God has a way of leading us down new paths in life that were before unexpected and yet greater than what we could’ve asked or imagined.
I recall years ago when I had started my own solo law practice after working as an associate attorney at another law office. After I had gotten settled into my own practice I started to realize that it was best suited for my personality and general attitude to be on my own without anyone supervising me (or me supervising anyone else) or my having to learn to work with others as a team etc etc. I have shared in the past that admittedly I grew up socially awkward and lacked the normal social skills most people take for granted. And so with my law practice I felt I had found true balance of an occupation that fit my loner personality. I felt at the time, and still do, that it’s a sign of maturity for one to admit and acknowledge one’s strengths and limitations.
However, that whole self-reflection occurred well before I had a calling to go to seminary. Flash forward to 2010, when I was in my second year of seminary and was about to start serving at NCFC as an associate pastor. I had a mini anxiety attack once I realized that gee, after I had already settled the matter in my head that I was better off working alone without being supervised or being subject to annual job reviews or having to learn to work well with others and so on and so forth, that serving at church would require me to be supervised, subject to annual job reviews and having to work with others!
God seems to have an ironic sense of humor when He throws us these little curveballs in life. I have said all along that I would’ve been perfectly content living out my life as I had once known it to be as a husband, father and law practitioner. But if God hadn’t intervened and saved me from my dysfunctional self I wouldn’t have experienced the joys in my relationships as a father, husband and brother in Christ. I feel these types of profound changes can only come from God.
My calling to serve at NCFC is even different than what I had originally expected. I felt I had a lot to learn under the leadership and guidance of Pastor Jamie and Dr. Kim. And yet now I realize that God is the one in control of our growth and maturity not any particular person. In fact I’m convinced God can use any one of us within this ministry to teach and to learn from. So there’s a sense of eager anticipation as to what God will be doing at our church in future times. As for my general anti-social tendencies it’s been an ongoing process. I feel I still have much to learn in the ministry about leadership and people. But thank God for His patience and grace to allow us to strive to be a relevant ministry. amen to that.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
October 6, 2013

I’ve been thinking about what it means to BE the church.  Church, to me, in the simplest definition is “the body of Christ.”  And if you think of the magnitude of that statement, it goes far beyond a building, an idea, or even a group of people. My thoughts are not just about our local church body called New Covenant Fellowship Church but the universal body of Christ which we also happen to call the Church.  Often times when we refer to the word “church” our thoughts and sentiments are programmed to think of your “home” church (the church you grew up in), the most church that you’ve visited (if you’ve been searching or “church hopping”), or the church that you have heard of whether word of mouth or in the news (if you are not a regular church go-er).  But let’s talk about the universal Church, the Church that should represent JESUS, not a group of people or a person.  Here are (just a few) of my thoughts:
WE are a NEW CREATION, not just YOU (2 Corinthians 5:17).  Paul, in His letter to the church in Corinth, desperately conveys to the church their identity as believers.  The theme of “new” is prevalent in this letter; new covenant, new body, new creation, etc.  He emphasizes the ultimate atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the cross drives a “new-ness” factor in all our lives.  Specifically to 5:17, we are a NEW creation, literally re-born, re-created, re-made, whatever word that helps you to understand the transition from nothing to something.  However, the danger here is to selfishly rear this idea and claim this truth for yourself but Paul’s placement of this truth in his letter is very intentional.  He places this comment right before he writes about the ministry of reconciliation, the ministry of reconciling the world to Christ as ambassadors of God (v.20).  Reconciliation involves others.  It involves YOU the ambassador, the ones needing reconciliation, and God, the one we are reconciled to.  Ministry of reconciliation is an integral part of being a new creation.  How are WE, as the church, being a NEW CREATION collectively?  WE are it, not just YOU.
Christ is the HEAD of the church (Colossians 1:18).  In the bible and as I mentioned above, the church is compared to a body of a human being.  The science of the body is fascinating.  Think for one moment the functions of each part of the body.  They are incredibly unique but at the same time intricately related to one another!  When Paul speaks of Christ being the head of the church, he is referring to the Lordship (head being at the top), the function (the purpose, reason, livelihood, importance), but also the face or the recognizing factor of the rest of the body.  As the body of Christ, made up of unique individuals but so intricately tied together, do we represent the Head?  Do our actions and our words point to the head of the Church, who is Jesus?  If you are part of the local body of believers, like NCFC, how have we represented to the world around us that Christ is our face, our recognizing factor?
Friends, this is just a few on-going thoughts but let me end with this.  The Church is called to be ALIVE or A LIFE!  It is a moving, breathing, LIVING organism, whose parts work together, like the human body, to point the world (and one another) back to Jesus, our head!  Let’s not confine our relationship to God by going to church but commit to being the church wherever we go.  “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is [ALREADY] here!” 
Be loved, be blessed, be encouraged, be challenged. 

From Pastor Keeyoung’s Heart
September 29, 2013