Turning the Page

Lauaren Longwell's military father moved the family to nine states during her school years. A graduate of the University of Richmond, she has a Master's degree in Business, IT, and Project Management from John Hopkins. She and her husband Jason, have two sons Tyler and Josh.

What were the events that influenced you to become a follower of Christ?

I went to parochial schools. Religion was a comforting tradition, but impersonal value system in my life. In my senior year of college, the Navigators' pursued me. I thought, "I'm doing all right. Why do I need this?" Then it hit me. I was successful but not truly joyful. And they were successful and joyful. The aroma of Christ rolled off them. Interestingly, Jason, whom I was dating at the time, was making his own commitment to Christ at the same time in Delaware.

How did you grow from there?

Married in 2000, we attended Grace Fellowship Church, where we were connected as Young Life leaders. We had the honor of hearing and obeying God's call to love the "unchurched" high schoolers exactly where they were, on their walk and on their home turf. Through our experiences at Young Life and committing to daily disciplines, our hearts transformed producing true fruit in our lives.

How did you get to Discovery church?

Jason's job was transferred here. I asked God for a playground nearby where I could get to know young mothers and for a community bible study. Laura Brasov and Marlan Muller came to my door 10 minutes after I moved in and invited me to both events. They connected us with Discovery. When Tyler and I were ill on different occasions, they brought meals, baby sat, prayed, and sat with us in the hospital. Steve called. We hadn't run long and deep with these people, but they loved us as if we had.

Your oldest son Tyler was bullied in day care?

Tyler was three when we put him in a good daycare/preschool. The principal called to say that my son was being beaten, pushed, and pinched by another child. Tyler was afraid to enter a room of children for fear that a bully would be there. We removed him from the daycare. I told Discovery's Children's Director, Kim Koole. Her husband, Dan and other Adventure Zone leaders explained to Tyler about God's strength, his shield, and protection. Tyler followed him into class. They gave me reinforcement ideas for the following week. Tyler wasn't afraid to go into the classroom at Discovery. My sons love the kid's program

Jason has been transferred back to Maryland. What piece of Discovery do you want to take with you as you turn the next page of life?

Reprioritization. God and family are first with financial and time margin built into our daily lives. Impactful life. Challenges will occur so we pray our joy and contentment are not due to circumstance.

The Journey. The Discovery.

They both came from very conservative, legalistic Churches of Christ. Blake Hill was born at Ellsworth AFB outside Rapid City when his father was in military. Ministry followed military and Blake's family moved off and on - typical for their church fellowship.

Kimberly grew up in Pleasanton, CA in the East Bay Area. A five-year friendship developed into courtship and they were married 11 years ago. Blake, a CPA, works for Summit Integrated Systems. Kimberly, an accountant, is a stay at home mom, caring for Griffin - 5, and Adam - 3.

Tell me about your journey. When did you become Christians and "own"your faith?

Blake: I became a Christian at age 9. Church was never optional, but it always felt right to go. I went to Bible camps and youth rallies and was actively serving land leading at a young age.

Kimberly: I became a Christian when I was young. Our churches were good and developing knowledge - based relationships with the Lord, rather than anything spirit lead.

Both: We always " owned" our faith. It just wasn't full.

When did it become personal - full?

Kimberly: We ventured outside of the Church of Christ fellowship after we were married. Legalistic churches exhausted us. We found a church that emphasize relationships, was less judgmental, and developed community. I wanted to worship with people who knew we were all broken and would help each other along. I wanted a place I could bring my neighbors.

Blake: we were in Portland, and started worshipping with a Vineyard church.

What brought you to Discovery?

Kimberly: We came to Colorado for the 300 days of sunshine per year. Brad and Angie Black lived close. We both had infant children. I asked her about church and she told me about Discovery.

What is appealing about Discovery?

Blake: It's an easy place to bring new people, long-time disciples or seekers. The preaching is honesty and down to earth. And no one acts like they have it all figured out. We're all on a journey, moving closer to God.

Kimberly: Discovery doesn't get hung up on longstanding tradition or petty issues that divide rather than unite. Strong emphasis is put on connecting with others and journeying together.

What excites you about Discovery's future?

Both: Our youth group will be amazing! There's so many little kids here who will be teenagers in 10 years. They'll have great potential to impact their schools and the community for the Lord.

“Churches need examples of people who have been married more than thirty years.”

They were nearly a continent away. Fred was born in Manhattan into a military family and spent most of his preteen years in Europe. Thornton-reared Becky met Fred in High School. After moving to South Carolina in his senior year, Fred was seriously injured in an auto accident. He missed Colorado and very much missed Becky. He worked construction for a short time and then joined the Air Force. Upon completing boot camp he married Becky. While in the Air Force Fred started attending College and graduated from Denver Metro with a bio-medical engineering degree. Fred works for Sun Microsystems as a Senior Director for a development organization.
Becky was a homemaker who volunteered in the school system their two sons attended. She eventually got a job in the library and now works as the payroll manager for the Adams 12 School System.

