Eikon Church - Little Rock, AR

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Announcing an End to our Journey Together as Eikon Posted by 08.13.2012 7:30 am

We at Eikon speak quite a bit about paradox. In all parts of life, we find seemingly contradictory things that fit together in a mysterious and beautiful way. Last night at our weekly gathering, we made an announcement that brings with it a new sense of paradox.

Over the course of the last few months, through a season of focused prayer and critical examination of our community, we’ve made the difficult decision to bring the journey of Eikon Church to an end.

On one hand, there’s a been a great sense of sadness and loss for this decision. Just over 5 years ago, we set out to foster a community of people disillusioned with organized religion, church misfits and those seeking a community in which to explore what it really means to live in the way of Jesus. So, as we bring this community to an end, it’s with great sadness that we say farewell to this alternative brand of faith community we’ve created here in Little Rock.

Paradoxically, though, we enter an unexpected season of celebration. There’s an affirmation in the midst of our sense of loss, that, as the writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us, there is a “season for everything”. Over the last several years, we’ve experienced a season in which people have come back to faith after complete abandonment. People have discovered the way of Jesus for the first time. We’ve created long-lasting friendships with our neighbors in the streets. We’ve shared a space where people could be painfully honest about their doubts and uncertainties about God and faith. It’s been an incredible season that is worth celebrating, even as we come to terms with our sadness over the end of Eikon.

We aren’t turning the lights off and closing the doors just yet. Rather, we’ll be spending the next month having some very intentional conversations and teachings about transition. We’re most excited, though, for a final celebration gathering we’ll be having on Sunday, September 16. A funeral won’t be fitting for Eikon, so instead, we’ll spend one final night having a celebration of what has been done through the work of Eikon. We think it will be a night worth attending.

If you’d like any more information about our decision, you can either be a part of our upcoming Sunday night conversations or contact Ryan at ryan [at] eikonthechurch [dot] com.

Ryan Byrd, Lead Pastor
Kim Roth, Community Pastor

Posted in announcements, information | 2 Comments »



david bazan live at eikon on september 8 Posted by 06.13.2012 7:40 am

david bazan live at eikon

we couldn’t be any more excited to announce that we’ll be hosting david bazan, as a part of his “living room tour”, at eikon (518 w. 9th st.) on saturday, september 8 (8 p.m.). tickets ($20) go on sale on friday, june 15 at 3 p.m. (central time). click here to purchase tickets. (the only way to purchase tickets is through bazan’s website. there will be no ticket sales at/through eikon.)

since the inception of eikon, we’ve desired to play host to events like these that combine great art and compelling faith perspectives. bazan offers exactly that. once the lead singer and creative force behind the band pedro the lion, bazan began his solo career in the late 2000s. his first full length solo project, curse your branches was dubbed as the album in which bazan “broke up with god”, coming out of the closet of the faith he’d left behind. since that time, bazan has released the follow-up, strange negotiations, and continues to tour.

we’re looking forward to a great night of music on september 8. make sure to get your tickets this friday!

if you’ve never heard bazan’s music, here’s a video of him performing hard to be from a past house show.

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Posted in announcements, art, culture, events, information, music | No Comments »



vintage eikon: an invitation to look back Posted by 06.01.2012 8:01 am

vintage eikon

it’s hard to believe that it’s been almost 3 years since our first informational meetings about this dream we had called eikon. then, it was early 2010 when we began meeting weekly and since that time, we’ve journeyed together as we’ve continued to figure out what it means to follow and be jesus to our community.

over the last month, we’ve shared about the need to have a time of refocusing on the essence of eikon. what are our most core values? why, in the first place, did we start another church in little rock? where do we see our community in 1 year or even 10 years?

we think that if we’re going to look ahead at the future of eikon, we have to look back. so, we’re introducing a new series for this summer: vintage eikon: looking back, looking ahead. we’re going to explore the aforementioned questions by asking the people in our community to reflect back on why they came to eikon, how they’re grown since their time at eikon and finally, what are their hopes and dreams for this community.

this, though, isn’t just about the people already a part of eikon. if you’ve ever been curious about what this thing called eikon is all about, there’s never been a better time than this series to get connected.

we’ll begin the series this sunday night (june 3). we’d really love for you to come out and join us. our gatherings begin at 6 p.m. and we’re located at 518 west 9th st. see you there!

