May 26 - Seed Sunday
Generosity has been a marker of The Bridge since before we started meeting publically.
Way back in the ‘zoom days’ of the pandemic, we all pooled resources to bless The Mission at Christmas (something we’ve done twice since then!).
We’ve also made a monthly commitment to Steve and Kristen Hickey serving Alaska Christian College.
We’ve helped Ukranian refuges, families in our own congregation, sent defibrillators to Israel, paid a misisonary’s school fees, and other outreaches.
Generosity is a muscle, not a reflex. We want to strenghten that muscle with regular contributions of our time and effort.
We’re. ready to take the next step by establishing The Bridge missions fund that will allow us to support more projects together!
May 26 is Seed Sunday, when we take our first offering for this fund. Please be in prayer about how the Lord would enable you to participte in this next step for The Bridge!
Alone
I enjoy watching The History Channel's long running reality show, "Alone."
The premise is simple. Take a group of people from a variety of backgrounds, equip them with rudimentary tools, and drop them off one by one is some remote part of the world to see who lasts the longest before hitting the button that summons a rescue helicopter.
Contestants might range from a burly ex-Marine to a stay-at-home mom, and you really never know who might crack first. More than once I've watched as someone who I felt was well suited for the task has given in first while the stay-at-home mom has built herself a lean too with the hide of a deer she found decomposing in the woods.
That said, all the contestants seem pretty overjoyed when the season is over. Even if they thought they'd enjoy it, they realized that what God told Adam specifically about a mate is true of all of us in generalities. It is not good for us to be alone.
The fulness of following Jesus is found in relationship with one another, sharing the highs and lows with people of like faith. It has never been more true than it is right now.
In a high pressure time of life, we all tend to put our head down and trudge forward until we emerge on the other side. Don't forget to take time for others, which is in reality, also taking time for yourself.
In addition, let's all pray the early verses of Psalm 20 over our church family.
May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble!
May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!
May he send you help from the sanctuary
and give you support from Zion!
We are not alone, friends!
And sojourners in it…
As long as we are in this current age, there will be a gap between what God has promised and what we see, because some promises are on the other side of things..
Consider Psalm 105, which early on, drops this powerhouse promise.
“He remembers his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,” Psalm 105:8 ESV
And then we continue to read the chapter and realize that even with this promise, things get thorny for His people pretty quickly. They still do.
That’s not to say that He does not bless us - most of us can look around and quickly name a dozen things that we would attribute to God’s hand in our lives. It’s just that the fullness of what He promises us isn’t seen in this age.
And at times, what we do see makes us wonder. Note this phrase, spoken over God’s chosen people, the Jews, later in the same chapter.
Psalm 105:12 describes them as “…few in number, of little account, and sojourners in it., wandering from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another….”.
This is not the promise they hoped for - or will eventually see…but that doesn’t mean God was not moving. In this chaotic state of wandering and wondering, God was intervening on their behalf, often behind the scenes.
“…he allowed no one to oppress them; he rebuked kings on their account, saying, “Touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm!”” Psalm 105:14-15 ESV
If you look around and think, “We’re few in number and of little account”, don’t stop looking. With God’s promise comes His special attention and protection in ways we don’t even notice. It’s likely the Jews had no idea of the number of kings that were rebuked on their behalf, or the evil that was held back because they were faithful in waiting for the fulness of His promise.
This chapter, which starts with a promise but quickly tapers into misery, ends - like the stories of God do - ends in victory.
“Then he brought out Israel with silver and gold, and there was none among his tribes who stumbled. Egypt was glad when they departed, for dread of them had fallen upon it.” Psalm 105:37-38
The Jews went from promise to misery to departing their captors with riches, and the captors being glad to be rid of them.
Your story is no different. Don’t get stuck in the middle.
The National Day of Prayer
Join us on May 4 at Leawood City Hall, noon to 1pm, as we take our place in the storyline.
Our nation has a long history of prayer. In fact, corporate prayer was a part of what would become the United States even before we were a nation. In 1775, the Continental Congress declared a day of fasting and prayer. Since then, George Washington, John Adams and Abraham Lincoln did the same.
In 1952, the modern era of the National Day of Prayer came into being, following a prayer rally held on the steps of the US Capitol Building, hosted by a young Billy Graham. 20,000 people gathered that day, and soon after, Congress passed a resolution calling for the National Day of Prayer to be a fixture on the US calendar.
This year, we are gathering with other believers at the Leawood City Hall on Thursday, May 4th, from Noon to 1pm for a noon-hour prayer meeting. Join us at 4800 Town Center Drive in the downstairs Oak Room.
We are asking for another great move of God in our nation. We believe it will touch every facet of society, and it will start with prayer.
