Ancient Faith
Living Church
Church Planting Prospectus · Bixby, Oklahoma
Thus says the LORD
“Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.”
Jeremiah 6:16
In This Prospectus
Contents
I. The Calling
II. The Need
IV. The Church
V. The Invitation
A Word from the Planter
Historicity and modern relevance
can cooperate, not compete.
On New Year’s Day 2026, my wife Emily, our year-and-a-half-old daughter Adaline, and I found ourselves driving through the Tulsa metro, prayerfully searching where God was calling us to plant. Tulsa, admittedly, is the buckle of the Bible Belt, making it an unlikely location for a church plant. But beneath its megachurches lies a festering issue. Its oversaturation of cultural Christianity has resulted in stagnant churches, institutionally averse families, and spiritually numb deconstructionists. Its evangelical presence, though seemingly significant on paper, masks a growing disenchantment with organized religion.
So, there we were, trying to survey its growing suburbs and identify where God was already at work. In a coffee shop in South Tulsa, a seed was planted: “Y’all should check out Bixby; it’s growing like crazy.” A quick drive through the city affirmed this statement. We were struck by subdivision after subdivision of new homes dotting the landscape and the new schools constructed to try to keep up with the district’s growing enrollment of almost 9,000 students.
What surprised us the most was that it seemed God was at work preparing for a new church plant long before we ever considered Bixby. Multiple pastors expressed a desire to see another church planted in Bixby, and they were willing to support the work. After much prayer, Emily and I believed that God was calling us to Bixby.
I moved to North Carolina eight years ago after graduating from Oklahoma Baptist University. When I enrolled in Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary for my Master of Divinity, I did not know if God would ever allow me to return to Oklahoma. I spent the next eight years in North Carolina, finishing my M.Div. and a Ph.D. in Preaching, while also serving at The Church at Clayton Crossings. They took a chance on a young 24-year-old with no professional ministerial experience, just a heart for the Lord and a drive to make disciples. I later became the discipleship pastor and had the joy of architecting the systems our church of 1,300 people needed to grow in their walk with the Lord. As Emily and I surveyed the town of Bixby, we realized that God was using all of these past experiences to prepare us for this work. We knew that Bixby needed a new Gospel-centered church, and if God sent us we would go.
Bixby finds itself at a crossroads. The modern pressure to adapt or be left behind conflicts with its nostalgic desire for preserving the heirlooms of the past. Like a heart straining to send life to its distant extremities, Bixby’s walkable downtown sighs at the rapid growth occurring at its city limits as farmland rapidly converts to subdivisions. Then realization struck: historicity and modern relevance can cooperate, not compete.
Thus, the vision for Vintage Baptist Church was born — a church possessed of a faith older than the ones who held it, but still as vibrant as a lantern’s flame.
For the Gospel,
Chancellor Stillwell
Sent for the Gospel
The Stillwell Family
Chancellor · Emily · Adaline · Violet
The Problem
Lostness in the Bible Belt.
In the last 25 years —
40,000,000
Americans dechurched
“More people have left the church in the last twenty-five years than all the new people who became Christians from the First Great Awakening, Second Great Awakening, and Billy Graham crusades combined.”
— Jim Davis & Michael Graham, The Great Dechurching, 2023
i. The Decline
U.S. Christian Identification
78%62%
20072024
−16 pts in 17 years
Pew, 2024
Oklahoma Christian Identification
85%71%
20072024
−14 pts, the Bible Belt
Pew, 2007 & 2024
The Religiously Unaffiliated “Nones”
16%29%
20072024
+13 pts unaffiliated
Pew, 2024
U.S. Protestant Churches Closed vs. Planted, 2019
Net loss of 1,500 churches in a single year
Lifeway Research, 2021
Christianity in America has declined approximately sixteen percentage points in seventeen years — from 78% in 2007 to 62% in 2024. The religiously unaffiliated — the “nones” — now represent 29% of U.S. adults, up from 16% in 2007.1 Oklahoma is not exempt. Despite its Bible Belt reputation, the state has shed fourteen points of Christian identification since 2007, from 85% to approximately 71%, with a “nones” share now virtually identical to the national average.2
Churches are closing faster than they are opening. In 2019 alone — before COVID — 4,500 U.S. Protestant churches closed while only 3,000 were planted, a net loss of 1,500 congregations in a single year.3
ii. The Confusion
The crisis is not only among those leaving — it is among those remaining. The 2025 State of American Theology (Ligonier/Lifeway Research) reveals a church increasingly unmoored from its own convictions.
