Occasionally someone will ask me, “Where did this phrase ‘finding your way back to God’ come from?” Here is the story . . .

With just a handful of people and little money, Dave and I along with our small group of friends, set out to found a church in the Chicago area. It wasn’t long before we discovered what the unique mission of our church was going to be.  

Early in the life of this new church, we went to an event for church leaders who were interested in developing small groups.  Lyman Coleman led these training events all over the country. During one of the sessions that day, Lyman retold Jesus’s parable known as the story of the lost (or prodigal) son. Lyman told us his own story about how he was a lost person, who had repeatedly returned to the Father. With tremendous conviction, he reminded all of us that we are all prodigals who need to find our way back home. Then he urged each of us at the conference to lead churches that would welcome the countless people of all ages and from all backgrounds who want to find their way back to God.

When we heard Lyman say that, Dave and I looked at each other, and we knew. Both of us realized at once that this would be our church’s mission: helping people find their way back to God. Sometimes we write it like this: fywbtG.

Since we first decided that would be our mission, we have seen thousands of people find their way back to God. I am immensely grateful that  God has given us a front-row seat to see this kind of life change over and over again.

Now we are grateful for the opportunity to offer anyone who reads our book that same opportunity: to find your way back to God.

If you do find your way back to God or have already found your way back to God, we would love to hear from you.  On the home page of this website is a place for you to share your story. We look forward to hearing from you.