The Mission Continues
As you’ll see as you read the information below, the mission continues here at Watermark in 2020. While our commitment to discipleship remained unchanged this year, how we served those in our community changed. We adapted our approach to ministry to meet the needs of a city affected by COVID-19, widespread job loss, and temporary lockdowns.
As the pandemic continued, our ministry ramped up, and by God’s grace, we found new ways to reach those in need of the hope of Christ. We look back at this year with gratitude for all God has done in and through this body. We are convinced that, as we remain faithful to the Lord’s mission, He will do even greater things in the months and years ahead.
South Dallas
A church for ministry, worship, service, and collaboration
Relationships have continued to flourish since Watermark acquired a 9.8-acre property and 190,000 square foot building (previously Pearl C. Anderson Middle School) more than a year ago.
Over 250 Watermark Members have been building relationships and sharing the gospel with families in South Dallas through weekly on-site food distribution. Our team and others have had 5,000 opportunities to engage with people through this initiative, with 65% of families returning weekly.
Phase 1 of construction continues, including the development of 24,000 square feet of space, which will feature:
- A 320-seat multi-purpose room
- 5 large classrooms
- 6 classrooms for kids or for adult breakout meetings
- Courtyard and large patio
Targeted Completion: Spring 2021
The Need: $2 million to complete Phase 1
(Total cost: $7.5 million)
Scheduled Opening Date: mid-2021
What’s Next?
- Working with the Watermark CDC to offer its Job Connection Program in the South Dallas community
- Offering Mobile Health Unit visits and planning for healthcare services and other future resources for the community
How can you help?
Pray with us that the South Dallas campus would be a light in our city. Our prayer is that God would go before us to stir hearts to invest and that more than enough will be provided (Exodus 36:5). We ask Members to pray, process in smaller communities, and give generously as the Lord leads. Please also pray for the directional team as they explore how to best love and engage in the months ahead.
Mail checks to Watermark and write “South Dallas” in the memo line.
Address:
Watermark Community Church
7540 LBJ Freeway
Dallas, TX 75251
Here are just a handful of ways we served our neighbors and our world...
- Giving more than $1 million for COVID-19 relief, supporting our partner ministries Brother Bill’s Helping Hand, Our Calling, and Cornerstone. We continue to fulfill additional requests.
- Offering Equipped Disciple, re|engage, and more in Spanish, and finding new ways to welcome Spanish speakers into Membership and community groups.
- Offering re:generation to 40 men at several local prisons.
- Innovating our Anti-Sex Trafficking Ministry so our team can work more effectively with owners of businesses where trafficking is facilitated and minister directly to women working nearby.
- Through our School Impact Team, working at drive-through food distribution sites at 11 RISD-area apartment complexes so students received meals during the lockdown.
- Finding creative ways to build relationships with international students through our Local International Ministry – from delivering groceries to Zoom meetings.
- Providing more than $127,000 for COVID relief across Uganda, El Salvador, Iran, and several Asian countries.
- Sponsoring 3,035 children in El Salvador through our work with Compassion International.
Watermark Community Development Corporation
The mission of the Watermark CDC is to further the name of Jesus by deploying His people and resources to meet the most strategic and transformational economic needs throughout DFW.
Here are a few highlights from 2020:
- Our Financial Catalyst ministry has equipped 330 people with biblical stewardship principles through relational discipleship, financial literacy, and empowerment since the program began. Participants partner with an Ally who provides practical counsel, prayer, and encouragement.
- Our Accelerated Savings Program (ASP) helped 120+ participants save the resources needed to purchase a home, vehicle, post-secondary education, or a business asset. This year, $115,900 in matched funds were paid out, facilitating 16 purchases through the ASP.
- Our Business Development Initiative partners with businesses to start new ventures for the purpose of job creation, employment opportunities, and intentional discipleship.
- Our Job Connection Program launches in 2021, connecting unemployed and underemployed candidates with companies willing to invest in their careers.
