In the inVocation Fellows & Congregations Program, one of our biggest hopes is that young adults will grow more knowledgeable about—and more committed to—their local churches. We’ve seen exactly that happen in the life of 2025-2026 Fellow Kent C.
Faith Reformed Zeeland came around Kent enthusiastically during his Fellows journey. Chad B. served as Kent’s mentor while another four men from Faith joined Kent’s “Leadership Acceleration Team” (LAT). The LAT’s main role is to help their Fellow design a leadership project that builds on the Fellow’s own interests and skills while also meeting a need in the church. Kent landed on a project to strengthen men’s ministry at Faith by organizing service projects benefiting congregants in need.
“Three of the guys on my LAT are already involved in the church’s men’s ministry. And we’d talk about how we need to get more guys engaged,” Kent says. Kent’s idea to invite men to participate in hands-on service projects hit the mark, says LAT member Matt H. “Oftentimes, it’s easy to get a group of women together to have coffee or a Bible study. It’s not as easy to get guys together.” Service projects, he says, allow guys to organize around a common purpose and can help them build deeper friendships.
Fifteen men participated in the first service project Kent organized. The guys came alongside a single mom in the congregation who needed help with repairs on her property. Kent led the volunteers in a short devotional prior to heading over to her home early one Saturday morning and then facilitated a debrief after the men enjoyed lunch together.
The project is a great fit for both Kent and Faith Reformed. “I went to Mississippi during college for a mission trip, and we were fixing up houses from tornado damage,” Kent says. “That was a great experience for me. And I was like, I want to do this more.” He thought he might have to wait decades—until he retired—for a chance to do something like that again. “I didn’t even think about creating my own opportunity,” he says. But God has put all the pieces together at Faith Reformed to make it a reality. Kent says he found two men in the congregation who had retired from careers in the construction field. “They had all the knowledge we needed,” he enthuses. Another member of Kent’s LAT pitched in to help organize the food for the workday.
“One of the things I learned is that I didn’t have to do it all,” Kent says. “I could lean on each of those guys for what they were good at. My role was to get everyone together with the shared vision, and then they helped it come to life. So that was really cool.”
The project also aligns well with the congregation’s priorities. “Serving church members in need is a big part of Faith Church’s DNA,” Kent reports.
“I’ve been impressed with Kent. He’s taken ownership of this [project]. He’s stepping up in leadership roles.”
—Mentor Chad B., Faith Reformed Zeeland
“Being part of [Fellows] has really challenged Kent to find his own place here at the church,” Matt reports. “He’s not the kind of guy that wants to just attend; he wants to be active. Through the inVocation program, he’s seen men’s ministry as a place to grow and become a leader.”
Chad says that as Kent’s former youth group leader, “it’s been really enjoyable to see his growth. Just how he continues to open up and strive to have a close relationship with God, and actually acting on that.” He notes that Kent’s family members now attend another church in the area where his sister is now on staff. “Kent could have gone with them easily,” Chad says. “But watching him make Faith Church his own is awesome to see.” Matt agrees. “For Kent, at this moment at Faith Church, he has a little more skin in the game.”
