Posts with the tag “church-community-downtown-kc”

Grace, Gratzi, and Glory...
December 14th, 2024
The other day, our dog Gratzi gave us a masterclass in determination. While I was fast asleep, Leigh-Ann heard the Gratzi digging around in the closet where we hide (emphasis on hide) all the kids’ Ch...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Christmas Cheer...
December 6th, 2024
Setting up for Christmas isn’t my favorite thing.At all.It means climbing into the attic and through the garage to retrieve trees, wreaths, lights, greens, linens, bins and bins of stuff, candles, orn...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Waiting...
November 29th, 2024
Advent is a season of waiting. The word itself means “coming,” and let’s be honest—most of us aren’t great at waiting. Whether it’s waiting in traffic, for coffee to brew, or for Netflix to connect, w...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Vroooom...
November 15th, 2024
A few weeks ago, I met up with a friend for lunch. After a burger and fries, he showed me his new car—a limited-edition Corvette. Let me tell you, this car wasn’t just nice—it was mighty fine. With th...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Identity Crisis...
November 1st, 2024
Last Saturday, I took my two oldest boys and a friend to Worlds of Fun, thanks to some free tickets Dallas scored. The park was packed—longer lines than I’ve ever seen—but that turned out to be a bles...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Friendly skies...
October 25th, 2024
I will never forget my first flight with my daughter as the pilot. She flew in to meet me on her own, and then we took off together for an incredible experience in the sky. I have to say, I was blown ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
So fly...
October 18th, 2024
This past week, I was sitting in my office, deep in thought and preparing for my sermon, when I suddenly heard the familiar sound of buzzing. You know the sound—it’s like a tiny alarm clock going off,...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Watch out for scammers...
October 12th, 2024
A few months ago, we started receiving random gifts in the mail. At first, it was kind of fun—like Christmas had come early! We got a high-end car deodorizer, a nice tool kit, a giant teddy bear and e...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Fades
September 27th, 2024
Today, I took our three boys for haircuts—look good, feel good. Since I was overdue, I’ve been looking forward to walking out of the barbershop with a fresh cut all week. As you know, for a few days, ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Overcoming Pride: Lessons from Jonah’s Story...
September 20th, 2024
How well do you like to admit you were wrong?  Yeah, me neither…what is it that makes this so difficult?This afternoon I was working on some illustrations for Sunday and decided to enlist some help, s...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Wrong way...
September 13th, 2024
This past Tuesday, I went for a run—well, more of a duty to ease my guilt so I could justify eating ice cream later that night. I figured, “Run now, relax, and refuel later,” right?What could go wrong...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
New Life Sunday - Walking Stick...
September 6th, 2024
Earlier this week, I was all set to start a fire on the porch to chase away the chill. But when I looked at the fire thing-a-ma-jig, I discovered what I thought was a large stick. Turns out, it wasn’t...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Staying in the Rain...
August 30th, 2024
A few days ago, our middle son, Isaiah, got the chance to be a ball boy at the Sporting KC match. We were all pumped about it, ready for an evening of soccer thrills. But, as it turns out, soccer game...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Lost in the backyard...
August 23rd, 2024
A few days ago, I set out on one of my favorite weekend rituals—mowing the lawn. Now, I know mowing the lawn might seem like just another chore, but for me, it's a cherished time of reflection and sat...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Conflicted...
August 9th, 2024
This week, Leigh-Ann and I celebrated our 25th anniversary. Wow-I have always remembered “old people” celebrating their 25th…and we are not old ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
In the hood...
July 19th, 2024
Since coming home for the summer, our daughter Alexa’s car hood has been looking pretty rough. The once sleek surface had become blotchy and, frankly, a bit embarrassing to drive around. With her upco...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Trapped...
July 12th, 2024
Last night, when most of the world was asleep, Leigh-Ann had an unexpected encounter that left her heart pounding. She walked into our bathroom and was met with a sight that would send shivers down an...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Stars forever...
June 28th, 2024
This past week, our family managed to escape for a much-needed vacation. We swam, floated, read, and competed in all sorts of fun activities. But one of my favorite moments happened last night, and it...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Sewer series...
June 21st, 2024
I hope this message finds you well and excited about the latest developments in our church remodeling adventure! Phase Three has been quite the rollercoaster of demolition, surprises, and valuable les...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
From the DMV to the Divine, prioritizing presence...
