The Common Place March 19, 2013

As we head toward Easter weekend may we continually be reminded of the good news of Jesus — his life, death, resurrection and reign.

We continue to meet on Sunday afternoons to focus on the “Good News” and how it should sink into every facet of our lives. We are excited to have another family in our neighborhood joining us on Sundays, which has brought a couple more kiddos into the mix. We are planning a 1st Century Jewish meal to share together on Good Friday and while we eat we will focus on the biblical accounts of the night of Jesus’ arrest.

We are now referring to our little gospel community as The Common Place. Our desire is to experience and share the story of Jesus in everyday life. I am working on a very simple website that will help communicate who we are and Who we are about. I will let you all know when we are up and running.

The Common Place is in the process of switching all financial support over to Converge Heartland. Converge will be taking care of our financial records over the next 2-3 years. This week we will be mailing out a large number of letters in order to update everyone on where we are at on this journey. Included in those letters will be information on Converge Heartland as well as how to partner with us through financial and prayer support. If you have been giving through The Heartland Project please click on the Pray/Invest tab at the top of this page to find out new information for giving through Converge (or just wait for the letter in the mail).

PARTNERSHIP
Over the next few months we will be highlighting some of our formal and relational partners.

River Community Church Dell Rapids, South Dakota

“Commissioned and supported by our mother church, Central Valley Community Church, a small group of believers started meeting in 2005 to dream about what a church plant in Dell Rapids, SD might look like. We committed ourselves to “making God’s glory known and felt through worship, outreach, growth and love”. After a couple of “preview” services, we launched our first public service in Easter of 2006. We’ve been slowly growing ever since. We typically have 75-100 people participate on a Sunday morning.

We are constantly aiming to win the lost in our community, to develop disciples, to show love to each other and to Dell Rapids, to raise up leaders, to train pastors and missionaries and to plant churches. In 2008, we planted Christ Fellowship and in 2011 our associate pastor planted Zao Community Church. We’ve had 4 different “student pastors” and a couple interns on staff so that they might be trained for pastoral ministry. And we’ve partnered with other churches in our network to form the Timothy Pastoral Apprenticeship, a free, church-centric alternative to traditional seminary.”

New Beginnings January 29, 2013

With each week I draw closer to wrapping up my Church Plant Residency at Cedar Ridge.  It has been a wonderful time of preparation and equipping as well as a place to really pause and reflect on what God doing in my heart.

 

A dozen of us have started meeting on Sunday afternoons to discover where God is at work in our own lives as well as in the communities around us.  Our focus over the next few months is to better understand God’s plan for His church and our part in that plan.  We are taking a closer look at the life and ministry of Jesus and his early followers to learn how we can best posture ourselves in order to be used by God for his fame and glory.

 

This is an extremely exciting time for me personally.  Five years ago this was just a crazy idea mentioned in a conversation and, though today it is still a crazy idea, it is so exciting to see it hit the ground in real life.  Within this small group, which has been meeting in our living room, God has brought together a group of people of different ages, careers, and backgrounds.  We are made up of neighbors, old friends, and new babies.  Our hope and desire is to become a community that helps lead people into a deeper relationship with Jesus.  Though we are in our infancy many of you have played a vital role in the progress and health of this new gospel seed in the Gladstone area of the Kansas City Metro through your prayers, money, and encouragement.  God is the builder and planter of his church so please continue to ask him to build and plant in our community.

 

Join Us in Praying For:

 

A door to be opened for the gospel in our community and in the relational connections we each have.  Colossians 4:2-4

 

Our group — that God would get a hold on our lives and that we would give our lives to God, each other, and reaching our community.

 

Financial Support — God has been so very faithful in ways we cannot even explain.  We will be doing another round of fundraising in early February to hopefully increase financial and prayer support for the next 12 months.

Part-time Job — I will be seeking a part-time job to help make some money and to build new relationships.

 

Above all, that God would be pleased and glorified with all that we do.

 

 

Partnerships:  

Over the next few months I will be highlighting some of our formal and relational partners.

 

CONVERGE HEARTLAND

Converge WorldWide was formerly the Baptist General Conference.

