I recently received this email from Jeff Herron who along with his family are in the process of starting down the simple church path. I’m continually encouraged by Kingdom Minded “legacy” church folks who see the value in house/simple church and want to encourage simple church multiplication. May Jeff’s words encourage you and may we all join in praying for God to do a mighty work in the northern part of our state!
Just wanted to pass along a quick update as an encouragement to you all. The senior pastor from the last “legacy church” (to use the Dale’s phrase) where we were members approached us unexpectedly this past week and proposed that we partner up with them in doing a “house church model” church plant in our area. While none of the details are concrete at this point and although we’re not on exactly the same page with what this church plant might look like, I took this as an affirmation and encouragement from the Spirit that we’re on the right path and that He has not forgotten us! It also struck me as a neat working out of the idea of simple churches and legacy churches partnering up in the work of making disciples, a vision that is cast in the book, Small Is Big. (If you know Gavin, you’ve probably already read this, but if you haven’t, it is worth your time to do so.)
As the weather slowly starts to turn over to the warmer months, our family is planning to spend Sunday mornings at a local park to see who we can meet, get to know better, build relationship with, pray for, etc. We started doing this just as the weather got bad last year, and we know this can be a great place to meet families who are disconnected from the Sunday morning church routine, for whatever reason. We’re not sure what God will do, but we’re going to show up and find out. I appreciate your prayers with us about this.
We’re having a beautiful snowfall here in northern KY this morning. I am reminded that we have been washed as white as snow. We have incredible news to share with everyone who has ears to hear it – that we can embrace God’s view of us through Christ as the reality (because it IS the reality) and set aside our own view of ourselves as the outright lie that it is. While we focus on the “old man” and sometimes see ourselves as unworthy and sinful and all the rest, Father knows only the “new creation” that we are in Christ and sees us with His Spirit in our every heartbeat, the life of Christ in us coursing through our entire beings. And that view of who we are, that new reality, is open to anyone – all we have to do is claim that truth in Christ and live as if the old way has gone away and been replaced by the new (because in fact that is exactly what has happened). Wow! I pray each of you will have a fresh “God-view” of who you are today.
And please feel free to share anything that God is doing in your corner of the world or anything we can be praying about. I know it would be a great encouragement to me, and would be to others as well. Thanks!
– Jeff Herron (You can contact Jeff at jeffherron@hushmail.com)
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