Evangelism Isn’t an Event - It’s Everyday Life
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Episode 16 · 1 hr 8 min
Ronnie Goble and Alfonso Mack have followed Jesus side by side since they played college football together at Bowling Green State University. Today they serve together at Rooted Church, a gospel-centered, Spirit-dependent church plant in southeast Michigan that is trying to reach the Woodward corridor of Metro Detroit.
Rooted is just over a year old, and its evangelism already comes from people being faithful in everyday life more than from big events.
"We don’t grow the church by relying on Ronnie or Alfonso, we grow by helping our people see the everyday ways they can share Jesus."
From Wings to Witness
Their friendship began at a Buffalo Wild Wings during training camp. Alfonso was on a heated phone call when Ronnie, sitting nearby with a teammate, waved him over. That started the friendship, and eventually Alfonso's conversion.
Soon Ronnie invited Alfonso to H2O Church and FCA. Both men came to Christ through that ministry, and both were shaped by its mix of gospel teaching and close community on campus.
So when they planted Rooted Church years later, they knew what they wanted: to reach people with the gospel through the ordinary rhythms of church and life.
A region that needs roots
The Woodward corridor, a cluster of cities just north of Detroit, represents a diverse and spiritually hungry population. Young adults, immigrants, post-church millennials, and cultural Christians all live side by side. Ronnie, who grew up nearby, returned to plant a church not for a trend, but for transformation.
The name Rooted, and the logo designed by local artist Dion Mixon, come from their hope that people will be grounded in Christ in a place where faith often runs shallow and many people are tired of church.
“We’re in a spot where people are spiritually curious but disconnected. There’s hunger, but also hurt. We’re here for both.”
Evangelism Without Events
Rooted Church has never hosted an outreach event. It trains its members to live on mission wherever they go.
They call it RTG, Rattle the Gates, based on Jesus’ words in Matthew 16. If you share the gospel, invite someone into community, or initiate a spiritual conversation, you’ve had an RTG moment. Members post them in a shared group chat, celebrating and praying over what God is doing.
“It’s given people an imagination for what evangelism looks like in their real lives.”
Members pick up trash in the neighborhood, talk about faith at the gym and have gospel conversations in barbershops. None of it needs a microphone, only intention, humility and obedience.
From Stranger to Sister
One of Rooted’s most compelling stories began at a Panera Bread. A barista named Michelle, new in faith and displaced from church, noticed the group studying the Bible every Friday morning. She started lingering, asking questions. Eventually, someone invited her to church.
She had no car, so a couple who had just joined Rooted offered to drive her every week. A few weeks later, all three were baptized and joined the church together.
“None of that was a program. It was all prayer and people. God just brought it together.”
Spiritual Openness, Real Discipleship
Ronnie and Alfonso say their region is more spiritually open than the places they served before. Metro Detroit is fragmented more than resistant. You'll find New Age seekers, families who have been Jehovah's Witnesses for generations and progressive churches flying rainbow flags.
They answer with relationships and Spirit-led discipleship, and with prayer, more than with arguments. They want people to see that Jesus is a real person worth following with your whole life.
That is why evangelism at Rooted always leads to the church. They want people planted in Scripture, community and mission, beyond a profession of faith.
“We’ve had to help people see that joining Jesus means joining his people. The local church isn’t optional. It’s part of the gospel response.”
Prayer Is the Strategy
Rooted's evangelism is built on prayer. Their core value of "Spirit-dependence" shapes everything: the team prays before work, prays for the campus and prayer-walks the neighborhood, and they are seeing fruit.
“We prayed for someone in Oak Park who needed community and met a girl working at Panera who lived in Oak Park. She’s part of the church now.”
They also echo the old “Pray for BOB” acronym: Burden, Opportunity, Boldness. Prayer is how they stay dependent, and prayer is what breaks open hearts.
Doubt, Lament, and Digital Spaces
They treat seekers gently. Whether someone has been hurt spiritually, is a casual Christian or is curious but cautious, Rooted makes room for them. They don't water down the gospel, and they do leave room for doubt, deconstruction and grief.
Alfonso, especially, talked about lament as a part of evangelism: grieving the sin that traps people, the lies they’ve believed, and the pain they’ve walked through. And they both see digital presence (especially through GroupMe, Bible apps, and even location-based Google searches) as part of the mission field.
Make Disciples or Die Trying
Rooted’s unofficial slogan, borrowed from 50 Cent, is as gritty as it is sincere. Make Disciples or Die Trying.
“It’s not about building a brand. It’s about building a people who are rooted in the gospel and pursuing the renewal of our city.”
They hope for faithful presence more than fast growth, and for a witness of life as well as words: a church of people who walk slowly, love boldly, speak clearly and follow Jesus where others can see.
“Don’t say no for people. Most are more open than you think. Start the conversation. Invite them in.”
A final word from Ronnie and Alfonso
“Evangelism is a team sport. You don’t have to be a superstar, just be faithful, and don’t go alone.”
Resources Mentioned
The Life We’re Looking For by Andy Crouch
The Relational Soul by Richard Plass and James Cofield
Rooted Church: RootedDetroit.org
Scripture Anchors
Matthew 5 (Let your light shine)
Matthew 16 (Gates of hell will not prevail)
Acts 2–3 (Gospel to belief to church)
Hebrews 12:1–2
Philippians 1:21
Practices to Try
Start an RTG (Rattle the Gates) thread for your team or church
Host a weekly Bible study in a public place
Share a meal and spiritual conversation in your home
Pair up; evangelism is better with a friend
Keep Going
Make disciples or die trying
Guests & resources
Meet the guests
- Ronnie Goble
Rooted Church
- Alfonso Mack
Rooted Church