 

“Converge Heartland is a fellowship of churches in ND, SD, NE, KS,

western MO and OK with a central ministry focus to equip each church

to accomplish what God has called it to do in its community and world.

We are working to saturate the Heartland with new churches that

proclaim the gospel for the glory of God.   We empower God-called men,

teaming with established churches, to provide the God given resources

(people, finances, leadership and supplies) needed to start new

churches to clearly proclaim the gospel as we multiply across the

Heartland and to the ends of the earth.  Converge Heartland is part of

Converge World Wide a fellowship of churches with a network of leaders

working together to start over 500 churches in the last 20 years.”

 

 

We are so happy we get to do this with people we love and care about. May God use you this week for His name’s sake!

October November 9, 2012

I think we need a quick recap of October before we jump too deep into the Holiday season.  This October we partnered with a few of our close neighbors and threw a Block Party.  It was awesome!  At the time we thought that it was our neighborhood’s first ever block party but we found out that over 20 years ago our little neighborhood was quite active in doing stuff together.  The few that remembered those parties seemed excited about having regular neighborhood activities again.  Due to weather we had to make a last minute date change but we’re guessing we still had over 60 people stop by.  It was a lot of fun and we feel like some great excitement has been stirred for future community development.

 

The end of October also marked the completion of 4 months at Cedar Ridge Christian Church where I have been doing a Church Plant Residency.  I have had the opportunity to preach once a month and have been learning a lot about leadership and church networking.  Stefanie and I have also become a part of a church planting learning community that we meet with twice a month.  This is a group of like-minded church planter types who are faithfully seeking to develop communities of Christ-followers on everyday gospel mission.

As we look forward we plan to meet once in November with a group of 8-10 adults who have expressed interest in being a part of a new church.  We will follow up with these people a few times in December and the plan is to hit the ground running in January by meeting on a weekly basis.

Prayer Needs:
1. God would bring together a small group that lives out true gospel community
2. Window would be open to sharing the message of Jesus
3. Protection for spiritual attack
4. Spiritual and physical provision

Thanks again for partnering with us. May God be glorified in all that we say and do.

What Do I Dream About? August 29, 2012

Maybe this is a confession story.  As a child I had a very vivid imagination and would spend countless hours jumping around the house or backyard pretending to live my dreams out.  For a reason unknown to me I could not engage my imagination without jumping around holding a stick.  No doubt my parents must have been a little concerned about their child who spent most his time running and jumping around the backyard with a stick and who knows what the neighbors thought.  I guess this is what happens when you do not have a video game console in your house.  But, it was in this time and space that the world of my imagination was at my finger tips.  With a stick in hand I could slay dragons, win Super Bowls, save the cute girl, and drop a massive bull elk with one clean shot.  I am embarrassed to say how late in life I continued to do this so please don’t ask Stefanie.  Sometimes I will pick up a stick and think to myself “this would be a great stick to jump with.”  Why did I love jumping so much?  I could take any dream and live it out and the cool thing was it always turned out my way.  At the end of the day I was the hero.

As I have grown older I’ve realized that it is sort of sad that many of my dreams have the same ending…I am the hero, the successful hunter, the guy who everyone likes, the church planter who did what he set out to do.  Maybe you dream in a similar way.  As I look within the pages of the Bible there are many heros but the big picture, the big story, reveals a focus on just One.  There is only one true Hero.

What if we were to dream differently?

If I really am the hero of the dream then the dream is pretty sad.  On the other hand, if I dream in the truth that Jesus is the Hero and that He has invited me into His story, that dream is much bigger than my life.  It is exciting but I am finding it is kinda hard.  I like being the lead guy.  I have to be more aware to step out of the main frame. I must stop talking myself up and start pointing people to the Main Character of this great story.

Though I have found this type of dreaming to be difficult at times it brings tremendous relief because…I don’t have to save the day (not like I could anyway).

When I mess up, He doesn’t.  When I am tired and weak, He is still all-powerful.  When I don’t know, He is all knowing. When I sin, He is sinless.  When I fail and let people down, He is completely faithful.  He saves, I do not.  And thank goodness.  It is taking me a while but I think I can get used to simply being cast as an “extra” instead of the lead part.

So what have you been dreaming about lately?

