The Story of the Church

From 2001 to 2005 I had the privilege of being a Student Minister in New Orleans, LA. God used us to see many unchurched young people come to know Christ.

Then in August 2005 Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and our little church. I found myself with no job, no home, no church and no students. For those first few months after the storm, the students found themselves spread out all over the southeastern United States.

In the months after the storm, my wife, Elaine, and I did not know if the students would come back to New Orleans. The Lord gave us a great opportunity to serve at ClearView Baptist Church in Franklin, TN, doing Student Ministry. We certainly believe the Lord was in this move. He did great things over the years we were at ClearView. It was a place that provided much restoration for our family, both physically and spiritually. It was a place where the Lord used us to minister to a great group of students and families. It was a place the Lord used to teach me many lessons and prepare me to pastor. During that time the Lord regularly led us to pray for the city of New Orleans.

About a year ago the Lord began to teach us some lessons about obedience. We sought Him daily for months about what these lessons meant in our lives. When I followed the Lord's leading and resigned from my position at ClearView this past June, we had no idea what the Lord was going to do with us.

Pretty quickly though, the Lord began to give us some clarity about church planting in New Orleans, LA. This is a city that we fell in love with while we were here before. We love the beignets, the Saints, the food, Mardi Gras and most of all the people.

I remember sitting down with some of my former students from New Orleans to tell them we were moving back to the city to plant Hope Church. They are excited about our move and have high hopes for what the Lord is going to do through this church plant. I am thrilled that the Lord is leading many of them to jump in and participate.

The longer we are here the more confirmation we get that the Lord is going to do something great in this city with the group of people He is drawing together. I believe the Lord, over the last couple of years, has prepared a core group of young adults for the purpose of planing a church. I believe the Lord is calling us to plant a young, vibrant, loving, worshiping, serving, gospel sharing, disciple making church in one of the greatest cities in the world, New Orleans, LA.

- Matt Tipton, Pastor and Church Planter