KYNAZ NEWS. Stale Spirituality by Brian L. Powell

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1 KYNAZ NEWS Fall/Winter Kentucky District Church of the Nazarene P.O. Box 790 Hillview, KY Dr. Brian Powell District Superintendent Michael Perkins New Start Coordinator Sergio Monterroso Hispanic Coordinator Bill McDaniel Treasurer Debby Sherrill District Office Secretary Desmond Barrett NMI President Mike Justice SDMI Chairman Stale Spirituality by Brian L. Powell Religious practice void of the Holy Spirit is more like a funeral service than a worship service. God is alive. Deadness is not in His nature. Jesus came so that we could have life and have it more abundantly. That s how the Church is supposed to exist and that s how we re supposed to live: absolutely abundantly alive. Living with intentional awareness of the Holy Spirit must be the goal of anyone serious about following Jesus. Staleness sets in when we make our spiritual journey a routine that we squeeze into our schedule alongside countless other items. Jesus doesn t want to be one of many things biding for our attention. He desires to be the only One with whom we are captivated. The life Jesus calls us to is not meant to be engaged sparingly. It s an all-or-nothing kind of life. Anything else leaves us lacking and depleted. Jesus calls us to a degree of intimacy that cannot be sustained outside of continually abiding in His Presence. Stale spirituality becomes a reality when we fail to recognize the Presence of the Holy Spirit working in our lives. Don t ever forget that. Many people remain spiritually destitute because they dwell in the past. They long for the good ol days. They crave that old-time religion so badly that they fight to preserve something that no longer exists. The cloud has left, the fire has burned out, yet they sit in the same place, doing the same thing, wondering where everyone went. God has moved on, while they continue meandering in the desert hoping to restore something that s long departed. Sadly, these people settle for the residue of what was. Then you have those who want to make God relevant. They assume God needs their help in the significance department. In their quest for relevance they often do nothing more than fashion the Church after the world. They fail to realize that Jesus is always relevant. In fact, Jesus is more relevant than anything else going on anywhere in the universe. The idea that the God who is now could possibly become irrelevant is ludicrous. God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is perpetual relevance. Another spiritual danger comes when we attempt to make faith noting more than head knowledge. Jesus is a Person to be encountered, not merely a doctrine to be understood. Dead religious formalism results when people put intellectualism on the same pedestal as an intimate, ongoing, covenantal relationship with Jesus. While preparation, education, and engaging the mind is vitally important, intellectualism alone has the propensity to kill the moving of the Holy Spirit and rob people of an authentic, life-changing experience with Jesus. Jesus is perfect theology. How you engage life in Christ is essential. If what you think you know about God isn t mirrored in the Person of Jesus, then you have reason to question it. He is the only standard given for us to follow. If you re a Christian the litmus test for your life is His life. What He did as described in the Bible is what we should be doing by faith, through the power of the Holy Spirit. So, what did Jesus do? Jesus prayed with people everywhere He went. He fasted intensely for the purpose of intimacy with the Father. He accepted people wherever they were in life. He made disciples continually. He healed people of sickness and disease openly. He gave to people freely. He wasn t ashamed to preach the Kingdom boldly. I could go on Remember, His life is the standard. Are the things Jesus and the Apostles did happening in your church, school, life? James Curry NYI President jcurry28@gmail.com Stale spirituality sets in when we engage the head and neglect the spirit. Stale spirituality sets in when we suppress the notion to experience God. Stale spirituality sets in when we live in what was, or dream about what will be, yet neglect what is. Stale spirituality becomes a reality when we live with a form of godliness, but deny the power of Jesus. The Bible says to avoid such (2 Timothy 3:5).

