Our dream for Journey is to create a different kind of church that is FOR the Greater Bangor Area...

• a church that is passionate about creating environments that are both helpful and engaging so that even our friends who don’t connect with church would love to attend;
• a church that is committed to leading people into a growing relationship with Jesus;
• a church where it is safe to attend even before you’re confident in what you believe about God.

If you are new to church or just coming back to faith... or, if you have friends who are new to church or just coming back to faith... the dream of Journey is for people like you!

At Journey, we have one mission:

to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus.

We accomplish that mission by creating environments that unchurched people love to attend. We have two goals for each environment we create:

    •    engaging – are people enjoying the experience?

    •    helpful – are people learning & growing from the experience?

These environments make it easy to grow in three vital relationships:

    •    intimacy with God

    •    community with insiders

    •    influence with outsiders

To make this mission possible, we encourage fully-invested regular attenders to participate in four things – simple ways to partner with Journey:

    •    connect – in a small group

    •    serve – on a volunteer team

    •    give – to the mission

    •    invite – others to come and see

We take this approach because we believe that there are five ways God grows people in their faith:

    •    practical teaching

    •    providential relationships

    •    private disciplines

    •    personal ministry

    •    pivotal circumstances

Hey!

My name is Chris Madden and my wife’s name is Amy. Both of us were raised in central Maine. We got married in 2004 and have two teenage kids: Mya and Noah. Here’s my story…

I grew up in ministry as a pastor’s kid. Right out of high school I served as the director of youth and worship at a small baptist church my dad pastored in Milo Maine. After getting married, I moved to Portland and within a year landed a job as the Worship Leader for Eastpoint Christian Church.

Eventually, I found my way back to the Bangor area and served as the Worship Leader for the Rock Church for a few years. It was there that I met Jim Funari. In 2016 I had the opportunity to join Jim and his wife Tanya in launching Journey church.

Journey was everything Jim and I dreamed it would be. It was a beautiful community of people, growing in their relationships with God, with a vision of building a church that unchurched people would love to attend. It launched with about 60 people and grew to a church of over 200. Then 2020 hit. Tanya battled cancer. Jim moved south. And Journey struggled to find a Lead Pastor who shared our specific vision.

On February 13th, 2022, I announced that Journey Church was officially closing its doors. We handed everything Journey had over to the Rock Church so they could launch a campus of their own in Hampden.

When it seemed like the dream of Journey was dead, me and my family moved to Georgia so that we could be a part of a church that shared the same vision and mission of Journey: Gwinnett Church. This experience gave me my first break from ministry since becoming an adult, challenged my faith, and strengthened my relationship with God.

While in Georgia, I knew I still wanted a church in the Bangor area that unchurched people would love to attend. But, I struggled to believe that I was the right person to Pastor that church. For one thing, I had tremendous anxiety around public speaking! I asked God to send someone else to Pastor a church like Journey in the Bangor area so that I could join them. Eventually I realized that although I may not be the exact Pastor I want, if I follow Jesus he can fill in the gaps. I just need to trust Him.

In the summer of 2023, I decided I’d spend a year learning and growing in Georgia. Then, in the summer of 2024, I moved back in order to relaunch Journey church.

In many ways, Journey will be a completely new church. The reason it’s a “relaunch” is simply because it’s the same mission, vision and strategy that Journey had. And, to Jim and I, the vision was what Journey was all about.

If you’d like to join us in making this dream a reality, maybe we could meet up over breakfast or a cup of coffee... my treat!

-Chris