Church makes its home among the homeless

CONROE (BP)—Jeff Foshee was at the end of his rope. Haunted by depression, fear and his own misfortunes, he felt he could not hold on any longer.

Thanks to a friend’s guidance, Foshee landed at Under Over Fellowship, an unconventional Baptist General Convention of Texas-affiliated congregation in Conroe.

“When I first came to a Sunday service with Under Over, something clicked. It just felt like home,” Foshee said. “I have been here ever since.”

Bivocational pastor Jerry Vineyard’s vision for a church without walls—Under Over Fellowship, which meets each Sunday in a local park—has added two buildings to help the homeless and people in transition find meaningful work and community. (BP photo by Stewart House/NAMB)Jerry Vineyard likewise found himself at the end of his rope. After nearly a decade of bivocational ministry, he had been on staff at different churches and struggled with limitations of whom, inside the church, they were ministering to—both socioeconomically and racially.

When he became a lead pastor, thinking that position might offer more flexibility, he found himself stuck again. A nearly empty building was draining financial resources for outreach, but members were not prepared to sell their assets, clinging to tradition and personal connections.

“Once again, I found myself in a similar situation. I said, ‘Jesus, if this is really what pastoring is, then I don’t want anything to do with it,’” Vineyard recalled. “I didn’t know what to do. All of my problems seemed to be coming from owning a building.”

Church under a park pavilion

Then he realized: “Maybe I could start a church without a building.”

“Another pastor in Conroe decided to sponsor me. They said they had never really heard of anything like this, but they would support me regardless. In 2011, we had our first service with 65 people (in Heritage Place Park in downtown Conroe). Today we have a membership of around 75. Half of those are either in transition or homeless.”

Plenty of issues accompanied the launch of a church under a park pavilion.

“I have had to learn a lot about drugs and prison life,” Vineyard said. “Many of them can’t get jobs or apartments because of previous felonies, so we decided we would make jobs.

“I was an art teacher before this. So, I used my artistic abilities, and we decided we would create shabby-chic furniture to sell. We just started fixing stuff up and put these guys to work.

April Rowe puts a clear-coat finish on crosses made by Under Over Fellowship that are sold through LifeWay Christian Stores to help support the church’s ministry to the homeless and downcast in Conroe. (BP photo by Stewart House/NAMB)“From there, we started making crosses because some people didn’t have all the woodworking skills to make the furniture. We designed a simple cross they could make, paint and sell. LifeWay (Christian Stores) liked them so much, actually, they decided to sell them.

“It has exploded from there. We are now the church without walls that owns two buildings,” he said of the facilities necessary to accommodate the growing ministry.

Expanding ministry

Under Over expanded into two transitional houses with programs to assist men and women to re-enter society in positive fashion after a history of homelessness or drug addiction.

The ministry seeks to aid all of its participants by providing services from parenting courses to financial instruction and job training. Bible study and discipleship are woven into every aspect of the outreach.

“Our goal is to produce a well-rounded person, spiritually, physically and emotionally,” Vineyard said. “We make sure they are all plugged in to church and have a place to work before they graduate. We typically ask them for a six-month commitment, but everyone is a little different. We are about empowerment—not enabling people to stay where they are.”

Under Over’s buildings double as a food pantry and a place for men and women in the community to take showers and do laundry.

“One of the things we said as we looked for properties was that if we were going to purchase a building of any kind, we weren’t going to have a building that sat vacant six days a week.”

In a typical month, as people came to get food, wash clothes, take a shower, attend Bible study or receive counseling, he said, “We were able to touch about 4,500 individuals.”

Under Over continues to have its Sunday services in the park.

Saving lives, spiritually and physically

Foshee, a graduate from the men’s program, said Under Over saved his life both spiritually and literally.

“After my wife died, I absolutely turned my back on God and went astray. That’s putting it lightly,” Foshee said. “I was in a very self-destructive mode.

“I have always had trust and abandonment issues. I guess most people do when you get down to it. I grew up in a really bad household. I always knew pain and suffering, but then I met my wife, and she was truly my first joy. When I lost that, I guess that is why I fell so hard. I let myself be defined by my bad childhood and circumstances.

“But now I know I am not chained to my past pain. The definition of Jeff today is a confident man who has been changed by God,” said Foshee, who now serves as the men’s coordinator for Under Over.

“I thank God that he led me here. To see where I was a year ago and to be where I am now—it’s amazing,” he said.

‘A huge, dysfunctional family, but God makes it work’

In the park, Under Over offers a fellowship breakfast and lunch before and after its services.

“They are going to sit at the table next to us, no matter their condition,” Vineyard said. “We are going to love on them and eat with them. Our church is a reflection of our community. We are made up of people from all different types of backgrounds. At our Sunday service, we have doctors sitting next to people who live in tents and are crack addicts. We are just a huge dysfunctional family, but God makes it work.”

Vineyard has continued to be bivocational since he founded Under Over Fellowship.

“I am just a former art teacher and high school football coach,” Vineyard said with a laugh. “I only had two seminary classes, so in no way am I a theologian. We just want to create local mission opportunities for the single-staff guy who wants his people outside the walls of the church.”

Under Over meets for a weekly gathering—rain or shine. The church’s name was inspired by Romans 6:14—since Christians are “under his grace,” Christ is “over our sin” and when we are “under his leading,” Christ is “over our fear,” Vineyard explained.

“It has been amazing to see God work and how he grows this ministry,” Vineyard said. “Every week is a fish-and-loaves scenario. God takes the offering of a homeless person and multiplies it.”