My dream for quite some time has been to help give leadership to a new church.  God is slowly but surely revealing His plan for this dream.  Vision is becoming a little clearer and a few people are starting to come together.  Please, join us in prayer as we faithfully pursue God’s will for this new church.  We continue to face various obstacles along the way but feel like we have received the encouragement needed to keep stepping forward.

May we dream to be a faithful extra and may we invite others into the greatest story ever!

PRAYER REQUESTS

1. Praise: the car that was loaned to me through August has been extended for a longer amount of time!

2. Future Job: We have increased support, which is awesome, but it looks like I will still need to get at least a part-time job maybe as soon as October.  Please pray that I can find work that will allow the freedom to finish up residency and time to focus on the future church.

3. People of Peace:  We have been praying that God would introduce “People of Peace” (Read Luke 10:1-12) in the Gladstone area.  We have identified two potential people in the community! Hopefully, I will be meeting with them in the next few weeks. Pray that God would open doors.

4. Marriage and Family:  Please continue to pray for Stefanie and me as we head down this road.  I hear countless stories of church planters who had a very dark time in their marriage during the early years of planting.  Stefanie and the kids are among my greatest gifts and strengths — please pray for our protection.

Love you guys and thanks for journeying with us!

Chris

Asking Big August 11, 2012

Many of you may be familiar with the story of Nehemiah found in the Old Testament.  If not or if you are a little rusty on the details let me very briefly share a part of the story.

God’s people, the Israelites, had been living in exile in Babylon.  After Persia overthrows the Babylonians, Cyrus, King of Persia, frees the Jewish exiles allowing them to return home.  Roughly 70 years go by and then we are introduced to Nehemiah in the book that bears his name.  Nehemiah was the cupbearer to the King of Persia, Artaxerxes.  He really had a pretty cushy job — he lived in the castle and got to eat and drink the same food the king did.  Of course, he could be poisoned at any moment but overall not a bad deal.

Anyways, Nehemiah has some fellow Jews visit him and he asks how everything is going back in Jerusalem.  Things are not good — the walls of Jerusalem are broken down and its gates are completely destroyed.  This may not seem like a big deal today but at this time in history the walls and gates where extremely important to a city and its people.  Without this protection the people live in constant fear and danger of ongoing attacks by others.  Though they had been “home” for 70 years they had made no progress as a people.  This broke Nehemiah’s heart.  He began to fast and pray for change to happen and he knew that it was going to come through his relationship with the king.

So the big day arrives — Nehemiah is serving the king but on that day the king could tell that something was breaking Nehemiah’s heart.  The king asked what was wrong and Nehemiah shared the state of his people in Jerusalem.  The king responds, “What are you requesting?”

Now remember, this is a servant before the king, the powerhouse of the known world. Here is the big moment, the big ask.  Nehemiah says a brief prayer and then asks the king’s permission to:  1) go to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls, 2) be gone a lengthy time to see the project through (12 years), 3) provide safe passage to Jerusalem, and 4) use the king’s forest timber to rebuild the walls.  “And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.”  Nehemiah 2:8.  Wow!

At different times in our lives God asks big of us.  Maybe it is a career change, a major sacrifice, or trusting Him through a difficult time.  Though we may not be building the walls to protect a city we believe that God has asked big of us.  Just a few months down the road and I am starting to better understand the reality of what He has asked.  God asked big of Nehemiah — leave your cushy job and go travel 4 months to a city and people you have never seen and help them rebuild a wall.  Nehemiah did not have the freedom or the resources to do this so in order to do what God asked him to do he had to ask big of others.  God has asked me to give leadership in planting a new church in Kansas City.  Living in America, I have the freedom to do that but in no way do I have all the brains, energy, people, contacts, leadership ability or resources to do what God has asked me to do. But God does and He has equipped and resourced many of you to play a direct role.

So now I am asking big of you.

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Resources (Money):

First of all, we have been tremendously encouraged by the support over the last few months.  Families from our previous church were very generous and we have had some wonderful special gifts as well as a group of monthly commitments.  All of these resources have allowed us to meet our needs and currently we look good through August.  Now that we have a few months of numbers in we can gauge monthly giving which gives us a clearer picture of our sustainability over the next 12 months. Below is a simple financial breakdown of how we are seeking to raise funds for this 12-month time frame.  The $4000 amount makes up my salary, benefits and some extra funds for ministry expenses.  If you have a request to see salary and benefits broken down more specifically please do not hesitate to ask.

