The Kingdom is Coming in Kentucky

God is in the stillness. And the wildness. The quiet moments. And the rowdy ones. Always waiting, and yet always working. I remain captivated by His ability to love humanity in so many ways. I've been thinking about that this morning, as I reflect on all that I've had the privilege to be part of these past few months. I'm thankful to be alive in 2023.

A month ago, we wrapped up our very first discipleship school, The Table - Youth Edition 2023. The Table is our newly-formed discipleship school, and we believe that we'll eventually offer opportunities for various ages of people. But this year, we felt led to offer the first session to youth. Oh, how deeply thankful I am that we had the grace to follow that leading.

There were 22 youth involved in The Table this summer, over 25 adult leaders from at least five different states, and together, we represented over a dozen different churches.

It was a summer that I hope to remember for all eternity.

Some days were fun and wild. Others felt peaceful and contemplative. Lots of days involved meandering down the Elkhorn Creek in kayaks and curling up on sofas sipping hot tea, as we learned from the wisdom of a beautiful collection of teachers. The questions of these students rivaled those of seminary classrooms. And yet, these amazing teenagers enjoyed so many childlike moments - in a space where they had nothing to prove. We shared lots of laughter, and we also shared moments that were quieted by an awareness of God's sweet Presence.

And we grew together ... steadily, one day at a time. That's life in the family of God.

Before we finished the school, many students were already asking if we'd do it again next year. :-) Lord willing, we will! (FYI for those who are wondering ... the tentative dates for The Table - Youth Edition 2024 are June 11-July 25!)

As if that wasn't enough to leave a heart overflowing, I had the privilege of partnering with Fontez Hill, the youth pastor at Church of the Savior, and Brad Easley, the pastor of King's Church, to plan a youth conference on August 11-12 called Kingdom Culture. It was amazing. We shared incredible moments of worship, were blessed by the teaching of some treasured local leaders, and were thoroughly challenged by Robbie Dawkins, who was our guest speaker both evenings. Over a dozen churches were involved in this beautiful gathering of youth from throughout our region. It was an honor to play a small part in seeing God bring such a powerful weekend to fruition!

On Tuesday, the Lord blew me away again.

Luke Long is the founder and leader of 2:22 Dwelling Ministries. He and his wife Allison are dear friends of ours, and for the past 9 months or so, I've served as a worship leader with 2:22. Recently, Luke and I were talking about how cool it would be to partner in hosting a tent style worship and prayer event somewhere in Lexington this fall. As we considered locations, Brevede Coffee came to mind (the home of our Global Justice Boutique). On Tuesday, that door was opened! We are beyond excited about this opportunity. (Thank you, Viorika!) On September 15-17, there will be 50 hours of continuous prayer and worship outside Brevede Coffee in the Distillery District. If you are interested in serving as a worship or prayer leader for this event, please see the details here: https://www.222dwelling.org/50hours.

On that note, our Global Justice Boutique, located inside both Brevede Coffee locations, continues to do well! It's so much fun to purchase and sell these beautiful goods, knowing that doing so allows us to help support so many incredible ministries. When you need to purchase gifts, please keep the boutique in mind! And while you're there picking up your gift, you can grab a yummy cup of coffee from our dear friends at Brevede. It's a win on many levels. :-)

And I have one more piece of exciting news! My dear friend, Samantha Hill, will be joining When Love Finds Love as a full-time staff member within the next month. She'll be supporting some of our existing work, but she will also be starting a new initiative in Anderson County called Salt & Light Tutoring. I'll send more details out soon regarding that initiative, but I believe it's going to be wonderful! If you know Samantha, you know she's an incredible teacher and a wonder of a woman. :-)

Do you know what I love so much about all the amazing things above? I could never have accomplished any of them on my own (or even with my small army of a family!). We all need Jesus all the time! But we also need each other. Praise God that He has designed His family to work in this way! I'm convinced that as we grow in this revelation, we will continue to see God do miraculous things before our eyes.

Today, I'm enjoying the beauty of the farm and some home time with my family. Because in the end, who we are in God, and the condition of our hearts, is what matters most to Him. But I'm also continuing to dream and plan with Him as we look toward the coming season. If you'd like to talk about partnering with us in any way, or share what God's doing in your corner of the world, I'd love to hear about it. :-) You can email me at katie@whenlovefindslove.com.

If you feel led to contribute financially to When Love Finds Love, or specifically support the work of the The Table or The Global Justice Boutique, we'd be so grateful. Though we personally sow into this work regularly, we depend on your support as well. You can do that here: https://www.whenlovefindslove.com/donate.

Blessings to each one of you! I consider it no small thing that you've taken the time to read this update. You are such a blessing to our community of faith!