Watermark Health
- In the spring, Watermark Health opened a COVID Testing Site on the Dallas campus, serving 1,500 people (500 uninsured) and spotting virus outbreaks at several area factories and residences.
- Watermark Health delivered urgent care services to Our Calling and other ministry partners through Pop-Up Clinics serving the homeless and others in under-resourced neighborhoods.
- Construction is complete on our new Mobile Clinic, which delivers urgent care services to people with little access to healthcare providers.
- Our two urgent care clinics in Plano and Dallas continue to meet the physical and spiritual needs of people throughout DFW. On average, our clinics annually see over 11,000 uninsured/underinsured patients from 129 countries, saving DFW residents $12.1 million.
- We offered dental services to 300+ patients, providing extractions on-site and at the offices of Watermark Members working in oral surgery.
The Life Initiative & Family Restoration
- Our leaders helped 30 prospective foster/adoptive parents complete our first online Intro to Foster Care and Adoption class.
- We piloted a new pro-life apologetics course, More Than Abortion, empowering believers to help those facing unexpected pregnancies and past abortions.
- Over 20 of the 400+ Dallas County children awaiting adoption were part of our Bridge to Adoption match event. Seven children have been successfully placed in adoptive families!
- Eighteen women participated in Path to Restoration, a parenting and discipleship class for moms whose children are in foster care.
- We launched five new ministries related to foster care/adoption, life initiatives, and family restoration.
“Women with unexpected pregnancies still need help, so our leaders have been available to mentor others through the pandemic and help meet the needs of expecting mothers.”
— Terri Kendrick
Watermark Music
This summer, Watermark Music recorded its first-ever studio album here on the Dallas campus. Complete with original songs written by members of the Watermark Music team, this album will be released in early 2021.
Watermark TV
In March we launched Watermark TV, a short-term series of live online broadcasts. From Watermark Live to Family Prayer, each show was an opportunity for connection, encouragement, and fun. Before it was over, viewers attended an online wedding reception and saw David Penuel in a wrestling singlet. (Some say it wasn’t over soon enough.)
Watermark Resources
- 500+ churches across the U.S. now offer re:generation, re|engage, and other ministries.
- Nationally, re:generation participants spent 1.2 million hours collectively over the last year working through our discipleship books.
- Before this year, our largest in-person re:generation leaders conference had about 400 attendees. In 2020, we offered an online conference instead. We hosted almost 1,200 virtual attendees—a 300% increase over our previous record—representing 178 cities in four different countries.
- The Resources Team wrote and published over 150 articles in 2020, equipping people all over the world on issues such as self-leadership, church leadership, conflict resolution, and marriage.
- Partnering with Compassion International, we equipped 650 pastors at an El Salvador pastors conference.
Watermark Online
We’ve always offered podcasts and a live stream of our weekend services, but when the pandemic kept us from gathering in person, our online platforms connected us as a body and allowed us to reach people across the country and around the world.
“What a privilege for our team to write and record the first Watermark Music album with twelve songs written for our church and others around the world. We pray these songs are a gift that points people to the truth of Scripture and the hope we have in Jesus!”
— Erik Nieder
Equipping
- The Join The Journey team deployed 253 writers and 22 editors to create Scripture-rich email devotionals sent each weekday to 17,000 subscribers.
- We connected 1,200+ individuals and 80 community groups with Online Equipping Courses. 40 churches across the country partnered with us to offer Online Equipping Courses to their members.
- We also launched online and in-person Bible Studies for almost 3,000 women and men.
The Collective
In 2020, we launched The Collective, a new ministry for women. Our first in-person event drew thousands to the Dallas campus, followed by virtual and outdoor gatherings. The new Collective Podcast tackles meaningful subjects by women, for women
Watermark Institute
- The Institute welcomed its largest class ever, including 29 Fellows (leaders with several years of ministry/work experience) and 42 Residents (recent college grads) serving in 22 Watermark ministries.
- Our 150+ Institute graduates are leading and serving in ministry throughout
- the country.
