husband. dad. simple church alliance. inside joke music.
Christians “deconstructing” their faith has garnered a lot of attention recently. In this new episode of Keep it Simple: A Simple Church Podcast, Tom and Gavin this trend and ask several questions that are relevant to those in simple church…
The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill, a recent podcast produced by Christianity Today has generated a lot of discussion among those interested in the Church. In the most recent episode of Keep It Simple: A Simple Church Podcast, Tom and Gavin discuss this podcast and extract lessons for those of us in simple church. Please like and subscribe to our YouTube channel to make sure you get all the videos of the podcast as we reboot it on this platform. You can listen online at our website: http://www.keepitsimplepodcast.com Listen and subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3KxxijeLM1ZdhdiISYm2HQ?si=d468d1720f9d49f7 Listen and subscribe on Apple Music: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/keep-it-simple-a-simple-church-podcast/id767718695?i=1000552597297 Please leave a comment on Youtube or below and let us know your thoughts!YouTube Link: https://youtu.be/GiJyoBzEWqg
Join simple church friends and family from the region for a Back2Basics Breakfast where we will enjoy food and a conversation about the basics of simple church. This is an excellent opportunity for anyone interested in the idea of simple church to meet others following Christ in simple/organic ways and have their questions answered. We encourage all who are a part of a simple church to join as well as your experience will certainly contribute to the discussion! We hope you will consider joining us. We do ask for RSVPs to be emailed to us here as we want to make sure to have enough coffee and food! If you have questions let us know. It should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway… No strings attached! We simply want to provide a connecting… Read More »Network Gathering – Back 2 Basics Breakfast – Feb.19
Friends, I cannot thank you enough for supporting our family and the ministry of simple church. A gift to Simple Church Alliance allows me to serve in the role I do and it has enabled me to navigate a very tumultuous time for our family these past two years as we have been in and out of the hospital with Wylie. Thanks to all who have supported us in this special way. We are eternally grateful. The past year has been a challenging but wonderful year and we could not be more grateful to still be here after ten years of offering support, mentorship, and encouragement to those seeking to follow Christ “outside the box!” In many ways, 2022 will begin a new chapter for Simple Church Alliance! We would be honored for you to partner… Read More »Support Simple Church Alliance
This liturgy was shared by my wife Karla at our dinner table this past weekend and also with our church family in our home Sunday morning. It’s found in a book series entitled Every Moment Holy and also available for download on their website www.everymomentholy.com. The series focuses on liturgies for every day life. A reading such as the one below can be a great exercise for a simple church community to share together. In this “liturgy for feasting with friends,” a picture of what simple church gatherings can be is painted in the opening sentence–a picture that I think is worth imagining. McKelvey suggests that “feasting and all enjoyments gratefully taken are, at their heart, acts of war.” It is certainly true that when we gather we are building one another up and encouraging… Read More »A Joyful Feast as an Act of War?- A liturgy for feasting with friends
On Thanksgiving day we headed to Berea to spend Thanksgiving with our family. It was Wylie’s first Thanksgiving at her grandmothers. Jesus often explained that forgiveness of our sin was a greater miracle than those involving earthly matters. In light of seeing my car yesterday and the taking the pictures above, It made me think of just how incredible his forgiveness truly is. His earthly intervention on behalf of Karla, Neva, and Wylie this Thanksgiving was no small matter! Here is how Karla put it: Raise your hand if you love trees! Well, I do. My attention has been drawn to them even more after reading Matthew Sleeth’s book Reforesting Faith. In it, he states that of all living things mentioned in the Bible, people are first and trees are second. Every major event is… Read More »Thankful
Hello Friends! Tom and I are rebooting the podcast and will be giving YouTube a try in addition to Apple Podcasts and Stitcher (hopefully Spotify soon as well). We started this podcast many years ago as an excuse for Tom and I to get together and discuss issues that we were encountering through simple church. Surprisingly, several of you have followed along and shared with us how this has encouraged you in your journey. We even have made some friends a long the way because of these discussions! I do look forward to this new season of the podcast and discussing several topics that are on my heart as well as any topics or questions you may have! – Gavin YouTube Description: Tom and Gavin are back after a long delay to reboot the podcast… Read More »Keep It Simple Podcast #125 – A Long Overdue Update
I have not posted on this site lately. I suppose this is due to a lot of soul searching about the direction for “simple church.” Haven’t we all been re-thinking all sorts of things during this past year? Add to the mix all that I’m learning about the nature of God from my daughter Wylie, and I feel like He is doing some foundational things in my heart. Having time to assess these matters and ministry eleven years into this journey with Simple Church Alliance, has been healthy and is still unfolding. More on that in the days to come. For now, I’ll say that much of what is addressed in the message I’ve recently re-discoverd from John Lynch and his Trufaced series captures a big piece of what God is teaching me. Below is… Read More »A Community That Pleases God or Trusts God?
Friends and family, December 12, 11AM – 1:30pm we will host a Network Christmas Gathering for all friends, family, of simple church! We’d love to see longtime friends reunite as well if possible! We will enjoy Christmas music, fellowship, a meal, and encouragement. We will plan to meet at First Southern Bank in Lexington. RSVP required by DEC 6th in case we need to change venues. This will be a Potluck meal. Meat, drinks, and utensils will be provided. You can let us know what you would bring upon RSVP. Spread the word and please feel free to invite friends and family. If you are interested in participating in a baby dedication prayer please let us know as well. Thanks! RSVP by emailing gavinduersonATgmail.com First Southern National Bank: 3060 Harrodsburg Road, Lexington, KY. 40503
It started like the sunrise–warm, gentle, faithful, quiet and full of beauty. You know how God works: He strings along a message like a strand of pearls–unmistakable and full of grace and glory. I think it began with rereading The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry in which John Mark Cromer encourages the reader to slow to the pace of Jesus. He poses a question, “What has happened to the personal quiet time?” He wonders if the QT was abandoned as a legalistic relic of the late 1990s. “Let’s bring it back.” He concludes. I felt a nudge in my heart like the brightening horizon. I confided in my sister that I needed to bring back the quiet time. I knew it would be a helpful way to start the day. I heard God’s invitation. I was… Read More »Invitation to Rest (by Karla Duerson)