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Alpha USA 2017
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We pray constantly for people to meet Jesus. We pray for shame to be wiped away, for emptiness to be filled by the Spirit and for eternity to be sealed through the forgiveness of Christ. We dream of churches dependent on prayer, warm with love, active in listening and welcoming to anyone. We envision a society transformed by a united Church and broken lives, families and communities wholly restored. This type of fruitfulness only emerges when God shows up.
Alpha is simply a disarming container of divine activity for those who feel God is far away. It is a welcoming place where a guest can “taste and see that the Lord is good” even before believing
in Jesus. It is a space for someone to share, discover and “work out” what God is working into their life. It is a moment for those who have never prayed, to learn to pray and hear the voice of
God. It is an opportunity to meet Jesus and be changed forever. I think of Jason, a police officer who experienced many deadly and destructive tragedies. He said, “My heart grew a concrete wall around it; I was shut down.” He came on Alpha and for
weeks said, “God is not real; not when the suffering I’ve seen still happens.” No explanation could change his heart. No
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human effort could rewire his soul. On the weekend away,
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CR AIG We often say, “Alpha is perfectly designed to fail… unless God shows up.”
Jason attempted to pray for the first time (even though he didn’t believe in God). “Come Holy Spirit,” he said and then waited.
Within minutes, he was weeping and praying with his group; “I
have no idea what happened, but I literally felt the concrete wall around my heart shatter and love pour in. And now, all I know is I LOVE Jesus!” Jason was baptized weeks later. Alpha created the space, and God did what only He can do.
2017 was an incredible year for Alpha in the USA, with 17% growth in the number of churches running Alpha. Together, Alpha reached over 347,000 people. We’ve captured some stories, strategies and data for you in the following pages. It’s a window into all the good work God has been doing through your investment in Alpha. Thank you for the role you play with Alpha. You are bringing the
gospel to hundreds of thousands, and “The gospel is the power of God for the salvation of those who believe!” (Romans 1:16)
Let’s keep dreaming, praying and building this space for people to discover and develop a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ.
Filled with gratitude and anticipation for more,
Craig Springer Executive Director, Alpha USA 1
AIG SP
S ERVING IN AMERICA As Alpha USA completes its first 20 years of ministry, there is much that we have done to serve God in our mission, but full dependence on Jesus and His presence is precisely where we want to position ourselves. This is the posture we take as we aim to resource and equip churches to run Alpha.
C H E R RY H I LL S CO M M U N IT Y C H U RC H “Two years ago, I was invited to visit HTB Church in London to find out more about Alpha. Following that visit, we mobilized the congregation to pray, and we committed to praying once a week as an executive team. We started to intercede for others in a way we had never done before—for our church, our city and our institutions. And we started running Alpha. After just nine months, I have never seen so much spiritual fruit in my life. God is moving in remarkable ways, and hundreds of people are doing Alpha. God had been preparing a new spiritual wineskin... Alpha is the best container for evangelism I have ever seen. It will create a brand new wineskin for your church, but it also must be filled. The power behind Alpha is not the system and the processes; it is the power of the Holy Spirit, which is released through prayer.” Shane Farmer
Senior Pastor, Cherry Hills Community Church, Highlands Ranch, CO
“When I found out what Alpha really was, I realized that it is one of the greatest evangelistic tools a church could use. And the reason is because there is this underlying dependence on God to transform.” Harvey Carey, Senior Pastor at Citadel of Faith, Detroit, MI 2
2017 GROW TH
347,995 TOTAL ALP HA PAR TI C I PANT S
CATH O LI C PAR TI C I PANT S 2016 2017
That is 10% growth from 2016 to 2017.
P ROTE S TANT PAR TI C I PANT S
101,019 114,167
2016 2017
13% G ROW TH
193,782 207,368
7% G ROW TH
82% of non-Christians describe themselves as followers of Jesus since trying Alpha. – Barna
TOTAL ACTIVE C H U RC H E S R U N N I N G ALP HA 2016 2017
5,097 5,944
17% G ROW TH 3
TOTAL R E C E NT ALP HA CO U R S E S 2016 2017
9,273 10,250
11% G ROW TH
ACTIVE C H U RC H E S
In 2017, we exceeded our goal to increase the number of active churches running Alpha in every category, which includes Protestant, Catholic, prison and strategic churches. S TR ATE G I C O P P O R TU N ITI E S I N U N I Q U E CO NTE X T S
17% increase in active churches running Alpha (our goal was 4%)
A D D ITI O NAL G ROW TH CO NTR I B UTO R S …
Churches act as Hubs for Alpha to Extend Reach
Catholics
Prayer is the Bedrock of Alpha
churches—strategic churches that have
The multiplication that we have seen with
In January, we launched a Kingdom Come
In 2017, over one-third of Alpha guests in
Alpha in the local church.
Alpha in the Catholic context is astounding. the US came through Catholic parishes.
33%
growth in Catholic parishes running Alpha
Prisons Churches are taking Alpha to the “least
of these” by running Alpha in Prisons. In
2017, Alpha ran in 441 correctional facilities across 40 states—91 were new.
26,460
offenders reached with Alpha in Prisons
Youth 2017 was the launch of the new and
updated Alpha Youth Series. The updated series helps youth leaders open up
conversations about faith and helps young people encounter Jesus for themselves.
