New staff members Noah and Nikki Kephart spoke with Pastor Walton this week about growing up, meeting each other, and surrendering their lives to Christ.
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Episode Transcript
Chris Harper: Welcome to Harvest Time. My name is Chris Harper, our host on this program is Pastor Gary Walton, the lead pastor of Harvest Baptist Church. Every week, we spend these twenty five minutes together telling you the stories of our church by interviewing our members and other friends of the ministry. We’d invite you to join us at Harvest Baptist Church this week. There are two services, 08:45AM and 10:45AM every Sunday.
We offer Japanese and Korean translation during that 10:45AM service, and that’s also when we livestream at hbcguam.org. Hbcguam.org. This week, failing to honor God’s day part two from Exodus 28 through 11 as we continue our series, 10 Foolish Things People Do to Mess Up Their Lives. Let’s begin today’s Harvest Time by welcoming Pastor Gary Walton. Hi, Pastor.
Gary Walton: Hey, hafa adai, Chris. Yeah, there seems to be a lot of misunderstanding about how we should apply the 10 Commandments, particularly this commandment that talks about, the Sabbath day. You know, we talked the title is failing to honor God’s day. It’s interesting because, you know, Christians in the not too recent past handled or treated the Sunday in a very different way than we do even today. And so the question it brings up is, is the Bible not clear about this?
Why do Christians misunderstand it? Why do they disagree about it? And our suggestion is that we actually think the Bible is very clear on it and we just have to take the time to walk through exactly what does the Scriptures say, both in Exodus 20 and then the related passages. And so we began doing that last week, just trying to make sure that we have a very clear picture from the Old Testament to the New Testament. And then we’re going to come back to it again this Sunday, talk about some practical applications of it, and I think it’ll be really interesting for you.
We’d love to have you join us. It’s been a great series so far, and so we’d invite you to come to either one of those services here this Sunday morning. Well, I’m really glad to have a new part of our pastoral team here with us in studio. It’s really good to have Pastor Noah Kephart and his wife Nikki with us. So first of all, welcome officially to KHMG and Harvest Family Radio.
Noah Kephart: Yeah, it’s good to be here. Good to be here.
Gary Walton: You guys have been on island, one month, I think, if I’ve got my calendar right.
Nikki Kephart: Yep. Mhmm.
Noah Kephart: Yeah. Yeah. It’s going well. We enjoy it. Some good Jamaican grill.
That always helps.
Gary Walton: Yeah, well we’re so excited. Pastor Noah has, God’s called him here and Nikki together as our pastor of student ministries, which would be teens ministry. And both of them have a Heart for Discipleship that I want to talk about a lot here today. And then Nikki is overseeing our hub, our coffee shop, but just really has a heart for discipleship, discipling teens and ladies. We’re so excited that God has brought you guys here.
Let’s back up a little bit to your story. Let me ask you how you guys met. Maybe I’ll give it to you, Nikki, first. Tell us how you two got together.
Nikki Kephart: Well, it all starts with family, actually. Noah was a student at Faith Baptist Bible College in Iowa. And several of my cousins were also there. He played basketball with my cousin Ben and just got really close with the whole family and got to know them really well. And, the one day, I guess my cousin, Bethany, was just saying, hey, I have this cousin that I really think you would connect well with, and I think you should, get to know her and everything.
So she was the one that actually instigated it all and got him to reach out to me and we started talking and the rest is history.
Gary Walton: So it’s the cousin, right?
Nikki Kephart: Yeah, it’s the cousin connection.
Noah Kephart: She is the real MVP.
Gary Walton: That’s awesome. And you’ve been married how long now, Nikki?
Nikki Kephart: Eight years.
Gary Walton: Okay, awesome. Expecting your first child.
Nikki Kephart: Yep, expecting our first in December. So next month.
Gary Walton: Yeah, it’s coming up. We’re so excited for that. Noah, let’s back up on your story. Tell us where you grew up and lead that into how God’s been working in your life.
