On a quiet point off Oak Run in New Braunfels, Texas, Freedom Fellowship Church has built a reputation as a place where relationship is the model of ministry. Two Sunday services, dozens of home groups that meet in living rooms across the city, a full slate of men's, women's, youth and children's ministries, and a busy missions outreach to New Braunfels and beyond all flow from a single conviction the church has named out loud: intimacy with God and intimacy with others.
A Charismatic, Evangelical Community Church
Freedom Fellowship describes itself as a charismatic, evangelical, community church. The charismatic identity is more than a label: the church teaches that the Holy Spirit continues to minister today, indwelling believers, releasing spiritual gifts, and empowering Christians for service. The evangelical identity centers on a high view of Scripture, the belief that Jesus Christ is the only Son of God, and the conviction that He is the sole solution to the troubles of this world. The community piece is rooted in place, a regional church whose mission is to see lives saved, healed, trained, and released into ministry through relationships in the church, the workplace, schools, homes, and neighborhoods.
What Freedom Fellowship Believes
The statement of faith begins with Scripture. Both Old and New Testaments are the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of humanity, and the final authority for Christian faith and life. There is one God, infinitely perfect and eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Jesus Christ is true God and true man, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, crucified on the cross as a sacrifice for sin, raised bodily from the dead, and now seated at the right hand of the Majesty on High as High Priest and Advocate. The ministry of the Holy Spirit continues today, with the Spirit glorifying Christ, convicting of sin, regenerating the believer, indwelling, guiding, instructing, and empowering for godly living and service.
Humanity was created in the image of God but fell into sin and is therefore eternally lost; salvation comes only through confession of sin, acceptance of the gift of righteousness, and regeneration by the Holy Spirit. The shed blood and resurrection of Christ provide the only ground for justification. Water baptism and the Lord's Supper are ordinances observed by the Church but are not means of salvation. The church also teaches the personal and imminent return of Christ, the bodily resurrection of the believer to everlasting blessedness, and the resurrection of the unbeliever to judgment and everlasting conscious punishment.
Save, Heal, Train, Release
The roadmap for ministry at Freedom Fellowship is summed up in four words: Save, Heal, Train, Release. The first and most important step is salvation, surrendering one's life to Jesus. The second step is healing, recognizing that many people need time and care before they can move forward. The church offers resources such as Home Ministries, Bible studies, and pastoral counseling to help people find that healing, leaning on the truth of Genesis 2:18 that humans were not designed to do life alone.
After healing comes training. Newcomers are not expected to step immediately into the work they did before. Instead, the church encourages people to get to know one another first, be assimilated into the body, and then be equipped to play their role in the Kingdom. Finally, there is release: helping each person discover and step into the unique, God-given gifting they carry, whether or not that ever looks like preaching from a stage.
Sunday Mornings on Oak Run Point
Freedom Fellowship meets at 410 Oak Run Point in New Braunfels. Services are held on Sundays at 9:00 and 11:00 AM, and each gathering follows the same shape. Worship begins with a time of music and singing, communion, prayer, and tithes and offerings. Children ages four through fifth grade remain with their families during worship and are then dismissed to their own service in the Family Center. After the music, the teaching of God's Word is opened up in the main Sanctuary.
On the first Sunday of every month, communion is observed in a distinctive way. Rather than the whole congregation coming forward at once, the church takes communion in smaller family or home group units, a style the leaders call family-style. Visitors are welcome to participate, with the only request being that the partaker be a Christian. Communion is also available every other Sunday to the left of the stage during worship for anyone who feels led to take it.
What to Expect as a First-Time Guest
First-time visitors are treated as honored guests from the moment they pull into the parking lot. The lot wraps around two buildings with a courtyard between them. As visitors walk into the courtyard, they find the entrance to the main Sanctuary and Family Center, where the friendly Welcome Team greets them. A Cafe just off the courtyard is open before and after services for coffee and fellowship, a place where newcomers can start to get to know the people of Freedom Fellowship.
Inside the doors, ushers and a Doorkeeper hand out a bulletin with information about upcoming events and ministries. In the center of the lobby, there is a children's registration table where families can register children from birth through fifth grade. At the bottom of the back of the bulletin is a connection QR code that first-time visitors are invited to fill out, or they can drop a visitor card in the basket. The Welcome Team uses these to follow up with a personal introduction and a thank-you gift.
For families with young children, the nursery opens at 8:30 AM for the first service and 10:30 AM for the second service, caring for children from birth through three years old. An electronic sign-in and paging system keeps parents connected. After the worship portion of the service, children ages four through fifth grade are released to Freedom Kids in the Family Center, where they experience their own church service designed for their age and stage.