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Posted in announcements, core values, gatherings, history, information | No Comments »



Help Support The Van at the Little Rock Tweetup Posted by 11.08.2011 8:02 am

little rock tweetup the van aaron reddin

Over the last couple months, many of you have kept up with and volunteered your time and resources to our newest community connecting point, Open Doors. Each Thursday from from 3 – 7 p.m., we’ve opened our doors to our homeless friends and offered a space for laundry, showers, food and drinks and just a place to take a load off. In a very short amount of time, we’ve made quite a few new friends and have had the opportunity to share in the lives of the Little Rock homeless community.

Now, we’ve been presented with a new opportunity with Open Doors. Little Rock Tweetup is a community of Little Rock Twitter users that meet monthly for a time of socializing and real life interaction. In an attempt to give back to the community, they’ve approached us about having their November tweetup at our building in order to have a potluck that raises awareness and support for our friend Aaron Reddin and, specifically, the community outreach he leads, The Van.

On Thursday, November 17 at 5:30—as an extension of Open Doors (which will already be taking place)—everyone’s invited to our building for a Mexican-themed potluck dinner. Greg Henderson has posted some details on the Little Rock Tweetup site and he’s is asking that people come with a potluck dish and/or a donation for The Van. If you’d like to know the needs of The Van, here’s a list that is updated by Aaron.

This should be a good time and a great opportunity to give back to our community. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment or contact the organizers of the Little Rock Tweetup by clicking here.

See you all on the 17th!

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Posted in announcements, core values, events, food, gatherings, information, little rock, missions, social justice, theology, volunteer | 2 Comments »



Open Doors: An Update and an Invitation Posted by 11.01.2011 9:46 am

Last Thursday as I arrived at Open Doors, there were at least 10 people standing at our door waiting for us to open. It was about 60 degrees that day, and they were all so eager and thankful to be let into the building to warm up. And all I could think…it’s only 60 degrees…I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like in about a month.

I am so thankful to all those who have volunteered to get Open Doors up and running! I know it has been a safe, comforting space for so many people who have nowhere else to go. I know we have a few people interested in volunteering their time or contributing, so let me offer this update…

Open Doors is held at our building (map here) and is open every Thursday from 3-7 pm. We offer showers, laundry, internet, a place to kick back and watch tv, drinks and snacks. Every week is a learning experience, and we just go with the flow and figure out how to do things better each time. Our biggest current need is volunteers. We have 2 shifts: 3-5 and 5-7. Obviously, the 3-5 shift is harder to fill because most people are working. But if you are interested, please let us know.

Our other need is supplies. We are running low on a few things and really need to replenish our supply. Here is a list:

  • travel shampoo
  • travel soap/body wash
  • individually packaged snacks
  • bottled water
  • lemonade mix
  • laundry detergent
  • razors
  • shaving cream
  • any other personal hygiene items

As we move into the winter months, we are accepting anything else to help keep our friends warm. Here are some things we could use:

  • blankets
  • backpacks
  • sleeping bags
  • tents
  • coats
  • clothes

Please let me know if you would like to volunteer or if you’d like to donate supplies. Email me at christen [at] babybyrds [dot] com, or feel free to drop anything off at the building during Open Doors or on Sunday evenings. Thanks!

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Posted in core values, information, social justice, theology, volunteer | 2 Comments »



announcing our new series, ‘the gospel according to…’ Posted by 09.12.2011 12:47 pm

new eikon building

for the past 6 months, we’ve been going, verse by verse, through jesus’ sermon on the mount. beyond that, for the last year, we’ve focused very specifically on the life, teachings & values of jesus. the most fundamental expression of our faith community is living in the way of jesus, so we’ve put a great emphasis on exploring what that means.

with our next teaching series, we’re committed to continue with that. we’re turning a bit of a corner, though. whereas we’ve dealt, largely, with more broad themes, we’ll begin to focus in on more specific theologies and issues. in order to do this, we wanted to choose a vehicle for doing so that was both engaging and in alignment with our values as a church.

so, we’re excited to announce, the gospel according to…

beginning september 25 (and running through the end of the year), we’ll be looking at 4 films to offer some insight into some of the theological issues that we think are particularly salient following our lengthy conversations about jesus. we’re a big believer that culture isn’t at odds with christianity, but actually a particularly helpful way to experience and see god at work. this series will help to affirm that value.

instead of simply pulling a few clips from movies and expounding on them, we’ll actually be watching the movies in their entirety. four times over the next few months, we’ll dedicate an entire sunday gathering to watching the films. it should be fun, with a theater vibe complete with popcorn and cokes. the dates are as follows:

