An extravagant meal…

One thing I love about Leigh-Ann (and trust me, there are many things to love about her :)) is her skill at making great meals for our family.

There is something significant about sitting down at the table to enjoy a meal with family and/or friends. Of course we all love to eat and I believe we are made to spend time conversating (new word…look for it in the dictionary soon).

A meal communicates love…which is what we are going to talk about on Sunday.

Love and a meal.

Jesus has raised his good friend Lazarus from the dead and it’s a time to celebrate. John 12:1-11 will reveal a beautiful moment when those gathered express their gratefulness for Jesus.

And then there is a moment tucked into the middle of these verse where Jesus changes the tone from celebration to contemplation when he references “the day of my burial.”

If given the choice, I will always choose a celebration over a conversation about death. There are times when we are not given the choice.

Presently we are living in a time when death is on our screens, minds and even at our mealtime conversations.

Even though death may not be a favorite topic, as Christians, we are made for this conversation. We are the only faith that worships a Savior who has overcome death. As Paul said, “…you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him (Jesus) from the dead” (Col 2:12).

There is so much more to share and discuss. This Sunday we will be online again on YouTube and Facebook at 10:45am. Feel free to join either Livestream and participate in the chat.

If you are comfortable, please share the links with family and friends so they can worship along with you.

Here is the order:

Worship Song

Welcome

Worship/Confession

Community in Context

Worship/Offering

Sermon

Reflection

Group Discussion

Benediction

Discussion from the Chat

I look forward to sharing some thoughts and discussion about this incredible meal with Jesus, Mary, Martha, Lazarus, Simon and Judas.

Please be safe and have a good weekend,

Troy

Podcast: Updates on NLCC During the Coronavirus

Challenges and Opportunities…

Last night after reading for a bit, we settled in as a family to watch Extreme Makeover-Home Edition. We love this show because within an hour we get to hear a story of hardship, learn about hundreds of people who volunteer to help and then in the end watch everyone cry tears of joy over a new place to live.

The episode last night did not disappoint. A school teacher for troubled youth was in a motorcycle accident and lost his leg. He, along with his wife and three daughters had struggled for the past few years. As their story played out, we heard students and adults share about how this teacher had changed their lives.

In spite of his overwhelming health challenges, he continued to be upbeat and positive about life.

Challenges certainly can bring out the best in people…and at times they can bring out the worst of people, however challenges always bring out something.

With the onslaught of the Coronavirus, each one of us is in the midst of a challenge in real time. Our present and future is changing rapidly. It’s nearly impossible to imagine what things could look like a few weeks from now and it certainly was impossible to accurately predict what we are experiencing now.

To put it simply…we need Jesus more than ever.

This Sunday, we are going to continue our study through the Gospel of John entitled, “Discovering God.” I look forward to sharing about a different challenge from John 11:45-57. Jesus was the most significant “Change Agent” in history and some accepted His challenge while others rejected it. We are left with an identical challenge…will you accept or reject Him?

SUNDAY DETAILS

Instead of gathering, we will LiveStream the sermon HERE at 10:45AM. Please join us online and share the link with friends. We are planning for the LiveStream to last about an hour. Here is the order:

Worship Song

Welcome and Updates

Worship Song and Confession

Community in Context

Offering Song

Sermon (Shortened to 20mn)

Reflection Song

Sermon Discussion in the “New Life Living Room”

Daily Video Devotionals on NLCC Facebook Page

Our Elder team will start offering daily video devotions on our New Life CityChurch Facebook Page every day around 5pm. These will be short, 5 minute videos which I hope you will be able to watch.

Connect Group Video Conference Training

If you lead any sort of connect group, affinity group or ministry team at New Life, please tyr to join in the training at 10am tomorrow here: https://zoom.us/j/290987232?pwd=anhxRytIblg5cFV4VVkvMzZlajljdz09

Pastors Dave Robinson and Gabor Gresz are hosting a two-part training this Saturday.
1) From 10-11:00am we will train in how to use ZOOM and GOOGLE HANGOUTS. The aim is to give you confidence in hosting a an online community – to make it be a stellar time of either training, conversation, bible study or community group of any kind.
2) From 11:00-11:45 am we will show you how to use outreach tools via social media, too.

