Chad Rodriguez has been around since almost the very beginning here at Liberty Church. He’s a Connect Group leader, part of our worship team, and now about to lead Liberty Church’s upcoming college ministry. Here’s his story.
1. Hey Chad! Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Well for starters, I am a big question-asker. I think I sometimes annoy people because of it. I am always asking “why”. Don’t know why (ironic right). I’ve been inquisitive since I was a child. My journey has been an interesting one. Finding faith in God at 17 but not really having a revelation of my relationship with Him till 20. Working in fields of music, business strategy, and currently fashion. I’m a big believer in doing well with what is in front of me, which is why I think I’ve gotten to do as much as I have at my age. I’ve never been to wrapped up with looking for “what’s next”, more just doing the best I can right now.
I’ve been all over the world visiting some beautiful cities and even spending close to 4 years in Sydney, Australia. I have a crazy obsession with blazers, watches, coffee, and going to the movies (I love hollywood….I love stories). The rest you’ll have to learn over a coffee…
2. How did you get involved with Liberty Church?
It’s kind of crazy. I guess I was one of the first to get involved. I spent almost 4 years in Sydney which is where I met Paul and Andi Andrew. I have always wanted to build a church in NYC but never thought it was the right time. I use to come to NYC a lot before I moved to Australia for either work or play and I knew this was the city you couldn’t just come to without knowing why.
After my time in Sydney I really felt like it was “time” to make the move to NYC. So I did, well actually I moved back home to North Carolina to sort things for the move. I would take monthly trips up to NYC to scope things out, to see what the “temperature” of the city was. I was praying about what to do a lot. I went to event one night while visiting NYC and in walked Paul Andrew. We hadn’t seen each other in well over 2 years so were both in shock to see a familiar face in a rather large city. We got breakfast the next morning (at what is now my local food spot Grey Dog) and that’s where he shared their vision for Liberty and I shared mine. It was one of the more obvious God moments in my life. Basically, God just put up a billboard saying “Here you go, doesn’t get more obvious than this.” From then on I was in. This was back in December of 2009. It’s been a crazy time since and I love it.
“Basically, God just put up a billboard saying ‘Here you go, doesn’t get more obvious than this.’”
3. What’s your role at Liberty? What’s your favorite part about it?
That’s always a funny question especially in regards to a church plant. I feel like my role is like a Swiss Army Knife! I love “the church” to the core of me, so when we started, literally the role was “whatever it takes guy” but then again that was everyone’s role. Now a year later it’s gotten a bit more focused. I am active in our worship team community; leading, playing guitar, sometimes running sound and still keeping the attitude of “whatever it takes.”
My time and energy now however go into our new College Ministry called “The Society Room.” I remember my journey as a college student. It’s such an awkward time, I would argue even more awkward than middle school. It’s this weird period of time where being a kid and adult begins to get blurred. I remember studying and having to process all this information out of books thinking I knew it all. When I got into the “real world” and actually working in my field of study I remember thinking, “Uhm, I didn’t learn any of this.” I wish I had the opportunity to outwork a bit of what I thought were my passions while in college versus being buried under books.
This is where the core vision of The Society Room comes from. It’s my hope that we can create a community for University age students to really explore the “why” behind their study. Giving them opportunities now to start to use those talents and passions. Hopefully along that journey some will discover, “Yes! This is exactly what I want to do” and we can continue to help them grow in that; but for those who go “I don’t like this at all.” they won’t have to feel stuck. They’ll have a community that can partner with them to find their “why.”
4. What advice would you give to someone looking for church or even just community in NYC?
I would say this is a two-sided question. On one hand I would say if you’re trying to find a community in NYC to belong to the only way you can do that is to try them out. You gotta start going. You gotta actually put yourself out there to engage somewhere.
The real issue I believe in finding a church however is not just, “Do I get along with everyone here?” because let’s be honest - you probably won’t get along with everyone. What you really need to ask yourself is, “What do I believe about church? What is my conviction about it?” From there you need to find a place that lines up with that. Most people choose a church because their friends go, or it’s got the best music, or the coolest whatever. That’s a really surface reason to pick a church. I’ve been doing church long enough to know that if you don’t pick a church where you believe in what it’s doing then you’re going to be banging your head against the wall.
It helps to ask, “What part of the body am I called to be?” It’ll save a lot of frustration, because if you’re an “arm” serving or attending a church that is a “mouth” it’s always going to feel a bit like an odd fit. I am convinced that is why we have so many bitter ex-church people. Part of me believes it’s not always the churches fault, it’s also the persons fault for not asking, “What do I believe about church?” If you do that I have no doubt you’ll find yourself right where God wants you to be.
God wants you to flourish in church…not endure it!
5. Favorite Bible verse/passage and why?
I would have to say it’s from Deuteronomy 30:11-14…
11 Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. 12 It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” 13 Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” 14 No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.”
I think life makes us over think a lot. I know when it comes to making decisions especially in a place as crazy as NYC the tendency is to second guess everything you do. This verse really puts me at rest because it reassures me of a simple truth: If you just stay close to God you’ll know what to do. It reminds me that if I can remain in Him then the things I face I’ll respond to appropriately. I won’t have to worry about wondering, “What would God do?” because if I’m close to Him, I’ll choose like Him, think like Him, act like Him. That’s a really comforting thought. It’s a verse I always come come back to and it is one of my favorites.
6. What’s the #1 place you’d tell someone visiting NYC they have to visit (other than Liberty!)?
Well I get made fun of a lot for my view on NYC. I live in Lower Manhattan, which is described as being below 14th street. I am unashamed of my life living down here. I love it. I think it’s got the best of everything. If I had to pick a perfect night out in NYC it would be grabbing dinner at a place called Extra Virgin and then heading out to an incredible music venue at Rockwood Music Hall where you can see some of the best music talent in NYC. Sorry Williamsburg you’re just not that interesting to me (Ed- a comment our Williamsburg crew might like to refute in a later post!!)
Learn more about Liberty Church’s upcoming college ministry by checking out The Society Room forum.