What God Finds Strange
Leviticus is a book that many are happy to skip over. There are a lot of instructions and specifics that can be hard to comprehend, much less satisfy. The first eight chapters are full of these sorts of things, and then there’s an ordination of sorts.
In the ninth chapter, Moses sets Aaron and his sons as priests and tells them, “Go do the stuff. Go follow the instructions.” They do, and fire from God consumes their sacrifice. Shortly thereafter, it got a little weird.
Two men decide to freestyle a sacrifice. We don’t exactly know why, but we know how, and the how matters. The Bible says they brought “strange” (or more properly translated, “unauthorized”) fire to burn the sacrifice. Fire came out from the altar as before, but rather than consuming the sacrifice, it consumed them.
It is probably safe to assume that this was not their original plan.
This Sunday we’ll talk about what it all meant, and the instructions that followed, differentiating between those who stood far from the presence of God and those that would draw near. Those who stand at a distance operate under one set of rules, but for those who draw near, there’s a different way of walking.
We are seeing a drastic increase in hunger for God across our nation. Many confess a desire to draw near - and that desire is real. So what does it look like to make sure we approach Him the way He desires to be approached?
More on Sunday morning - if you’re interested in getting a look in advance, read Leviticus 9 and 10!
We’ll see you at The Culture House at 10:30 AM!
What about revival?
Since Wednesday, February 8, Asbury University in Wilmore, Kentucky, has been experiencing a profound move of the Holy Spirit. Around the clock, students, staff and campus families have gathered for worship, exhortation, repentance and prayer. It is reminiscent of a move of God that hit the campus in the 1970s that sent college kids, consumed with passion for God, across the nation and around the world.
That being the 70’s, however, word spread slowly at first, and criticism was buffered by time and distance.
Welcome to 2023, where even as many are making there way to Asbury to witness and experience this first hand, others are offering critique from a distance, all within days of the initial meeting.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when forming our own heart’s response to what God is dong there.
Realize it’s going to look different. Some of the online critics are declaring, “True revival looks like….” and then presenting a litmus test for revival according to their own expectations (and rarely their own experiences - most of these voices have never encountered the very thing they’re arguing for). Give this revival room to breath and hearts room to expand. If this expression continues for an extended period (as if nearly a week isn’t already extended) it will no doubt include a lot of different elements. Even if it doesn’t check every box of everyone’s expectations, we can celebrate that college students are getting a fresh touch from God.
Don’t get offended at geography. It’s easy to ask, “Why is God doing it there and not here?” Instead, rejoice that God is doing it at all, and pray that your church or town will also host this sort of thing. We celebrate and worship the same Holy Spirit. What if this move of God is a test for our own hearts - and if we pass, there is more to come?
Analyze less, ask more. Most of us are viewing what is happening there through photos on a phone and a few lines on twitter. It would be hard to imagine that we are getting a clear enough picture to offer an informed opinion - but clearly God is doing something, and if He’s moving there, can we ask Him to move here too? Our friend, Lee Cummings, from Radiant Kalamazoo reminds us of the words of Zechariah 10:
Ask rain from the Lord in the season of the spring rain.
In other words, when we see the Lord moving, it’s a good time to invite Him to move in our context too.
Sunday morning, we talked about living with a rhythm of prayer. As we increase the frequency and intentions of our prayers, ask the Lord to move in full freedom among The Bridge family.
If a deeper encounter of the Holy Spirit is available - and it is - why not here, and why not now?
1 of 40
What if you spoke at length about something….say, forty sentences, developing a complex thought, and later you realized that the people telling the story were taking one of those sentences and ignoring the rest?
These are the sorts of things that happen to Jesus…
In Matthew 24, Jesus was asked by His disciples, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
Jesus replied, “See that no one leads you astray….” and started to teach. It wasn’t a short devotional. It contained a lot of instruction. Yet 2000 years later, one verse is quoted most often.
Matthew 24:36
”But concerning that day and hour, no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the son, but the Father only.”
You can almost see Jesus shaking his head. That verse, cherry picked from forty verses, is most of what people remember from that chapter, but He said a lot more.
This Sunday at The Bridge we’ll be talking about the “lot more” as we dive in to week four of our series, The Principles. This week we’re focusing on the principle of living with eyes toward the future.
We can’t wait to worship with you! 10:30AM at The Culture House in Olathe.
A special kind of crazy
Spurgeon said that if we did a certain thing, we’re “acting insanely”. And most of us do it every day.
The writer of Hebrews crams a lot into a chapter that often gets skipped.
Hebrews 11 is the faith hall of fame..
Hebrews 12 describes Jesus as the author and perfector of our faith and encourages us not to grow weary.
Hebrews 13 is like the last conversation you have with your father before you drive away to college.
That final chapter of Hebrews is crammed full of advice about love, how we treat strangers and those in prison, a few thoughts on marriage, dealing with leadership and more….but none of it hits as hard or as universally as verses 5 and 6.
“Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have….”.
Could the author have imagined the world we live in? During the first century, the world was changing quickly without a doubt, but how much did the average reader of the book of Hebrews really know about life across the fence or across the ocean?
Envy and discontent are universal struggles, but did the author even imagine the internet, social media or streaming tv? Did he ever think that one day, people we did not know would take time to present their more glamorous, extravagant lives to us in the privacy of our own homes? Or that we would see strangers’ vacation photos as we sat over our toast and coffee, getting ready for another day of work?
Discontent has always been around. Cain killed Abel in envy, and that feeling has not abated. If anything, it has intensified with information overload.
Hebrews 13 continues, “For He has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
The Christian heart must press against the innate frustration of not enough, the fear of having not as nice, not as fulfilling a life….and embrace the knowledge that Jesus has promised that He is enough and He will always be with us.
Charles Spurgeon said that if we continue to struggle with discontent while embracing a God who promises to be enough for us, “we are acting insanely.”
It takes a special kind of crazy to believe in two opposite things.
God himself is enough and gives you His pledge. He is your helper. Do not fear people, lack, or your own sense of missing out. He’s everything you need.
Curious about The Bridge? Check out this first installment of a new series on the principles that guide us.
Principles Lead Vision
On Sunday, January 14, we started a new series called The Principles, laying out the five principles that will shape the future of The Bridge. We believe that Jesus came to set people free - an idea that seems to grow more controversial by the day. In addition to the video, below you can find:
Audio on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Note - you can find all our video archives here.
Why Galatians?
Sunday, we’ll begin a dive into the book of Galatians - an epistle written to churches that were spread across a vast region. Having done a mini series on the fruit of the Spirit just one month ago, why double back?
We can learn from short passages, but greater passages give us greater context, and the fruit of the Spirit are only a small portion of what Paul talked about in Galatians. In fact, it’s not even the the biggest point Paul makes.
Galatians is written to churches who had drifted from orthodoxy so quickly that Paul was astonished. It was as if he had proclaimed the Gospel, walked away, looked over his shoulder and found them adhering to something completely different.
In this season, the message of Galatians feels familiar to us.
Our world feels a little like Galatia right now. We are in a season of accelerated drift, culturally and spiritually. There is often a disconnect between the message of Jesus and the message being proclaimed. The former, which is full of freedom and grace, is centered on Jesus. Sadly, it is being exchanged for one that centers on self and leaves hearts empty. When people are hurting or need breakthrough, they look everywhere but the church, because the message of being an overcomer has given way to the message of coping.
Jesus did not die so you could get by. He died so you be free. That’s the Gospel.
In the book of Galatians, Paul speaks with great strength about apostolic authority and the essence of the message of Jesus. It’s a message worth focusing on.
Join us! Sunday mornings at The Bridge, 10:30am - meeting at The Culture House in Olathe!
Reaping the whirlwind
As I write this, the final votes are being tallied from the far corners of Kansas. The Value them Both amendment appears to have been defeated. This was not the result we hoped or prayed for.
As I write this, the final votes are being tallied from the far corners of Kansas. The Value them Both amendment appears to have been defeated.
This was not the result we hoped or prayed for. Personally, I made some fairly dour predictions about what it would mean for Kansas to fail to approve this amendment. I stand by those predictions. I believe there will be a time when even many of the opponents of the amendment will look back and admit that they made a grave error.
For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind. Hosea 8:7
Human beings struggle with seeing cause and effect in that particular order. We often don’t comprehend what will follow our actions in the moment, only later to realize what we have brought on ourselves.
The forces - both human and spiritual - that pressed for alignment with a renegade State Supreme Court will eventually see the bigger ramifications of this vote and it gives me no joy to say that. I am praying for the mercy of God in a more fervent way than ever, because I love the people and State of Kansas.
So now what?
Having lost this battle, some will be tempted to throw up their hands and say, “we tried….” and move on to other fights they feel are more winnable. But what about the church? Does the church ever have the right to abandon the truth in favor of a more palatable function in society?
No. The church will stand for the unborn and the mothers of the unborn.
The church will continue to support faith based pregnancy resource centers, champion foster and adoption initiatives, and help care for women who find themselves with an unexpected pregnancy.
The church will value them both, even if the state cannot find it in it’s heart to do so. Ultimately, that privilege belongs to the people of God.
Randy Bohlender, Pastor
The Bridge
“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”
Malachi 4:5,6
Why we’re fasting…
We are joining others around the world in a 40 day fast starting on Monday, March 7th. Specifically, as a church family, we are fasting for:
Authority to shift principalities and powers over whole nations. During World War 2, Reese Howell led a small band of intercessors, students at The Bible College of Wales, who shaped history with their prayer and fasting for their nation. Also, check out Shaping History Through Prayer and Fasting by Derek Prince or Reese Howell, Intercessor by Norman Grubb.