- Pew Research Center, Religious Landscape Study, 2024.
- Pew Research Center, Religious Landscape Study, 2007 & 2024.
- Lifeway Research, 2021. lifewayresearch.com
The Way Forward
Ancient Faith. Living Church.
Theological depth and missional motivation. Both are needed. Neither is sufficient alone.
i. Theological Depth
Clarity from the centuries.
Ancient creeds and historic confessions name what the church has always believed — and quietly refuse what it has not. They will not bend to the spirit of the age because they were forged before it. We will catechize, recite, and shepherd by them.
AD 325 & 381
The Nicene Creed
The trinitarian rule of faith confessed by the global church for seventeen centuries.
1833
The New Hampshire Confession of Faith
A robust statement of reformed, baptist conviction — Scripture, grace, church, and ordinances.
ii. Missional Motivation
A new work for a new field.
Lifeway’s research is consistent: new churches reach people the established church is no longer reaching. Plants pull in the unchurched, the dechurched, and the never-churched at rates settled congregations cannot match.1 So — we plant.
iii. The Hope
51%
of dechurched evangelicals are willing to return
“The way forward is not by creating something completely new, but by returning to something very old.”
— Davis & Graham, The Great Dechurching, 2023.
- Lifeway Research, 2015. news.lifeway.com
- Jim Davis & Michael Graham, The Great Dechurching, Zondervan, 2023.
The Place
Why Tulsa?
A million-soul mission field.
Greater Tulsa · 2024
1,059,803
people across the metropolitan statistical area — and 1.18 million across the Green Country region.1
Tulsa is the economic and cultural capital of Green Country — home to more than one million people and anchor to a region that is quietly growing faster than its reputation suggests. It carries the Bible Belt label, but the label obscures a more sobering reality: six in ten Oklahomans are functionally unchurched on any given Sunday, and the generation now filling the suburbs is less connected to the church than any before it.
The need is not abstract. It is one million people — a growing share of whom have no meaningful relationship with a Gospel-preaching church.
By the Numbers
The Bible Belt, Soberly Counted
“Six in ten Oklahomans are unchurched — on any given Sunday, only 25–33% are in a pew.”
Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma · Hidden Harvest Study
- U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Metropolitan & Combined Statistical Area population estimates.
- Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, Hidden Harvest Study; Pew Research Center, 2023–24.
The Place
Why Bixby?
A town being built right now.
Bixby has more than doubled since 2000 and crossed 30,000 residents for the first time in 2023. North of the river, subdivision after subdivision dots the landscape as developers race to provide more homes for Bixby’s rapidly expanding populace. A massive build-out is now underway south of the river as well — a 150-acre, ~40-brand retail center at Spartan Creek, two proposed Walmarts, and a new $70M high school that opened in January 2025 — with families pouring into some ninety new-home communities.
These are the highest-income households in the Tulsa metro, arriving without roots in brand-new neighborhoods. The window to plant a confessional, Gospel-centered church is wide open.
Bixby Population · 2000 – 2026
More than doubling since 2000.
U.S. Census Bureau · World Population Review · Tulsa World, 2024–25
By the Numbers
i.
Schools bursting.
8,374 students
Bixby Public Schools enrollment hit 8,374 in 2024–25 and is projected past 9,000 by 2028 — roughly 150–200 students a year. A new $70M high school opened in January 2025, with a campus south of the river planned next.
NCES · Tulsa World, 2025
ii.
A build-out south of the river.
800–1,000 new jobs
The 150-acre Spartan Creek center will bring some 40 national brands and a grocery anchor; with two proposed Walmarts, the city estimates 800–1,000 new jobs — families arriving in ninety-plus new-home communities.
City of Bixby · KJRH, 2026
iii.
A city built since 2000.
50.7% of homes built after 2000
More than half of Bixby’s ~10,443 housing units didn’t exist twenty-five years ago. New subdivisions like Enclave at Addison Creek, River Crest, and Rowan Grove are adding families to neighborhoods with no long-standing institutions — civic or otherwise.
