Southland Christian Church

Student ministries is taking any middle schooler who has the guts to go to Know Sweat. Know Sweat is a week-long experience that helps students discover that we can make a difference in the lives of others through service. Students are challenged to see things through God’s eyes and to look for ways that they can share their faith through action. This trip is a great way for students to see the needs that exist not just in the city where they served but back home as well.

All the details about Know Sweat are available here.

High School Ministry recently took a trip to Jamaica. They stayed with Dennis and Mary Herko, a family from Southland, that has lived in Kingston for 20+ years. For many of our students it was the first time they had ever flown – and yes – also the first time they had visited a third world country like Jamaica. The perception, state-side, is probably that Jamaica is a dream place to live... Cool accents, nice weather, tons of cool little shops, and of course the gorgeous beaches. The reality is that poverty has struck most of the country. For 8 days, we took 15 girls and 1 guy to put on a VBS for 400 Jamaican children and work some construction - mixing concrete mostly. You can imagine 15 high school girls mixing concrete... And a lot of it... And yes... It was funny.

Hard work aside, our student’s eyes were opened to the needs of human beings just like they know here. It’s hard to look at a teenager with no clean water, no shoes and no food and not place yourself, or a friend, in their position. Humbling and exposing are the two words that come to mind when I think back to our experience. Humbling... We live in a land of abundance. The thought of going without water for a couple days will most likely never haunt us in Lexington, working exhausting labor jobs [like masonry] and making two dollars a day isn’t a problem here. Going a few days without basic food needs isn’t as typical here as it is there. For our students, being amongst people who live on what they need – literally – was extremely humbling. What we, and our students, classify as “need” are rarely needs. The conviction of living far above our “needs” redefined what our students standard of living should be.

This trip exposed a lot of passions that were hidden in our students' hearts. The Spirit convicted and gave new insights to what our group should and needs to be concerned with here at home. We had some girls say that this trip affirmed their desire to pursue missions with their life, other students realized that Lexington is to be there mission field. “There are people who live in our backyards with needs – why aren’t we doing something about it?” These questions quickly turned into empowering our students to take on their schools and their neighborhoods. Being there brought to light our students' identities and passions that are hidden in the Father.

Because of this trip – we have students who are rallying people in their schools to feed the poor and redeem the oppressed. We have students who now serve their parents with a more joyful attitude. We have girls who now refuse to wear make-up because this life isn’t about how they look or what they can have. We have students who are now sharing the Gospel with more boldness than ever. The Holy Spirit used this trip to teach our students that He is raising up a generation of young people who are going to do something for the Kingdom. We can’t just sit on the sideline anymore. The Lord has showed us, He has humbled us, He has exposed us and now He is leading us to be Kingdom workers no matter where we live or what circumstances we’re in.

Come with us July 15-23 back to the site of the tsunami and witness what has been accomplished so far in the recovery of one hardest-hit regions.  Join a team to bring about even more changes for our Food for the Hungry partner in Meulaboh, Indonesia, where we will do teacher training in the public schools and work on a serve the city project and a badminton court construction project.  The team size is limited to 7-9 people and the deadline is April 19th.  To apply, go to www.southlandchristian.org/missions/ and download the short-term mission application.  The cost of the trip is approximately $3,200 - 3,700.

We received this win email this week...

"I came to Southland last week for the first time. I wept nearly the entire time. I sang. I danced. I loved it. I didn't want the service to stop and when it did, I couldn't wait for next Sunday to get here already. Jesus sparked a deep desire to re-devote my life to Christ. I'd like to be baptized. Can I share that during a service? I want to do this so bad, I'm excited!"

How great of a win is this? It's what it's all about folks. Now here's the if... What if you answered that call? Have you wanted to take the plunge but something is holding you back? Come talk to us. Or what if you have given it all to Jesus? What if you shared that faith and started getting emails like this from your friends?

As a staff, we're often confronted with the word "If."

"What if our church let the Spirit take over? What if Southland grabbed onto every opportunity to serve the city? What if someone just took one step towards Christ?" If is a good word to challenge ourselves.

Another great practice we have around here is reviewing our "wins." There's a big list of wins that we pass along here. When the people and ministries around here share a win story, it means the Kingdom is growing and doing great things. Here's a few wins from last month that we overheard; One lady from Southland is setting up a time through our inner-city ministry to meet with a man there and teach him to read. Another Southland guy has been giving rides to a man who needed some procedures done at the Refuge Medical Clinic. A woman named Bonnie didn't just buy clothes for someone in need. She took her shopping, let her pick out some new outfits herself and spent time getting to know her. Two Southland girls got together to take an expecting mother shopping for baby items and clothes. The list keeps going.

What's the coolest thing about this list? They're simple. No one has completely blown up their lives to answer the call of "if." These wonderful people are just available for The Ministry. What about you? What if you did something simple? What if you took that step of courage? What if you ask if? Could you make the list? Absolutely. It's not about ability. It's about availability. Let us know if you have a "Win and If" story to share.

