Faith Experiment… #Lenten Walk, Week 4 22 Mar 202322 Mar 2023 By Alli Bauck If anyone is keeping track, we are over halfway through the Lenten season. (Resurrection Sunday is getting closer!!!) For me, personally, the last eleven days have been…
For My Friends You Go; and I’ll Walk with You 17 Mar 202317 Mar 2023 By Justin Rossow Our mailbox is 0.7 miles from our front door. It used to be 7 feet. Since our last move, getting the mail has become more than a…
Faith Experiment… #Lenten Walk, Week … What? 16 Mar 202316 Mar 2023 By Alli Bauck This week felt like one step forward, two steps back. As Spring makes its anticipated arrival to the Kansas City area, the forecast last week was a…
Faith Experiment… #Lenten Walk, Week 2 8 Mar 2023 By Alli Bauck Wow. Podcasts are e-v-e-r-y-where! I started out my #Lentenwalk with a varied list of podcasts (see my first Lenten Walk blog); however, my Spotify library has doubled…
For My Friends Living With the Laughing God 3 Mar 20231 Mar 2023 By Kristeen Bruun On my wall hangs a plaque that a friend engraved for me. It says, “Want to make God laugh? Tell God your plans!” I certainly must believe…
Faith Experiment… #Lenten Walk, Week 1 1 Mar 20231 Mar 2023 By Alli Bauck While visiting with a friend on the phone last night, she asked me how my Lenten walk practice was going. I laughed and reported that on the…
Faith Experiment… Lenten Walk 23 Feb 202323 Feb 2023 By Alli Bauck I placed the rectangular box on the table and ceremoniously lifted the lid. A brand new pair of tennis shoes was waiting inside. Peeling back the packing…
For My Friends Top Blogs from 2022 30 Dec 202230 Dec 2022 2022 was another engaging year for the Next Step Community blog! Close to 12,000 visitors viewed our discipling content almost 19,000 times over the last 12 months. Here are some…
Uncategorized Christmas Lights in the Dark 15 Dec 202215 Dec 2022 By Kim Longden I have always loved Christmas lights. Some of my most treasured childhood memories are driving around as a family oohing and aahing at houses all decked out…
Discipling Leaders… Let Zacchaeus Have His Day 15 Nov 202215 Nov 2022 By Justin Rossow You probably know the story. Or at least the song: “Zacchaeus was a wee little man, and a wee little man was he.” You likely know the…
Reflections on God, Faith, and Promises 10 Nov 2022 By Jamie Wiechman Exactly five years and three months ago, I believed God for something impossible. It wasn’t a promise directly out of Scripture (though it was surrounded by Scripture…
Exegetical Study Clearing a Way Forward 26 Oct 2022 By Justin Rossow We couldn't get to the back part of our property most of the summer; it rained more than usual this spring, and it turns out I have…
Discipleship Tools… Noticing Your Emotions, with Jesus 30 Sep 2022 By Justin Rossow Emotions are simply part of who we are as human beings; which means our emotions are "beautifully and wonderfully made," and part of a fallen creation, both…
For My Friends God at Work, in My Kids 23 Sep 20226 Oct 2022 By Katie Helmreich The past month has been an intense struggle for us. My youngest started kindergarten this year, and turns out she wasn't quite ready for it emotionally. Every…
Cultural Studies Great (and Not-So-Great) Expectations 17 Aug 20221 Nov 2022 By Ted Hopkins Expectations are a funny beast. On vacation this summer, we ate at a restaurant that was a bit sketchy when we first walked in. They had open…
Cultural Studies… Mary and Martha, GPA or GPS? 28 Jul 20222 Nov 2022 By Justin Rossow (with Valerie Matyas) A couple of weeks ago, I got to lead a Next Step workshop at a congregation outside Buffalo, New York. As part of the…
For My Friends Peace in the Process 14 Jul 20222 Nov 2022 By Kim Longden A few days ago, I was sitting in the optometrist’s office with nine-year-old Jonah listening to the hushed tones of the eye exam in progress: “What is…
Uncategorized The Day After Perfect 10 Jul 20222 Nov 2022 By Katie Helmreich Ah, summer... Sunshine and a more laid back routine. The kids are home doing their childhood thing. The Suburban has been packed, unpacked, and repacked for trips…
