as well. “The owner of a local doughnut shop attends our church and they donated hundreds of donuts, so we served those out front on the sidewalk,” he says. The donuts, combined with balloons, signs and a crowd of people piqued the curiosity of those who were driving past. “Once everyone got inside, we noticed that people kept flooding in,” Jack says.

That morning 230 people were in attendance for LifeStone Church’s grand opening. “So many people from the community and surrounding communities wanted to check it out,” Jack says. “Service went great and God showed up in a miraculous way. Ten people got saved!”

While great things were happening in the main service, the LifeStone team was thrilled with what was happening in the kids’ service. “Our target is to reach young families, so we really promoted our kids’ ministry,” Jack explains. “What we saw that Sunday morning were families coming in from the community.” On launch day, 44 kids participated in the KidsLife Ministry. Excited parents told the LSC team that they had been waiting for a church like this. “It was cool to see our target group become our church,” says Jack. The opening of LSC was an answer to prayer for one family as they considered going back to church. “The week we invited them to church, they had just talked about going to church again,” says Jack. “We invited them and they began weeping and crying. They said, ‘If this is God speaking to us about this, then we’re going to be there.’”

Throughout the planting process, Jack was reminded of an important lesson. “It’s not that I didn’t know this before, but it’s such a fantastic reminder that I can’t do this on my own. God called me, but I need more than just myself,” Jack says. “I need the Holy Spirit living and working through me everyday. I need people to help me, to serve with me and let God take this to the next level.”

Now that they’ve come through the pre-launch phase, Jack has a word of advice for future planters. “Get to know the needs of your community. I don’t think we could have experienced what we have if we hadn’t begun to meet the needs of the community. Instead of just trying to build a church, try to meet needs and make connections with those people. We’ve seen so many blessings come about. Get to know the needs and love, reach out and connect with people. God can do so many things that will blow your mind.”