Story & Vision
Join us in becoming a generous community
September 16, 2018. Our first Sunday gathering — the start of something we could have never built on our own.
We had no idea what the future would hold but we knew Who we were following. Same calling, seven years later - for the sake of others.
Every week, we thank God for the gift of being part of Ethos Church. And every week, we pray that our good and generous Father continues forming us into a relationally healthy community that's marked by love and lives for the sake of others.
At Ethos, we believe the Church exists not for itself, but for the world God so deeply loves. From the beginning, our prayer has been that we would be a people who live on mission, serve with joyful generosity, and reflect the diversity and beauty of Heaven here on earth. That calling continues to shape who we are and where God is leading us next.
The Kingdom of God expands at the speed of sacrifice. As we look toward the future, we sense God inviting us to build not for our comfort, but for those who have yet to find a place at the table. This initiative is about creating space - space for discipleship, for hospitality, for children and families, and for more people in central Ohio to encounter the hope and love of Jesus in life-giving community.
Alongside our Stewardship and Leadership Teams, we believe the building vision outlined in this booklet represents a faithful next step as we follow Jesus together. And we want to walk into this season as a healthy
church family:
01. Healthy families communicate: We believe trust is built through clarity. This booklet is designed to help you understand the vision, the process, and how our collective generosity will be stewarded with wisdom and care.
02. Healthy families seek to understand: This is not about a building or a budget, it’s about the purpose. Everything we are building is for the sake of others, so that more people can experience belonging, transformation, and life in Christ.
03. Healthy families participate: Equal giving is never the goal but equal sacrifice is. Each of us has a part to play, and each “yes” matters as we listen for God’s leading and respond in faith.
Ethos Church, this journey will stretch us — spiritually and personally — but we believe it will also form us more deeply into the generous people God is calling us to be. We are grateful to walk this road with you, trusting that God will use our obedience to bless generations to come.
Jordan and Courtney Smucker
Lead Pastors, Ethos Church
What:
A Building Initiative — a focused season of obedience & generosity for the sake of others.
Why:
Because we want to be formed by Jesus through generosity and build for the sake of others. Our giving isn’t just about meeting needs — it’s about becoming more like Him and advancing His work in the world.
How:
Together. What God calls us to individually is great, but it pales in comparison to what He calls us to together. When we unite in generosity, we participate in something only He can accomplish through us as one body.
$459,977.37
Total Amount Received
30% of our “break ground” goal
For The Sake of Others // Becoming A Generous People
Sophie And Bria's Story
Eric & Amy Bull's Story
The Building
New Auditorium & Foyer
As part of Ethos’ expansion at the Bale Kenyon Road location, new construction will be added to the north side of the building. This space will include a 560-seat auditorium and a large foyer designed to foster connection — creating room for people to gather, build relationships, and experience hospitality.
At the heart of Ethos is a desire to make space for life-giving community and to continually invite others into a place where they can explore faith and encounter Jesus. This new auditorium and foyer are designed to serve that purpose — not simply as a place to gather, but as a space where belonging can begin.
Repurposed Space for Kids, YTH, 24-hour Prayer & Offices
We hold a deep conviction that one of our greatest investments is in the generations we are raising. As part of this next phase, the existing auditorium will be thoughtfully repurposed into a mid-sized gathering space designed for elementary students and teenagers — a place they will love, feel welcomed in, and grow in faith together.
On Sunday mornings, elementary kids will experience platform-led worship and teaching, along with space to gather in small groups with their leaders. Throughout the week, this space will serve our YTH and Young Adult ministries as a dedicated environment for discipleship, community, and spiritual formation. As more students and their friends continue to gather on Wednesday nights, this space will allow us to steward that growth with greater care and intentionality.
These renovations will also make room for a new 24-Hour Prayer Room — a set-apart space for our church to come before the Lord in focused, unhurried prayer. Designed with multiple prayer practices in mind, this room will serve as a place to seek God on behalf of our church, our city, and our world.
Finally, the addition of new office space will support our growing staff team, providing room to collaborate, care for people well, and continue shepherding the life God is healthily building among us.
For the Sake of belonging, formation, and mission
For the Sake of the Emerging Generation
New looks, same heart – preview renovation plans for Ethos Kids spaces
$1.5M to Break Ground
As we look toward the future of this project, we are trusting God to provide the full cost of what we are building – $5.7 million. We believe this is a God-sized vision, and we are confident that He will supply every need in His time.
From a practical standpoint, in order to break ground and begin construction, we need to have 25% of the total project cost committed. That amount is $1.5 million. Reaching this milestone allows us to move forward with confidence, while continuing to trust God for the provision of the remaining resources throughout the life of the project.
We are not asking God to do less – we are asking Him to do it all. This initial step simply marks the moment when faith turns into movement.
$28k/Month Extra
As we plan for this next season, we are also prayerfully preparing for the ongoing responsibilities that comes with expanding our facility. Based on current estimates and depending on the initial amount placed towards the project, our monthly operating expenses are expected to increase by a maximum of $28,000 once construction is complete.
We see this not simply as a cost, but as an opportunity – an invitation to grow together in faithful, recurring generosity. In addition to one-time and monthly commitments towards the project itself, we are also trusting God to provide ongoing monthly support that will sustain the ministry and mission these spaces are designed to serve.
As always, our heart is not equal giving, but equal obedience. Each family is invited to prayerfully consider how God might lead them to participate – both now and in the years ahead – as we steward this vision together.
How To Build: For the Sake of Others?
Participation in this journey is not about equal giving, but equal sacrifice. What God invites one person to offer may look very different from another, but the invitation is the same: to trust Him and respond in obedience. When we give in this way, generosity become less about comparison and more about formation.
Would you ask God what He would have you give?
A Liturgy For Giving
God, thank You for Your love and sacrifice. I confess that it’s easy
to believe the lie that my happiness, purpose, and identity comes
from how much money I have.
Holy Spirit, remind me that true freedom comes from living
open-handed. Lead me in practicing generosity, not so that I can
make a great name for myself, but so that the world can witness
the deep joy of a life lived for You.
Amen.
“God loves a cheerful giver… and God is able to bless you abundantly,
so that in all things… you will abound in every good work.”
2 Corinthians 9:6–8
“Let us rise up and build.”
Nehemiah 2:18