God is moving!!

I am in awe. Over the past couple of weeks, I have seen or heard of people from all ages coming to the realization that they want to surrender their lives to Christ. These folks have made these decisions on their own in the context of various ministries in the life of our church. Wow!! 27 people that I know of have taken that step of faith in the last couple of weeks. Amazing!! This is not a long post. I am simply celebrating. It is joy to serve in this role.

In Christ,
Kyle

Church Planting As a Form of Outreach

This weekend our church will celebrate its 30th Anniversary. I am excited because we have a gathering for core leaders tomorrow morning, then our 3 weekend services, and then a community wide celebration on Sunday afternoon. During the Sunday afternoon celebration, we will celebrate our church planters. Kentwood Community Church has planted 10 churches in its history. I got a chance to see the video where each of the church planters delivered a brief greeting to KCC. It was really cool to think about the impact of strategically placing these new churches all around the region. So many more people have the opportunity to participate in exciting worship and fellowship because of these 10 churches. I can't wait for our congregation to experience the video together. I think we will all be praising God for what He has done.

In Christ,
Kyle

Outreach is Cool!!

Yesterday, a gentleman walked into our church building and asked to meet with me. He told me that two people had sent him to talk with me because they told him I was a "good man". (Awww, shucks!!) Anyway, he told me a little about his life - former gang member, drug dealer, etc. He told me that he had been trying to find a job for a year and was having no success. I asked him about his spiritual background. He mentioned that he accepted Christ and had been baptized, but he does not currently have a Bible and can't remember the last time he read one. I gave him a New Testament, asked him to read John 3:16 and we talked about it briefly before I prayed with him.

During our conversation though, I remembered that it was Wednesday. Wednesday is significant because we have re-launched our Career Transition Ministry at KCC. There is a woman in our congregation that runs a career placement firm, and she felt led by God to donate one day of her time per week to help people find jobs. So, after praying with this gentleman, I was able to walk him down the hall to meet with Judy, the woman who runs our Career Transition Ministry. When I spoke with Judy later in the day, she was just glowing. She was able to help him create a resume and print out 20 copies of it. She helped him apply for 3 jobs online, and he is supposed to go and visit 3 places on his own. What a blessing!! I am so thankful to God for people like Judy that choose to give their time in that way. I am also praying that the gentleman will get a hunger for God's Word that he can't even explain.

In Christ,
Kyle

Obedience glorifies God

I just got out of my Wednesday morning men's Bible study group with a group of guys that I care about quite a bit. We are digging into the book of John. Today, we looked at the passage where Judas betrays Jesus. I can't imagine what it must have been like to know that one of the people closest to you was about to betray you. Yet, somehow, when it happened, Jesus began to talk about how God would be glorified. The way that Jesus modeled obedience, even in the face of betrayal and its consequences, inspires me to be more obedient in my daily journey. Today, I hope to take up the cross and follow Jesus wherever he leads me.

In Christ,
Kyle

A Changed Life

Well, this afternoon took an unexpected twist. I was standing outside of the church building talking to one of our ministry volunteers. A gentleman walked up with a frozen pizza and lit up a cigarette. The woman that I was speaking to struck up a conversation with the guy regarding his pizza. It turns out that the guy was at our church to put in some community service hours. The conversation turned to spiritual topics when he mentioned that he had been going to church regularly and praying regularly since his conviction. The volunteer that was with me asked him rather boldly, "So, are you saying that Christ is your savior?" The guy responded, "I think he must be because my life has been totally different since I have been attending church regularly and stopped drinking." A few sentences later, the volunteer again asked, "So, I have a question for you...If you died tonight do you know where you would be going?" He said, "I hope I would be going to heaven, but I am not sure because of all of the bad things that I have done in the past." Here is the short version of the rest of the story. We asked him if he wanted to be sure that he would spend eternity in heaven. He knew about repentance, but he had not taken that step in prayer. Right there outside of the doors of the church, he prayed in his own words and asked Christ to forgive him of his sins and be the Lord and savior of his life. What a blessing to be a part of his journey. I am working now to connect him with someone that can walk with him on the discipleship journey. Praise the Lord.

In Christ,
Kyle

Deep theological thoughts at a concert...

So, a friend of mine got tickets and backstage passes for me for an Earth Wind and Fire concert along with the band Chicago. As I listen to these talented musicians and see the crowd going wild, a thought has crossed my mind. How do you get people this fired up about Christ? How do you get this many people pumped up about self-denial? How do you get a crowd to go wild about a righteous judge, a wonderful counselor, and a prince of peace? How do you get people take pictures and videos on their cell phones when the one who walked on water, healed the sick, fed the multitudes and preached the Kingdom is preached about? I am excited about Jesus for what he did, what he is doing, and what he will do in the days to come.

Kyle

God is so good!!

Today is a great day. I can't explain all of the reasons why, but I know that God has blessed me, my family, and my church family. I have just been marveling all day at how God gives us so many opportunities to proclaim biblical truth. God is merciful. God is kind. God is loving. God is so patient. God desires to receive all the glory, honor, and praise for the work that God does in our lives. I am so thankful today for the opportunities that I get to declare the goodness of God. Just wanted to share that thought with you as well.

Kyle