Noah Kephart: Yeah, grew up in the cornfields of Iowa. Beautiful, beautiful Iowa. Graduated from a public school, in Southeastern Iowa. Loved basketball. Made my way to camp, the summer after my senior year, summer after I graduated.
Not sure kind of where I was going with the future. Made my way to camp. God saved me at camp. Landed me then at Faith Baptist Bible College, where I met Nikki’s cousin who who
Gary Walton: The real MVP.
Noah Kephart: Who who made this happen. I’m very thankful for that. Landed at Faith. Not really sure kinda where I was going, what I was doing, but God used the time there in the dorms around other men, other guys that love Jesus, wanted to serve him. God used that, the classes, the classroom, the chapels.
I still remember chapels for my freshman, sophomore, junior years. It’s really given me a burden for for serving the Lord, burden for ministry, specifically missions. So I ended up going down to, spent, took two different trips to China, but ended up going down to Peru for eleven months. And that was kind of the bulk of of the college experience, Eleven months work with missionaries in Peru, seeing what missions was all about. Then went back, graduated, thinking the mission field was going to be where I served the Lord.
Started traveling and recruiting for Faith for about five years. And at the end of that five years, the goal there was to I’m going to have a network of pastors that I know, a network of churches that are familiar with me because I’ve been recruiting for Faith. The deputation should be very easy. That was kind of the thinking there. Got done with those five years, and that’s when Bethany introduced Nikki and I.
Nikki had a heart for ministry, a heart to serve the Lord. So yeah, we started started dating, got married. And then, served in a church in, just in in a lay role in in, Pennsylvania for a year, traveled, recruited for Faith for two years as a married couple, and then, actually pastored in Pennsylvania for two years. And I was the first introduced into Harvest. That’s when it came out summer twenty nineteen, speak at camp, for two weeks that summer, and saw the ministry out here.
Enjoyed that. Nikki wasn’t able to come with me for that trip. But then God moved us from pastoral ministry back to Faith Baptist Bible College. We’ve been serving the last two years in the student life department at Faith. But then through a lot of conversations this past spring, God just very clearly, and I think we can both look at that and say, God very clearly led us out here.
And God used a number of things to do that, But ultimately, His Word and using others to encourage us in His Word is what got us here. So
Gary Walton: Let me back you up to the high school years. Did you grow up in a Christian home, non Christian home?
Noah Kephart: I grew up in a home where mom made sure that we were in church. Dad was not, if he was a believer, not much of a spiritual leader, spiritual encouragement. But mom made sure we were in church. The gospel just wasn’t a real thing. When I was seven, I prayed a prayer, kinda get out of if don’t wanna go to hell, pray this prayer.
And that’s that’s not salvation. If you look at what the Bible teaches about salvation, it’s not an attempt to get out of a really bad place. Salvation is being saved from the sins that separate us from a holy God. And so when I was 18, that became very real to me.
Gary Walton: It’s probably not that unusual in some settings, right? Even as you’re working with teens and young people. For sure, the Bible talks about the reality of an eternal heaven, eternal hell. There’s some validity to that. Of course.
But the idea of just an escape, that’s really not how the Bible describes genuine faith. Right?
Noah Kephart: Yep. Yep. Yeah. There’s there’s, I mean, the Bible describes it. We are separated from God, and after salvation, we have peace with God.
Romans chapter five verse one, there’s no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus. Romans chapter eight verse one. Salvation is talked about within the within the realm of a relationship with God. So
Gary Walton: So then you’re, you said you really came to faith after high school. Tell me what your teen years were like, high school years.
Noah Kephart: I liked basketball. Okay. And I liked girls. That was life. Like, I didn’t care about school.
I didn’t care about homework. I love playing basketball. I love playing basketball. Yeah. So that was that was my that was my world.
Gary Walton: And it’s a fantastic story about how God really gripped your heart. I mean, that probably that love probably wouldn’t have sent you to Faith Baptist Bible College. So that summer was really
Noah Kephart: Yeah, that summer wonderful was for huge. And really, I had a lady in our church that I grew up in. I got saved and she cornered me one Sunday and very strongly encouraged me. She’s a super short lady. She was like five’two and I’m six’four. I’m like towering above her.
