My guest today is Justin Kendrick, the lead pastor of Vox Church, which he founded in 2011 with a small group of friends on the doorstep of Yale University. Since then, Vox has grown to multiple locations across New England. Justin’s newest book, “Bury Your Ordinary: Practical Habits of a Heart Fully Alive,” walks you through seven different habits to live the life that you were created to live.

3:30 – Justin 101

• Justin is 38 and lives in the northeast. He grew up in a typical home and had an encounter with God as a teenager that changed his life.
• His dad dragged him to an urban, inner city church, and it was the first time he heard about God’s grace. The whole direction of his life changed.
• In 2008-09, he and his wife dreamed about starting a church. Vox Church turns 10 this September.

10:11 – Bury Your Ordinary

• Justin heard the voice of the Holy Spirit in his heart.
• You need to ask yourself what your plan is for spiritual growth. It’s growth in love, and that can seem ambiguous.
• It’s not how many Bible verses you know. It’s about habits. Justin’s book helps people grow in their love for God.

20:40 – Spend time with God

• You need to spend time alone with God regularly. Try spending the first hour alone with Him.
• Jesus is not at the center for a lot of us, and we need to keep him there.
• You don’t do these habits so God likes you more. You do them so you can learn to love God more.

30:40 – Most difficult habit

• Habit 6, a weekly Sabbath, was the most difficult. Everybody in Justin’s area walks, talks, drives and moves fast. Taking a break to pause and pray felt very unnatural.
• That time to rest is so important for your soul. There are seasons for harvest, and there are seasons for rest.

43:05 – The idea of grace

• No matter what religion you practice, grace is so important.
• God deeply loves you. Don’t obey God to be accepted. You are fully accepted, so that should make you want to obey God.

46:54 – Get to know you

• What would Justin want to win an Olympic medal in? Basketball
• Best vacation ever? Mexico with his wife

FEATURED QUOTES

We had always seen church as a profoundly boring and irrelevant part of the culture of New England. So we started dreaming about what it would look like to start a church for our friends.

I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit in my heart.

If you don't have a plan for spiritual growth, it really won’t grow.

LINKS:

• https://voxchurch.org/home
• https://amzn.to/2Yf27YD

About Justin Kendrick: 

Justin Kendrick is the lead pastor of Vox Church, which he founded in 2011 with a small group of friends on the doorstep of Yale University. Since then, Vox has grown to multiple locations across New England. The dream of Vox Church is to see the least-churched region of the U.S. become the most spiritually vibrant place on earth. Justin and his wife live outside New Haven, Connecticut with their four children.

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