Ongoing Communication

Moving forward, we plan to stay in close communication through the following:

1. LiveStream the service every week at 10:45am HERE.
2. Daily Devotions on the NLCC Facebook Page HERE.
3. Three Church Wide Emails per week—if you need to add an email address to the list, send it to support@newlifekc.org.
4. One Podcast per week which can be seen HERE.

I pray you have a safe and productive weekend building into your church community.

Troy

Story and Sunday Service Updates…

Earlier today I took Dallas out for his birthday lunch to one of his favorite restaurants…Red Robin. We ate a lot of French fries, played multiple games at the table and we ended the meal with a birthday song and an Ice Cream Sundae.

When it comes to birthdays, we love to take a few minutes to reflect on the past year and look forward to the next. As a family we have several great memories with Dallas, many of them include a ball, some of them food and fun experiences and even a few memories travelling and exploring.

When we share good memories with a close friend or family member our relationship grows. When we experience a close relationship for many years we forge a very strong bond.

Our text for this Sunday reveals a family who also had forged a strong bond. However, that bond was on the verge of breaking because of terminal illness. Lazarus was dying and his sisters, Mary and Martha were deeply saddened.

Fortunately, they knew the best option for them during this difficult time was to reach out to Jesus. Which, by the way is still the best option. I am looking forward to hearing Pastor Dave share part two of this story from John 11 which ends by Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead.

In light of the coronavirus, since we are a relatively small church and the city has set the threshold for gatherings at 1,000 people, we are still planning to have services. However, if you have any doubt about coming or feel even a little sick, please choose to watch the service on our New Life CityChurch YouTube Channel at 10:45am.

Additionally, we are monitoring this situation closely as a church. Yesterday we recorded a podcast explaining some of our processes and next steps as a church. Please watch this podcast on our efforts to deal with the coronavirus on our New Life CityChurch YouTube Channel. In light of the rapidly changing horizon, we will have one final email regarding the Sunday services by 5pm tomorrow.

If you have a need, we are here to pray with you and do our best to come alongside to help. If you have resources or expertise, we would also love to hear from you. Please email us at: support@newlifekc.org.

Ultimately we accept the coronavirus is very serious and each of us must take precaution, not only for our families and our church, but for the good of the city.

Praying with you for God’s strength during this difficult time,

Troy

Back on the Trails…

Since the weather has been warming up, I seem to have caught “Spring Fever.” As a result of this fever,  a few days ago, I loaded up my bike and went for a ride on the trails at Swope Park.

The temperature was beautiful, the birds and squirrels were busy moving around and the trail was begging for another rider.

Insert middle aged dad – that’s me :).

Everything started out great and then I decided to take a different route…why not be adventurous…I mean, what could go wrong?

After biking for thirty minutes or so, I began to realize I was nowhere near any familiar trails. Additionally, the difficulty of this trail was up at least a notch from those I typically ride.

My heart rate had picked up and my breathing became more labored.

After climbing what seemed like a massive hill, I stopped to catch my breath and decide what to do next.

I kept going….getting more and more fatigued.

At one point on the trail, I was draped over my handlebars and another biker came around the corner…

“Hey…do you know that fastest direction back to the parking lot by chance?” I asked.

“….hmmm….I think going back the way you came.”

“Thanks…”

            “Sure, enjoy the trails.”

As I turned around, all  could hear from him was, “enjoy the trails.” By now the fun had worn off and I was in full work mode.

Since I was extremely fatigued, my reactions were slower–which isn’t good on a steep, rocky trail. At one point I was riding back through a shallow creek, which was easy several minutes earlier. However, this time I was slower and ended up putting my foot down in six inches of water.

Great, now my foot is soaked…I’m running late…and now I’m exhausted.

Sometimes life can be like this…what we expect isn’t always what we get. Sometimes we anticipate breezes and slopes and we get lost and fatigued. Often when tough times come, we need a change of perspective.

This Sunday, we continue our “Discovering God” sermon series from John 11:1-16.  It is a story about Jesus and His friends, but it reveals suffering and struggle. However, at the same time, this story gives us hope for dealing with sorrow, finding perspective, exercising courage and growing in our faith.

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

And even though my last experience on the trail wasn’t my favorite, I can’t wait to load up the bike and ride again.

Have a great weekend,

Troy