- We also launched the Lay Institute for Members leading in a variety of ministries at Watermark.
- Applications are open for our 2021-2022 class.
The Porch(20s & 30s)
- The Porch welcomed thousands of young adults each week to the Dallas campus, and 1,400+ people at 13 The Porch Live satellite locations across the U.S.
- More than 5.7 million messages and podcasts were streamed across all online platforms in the last 12 months.
- Almost 50% of all new Members across the Dallas, Plano, and Frisco campuses were single young adults.
Single Adults (30s, 40s, 50s)
Led by 35 ministry leaders, 100+ single adults were discipled through the books of Jonah and 2 Timothy as they learned to study God’s Word more deeply.
Marriage
- We prepared 750 engaged or seriously dating couples from 22 different states for marriage through Merge. 29% live outside DFW, and 63% do not attend Watermark.
- More than 185 newly married couples took part in 37 new Foundation Groups this year.
- We served 340 couples through 68 new online and in-person re|engage groups this year – including the pilot of two national online groups for couples too far from a church offering re|engage.
“When I came to The Porch, I felt far from God. It was encouraging to be surrounded by authentic young adults who were broken but hungry for fellowship. God met me where I was and sweetly pursued my heart. I made Christ the Lord of my life, and my eternity changed. And it all started with one Tuesday night!”
— Brooke Horn
Kids and Students
- This year, we created Kids Kits – fun, interactive videos and at-home lesson plans for preschool, elementary kids, and kids with special needs – generating 30,000 YouTube views and thousands of downloads from 39 countries and 49 states (sorry, Maine).
- We launched 32 new Student Community Groups, including 165 student Members, and trained 50 adult volunteers (a record number) to lead small groups for 250+ 6th graders.
RE:GENERATION for Students
More than 130 students (grades 6-12) were discipled through the steps of recovery, finding freedom from pornography, substance abuse, disordered eating, depression, anxiety, and other struggles.
College
The College team discipled 300+ students (200 are Watermark Members) from 10+ local colleges and universities at The Nine, our weekly ministry gathering.
re:generation
- The re:generation team moved 1,200 participants to new online gatherings within two weeks of the shutdown.
- More than 756 people in 54 groups were discipled through the steps of recovery this year.
Careers in Motion
CIM launched its first online gathering, providing practical guidance and discipleship to hundreds of job seekers this year.
Community and Connecting
- We welcomed 950 new Members and launched 149 new community groups in Dallas, Frisco, and Plano.
- More than 150 people in Dallas completed the new Online Membership Class. We also started a one-day Membership Class allowing people to learn more about the vision, heart, and values at Watermark and begin serving and connecting with others in community.
“We have seen marriages considered irredeemable by the world’s standard brought back to life by God through re|engage. Broken relationships that become the life-giving marriages God intends for them to be is nothing short of the Holy Spirit at work in our everyday lives.”
— Bobby and Shari Johns
Frisco
- In their second year, Watermark Frisco doubled in Membership and launched 20 community groups, Women’s Bible Study, and The Table, a young adults ministry.
- The Frisco team continued partnering with Frisco ISD, sponsoring an elementary school and renewing the contract to meet in Frisco High School for another year!
- Frisco welcomed 36 new families to Watermark Kids, with 126 leaders serving weekly.
Plano
- After six years of ministry, Watermark Plano becomes an independent, local church on January 1. The new name will be CityBridge Community Church, and the Plano team has already begun live teaching and testimonies on Sundays and will affirm its Elders in December.
- Plano hosted its first Marriage Conference, helping hundreds of couples strengthen their faith and their marriages.
- The team recently finalized plans for Phase 2 of their campus development, thanks to the faithful stewardship of the Plano body.
Fort Worth
On July 1, Watermark Fort Worth became an independent, local church. Their name continues to be Watermark Fort Worth.
Rockwall and Beyond
This team of leaders offers midweek ministry in the Rockwall area. Please pray for their 2021 plans to serve people in Rowlett, Rockwall, and the surrounding areas.