U.S. Census Bureau · Biggest US Cities, 2024
From the Superintendent
“They’re coming. We better build it.”
Rob Miller · Superintendent, Bixby Public Schools
- Growth ranking: U.S. Census Bureau, reported by the Broken Arrow Sentinel; cities of 20,000+ residents, 2020–24.
- Population, income & demographic figures: U.S. Census Bureau / ACS via Data USA, World Population Review, NCES, Tulsa World, 2024–25.
Who We Are
Vision, mission,
and values.
i. Our Vision
Emily and I are no strangers to Bixby’s context. To us, Bixby is a carbon copy of the town where we currently live in NC. Clayton has also experienced rapid growth, has about 30,000 people, and is predominantly made up of young families. Because of that, we know that Bixby is likely yearning for a church with a robust family ministry, an intentional discipleship process, and a biblically organized congregation. We believe that God has provided us to plant such a church.
As Bixby stretches with the pressure of continued growth, there will be a tension to maintain its hometown feel, while also adapting to its growing needs. That tension is likewise experienced by churches around the world. How do you stay true to an ancient Gospel, while also promoting a living culture marked by Gospel growth and sacrificial sending? Vintage Baptist Church helps to walk that line between rooted tradition on the one hand and vibrant worship on the other.
We believe that to move forward, the church must look back. Look back not just to the founder of our faith, Jesus Christ, but also to the Church’s faithful ancestors who have passed the Gospel torch to each succeeding generation. As the recipients of the Gospel flame in the 21st century, we believe God has called us to shine His light in Bixby, OK.
However, we’re not content with planting only one church. Bixby isn’t the only suburb surrounding Tulsa that is flooding with new families. Glenpool, Collinsville, and Coweta, to name but a few, are also growing rapidly and rapidly needing new churches. We hope to plant not just a tree but an orchard of healthy, growing, and going churches over the coming years. By 2040 we believe God will use us to plant five churches, ordain 50 pastors, and baptize 500 people for the glory of Christ’s name in Tulsa, OK.
Our Mission
Make disciples and plant churches.
planted
ordained
baptized
ii. Our Values
Kinship Community
We aim to cultivate a community marked by Gospel kinship—a family united by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Missional Discipleship
Discipleship that does not end in evangelism is not discipleship. We will commit to making disciples who make disciples.
God-Centered Worship
God is both the subject and object of our worship, and every element on Sunday morning should reflect that reality.
Multi-Generational Families
The Church should celebrate and disciple individuals from every generation, young and old. We commit to cultivating a community that honors the wisdom of the old and the strength of the young.
Vibrant Tradition
We look back to look forward. What has been handed down to us in belief and practice should not be hidden but displayed to demonstrate stability in an ever-changing culture.
Rhythms, Not Programs
Our Strategy.
The Acts 2 Flywheel.
Acts 2 · 42 – 47
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need Give. And day by day, attending the temple together Gather and breaking bread in their homes Group, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved Go.
English Standard Version
The early church met together in the temple for congregational worship, devoting themselves to the teaching of the Apostles. We will gather weekly to sing the Gospel, hear the Gospel, and feast on the Gospel. Worship facilitates a unique encounter between humanity and the Trinity, and its practice should reflect that. It’s okay for things to feel “churchy.” In fact, that’s the whole point.
From the start of the church, meals were not just eaten corporately but in homes by all who followed Jesus.
Hospitality is more than hosting; it’s a God-given gift for the deepening of relationships. Coffee shops, playgrounds, and homes will be sacred ground for our groups to meet for encouragement and accountability. In a transient community, groups will help anchor our spiritual growth in the soil of Bixby as we seek to put down roots.
The Acts 2 church “had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.” Money and possessions are tools to further God’s kingdom, not our own. He has given each of us time, talents, and treasures to steward for His glory.
Healthy churches make disciples and plant churches. These two goals will be our priority from day one. God is sovereign over salvation, yes, but that doesn’t mean we get to sit back and watch it happen. We are going to get off the bench and sweat on the field for the spread of the Gospel and conversion of the lost.
Our Doctrine
What we stand on.