And she very strongly encouraged me, one year at a Bible college, which is what her son had done. One year at Bible college would be incredibly valuable. And so the initial goal there was even just one year, and God turned one year into two, into four, really twenty years later.
Very thankful for that little conversation that God used this wonderful old lady to steer me towards a place like Faith.
Gary Walton: It’s so interesting. You know, I had some time with our high school seniors in our academy today, about I think there’s 55 seniors, and we actually were talking about that exact thing, that one decision made in a very short period of time has a dramatic effect on your future. I mean, your whole direction of your life changed in that summer. And that commitment, first to God and then to follow Him, and that one decision just dramatically changed everything, which is true for a lot of us. The whole direction of our life changes.
It’s a thrilling story. Nikki, let’s back up for you. Tell me about your family and then your walk of faith.
Nikki Kephart: Yeah, so I grew up in a Christian home. My dad was actually camp director, so I grew up at camp. I was a staff brat and everything, so great life. So my parents were really faithful in teaching me the truth of the gospel and Scripture. We were in church every time the doors were open, all that.
So, God saved me when I was six. I was later baptized at 12. And I really did I was I was a, what you would call, pretty good kid. Mhmm. But I wouldn’t say that I had a deep meaningful walk with the Lord through my teen years, and same through college.
I was steady. I was doing all the right things, saying all the right things, but not a deep walk with the Lord. So after college, when we were just talking about decisions, I started making a lot of small, selfish, prideful decisions that led me away from the Lord for several years where I just lived for myself essentially. But, but God is so faithful and in his grace continued to consistently be calling me back to himself, consistently reminding me of his love of the truth that I already knew. And so, so he brought me back to himself.
And it was at that point that I was truly like surrendered, okay, God, wherever you want me, full time ministry, missions, wherever you want me, this is, you know, my life is yours. And so it was probably, man, another year and a half after that is when Noah and I started talking.
Gary Walton: It’s cool to hear, you know, your stories that are different, you know, kind of in the same grip and the same general area, but very different for your families, which I think probably helps you in your effectiveness with teens, because teens are coming from all different backgrounds. Nikki, let me ask you this, though. We have a number of teens from good families, they come to church regularly, families love the Lord. What was it about your family or even just your walk that, you you said you walked away with some selfish, self serving things. What was it that drew you back?
And can you give me anything about your family that was very significant?
Nikki Kephart: I mean, think my family was very good about they weren’t trying to jump in and berate me for every bad decision I made even though they had a complete right to. But they were consistent in reminding me of truth and reminding me of their own love throughout that whole time. But really, it did come down to the fact that I was saved. I did have the Holy Spirit indwelling me, which means that was a consistent conviction, and opposition to the way I was living. So it really was God’s Holy Spirit working in my life that finally brought me back and that just reminder of his love, the truth of the scripture, and even the reminder of the gospel and what he’d done to save me.
Gary Walton: There’s a common theme that both of you said, almost in some of the same words, interest in either one of you interacting with this, but there was a point when you surrendered your life to whatever God wanted you to do. What did that mean? Why was that significant?
Noah Kephart: I would say our previous boss at Faith Baptist Bible College, Mark Davis, who serves as vice president of enrollment, he sums it up well, just by asking the question, how can God get the most out of my life? And it’s that realization, God has done so much for us. And I think we could both look at our lives and say God has done so much for us, saving us, sustaining us, putting people in our lives to encourage us, to challenge us, God using his word to encourage us, challenge us. Why wouldn’t we want to live for him? And that’s and that’s the the the message even that that Paul uses in second Corinthians chapter five, the love of Christ constrains us, controls us.
And so for us, it’s it’s looking at if we have one life, to live, why wouldn’t one wanna live that life in service to to our king? Why wouldn’t we wanna live that life in service to a God who loved us so much to send his son for us? So to be utterly faithful to us, regardless of where where life where life takes us, where choices take us.
Gary Walton: Yeah, right on. And it doesn’t mean that, you know, that decision didn’t mean you’re going to be in ministry necessarily. It meant that whatever God’s plan was for you, you were surrendered to it, whatever he said. Yeah. Anything to add to that, Nikki?
Nikki Kephart: No. Don’t think so. I mean, just in those years before I fully surrendered, I was trying to live my life for myself. And that was just so empty and so unfulfilling. So when I finally did make that decision to surrender, it’s just incredible the way that God has blessed.
We were with a missionary, in Brazil in May, and he gave this great illustration of, like, God just holding his hand full of blessings over you and saying, I’m just asking you to be obedient. And then I have all these blessings for you for your life. And when you finally surrender and choose to obey, you experience so much blessing in just the peace that you find in, the rest you find, the joy you find in your relationship with Christ.
Gary Walton: Well, appreciate that clarity because for everybody that’s a follower of Jesus, there really are two significant steps. Sometimes they come very close together, but for a lot of people, they’re separated in some ways. There’s a step of salvation which puts you into God’s family or adopted into God’s family. There’s never anything that will affect that relationship. But there is this continual commitment of surrender, which God, here is my life.
Sometimes it comes in big major decisions like you guys both described, and then always it comes in almost every day, because our tendency is to try to grab it back and grab it back and to continue to say, Lord, I give my life to you. I I love you guys talking about that even as I think about the future of our teens, for them to be able to hear and know and see in your lives that there’s a place where you you’re gonna have to determine whether you’re gonna really truly surrender your life to God, and then the blessing that he desires to give to us from that. I really, really love that. No. You talked about this a little bit, but what what brought you to Harvest?
Not not just, you know, kinda superficial, but but what was it that God was doing in your life? And Nikki, maybe you can comment on that too.
Noah Kephart: I mean, I grew up in a cornfield. There are cornfields in Iowa bigger than Guam, which may not be a complete exaggeration.
Gary Walton: That’s close.
Noah Kephart: Not, yeah. Never would I thought that God would move us. I mean, graduated from high school, didn’t know Guam existed because I paid super great attention in geography and history classes. Never would I thought that God would have moved us out here. We were serving at Faith, in a student life role, working with students, college students that that are were preparing for for a life of ministry.
For the most part, they loved God, excited to grow, excited to be there. And when I contrasted that with what God is doing here at Harvest, there are those teens, specifically talking about teens, there are those teens that that love God Amen. Wanna get they want God to get the most out of their lives. There’s a lot of teens here on island that they’re sorting through who God is, does He exist, what has He done for me, Should I serve him? They’re asking those basic questions and the answers to those questions will direct where they spend their lives, more importantly, where they spend eternity.
And so for me, it was it was an opportunity to, help, hopefully, teens answer that question. Does God exist? And he does. And if he does, is he worthy of my life? And I wanna I wanna come alongside teens and and help them help them answer those questions.
So when the opportunity came up
Gary Walton: Amen.
Noah Kephart: You know, my my there there there have been men that have been super influential in my life. You know, Doc O, who is no stranger to Harvest, you know, he’s had a a good influence on my life. I’ve spent a lot of time the last couple years with with a guy named Marty Herron, and he has had a a good influence on my life. And and and his encouragement to even think about, pray about, pursue ministry, here at Harvest, a place that he loved dearly and served dearly. Dr. Heron’s influence was was super helpful. So
Gary Walton: discipleship, you know, it’s the mission of the church, making disciples. I know you guys are burdened for that, among the church in general. God’s called you as a pastor, part of our shepherd team, the church in general, and then with a very specific focus with with, with our teens. Nikki, maybe I could ask you this first. How’s God shaped your burden for discipleship, and how do you see that being lived out here?
Nikki Kephart: Yeah. Kind of of building off what Noah was saying. I mean, we’ve spent the past several years working with college students at a Christian college. So they’ve reached that point, most of them, of making the decision of I wanna follow Christ. I wanna see how God can use my life.
And that’s awesome. That’s what makes them a joy to work with. It’s exciting to to watch God work in their life and grow them and and point them in that direction. But the piece that really burdened us for Harvest is getting in before that decision’s made and and helping teens think through that and helping them realize that life is so much more than the the small vision they have of high school and that there’s just so much that God can do with them and with their lives if they just surrender, and just the impact that they can have.
Gary Walton: I love that. Noah, anything to add to that?
Noah Kephart: I mean, we can we can both look at people that have invested greatly in our lives, and that is discipleship. And to be able to to entrust to faithful men, faithful women, faithful teenagers who will be able to teach others also. That that’s Paul’s heartbeat in second Timothy chapter two. People have done that in our lives. People have invested well in our lives.
We’re a product of God using others. And at the end of the day, we wanna be a tool that God uses in in the lives of others. So and that is that is discipleship. We want others to to love God more. Mhmm.
Gary Walton: Well, we’re excited about God calling you here and your willingness to say yes and the burdens, the gifts that He’s placed in you and how that’s going to figure itself out in the next coming years. We’re really thrilled. Could you guys give us just a little bit of some of the stuff practically that’s going on in Heart for Christ? Anything just like a couple specific things. Like say somebody’s listening, parent or a teen, and they’re like, Man, I want my kids to really be at a place where that kind of a spirit and that kind of an intentional mission is at stake.
What what are some of the things they can get involved with?
Noah Kephart: Yeah. So we wanna be very intentional on Wednesday nights, Heart for Christ, 07:00 here at Harvest Baptist Church. I would give you the address, but I don’t have it memorized yet because we haven’t been here that long. But we have been studying through, things Jesus never said, popular ideas in within Christianity that are just blatantly false or they’re half true, half false. So tonight or not tonight.
It’s Tuesday, when we’re recording this. On Wednesday night, we’re gonna look at, the phrase God God God is angry with you and and wants to ruin your life. And there’s this idea within, you know, that can be there within broad Christianity that if we mess up once, God is this this, angry, vengeful God in the heavens that if he sees us, one bad choice, make one bad step, have one bad thought, that he just starts throwing lightning bolts down in our lives. And we wanna correct that. We wanna use the story of Jonah because the story of Jonah, is a story of of God being utterly patient, utterly faithful, utterly loving towards Jonah, but also towards those that Jonah had been called to reach.
So we wanna spend time in God’s word. All that to say, we wanna spend time in God’s word every Wednesday night, And then we want to be very intentional about discipleship. So we have about 15 youth leaders, some staff here at Harvest Christian Academy, some members here at Harvest Baptist Church, some students at Harvest Baptist Bible College. We break up into small groups, and we let, within the confines of these small groups, we let our youth leaders, lead discussion and hopefully imprint, their lives, very much what Paul said, follow me as I follow Christ, imprint their lives on the lives of our teens. So we want to emphasize the word and we want to emphasize discipleship every Wednesday night.
Gary Walton: Yeah, and those people are so important. I mean, that Wednesday night ministry, kind of Heart for Christ, it’s the focus of it. I know you have a group that meets on Sunday nights as well, and then some periodic activities, a number of things going on. But in my mind, it really is the people that are there and the opportunity for them to connect. And we’ve said this, I mean, kind of the dream or the goal of Harvest Teen Ministry, we talk about this a little bit with children’s ministry too, is that we just believe that if you’ve got teens, you’d have to be crazy not to have them involved in the ministry here.
You know, we just really feel like it’s gonna be a place where there’s gonna be a nurturing spirit, a number of people that will come alongside you as parents in the really challenging task of, you know, raising young people that would love the Lord. And so, yeah, we’re excited about it. Excited about the future. Thank you guys for your willingness to serve. We’re looking forward to what God’s gonna do.
So, welcome again. Thank you for being with us today.
Nikki Kephart: Thank you.
Noah Kephart: Thank you.
Chris Harper: And thank you for listening to Harvest Time. Of course, at this point in the program, we always wanna personally invite you to services at Harvest Baptist Church. This Sunday, two services, 08:45AM, 10:45AM. There’s Japanese and Korean translation available during the 10:45AM service. We also livestream at that time at hbcguam.org.
Hbcguam.org. We hope to see you this Sunday. Thanks again for listening to Harvest Time.