2 KENTUCKY DISTRICT CALENDAR February ~ Mid Winter Retreat March 5-7 ~ Capital City Missional Area Awakening Georgetown Church of the Nazarene ~ Green River Lake Missional Area Awakening Columbia Church of the Nazarene ~ Vette City Missional Area Awakening Bowling Green First Church of the Nazarene 12 ~ Spring forward one hour 16 ~ Easter Sunday ~ Board of Ministry Meeting District Office 30 ~ April 2 ~ Regional TNU April 4-6 ~ R.E.C. on the Road - Rob McCorkle 4 - River City Hope 5 - Mayfield 6 - Lancaster 8 - Lou First - Randy Johnson 29 Children s Talent Extravaganza- Lou. Farmdale 30 ~ End of the church year May 9 ~ District Advisory Board Meeting June 4-6 ~ District Assembly 5 ~ NMI & NYI Conventions 6 ~ Ordination Service ~ General Assembly & Conventions July ~ Children s Camp ~ Teen Camp October 5-7 ~ Pastor & Spouse Retreat ~ The Awakening - Arlington, TX ~ NYI Breakaway, Camp Crestwood November 3-5 ~ District Layman s Retreat December 2 ~ District Pastors Family Christmas Party District leaders if you have event dates to add to the district calendar please contact the district office. NEW PASTORS Jehova Nissi - Ricardo & Naydincin Santiesteban Crestwood Community - Michael & April Perkins Cristo Viene Jorge & Loly Matute Zarza Ardiente - Jorge & Nadia Alemany Mayfield Hispanic - Agripino & Carolina Gastelum DID YOU KNOW? The Kentucky District offers the opportunity for full time students attending TNU to apply for the Kentucky District Trustees Scholarship. Full time students whether entering your first year or all ready attending may apply. Go to to download information and application. The deadline for accepting applications is April 24, 2017 Save the dates June 21-30, 2017 Indianapolis, Indiana Housing is now open to the general public. You must register to attend. Go to ga2017.com to register.

3 Kentucky District Assembly & Conventions June 4-6, 2017 Sloan Convention Center Bowling Green, KY Dr. Porter & Dr. Powell Assembly 2016 District Assembly - June 4 (evening service) NYI Convention - June 5 NMI Convention - June 5 District Assembly - June 5 (evening) District Assembly June 6 (a.m & p.m.) Ordination Service - June 6 (evening service)

4 NMI District Convention is June 5, 2017 at Sloan Convention Center Bowling Green, KY MARK YOUR CALENDAR Celebrating Local NMI Council s and Churches that are fulfilling the Great Commission. Russell Springs: Hosted several food/clothing drives for the needy in the community, along with preparing homes in the community for the winter. Shepherdsville First: Shepherds Pantry, a food pantry for families/individuals who just need a little extra help with food, has expanded from one site to eight. Louisville First:FirstKids collected and gave away mats, tents, canned goods, clothing, toiletries, and served a meal to the Forgotten Louisville homeless camp. Louisville Grace Community: Invested through local Faith Promise giving in three churches on the district by helping with supplies, and equipment for the local churches. Albany United: Designed custom made Christmas Ornament to raise funds for Crisis Care Kits. Highway: Collected new and used shoes for Soles for Souls program. Lancaster: Sponsored a Medical Mission Trip to Haiti to help malnourished and starving children. Buffalo: Made 12 Thanksgiving baskets for families in need. Stories of brokenness were shared and prayer and life connections were made. Physical and Spiritual needs met. If your church is impacting your community/world through a special project let the Council know, we want to celebrate with you! Pastordesmond10@lgcnaz.org Monthly Emphases January: Volunteer Ministries Get your church involved in missions through Work and Witness, Youth In Mission, YouthServe, LINKS, Mission Corps, Nazarene Compassionate Ministries, Jesus Film Harvest Partners, Extreme Nazarene, Nazarene Secular Campus Mission, and RV s on a Mission. February (and/or September): Alabaster Alabaster funds help provide resources to purchase land and the construction of churches, schools, medical facilities, and homes for missionaries and national workers. March: Mission Education Support missions through prayer, giving, communication, and going. Help your church experience missions by listening to stories, reading mission books, hosting a missionary, prayer nights for missionaries around the world, and being the helping hands during special projects focused on giving to others. DEPUTATION TOUR: March 5-12, Friday and Mary Gandha, West Africa March 5 A.M. Bowling Green First March 9 Available March 5 P.M. Lex. Lafayette March 10 Summersville March 6 Owensboro First March 11 Naomi March 7 Paducah March 12 A.M. Danville Covenant March 8 Monticello March 12 P.M. Lancaster Contact deputation coordinator Andrea Melvin (andreamelvin1; ) if you would like to schedule a service