A heart for evangelism. We are asking God to set us on fire with the message of the Gospel to win many to Christ.
A greater move of the Holy Spirit in our midst. Every spiritual gift in the New Testament church is available to us today. We are opening our hearts to receive and demonstrate those gifts. Scripture tells us, “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”
Reconciliation with God and others. We will take communion together as a prophetic act for the day when we take it with people we need to reconcile with, and we will open our hearts to opportunities for that reconciliation to happen.
Space to grow. We need a larger space for The Bridge - and more importantly, a place to gather and pray during the week. We are asking God to open that door during this fast.
Church is better together! Bring a friend as we examine John 6 and celebrate communion together.
The Truth Uncomfortable
Jesus was the most hospitable person who ever lived. He was constantly going out of his way to make people feel welcome.
“Come unto me, all who are heavy laden.”
“Let the little children come to me, and to not hinder them….”
At every turn, Jesus stood with arms wide open….even to the point of being spread on a cross.
He held nothing of His heart in reserve….yet He seemed a paradox, because this God-man who welcomed all did not always make all comfortable. Sometimes, the presence that people were so quickly welcomed into was almost too much for them to stand in.
Sometimes, the miraculous power of Jesus caused people to draw close and then shrink back.
Once, Jesus borrowed Peter’s boat to row out away from the shore and teach.. Almost as if to say thank you, Jesus sends Peter and the boys back out to dip the nets one more time. Peter tells him, “We have fished all night, there’s nothing out there, but if you say so…”, and of course, they were inundated with fish.
The combination of the wisdom of the teacher and the display of a miracle had a curious effect on Peter. He grew uncomfortable.
But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” Luke 5:8
This Sunday’s passage - 1 John 3 - demonstrates John the Beloved, a tender hearted man, using some of the same confrontational love that we saw in Jesus’ life. In rapid fire form, through all five chapters of 1 John, the author gives us uncomfortable truth after uncomfortable truth .
We study these passages because as a people following Jesus, we value an uncomfortable truth more than a comfortable lie.
In 1 John 3:10, he starts with a passage that might make one squirm with two parts anticipation and one part dread.
By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are children of the devil….. 1 John 3:10
And with that, he prepares to layout a simple way of determining who was wholeheartedly God’s and who belonged to the evil one.
Forget this is written on an ancient script. Imagine this pronouncement was made around the Thanksgiving dinner table. This would make for some awkward table talk. We’d rather leave such matters to our own personal consideration, but John wants the ideas to go public.
This is where we’re going to go on Sunday morning, February 6. What are the markers that John lays out to separate the children of God from the children of the evil one, and what do John’s words say about us?
Join us Sunday, live at The Culture House or online at 10:30am as we worship together and consider some of these uncomfortable truths of 1 John.
Sunday, December 5, 2021
Audio versions of all our Sunday teaching is also available on SPOTIFY or APPLE PODCASTS.
Sunday, November 21, 2021
In part six of our series, The Letters, Randy teaches through the letter written to the church at Sardis in Revelation 3. Audio is available on SPOTIFY and APPLE PODCASTS.
Sunday, November 14, 2021
Daniel Grenz speaks on the closing passage of Revelation 2 in part 5 of our series, The Letters.
Audio available here:
Sunday, November 7, 2021
Randy speaks about the dissonance in the church of Pergamum in part 4 of our series, The Letters. Find audio also on
A Sense of Dissonance
Once in a while, things just don’t sound right together. Two sounds merge that sound like the audio version of oil and water. They don’t mix, and it’s messy. It’s called dissonance.
The idea of dissonance applies more broadly than just sound, however. It extends to things like emotions, ideas and practices. Sometimes we feel conflicting things, have conflicting ideas, and even do conflicting things.
There are times in our lives where our inner man is marked by a sense of dissonance. Two or more things are going on, and they seem to be at war with one another.
We need resolve.
The church of Pergamum, located in what is now Turkey, was a church marked by dissonance. In Revelation 2, a letter is dictated to them that points to different elements at war within them that creates a dissonance that must be addressed, and a prescription for resolve is issued.
Maybe you feel it - even the Apostle Paul did. He spoke frankly to the church in Rome, writing, “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” He recognized the dissonance in his won life.
This Sunday, we’re going to examine the letter to the church in Pergamum as part 4 of our series, The Letters, and try and find some resolve for our own lives. Join us at 10:30am at The Culture House!
October 31, 2021
This week, Part 3 of our series, The Letters, as Randy teaches through the letter to the church of Smyrna, where worship of the Roman emperor pressured Christians to renounce their faith.
Audio on SPOTIFY or APPLE PODCASTS