Light the Darkness

The Prince of the Mafia is Coming

The Prince of the Mafia is coming! Tom Brokaw called Michael Franzese, former Mafia captain in the Columbo Crime family, "The Prince of the Mafia." Join us Friday, November 13th at the Indian Creek Community Church from 8-9:30 am to hear Michael's intriguing story of life in the mob and God's forgiveness. His story of gambling, loan sharking, movie production, and corporate crime is fascinating. His account of God's forgiveness is life changing. Invite your friends and join us November 13th. You can impact 10 lives for only $100! Call 913.782.9333 to buy 10 or more tickets or click on the link below to register as an individual.

Register Now!

To purchase a block of 10 tickets and impact 10 lives for only $100 call 913.782.9333!   Penny Lyons Integrity Resource Center pennyl@integrityresource.org 913 7829333

Gary Kendall

A New Chapter in Our History

I watched the Inauguration with great interest today as did people around the world.  This was a historic event and it lived up to the hype.  This is about so much more than race.  I've posted the url here to the script of the speech.  I believe President Obama gets the truth that we are a global society.  I thought the content and delivery were exceptional even with the one small stumble during the swearing in ceremony.  I hope that doesn't become a focal point because if it does we will miss the good offered in this event.  I like the line, we have chosen hope over fear and unity of purpose over conflict and discord.  Later he said, we will reach our hand to anyone who will unclinch their fist.  I hope our allies and enemies will believe this is a new chapter.

I will be praying regularly for President Obama and our nation's leaders and I urge you to do the same. He invited the world to the table.  "Change" was his mantra during the election.  What if there could be change around the world?  We need it!  I'm sure you don't doubt that!  To get there we will need to put aside partisan politics and work together to make this nation as great as it can be.  Passionate service, fueled by love and prayer, can invite the power of the Holy Spirit.  The result can CHANGE the world. I'll give myself to that.  Will you join me?

Rapid Change

Download Technology   I'm not going to write a lot today just point you to this file.  It speaks to the rapid rate of change.  The sense I got as I watched was that we can be aware and position ourselves to be in the flow of change or we can get run over or left out.

Underground Railroad

Belinda and I invite you to be our guest and the guest of Indian Creek Community Church at the presentation of "Underground".  It is a dramatic, musical presented by the the Storling Dance Theater at the historic Lyric Theater, February 8 & 9 at 8:00 p.m.  If you come on Saturday we invite you to join us at a Gala cast party afterward.  Please contact one of us at gary.kendall@indiancreek.org or belinda.kendall@indiancreek.org to secure your tickets.  Come this Sunday to Indian Creek Community Church and you will see a vignette presented by the cast. 

We've taken a personal interest in this because we feel a prompting of God to motivate those from the suburbs to meet with those from the inner city.  We've written twenty leading pastors across the city to be our guests.  We want to build relationships and to personally commit to be a combined force for justice and equality.  In remembering the pain we remind ourselves to stand together and not allow something similar to happen again.  At the same time we will be inspired that the result of our combined effort is greater than simply the sum of our individual parts.  There is an audience we can reach through theater that we cannot reach through a church service or a prayer group.  Will you pray with us that we can reach hands across the divide to create a better tomorrow?

If you feel led to join us as a financial sponsor, please do.  If you want to buy your ticket so the complimentary ones go further, feel free.  In any case, please mark your calendar and show up so we can be together those evenings.

Greensburg

We went through Greensberg, Kansas, on our way to Satanta for the centennial celebration for Pleasant Prairie Church of God.  The city is devastated.  It is amazing, not more than a quarter mile on the east side outside of town everything is normal.  The same is true for the west.  The tornado leveled nearly every structure in town.  What you see here are the torn up trees and foundations without buildings. 

What is hard to understand is why.  I can't comprehend the grief and suffering that the catastrophe brought.  It will be a long road to recovery if the town ever makes it back.  A truly concerning part is the almost complete destruction of the whole infrastructure of the city.  There are no schools, banks, groceries, government agencies like the Post Office or churches. 

Honestly, I don't have answers for things like this.  I could tell you why I believe random things happen but those thoughts, as deep as they are, seem shallow when you stand them up beside the pain and grief people have just experienced.  When you go that route it almost seems like you are justifying the catastrophe or defending God.  I'm willing to go there in a discussion but I don't do so without a great sensitivity to the weight of the loss.

While there are many things I don't understand there are some things of which I'm certain.  I'm sure that God is present and available in the middle of things that are incomprehensible.  I know you can call on Him.  He hears and helps.  He is a Redeemer.  He can bring good out of bad.  I've experienced this multiple time under the most difficult of circumstances.

I also know that within the human spirit there is the desire to help.  We saw many relief crews working.  The one little gas station left had a long line because so many came from out of town to serve.  Help is coming from many directions.

I think a good rule of thumb in life is when you are faced with things you don't understand, go back to what you do understand and stand there until you see the next step.  Don't get paralyzed.  Trust God and ask for the help of others and keep moving forward.  Stay in touch with your emotions and those of the people around you.  Lean on each other and on God and you'll make it through.