Saturday, March 28
KHBC Family,
As we continue in this unusual time of separation from one another, I'm grateful that we are still united in spirit, as Paul would sometimes say to the churches he loved (1 Cor 5:4). And I am grateful that we can continue to carry out the "one another" commands creatively, from afar. Let's certainly continue to pray for one another.
As announced, tomorrow morning at 10:00am we are having our typical Adult Bible Fellowship classes online. Pastor Joe sent out links for each class via email, and you can see a list of classes below.
Following our ABF sessions, I encourage you to have a time of family worship using our uploaded videos for tomorrow morning. The videos include announcements, Scripture reading, and a prayer from Pastor Joe, then a song to encourage you from Lauren and Pastor Greg. Sing along, as the words are included. Finally, my sermon is uploaded. There are 3 different YouTube files, but they are compiled in a playlist which you will be able to view here.
I'm praying that you have a spiritually refreshing Lord's Day. Make it special!
Much love,
Pastor Chris
Friday, March 27
Dear Church family,
We pray you all are healthy and doing well! As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to any of our pastors or deacons if you need anything at all throughout the upcoming days! Praying for you often.
Today’s pastoral devotional (“Casting All Your Cares on Him”) can be viewed here. We pray that these short devotional videos will be an encouragement to you throughout each week.
Our Sunday morning schedule is as follows …
SUNDAY (10:00-10:40am)
We will resume our ABF classes, on Zoom. We’ll have 2 weeks of classes (3/29 and 4/5) to conclude our current studies before beginning a new series in 1 & 2 Peter on 4/12. There will be multiple classes, meeting in multiple Zoom groups, corresponding with our usual ABF groups. Separate Zoom links for each class have been sent via email. (See class list below):
TEENS – Answering the Tough Questions – Mac Hildebrand
C&C – Getting to the Heart of Your Communications Struggles – Brandon Potvin
LADIES – Renewing Our Minds & Transforming Our Hearts – Meredith Buckland
YOUNG COUPLES – Preparing for Parenting – Joe Boulanger
20s-30s – All Things for Good – Chris McIntyre
30s-40s – Parenting – Doug Abels
40s-50s – Conscience – Greg Habegger
60s & SAMS – Standing for Christ in a “Politically Correct” World – Jim Gorsline
SUNDAY (11:00-11:45am)
Following our ABF classes, we encourage you to view our worship service, which will be posted online with a video link in tomorrow’s email. This week we plan to include a Scripture reading, some encouraging music, and Pastor Chris’ sermon (“Jesus Skewers Our Selfishness,” Luke 14:1-24).
And finally, if you haven’t been able to join us on a Zoom video yet, or if you still have any questions, you can click here for a helpful Zoom instructional video by Jason Kokenzie.
Grace to you,
Pastor Joe
Monday, March 23
KHBC Family,
I'm praying for you during this challenging time...for your health, for your provision, and for your spiritual growth and encouragement. This is all new to us, but not to our Lord. Rest in Him, and continue to pray for one another. Here's what's happening (generally OFF the Hill):
SUNDAY RECAP
It was so good to see many of you during the virtual fellowship time yesterday morning. There's nothing like actually assembling as a church family, but I'm grateful for technology that at least allows us to see, hear, and pray with one another. We'll be doing more of that in the weeks ahead. See the information below.
My notes from Sunday's recorded sermon are attached. You can view the message here if you've not already done so.
CONGRATULATIONS
Congratulations to the Tewes family for pulling off a wedding during this crazy time!
CANCELLATIONS
As I'm sure you expect, there are no gatherings this week. All in-person events are cancelled. We've also postponed the upcoming Men's Retreat for a date TBD.
THIS WEEK'S REMOTE SERVICE SCHEDULE
You can continue to expect regular emails from the church office on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, followed by a sermon link on Saturday. We're planning on sending a brief devotional 3 times a week. Today's is from Pastor Mac and can be viewed here.
We are settling into a more normal weekly schedule of online meetings and recorded sermons. We'll send links via email throughout the week, but the schedule is as follows:
- Wednesday night from 7:00-7:45pm we will have a Remote Prayer Meeting on Zoom. This will be similar to the online time we had together yesterday morning, with a very brief devotional, testimonies, and time of corporate prayer.
