ConnectDinners Newsletter

Pastor's Report - May 2026
May 8, 2026

Over the past eight weeks, we moved into the steady, intentional rhythm of a worshipping community. April was a month without a formal Board meeting, but the work of the Holy Spirit did not pause. As we navigated the Lenten season and crossed into the joy of Easter, I observed a shift: our tables are no longer just places where neighbors eat; they have become sanctuaries. This period has been a threshold for us, transitioning from a new project to a local anchor of hope. We are reclaiming the Wesleyan tradition of the "Love Feast," where the simple act of sharing bread earns us the right to share the Bread of Life.

In this season of growth, I am thrilled to introduce two new members to our Church Board. Pastor Maureen Dahlgren has joined us and will be taking an active pastoral role within the church. Additionally, Pastor Bob Luhn has joined as a pastoral mentor for both myself and our Board. I have known both of these pastors for many years and am excited to have them join our leadership team. Their collective wisdom and experience will be vital as we continue to grow.

Ministry Highlights & Wins

• Easter & The Waters of Baptism: On April 6th, we celebrated Easter with 106 neighbors seated at our tables. Our desire for this Easter Family Feast was to bring families together to celebrate, leaning into our core value of Making Moments—the belief that intentionally designed moments can open hearts, deepen understanding, and inspire personal and spiritual transformation. To create this intentional environment, we served an extravagant menu of smoked pork loin, garlic mashed potatoes, oven-roasted vegetables, strawberry spinach salad, and focaccia breadsticks, with carrot cake for dessert. The atmosphere was further enriched as we expanded our worship team; they shared their talents by providing background music and then belted out a musical special of "At the Cross, Blood Ran Red" as we transitioned into our celebration of baptism. The highlight was the baptism of three of our regular attendees. This brings our total to two salvations and three baptisms since our launch.
  
  
• Ownership of the Street Mission: Two of our neighbors have stepped forward to take ownership of our weekly street food distribution. Both women have experienced seasons of homelessness in their own pasts, and they have deeply connected with our overall desire to love our neighbors as ourselves. Seeing them take charge of this part of our ministry is a powerful sign of growth; they are no longer just attending the meal—they are leading the outreach, inviting those still on the street to find a seat at our table.
  
  

• A Joyful Table: Our First Communion (March 23): We celebrated a joyful communion that broke from typical solemnity. Drawing from the Gospel narrative—specifically the rhythm where "while they were eating, Jesus took the bread"—I chose a format that integrated the sacrament directly into our neighborhood meal. The youth group from Spokane First Nazarene joined our Serve Team that week, distributing carafes of grape juice and plates of unleavened bread. In a display of the "priesthood of all believers," the elements were distributed by the neighbors to one another. After we consumed the elements, I encouraged guests to focus their conversations on what brought them joy that week.

• Making Moments: Each week we continue to celebrate personal milestones—birthdays and anniversaries (wedding and sobriety) from the week past and the week ahead. Whether it is a single birthday or multiple milestones, we sing to each person and provide them with cake and a candle. We start each evening with these celebrations, but we remain willing to interrupt the meal if we discover more that need recognition. Our goal is to ensure every neighbor feels seen, celebrated, and valued as part of our family.

Key Metrics

Engagement remains strong, with a significant peak during our Easter celebration.

Challenges & Strategic Adjustments

• Managing Shared Space Distractions: While we love having our children’s ministry located in the same space as we share the Jesus Story, the activity can cause distractions. In an effort to reduce this, we have started placing a cloth-covered room divider at the front of the platform to create a visual boundary. Additionally, I have repositioned myself during the sharing of the story; instead of standing at the front of the room—between the dining area and the children—I now stand at the side of the room, halfway through the dining area. This has successfully redirected the focus of the neighbors.
  
  
• Engagement vs. Take-Away Distribution: We identified a challenge where neighbors were not fully engaging in our Jesus Story table conversations because they were rushing to secure take-away boxes as soon as they became available. To alleviate this and prioritize community, we have started closing off the buffet service area during the Jesus Story. However, the existing wooden accordion doors are broken and have become very difficult to operate. To resolve this, I plan to transition to two additional fabric room dividers, similar to what we use to separate the kids and dining spaces. While this will fix the mechanical issue and allow us to continue prioritizing table conversation, the only foreseeable challenge is the loss of the sound barrier that the wooden doors previously provided.

• Restaurant Sponsorship Pivot: Despite my desire to connect with local businesses, I have not yet been able to set aside the necessary time to implement this strategy. However, what I have learned in the Dinner Church School of Leadership (DCSL) confirms this is a viable option for financial support, and the class has introduced me to other potential funding models that I am currently evaluating.

Financial & Administrative Updates

• Grant Strategy: While we were not selected as recipients for the Walmart Spark Good or STCU grants, I continue to seek additional grant opportunities as a core part of our financial strategy to ensure the sustainability of our weekly meals.
• The 4Imprint Blessing: I discovered that 4Imprint awards grants of $500 in branded merchandise. I applied for a donation of insulated grocery bags to assist our neighbors in transporting hot to-go meals. While we did not receive the grant for ConnectDinners-specific merchandise, they donated 300 cloth grocery bags that were misprints from other orders. We decided to share these with the local food bank, providing a practical way for our neighbors to carry their groceries with dignity.
• Equipment Update: The Pepsi display refrigerator did not work for our needs, as it could not maintain a consistent temperature. Pastor Preston graciously offered to exchange the use of the Pepsi case for a large upright freezer. Although the overall capacity is slightly smaller, maintaining consistent frozen temperatures is vital. We continue to keep this unit packed full with groceries for our weekly prep.

Old Business & Ongoing Initiatives

• District Assembly Engagement: I was deeply encouraged by our involvement in this year's District Assembly. I participated in a panel session sponsored by the District New Works team to share and answer questions about our new church alongside leaders from Pullman and Ellensburg. Despite our different models, we often face the same challenges and share very similar wins.

Additionally, the session I taught specifically on the Dinner Church model was a highlight—even with extra chairs brought in, it was standing room only. I heard from multiple people who were interested in attending but decided not to because there was simply no room. This confirms the high interest in this model on our District and I hope we can facilitate further conversations or classes in the future.

• DCSL Training & Discipleship Strategy: I continue to attend the Dinner Church School of Leadership taught by Verlon Fosner. We have focused on the nature of discipleship, specifically the contrast between the value-based model and the behavior-based model seen in Scripture. As we discussed in class, "Dinner Churches are not raising up disciples who are able to recite Biblical information; they are raising up disciples who can replicate the works of Christ." This has piqued my interest in providing more traditional discipleship through Bible studies to meet the hunger for deeper teaching I am seeing in our attendees.

• Biblical Hospitality & Belonging: Our DCSL sessions have also explored biblical hospitality—the art of turning strangers into friends. At ConnectDinners, we prioritize a model that allows people to belong before they are asked to believe, placing limitations only on leadership rather than on those entering our community.

Closing Reflection

I feel more confident than ever that we are exactly where God wants us. We are moving from being a "service" to being a family. I encourage you to stay close to the heart of this mission. We are not just distributing calories; we are extending the invitation of the King to those who have been overlooked for too long. I look forward to what the coming months hold as we continue to replicate the works of Christ at our tables.

Respectfully submitted,
Pastor Victor Morrison