We are…
Confessional
The Baptist Faith and Message, 2000
Broadest — the framework we stand within
The Nicene Creed, AD 325 & 381
What we confess with the whole church, in every century
The New Hampshire Confession of Faith, 1833
Narrowest — the confession we affirm as our own standard
Baptist
Southern Baptist Convention · sbc.net
Elder-Led & Congregationally Ruled
A plurality of elders, served by deacons, under the congregation’s authority
The full doctrinal statement is published at Our Statement of Faith.
Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone.Ephesians 2:20
Endorsements
What others are saying.
Pastors and professors who have taught, examined, and walked with Chancellor.
Oklahoma Baptist University
Bixby is a growing community that needs the kind of gospel-centered church Chancellor Stillwell is planting. I’ve had the privilege of watching Chancellor for years, first as an exceptional student at OBU, then at Southeastern Seminary, and, more importantly, as a young man whose heart has always been in the local church. Chancellor knows he needs the support and cooperation of others in this work, and that spirit of partnership defines how he will lead. His wife Emily will be an enormous asset to this church plant as well, and I have no doubt God has equipped them for this work. I am grateful God has brought them back to Oklahoma so that I can witness all that God will do through them at Vintage Baptist Church.
Southeastern Seminary
Serving the greater Tulsa area will bring some unique challenges, but I’m thankful that God has called and prepared Chancellor Stillwell and his family to meet the needs of that community with the gospel of Christ. I’m confident that Chancellor’s love for Jesus and his love for others will enable him to effectively lead Vintage Baptist Church to be a beacon of hope that is anchored in God’s word and shines for his glory.
Oklahoma Baptists
I’ve known Chancellor Stillwell for a number of years and have had the privilege to have him in my classes as a student. Chancellor combines a very sharp mind with a very strong passion to see people come to faith in Christ and be discipled. I am grateful God has called Chancellor and his family back to Oklahoma to plant a church where his gifts can be used to advance the gospel.
Endorsed & sent by
Our Timeline
From here to launch, and beyond.
Four phases: prayer and preparation, presence in the city, a church gathered, and a church that sends.
First gathering
September 2027
I
CURRENTPhase One · Sept 2026 – Dec 2026
Prepare to Plant
- Develop prayer team
- Begin building core team
- Build strategic partnerships
- Finalize legal church documents
II
Phase Two · Jan 2027 – Aug 2027
Cultivate the Soil
- Relocate core team
- Assimilate into the city’s culture
- Regularly meet with core team and partners
- Engage the city with the Gospel
- Take core team through initial membership process
- Secure a meeting location
- Identify potential deacons
III
Phase Three · Sept 2027 – Jan 2028
Plant the Seed
- Covenant together with core team as a church
- Host first Sunday morning service
- Disciple new believers
- Conduct first membership class
- Establish age-specific ministries
- Launch new small groups
IV
Phase Four · Jan 2028 & Beyond
Taking Root and Bearing Fruit
- Serve Bixby through key outreach initiatives
- Develop plans for future church planting
- Host missions teams from partner churches
- Establish residency program
- Train and ordain elders
Not a finish line — a church that plants churches.
Our Budget
What it takes to plant.
The 2027 launch year, sorted by what each dollar is actually doing: making disciples.
2027 Launch Year
$350,000
one budget, one purpose
The Ask
Next year’s need: $350,000
Given once, or given monthly, it is the same gift: a church in Bixby.
Partner in Prayer
Pray us into Bixby.
Before there is a core team, a meeting place, or a first Sunday, there are people asking God for a church in Bixby. This is the partnership we need most, and the one anyone can begin today.
i. How to Pray for Us
Pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word.Colossians 4:3
Prayer Partner Newsletter
Join the prayer team
Once a month you’ll receive planting updates: where the core team stands, what God is doing in Bixby, and specific requests for the weeks ahead.
Partner in Giving
Every gift leveraged
for the Gospel.
104 monthly partners, together covering the full $350,000 annual budget.
How to Give
Give Online
Partner with Vintage
Choose a tier or any amount. Monthly recurring gifts are what let us plan the launch year.
Gifts are processed through The Church at Clayton Crossings on behalf of the Bixby church plant.
Let’s Talk
Chancellor Stillwell · Planting Pastor