Breaking Ground

A Collection of Stories, Prayers, & Devotions

Breaking Ground is a quarterly newsletter highlighting the work and mission of Open Door Church & Plowshares Home Churches to love God, love others, and share the peace of Christ in and around Lexington, Kentucky.

Each quarter we’ll keep you up-to-date on important news and opportunities in Open Door. We’ll also feature a quarterly theme to help us all grow in our faith as we follow Christ together.

As we entered 2025, we did so with a vision that had been stirring in our hearts: Generous Community. This year, we decided we would journey together through what it means to imagine, receive, practice, and ultimately live in generosity. What might it look like if our church was known for its generosity—not just in finances but in time, hospitality, service, and love?

Practicing in Generous Community

In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, he lifts up the believers in Macedonia as an example of what it looks like when God’s grace overflows into a community. He writes, “In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity” (2 Corinthians 8:1-2). What a beautiful picture of what it means to practice generosity—not just in word, but in deed; not just in vision, but in action.

As a church, we have dreamed together about Imagining Generous Community and we have opened our hearts to Receiving in Generous Community. Now we are called to embody that vision through the daily practices that make generosity tangible. And I am so grateful to see how that vision is already being lived out among us.

We practice generous community when we welcome newcomers from other countries and open our doors as a place of belonging. We practice generous community when we stand with our neighbors in need—through refugee sponsorships, by sharing gift cards with families who need a little extra help, and by offering financial support within our own congregation when burdens feel too heavy to bear alone.

We practice generous community when church members give their time and vehicles to transport those who cannot drive, and when our church van makes a way for all to join in worship and fellowship. We practice generous community when we host NA groups, creating a safe space for healing and hope. We practice generous community when we extend our reach across the globe, supporting ministries like Hope for Congo, sharing in God’s work of restoration far beyond our own walls.

These are not just programs or projects. They are practices. They are rhythms of life that teach us, again and again, what it means to belong to one another in Christ. Like the Macedonian church, we may sometimes feel our own limits, but as we practice generosity together, God’s grace wells up in us and overflows.

Friends, this is who we are called to be: a people who practice generous community. Let us continue to imagine, to receive, and above all, to live out generosity in ways both great and small. May every act of giving, every moment of welcome, every shared burden and lifted need bear witness to the God whose grace abounds to us all.

As we live into the third quarter of our focus on Generous Community, we lean into the work of practicing generosity. And we invite you to join us!

In His Love,

Pastor Christina

Next Gen Pastor, Open Door Church

Learn more about us here.

Keep reading for Community Testimonies, Devotions, & Resources

 

Visiting

A devotional practice by Lead Pastor, Adam Jones

I knocked on the door and I heard that familiar, raspy voice call, “Who is it?”. It was a concise question with a hint of suspicion. George lived at St. James Place and he had learned to be careful. I identified myself and he opened the door…

Click here for the rest of this quarters’s devotion and spiritual practice

What’s Happening?

Worship & Community

Late spring and summer of 2025 brought Open Door more opportunities to love and serve our church family and community. We studied the Holy Spirit together with Restoration Church in Lexington and Common Ground Church in Nicholasville. We celebrated baptism, new membership, and a beautiful all-community worship service of testimony and healing.

Our youth participated in their annual mission experience and found time to hangout with each other this summer at baseball games and backyard pools. And we formally sponsored a refugee family and began the work of welcoming them to their new life in Lexington. We are incredibly grateful for what God is doing as we live into our vision of Generous Community and our mission to love God, love others, and share the peace of Christ in and around Lexington.

Pictured here are snapshots from our All-Community Worship, our Youth Baseball Game Hangout, and our Messy Church outreach.

 

We Stick with each Other: Pentecost Sunday

The Holy Spirit showed up at Pentecost and at Open Door this morning. Our All Community Gathering was a celebration of the Spirit of God at work in our lives, hearts, and community. We welcomed a new member, celebrated a baptism, and heard testimonies of God’s presence. Then we shared in a love feast complete with serving one another communion. We are exceedingly blessed!!

 

Hope For Congo

In early July, we prayed over and sent out Hope For Congo founder, Alex Favor, to Congo where he met with the widows and orphans supported through this ministry and checked in on the work of building a medical clinic nearby. Upon his return in August, we heard a praise report regarding the work being done by Hope For Congo. The financial need has grown along with the outreach. Right now, it takes roughly $50/month to care for each child with a total need of $2,500/month. If you are able to contribute to the work, you can make out a check to Hope for Congo or send a contribution to Open Door with Hope for Congo in the memo line.

