From the Pastor’s Desk

Each August members of Grace attend the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit, right here in Wichita. That introduction alone might be confusing. Willow Creek is a church in Illinois, but they put on a leadership summit that is broadcast all over the world. We attend at Pathways Church in West Wichita.

When I got here five years ago I was skeptical of this event. What could a mega-church in Illinois have to say that would relate to my life at Grace? ...

There is an unofficial society at Grace, a society that no one wants to be part of, yet many are. It’s a group loosely bound together because they’ve experienced the death of a child. They do not get together for meetings, but once one recognizes another, and the connection is made, there is a bond.

Last year a colleague, Yvi, shared with me that she had led a worship service in her church, For Those Who’ve Loved and Lost. The service ...

What’s next for Grace? Little is predictable in the life of a church in 2015. There was a time when things were assumed about churches. For instance: there would always be the next generation to pick up where someone left off; and there would always be specific ways to study the Bible or to worship that people would flock to.

We can’t assume anything about the life of a church anymore. In many cases the next generation isn’t interested in what ...