Outreach-Focused Church Planted in Unconventional Setting, Reclaiming Lives

This year, a church planted in the unlikeliest of places has ministered to thousands in its community.

Pastored by James Duncan, Urban Outreach is a parent affiliated church (PAC) of Christ’s Chapel in Erlanger, Kentucky. But Urban Outreach does not have pews, a pulpit, or even a stained-glass window. Instead, Urban Outreach’s main meeting area has a boxing ring, punching bags hung from the ceiling, and strength-training equipment.

Duncan, who is now 50 years old, was a self-proclaimed atheist until he was 30, at which time he experienced what he refers to as a “radical conversion.” After working for years as a successful businessman, Duncan moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, to help his sister raise her two daughters.

“For eight years I found myself a stay-at-home-uncle,” he says.

During his time in Cincinnati, Duncan began attending an AG church and met with the pastor every day for early-morning prayer.

“In that time, I learned to be still before God. I patiently waited, asking God to reveal what He wanted me to do with my life,” he recalls.

After six months of daily prayer, Duncan says he felt the Lord calling him to “feed His sheep.”

Duncan was unsure of what that meant, but the very next day he was invited by his pastor to volunteer at a feeding program for the temporarily unhoused in Covington, Kentucky. The experience was life changing.

Duncan started visiting the shelter and bringing supplies, clothes, or desserts once a month. Then, in 2009, Duncan started an informal Bible study that met in whatever spaces he could find.

“Sometimes we met in a warehouse, one winter we met on a riverboat, and in the summer, we usually met in the park,” he explains.

The group continued to grow until, in 2016, he was approached by Lord’s Gym Ministries of the Greater Cincinnati Tri-State Area, whose motto is to help “people grow strong in the Lord,” referencing Ephesians 6:10. Their mission is accomplished by meeting practical needs, offering life-saving resources, and providing a safe place for men, women, and children to gather for sports and training who are under “the heavy weight of poverty,” according to their website.

The two ministries began a partnership that sought to reach those struggling in addiction, or those in active recovery, and support them in a gym-style atmosphere.

Duncan, who had become an AG U.S. Missions (AGUSM) missionary associate, started seeing a lot of growth, which drew in further partnership opportunities from other businesses and non-profits in the area. One such cooperation came as Duncan and his team started searching for ways to help those coming to the outreach find employment.

“We had a small office space in the gym and decided to put a kiosk in the space so we could partner with an employment agency, The Job Center,” says Duncan. “That first year, we were able to help 30 people find employment out of that 300-square-foot space and then that number soared to several hundred the next year.”

Today, the employment office has expanded to a 1,000-square-foot-space and has been able to help several thousand people find employment since the start of 2024, keeping up with last year’s number of 5,000 people hired.

The spring of 2024 also brought another change for Duncan and the Urban Outreach ministry team as they officially became a PAC church under the umbrella of Christ’s Chapel. Although Christ’s Chapel has partnered with Urban Outreach for many years, the official partnership made the outreach an established church with the Assemblies of God.

“The partnership [between] Christ’s Chapel and Urban Outreach/Lord’s Gym is a true blessing on several levels” Christ’s Chapel’s senior pastor, Terri Crigger, says. “Pastor James Duncan is now a key leader in our church and several congregational volunteers serve and support this vital local outreach.”

The church operates Monday to Friday from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. and has specific events on Saturdays. During the week, the church serves breakfast to nearly 100 individuals Tuesday through Thursday, followed by a devotional and then a time of fellowship and a Bible study. Throughout the rest of the day, gym and training sessions are intermingled with devotionals and expository style teachings.

“We’ve gone all the way through the New Testament three times and have started going through the Old Testament this year as well,” says Duncan, who is now a licensed minister with the AG and serving as a full-time pastor.

Each Saturday, the church offers youth programming in an effort to help reduce the gun violence among teens that has plagued the city. The fourth Saturday of each month, they also have a typical service with a worship team from their parent church and a traditional style sermon.

For those wanting to attend a conventional service on a regular basis, Christ’s Chapel offers a shuttle to and from the parent church campus for their Saturday night meal and service.

Danielle Barth, a former addict who is now an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God and serves as Christ’s Chapel’s administrator and women’s pastor, says that she has a special place in her heart for Urban Outreach and its ministry.

“The first time I went to tour the Urban Outreach campus, I was taken aback,” Barth says. “I had been in the parking lot many times to use when I was stuck in my addiction, but now our church is part of the ministry here. And what I love is seeing people come in and feel like they’re home again.”

Duncan says that the testimonies from the PAC church are countless. However, one that stands out to him is the story of Jim*, a former heroin addict who Duncan met in a park 15 years ago. Jim had a history of childhood abuse and had lost his wife, his mother, and his two best friends, driving him further into his addiction. But since attending Urban Outreach, Duncan states Jim has found Jesus, turned his life around, and has become his “right hand man” in the ministry.

“He’s doing fantastic,” Duncan says, “and he’s been volunteering here as a changed man.”

Urban Outreach continues to see growth and has recently been able to add three more staff members to serve the Covington area. They are also in the process of purchasing their current building to accommodate their rapidly increasing attendance.

Editor’s Note: Names have been changed for identity protection.

Ashley B. Grant

Ashley B. Grant has a master's degree in Human Services Marriage and Family Counseling from Liberty University and is a credentialed Christian counselor through the American Association of Christian Counselors. Grant also holds certifications in crisis pregnancy counseling and advanced life coaching. Ashley is a fourth generation Assemblies of God preacher’s kid and has one daughter and three sons.