Timeline

2002

• Austin Bridge Builders Alliance (ABBA) is formed

2005

• Hill Country Bible Church (HCBC) discovered a significant disconnect between the sacred and secular is recognized in discipleship. 

• ‘Work is Worship’ sermon series that spurs on excitement throughout the congregation with the leadership of Doug James. Discipleship emphasis on being excellent, ethical, engaged, and evangelistic.

• Hired a workplace executive to lead faith + work ministry.

2009 

• Job Seekers Network started in partnership with HCBC.

2010

• Austin Ridge hires a business pastor, TJ Morelli. 

• Ridge Titans, led by Britt Harris, began having cohorts at Austin Ridge. 

• This was an expression of Titan’s of Investing which Britt began at Texas A&M in 2006. 

• Austin Christian Business Summit began. 

2012

• Eric Stumberg attends a retreat where Jeff Van Duzer and Tod Bolsinger discuss the theology of business. This is the first time Eric encounters the idea that business matters to God and people can be called to be marketplace people. 

2013

• Faith & Business is started at Christ Church to explore the theology of business further.

• Christ Church hosts monthly business luncheons to equip all marketplace leaders.

2014

• Global Leadership Summit at Riverbend Church began with later on support from ABBA taking it city-wide.

• A variety of churches from across the city began meeting and having discussions, including Austin Stone, Austin Ridge, and Christ Church on faith and work integration.

• Dave Barrett, TJ Morelli, Eric Stumberg, Cliff Warner and others are involved in the early stages, hosting gatherings and sharing their experiences.

2015

• Christ Church hosts Jeff Van Duzer in Austin, and city elders and church leaders meet him for dinner.

• A workshop at Austin Stone is held with around 100 attendees, discussing Jeff's book and its application.

• Austin chapter of 4Word, a women’s focused faith and work ministry, is launched by Susan Tolles.

• This included six small groups meeting with the goal of partnering with churches.

• ABBA starts CEO/Pastor Dinner connecting workplace executives with city pastors. 

• Eric Stumberg participated in the Made to Flourish San Diego cohort where he met Jeff Shu.

• Focused on how to get church leaders and lay leaders to do whole life discipleship.

2016

• ABBA led periodic gatherings of several faith and work engaged churches.

• Fuller Seminary’s Center for Spiritual Formation prototyped a cohort on spiritual and vocational development with Eric Stumberg led by Brian Wallace.

2017

• Fuller Seminary designs the first city cohort, inviting individuals from outside Christ Church to participate. Three versions later, Steve Teng invited his workplace leaders from Austin Stone to participate. 

2018

• New Canaan Society launched in Austin as a men’s program for business leaders.

• Christ Church proposed a four-year initiative to disciple every member in their calling.

• High Tech Prayer Breakfast discussions occurred and decided to postpone launch. 

2019

• HCBC relaunched LifeWork to live out faith at work. 

• Christ Church hires Bill Walker to lead a 4-year vocation and calling initiative.

• The Called Conference for women, co-hosted by 4word Austin and ABBA, was attended by 175+ women from diverse backgrounds and careers.

• ABBA coordinated faith and work training for interested churches with 4 separate training sessions.

• Austin Christian Leadership Network proposal did not move out of beta phase.

2020

• Resource Global hosts the first 9-month cohort in Austin with the focus of equipping young marketplace leaders to bring flourishing to their cities. 

• Through CARES Initiative, Steve Teng found the deep understanding of work and faith in under-resourced minority churches.

• He discovers a rich culture in the black church in Austin, where the integration of secular and spiritual is intuitive due to oppression and marginalization.

• Pivot Leadership founded with the initial goal of developing Christ-centered business leaders who more fully integrated their faith and work. The first Nexus Program was a two-year executive program of 16 men and women.

2021

• Celebration Church launches Endeavor, a ministry to empower believers to integrate their faith and work. 

• Pivot Leadership launched their next generation leader program (formerly called Rising Leader Impact Program, now called 787 Fellowship).

2022

• Kingdom Capital Network (KCN) starts with the mission of seeing the church as a trusted place for support, including small business loans.

• Efforts to sustain under-resourced businesses and provide assistance by being the cheapest capital in town. 

2023

• The first Redemptive Lab is hosted by Haley Robison Dake, Sara Miller, Justin Dunton, and John Manning to spur on redemptive imagination with startups and nonprofits. 

• Generosity: ATX hosts Thriving in Faith + Work to facilitate a conversation around integrating faith, lifestyle, and work.