Spotlight: Phil Lockwood: Prepared by Life to Minister
You could say Phil Lockwood had been preparing for his role as Discipleship Pastor and Chaplain for Living Hope Church in Dixon most of his life. In fact, his passion for the work he does with high school students stems from his own school experience; “The kids I work with are the ones people consider misfits. Nobody wants anything to do with them. I was one of those kids.
“I’ve had severe learning disabilities all my life – reading and spelling and everything. I went all the way through school barely making it. I was made fun of and bullied. That was really painful and traumatic.”
Once he was done with high school, Phil never envisioned going back. His education came elsewhere. “God took me to a different place,” he explains. “I was looking for some way to soothe the pain and that led me down a path to drugs. Because of that lifestyle I ended up doing 13 months in a California state prison outside Tracy and that’s where I had a be still and know God moment.
A Voice and a Platform
“I got into the Word of God and in the pursuit of Jesus I watched the transformation of my life. I’ve never been to seminary, but when I look at my life, I see that God has given me a voice and a platform I really shouldn’t have.”
Phil and his wife, Angela, are founding members of Living Hope Church, but for years his vocation was welding. Almost ten years ago, Phil sensed God was asking him to step away from his work as a welding fabricator. “It felt like God wanted me to step into ministry in our community, but He didn’t reveal to me what I was supposed to do for two and a half years.”
Eventually Phil took on the full-time role at Living Hope Church. He explains just what a discipleship pastor is; “First and foremost for me a discipleship pastor lives a life that really reflects Christ in a way that people want to know, why do you care for me? Why do you love me the way you do? Why do you treat me the way you do? Tell me more so I can be like that.”
Back in the Classroom
Phil returned to the classroom and began mentoring youth at Maine Prairie High School. “It’s the continuation high school for kids just like me.”
Following a tragedy that devastated the school community, Phil was called in to talk to the students. “It takes a lot for these kids to trust people. They didn’t want to talk to any counselors. We started meeting in the park on Wednesdays to process their feelings and emotions and work on a memorial for the kids who’d died. That’s what launched the ministry in the schools.”
Before COVID-19, Phil brought his laptop to school and sat quietly in a classroom waiting for kids to come over and talk. Not only did this become his office three days a week, it established a connection between Living Hope Church and the local schools. As a result, Phil co-founded the Solano County Faith and Education Collaborative with representatives of the school system. “It’s a cool, unique relationship. We don’t have any kind of agenda except to love these kids.”
The Collaborative has worked with the Solano County Office of Education and the Solano County Department of Health and Social Services’s Behavioral Health Division in the development of wellness centers in 45 schools throughout Solano County.
“If a kid is dealing with any kind of issue or they just need a break, they can go to one of these wellness centers,” Phil explains. “The intent is to have a caring adult volunteer from our faith-based group assess whether this kid needs to see a clinician or just needs to have a conversation. The Superintendent told us, ‘your church is actually showing an example of what it is to unconditionally love people you don’t even know.’”
Although pandemic protocols preclude volunteers from coming to campus right now, Phil is focused on preparing individuals to respond to youth mental health crises by recruiting people and organizing their training which includes first aid, mandated reporting, and suicide prevention.
Reaching a Diverse Community
In addition to the outreach to students, Phil is a community chaplain. “Being a chaplain is a way of ministering and meeting the felt needs of people which is what we saw Jesus do all the time. I’m always looking for ways to build bridges. As a chaplain, a lot of times I run into families that have either no faith structure or are of different faiths. They get to see Jesus in some way through me.
“I’ve got a high school education, but God has given me a spiritual gift that enables me to be empathic with people. I’ve leaned into that. As long as I’m faithful to Him and trust Him, He’s going to equip me to do what I’m called to do.”
Contact Phil to learn more about the work he’s involved in, pushing4impact@yahoo.com
Spotlight: Adam Peacocke: An Unexpected Encounter with God
Adam Peacocke served as lead pastor at City Life Fellowship in Santa Rosa from 2002 until 2017. He surprised himself when he made the decision to leave the pulpit after fifteen years to found Feathervine, a ministry focused on uniting local churches in an effort to address some of the big issues facing Sonoma County. Adam explains,
“I had an unexpected encounter with God in prayer and felt a strong call to step away from pastoring. God put a burden on my heart to serve a different type of ministry function -- building bridges to help the church become more present in our community.”
The name Feathervine speaks to the elements of faith and faithfulness. “It’s about seeing the church have roots and wings in our community as a witness to life with Jesus Christ,” says Adam.
It’s been a tough few years for the half million people who live in the region. Many are still reeling from devastating wildfires on top of the challenges of homelessness, crime, and a continuing rise in the cost of living. While Adam, a lifelong Sonoma County resident, has been a community advocate for decades, his hope is that through Feathervine churches will unite to increase involvement. “I had a conversation with the Mayor of Santa Rosa who told me that it’s hard for a municipality to partner with a church or any single organization. But she said it’s easy to partner with ten churches. To me the problem to solve is bringing those churches together.”
Building Trust to Build Unity
“I firmly believe that there’s no substitute for trust as we look to engage our community,” says Adam. “When I was pastoring, I made a point of building trust with the pastors of other congregations here. We often gathered together to serve and worship. We also made our facilities available to other congregations. I got a reputation as someone who was encouraging unity and trust among the churches. Now there’s a core group of close to 50 congregations committed to supporting our community.”
Feathervine has relationships with an additional twenty-five churches, many serving different cultures. “I’m excited about the Gospel’s impact as we build unity across ethnic and cultural lines here in Santa Rosa.”
Right now, Feathervine is focusing on three areas: local schools, foster care, and homelessness, but Adam continues to prioritize trust. “I love goals. I love potential; but I want to move at the speed of trust. I believe that’s the pace where change really happens.”
Roots and Wings in the Community
Twenty churches are working in the foster care system and supporting a number of aligned ministries including CarePortal, Foster the City, and Royal Family Kids.
Feathervine is also focused on supporting elementary schools which are often under-resourced. So far 20 churches are participating in this work. “It’s a strategic opportunity. Kids are at an elementary school longer than the rest of their school time combined. We match congregations with schools near them. There’s a whole host of ways that our churches have been able to creatively step in to be good neighbors to our local schools. It’s as simple as meeting needs where the schools have them.”
Using a model similar to TBC, Feathervine comes alongside churches to support their existing ministries. “We amplify the good works local churches are doing to meet the needs in our community.”
During the 18 months following Sonoma County’s catastrophic wildfires, teams from different area churches visited displaced families occupying FEMA trailers in a Santa Rosa RV park to deliver water and other resources. “Church teams rotate, but Feathervine’s role was to be there every week and help coordinate the efforts,” says Adam. “We were there the day they moved in, and we were there when the last person moved out of the trailers.”
Area congregations are also ministering to the homeless in partnership with the Redwood Gospel Mission. “Churches open their doors and provide meals for up to 40 unhoused people. We don’t just stand behind a table and ladle soup into a bowl. We sit at the table together, share a meal, and get to know each other.”
Admittedly Feathervine has a lot on its plate right now. “I’m trying to keep things as simple as possible,” says Adam. “We’re working on growing and maturing in effectiveness and impact not just in our community, but also in our churches. I want to be the relational bridge, to be the convener and encourager.”
To connect with Adam and some of the work he’s doing in the North Bay, email