We are currently in Buffalo NY visiting Dan Trippie the pastor of Restoration Church Buffalo.  This young church is being used greatly by God to advance the Gospel and make Disciples in a region of our country that is in great need spiritually.  The amazing blessing of this  church is that from the beginning of their journey their Pastor has had a burden not only for the immediate community surrounding the church but for their city and specifically the least.  I am humbled by this pastor and his wife and ministry team that in a season of great need they are already burdened for the needs of their city.  I met with many of their leaders and prayed with them about Gods heart for the city.  The church is on fire for the Lord, the lost, and the least.  Clearly the heart of this Pastor has been infused into the hearts of the members of this church.  I marvel at the influence of this one man already on the city of Buffalo.  It reminds me daily that our passions are caught more than they are taught.  There is a young man who has been discipled by Dan who is ready to surrender his life to serve God in the city through HIS BB’s Buffalo.  My heart has been overwhelmed with the amazing heart of this young church that even in their need is thinking of the needs of others before themselves. I am thankful that this movement of God that he has called us to serve is being advanced through His people in cities across the nation and to the nations of the earth.  Humbled by the fact that this pastor and church have prayed us to this city and are inviting us to come and walk with them to bring HIS BridgeBuilders to the city of Buffalo.  Please pray for this amazing pastor and church and for Gods wisdom and provision for the ministry.  Thankful that God continues to lead us and use us to bring transformation to urban communities one life at a time for the Glory of God.   

Too often we travel at such a fast pace that we forget the blessings of God.  This past week we celebrated the grand opening of our new Economic Development Center (The EDC). We are truly thankful for this amazing gift from God where we are seeing daily miracles like that of John Morgan, who early this year was hopeless, jobless, and homeless.  Now to the Glory of God he has hope in The Lord, a job with the new Downtown Dallas Omni Hotel and a place to live.  Day by day God is restoring, one life at a time.  The 67,000 square foot building we now refer to as “The EDC” houses our ministry offices, a biblical counseling center, employment training for machinists and hospitality workers, and our solar screen manufacturing business.  The facility also has equipment for an auto shop, carpentry shop, warehouse, and a dental clinic.  We are prayerful about future partners who will join us in the disciple making process at this new facility.

The day of the grand opening was a great reminder of God’s unfailing goodness to this movement called H.I.S. BridgeBuilders.  The Lord reminded me of our early board members that would often lovingly call me Noah, seeking to build where there was no rain.  We have intentionally planted our mission in the most devastated parts of the city so that when the transformation comes the Glory can go only to God.  During the grand opening ceremony, we celebrated the tremendous generosity of my amazing friend Thomas Brower who was used by God to sustain the ministry when nobody else was willing to give by faith to a vision that was yet to be evidenced.  We honored my brother in Christ, Dr. EK Bailey who mentored me about the city and gave me his blessing with most of our current city partners.  EK taught us to always come to the city asking “How can we serve you?” or “How can we pray for you?” We also honored our dear friend Sharon Emmert, who like EK valiantly battled cancer.  Sharon was used by God to lay the foundation for our education, health, and employment training programs.  The last time I spoke to her she described a vision she had about a large building being used for training and our ministry. I never forgot that vision she described just days before going home to Jesus. We were reminded, much to our surprise, that the actual date of the grand opening dedication for our new building was the very day Sharon had passed away three years ago.  May we never forget those who have gone before us, God’s greatest markers are the lives of faithful servants like these.  Each has left an imprint on our ministry that will never be forgotten.

Click on this link to view more photos from the Grand Opening Ceremony.