Weekly Update from Pastor Adam - September 19, 2025
September 19, 2025
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Sept.19, 2025
Dear Resurrection Family,
I am so proud of you, Resurrection – who you are and how you are living your faith. I met with our ministry and programs team leaders this week as they reported on their various ministries over the past year. I thought you might enjoy knowing some of this:
This year, we had 4,080 unique children visit our kids’ Sunday School. Weekly Sunday School attendance is up 11% for our children. And we had 1,228 unique students attend our student ministry at one of our locations. There were 9,726 families served by our food mobile and 4,443 families served at our Overland Park Food Pantry. We saw a 97% increase in people coming to serve on our Serve Saturdays! And a 72% increase in people participating in global serve trips – we had 18 trips with 275 people participating. There are 3,600 people involved in short- and long-term small groups, up 14% from last year. First-time guests are up 26% in worship. Last Sunday, our in-person attendance was up just over 1,000 from the same weekend last year. I don’t share numbers like this with you often; our focus is not on numbers but people, but every one of those numbers represents a person.
THIS WEEKEND IN WORSHIP: LIFE, LIGHT AND LOVE
This week, I was listening to the radio, and I heard someone share that their father had “found religion,” and it had a negative impact on him and his relationships with everyone else around him. This weekend, we’ll learn from the First Epistle of John that if your religion makes you LESS loving, you have the wrong religion, as I conclude our two-part sermon series on John’s first epistle. We’ll consider three of John’s major themes: Life, Light and Love; what it means to have “the life,” how we know we are walking in the light, and the things we are, and are not, meant to love.
For this series, I’m encouraging you to memorize a scripture from 1 John 4:7-8. If you haven’t said it aloud yet today, why not stop and do that right now: Dear friends, let’s love each other, because love is from God, and everyone who loves is born from God and knows God. The person who doesn’t love does not know God, because God is love. 1 John 4:7-8. You can also download and print the memory verse here or download a screensaver for your phone here.
And the question we’re keeping in mind when making decisions, speaking, and deciding right from wrong: What is the loving thing to do? If you missed last weekend’s sermon on Culture, Politics and Jesus, you can watch or listen to it here.
FIRST GRADE PRAYER MILESTONE IN WORSHIP THIS WEEKEND
In our Kids Ministry, we have identified spiritual milestones for children as they grow in faith. For first graders, this is prayer and learning and practicing the Lord’s Prayer. Our first graders have been learning it in Kids’ Ministry each week. In worship Sunday, Sept. 21, at all our locations, we’ll celebrate our first graders as they lead us in the Lord’s Prayer, and, later that day, first graders and their grown-ups (at least one grown-up is required) can enjoy a retreat where they’ll learn about prayer while making a fun prayer craft to use at home. This is going to be a wonderful chance for our first graders to remind us all about the power of prayer in our faith journey. If you have a first grader in your life, check out this opportunity and register them here.
INTERESTED IN JOINING RESURRECTION? “EXPLORE RESURRECTION” THIS SUNDAY
Explore Resurrection, our quarterly membership event, is this Sunday, Sept. 21. At this gathering, you’ll learn about the church, what it means to be Methodist, meet some of our staff and ask questions. At the end, if you’re ready to join, we’ll have a brief membership ceremony. Explore Resurrection is offered at 12:30 pm at Blue Springs, Overland Park, West, Downtown, Lee’s Summit, and Spring Hill, and at 2 pm at Leawood, Brookside and Online. Click here to get more details and register for your location.
SERVE SATURDAY TOMORROW
We still have open spots for you to join us for our monthly September Serve Saturday. You can learn about some of the vital work our community partners are doing in the Kansas City area, addressing homelessness, hunger, refugees and foster/adopt, while serving alongside them on projects that make a meaningful difference in the lives of your neighbors. You can check out this month’s opportunities and sign up here.
FIND YOUR PURPOSE WORKSHOP WITH KEYNOTE SPEAKER BISHOP WILL WILLIMON
On Saturday, Sept. 27, Bishop Will Willimon will be the keynote speaker at Find Your Purpose, an event for people who want to explore a deeper sense of purpose, meaning and connection as they move into new seasons of life. The event is hosted at Resurrection Leawood and also streamed online from 8 am to 1 pm CST. Bishop Willimon, other speakers and breakout sessions will offer insights on how to define who you are after life transitions and guidance to find your purpose as you approach and enter retirement. The event is designed for those 55+, but everyone is welcome. You can register to attend in person or online here.
