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Central alum, Rev. Lois Kelley, is pastor of Blue Valley Christian Church. She recently shared with us how her church community is doing ministry in a new way:

At Blue Valley Christian Church (BVCC) we like to say, “we are so far outside the box that we can’t see the box and don’t want to see the box.”

About six years ago, BVCC decided to sell its building. They were getting smaller in numbers and much of their resources were used towards the building debt. They took some time, after selling their building, to discern what mission God had for them. They decided to be a church for senior adults in a retirement community.

BVCC moved into Silvercrest at Deercreek, in Overland Park, an independent and assisted living retirement community. They desired to be a church family for the residents, instead of just providing a worship service only once a week.

“Many things at Central helped to prepare me for this new way of being church. One was the class on Missional Church. We partner with several businesses to minister to the retirement community and, together, for ministry outside the community. The Caring Ministries of the Church class with Dr. Ruth Rosell was probably one of the most important in preparing me, as it covered so much on the many ways to nurture the faith community. Because of my Central experience I feel confident in navigating this new ministry. Central is helping us make a difference in the lives of the residents and staff at Silvercrest.” -- Rev. Lois Kelley

For more of this story, check out the post on the Central Scholars Reflect blog on the Central Seminary website.