Welcome!

Our team is here to walk alongside churches and leaders in discovering how to engage people far from God through hospitality, listening and dependence on the Spirit.

We work with a growing network of churches and ministries throughout Chicago to train and equip teams to run Alpha. As a result, more people are encountering Christ, and churches are being transformed as their people are activated to share Jesus through Alpha.

We desire to see the Kingdom of God made known amidst our post-Christian society. Alpha was birthed into a similar cultural landscape in London where people were hungry for a safe space that allowed them to ask questions, express doubts, and explore faith. Having a safe space to talk about life’s biggest questions is increasingly more and more relevant to our community and as a result, we are seeing more churches running Alpha.

Alpha has a proven track record of working in a variety of contexts and is readily adaptable to almost any setting. We are here to help you utilize Alpha to introduce your community to Jesus

Contact the Chicago team

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

— Matthew 28:19-20

Support Alpha

Alpha is funded by the generosity of donors who make it possible for us to provide Alpha resources completely free to churches and guests. If you’d like to support the work of Alpha and its work in the Chicagoland area and beyond please click the button below. Your generosity directly supports our mission to equip and serve the church in its mission to help people to discover and develop a relationship with Jesus through Alpha. 

Support Alpha

Alpha Chicago Events

Join us at our next Run Alpha event. Gather with other churches across the network to learn and practice some of the unique elements of Alpha. When finished, you will have everything you need to run Alpha.

Go to Alpha events

Find an Alpha

Find an Alpha in your area or visit one to see how a church runs it in their unique context.
This is one of the best ways to see what Alpha is all about. Contact the Alpha administrator for details. 

Church Endorsement

“Alpha has influenced the entire culture of our church. It’s provided our community with a needed space for wrestling through real and raw questions about God and life in a relational way. Alpha also continues to ignite our passion for telling others about Jesus and it gives us the support we need to do that more effectively in our city. All that I can say is, try Alpha.”

Brandon Henderson
Transformation Pastor Soul City Church

Chicago Network Director

Gabriel Lerma is the Director of Alpha in Illinois. He lives in the western suburbs of Chicagoland with his wife Serena and foster daughters, Janiah and Samiah. Gabe is passionate about creating safe spaces inside and outside the church where people are fully known and loved right where they are.

What started out as simply trying Alpha a new serving opportunity at his church…quickly led to him falling in love with what God was doing through this particular ministry. He witnessed the Holy Spirit transform people’s lives in such a short period of time. He then continued leading groups, training volunteers, giving live talks to over 300 people, and even running his own off-campus Alpha within the span of 8 years.

Gabe’s mission is to equip and serve the church in its mission to help people discover and develop a relationship with Jesus.

Contact Us

Gabriel Lerma
Email: gabriellerma@alphausa.org  

ENCOUNTER

This track is full of amazing main-stage speakers who will showcase the power of prayer in every generation, equip you to live a naturally supernatural life and train you to heal as Jesus did. Senior pastors, church leaders, non-profit leaders, this track is you!

Workshops in this Track

Learnings from Asbury on the Power of Prayer

Speaker: Angela Chadwick, Global Director of Prayer, Alpha USA

Alpha’s Global Director of Prayer will interview some of the spiritual leaders involved in the Asbury revival where a chapel worship service caught the attention of our country. You’ll hear stories of how the students were deeply moved by God through the simplest forms of worship and how the leaders made sure the only celebrity on stage was Jesus. You’ll also be amazed by the powerful breakthroughs in young people’s lives through the gentlest of prayers.

Additionally, we will explore how the resurgence of faith in one small American town is relevant to every person in the Church and how it shapes how we share the good news in a good way with this generation.

How to Facilitate Eternal Connections with Jesus

Speaker: Danielle Strickland, Spiritual Leader, Justice Advocate, Communicator, Peacemaker

Encounter is God’s favorite way to spiritual revelation. Why do we emphasize information-formation as our primary means of discipleship? What if we put more time, energy, and effort into facilitating more encounters? Be prepared to discuss together how cultivating curiosity becomes a means to do just that. We will talk techniques, experiences, and new ideas.

Everyday Miracles

Speakers: Dr. Chloe Swart, Associate National Director for Alpha UK, and Dr. Russo Swart, New Wine Cymru Prophetic and Healing Team

This workshop will look at how to heal the sick as a part of our everyday missional lives. Following Chloe’s PhD studying healing miracles in Wales, Chloe found that Christians in Wales were praying for their friends, family, and colleagues, in the gym, in the supermarket, at work; wherever they found themselves, as well as in church services, and Alpha courses. Healing is a missional tool that points toward Jesus. Unpack the theology of healing, while also hearing very practical teaching and demonstration of how to heal the sick in an everyday way.

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