In this sermon, Kirk Smith shares his gratitude for the impact church and family life has had on his life, family, and legacy. He explains how his understanding of Christ and the church has deepened, and how the ministry has transformed his family. He also highlights the importance of giving to the ministry, both financially and through prayers, and discusses the challenges that the church and family face in today's culture. Finally, he shares his belief that God will use church and family life to maintain the sufficiency of scriptures for these two institutions.

Well, good evening, folks. It's a blessing to be here tonight, and Just want to share a brief thought about church and family life. It's a joy to serve on the board and it's been an even greater joy to serve as the Midwest Regional Facilitator. It's given me a chance to meet many of you folks. And my life, My world's been so enlarged by meeting you.

As Scott said when he introduced Gary, some of my dearest friends are in this room tonight, others are listening on live stream. That's a blessing. And that's been possible because of church and family life. And it's a blessing for me to be able to give something back because I don't know about you but I feel like I've been the recipient of God's grace through church and family life time and time and time again recently I was at another conference and on the way home my wife called and she said what's your take home and I said gratitude She said gratitude for what? And I said church and family life because I realize how enriched our lives have been through this ministry by God's grace folks do you think about that sometimes your understanding of Christ has it not deepened this weekend You're the broadening of your understanding of the church.

Has it not grown over the last two years, six years, or for us over ten years now? And by the grace of God, how Has it not changed our families? I shudder to think where my family might be without God's grace through all the instructions that I have received through this organization, this ministry. And finally, something so close to my heart is my legacy has been transformed through this ministry. And that's very tender to me at this moment.

I just wed one of my daughters off three weeks ago, two weeks ago. I'm waiting another one off in three weeks. And so that's resonating to my spirit right now I've watched many of your kids get married from this organization this ministry and what a blessing to see this thing multiplying and going forth The old adage is you don't know what you've missed until you've lost it. Can you imagine what your family would look like today without God's grace for this organization? It has transformed our lives and we're so grateful to the grace of God for what he's done here and I want to encourage you to continue to help us as we want to not just stand but to expand just about a year ago although it's been works God's what ten years been thinking of a new name after ten years board meetings of frustration just last year made just over a year ago we settled on church and family life and at the risk of sounding overly spiritual I think that was prophetic given the contour of the culture today amen what two jurisdictions are Satan fighting the hardest against right now church and family and so I think what we do now is more important than ever I want to thank all of you who have given to Church and Family Life, whether through prayers and financial giving, whether you're an individual, an individual family or a church.

One of my hopes as the regional facilitators is to see my region, all the pastors, to have an average like $50 to $100 a month every church. That would be transforming if that happened all the way across the board many churches here do give to a church and family life and we're grateful for that but I encourage all of us to think what 50 100 or more dollars would do each month to this ministry. So we thank you for what you've done, but there's a lot of work yet to do. And in closing, in traveling around, especially the Midwest with my work, and I encounter a lot of a lot of crossover between homeschoolers and church and family life members one of the greatest blessings to me was from a pastor who was not even on our website So he's not a church and family life pastor, but he said Kirk I think I was gonna say CFL. I got in trouble for that wouldn't I church and family life is So important for this season.

I said well. Why do you say that because he wasn't even on our church website, and he said I? Believe that God's going to use church in family life to maintain the sufficiency of scriptures for those two institutions when many others are departing from that and that's what I hope and pray that we do and will increase to do by God's grace through your giving so as you go forth in this weekend pray about that pray what God would have you to give willingly cheerfully to carry on what's happened in you to you and through you from this ministry so that others might have the same opportunities amen thank you so much for being here Thank you for your commitment to this organization and we pray that God will use it mightily in your life that your legacies will likewise be transformed.