  • september 25
  • october 16
  • november 6
  • december 4

in the following 2 weeks after watching each film, we’ll engage the correlating theologies and issues through interactive discussions, “expert” panels, regular teaching times & guest teachers.

on the 25th, we’ll kick it off with the 1995 film dead man walking featuring sean penn and susan sarandon. this is an intense film exploring issues such as the extent of mercy and forgiveness as well as the death penalty. the subsequent teaching times should be a good chance to really wrestle with some complicated issues.

so, make some plans to join us. if nothing else, you’ll get a free movie and popcorn out of the deal! as the series progresses, we’ll announce the other movies. we’ve chosen a good mix of dramas and comedies and documentaries. there should be something for everyone.

see you on september 25!

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Posted in announcements, core values, culture, gatherings, information, social justice, theology | No Comments »



introducing (and inviting you to) OPEN DOORS Posted by 08.17.2011 9:38 pm

We all deserve a chance to have a shower, clean clothes and a fresh start. Most times our homeless friends are not welcome in laundromats or other places that would enable them to have this opportunity. We want to create an inviting space where people can feel comfortable coming to get cleaned up, to hang out and to get basic help…without having to do anything in return. We plan to provide the following:

  • laundry
  • showers
  • haircuts
  • check email
  • help with job applications, paperwork, etc.
  • fresh clothes (as needed)
  • hangout/watch tv/games
  • snacks

If you’d like to contribute beyond volunteering, here are some things we need:

  • individually packaged snacks
  • bottled water
  • lemonade drink mix
  • shampoo
  • soap/body wash (travel size)
  • laundry detergent
  • towels
  • any personal hygiene items
  • games: dominoes, cards, chess, etc.
  • 1-2 computers (don’t have to be new. can be an older, but working one)
  • printer

OPEN DOORS is open from 3-7pm every Thursday. Email me at christen [at] babybyrds [dot] com if you have any donations or any questions. Let me know if you’d like to volunteer!

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and on the 154th day, we arose from the dead… Posted by 07.06.2011 7:45 am

on february 2, we posted information about and photos of our new building.

154 days later and we’ve yet to post again.

[this is the point in which i’m hiding my face in shame.]

we’ve just been doing life. busy. rushed. everything going at once.

and we’ve failed to update here on the blog. and we apologize.

so here we are again. this is merely an update just to build a bit of a connecting point from february to now. if you haven’t kept track, we did move into our new building and we’re pleased to say that it’s pretty much been exactly what we hoped it would be for our community and the surrounding community. it’s allowed for us to better connect with the homeless community and broaden our connecting points beyond the “regulars”.

during this time we’ve been engaging in a lengthy series, working through jesus’ sermon on the mount. verse by verse, we’ve worked through it and it’s been a great time to more fully walk in the way of jesus. the series wraps up in early september, so you’ve still got plenty of time to jump in.

we’ve started a community garden next to our building and while it’s still in the early phases, it’s been a great connecting point. we’re getting ready to start a new initiative called ‘open doors’ that will simply be a time each week (thursday afternoons, likely) where we open our building and allow people to take showers, do laundry, get haircuts, look for jobs online and any number of other things. these are just a couple of the ways you can connect if you’re looking for a good entry point. to read more about what we’ve got going on, you can read a blog post i wrote a few weeks ago outlining these things.

ok, there’s a quick update. just in case you can’t live life without blog updates (in which case you’ve probably had a miserable 154 days…), we’re working to get a good rotation of bloggers in place that will update at least weekly. be patient, friends.

finally, one of the reasons i wanted to update now was because we’ve got a blog post from sarah orsborn coming up shortly. i thought instead of an out-of-blue “real” post, i would give a little fair warning. :)

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Posted in blog stuff, information | 1 Comment »



we have a new home! Posted by 02.02.2011 8:02 am

new eikon building

Big news! Eikon’s moving on up, literally. Mere months ago we got our first space to call our own, if only for one night a week, and we have loved our time at the green house—meals, stories, prayer have been shared. But, like hermit crabs, we’ve been yearning for a bigger space, one that could be ours every day of the week, so that we could share more with others. And that space found us, just as our lease on the green house was up.

