DALLAS, TX, UNITED STATES, October 24, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Mission Alive received a second grant to expand its Rural and Small-Town Initiative (RSTI), continuing a partnership with Pepperdine University’s Empower and Equip Initiative, funded by Lilly Endowment Inc. The new phase of collaboration funds two additional Innovative Faith Communities (IFCs) across rural and small-town America, strengthening Mission Alive’s mission to train leaders passionate about cultivating spaces where faith flourishes and communities thrive through spiritual and social renewal.

Executive Director Tod Vogt said the expansion represents a powerful continuation of the organization’s work. “We’ve seen incredible momentum in our first phase of RSTI,” Vogt noted. “This new grant allows us to build on that momentum by launching two more communities—five in total—that will bring hope and renewal to areas often overlooked. We’re deeply grateful for the continued partnership with Pepperdine University and the Lilly Endowment, Inc., and for their shared vision to empower small-town and rural leaders.”

Expanding Impact Through Innovation
The additional funding bolsters Mission Alive’s serve-first approach—a model that empowers leaders to listen to their communities, form authentic relationships, and allow faith to take root through helping the community thrive.. Each new IFC will focus on local transformation, creating environments where spiritual vitality and social renewal grow hand in hand. The goal is to foster lasting hope and resilience in neighborhoods that often face economic, social, or geographic isolation. By training and supporting leaders to launch and sustain these communities, Mission Alive aims to help local churches become catalysts for shared life and purposeful faith. The organization believes that churches can be both deeply spiritual and socially responsive, serving as centers of support, compassion, and innovation.

A Continued Collaboration
Through its ongoing partnership with Pepperdine University’s Empower and Equip program, Mission Alive will:
1. Launch five Innovative Faith Communities in rural and small-town settings.
2. Equip local leaders through hands-on training, personalized coaching, and spiritual formation.
3. Promote sustainable community partnerships grounded in service and love for neighbors.
4. Strengthen networks of small-town church leaders nationwide.

Mission Alive’s expanding initiative demonstrates its commitment to renewing the presence and purpose of the church in all contexts—urban, suburban, and rural alike. This second phase will accelerate efforts to nurture leaders, connect dispersed communities, and foster faith movements that bring enduring transformation.

About Mission Alive
Founded in 2004, Mission Alive is a nonprofit organization dedicated to training and equipping leaders to launch, develop, and grow Innovative Faith Communities that engage their neighborhoods with the gospel. Through programs like Discipleship Cohorts, Catalyze Coaching, Outfitter’s Residency, and Stream Equipping, Mission Alive helps churches adapt to the changing landscape of 21st-century ministry—teaching them to serve first, love deeply, and live missionally.

Tod Vogt
Mission Alive
+1 214-364-2756
tod@missionalive.org
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