1,932
Alpha Youth courses in 2017
prayer initiative to mobilize intercession for
1,000
people mobilized in prayer
Influencing the Influencers
There are growing numbers of hub
adopted Alpha as a core part of their
strategy and are extending Alpha to other churches. This multiplies the impact as Alpha is increasingly extended through
local churches. We have also seen growing
numbers of hub churches working together for unity. One example is in Dallas, TX; a
network of three influential hub churches (Presbyterian, Anglican and Catholic) are
working together to engage more churches
Our heart is to serve every church through
with Alpha in their sphere of influence.
influential churches with the capacity to
40
Alpha. By targeting and investing in
provide resources and training, we multiply Alpha more effectively.
337
strategic churches running Alpha
From Learning to Experiencing: Experience Alpha in London and Beyond Throughout the year, we invite groups of influential churches and leaders to
Experience Alpha events at HTB in London and thriving churches around the US. This
hub churches established (25 in 2016 including several Catholic hubs).
Gathering Together: The Alpha Conference At the beginning of 2018, churches
gathered across denominational lines to
worship Jesus at The Alpha Conference—
the first in nearly a decade. God’s presence was powerfully displayed as we focused on themes of unity, evangelism and dependence on the Holy Spirit.
+800
first hand in the unique context of a local
people attended the Alpha Conference
help start a movement of other churches
New Partnerships
allows leaders to experience Alpha culture church and then return to launch Alpha and running Alpha.
69
highly influential churches sent leaders to Experience Alpha
We are working to build and establish new partnerships. We solidified a national
partnership with Prison Fellowship and also the YMCA to run Alpha throughout their networks.
2017
2 017 TOTAL E XPE N S ES $4 , 4 37,013
Program Services Fundraising General & Admin
2 017 TOTAL R E VE N U E $4 ,83 4 , 4 29
$3,682,721 (83%) $399,331 (9%) $354,961 (8%)
General Designated Publishing & Other
$2,936,854 (61%) $1,380,861 (29%) $516,714 (10%)
Thanks to God and to generous donors, Alpha USA is debt free and focused on ministry growth in 2018 and beyond. For more details, please look for our forthcoming auditors report at alphausa.org/financials.
J E N ’ S S TO RY
“If Hell had a basement, then I was living in it.” “I was homeless, living in a van outside my drug dealer’s house with my two-year-old son. One night, I found myself praying to be put into a shelter. The very next day I got into Hope Place with Seattle Union Gospel Mission, and they were running Alpha. I had never felt so loved in my life, not even by my parents. Since then, I gave my life to Jesus, got baptized, graduated from the shelter, I got my kids back, and my parents went through Alpha and have been baptized too. Jesus loved me to life and helped me love again.” – Jen 5
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Prayer
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even more churches in running Alpha.
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six key growth drivers that allow us to engage and equip
John Tyson, Lead Pastor at Church of the City, New York, NY
Twice a year we are planning a national Kingdom Come
Prayer initiative with over a thousand people praying during each initiative.
Strategic and Hub Church Initiative Our goal is to expand from 40 to 60 hub churches, growing
our network of churches that provide training and coaching for other churches.
Local Network Expansion We will develop our current staffed local networks to
reach their potential and establish several new networks in strategic cities.
Maximizing Context Ministries Alpha represents potentially the strongest proven tool for
outreach in Catholic, prison and youth contexts. Each has
“Over the years, I have come to appreciate the profound effect that Alpha has had on so many people. Alpha provides a warm, welcoming environment where people can grapple with deep questions of life. Since these questions are human questions, all people are welcomed.” Bishop Eduardo Nevares, Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, AZ
a unique ability to grow quickly because of the common ground and connectedness within those contexts.
National Platform In 2018, we seek to increase Alpha’s national visibility through the national Alpha Conference, new digital
tools, marketing campaigns, strategic partnerships and networking.
Fundraising We are working to increase our stewardship of existing
donors and the enrollment of new donors into the Alpha
story. This includes inviting key donors and potential donors to see behind-the-scenes of Alpha in the local church
context, as well as training and partnership with Mission
“[Alpha] offers an unapologetically solid gospel presentation with a safe space for dialogue, leaving room for God, by His Spirit, to change people’s hearts and lives. If you want to mobilize your church to reach out, this program will help!” Danielle Strickland, Social Justice Advocate
Increase Foundation.
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In order to take ground in achieving this goal, we’ve identified
“Alpha does something that is really rare in our culture. It provides a safe space for people to ask whatever questions they have without fear of judgment.”
ET
Our goal is to see 500,000 people participating with Alpha annually by 2020.
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AHEAD
WHAT LE A D E R S SAY
PAR TN E R WITH ALP HA
When more churches run Alpha, more guests meet Jesus. It’s that simple. Alpha USA comes alongside the Church to
train, support and provide effective resources to help them in their mission, all completely free of
charge. Alpha is 100% funded by friends like you.
Will you consider giving? Your gift will help give Alpha away to the Church, so more people can meet Jesus.
alphausa.org/give
MISSION
Alpha equips and serves the Church in its mission to help people discover and develop a relationship with Jesus. VI S I O N
The Evangelization of the Nations.
Alpha USA 1635 Emerson Lane
The Revitalization of the Church.
Naperville, IL 60540
The Transformation of Society.
questions@alphausa.org
800-362-5742
@alphausa
VALU E S
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We are passionate about unity.
#TryAlpha
We are by the Church, for the Church and through the Church. We believe the Church deserves the best. We believe in giving it all away.
alphausa.org