Worship That Values Presence Over Performance
Freedom Worship is led by Worship Director Matt DelVescovo, with Creative Arts Director Travis Keas overseeing the visual side of worship and Production Director John Moore overseeing the technical side. The team's philosophy is that worship is not confined to music. On Sundays and in smaller meetings, the worship leaders use musical instruments, voices, lights, and cameras to lead others into God's presence, valuing worship over production, presence over performance, and excellence over perfection.
A typical Sunday includes three or four songs with a time of ministry at the close of the service. The musical style is intentionally diverse. Listeners might hear a current worship song paired with a classic hymn. The team cares more about the biblical basis of the lyrics, the object of worship, and dynamic expression than about trends. Every aspect of worship is described as Spirit-filled, biblically based, evangelistic, and excellently crafted.
Freedom Kids, Freedom Nursery, and Freedom Students
The children's wing is built around the conviction that the truths of God's Word are never too grand for young minds. Freedom Kids services on Sunday mornings are real church services for children, with age-appropriate worship, giving, teaching, and small group time. Kids sit with their parents through the worship and giving portion to see worship modeled, then are dismissed just before the message. Child check-in stations sit at either end of the lobby, with a first-time guest registration table in the middle.
Freedom Nursery cares for children from birth through three years old and is described as a ministry to parents as much as to the children themselves. During nursery hours, children are taught a Bible story, a memory verse, and an activity tied to the story. The two and three-year-old classes learn a monthly memory verse and are encouraged to recite it at home. Emily Hamilton directs the nursery.
Freedom Students is the ministry for middle and high school students, meeting every Wednesday night at 7 PM in The Box at Freedom Fellowship. The format combines Spirit-filled worship, a powerful message, and prayer. On the first Wednesday of each month, the gathering is dedicated to small groups, with students and adult leaders building relationships as brothers and sisters in Christ. Director of Student Ministries Daniel Hamilton also leads Parenting on Purpose, a gospel-centered parenting group that meets in the Veranda on Wednesday nights while students meet. As part of the student ministry, Freedom Students has a phone-check-in policy during youth group, with phones placed in secure locked storage so students can be fully present with one another, with leaders, and with God.
Home Groups: Find Your Family
Home groups are the connective tissue of Freedom Fellowship. Small groups of people meet weekly in homes around the community to care for one another, study God's Word, and walk through life's ups and downs together. The church points to Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 as the foundation: two are better off than one, because if one falls, the other can help.
The current roster of groups includes gatherings on Sunday evenings, Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, each hosted by a husband-and-wife team. Groups meet in homes across New Braunfels, including hosts Hank and Kelsey Gibson, Adam and Kirsten Otto, William and Jane Potter, George and Cindy Bokorney, Jason and Kelly Carter, Steve and Vickie McCan, and David and Maureen Riggs. Some groups offer childcare, others welcome children without formal programming. The church encourages newcomers to contact the leaders of the group that fits their schedule and come as they are.
Freedom Men and Brotherhood
Men's ministry at Freedom Fellowship is led by Pastor Dennis Gallaher and David Justice. The flagship entry point is a monthly men's breakfast held on the first Wednesday of each month from September through May in the Family Center at 6:15 AM, with worship, teaching, prayer, and food.
Beyond the breakfast, men can choose from a wide range of settings. Brotherhood Gatherings meet on Monday evenings at the home of David Riggs and on Thursdays at Black Bear Diner for lunch. Wednesday breakfasts are held at El Nopalito Restaurant, with the men working through the daily devotional God Is Faithful by David Wilkerson. There is a Tuesday morning Zoom study called Deeper Roots, led by Hank Gibson, that works through books like The Sacred Romance, Multiply, and A Man's Guide to the Spiritual Disciplines. An online Men's Online Discipleship group meets in the evenings under Greg Deisher. Thursday Night Men's Bible Study meets weekly under Gary Osborn and Anthony Pinon. The "5 Guys" studies are small groups of five to eight men that meet in coffee shops and other locations around the city for open, leaderless discussion. CADRE is a structured brotherhood for mutual discipleship, with groups of four to six men committing to prayer, encouragement, study, and fellowship through weekly text threads, monthly online meetings, and a regular face-to-face gathering.
