Our Journey to Find New Leadership

The story of what eventually became the Duluth Vineyard was birthed from God encountering a group of ordinary individuals (teenagers, in fact), who were searching for answers, longing for community, and a holy discontent with church as they knew it. This group of friends and classmates from high school, UMD, and Saint Scholastica experienced the real and tangible presence of God as the revival of the Jesus Movement continued to sweep the country in the 70’s. The Holy Spirit united their hearts, minds, and lives through bible studies on campus, prayer, and worship that blew their paradigms! (“Rocked their world!”). God’s presence was so thick “you could taste it!”. They wanted more! This small community of former atheists, Catholics, Methodists, and Lutherans formed what was known in the community as the “Fellowship”.

As the Fellowship continued to experience the Kingdom of God breaking through, this young and zealous group experienced growing pains due to lack of oversight and accountability. God was still on the move, yet things became clear that they needed Him to touch their broken community. In 1985, some of the leadership cried for help from the Lord. He answered their prayers by introducing them to Vineyard’s Healing and Power Evangelism courses, hosted by Victory Christian Fellowship in Burnsville, MN (now South Metro Vineyard). The group that attended was changed forever as they experienced prophecy, words of knowledge, and healing. They began to realize the values of the Vineyard were the values God gave them in the early years of the Fellowship. They grew up Vineyard, but just didn’t know it. They were people who worshiped God in Spirit and in Truth. They fed the hungry and ministered to and included the poor and marginalized. They were a people who loved, accepted, and cared for the hurting and the lost. They were generous and open-handed with what God had given them. They hungered for and expected to encounter the living God as they gathered and ministered in the power of His Spirit. By request, they hosted numerous Vineyard conferences and invited local pastors and churches to experience what God was doing.

On the last night of one of these conferences at the First United Methodist Church (aka. Copper Top) that had about 500 people in attendance, around 40 city and area pastors gathered for a time of ministry. As a storm brewed and showed its fierceness outside through the ceiling windows, these pastors came before the Lord in prayer. A word of the Lord came to the conference leader and he stated, “the Lord just showed me we’re coming against the power of ambition and competition.” Immediately, lightning struck the roof and the lights went out. A piercing sob rang out from an individual that was discerned as God’s heart for his Church. God’s broken heart broke the pastors’ hearts and they cried tears of repentance. This was the defining moment when some of the current pastors of the Fellowship knew God was directing them toward the Vineyard.

In 1989, the Fellowship and those moving towards Vineyard’s theology and practice painfully parted ways. Mark Peter and Gerry Cheney met with Steve Nicholson (Evanston, IL) to request and get the blessing to start a Vineyard church in Duluth. The Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Duluth was formed in 1990.

Over the next five years Mark and Gerry co-pastored the Vineyard. The Vineyard became a welcoming community for people from all walks of life, other faiths, and experiences. People found community, solace and healing. The Food Shelf (that has grown to be one of the strongest ministries of the Duluth Vineyard, serving hundreds in our community) was started out of a closet at the Lakeside location with 25lbs of wild rice. Experiencing God in real and tangible ways became the hallmark of the Vineyard. In 1995, it was brought to light that Mark Peter had an affair, and it was determined that new leadership was necessary to continue its existence and remain a light to the community.

In 1997, after a year-long process, Michael Gatlin was installed as the next senior pastor. About five years later Michael’s wife, Brenda, became co-senior pastor. During their leadership, the Duluth Vineyard grew steadily to the point hosting five weekend services at the Lakeside location and moved into the Arrowhead building in 2009. The Duluth Vineyard continued the legacy of the original Fellowship by experiencing and loving God and loving people right where they’re at.

In the Fall of 2022, allegations of sexual abuse against Michael and Brenda’s son, Jackson, led to evidence of other abuses and unhealthy culture within the Duluth Vineyard involving Michael and Brenda. Michael resigned as senior pastor in February 2023 amid the investigation into Jackson’s conduct. Brenda had previously left her role as co-senior pastor at the Duluth Vineyard. Under the leadership of the Church Council and an Interim Senior Pastor (and with a firm commitment to Jesus, the truth and victims), the church has walked through a process of independent investigation, lament and healing.

Henri Nouwen (from Discernment: Reading the Signs of Daily Life) “When we see time in the light of our faith in the God of history, we see that the events of this year are not just a series of happy or unhappy events but part of the shaping hands of God who wants to mold our world and our lives. Even when life becomes harried and has hard moments we can continue to believe good is happening amid all of this. To gain this wider perspective, we first look backward to these seemingly unrelated events of our lives that have brought us to where we are now…. In every critical event, there is an opportunity for God to act creatively and reveal a deeper truth than what we see on the surface of things. God also can turnaround critical incidence and seemingly hopeless situations in our lives and reveal light in darkness.”