Our new digs are located at 518 W. 9th St., near the intersection with Broadway, just around the corner from Starbucks (across the street from the Mosaic Templars building). We have big ideas and dreams for the space, which we hope will be a community gathering place, not just a building where we hang out on Sunday nights, though we’ll be doing that too (and you’re welcome to join in!). Having our own space every day of the week will allow us to host emergency homeless shelters, recovery groups, community events, and block parties. We’re renting the vacant lot next to the building, which we hope to turn into a community garden in partnership with others in the community, and we also see possibilities for an art gallery, a concert venue, and studio space for local artists.

While we’re super pumped about the new space, it’s going to take a bit of work and elbow grease to make our big dreams a reality. We have some needs: manual labor, money (check out our Paypal page), and stuff, including tables, chairs, couches, kitchen supplies, curtains/blinds, and new flooring. We’re all putting in a lot of work to get our new space up to par, and plan a sort of soft opening on February 13th (this is tentative), with our real kickoff of this new chapter planned for the 20th. We can’t wait to share this space with our city!

If you’d like to help, donate building supplies or ask any questions, feel free to leave a comment or contact one of our leaders.

As noted, we’re still a long way from the space being renovated & brought up to shape, but here’s a few shots from Cara Beth Buie from our first night of renovation.

new eikon building

new eikon building

new eikon building

new eikon building

new eikon building

new eikon building

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Posted in announcements, core values, information, leadership, little rock, social justice, worship | 2 Comments »



last minute ways to help us throw our christmas party under the bridge Posted by 12.23.2010 5:34 pm

christmas party broadway bridge homeless

as many of you know, we’ll be serving dinner and throwing a christmas party for our homeless friends under the broadway bridge tomorrow night (christmas eve, 12/24) at 6 p.m. in an effort to not only provide a hot meal, we really hope this is a time to build and foster relationships with the homeless community. rather than perpetuating the “us” and “them” mentality, we think christmas is a great opportunity to celebrate together.

we’re a relatively small group here at eikon trying to make a BIG impact. so many of you have chipped in already to pull this off, by donating things, committing to prepare food and spreading the word (some of you even helped to alert various media outlets to raise awareness). as we’re just about 24 hours away, we thought we’d give an update and offer an opportunity to help in the 11th hour.

FOOD: just to switch things up a little, we’ll be having a mexican food theme. at this point, we have the major food elements covered, but if you’d like to make some christmas cookies or brownies or other festive treats, it would be a good addition to our party. (we need to plan for between 35-50 people.) if you’d like to help in this way, you can either bring it and join us a little before 6 p.m. under the bridge or you can contact our coordinator, christen byrd, at christen [at] christenbyrd [dot] com to make other arrangements. (even if you plan to join us, please contact her for planning purposes.)

GIFTS: we’ll be giving gift bags that include practical items that help to survive the frigid temperatures on the streets. while we have collected a considerable amount of items, we could still use any and all donations. here’s a list of things we’ve received and collected so far (numbers are rounded and approximate):

  • men’s socks: 100
  • women’s socks: 20
  • hats: 20
  • mugs: 20
  • men’s gloves: 50
  • women’s gloves: 5
  • chapstick: 50
  • hot hands packets: 175
  • scarves: 20
  • sleeping bags: 10
  • blankets: 15
  • hoodies/fleeces: 5
  • coats: (unknown)

whereas a number of these things have already been wrapped/bagged, we certainly could still use more, even if it was just brought down to the bridge at the time of the gathering (though, again, you can make other arrangements by contacting christen with the aforementioned contact information). if you’d like to purchase or donate any of these things, here’s what is most needed right now:

  • sleeping bags
  • ponchos (there’s a good chance of rain/sleet tomorrow night)
  • coats
  • hats

we will certainly be glad to give you a receipt for your items for tax purposes.

we really think we have the opportunity to be jesus to a community here in little rock that is often overlooked and pushed aside. and of all times to do it, christmas is a pretty good opportunity.

if you’d like to help in any way or have any questions, here are several ways to do that:

1. contact our coordinator, christen byrd, via email at christen [at] christenbyrd [dot] com, via twitter @christenbyrd or via phone at 501.551.8117.

2. contact our pastor, ryan byrd, via email at ryan [at] eikonthechurch [dot] com, via twitter @ryanbyrd or via phone at 501.551.8118.

3. contact our community leader, john hardin, via email at johnwhardin [at] me [dot] com, via twitter @johnwhardin or via phone at 501.319.5363.

thanks for helping!

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Posted in core values, culture, food, gatherings, information, leadership, little rock, missions, social justice, theology, volunteer | 1 Comment »



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