When did you become Christ followers?
Becky: Some Christian neighbors moved in and we were looking for a church. Through some discussions they witnessed to us and gave us our first non-catholic bible. We continued our search for a church and eventually found a church in the yellow pages. It was great! We attended this church for 14 years.
Fred: For the first time in my life I read the bible. In our new church we really came to know about faith, Christianity and God.
Becky: Community! The pastor played football on Sundays with the young families. We were with the church on Sundays, Wednesdays and in between. That’s when we became Christians.

What brought you to Discovery?
Fred: We drove by the Discovery signs on the street and decided to give the church a try.

You began an “empty nesters life group” last fall. Tell us about it.
Fred: We wanted to do a life group of people who are in a similar stage of life that we are in. We thought that’s where our strongest contribution could be at this stage of our lives.
Becky: Every church needs a balance of ages where life can be shared between generations.
Fred: It’s important for young and old to bridge and connect. There is a healthy cocooning with our own groups and a time to break out of our peer connections.

Fred and Becky are drivers for Becky’s elderly mother who still lives in the family home in Thornton. They have grandchildren as well.

Do schedules get easier when the kids leave home?
Becky: Not really, your priorities just change. Younger families seem to have greater demands on their time, money and spiritual lives.

How do you keep yourselves refreshed?
Fred: Its difficult, given the time constrains, but I try to have a quiet time as often as I can.
Becky: The struggle is time. Quiet time. Worship time. Those things renew me.

“Teaching kids jazzes us!”

Tom and Rachel Morris met at Christian camp in Pennsylvania. Her family was there for a reunion and Tom was there as a volunteer electrician doing repairs. Rachel is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University and is an Occupational Therapist, currently working with preschool children in the Adams 12 School District. Tom is a graduate of Johnson Bible College and Regis University. He is a Project Manager for Schneider Electric.

How would these two servants, reared in Christian homes describe their early spiritual journey?
“After marriage, I owned my faith.”
“We heard a presentation on church planting from people with the Empire State Evangelizing Association and felt a call to be church planters. We were part of the team that planted Celebrate Life Christian Church in Lancaster, PA.

What did you learn from your first church planting experience?
Rachel: We loved church planting.
Tom: It is easier to change something new than something old.
Rachel: You have to be intentional with what you are doing. “Why” is always the question.
Both: We like to work together. That’s one of the good things about developing curriculum and teaching KidsQuest at Discovery, we work together.

Tell me about the children’s curriculum.
Rachel: Originally, we wanted all kids to study the same lesson – the same text or theme.
Tom: Wouldn’t it be great for parents and kids to ride home and say, “What did you study in church today?” and have them all talk about the same thing only at different grade levels? In the beginning we tried to coordinate the lessons with the sermons, but that was overwhelming.
Rachel: The lessons are on a three-year rotation. We try to summarize the Old Testament and delve more deeply into the New Testament.
Tom: The lessons are divided into 3 – 6 week units. Each unit has a theme that is connected to kid’s culture.
Rachel: We’ve done Disney’s Cars with a hot wheels racetrack. We’ve even done old radio drama clips from back in the ‘30s ‘40’s and ‘50’s. Each unit has a scripture text to memorize. We read and study what the Bible says. We use multi-sensory experiences each week to help the kids learn and remember the lesson. Large group activities bring them together. Small group activities are age-graded. Nothing is done by random occurrence.

Can the typical volunteer who isn’t professionally trained teach the kid’s material?
Rachel: We tell our workers that they are leaders. They are leading children to learn. Yes, these materials are designed for volunteers to use.

How do you keep yourselves refreshed?
Rachel: Teaching children jazzes us. We love feed back from parents. When I look around the room in adult worship and see new Christians – people who weren’t here a year ago – it keeps me going.

“I can outlast the criers.”

            How can two southpaws join hands in marriage?  Jim and Kim Hagel have midwestern roots but met in Southern California.  A friend asked Kim if Jim could call her.  “Tell him to call me at work between 4:30 and 5:00,” were the starting parameters.  He did.  They dated and eventually married.  Jim, the MBA had the wedding on a spreadsheet.

Jim: “We came in under budget.”

     Jim works for the Integer Group, a promotional advertising agency.  Kim is in HR with Research Electro-Optics, a company that makes precision optical components in Boulder. 

What brought you to the Lord and Discovery?

Jim: “I dropped out of church after high school.  I came back to it when Kim and I got married.  I felt it would be a good example for Cameron and would provide me with an opportunity to connect spiritually with a group”

Kim: “I grew up in church, but it was not a priority for our family.  When Cameron was two, I felt the need to return to church.  A kid working in the mailroom at work witnessed to me.  I finally accepted Christ.  Our church merged with Shepherd of the Hills Christian Church.  I was involved in their children’s & youth programs.  We came to Colorado and started with Discovery when Rocky Mountain Christian Church planted it.

Jim:” We’ve been setting up for ten years.”

What do you like about Discovery?

Kim: “It feels comfortable – like home.  People genuinely care and take care of each other.”

