A legacy of humility…

On Thursday, I was able to take a tour of Arrowhead stadium with Dallas and his 5^th grade class. We began with a learning session about Lamar Hunt…which one of his classmates kept confusing with Lamar Jackson :).

Lamar Hunt was passionate about all things sports. He founded the American Football League, Kansas City Chiefs and even named the Super Bowl. He also loved soccer and is considered the founder of Major League Soccer and the Kansas City Wizards.

While on the tour, it quickly became obvious Lamar Hunt is revered anywhere near Arrowhead Stadium. He is known for his kindness and service to everyone including the fans, players, coaches and support staff.

Lamar Hunt left a culture of humility and respect for others. His obituary says this,

“Mr. Hunt was a devoted Christian, a loving husband, father and grandfather, who enjoyed a vibrant life filled with many dear friends. He was a man of extraordinary vision, faith and integrity, whose deep sense of humility was one of his most unwavering and most endearing traits.”

Why?

It is hardly a coincidence a man with such deep faith in Jesus, lived a life of such selfless service to others. Of course, the character and accomplishments of Lamar Hunt pale in comparison to the life of Jesus.

As we prepare for Advent, we will explore the effect of Jesus and His teaching on the First Century world. Not simply WHY Jesus came, but what He did while walking on earth.

I look forward to sharing the foundation for Christmas this Sunday from Philippians 2:3-8 and then looking at a snapshot from the life of Jesus from Mark 8:1-10.

I hope to see you at 9:00 or 10:45am. If you cannot attend in person, you can watch the Livestream HERE.

In the meantime, there is plenty of inspiration coming out of Arrowhead and even more as we study the life of Jesus.

Have a great weekend,

Troy

Kanye’s Smile…

Kanye West looks different.

It is rare for me to notice much of what happens in Hollywood. Every now and then I will see a headline that catches my attention or hear about some event or superstar that finds an intersection between Christianity and Hollywood and that is interesting to me. But very rare.

Over the past few months though, I have been following the story of Kanye West with increasing interest.

Last Sunday evening, we watched Airpool Karaoke with James Corden and Kanye West.

It already has millions of views, is really entertaining and the musicians are INCREDIBLY talented. However, the most impactful part of the entire video for me is…..

That smile on Kanye’s face…

It seems so incredibly genuine. Simply seeing his smile and hearing him talk encourages me so much and makes me want to worship God.

This relates to my sermon for Sunday from John 9. The story of the blind man who Jesus healed.

In John 9, we read about an incredible public display of grace that resulted in a personal display of worship. Simply stated, when Jesus changes a life, we are moved to worship.

I hope you can join in the service this Sunday at 9:00 or 10:45am as we study more about God’s grace and our response of worship. If you are unable to attend in person, I hope you can watch the Livestream at 10:45am.

Hope you have a great weekend,

Troy

Power tools and Pumpkin Seeds…

Last night we took some time to carve pumpkins as a family. Yes, I know Halloween was a week ago, however we hadn’t really had the time to come together and perform our fall traditions.

And, we really wanted to roast the pumpkin seeds.

If you know our family, we tend to go all in…

…knives were sawing away
…plastic scoops were scraping the pumpkin sludge
…creativity was moving into the red zone
…Christmas music was playing in the background

 

It seemed everyone was on a mission to carve out the best ol’ Jack-O-Lantern in the house. Pretty soon a knife broke…and progress started to slow a bit…I calculated our pace and concluded there was a good possibility we would lose momentum….and then, would miss out on some of the pumpkin seeds.

And then it happened, I had one of the best “dad ideas” in awhile…I could use my new jigsaw.

🙂 – Power tools and Pumpkin Seeds…. #nailedit.
How could anyone not love that combination?

Well, it wasn’t perfect…I found out rather quickly that although a jigsaw can carve super fast, it also makes a really big mess.

Almost immediately, I noticed slimy orange stuff on the counter top, floor and even my sweater.

I was reminded that even the best ideas can produce backlash.

This Sunday, we have a story about a blind man who is healed by Jesus and as a result there is a massive backlash.

It may have been impossible to even imagine the resistance Jesus experienced after healing this man who had been blind from birth.

I am already looking forward to hearing from Pastor Gabor Gresz as he shares a sermon from John 9:1-14 entitled, “From a blind beggar to an outcast seer.”
I hope to see you at 9:00am or 10:45am. If you cannot attend in person, you are welcome to join the livestream HERE at 10:45am.

I hope you have a great weekend,
Troy

 

Hole-in-one…

A few days ago, I was able to play Putt Putt with some of the guys from church. Although, we are not quite ready to audition for ‘Holey Moley’ we shared a few great memories.

I had lost the first round, but was off to a good start in the second. By the sixth hole of nine, I had a one stroke lead at the top of the leader board.

And then it happened…as soon as my putter graced the blue ball, I knew there was a chance.

Hole-in-one!

That was enough for an underhand victory punch.

And then it happened, Gary Moore settled into his approach, and not to be outdone, drilled his own hole-in-one.

Game face: ON!

Next hole, Gary did it again.

Two hole-in-one’s in a row.

In my entire Putt Putt career, I have never hit two in a row.

Imagine if Gary looked at me with my one stroke lead on hole five and made the claim, “My next five strokes will be hole-in-one’s.”

I probably wouldn’t have believed him…sorry Gary :).

This Sunday, we finish up John 8 with five massive claims made by Jesus. In fact, the claims were so aggressive, the people picked up stones to put Him to death. I hope you can read through John 8:42-59 and pick out the claims of Jesus. I also hope to see you on Sunday as I share a sermon about the extraordinary hope we have because of the extraordinary claims Jesus made.

Services are at 9:00 or 10:45am. If for some reason you cannot attend in person, you can watch the livestream HERE.

Have a great day,

Troy

Announcements: Tonight is First Fridays and New Life is hosting a free concert, The band, Ryan Wyatt Experience will play 7:30-9:00 PM and artwork from Jennie Haugen will be on exhibit. This is a free event and we hope you’ll be able to come! Light refreshments will be available.

Daylight Savings Time Ends: Don’t forget to “Fall Back” or you can just come an hour early on Sunday…we’ll put some coffee on :).