A gray, Sunday morning drizzle. A Connect Desk set up with little bowls of ear plugs. A weekly bulletin handed out by the greeters at the doors. Really loud guitars. And eventually, Pastor Mark booming from the front of a room, preaching out of the Gospel of Luke, naturally.

It was in many ways a perfectly typical Mars Hill Church Sunday service. Except this is one is on the frontier of the mission, the northern one, specifically.

This past Sunday, 30 miles north of Seattle, Mars Hill Church Everett launched with 787 adults and kids at two services, held in the fitness center of Everett Community College.

Earlier that morning, Pastor Scott Mitchell and a throng of church leaders and volunteers arrived at 6 a.m. at the center with a trailer of supplies. They set up the coffee and book tables in front of gated-off weight room. They covered the floor of the gym and then set up a few hundred chairs in the middle, with an elevated track circling overhead.

And then everyone began to arrive.

Ashley and Travis are one of the young families who show up for the 9 a.m. service with their 3-month-old daughter, Lily, in tow. The couple, 24 and 25, respectively, live in Lake Stevens and had for some time now been making the drive down to the Shoreline church, 30 miles from their home. So how excited were they to be able to arrive at their church now less than 10 miles away? "Pumped, it's awesome," says Travis, before going on, "It's more of the community, too, knowing that the church family is surrounding, not only us, but in the area. It's more like a family with it being so close."

They're one of the many families who live on the North End who are migrating from the Shoreline church to Everett for a church body closer to home. "A lot of the people that we became close with at Shoreline are now at Everett, too, and in our Community Group and women's group," says Ashley.

The two, who've been married a year, first started attending at the Ballard church together four years ago, but never really made any lasting connections there. Most weeks, says Ashley, the routine was, "kind of just go to church and go home." But, after moving to the Shoreline church, the couple joined a Community Group, and it was there that the deep friendships took root. Now, they prefer the smaller-sized Everett congregation. "With only two services and stuff, the body has become smaller and more personable," says Travis. "Everyone gets to know everyone."

The guys and the soundboard

By the end of the first service, Pastor Scott is getting a steady stream of texts from people from everywhere from Shoreline to Hawaii to South Africa, letting him know they're praying for him and the church. It's almost like the first day of school, but with a little more gravity. "I get butterflies in my stomach. I'm pretty new at it," he admits, as he takes a deep breath as he looks out at the gym. "Honestly, every time it's like 'Holy Spirit, I need you. I'm not trying to pray that just because I need you right now—I need you always—but I feel it more right now.'"

"He knows in his heart, in his soul, that this is God's called him to, and he's doing it and he's seeking God in everything that he's doing." –Mo Mitchell, on her husband, Pastor Scott

And he's under no pretense of independence. The idea of "being humbly dependent," he says is what has been running through his head, citing 2 Corinthians. "Even all this," he says, motioning to the filled seats, "Still at the end of the day, it's all about Jesus. So that's what's been really in my heart, just praying that we can steward the gift of new people well."

His wife, Monina, aka Mo, echos that sentiment in him, particularly as she's watched and been there with Scott as he's worked day in and day out to get the Everett church body and launch going. "He's taken every step with Jesus; he's not going on his own, he's seeking counsel in every decision that he makes. And I know this because I'm there at home and he's making those phone calls and has those conversations."

"Scott's a hard worker, he's always been a hard worker. But to see the passion in him now and what he's doing … it's been amazing to watch. See?" she says, starting to tear up.  "He's really passionate. He knows in his heart, in his soul, that this is God's called him to, and he's doing it and he's seeking God in everything that he's doing."

It's been a landmark year of sorts. "This last year, God has just ironing him out. and it's been great because he's moldable … to God. God's changing him. He's saying, 'Whatever you want, God.' And he's doing it," she says.