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$4000 a month Sept 2012 to Sep 2013

$2000/mo Individual Support

(current monthly support = $815)

$1000/mo Churches or Small Group Support

(currently seeking 4 churches at $250/church)

$1000/mo Part-time Job and/or Organization Support

(possible organization support kick-in Feb.)  

To reach our $2000 from individual monthly supporters we are looking at an additional $1200 a month.  That would be 12 families at $100 a month or 24 families at $50 or…you get the point.  I understand that at first glance it may look like you can’t do it but with a little creativity and a little cutting here or there it may be possible!  Obviously, we are not aware of your situation and maybe it is not possible.  I am just going for the big ask like Nehemiah!  Also, if you think that your church maybe interested in partnering with us we would love to pursue that with you.  Online giving is now available making it easier on you (no more writing checks!).

(for specifics on giving click Pray/Invest on top right corner of the blog)

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People, Energy, Skills, Prayer:

In scripture the church is referred to as a family and it is also to be seen as a body.  God is faithful to gather His people for the mission of making disciples that glorify Him.  It is going to take an initial team of people to begin to accomplish God’s plan here in Kansas City.  Maybe God has been stirring your heart to be involved in a new vision and mission.  Maybe you are a warrior of prayer and you want to dedicate larger chunks of time praying specifically for this new church plant. Maybe you have some skills and talents that would greatly aid the mission of a new church.  The big ask is…prayerfully consider joining our team as we seek God’s will for a new church.

I will be personally contacting some of you to ask big in a very specific way.  If God has moved you to respond in any way please let me know.  If you have questions or just want to talk and dream a bit, please let me know.  We may not be building a wall but with God’s power we can build communities of disciples that offer spiritual protection and peace.

For His Glory,

Chris

God’s Hand at Work August 1, 2012

South Dakota Recap July 18, 2012

The rolling land of lakes and farms scattered with small towns seemed an unlikely place to start our major step into church planting.  God seemed to have opened some obvious doors for us to spend 5 weeks in South Dakota but as we loaded up the vehicles and trekked to the tiny towns surrounding Sioux Falls I honestly had some doubts.  We departed the busy city life where fast food and grocery stores were minutes away and traveled to a little town that had one gas station that closed at 8pm.  The closest grocery store was a 30 minute drive.  For Stefanie and I this was a dramatic change but for a brief time in our lives this crew of 5 was in need of change.  I needed to slow down, needed to rest, and needed to spend more time and evenings with Stefanie and the kids.

The constant demands and needs, the many nights gone at meetings, and the never-ending feeling there was more to be done…it  just stopped.

And guess what?

The Kingdom continued to grow, people’s needs were met, and life went on without a pause and without me.  This is a good thing!  As we began to slow down and enjoy the evening sunsets  I found myself in a season of abiding in the Vine.  I would spend the next five weeks hanging out with four different church plants, spending a lot of time with Chris Gorman (pastor, spiritual coach, and friend), and focusing my reading and study on Biblical doctrine and the book of Romans.  The load was light and highly relational and God knew it was what I needed at the onset of a new journey.

The first few weeks in South Dakota were especially difficult for Stefanie because all the kids battled multiple sicknesses.  I don’t think I heard one real complaint out of her the entire time.  I often thought of her as one of those poor pioneer wives slowly enduring the long trip out west over the prairies.  Those first few weeks I kept seeing Satan attack Stefanie rather than me, but little did he know he had staged his greatest attack against our strongest unit.  The sicknesses faded and Stefanie and the kids really enjoyed the last three weeks in South Dakota in our cool little lake house basement apartment.   We have made some true friends in South Dakota and no doubt will look back on this time in the future and once again see God’s continued hand of provision as well as His never ending faithfulness.

Pray with us:

1.  Pray this week for the work God is doing in South Dakota and that He would continue to use these churches to glorify Himself. (Central Valley Community Church, Christ Fellowship, River Community Church, and Zao Community Church)

2.   We will be focusing our prayer efforts on the city of Gladstone so please pray God would open doors for the gospel in Gladstone!

