BLOG

During the summer we had an opportunity to work with a transitional housing organization called Ithaka Land Trust.

We started the night with everyone gathering together and reminding everyone the reason we were celebrating Family Life Services and their impact on the community. The meal was prayed for and the fun began! It was truly an amazing time to come together and celebrate the joy of this organization.

Next Step Ministries is coming up on our third summer in Colorado Springs.

We will get to experience what they are actively doing within the community and how they are serving their students.

Next Ministries in Colorado Springs has been involved with something called Brothers Redevelopment. Brothers Redevelopment is a Denver-based nonprofit organization that provides housing and a variety of housing-related services for the region’s low-income, elderly…

An additional component is that this event will create community awareness and involvement.

It’s easy to get caught up in the logistics of it all. Sometimes I could define working for a ministry as being a logistics master. I don’t know about you but that sounds gross.…

As Next Step sinks deeper into the Colorado Springs community, I’m seeing trust being built among relationships. Homeowners, organizations and their volunteers, and even the random other ministries I meet with or sit down…

During the summer, I often visit worksites on Thursday to check in and see how students, staff, partnerships, and projects are doing. On one of my check-ins to Mission Medical Center (they provide healthcare…

The second summer in Colorado Springs has just wrapped up. I remember not even 3 months ago heading to Wisconsin to meet the team of Next Step staff that were committing to serving the Colorado Springs community.

First United Methodist Church is buzzing with Next Step staff, students and leaders.

Since starting work in Colorado Springs we have partnered with our host church, First United Methodist Church. FUMC has welcomed us into their community in a huge way that many may even take for…

Here is a brief update of what happened throughout the week:

I want to challenge you to pray for hunger. Perhaps you’re hungry for God already and that’s not a problem, great.

It may not have been the first summer we saw the answer, but even now we’re seeing partnerships form that are impactful in a way that is overflowing to everyone involved.

2018 is here. Woohoo!

A word from homeowner Gloria Loggins: Time doesn’t stand still, does it? How often do we hear these words? Where did the time go? Just a few months ago – in fact it was…

I recently attended a Wednesday Night youth gathering at FUMC and was pleasantly surprised.

Quality of living hasn’t been like this for Patricia in years. Not everything is perfect, but everything is just right.

With anything new, there’s always big questions and a desire for direction.

A story from Mission Medical: “Mission Medical Center does a very “soft” ask for a donation from our patients.  If they do not have the ability to give something, they will be seen by…

The following week I poked in to see how the crews and projects were doing. The leaders and students placed at Gloria’s home were rock stars and were able to do more than we ever imagined.  To my astonishment, Gloria received new windows, a remodeled bathroom, and much much more than we initially discussed. Call me Thomas.

How often do we go through life and wonder, “who is this helping?” Or how is what we are doing impacting anyone?

How have things been going in Colorado Springs? Well, busy.

Often times I pray and it feels like I’m throwing words into the air. You can’t even see it. How frustrating. Yet to a homeowner I recently met, that was far from the case.

Pray that this summer the community doesn’t see different churches working together – but the same church working together.

When we come together, eat together, and discuss with one another – we become equal through listening. Simply people made in His image and doing life together, trying to figure out what that means, and loving each other through it.

As we served the families a home cooked meal, sat with them and heard their stories, the Kingdom of God became alive right there before our very eyes.

It’s hard to experience a place like Catholic Charities and not be changed. Seeing the community it creates and how the homeless love one another opens up the gospel right before my eyes.

The same way I learned to speak into the life of a jail committed youth, will be the similar process of getting to know Colorado Springs. How dare we enter a community and begin telling them what they need, rather listening and hearing their needs first?