Jim: “People are genuine.  Our small group got us through Cameron’s cancer.”

Kim has been involved in Little Explorers, the 2 – 3 year-old children’s class.  She’s in there every other Sunday.

Kim: “It’s my favorite age.  I lead the lesson and move the kids from activity to activity.  The challenge is connecting with them and making them feel comfortable and safe.  They still like to give hugs.”

Kim is known for helping children deal with separation anxiety.

Kim: “I can outlast the criers.”

Jim works with Adventure Zone, 3 to 5 year-olds.

Jim: “Generally I’m the storyteller.  I enjoy drama and like to act out the story.  I live in my own world anyway”

What is the next step in your spiritual journey?

Jim: “I need to be around more people.  If God’s kingdom is here on earth, I need to interact and be an integral part of their lives.”

Kim: “I’d love to staple myself to someone and learn from her.  I've found good mentors to be wonderful.  I’ve learned so much from them.

“How you are on the job speaks volumes about your faith.”

Saginaw, Michigan and Peoria, Illinois aren’t that far from each other, but it took the experience of working side by side in a pediatric unit in a Chicago hospital to bring these two nurses together.

Tom McNally now consults on clinical health information systems for an international consulting company. His job takes him traveling across the country every week. His wife, Rhonda, works for Boulder County Public Health doing home visits for at-risk families who have infants.

Tom committed his life to the Lord in high school at a Billy Graham movie. Rhonda was baptized at age 9, took advantage of the Young Life program at her church and refreshed her faith as an adult.

“College was the most formative time for my faith,” reflects Tom. At Wheaton College I was introduced to urban ministries.” After graduation, Tom moved into a community house in Uptown Chicago with other friends from college.

“Rhonda & I were involved in a storefront church in Uptown Chicago. Seven different language groups worshipped at our church, including Asian refugees (Cambodians, Vietnamese, Hmong from Laos), African refugees and others. Once each month we would have a combined communion service and each national group would have a public part. It was inspirational. (And the potlucks afterward were delicious!)”

They spent the past twenty-two years in Pittsburgh where they raised their two children, Brianne and Kevin, and were very active in their church in Pittsburgh. “We tried to weave faith and work. Service vocations lend themselves to blend both. How you are on the job speaks volumes about your faith.”

What is Growing Home’s Ministry and how did you get involved?
“Families with children who find themselves homeless can work with the Growing Homes program to find housing. During that time they are sheltered in churches one week at a time for up to six weeks. We got involved when Growing Homes sent a representative to Discovery seeking a support church. They were looking for a coordinator. With Steve’s encouragement we decided to do it. We are reaching out, sharing God’s love in a concrete way to people who need support. We could be those people any day.”

What does a person have to do to be involved with Discovery's Growing Homes participation?
“They need to be interested in providing a meal, food or supplies that are used at the church. Or they can be overnight hosts at the church. We do this 12 nights a year.”

Stop by the Growing Homes display in the lobby.

If I’d had Jesus in my home I might have made different decisions.

Jack Paul is a gregarious guy. Husband to Lisa and father to Jackson and Connor he was reared near Orlando and served four years in the Navy as a cryptographer.

He attended college and worked as a server in a local restaurant. “My customer wanted cocktail sauce for his Calamari. We were out, so I ran down the street to get it for him. It turns out he was the president of a hotel chain and offered me a job in hotel management." Today Jack is the General Manager for Doubletree Hotel in Westminster.

Jack had it made: wife, children, great job, home in McKay Landing.
Almost.

“My earliest experience with the Christian faith was in the Navy. Sundays we were given the choice of church or cleaning the barracks. I chose the protestant church service. I thought it was cool that they sang the Beatles song, “Let It Be.”

“I was approaching a mid-life birthday and knew something was missing. My brother had recently become a Christian. That’s amazing! We were born into a Jewish home, but were not familiar with the Jewish faith. I could tell a difference in him. He was at peace. I thought, ‘I want that!’”

Jack had some requirements for any church that he would attend: no formal dress, no guilt trips, no pressure about money. Lisa Cuss told Jack’s wife, “Oh you’ll love my husband. He wears jeans and a sweatshirt.”

The community and acceptance they found at Discovery brought Jack and Lisa back again and again. The sermons spoke directly to Jack’s questioning heart. He chose to follow Jesus and was baptized in March of this year.

Who has helped you along on your spiritual journey?
“My small men’s study group has been important. These guys really know the Bible.”

What kind of service for the Lord stirs you?”
“I feel like I’m guided to find people who are growing – who need the Lord. I was cynical. I want to help others. It’s easy to talk about Jesus and the church. I talk about Him to other people.”

What’s next? What is the next stage of your growth?
“My life group. I need to get better at reading the Bible. It’s still new and unfamiliar – except for the Gospel of John. I need a ‘Bible for dummies’.”
“I’d love to be able to quote scripture. I admire those who can.”
“I want to become more of a role model for my boys and other people. If I had had Jesus in my home, I might have made some different decisions.”