Communion

One of those leaders Pastor Scott has brought on board is Diane, 54, who is one of two women's coaches at Everett. She and her husband, both deacons, just joined the Everett church, after coming over from the Shoreline church, which they attended since its launch almost six years ago. Except in this case, "coach" doesn't mean having the young women doing reps with Bible verses or something: she spends a lot of time talking and encouraging them in faith and life. And she finds a constant stream of ladies who are looking for that encouragement … and breakfast.

"There are so many young women who need a mom or a mentor, who maybe weren't raised in a home with a godly mother and maybe even in a home with a lot of dysfunction," Diane says of  the women she meets with. "So many of the girls are kind of at the age where my daughters would be and they just want to come and have coffee and muffins in the morning and just talk and just share their hearts."

"That God would reveal himself to them in all of the truth and fulness of who he is that they would really know … how much they're loved." –Diane, on her prayers for the women of Everett

Often, Diane says the women in Everett are coming out of experiences in churches steeped in religious legalism, or "rule-making" and "living by the letter of the law, not the spirit of the law," as Pastor Mark has called it. "A lot of them are fighting to get the shreds of legalism off of them because they've been very damaged by it." Diane says she and her husband used to attend a similar church, which has given her good experience to draw on when talking with the young women.

So what does she pray for the women in Everett? "Mostly that God would reveal himself to them in all of the truth and fulness of who he is that they would really know that and have an accurate view of that, a biblical view, and know how much they're loved."

Edward

Watching the entire production from the periphery is Edward, a 21-year-old member of the security team. Born in Nal'chik, Russia, he works in the kitchen at a local retirement center. He has attended Mars Hill for a year and just signed up for the fall Doctrine membership class.

"I'm proud of this church and I just wanna find myself, find my calling in this church. I wanna be part of it." –Edward, security team member

After years of making the trek to other locations by himself, having a Mars Hill church in his neighborhood is huge for him, both for himself but also so he can invite friends, and he's jumping at the bit to get involved. "I'm proud of this church and I just wanna find myself, find my calling in this church. I wanna be part of it."

With most guys his age compelled by anything but church, why has this one so committed to this one inparticular? "Because the teaching they have here is really healthy … a teaching I can grow on," he says. He finds himself especially responding to the teaching on biblical manhood. "They call the men to take responsibility … and I just like that they expect a lot out of me."

Being in community with other men in the church has set a high standard for him, too. "They're really good role models, something I want to strive to … I like their character, I like their integrity," he says. "The character: they're men and they're godly men."

This type of model of a Christian man is something that's new to him. "I always had a hard time putting these two together: godly man and just being a man," he says. "But what I like about Mars Hill is they combine these two. Before that, going to my parents' church, I didn't know that. I just thought being a godly man was being really nice and can't-really-fight, have-to-listen-to-soft-music [type of thing]."

And so he is all in—and up for wherever the church most needs him. "For my role here, I wanna be useful. I want to set aside my expectations or what I wanna do [and] basically, just go where I fit in the best," he says. "Right now, it looks like security and tear down, but sometimes I think I could be one of the Community Group leaders or something like that. But I have to be faithful in little things before I get to be faithful in big things."

"It's for the glory of Jesus and I just want to be a servant in that." –Edward

"I am excited about Everett. I am praying for Everett. There is a lot of work to be done here and I can finally do something in Everett through our church," he says, his eyes focused. "This is amazing. I'm really excited because it's the start of a great thing. It's for the glory of Jesus and I just want to be a servant in that and just expand the gospel and get more people saved." He pauses, "And not that I will [save people], but just that Jesus can use me, and I'm excited about that."

There will be infinite use for him at Mars Hill Everett for a long time to come.

Tearing down and packing it all in at the end of the day

Check out our Flickr and here for more photos from the launch, and visit the Everett church's website for more info. Stay tuned this week for a Q&A with Mo, Pastor Scott's wife, on what the experience of becoming a pastor's wife has been like for her.

This post was written by staff editor Holly, and volunteers Jeff and Ben photographed the day.