- Sunday morning from 10:00-10:40am we will resume our usual ABF studies, again on Zoom. We will have 2 weeks of classes (3/29 and 4/5) during which we will conclude our current studies before beginning a new study in 1 Peter on 4/12. There will be multiple classes, meeting in multiple Zoom groups, corresponding with our usual ABF groups.
- Sunday morning from 11:00-11:45am we encourage you to view our worship service, which will again be posted online. This week we plan to include a Scripture reading, some encouraging music, and my sermon. We are adjusting to this "new normal" and working to make your Sunday morning a highlight of your week. Lord willing, it will also be more "shareable," as we have a unique opportunity to a "captive audience" at this time. Pray for fruit!
RESOURCES
We emailed a list of books your pastors have found to be helpful. There is a brief explanation in the PDF. Again, we encourage you to use this time wisely rather than blowing it on Facebook, Netflix, or (ahem) Candy Crush.
Finally, here's a link to a new lyrics video of the song "I Run to Christ," recently prepared by Paul Keew. Are you worn by life? Chased by fear? Run to Christ!
We are working as hard as ever to shepherd this flock through this challenging time. Pray for us, assured we are praying for you, as well! Grace to you.
Much love!
PC
Saturday, March 21
REMOTE PRAISE & PRAYER SERVICE:
Sunday morning (March 22) at 10:00am we will meet online for a group testimony and prayer time, much as we do during our monthly Praise Services. Check your email for a meeting link. If you don't have Zoom (video conferencing app) already, please take a moment to download it (on either your smartphone, tablet, or computer—find download links here) so you're ready to go for Sunday morning. Also, you can click here for a helpful Zoom instructional video by Jason Kokenzie. (Thank you, Jason, for your help!) You might want to login to Zoom at 9:45am, but the actual "service" will begin at 10:00am. For those concerned about your online footprint, this fellowship time is NOT being recorded.
REMOTE SERMON:
My sermon for tomorrow morning is available on YouTube now. Most will probably want to view it after the Praise & Prayer Service. However, you can view it at a time convenient for you. I would suggest that families worship together when possible. The link is here.
I miss being with you, but I'm thankful for technology that allows us to continue studying the Word together. Looking forward to our time together at 10:00am!
Much love. Grace!
Pastor Chris
Monday, March 16
KHBC Family,
I hope you are able to get some extra rest during this "social distancing" time. I enjoyed a time of worship with my family yesterday morning, and we prayed for KHBC. But wow, I missed gathering together as a church family!
Here's some much-needed communication for you regarding KHBC's response to this time:
CANCELLATIONS
All KHBC-sanctioned events and services for the week of March 16-22 are cancelled. We will continue to honor the request of our governor and the CDC to avoid unnecessary contact with large groups. This cancellation includes the midweek service, next Sunday morning's service, and next Sunday's scheduled small groups. Obviously, you are welcome to gather for prayer and fellowship with other KHBC members as you see fit. However, we will not have any official KHBC gatherings this week.
Also, the church buildings are not going to be open or available for meetings throughout the week.
Lord willing, I will be posting a sermon online for Sunday morning so we can continue to study the Scriptures and pray together. Information will be sent out throughout the week.
COMMUNICATION FROM KHBC
During this down time, you can expect an email from with updates and announcements every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. We anticipate cancellations for some time, but we will make those calls week-to-week.
Updates and cancellations will be posted on our FB page and our website, as well.
We have worked with the deacons on keeping track of our seniors and offering whatever help they may need.
We anticipate working with our small-group leaders to help us with general oversight of the flock.
As always, we encourage you to notify us of particular needs, whether they be physical, financial, or spiritual. If you're discouraged and anxious, please let us know! We will try to be proactive, but James 5:14 commands us to "call for the elders of the church" when we're facing spiritual or physical needs. In other words, please don't wait for us to contact you. Let us know how we can be of help to you!
