city on a hill

This week I began a coaching relationship with a church planter that lives and works near Chicago. Yesterday, I went out to their weekly meeting that they hold on Sunday mornings in a pub in Elgin. Today, Heather and I enjoyed lunch with Jeff and his wife Angela and their two cute-as-buttons kids.

What a beautiful community they've initiated! Their church is called City on a Hill. About a year and a half ago, Jeff and Angela felt convinced they needed to reach out to the needy. So, that's what they did.

It hasn't always been an easy road, but I have such admiration and respect for them as they've stayed the course and stuck with it through seasons of abundance and hardship alike.

It was refreshing worshiping with them yesterday as people from different walks of life gathered together around the simple message of Jesus: "Only one thing is needed..." As the group shared prayer requests with one another, we paused and gathered around a little three-year-old boy that has a serious, incurable physical ailment. Folks laid hands on him and humbly (without a lot of religious mumbo jumbo) prayed for healing. During the meeting it was clear that the City on a Hill community takes seriously our call to reach out to those who are less fortunate. There were folks there that were either going through hard times or had just come out of hard times. It was beautiful to see them share one another's burdens in such an authentic way. It was also encouraging to hear of the previous day's wedding that Jeff had conducted for a couple that had also been through some hard things.

Afterwards, the small City on a Hill community shared a meal together.

I loved how responsive their gathering was. When it seemed needful to do one thing, they did it. When it seemed like something else was wanting, they tended to it.

The kingdom of God is populated by childlike ragamuffins; yesterday it was nice to spend some time in Christ's country.

I'm going to enjoy coming alongside Jeff and I hope that the next year will hold abundant joy for the City on a Hill community.