Hey, if you’re looking for a low commitment way to make a huge difference this summer in the life of the church, here it is. Every week, all year long, we have amazing Children’s Ministry leaders who partner to with parents to help  over 1,200 kids fall in love with Jesus and follow Him.  We want to honor these leaders by giving them a few weeks off this summer so they can come back refreshed and ready to go for the fall.  That’s where you come in. We’re not asking for a long-term commitment.  We just some extra hands to keep our rooms safe this summer while our leaders take a break, and we can’t do it without your help.  If you’d like to volunteer to help us out this summer or just want more information, fill out the tear off sheet in the bulletin and drop it off on the way out the door.

If there's one thing I know, it's that a baby does change everything. It ain't easy... but we have a plan. Every year at Southland we take some time to celebrate families with new additions (and I'm not talking home renovations, here). We offer a service for moms and dads to commit their parenting efforts to God and let other loved ones commit to helping that little kid grow. If you're sleepy, frizzy haired and smell of stale milk, this might be the perfect opportunity for you. These services are May 16 at 1:30pm and 3:00pm at the Harrodsburg Road Campus, and at 1pm for the Danville Campus . Contact Laura or check here for more info.

What a great weekend! If you'd like to head towards baptism, contact Sarah.

We can't wait to see you at the pond. If you're interested in getting baptized at the Harrodsburg Road campus, contact Sarah. For Danville, contact Brian.

Southland is taking part in some amazing things in our community. Just read this article to see how. Photo courtesy of kentucky.com.

Here's a story from Wain Morris who helps with a group of Southland-ers who have adopted a trailer park in our community...

"The women of the group made cookies for Valentine’s Day and we bought some roses. We went out to the park and delivered cookies and roses. We talked for a while with some of the people. It was a very good trip and we are beginning to build a bridge. One lady in her 60's is home bound. Today a few of the women are going to either take her grocery shopping. Her son comes by occasionally but we got the impression not much.  What we are finding is there is a ton of need and so many cultural things that will take time and getting to know each other to establish a relationship. I think when the weather breaks we will be a little more free to move about and get to know them. I feel that each time we go there the people are more open. It is the beginning of a God sized task. We have also found that the people there are transient. There are more empty trailers each time.  Our next trip out is [soon]. There is a lot of need and we are only visiting 12 trailers with 150 out there. Have other groups expressed interest in serving this way?  So far we have gotten more out of the time spent then they have. We have been keeping information like names, number of children, etc... We have not gotten to the point of addressing their needs like clothes, furniture, food, or that kind of stuff. We do not want to come in and make them feel like they are substandard or charity cases. So far when we have brought things out to give they will not refuse the gift. I just think with time we will build that confidence that there is no hidden agenda."

Thanks for what you're doing Wain. And for those of us reading; Did you catch the question in there? Is anyone else considering this type of ministry? Well, if you are, let us know.  We'll get you pointed in the right direction.

Some Southland college students who serve here all pitched in money to purchase two new mattresses to bless a family with small children.  Helping Through Him was all out of mattresses and would not be getting new ones for sometime. But they weren't going to let it go any longer.  They needed to raise $200 (a fortune to a bunch of college students) and ended up with $330.  They were able to not only purchases the mattresses but also bought Tinker Bell and Star Wars bedding for the girl and boy as well as pillows and a toy for each of them! What an awesome blessing to those kids. They had never had anything like that before and received it all because a few students were willing to spend the time and energy to help them. We love hearing stories like this. If you have a story to tell, let us know. If you want a story to tell, we can help point you in the right direction.

We've been hearing people ask, "What's the plan for Easter baptisms if the weather is frigid or rainy?" Now we're letting everyone in on the answer.  We'll just delay everything a week.  So if you're planning on getting baptized that day, we'd love for you to wait for the weather to clear up.  And if you're planning on attending, put your umbrella away until next week. We will absolutely be having Easter services, though. There's a roof over our worship center... just not the pond.

I didn't expect to go to Africa. But God made it clear that I was suppose to take this trip to Ethiopia, and I quickly realized He was going to teach me something huge.

Over a month later, I am still learning lessons.

This trip, the people I went with, the experiences I had all played a huge role in changing the very course of my life.

I came back to Kentucky with three truths, which God had heavily impressed on my heart.

He is faithful. Even when we are not, even when we can't see Him working. He has proven Himself over and over again.

He loves us. Like a Father who loves His children, a redeemer, a hero. Almost everything He does in our lives stems from this love - His desire to close the gap between us and Him. So simple, yet transforming.

He is strong. One of the most personal lessons I learned while in Ethiopia stemmed from my struggle of feeling weak. The verse our whole trip was based on was Philippians 4:13. It took me a while, but finally I began to understand it is not important how strong I am. The whole story is about how strong the Lord is, and how we are called to let His strength work out through us.

—Ana Vaughn

Did you know we're on Twitter? Do you know what Twitter is? Why do horses wear shoes?  Do horses wear socks?  Well, I can help you with about half of those questions.  Yes, Southland is on Twitter and we use it for lots of reasons.  We may be reminding you of last week's sermon, prepping you for this week's, posting a job or maybe tossing out a fun fact about horses and socks.  No matter the Tweet, we encourage you to follow.  We'd love to hear an @mention from you about how you're feeling or what you need.  We'd love to get you plugged in beyond cyberspace.  Check it out.  We're here.  Danville is here.