5 Mid Winter Retreat Feb , 2017 Cave City Convention Center Cave City, KY Banquet, Worship Services, Workshops Cost: $ Adults $ yrs old Free - Birth - 5 yrs old Registration deadline is Feb. 13 $5.00 late fee applies to all registrations this date. Guest Speaker: Dr. Scott Sherwood District Superintendent Northwestern Illinois A time of worship, inspiration, renewal, equipping, & connecting. Make plans to attend Spanish interpretation will be available for main services! Some workshops to be done in Spanish also! See your pastor for registration forms and also available online at CHILDREN S TALENT EXTRAVAGANZA Saturday, April 29, 2017 To be held at Farmdale Church of the Nazarene 6501 Vandre Ave. Louisville, KY Watch for information & registration forms on the district web site. July 17-21, 2017 Garner Creek, Dixon, TN Save the dates Pastors & Sunday School Chairpersons: Please don t forget to report your stats each month to District SDMI Chairman Mike Justice at mjustice@gtownnaz.org. Please report Sunday School average, Morning Worship average and the number on your Responsibility List.

6 HISPANIC MINISTRIES Sergio Montorroso, Hispanic Ministries Coordinator In July 2016 God called us to serve on the Kentucky District. Wow, what an amazing journey. God has been so good to us as a family and also with our ministry. We found a good house in Walton KY, but we found a home at the Georgetown Church of The Nazarene and a great family on the Kentucky District. When we came to the District, two very strong churches were here, El Calvario in Lexington and Camino de Santidad in Louisville; praise be to God, we have added 5 new congregations to the District: Nueva Vida, Jehová Nissi, Ministerio Hispano Nazareno de Mayfield, Cristo Viene and Zarza Ardiente. On August 13 we had a concert to promote the re-opening of Nueva Vida Church of The Nazarene and September 11, the church was given a Nueva Vida (New Life) with the help and support of the Georgetown Church. On August 29, Dr. Powell, Rev. Curry and I met with Pastor Ricardo Santiesteban and the Jehová Nissi Church was welcomed to the denomination becoming the Jehova Nissi Church of The Nazarene On November 5 we had a combined service, festival and concert at Jehová Nissi, it was a great time of worship and fellowship On October 30, my wife and I traveled to Mayfield KY and met with Pastor Steve Melvin, brother and sister Agripino and Carolina Gastelum and the Mayfield Hispanic Nazarene Ministries were established. El Calvario, Camino de Santidad, Jehová Nissi and Nueva Vida all together worshiping our Lord and Savior. On November 19 the Cristo Viene Church opened its doors, I am so thankful for Pastor Jorge Matute and his family, they come from the Camino de Santidad Church and this is a Church plant from Southern Hills Church and Camino de Santidad. The next day, on Sunday November 20, the Zarza Ardiente Church was started at the Farmdale Church of the Nazarene, Pastor Jorge Alemany and his family are serving a Cuban community in the Farmdale area Now, looking ahead to the new year, Lou. Grace Community Church is ready to start a Hispanic congregation, Lex. Eastland Park is also looking to support a church plant and we will keep working to grow God s Kingdom. Soon we will be working on a Ministerial School for the Hispanic Churches and we are also collaborating with the Midway, Georgetown and Frankfort Churches along with our District Superintendent to start a Coffee-house Church in Midway. When God called us to Kentucky, we questioned His calling, we did not expect what we have found, today. We praise Him for His calling, His guidance and especially for the great new family we have found in the Kentucky District Church of The Nazarene.

