Church News

So much of life is without clear answers. You wonder what you’re going to do with your life, where your life is going, if you’re making the right choice or if someone will help you when you need it. Even spiritually, we all have questions that weigh on our hearts like the question “Why?” On our own, those answers can’t easily be found. Thankfully, Jesus has answers. The following devotion is adapted from Sunday's sermon on Luke 8:26-39 - Will He Rescue Me? For the full text of the sermon, click on the title!

When you woke up this morning, did you think of rescue? Did you wonder who would rescue you today or this week or this month or this year? Did you wonder if you’d need rescue?

In our own unique ways, we all have demons with which we struggle—demons that fear the future, demons that crush you with the guilt of the past, demons that plague you in your moments of present weakness, demons of worry, demons that fear failure or others’ opinions, demons that fear heartbreak, demons that convince you to buy into the self-centered, dissatisfied, raging lies of our culture, demons that make God’s blessings like family and love and politics and technology and sports into our own personal idols, demons of addiction, demons of doubt and cynicism and skepticism, demons that tempt us with pornographic images or with knee-jerk rage over whatever someone tweeted or said or with the seduction that we need more stuff. Demons plague us in secret and right out in the open. They are everywhere. We desperately need rescue from these forces of darkness.

Through his Word, Jesus steps into our dark and uncertain stories. He faces our demons. He confronts them not with rage, but with the almighty power of his grace. He loves the unlovable. He helps the helpless. He sees how desperately you need his rescue, even though you don’t have a clue. So he rushes into the burning building of your life. He puts himself in death’s way. He suffers the loss of his own life that you might live, that you might be set free, that you might be rescued from the power of the demons in your life. He slams his nail-pierced foot down on the throat of Satan and shatters the power of all our demons with an empty tomb on a Sunday morning.

…And how do we respond? Are we like those fearful townspeople? Are we like the Yazidi girls in Iraq, who had been held captive by ISIS for two years before they were rescued? They were so young when they were captured and so brainwashed by ISIS that they had forgotten their families and their faith and wanted to go back to living with ISIS. Are we like that when Jesus comes to our rescue? Do we urge him to leave us alone, to send him away, because fear or guilt or worry or grief or heartache so grip our hearts?

Or are we like the man in Luke 8, who was once enslaved by 2,000 demons until Jesus came along and rescued him? Friends, we’ve been rescued! We’ve received mercy! So like that rescued man, we desire to get in the boat with Jesus and go to heaven now, but Jesus doesn’t call us home yet. No, he sends us out to live, to follow him, to serve him where he has placed us—to serve him in our homes, in our workplaces, in our classrooms, in our neighborhoods, in our church. We respond by going out from here and telling everyone how much God has done for us in Christ. So we go. We tell, and we live that joy in our every God-given calling. Why? Jesus has rescued you and me for all eternity!

Rescued in Christ,
Pastor Gumm

Lessons for your own personal Bible reading this week:
- 1 Kings 19:19-21
- 2 Corinthians 11:21b-30
- Luke 9:51-62

Coming Soon @ King of Kings

Tech Help Wanted – In recent months, it has become clear that our on-campus technology requires increased maintenance and upgrading. At present, we are dealing with persistent issues with our campus WiFi network, upgrading our campus network, and the desire to pursue podcasting our sermons and livestreaming our services, in addition to needs that pop up during the school year. If you have experience, expertise, contacts, and/or interest in technology or IT, please contact Staci Warnecke or reply to this e-mail!

Now Enrolling! (Grades K-8) – Enrollment is still open for Grades K-8 for the 2019-20 school year! If you or someone you know would like to find out more about school, please contact Principal Randy Cochran or the church office! Register today @ VisitKoK.com/Enroll!

Now Enrolling! (Pre-K for Ages 3-4) – If you would like to enroll your 3 or 4-year-old in our Preschool for 2019-20, please contact Pre-K Director Lisa Gumm or contact the church office! We are also offering free VPK for all 4-year-olds!

Work Day – Join us on Saturday, August 3, starting @ 8 am, as we get the campus ready for the 2019-20 school year. Besides smaller tasks around the campus, we will be re-mulching the playground area to provide a safe environment for our students. Many hands make light work and the more volunteers we have to help with the mulch, the quicker we can complete this task. Wheelbarrows, dirt rakes, and shovels will be needed for this task. If you plan to attend, please contact Randy Cochran or Kevin Zastrow!

Joint Board Pre-Call Meeting – The members of the Church Council, Board of Youth Discipleship, and Board of Elders are reminded and encouraged to attend the joint meeting on Tuesday, August 6 @ 6 pm. We will discuss the pre-Call items necessary to begin the process for calling our next Principal/Grades 6-8 teacher.

School Supplies – If you would like to donate school supplies for the upcoming school year, please check out the list in the church entryway. These items will be donated to students attending King of Kings. Please drop off your items no later than Sunday, August 11. Thank you for your assistance!

King’s Camp 2020 – Your King’s Camp Committee has been working hard this summer to reformulate King’s Camp for Summer 2020. This is going to be a major summer outreach endeavor for our congregation. So we invite you to start thinking how you can use your gifts, abilities, interests, time, and treasures to support the “new” King’s Camp. We are planning to offer the following weeklong, half-day camps:

• German Camp – June 1-5
• Basketball Camp – June 15-19
• Early Childhood and Elementary Vacation Bible School (Theme: Rainforest Explorers) – June 22-26
• STEM Camp – July 13-17 or July 20-24
• Art Camp – July 13-17 or July 20-24

For more information about where we are at with our King’s Camp plans or if you would like to volunteer in some way to assist with any of the above camps, please contact our King's Camp coordinator, Phil Warnecke!



Growing in Hope – Why does it matter that Jesus is my Savior? Does the Bible really apply to my life? Where can I get more of what I heard today? How can I join King of Kings? We are planning to begin a new session of our Bible Information Class soon to provide answers to those questions and many more. If you are interested in taking part in this course, please reply to this e-mail or contact Pastor!

Every Member Visits - Pastor Gumm is visiting all of our members—and there are still King of Kings families and individuals who still need to schedule visits! Please be sure to reply to this e-mail contact Pastor to schedule your visit this summer!

An Encouraging Word: Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. (Psalm 62:1-2)