June 14th, 2024
If you’ve ever spent a morning, afternoon, or even a whole day waiting at the DMV, you know the frustration of feeling like just another number. Today, I needed to get one of the girl’s cars registere...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
An ideal personality...
May 10th, 2024
What does the ideal personality look like to you? Is there a single word that comes to mind?Now, before we dive in, let’s set the record straight: I don’t believe there’s an ideal one-size-fits-all pe...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Topple...
April 5th, 2024
Easter Sunday breathes new life into us for many reasons. Personally, it started with seeing our New Life CityChurch family and worshipping together. This was truly a blessed time for worship and buil...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Come from behind...
March 15th, 2024
Over the past few days, my newsfeed has been popping with NFL teams making moves by trading, signing, and releasing football players. Although I’ve never had to deal with this sort of stress, every na...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
On the mooove...
February 23rd, 2024
Yesterday evening, Leigh-Ann took our youngest boy, Ian to Tai-kwon-do and I was in charge of dropping off Isaiah and picking up Dallas from soccer training. Since the weather was nice, Dallas and I d...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Wrestling...
January 26th, 2024
This past week, Isaiah entered his first wrestling tournament. This is a pretty big deal in our household. I started wrestling about the same time I learned how to crawl and went through college…also…...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Family, food, and fun...
January 5th, 2024
Today we are headed back to Kansas City after spending several days with family to begin 2024 in Florida. We loved soaking in some sunshine and warmer weather while relaxing and spending time together...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Hang on or hang up...
December 29th, 2023
A few minutes ago, I was putting some final touches on my sermon for Sunday. I want to end our Advent Series, “Embracing Eternity” from the Psalms well. I also want to provide some practical ways to b...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Favorite traditions...
December 23rd, 2023
Christmas is a time for favorite traditions.If you are like me, you probably have some favorite Christmas songs (Gloria in Excelsis Deo-sung loudly in my best dad voice ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Somethings Missing...
November 24th, 2023
Yesterday, while stuffing our faces ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Light on the horizon...
November 10th, 2023
It’s been a week since we observed Daylight Savings Time.We did get an extra hour of sleep, however, we’ve also lost an hour of daylight….every…single…day.As we were driving home just past 6 pm today,...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Bundle Up...
October 13th, 2023
We are in a seasonal sweet spot! Fall is my favorite time of the year.Sweatshirts and pumpkin spice lattes. Football and Hot Apple Cider and Bonfires. It seems like only recently that we were navigati...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Trust ...
October 6th, 2023
This week, Leigh-Ann and I reached a new milestone in life…our oldest daughter turned 22.It seems like just yesterday that we were at St. Mary’s hospital for her birth. It was certainly not easy…(I ha...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Memory lane even has a slide...
September 29th, 2023
Have you ever gone back and visited a place where you built fond memories and when you arrived….it was much smaller than you remembered?This past summer our family took a ride East on I-70 out to a pl...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Gel Blasters...
September 23rd, 2023
Our boys have discovered one of the greatest toy inventions of the decade!It’s not a fidget spinner or Nintendo Switch….it’s not Razor Scooter and its not stuffed….they have discovered Gel blaster gun...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Joy with a side of disappointment...
September 15th, 2023
Yogi Berra, the author of some of my favorite quotes had a way of stating the obvious….obviously!He was born in St. Louis and grew up in a working-class neighborhood. He loved baseball and became one ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
That's fair...
August 25th, 2023
Last week, I got to take Isaiah out of town for some 1 on 1 time. With five kids it can be tough to offer individual attention to our children, however, we know it’s important, so Leigh-Ann and I do o...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Sprayed...
August 18th, 2023
This rain has been great, but it’s also creating more work. I would much rather look at green grass but brown grass requires less maintenance ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Livin' on mission...
July 21st, 2023
Over the past few days about 20-25 teens and leaders have been living at New Life, serving the city, eating a lot, and sleeping a little.Several years ago our church began the tradition of serving rig...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Putt Putt
July 7th, 2023
Over the past few years, our family has started a tradition of mini-golfing while on vacation. We love the challenge of putting the golf ball around obstacles, through tight spots, up and down hills, ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks
Fruit...
June 23rd, 2023
About thirteen years ago, God brought Dave and Karen Robinson to Leigh-Ann and me. Their friendship has changed our lives and ministry…in a really good way ...  Read More
by Diana Brooks