Jesus Loves Them, Too!
A week ago, on Sunday morning, I was awakened at 4:30 A.M. A song lyric was repeatedly playing in my mind. I tried to ignore it and go back to sleep, but I could not let it go. The first time I heard “People Need the Lord,” it wasn’t as a song. Russell Kelfer quoted it during one of his Sunday morning discipleship classes at Wayside Chapel. It wouldn’t be long before I heard Steve Troxel, my pastor, sing “People Need the Lord,” accompanied by the New Image, a home-grown Wayside worship band. I would not have experienced any of this if it hadn’t been for Buzz and Julie Roman, who had invited us to Wayside.
Intentional, relationship-driven discipleship set Wayside apart from other local churches in San Antonio. Wayside’s leadership executed a biblically informed plan. The everyday practices of the Wayside community of Jesus’ followers were driven by the core message of “People Need the Lord.”
We are called to take His light
To a world where wrong seems right.
What could be too great a cost
For sharing life with one who's lost?
Through His love, our hearts can feel
All the grief they bear.
They must hear the words of life
Only we can share.
People need the Lord; people need the Lord.
At the end of broken dreams, He's the open door.
People need the Lord; people need the Lord
When will we realize people need the Lord?
On my first Sunday at Wayside, I attended Russell’s class. After the closing prayer, he stepped off the podium and introduced himself. “I haven’t seen you here before. Would you like to get coffee this week?” How could I say “No?”
Over the next several years, imperfect people made me a part of the life Jesus created in them. Little did I know that God was training me to do what they did for me. Russell, Steve, Buzz, Larry, Acie, and Arnold. Each of these men demonstrated the disciple-making lifestyle portrayed by Jesus in the Gospels. We ate, played, worked, and worshipped, inviting others to join us where people went about their everyday lives. Together, we discovered how to make a spectacle of Jesus!
What happened at Wayside Chapel from 1978 to 1982 defines how I think about discipleship today. That experience determines what we are doing at Disciple Daily. The men noted above invested in me. Many reading this today are supporters of Disciple Daily. You have invested in me. I am grateful for you because we both know that people (still) need the Lord.
May the Lord Bless You Today!
Disciple Daily
Also, tomorrow is election day. Our country's current division mirrors America's condition during the late '60s and early '70s. I was a confused, afraid, and angry teenager. It was during that time that the Lord saved me from myself. On December 21, 1971, I realized how much I needed Jesus. I see the same signs of discontent among young people today. We want to do for them what the Lord did for me.
We will welcome a new Fellowship Team to Lone Oak in January. If you are not a financial partner of Disciple Daily, would you consider joining us through a monthly donation to help us train our new team?
Intentional, relationship-driven discipleship set Wayside apart from other local churches in San Antonio. Wayside’s leadership executed a biblically informed plan. The everyday practices of the Wayside community of Jesus’ followers were driven by the core message of “People Need the Lord.”
We are called to take His light
To a world where wrong seems right.
What could be too great a cost
For sharing life with one who's lost?
Through His love, our hearts can feel
All the grief they bear.
They must hear the words of life
Only we can share.
People need the Lord; people need the Lord.
At the end of broken dreams, He's the open door.
People need the Lord; people need the Lord
When will we realize people need the Lord?
On my first Sunday at Wayside, I attended Russell’s class. After the closing prayer, he stepped off the podium and introduced himself. “I haven’t seen you here before. Would you like to get coffee this week?” How could I say “No?”
Over the next several years, imperfect people made me a part of the life Jesus created in them. Little did I know that God was training me to do what they did for me. Russell, Steve, Buzz, Larry, Acie, and Arnold. Each of these men demonstrated the disciple-making lifestyle portrayed by Jesus in the Gospels. We ate, played, worked, and worshipped, inviting others to join us where people went about their everyday lives. Together, we discovered how to make a spectacle of Jesus!
What happened at Wayside Chapel from 1978 to 1982 defines how I think about discipleship today. That experience determines what we are doing at Disciple Daily. The men noted above invested in me. Many reading this today are supporters of Disciple Daily. You have invested in me. I am grateful for you because we both know that people (still) need the Lord.
May the Lord Bless You Today!
Disciple Daily
Also, tomorrow is election day. Our country's current division mirrors America's condition during the late '60s and early '70s. I was a confused, afraid, and angry teenager. It was during that time that the Lord saved me from myself. On December 21, 1971, I realized how much I needed Jesus. I see the same signs of discontent among young people today. We want to do for them what the Lord did for me.
We will welcome a new Fellowship Team to Lone Oak in January. If you are not a financial partner of Disciple Daily, would you consider joining us through a monthly donation to help us train our new team?
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2 Comments
Thanks for this beautiful message, Brother Arlie. I will always remember the effective and powerful ministries of Steve Troxel and Russell Kelfer. ❤️
Theirs is a legacy that continues to produce fruit fifty years later.