Source USA - 8 Dec 2005
Meet Peter & Jessica Wohler, and their community called Source, based in
In the early 1990s, “God stirred my heart,” says Peter. “I was drawn to the kids who were creative and on the fringe – the ones who didn’t even have church on the radar.” Peter remembered Acts 1:8, where Jesus commanded his disciples to “go to
“Go and make disciples.” Peter and Jessica Wohler have ta
ken those words of Christ quite literally over the last 10 years. They started serving young people in 1995 through Source Ministries, a dynamic outreach to skeptical, alienated young people. What began as a passion to bring God’s love and forgiveness to the “left out” who had little to no Christian contact, has developed into a mature outreach. Their passion to reach “those who are left out” has cultivated a unique outreach to those from broken homes and the fringe, who were homeless or high-school drop outs. Some were artists or liberal urban activists, with backgrounds that included the occult, paganism, alternative religions, prostitution or drug use. Others were prodigals who just wanted to return to the faith.
ken those words of Christ quite literally over the last 10 years. They started serving young people in 1995 through Source Ministries, a dynamic outreach to skeptical, alienated young people. What began as a passion to bring God’s love and forgiveness to the “left out” who had little to no Christian contact, has developed into a mature outreach. Their passion to reach “those who are left out” has cultivated a unique outreach to those from broken homes and the fringe, who were homeless or high-school drop outs. Some were artists or liberal urban activists, with backgrounds that included the occult, paganism, alternative religions, prostitution or drug use. Others were prodigals who just wanted to return to the faith. Since the beginning, Source has been committed to “being a friend and a voice” to a skeptical culture that isn’t seeking contact with the church. To make contact and gain trust, Source has developed a creative outreach that includes both going where 
they’re at and hosting safe and welcoming events. Meeting people where they’re at means being present and interacting where they gather, moving into and serving the neighborhoods where they live, and impacting the music and arts that make them think. It also means bringing teams to celebrations and festivals: Mardi Gras, Satanist-run Rave fests, and Rainbow gatherings of more than 20,000 hippies and homeless youth travelers.
they’re at and hosting safe and welcoming events. Meeting people where they’re at means being present and interacting where they gather, moving into and serving the neighborhoods where they live, and impacting the music and arts that make them think. It also means bringing teams to celebrations and festivals: Mardi Gras, Satanist-run Rave fests, and Rainbow gatherings of more than 20,000 hippies and homeless youth travelers. Then, staff begin to develop relationships and serve physical and emotional needs. This builds trust and earns them the privilege of speaking God’s love and forgiveness 
into people’s lives. It provides the shelter within which individuals will begin to consider life-changing messages. Discipleship, mentoring, and growth groups for these “lambs” and prodigals have always been priority, and more than 150 individuals, including staff and interns, have lived with or in discipleship homes overseen by Peter and Jessica. They have a huge heart for training and equipping leaders, and more than 1,000 have participated in outreaches, trainings and internships with Source.
into people’s lives. It provides the shelter within which individuals will begin to consider life-changing messages. Discipleship, mentoring, and growth groups for these “lambs” and prodigals have always been priority, and more than 150 individuals, including staff and interns, have lived with or in discipleship homes overseen by Peter and Jessica. They have a huge heart for training and equipping leaders, and more than 1,000 have participated in outreaches, trainings and internships with Source. A heart for the arts
Peter & Jessica and the Source community have an incredible love of music & the arts, which they express very clearly through the life of their community and their modes of outreach. Source has established the Fallout Urban Art Center, which is located across the street from the Minneapolis Art Institute and Minneapolis College of Art and Design), and they are beginning the Fallout Art Co-op, an Art Community that will gather in an 11,000- sq ft building a block from the Fallout.
The story of Source is both a testimony of seeing fruit result from perseverance and seeing miracles in the moment. Regardless of how the face of Source changes over these coming years, Source will continue to provide creative outreach, discipleship, and to empower the body of Christ to be a friend and a voice. It will continue to build a network of congregations to provide environments of growth and spiritual foster homes.
And, it will keep making a difference in a dark world. "As more people step up to reach out to alienated youth," says Peter, "we'll move closer to creating a community where no one will ever be left out."
The Source family in