3. Financial Support and a vehicle

Aiming to please God,

Chris Borkert

Back Home! July 4, 2012

Wow, we have been away from home for 8 1/2 weeks and it is great to be back.  Over the next few weeks I will help recap what we have been up to the past month but I will do it in little chunks in order to save you from one huge post.

Happy Fourth of July!

It is a great day to think of how blessed we are to live in a country with freedom and independence.  God has and is using brave men and women to bring this freedom to each of us.  May we each be grateful for our independence and may we use our freedom to advance the gospel for the glory of God.

Partner with us in Prayer

1. Residency at Cedar Ridge: Yesterday  I started on staff (unpaid) at Cedar Ridge for further training and equipping as we prepare to plant.  This will last around 7-9 months.

2. Financial Support:  Please pray that we would have our financial needs met.  Very soon we will have a more accurate look at where we stand and will share those specific needs in a clearer way.

3. A vehicle: We have been so blessed the last 3 years with my brother’s truck.  He has loaned it out to us while he was serving the Army in Germany.  He will be back next week and will need his truck back. For the time being we will manage with one vehicle but we are asking God to provide us with a safe, reliable vehicle so Stefanie and the kids are not stuck at home everyday.  Cedar Ridge is a 30 minute commute so dropping me off and picking me up everyday is not a very appealing option.

4. God would begin opening doors for the gospel: Would you pray with us Colossians 4:3-4:  “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.  At the same time, pray also fo us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison- that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.”  Obviously we are not in prison but pray with us that God would be opening a door within our community for the gospel to be heard and received.

May this all be for His name’s sake.

– Chris

Rhythms May 22, 2012

In some ways it has been very strange to not be in the trenches of day-to-day ministry in the context of a local church. Though I have never taken a sabbatical, my time here in South Dakota has had what I would conclude to be a sabbatical-ness to it. A time and space for reading, deeper reflection, rest, conversations, and much needed time with my wife and family. This time has allowed me to see the unhealthy rhythms and patterns I have developed over the years due to the rush and demands of life. I have asked our Father to use this time to develop healthy life-giving rhythms to my day-to-day life. It is important to have a cup of coffee and get into the Bible each morning, it is critical that I am home most nights to read to the kids before bed and talk about Jesus and pray with them, and it is vital to spend lengthier times before God seeking His kingdom. I have also had a chance to really pour into some study — this week I have been reading:
Bible Doctrine by Wayne Grudem
If You Bite and Devour One Another by Strauch (Biblical Principles for Handing Conflict)
2 Thessalonians
Building a Discipleship Culture by Mike Breen

Please continue to join us in praying for the future work of the gospel in Kansas City. We are still in the process of raising funds for the next year and we are excited to announce that Online Giving will be made available soon! God has been so faithful in caring for us thus far and He has and is using you to meet every need. Thanks be to God!

Two specific prayer requests that come straight out of Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians.

1 Thessalonians 2:8
So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.
Please pray that God would continue to give us a heart like Paul and his companions — where we truly want to share not only the gospel but our lives with those in our community.

2 Thessalonians 3:1-2
Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith.
Please pray that God would be preparing the hearts of those who will hear the gospel.

Thank you for partnering with us in the work of the gospel in Kansas City and beyond!

Chris

Sickness, Study, and Family May 10, 2012

Today marks one week into our short time in South Dakota. As many of you have heard we have been hit hard our first week with stomach flu. In tight quarters this proved to be quite unpleasant. Yesterday Stefanie felt sick and it seems that Satan has aimed his early assault not at me but rather my family. Please pray that this will be the last day of sickness.

Amidst the sickness I have begun to work out a study plan for our time up here. I will be focusing much of my time on biblical doctrine, discipleship, biblical discipline, and casting vision. Much of this includes a lot of reading and processing. I am so blessed to be surrounded by such a great group of men here who are committed to the ongoing work of the Gospel.

Finally, I would like to highlight the fact that being here has created a lot of time for us as a family. We get to spend a ton of time together and it truly has been great! The pace of life for us has slowed down and I hope and pray we will develop some healthy rhythms as a family during this time.

Please continue to pray for us as we seek God’s glory along this journey.

Chris