
Brandon Beals began his church planting adventure as a result of his theoretical thesis, “If I Were to Plant a Church, Here’s How I Would Do It.” But God called him to put his theory into practice. After a season of wrestling with God, Brandon answered the call. Today, he pastors Canyon Creek Church in Mill Creek, Wash., with seven campuses in the area and one in Costa Rica. Their mission is to be a church for seekers and the de-churched.
“The best part about being in an area where people don’t go to church is the fact that I get to deal with people on a regular basis where the first time they hear the story of David and Goliath is when I tell it to them,” Brandon said.
Brandon jokes that thirteen years ago, he and his church accidentally did everything that the books he’s reading on church planting now tell him to do.
“The key to our growth is that we stayed on mission,” Brandon said. “We refused to compromise what God had called me to and our target demographic.”
From the beginning, Canyon Creek Church has had a reputation for serving the community with no strings attached.
“What made us unique is that we were missional before it was cool to be missional,” he said.
Canyon Creek defined being missional as being a “missionary” in your sphere of influence, both collectively and personally. Canyon Creek realized that little existed for the families of Mill Creek to do. The church decided to host an Easter Egg hunt for the city and introduced Trunk or Treat.
Instead of promoting their church at each of these events, the church members just served. Others in the community, debated Brandon’s logic of not preaching a sermon or giving an altar call, but Brandon just wanted to build relationships. These friendships would eventually lead to disciples.