Youth Mission Day

This year our youth received an invitation to come to church “Dressed and Ready for Service” (Luke 12:35). They did not know what the day held, but they showed up and served heartily! The day started with devotions and breakfast with our mentor ministry student, Jake Boyd, followed by serving with Seedleaf community garden “for the common good,” fresh food delivery to our refugee sponsor family, Pizza in the Park, and a scavenger hunt! Then they joined our friends at Bluegrass Recovery Center for some fun and games, hung out with John & Carol Withers who spoiled them with ice cream sundaes before the youth cooked and served a meal for the NA group that meets on Saturday night at Open Door church. It was a full, hot, and fun day and one we will not soon forget!

 

Testimonies

We are a people of stories. Life is not only about what is happening, but what has happened. Stories are a great way to remember and celebrate together what God has been doing among us. Throughout the year, we take time to share our stories in our various gatherings, from Sunday morning to weekday Home Churches. And may of them, we record online so we can remember the goodness of God together. If you have questions about sharing your story or want to get creative in the story telling process, contact us at office@opendoorlex.org. https://www.opendoorlex.org/stories

Refugee Sponsorship

We are excited to share that Open Door is formally sponsoring a refugee family: Dad, Mom, and their seven beautiful children. Formally sponsoring means we are going to focus our generosity more intentionally as a community through the end of the year to help this family get started and settled into their new life. As part of this commitment, we’ve already set aside $3,000 to begin assisting with their bills.

Each week, we’ll highlight one specific need while also continuing to collect financial donations.

f you would like to give financially, simply mark your donation for Refugee Sponsorship and note any specific designation. You can give online HERE, mail a donation to Open Door Church, 749 Addison Ave, Lexington KY 40504, or place in the offering boxes at the back of the sanctuary at our Sunday gathering. 

Pictured: Our community was able to donate a number of bicycles so that the older family members are able to have some local transportation to grocery stores and jobs and the kids can have some fun riding bikes!

Neighborhood Clean-Up

Each month, Open Door hosts a neighborhood cleanup to pick up trash around the neighborhood and park surrounding the church as well as care for our Community Center which is used all week long by various community groups.

We are always grateful for those who show up to show our gratitude for the space we are able to worship and serve in and from!

 

Other News & Updates of Interest

Pastor Sungbin Kim and Onesimus Reconciliation

We are excited to welcome three pastors from Japan who are visiting the US through the work of Onesimus Reconciliation, an effort led by ODC worship pastor, Sungbin Kim. In the linked video, Sungbin Kim (Worship Pastor at Open Door Church) shares about his work in the ministry of reconciliation through Onesimus Reconciliation KD, which is dedicated to Christ's reconciling work across cultural boundaries. This ministry emerged out of efforts to bridge historical division between Korean and Japanese Christians through their shared faith in Jesus Christ. https://vimeo.com/1097715285

Lampstand Storytelling Initiative

We are pleased to share the inaugural videos of The Lampstand Storytelling Initiative, a video series from The Shalom Society that highlights examples and stories of peacemaking and reconciliation from across the BIC family. The Shalom Society is led by our very own Pastor of Home Churches, Mattew Peterson. https://shalomsociety.net/the-lampstand-storytelling-initiative

Intergenerational Worship

Pastors Christina Embree, Steph Peterson, and Matthew Peterson serve on the BIC Great Lakes Conference Children’s Discipleship Task Force and have recently released their newest curriculum “Gather & Play: A Journey with Jesus - All About Church.” This curriculum is designed to engage children, youth, and families in an interactive and intergenerational journey through the liturgical church year. Each lesson is thoughtfully crafted to help participants encounter Scripture, reflect on its meaning, and respond in ways that nurture their faith. You can download a copy here: https://refocusministry.gumroad.com/l/allaboutchurch

Backpack Ministry

Did you know that Open Door sponsors a Backpack Ministry to a local elementary school and provides meals every weekend to children who otherwise may not have enough to eat at home?

While this program is primarily grant funded, the increase in grocery costs has made it more difficult for us to fill the backpacks each week. In an effort to restock our shelves and keep them full, we've put together a list of needed items and highlighted to each month that we can donate to offset the costs.

Please note: All items must be individually-packaged, peanut-free, pop-top cans, and microwavable. You can bring in any items at any time or just the highlighted items for each month.

 

PRAISE & PRAYER

We invite you to join us as we celebrate the gifts we’ve received and to help shoulder the burdens we carry, visit our website for a regularly updated list of the community’s Praises and Prayer requests here.

Reminder: Where to Find Church News

In addition to Breaking Ground, this monthly newsletter, we also send a shorter News & Notes each Friday which includes information on current events (news) and praise/prayer requests from church family members (notes), check out these important spots for information: