Tell Your Story
WE ARE STORYTELLERS.
We are real people with real stories. We don't hide behind nice clothes or religious masks, we don't hide our scars or draw curtains over our broken places. We show people who we are. We tell our stories of rescue so God can use them to draw people to Himself.
God is up to something in our midst...
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Oakbrook Church has had an enormous impact on my husband and I, our two daughters and our sphere of friends. Our daughters started attending while Jessica was still in high school, probably 15 years ago and a small group of other kids reached out to her by secretly dropping off 12 gifts, one every night, right before Christmas. It was so awesome....it created in her a love for this church which spread to our other daughter Janelle and then to us. Since that time they left Oakbrook and moved to Hamilton Co where they helped plant a new church called Genesis. Genesis is now growing and is up to 3 services and this has made a profound impact on the lives of our children and grandchildren. Oakbrook has made me understand so much about my faith in Jesus and I love my Small Group, Mark and Ronda and all the friends we have made there. ~~~Jean Ferenc
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five years ago...oakbrook became part of our lives. After three children and some intricate people in our lives we made Oakbrook our family. We call Oakbrook our church, our family, our home. 
Thank you for touching our lives and continuing to touch lives daily. So thankful to be a part of this wonderful place. Thank you for 25 years.
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During our Monday night small group village, we were given $20 to intentionally do a random act of kindness to help show Jesus' love to our community.
I frequent this coffee shop downtown on my day off. My wife and I prayed about how to spend the money and we came up with the idea to give the $20 to the guy at the counter at the coffee shop and tell him that it will cover the next $20 of drinks/food that people will try to buy.
I came back to the coffee shop 4 hours later and the guy at the counter told me that people were so caught off guard by someone paying for their drinks/food that they kept donating for the next person after them and the fund kept growing.
I like to think that people who got coffee that day felt a little more optimistic about people and the world because of some random kindness.
-Joel Larison
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In last our Monday Night Village, each couple was given and envelope with a $10, $20, or $50 in it. Our instructions were to open it and decide how to use to touch a life, to glorify God, to intentionally write a story. At first we weren't sure how to spend our $10. Were we to give to a shelter? Use it to buy food for someone in need? Something else? Well, we didn't need to stew over it for long. God made it obviously clear earlier this week... A friend of mine was unexpectedly contacted about possibly immediately adopting a little boy who had been adopted internationally but was now unwanted. Of course she and her husband wanted to but they still owe lots from the adoption of their daughter several years ago. Another friend decided to rally some funds to help the cost. How much was she asking for? $10!! We matched it and happily gave to the cause knowing this is how God wanted us to show stewardship and honor Him. We are excited to be passiontately writing our story with Him as the focus.
Erin Foster
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My neighbor is always busy and usually mowing his grass in the dark. I had to mow mine today so I kept on going and mowed his. He did a little detective work and came knocking on my door. He told me he really appreciated me doing that for him. It turned out he had be helping his Mom out replacing a floor and did'nt really have the time to keep his yard up right now.He felt good and so did I. Keep on getting on us Mark
Jim
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A story of THANKS!
First and foremost I'd like to thank Mark! Thanks! A few Sunday's ago the auditorium was given a challenge, 28 day challenge, to go home and read our bibles. As I recall, Mark was telling us we can live like Christ, visit church, attend small group, get involved, etc., but we're not really "living christ like" unless we're taking 10 minutes a day to read our bibles. This hit me like a ton of bricks! I thought, "WOW!" This whole time I've been doing Christ like things, but all the while not really giving in... Well needless to say, the devil had his fair share. I had visited my in-laws, who also attend Oakbrook, to see my Mother-in-law had her Bible out. It was in clear view for all who visited to see. I thought again to myself, "Wow! I need to do that!" This went on for weeks on end... Until one day. I had decided it was time to stop fighting. My excuses were getting in the way and it was time to set the computer aside, and open my Bible. Whoa! This was still so hard! To star t I registered online for a daily reading. I thought if I only had an email reminder, I'd do it, NO problem! Well the habit, of which I thought I'd formed, never even started! I think I may of read 30 chapters total. It was beginning to be hard to understand. I couldn't see how anything applied; I had numerous questions after I was finished reading, of which I'd sit and ponder on for hours/days, etc. Then Sunday May 2nd came around. I had decided I was going to finally take charge! I went upstairs to the Bookstore and the ladies there helped me by lining up the top 3 daily devotionals. Having no idea where to even begin, I choose, "Streams in the Desert." While I'm only on day one, I'm so thankful! I'm thankful to have recieved this push at a difficult (on a small scale) time in my life. I've struggled to let "Jesus take the Wheel." (Self diagnoised: I suffer from control issues! lol!) After reading the first day I can already see how Jesus is going to work in my life... an d how HE is taking control! To share with you, the last para for today stated this:
"If you rule over all,'" I questioned, : is it safe to complain about anything?" Then He tenderly laid His hand upon me to say, "My dear child, your only safety comes from loving, trusting, and praising Me through everything." (-Mark Guy Pearse)
How beautiful and true those words spoke to me! So thank you so much Pastor Mark and Oakbrook Church, for allowing me to see, God wants us to follow HIM, not lead HIM!
Many blessings to everyone,
-Hattie Grimes
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I'm at SAHM and don't have to put up w/ office politics or that certain employee who gets under your skin anymore. After 5 yrs of marriage and 16 mths of motherhood, I understand what is required to be a wife and mother. However, my chats with God have lead me to examine how I can be a Godly wife and a Godly mother simultaneously. I missed seeing Morgan Young speak the first week of 5 Lies of the Devil, but I read his blog. Paraphrasing, why do we spend hours of our time on Facebook and not reading the bible? Talk about hitting me right between the eyes!! I've been trying to figure out time management while chasing after a very busy little boy. It's a very delicate balance to give Jack enough one on one attention AND still complete what needs to be done around the house. I decided that instead of catching up on DVR'd shows, playing on Facebook, or trying to obtain more "me time" during Jack's nap, that I was actually going to open my bible. I dusted off my hard cover Message bible and started at the very beginning. My long term goal is to read straight through. Might seem like a daunting task, some days may make it complicated, may be hard to stick to...that I understand. But how will I know how to be a Godly mother and wife if I don't do research? My God is powerful enough to speak things into existence! I want God to speak to me because His word is 100% truth. Another challenging statement Morgan made in his blog was if the devil can quote scripture, why can't we? Eugene Peterson was candid in his preface, which I appreciated. He encouraged me to simply read the bible. He says, "As we read we enter a new world of words and find ourselves in on a conversation in which God has the first and last words. We soon realize that we are included in the conversation." How many times do people not even open the bible because they're intimidated or overwhelmed? The Message bible helped me see the bible in a whole new light . Reading it makes me excited to read more. I literally can't get enough of it right now! I started reading on July 13th at 1:45pm. I looked up an hour later, and before I knew it, I heard Jack chattering and it was almost 4pm! God has moved in incredible ways in my life through this! Every night I discussed with my husband, Jason, what I read that day and it opened up lines of communication. So I thought, if this is working spiritual matters into every day conversation for us, what can it do for my friends, relatives, or strangers who happen to stumble across it? I pulled a Julie and Julia and started blogging about what I'm reading. I was honestly petrified at first because satan was in the back of my mind saying no one would read what I had to say...make that number 5 million and one of the lies of the devil. I decided to do it anyway and I'm so glad I did! A Facebook friend of mine that I went to church with practically 10 yrs ago told me I'd inspired her to start reading and asked me to show her where she could find the Message bible online. I try really hard to update my blog regularly and have made it all the way to Job in a few short months. It's no coincidence God got a hold of me shortly before Jason and I started looking for our future house. It reiterates that God is in every day life...He is in ALL details...He knows the desires of my heart and already has a property picked out especially for us.
-Monica Bush