Church without walls is a concept that challenges our paradigm about church in the United States. For example, when you say "the church", the first thought most people have is a building, maybe one with a steeple on top and pews inside. But the Bible defines the church as "the people". Christ lives inside of each follower and collectively followers comprise the church. Rockside Church is a really awesome group of Christ followers that identify with each other and strive to include others on the journey of spiritual growth. It just so happens that THE CHURCH gathering takes place at 10:30 AM on Sundays. It just so happens that THE CHURCH meets at 4100 Rockside Road at this time. But the church is the people. So our vision is to keep strengthening and increasing THE CHURCH by helping individuals to grow personally and in community with other Christ followers.

The benchmark that's in my heart for this journey is to help people become mature enough spiritually to be able to make it on their own should something happen in our world that prevents them from being able to come to the gathering place for some reason. That means empowering people to reproduce themselves spiritual, or make a disciple out of a friend. We want to equip mom and dad to be the primary Christian educators of their children in their home and let Rockside Kids Ministry and Rockside Youth Ministry simply compliment the efforts of parents. We keep the schedule simple with the Sunday morning gathering, a weekly prayer meeting and JOURNEY GROUPS meeting in homes so that "the church" is released to take the love of Christ to those who don't yet know. We gather on Sundays for encouragement, then invert the group throughout the week to host back yard barbeques, coaching little league, be involved in the marketplace, the workplace and community as ambassadors of Christ. Should religious persecution come to our country, should a family relocate to a remote place with no "church building" or just a simple Cleveland snow storm hit on Sunday morning, the CHURCH will still be the CHURCH because Christ is living in us and among us with maturity and health.