7 Good Report by Brian L. Powell Halfway there actually we re over halfway there. District Assembly was the first week of June Since that time God has amazed me time and time again. I m reminded of Numbers 13 when Moses sent the twelve spies into Canaan to spy out the land. Caleb and Joshua were the only ones to come back with a good report. Like Joshua and Caleb, we must realize that the promises of God are Yes and Amen! With that I d like to share the following Good Report of some things God has done since District Assembly 2016: Planted 14 Churches: (1) Bowling Green International (African); (2) Chin Community (Burmese); (3) Cristo Viene (Hispanic); (4) Mt. Washington (Parent Affiliated Church); (5) Valley Farms (Parent Affiliated Church); (6) Smyrna (Parent Affiliated Church); (7) Smyrna Parkway (Parent Affiliated Church); (8) Beaumont (Parent Affiliated Church); (9) Jehova Nissi (Hispanic); (10) Ministerio Nazareno Hispano (Hispanic); (11) Life Bridge International (African); (12) Nueva Vida (Hispanic); (13) River City Hope; (14) Zarza Ardiente (Hispanic). DCPI (Dynamic Church Planting International) training at Southern Hills with over 40 in attendance was outstanding. Formation and first meeting with the Vision Advancement Team (VAT) made up of District Advisory Board (DAB), Missional Area Coordinators (MACs), District Department Heads (SDMI, NMI, NYI), and District Ministry Leaders. Pastor and Spouse Retreat at Lake Barkley State Resort with Pastor Bud Reedy was a time of renewal and refocus for all who attended. Burnside Island Missional Area Revival: all those that gathered experienced a time of spiritual renewal; God met with us in a special way. 50 th Anniversary District Laymen s Retreat at Lake Barkley was a time of consecrated prayer and revival. District Christmas Party with Pastor Corey Jones was a time of great fellowship, purposeful prayer, and spiritual renewal. Organized Centerpoint Church of the Nazarene in Burkesville, KY with over 100 charter members. In the process of planting several more churches across the District; please pray for these new works. I continue to work prudently at finding the right fit during pastoral transitions, conducting church/pastoral, reviews, and when preaching and visiting local congregations across the Kentucky District. Beyond these happenings our Missions (NMI), Youth (NYI), and Discipleship (SDMI) departments have held training days, camps, retreats, etc. that are purposefully making disciples and advancing the vision of the Kentucky District. My goal is for every time we gather to be a time of intentional encouragement. When we are in the same room together I hope to help renew, equip, and connect in ways that inspire and cause you to go away blessed. I never want us to leave a gathering on the Kentucky District where we are saying to ourselves, Well, that was a waste of time I always want us to leave saying, God is good and I am encouraged! Are you ready for this!!! The Kentucky District made two regional Top Ten Lists. We made the list for most new churches reporting and most new organized churches. That means we are among the top ten districts out of over 70 on the USA/Canada Region that are experiencing growth and renewal! Funding the Mission is important for us to stay on track. Many of our churches are seeing new people profess faith in Christ and stepping up discipleship efforts. It is imperative that every church strives to be 100% in contributing. As we work toward that goal it s important that all of us participate on some level to funding the mission. My prayer is that every church experiences the power and presence of the Holy Spirit in your services and ministries. Every church should be moving forward spiritually, which also leads to numeric and financial health. This happens as we move beyond our doubts and engage faith at a level that believes God can do absolutely anything! You are loved and prayed for; keep pressing forward!

8 KENTUCKY DISTRICT NAZARENE YOUTH INTERNATIONAL EXCITED BOUT NYI ON THE KENTUCKY DISTRUCT YET? Hopefully, you re excited about all the things the Lord is doing on our district these days. Let me help you be even more excited! The Lord continues to bless our NYI events and youth groups across the district. Last year at our Break-Away 2016 event in Crestwood KY we had well over 200 in attendance. We had awesome worship, decisions were made for Jesus, and great fellowship. January 5 6 we headed to Bowling Green KY for District TNT. There were hundreds of Nazarene teens competing in fun competitions showcasing their God given talent, while having awesome fellowship with one another. Still not that excited yet? Camp.. Camp this year.. (the suspense is building)..camp this year will be held at Camp Garner Creek in Dixon, TN again. Youth and children will be there together again. Those who attended last year can tell you all about it. Ask someone who went. The most exciting component of camp this year is we the KY District will be hosting the Alabama districts. Our attendance at youth camp was last year. This year we could easily see a number of over 250 in attendance. With the same great worship and activities we experienced last year.you Don t Want to Miss Camp!! Really you don t want to miss anything. God is working. Students are responding. We the church, need to do all we can to support our youth. They are the Next generation of leaders. Want to get involved with NYI please let me know. We need you! REGIONAL TNT@ TNU March 30 April 1 Trevecca Nazarene University, Nashville, TN NYI CONVENTION - JUNE 5 Sloan Convention Center, Bowling Green, KY NYI Convention 2016 GENERAL NYI CONVENTION - JUNE 2-24 Indianapolis, IN District Teen Camp - July Camp Garner Creek - Dixon, TN BREAKWAY - Oct Camp Crestwood, Crestwood, KY