Bishop Willimon is one of the most respected voices in ministry today. A retired United Methodist Bishop, he served as the dean of Duke Chapel and professor of Christian ministry at Duke University for 20 years, returning to Duke after serving as the bishop of the North Alabama Conference from 2004 to 2012. He has taught at seminaries around the world and is the author of 70 books that have sold more than a million copies. On Sunday, Sept. 28, Bishop Willimon will be sharing the sermon at all our locations and online, drawing from his most recent book, The Church We Carry. I’m excited that you will have two opportunities to learn from Bishop Willimon.
RESURRECTION FOUNDATION HOSTS 35TH ANNIVERSARY DINNER
To commemorate Resurrection’s 35th anniversary, the Resurrection Foundation is hosting a celebration dinner on Tuesday, Oct. 14, at 6 pm in the Resurrection Leawood Foundry. I’ll be sharing some special remarks, reflecting on three and a half decades of faithful service and community impact, which would not have been possible without you. The evening will also feature special music and inspiration for how your legacy empowers lives to be transformed for generations to come. Everyone is welcome, but you need to register for this celebration dinner here.
CHURCH LEADERSHIP NOMINATIONS DUE OCT. 6
Volunteer leaders who serve in elected positions on key committees at Resurrection are a vital part of our church leadership team. We currently have openings on these committees: Finance, Trustees, Staff Parish Relations, Foundation, Nominations, and Lay Delegates to Annual Conference. You can see the committee descriptions and the requirements here, and submit your application to our Nominating Committee by the deadline of Monday, October 6. If there is someone you know who would be great in one of these positions, share this with them and encourage them to apply. We need leaders from all locations who represent the wide demographics of our congregation and are passionate about serving Resurrection.
FIVE ESSENTIAL PRACTICES OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH OCTOBER STUDY
One of our goals at Resurrection is to support you on your faith journey toward becoming a deeply committed Christian. Whether you’re just starting to explore what it means to follow Christ, or you’re looking to go deeper, we believe that there are five foundational practices – worship and prayer, study, serve, give and share – that can transform how you experience faith in everyday life. In October, in conjunction with our 35th anniversary and sermon series, we are going to be offering a 3-week study centered on the 5 Essential Practices of the Christian Faith. We’d love for you to be a part of it, especially if you aren’t a part of a small group or class currently. You can learn more and register here.
LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
We’re looking for dedicated volunteers to help make Leadership Institute 2025 an unforgettable experience as we welcome church leaders from across the United States and around the world to learn and grow together. On October 1-3, whether you’re helping with registration, supporting workshop sessions, assisting with hospitality, or contributing behind the scenes, your service will directly impact the lives of church leaders who will return to their communities renewed and equipped to make a difference. To check out all the opportunities to serve and sign up, click here.
ANNIVERSARY T-SHIRT PICK UP NEXT SUNDAY, SEPT. 21
If you pre-ordered a 35th Anniversary t-shirt by Sept. 14, you can pick it up at the location you designated before or after worship this Sunday, Sept. 21. You can still order a t-shirt here, but you must order by midnight Sunday, Sept. 21, for pickup on Sept. 28 at a Resurrection location. If you would prefer, you can order directly from our vendor here and have shirts shipped directly to your home (with additional shipping and processing fees).
RECOMMENDED READING ON JOHN WESLEY AND EARLY METHODISM
I’ve had several of you mention that you wanted to read more on John Wesley and the history of Methodism. My book, Revival: Faith as Wesley Lived It (Abingdon Press) captures what was in the sermon series and more – there is a small group leader’s guide and videos we filmed in England. But if you are looking to go deeper, here are a few good ones:
Richard Heitzenrater’s Wesley and the People Called Methodists
Kenneth Collins’ A Real Christian: The Life of John Wesley
Stephen Tomkins’ John Wesley, A Biography
David Hempton’s Methodism: Empire of the Spirit
Jonathan Dean’s A Heart Strangely Warmed (largely the words of John and Charles Wesley with commentary.
There are many other excellent volumes, these are what I was drawing from primarily as I prepared the recent sermon series. Also, you can read John Wesley’s standard sermons online here.
PODCAST UPDATE
I’ve been swamped since getting back from England. Look for new Podcast episodes to resume next week. You can listen to earlier podcast you may have missed here.
In Christ’s Love,
Adam
Adam Hamilton
Resurrection Senior Pastor
Reverend Adam Hamilton is the senior pastor of Church of the Resurrection and the author of 22 books. He has been married to LaVon since 1982, and she has been a critical partner in every dimension of Adam’s work. They have two daughters and one granddaughter.
Adam’s writings are known for helping readers make sense of challenging theological questions, exploring the significance of the biblical stories, and equipping Christian leaders to be more effective in their work. He earned his MDiv from Perkins School of Theology and graduated with honors from Oral Roberts University with a degree in Pastoral Ministry.
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