Freedom Women and Discipleship
Freedom Women is built around three commitments: encountering God, experiencing community, and embracing calling. Women's Bible Studies are held seasonally in a seven-week format with three weekly time slots: Monday evenings in the Family Center, Wednesday mornings in the Family Center, and Wednesday evenings in the Veranda. Melissa Soderlund serves as the Women's Bible Study Coordinator.
Beyond the seasonal Bible study, women can join Rooted Discipleship Groups, which meet six times over a few months with one leader for every two women. Middle Sisters is a community of women ages 40 to 59 who gather for games, dinners, and fellowship. Big Sisters is a similar community for women 60 and older. Moms in the Word is a Monday morning gathering for mothers, hosted in a home and built around a current study. Moms in Prayer meets Thursday mornings in the Courtyard Cafe throughout the school year, with mothers and grandmothers praying for their children and schools. The church also hosts the annual Freedom Women's Conference each fall with guest speakers and worship leaders.
Freedom Young Adults
Freedom Young Adults is geared toward 18- to 25-year-olds and meets every Thursday at 6 PM at a leader's home. Each evening combines fellowship, worship, Bible study, and prayer, with a monthly rhythm that includes time for authentic fellowship, a time of worship, and small-group discussion of real-world topics through a biblical lens. The group is led under the oversight of Daniel Hamilton, with Julia Schaefer serving on the team.
Early Education: Mother's Day Out and Freedom Academy
Freedom Fellowship runs two early-education programs under the leadership of Trish Pinon. Mother's Day Out provides a safe, nurturing, Christ-centered environment for young children, using sensory activities, symbolic play, and a centers-based learning approach. Ages 1 to 2 meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 AM to 1:30 PM; ages 3 to 4 meet Tuesday through Thursday in the same hours.
Freedom Academy partners with homeschooling parents to support academic and spiritual development in a Christ-centered classroom. Small class groups meet Monday through Thursday from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, with separate rooms for kindergarten, first grade, grades 2 to 3, and grades 4 to 5, allowing for more one-on-one attention.
Missions and Outreach in New Braunfels and Beyond
The Missions and Outreach ministry is led by John David Martinez. The team's motto is simple: Love Is Action. Globally, Freedom Fellowship supports Casa Del Águila Orphanage in Peru, India Gospel Outreach and India Bible College, and Intimate Life Ministries. Locally, the church sends teams and resources to the Salvation Army of New Braunfels, supports the First Footing Program (a 66-bed facility for people working to leave homelessness, with monthly dinners, breakfasts, and lunches served by church teams), and partners with Options, a crisis pregnancy center.
Other local outreaches include Freedom Friends, which ministers to nursing home residents with friendship, prayer, music, and monthly birthday celebrations; Freedom on the Streets, a monthly ministry on third Saturdays to the homeless in San Antonio providing food, clothes, and prayer; Kids Club, partnering with local schools to affirm the God-given value of children; Family Life Center, supporting individuals and families in need; and Daily Bread Ministries, which works to help people break the cycle of poverty. Mission trips and outreach projects are open to newcomers, with interest meetings and email updates available for those wanting to learn more.
Next Steps and Membership
For newcomers ready to go deeper, Freedom Fellowship offers a four-week Next Steps class that meets on Sundays during the 11 AM service in the Veranda Classroom across from the nursery. The class walks through what the church believes, its history, leadership structure, core values, and relational ministry model, with the goal of helping newcomers decide whether to become official members. Childcare is available starting five minutes before the 11 AM service, with birth through 3-year-olds in the Nursery and 4-year-olds through fifth grade in the Family Center.
Pastoral Leadership and Governance
Freedom Fellowship is led by Senior Pastor James Gallaher, who oversees weekly preaching, leads the staff, and mentors marriages and young adults. Dennis Gallaher serves as Pastor at Large, supporting preaching, teaching, counseling, and representing the church nationally and internationally. Charlie Kim is a pastor with a deep passion for discipleship and adult education. Daniel Hamilton serves as Director of Student Ministries. The church is pastor-led, elder-governed, staff-run, and congregation-owned, a structure the leadership believes keeps decision-making close to the people and ensures that the heartbeat of the church is the congregation itself.
Messages, Prayer, and Staying Connected
Sunday messages can be watched on the church's YouTube channel and heard through a podcast called Monday Moments, with a Spotify feed available as well. A prayer request form is available online for anyone who would like the church's prayer team to lift up a need. Visitors who want to keep up with everything happening at Freedom Fellowship can sign up for the weekly email through the First Time Guest form or by reaching out to info@freedomnb.org. Giving is available online through the church's secure giving page, and events are listed on the church's online calendar.