Welcome to PHOS CHURCH!
I would like to introduce myself, my name is Tyler Whitcomb and I am the lead teaching Pastor at PHOS CHURCH. I would like to give you a little back story as to how this church “re-plant” came to be.
This past January I was in Chennai, India, where I had the opportunity to co-teach at a bible institute with one of the ministry partners from church where I was then serving. While in India, God began working in my heart and mind and I truly believed He was leading me out of the area of ministry I was serving in back in Michigan. During my time in Chennai, I was trying to discern whether God was leading me to move to India to become a fulltime missionary. This was my second time serving at this institute in India and I had begun to fall in love with the people and the culture. I definitely I thought the Lord was preparing me to make a move. Little did I know God had a different move in mind.
Upon returning home, I began feeling unsettled with where I was in life and in ministry. I felt that the Lord was leading me somewhere, but was I unsure of my next move. I began having discussions with people I trusted about whether I should move to India for a year to see if that was where the Lord was calling me into fulltime ministry.
It was the end of February/early March 2020, when the Director of the Metro-Detroit network of the Missionary Church USA reached out to me to get together. The two of us began having a dialogue about what it would look like for me to become affiliated with a church in a network that was struggling to engage with the next generation. Frankly, I was immediately was overwhelmed with excitement about this opportunity. At the same time I had a plethora of self-doubts on whether or not I was ready to take on something this big.
So, I began prayerfully considering whether or not God was leading me to India or this church re-plant. Through the Godly counsel I was receiving, I discerned that my answer for India was “not now.” As much as I loved the people of India, I had to accept that this moment in time was not the right time for me to make the move. After a couple months of prayer along with Godly counsel, the Lord made it clear to me that Phos church is where He wanted me.
The Lord immediately began bringing Godly, gifted individuals into my life that wanted to be a part of this new ministry God was planning in the heart of Sterling Heights, MI. It has been amazing to watch God open so many open doors since saying “yes” to this opportunity.
Please know that we would love to have you come and worship with us, whether you have been following Jesus since pre-school or have never been to church in your life! God is on the move and we cannot wait to see what He does!
Tyler Whitcomb
Lead Teaching Pastor