HOW TO REACH US
We will not be maintaining a consistent office presence this week. Rather than calling the church, you can email us at office@khbc.org. If your question isn't urgent, we'd prefer that you start with an email. However, if you have urgent needs, you can call our cell phones (use the member directory here).
ENCOURAGEMENT
Multiple times during the week we're going to send brief devotional thoughts from our pastoral team, which we will post on the KHBC YouTube page. The first comes from Pastor Joe. It's a great word regarding the opportunity we have to use the extra time at home to spiritually engage our families. It's a brief video, and well worth your time. Find it here.
We're also working on a list of our favorite devotional books, which we will get to you in the days ahead. My challenge to you is this: Don't waste time just scrolling through social media, binge-watching Netflix, and so on. Catch up on your Scripture-reading. Even join us on our thru-the-Bible-in-a-year plan. Read some great Christian biographies. Read that Christian book you've been intending to get to. The point is, FEED YOUR SOUL during this time of quiet. Let this be a blessing, not a burden!
You might start with these biographies, presented by John Piper annually at conferences. They're not too long, and they'll whet your appetite regarding some heroes of the faith.
Finally, let me encourage you to guard your heart against anxiety and anger. As I mentioned in a note last week, these are times when we rely on God-ordained leaders and specialists. It saddens me to see friends who are accusing political leaders of fear-mongering, exaggerating the crisis, and so on. This certainly seems to be serious, and I'm thankful that it's being handled in a way that should minimize it. So breathe. Don't vent against leaders. Don't say more than you really know. And pray... for healing, for wisdom, for peace if things get more challenging, and so on. Make sure your communication, whether online or in person, evidences your faith in God and gospel-rooted peace.
And again, look for a way to minister. Social distancing makes sense. But so does helping your elderly neighbor.
"He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday." (Psalm 91:4-6)
PFMPFY. Grace!
Pastor Chris
Saturday, March 14
KHBC Family,
I just finished an online meeting with our pastoral staff. In light of CDC recommendations and Governor Kemp's request that organizations like ours suspend services for a time to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, we will not be meeting tomorrow. We are certainly not cowering in fear. God is sovereign, and we have every confidence that we are as secure as ever. However, we also want to be prudent and unselfish, and we want to do our part with the rest of our community to avoid unnecessary risks.
While we will miss assembling together, let me remind you that we don't merely "go" to church; we "are" the church. Here are some suggestions as we observe this Lord's Day in separate locations:
- I'd like to request that we each gather our families in our homes at 10:30am tomorrow morning to pray for one another, for God's mercy in bringing healing, and for gospel advance during this unprecedented time.
- Read Scripture together. Assure your family that while we need to be careful, we don't need to be fearful. Psalm 46 is an especially comforting passage in that regard. Even if there is utter chaos in the world--like mountains being cast into a sea--God is our unchanging Refuge and Strength, and a very present Help in trouble. We can rest in Him, free from anxiety. Claim those promises!
- We will not have a live service tomorrow, even online. However, you might be encouraged to listen to this message from Psalm 73 from this last Wednesday night. It's a favorite passage of mine, and it is encouraging during challenging times. Of course, that are countless sermons online from Christian leaders like John MacArthur, John Piper, and others. Take advantage of one of the unique blessings of living in the 21st century!
- I joked with the pastors about sending an online link so that people can still give tomorrow. We laughed. But in all seriousness, we still need to worship the Lord through giving, and this health scare has the potential to have a very negative effect on our church finances. I encourage you to give as generously as you can, and you can do so online here.
We will touch base early next week to communicate what we plan to do regarding activities for the week of March 16-21.
More importantly, we will be working with the deacons to make sure that our most susceptible members are cared for. At this point, if you have a health need, financial need, or some other need, please let us know! We care, but we can't lean in to help if we are unaware of the challenges you are facing.
A final thought for now. Consider offering to go shopping on behalf of our aged members or your aged neighbors. What's safe for a 30 or 40-year-old is potentially perilous for those who are older. Let's look out for each other and for others who could use our help.
I thank the Lord for you, and I look forward to assembling again when we can do so responsibly and safely. Grace!
Pastor Chris for our Pastoral Team