In the summer of 2011, God began stirring a vision for planting a church in the hearts of Kyle & Justeina Brownlee. Kyle had been in full-time ministry for 10 years at Teen Challenge in Brookings, SD and Justeina was leading a national women’s ministry. However, they had always desired to lead together in ministry and felt God stirring their hearts for the local church. After several opportunities fell through, they began investigating the option of planting a church. There was a couple that they were friends with in Defiance, Ohio, and they began praying and dreaming about possibly launching a church in this rural community. After receiving confirmation from the Lord, they connected with the Association of Related Churches (ARC), and ARC helped them develop a game plan to launch a church. After that, they started building the launch team, hosting vision meetings, and preparing to launch Xperience Church. On September 16, 2012, Xperience Church held its first service in the Defiance YMCA. 264 people attended that first service, with 11 people committing their lives to Christ. That day was just the beginning of what God was planning to do through Xperience Church. Just 6 months after launch, the attendance had grown to the point that a second service was needed. Over the next two years, attendance continued to steadily grow and in March 2015, Xperience Church launched a third Sunday morning service. In 2016, they launched services in their local correctional facility. In 2017, they launched the Defiance Dream Center and began ministering in the country of Belize. By 2018, attendance had grown to over 1,000 people in weekly attendance over 3 services. The children’s ministry had grown to the point where it was outgrowing the space at the YMCA and it was evident that they needed to explore other options. They began praying for the Lord to provide wisdom and clarity on the next steps. By the end of 2018, the pastors were in discussions with the owner of the local mall regarding a vacant space that had opened up. They signed a lease in March 2019 and finished renovations in November. On December 1, 2019 they held their very first service at Northtowne Mall in Defiance. Just 3 months later, the world shutdown due to COVID19. Thankfully, the new space allowed them the opportunity to record and stream services online, which helped keep the church family connected during the pandemic. Weekend services resumed in June 2020 and they spent the next two years navigating through a world that had been greatly impacted by COVID. By the end of 2022, attendance had grown back close to pre-COVID numbers and they have started planning for the future. Xperience Church knows that God has called them to plant churches, launch dream centers, and impact prisons in more communities across NW Ohio, and are once again praying for wisdom and clarity on His timing and direction.