I'm Luke S. Edwards, author of Becoming Church: A Trail Guide for Starting Fresh Expressions. I created The Listening Church because I've seen the value of deep listening in my ministry and the ministry of those I work with in Western North Carolina and beyond. I'm the Associate Director of Church Development for the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church, a trainer for Fresh Expressions North America, and a professionally trained ministry coach. I co-lead a community of dads and father figures called Who Let the Dads Out? Lake Norman. I'm an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church and I was the founding pastor of King Street Church, a network of fresh expressions in Boone, North Carolina. I grew up in an area of western Massachusetts that was recently named the most post-Christian metropolitan area in the United States, where I joined my first micro-faith community at the age of fourteen. Between my upbringing and my work in local, regional, and national levels of the Fresh Expressions movement, I have a unique perspective into the future of the church in a post-Christian society. I live in Denver, North Carolina, where I enjoy going for walks in the woods with my wife and daughters. ​