Hello all, and welcome to the penultimate episode of season three of Pastor to Pioneer. As Britton nears the culmination of his travels and conversations, he connects with Taylor and Laura Birkey in the suburbs of Chicago. It's a reunion for them, as in college Taylor and Britton had together been part of a group that looked a lot like a house church. Taylor and Laura share with Britton what they've been up to since that time, revealing that they were both lay leaders in their prevailing-model church, and Taylor was an elder for a long time. Years ago, though, they began to ask questions about why we do church the way we do it, and Britton recommended they read Letters to the Church by Francis Chan. That led to some deeper conversations with the other church elders. When COVID hit, they pivoted as a church body to everyone meeting in homes. They tried many different iterations of this but as COVID restrictions lifted they decided to not go back to what they had been doing previously. The church now meets three Sundays a month in homes around the western suburbs of Chicago, and once a month gets together for a larger gathering.

As the conversation continues, Taylor and Laura share that not only was their church body going through a major transition, but they were personally doing the same. They bought an old fixer upper home that required major amounts of work. Taylor and Laura talk about the difficulties and frustrations of desiring to host people in their home yet not having it be in good condition to do so. They discuss the parallels to letting people into the unfinished work of their home and letting people into the unfinished work of their hearts, as well as the value of a "long work" in the midst of a culture that only wants quick change and immediate results.

In other areas of the day-to-day, Laura is currently a life coach and a photographer, as well as holding down a few other side gigs. Taylor works in marketing and communications for Lions Clubs International.

Instagram: @instatay and @lulubizu