by Jonathan Ho

It’s almost the end of another year. As we transition into and begin a new year, we at KRC wanted to present you with ideas and perspectives on where we are and where we hope to go. Think of this edition as an abbreviated State of the Union as we see it, a series of articles and ideas seeking to explain where the Church is and how to think about where to go next.

One of my co-workers started sailing a few months ago, and while I haven’t sailed a boat myself, I believe life can be like traveling in a boat. At times, the waves may push us too far right and at other times the waves may push us too far left. At times there will be peace and at times there will be storms. Journeys in life rarely are without detour and difficulty, and it is important when deciding where to go to recalibrate with locating where we are at the moment and where we are to head.

When I asked the writers to consider how the Church should look forward in these times, I discovered hearts for embracing the messiness of loving others, including the “other”, and putting on the new clothes of Christ. While I believe these are important messages for the body of Christ and while I pray God would give us all more understanding and insight, I hope you will use these articles not as written direction but as additional insight and understanding to help you see where God is working in the lives of some of the rising generation of Millennials. Regardless of the sermons we hear, the books we read, and the advice we receive, our compass is found in God’s Word to lead us, and God’s Spirit to guide and empower us. At the same time, a compass read is not a direction taken.

Faith without works is dead. May God bring to mind ways you may join him in his work and may he help us all to grow in trusting him and stepping into the world to create and cultivate to help the world experience God’s deep love.

Please note, some of these articles may rub you the wrong way and may cause discomfort with their wording. I, myself, felt discomfort at times reading these articles, but I ask you to listen. I don’t ask you to agree or even to disagree but to listen and seek to discern how God might be leading you through what you read. Discuss the ideas about what bothers you with family and others around you. Here at KRC we are not about giving you answers, but about pointing you towards Christ. We believe Jesus calls us to mature and maturity requires practice and not spoon-fed answers.

You’ll also notice, scattered between these articles are a couple of small charts created to aid in consideration and reflection. We hope you’ll find these charts useful as we at KRC seek to find new ways of praising God and helping make him known. May God continue to lead us to live day by day with a vision of the future as we seek the Kingdom of God both in our midst and in the age to come.

Jonathan Ho

P.S. As always, we’d love to hear from you. Do you find the articles helpful as they are? Do you have suggestions for us in our content or approach? We’d love to hear your story as you process where God is moving and how you may join him in his work. Email krc.english@gmail.com  with any stories, feedback, thoughts, and questions you might have.