About a week ago, I was sitting in a brothel in Southeast Asia with a young girl. She was shivering with cold. And I put my arm round her hoping it would make her a little warmer. And hoping that maybe she would experience a moment of comforting touch that seeks to give life in her world of the constant groping touch of men who seek to take something from her.
I have never been to jail before. I have never been arrested before. I have never had a speeding ticket before. And suddenly I found myself being taken to the Criminal Justice Center, exchanging my Ann Taylor clothes and leather ankle boots for scrubs stamped with El Paso County Jail, and locked in a 9×13 cell. Here’s what I learned.
At Pulpit Rock, we value courageous vulnerability. Our hope is that we can offer you a safe place to be you. As you are. We want to be a place where there’s no need to pretend you have it all together. A place where you can heal from your wounds. Vulnerability is scary, and we applaud it. We wanted to share this real story of one man’s journey with you.
Every time I have sat through this sermon series I have sensed the Holy Spirit asking me to do something that feels quite uncomfortable. Every Sunday the Lord has brought to mind the same people to invite over for dinner. The conviction gets stronger with each passing week. Why haven’t I done it yet?
It takes courage to enter the beauty and brokenness of our own stories so we can see the link between our own story and the story of Scripture. But it’s a journey well worth taking. Will you join us?
If you’ve attended Pulpit Rock for any amount of time, you’ll know we spend a lot of time talking about loving our city. We are proud of our home and believe we are located where we are – smack dab in the center of it – for a specific purpose. We want to see our city flourish and believe we have an important role to play in making that happen.
We have all seen the images of waters rising in Houston, and we are devastated for the people living there. Pulpit Rock leadership has benefited multiple times from the ministry of PastorServe. Now we invite you to join us as we, in turn, help PastorServe as they support pastors in Houston.
At our sister church in Ethiopia, there is peace. Students are in school. Ministers are visiting homes. Household items are distributed. No one is sick. Children are being trained. People are growing in compassion. This is all happening because of your regular giving to Pulpit Rock.
One day each year we forego our usual Sunday plan. We celebrate new life, both earthly and spiritual. We get loud. (This includes whistles, wild cheers and our awesome Woo girls.) We pray and sing and eat and play together and enjoy this beautiful church family.
Remember a couple months ago when we spent a Sunday morning recognizing, honoring and praying for our law enforcement officers? We shared how, as a church, we are called to seek the welfare and flourishing of our city. Well. Be encouraged, church. One of the officers there that day recently sent us a letter we thought you should read…
A recent concert at Red Rocks inspired Thomas to reflect on our tone at Pulpit Rock and how it shapes the way we talk about our opponents, ourselves and issues.
Being a part of an “us” is messy and awkward and painful. But that doesn’t mean it’s not worth it. We are seen and known loved despite our messy “us-ness.”.