9 MISSIONAL AREA AWAKENING on the KY District March 5-7 ~ Capital City Missional Area Georgetown Church of the Nazarene with Corey Jones Times of Service Sunday 10:30 a.m. & 6:00 p.m. Monday -Tuesday 7:00 p.m. nightly Prayer training: Monday & Tuesday 10:30 a.m. Lunch provided each day March ~ Vette City Missional Area Bowling Green 1st Church of the Nazarene with Hal Perkins Times of Service: Sunday 10:30 a.m. & 6:00 p.m. Monday - Wednesday 7:00 p.m. Prayer/Presence training: Monday - Wednesday 10:30 a.m. Lunch provided each day March ~ Green River Lake Missional Area Columbia Church of the Nazarene with Brian Powell Times of Service Sunday 10:30 a.m. & 6:00 p.m. Monday - Wednesday 7:00 p.m. R.E.C. on the ROAD Dr. Rob McCorkle is the Pastor of Crossroads Community Church of the Nazarene in Obetz, Ohio and the founder of Fireschool Ministries. Dr. McCorkle travels around the country teaching and preaching about holiness, corporate prayer, and the move of the Holy Spirit, because he has a conviction that constant in-depth study and exposition of the Scripture will bring people of all ages into an encounter with the manifest presence of God, which will lead to personal and corporate revival. Plan on attending the session and/or service in your area. April 4: 10:30 a.m. - Derby City Missional Area, River City Hope - (lunch provided) April 5: 10:30 a.m. - Western Parkway Missional Area, Mayfield - (lunch provided) April 5: 6:30 p.m. - Western Parkway Missional Area, Mayfield evening service April 6: 10:30 a.m. - Asbury Missional Area, Lancaster - (lunch provided) (sessions and service are local time)

10 PROGRESS REPORT: HOW WE ARE DOING KENTUCKY DISTRICT Education and District Stewardship Giving Global Giving Discipleship/Attendance CHURCH NAME Educational District S.S. NMI NYI YTD WEF P&B S.S. M.W. R.L. ALBANY UNITED 2, , , , , BENTON , , , BOWLING GREEN FIRST , BOWLING GREEN Chin Community N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A X BOWLING GREEN International N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A X BRANDENBURG , , X BRONSTON CROSSWALK X BUFFALO , , , CAMPBELLSVILLE 1, , , , CENTERPOINT (Burkesville) N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A COLUMBIA 1, , , , , COVENANT (Danville) , , , CREELSBORO , , CRESTWOOD COMMUNITY , , , DELMER , ELIZABETHTOWN FIRST 1, , , , , ELKTON , , , FAUBUSH FRANKFORT CORNERSTONE , , , , FRANKFORT FIRST 1, , , , , FRANKLIN , , , GEORGETOWN 3, , , , , NUEVA VIDA N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A X GLASGOW FIRST 1, , , , GLASGOW TRINITY , , , GLENS FORK 1, , , , , GREENSBURG , , , HENDERSON UNITED 1, , , , , HIGH BRIDGE X 6 15 HIGHWAY , HOPKINSVILLE , , JAMESTOWN 1, , , , , KING BEE LANCASTER 3, , , , , LEX CALVARY LEX EASTLAND PARK , , , , LEX EL CALVARIO , , LEX GETHSEMANE , , LEX LAFAYETTE 2, , , , , LEX LIFE BRIDGE International N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A X LOU CALVARY , , , LOU CAMINO DE SANTIDAD , , , LOU FARMDALE 1, , , , , LOU FIRST 4, , , , , JEHOVA NISSI N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A X LOU GRACE COMMUNITY 1, , , , , LOU VALLEY MADISONVILLE 1, , , , , MAYFIELD 2, , , , MIDWAY , MONTICELLO 4, , , , , MORGANTOWN , , NAOMI , , NICHOLASVILLE GRACE COMMUNITY 1, , , , , OWENSBORO AUDUBON 1, , , OWENSBORO FIRST , , , PADUCAH 2, , , , , RHBER RIVER CITY HOPE N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A X RUSSELL SPRINGS , , , SCIENCE HILL 2, , , , , SCOTTSVILLE SHEPHERDSVILLE , SOMERSET FIRST 1, , , , , SOMERSET LAKE CUMBERLAND , , , SOUTHERN HILLS , , , , SPARKSVILLE , , , STANFORD , , , SUMMERSVILLE 1, , , , , VERSAILLES HUNTERTOWN , , , , TOTAL 68, , , , , , , , ,754 4,697 7,011