Crossway Church Planting Catalyst
From the Rocky Mountain Region…
On March 8, 2025, a group of about 160 disciples of Jesus Christ gathered at Windsor Community Church to be introduced to, challenged toward, and possibly called to church planting. We had 11 churches from the Crossway Network represented at the Catalyst event, with the farthest attendees coming all the way from the Czech Republic. Additionally, a handful of people joined us from other parts of Colorado and Texas.
Chad Barlow, one of the pastors of Windsor Community Church, served as our MC for the day, while Chase Nation, Windsor Community Worship Arts Director, led a worship team made up of musicians from multiple Crossway churches. The half-day schedule was packed with two main sessions focused on the “why and how” of church planting from an “air war” perspective. I had the privilege of teaching a session we called “It’s Our Turn,” from Matthew 28:19-20, and Pastor Kevin Wolf from Mountain View Community Church spoke on the “Deep Roots” of church planting, based on Acts 13:1-4.
Then, at what we called “the ground war” level, we had an interview with Justin and Lydia Kellam, who shared their journey with Crossway—from their college days at Mountain View Community, to over a decade at The Crossing Church, to attending Catalyst 2022 at Redemption Loveland, and finally being called to join Skyline Church, a church plant in Denver, CO, in the summer of 2023.
We also heard from church planters and future church planters, including Adam Bailey (Denver Colorado), James Opperman (Elizabeth, Colorado), Matt Brown (Golden Colorado), Calder Marriott (Boulder Colorado), and Tom Harcus (San Diego California).
We concluded our time with five breakout sessions covering broad topics related to church planting.
The main purpose of Catalyst 2025 was to cast a wide net, showcasing how the Lord is working through the Crossway Network and church planting. We anticipate tremendous fruit from our time together as we sought to glorify the Lord through his word, his church, and his mission.
Here we go, 2025!
Aaron Santini is the lead pastor for The Crossing Church, Fort Collins.