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Simple Church Network Gathering – October 26

Several simple church communities are coming together this Sunday for a time of fellowship and encouragement, and you’re invited! This will be a great opportunity to meet others involved in simple churches across the region and to learn more about what simple church is all about. Our gathering will be relaxed and informal—we’ll pull everyone together briefly to share and hear a bit about each simple church represented. Adventure Serve is a wonderful place for kids to play and enjoy the outdoors, and if it rains, we’ll still have plenty of space to gather comfortably indoors. Simple Church Fellowship Sunday October 26 2PM at Aventure Serve Ministries in Wilmore, KY. Bring some snacks to share, and we’ll provide the coffee and hot chocolate! Rain or shine. Bring a chair if you have one! Contact Gavin@simplechurchalliance.com… Read More »Simple Church Network Gathering – October 26

Why Simple Church? Here are 10 Reasons…

Q. Why Simple Church? A. The state of church attendance in our country as a whole is not positive.  While some positive signs of increased interest in church attendance have emerged in the younger population since COVID, the overall trajectory does not look good.  Why would simple church be any different? Here are a few reasons we think simple church (and similar communities) can help connect a disinterested world to Jesus and his family in the days to come: Stronger Relationships – Smaller gatherings foster deeper, more authentic connections compared to larger, more anonymous settings. Accessible and Flexible – Simple churches often meet in homes or informal spaces, making them less intimidating, easier to join.  Also, they can adjust when and where they gather week to week to accommodate the needs of the group. Low-Pressure… Read More »Why Simple Church? Here are 10 Reasons…

2025 Simple Church Retreat

Sign up today for the 2025 Simple Church Retreat at the Stanford Inn at the Wilderness Road in Stanford, KY September 27-28.  Enjoy a wonderful time with others involved in simple church communities across the region, in this event’s thirteenth year! Space is limited so register today and get all the details HERE. The Registration Deadline is August 28th.  Too far away to join us? Bad timing?  We are always available to help you host a similar weekend in your neck of the woods!  Contact us for more details.

Francis Chan – God’s Beloved

I saw this podcast making the rounds on social media and had a few friends mention it to me before I finally had a chance to listen. I’ve written here before about how I’ve felt a connection to Francis Chan and his journey with house church as it was about a year after we started Simple Church Alliance that he left his megachurch to eventually begin house churches in California. What’s so wild to me is that while the conversation is promoted as primarily about house church (he does discuss the story of moving to a house church approach in this conversation), the content ends up landing right where I’ve found myself. I’ve written and spoken at length about how, since our daughter Wylie’s birth, God has been taking me on an adventure of discovering… Read More »Francis Chan – God’s Beloved

Welcome: Greensburg, PA Simple Church

Recently, we have been blessed to connect with two wonderful families just outside of Pittsburgh, PA.  Dylan and Ami Drake first reached out after finding this website. Then, after several conversations and a visit to Lexington, they, along with friends Kaden and Alyssa Browe, are beginning to see God birth a new community in their town of Greensburg!  I am personally encouraged by the simple steps of faith they are taking to love people and help everyone understand their identity in Christ. I was adding them to the directory here (I’m long overdue in updating the directory!), and I asked Dylan if he would mind sharing a little more about their group. Please pray for the Drakes and the Browes as they trust God to “bring church to the unchurched” in the greater Pittsburgh area!… Read More »Welcome: Greensburg, PA Simple Church

Good Friday Network Gathering – April 18

You are invited to join simple church friends and family on Friday, April 18th at the Prayer Room on Broadway for a Good Friday celebration.  We will enjoy a time of worship through song and celebrate the Lord’s table together.  Light refreshments will be served. Where:  The Prayer Room On Broadway, 1218 S Broadway, Lexington, KY 40504 Time: 7:00-8:30pm If you would like to share a testimony or song, please let us know or just show up prepared to do so. Questions?  contact us here.  

An Update from the Simple Church of Morehead, KY

By Doug Volk Often in the church world we talk about growth and growing in numbers. The first question posed when networking is, “How many people or families show up?” I have been part of simple/house church for about five years and this question still is asked. I am guilty of asking it myself.  I suggest that the Church is unlike a business that is measured by its ability to continue to chart progress moving up and to the right with some dips. Sometimes I struggle that we can’t achieve exponential growth or even the growth of a few more families. Yet I cannot deny that growth has occurred differently than I have expected. Christ says the way is narrow and oftentimes he calls the few. This doesn’t mean that we can’t have huge movements… Read More »An Update from the Simple Church of Morehead, KY

Moving from Solitude to Community to Ministry

“By community, I don’t mean formal communities. I mean families, friends, parishes, twelve-step programs, prayer groups. Community is not an organization; community is a way of living: you gather  around you people with whom you want to proclaim the truth that we are the beloved sons and daughters of God.” – Henri Nouwen One unique aspect of our simple church is that we have two small children in our community with the rare genetic disorder—Trisomy 18. As we have learned to be parents to our daughter Wylie and witnessed God reveal Himself through her amazing life, we have continually been drawn to the writings of Henri Nouwen. Nouwen, a Dutch Catholic priest, theologian, and writer, spent the later part of his life in a community for those with disabilities. In the first few years after… Read More »Moving from Solitude to Community to Ministry

Thy Kingdom Come: Living in Light of Heaven’s Reality

Introduction: A Future Hope That Shapes Our Present When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we say the words, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” But have we ever stopped to consider what that truly means? How does our understanding of God’s kingdom shape the way we live today? For many of us, the concept of a kingdom can feel foreign. We live in a democratic society where the idea of a king is often associated with oppression. But Jesus is a different kind of King—one who is loving, all-knowing, and self-sacrificing. He lays down His life for His people and promises to be personally present with us always. The Nature of God’s Kingdom 1. An Upside-Down Kingdom God’s kingdom is unlike any earthly rule. It operates on… Read More »Thy Kingdom Come: Living in Light of Heaven’s Reality

Tony Campolo

I just learned that Tony Campolo passed away. When I was a new believer in high school, I heard Tony speak a few times and was encouraged greatly by his enthusiasm for following Jesus. I ended up devouring many of his books. I remember being inspired to serve Christ with my whole life a few times when I heard him speak. One particular time, I remember accidentally stumbled into this music festival at Six Flags in Georga, and there he was, passionately pleading with the crowd to follow Jesus. It was a significant moment in my early Christian life. During my freshman year in college at the University of Kentucky, I was discovering the power of prayer and had, for the first time, been writing out my prayers in a journal. It was always exciting… Read More »Tony Campolo