We are ordinary people, just like you. But we have an extraordinary God. And that extraordinary God has given us a mission here at New Life. We are all about fulfilling that mission: making and multiplying disciples. If you have never had a personal relationship with Jesus, then the first thing we want for you is to know Him personally. Your experience of New Life can start today. Jesus calls us to "repent and believe the good news" and to "come follow me." The life of discipleship is a journey following Jesus. Would like to know more about how to become a Christian? Following Jesus means going through deep personal change. Our values, priorities and desires all change. But the changes do not stop there. When we follow Jesus, everything around us starts to change too. New Life in Christ affects every area of life. ​ God loves us and sent Jesus to die for our sins. But He also loves us too much to leave us the way we are. He has a desire for us: that we become like His Son, Jesus. God places that desire in our hearts through the Holy Spirit. Since everyone is at a different place spiritually, here at New Life we will come along side you and help you learn more about Jesus and how to imitate Him. Our deep desire is that you are changed by the gospel. But we also want to help you bring change to your world. We will give you opportunities to reach out to people closest to you and touch their lives with the love of Jesus Christ. ​ Join us in worship on Sundays at 10 AM and stay for coffee. We would love to get to know you!

The highlight of our week here at New Life is the time we spend together in worship. It is our time to meet with God and gather with brothers and sisters. Our worship service begins at 10:00 a.m. Worship is our loving response to God for all He has done for us in Jesus Christ. It is a time when the Spirit moves and we express our gratefulness to God for new life in Christ. During worship, we celebrate God’s love for us by singing His praises, talking with Him in prayer, and allowing Him to speak to us through His Word contained in the Bible. ​ Sunday worship is a special time when we connect to God. But we also connect with one another. If you are new to New Life, please consider having a cup of coffee after the service. We would love to meet you and get to know you! ​ Every Sunday is an opportunity to celebrate the new life we have in Christ. But every third Sunday of each month we celebrate the Lord’s Supper. From time to time, we stay after church for a pot-luck lunch together in the Fellowship Hall. We would love to have you join us!

THE EARLY YEARS June 1979 — Pastors Jerry Holleman & Keith Tanis, in partnership with Home Missions, begin New Life Church. Worship begins in a school. October 1980 — With financial help from Home Missions, ten acres of land are purchased on F.M. 2920 and a formal dedication takes place. November 1981 — The church is officially “organized” as a self-sustaining church, and the first elders and deacons are installed. April, 1983 — Keith Tanis takes a call to a church in Ferrysburg, Michigan, and Jerry Holleman remains as pastor of New Life Church. July 1984 — Construction of the church building is completed, and worship begins in the new facility. THE MATURING YEARS February 1986 — New Life Church daughters Hope Church in Clear Lake, the first of four churches started in the next five years. May 1993 — Pastor Holleman accepts a position with Home Missions as Regional Director for west-central United States. July 1994 — The congregation calls seminarian Bob Lyzenga to become the next pastor of New Life Church, and he accepts the call. June 2001 — Construction of the church fellowship hall and classroom building is completed. July 2002 — Pastor Bob Lyzenga accepts a call to Sunrise Christian Reformed Church in Lafayette, Indiana. THE MISSIONAL YEARS March 2003 —John Medendorp accepts the call to be the next pastor. August 2004 — New Life Community Christian School begins. September 2005 — Table Fellowships begin. July 2006 — Old Town Spring Heights Task Force begins. June 2008 — Sister Church with New Life Church in Kathmandu, Nepal. August 2008 — Pastor John Medendorp leaves to further his education. July 2009 — Pastor Andy Sytsma becomes our Pastor and moves from New Jersey. November 2011 — Casa de Oracion begins in Conroe, the first of six churches daughtered in the next six years.​ September 2012 — Faithwalking and other missional discipleship training begin. June 2013 — Houston SERVE begins, running for three consecutive summers. September 2017 — Hurricane Harvey hits. New Life joins in relief efforts. September 2019 — New Life Church celebrates 40 years of God's faithfulness. ​ Our story is part of our larger denominational story. New Life Church is affiliated with the Christian Reformed Church (CRC). Here are some highlights: New Life Church has as its foundation the Christian Reformed Church, a 170-year-old Protestant denomination that emphasizes the centrality of the Bible and the all-powerful care of God. The word Reformed means that the church is aligned with that historic branch of Christianity called Presbyterian in Scotland, and Reformed in continental Europe. Both draw on the teachings of John Calvin. Reformed churches flourished in the Netherlands and Germany. In the early 1800s, some of these Dutch Reformed people moved to the United States, and in 1857 they started the CRC. The denomination has nearly 1,000 churches in North America. Many Christians are familiar with Reformed writers R.C. Sproul, Tim Keller, J.I. Packer, and John Piper. Reformed theology is popular today. Today, the CRC is made up of many peoples: Korean, Hispanic, Navajo, Cambodian, Vietnamese, Anglo, and African American. We are praying that God will ignite a missional movement in the CRC and beyond.

We may use up-to-date language and music to communicate God’s Word for today’s culture, but our message is as old as the Bible itself. We embrace the historic Christian teaching of salvation through Jesus Christ, faith in Christ alone, repentance, and the authority of the unique God-inspired Bible. ​ Bible – We believe the Bible is the inspired, infallible, trustworthy, and authoritative source of truth about God and His plan for us. God – We believe in God as a Trinity revealing Himself as one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Salvation – We believe that all people are sinners and can not be restored to fellowship with God by any power of their own. We believe that the only way to be reconciled to God is by faith in Christ and His work on the cross. Jesus Christ – We believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay for our sins, that He was buried, and that He was raised from the dead on the third day, and ascended to the Father. The Church – We believe that the Church is the community of those who affirm these truths. The church has been given two sacraments: baptism is a sign and seal of God’s promise to wash and renew us, and the Lord’s supper is a sign and seal of Jesus’ suffering for us, and our new life in Him. ​ We find faith beautifully expressed in the words of John 3:16. "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." ​ If you would like to start at the beginning and find out more. Check out: What does it mean to be a Christian? ​ New Life Church is part of the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRCNA). Read more about our denomination and what we believe. ​

OUR MISSION What are we about? Everything we do flows out of our mission: We help people know Jesus as Friend, Savior and Lord. OUR VISION We envision a community of disciples partnering together to bring the restoring love of Jesus into every home, neighborhood, school and workplace we touch every day. OUR STRATEGY Hospitality Discipleship Path Christian School Church Plants Ministry Partnerships

New Life Church is privileged to partner with the Christian Reformed Church in North America, a 170-year-old Protestant denomination rooted in God's word, committed to the gospel and centrality of Christ. We are a diverse family of congregations, assemblies, and ministries expressing the good news of God’s kingdom that transforms lives and communities worldwide. ​ As a people called by God, we gather to praise God, listen to Him, and respond. We nurture each other in faith and obedience to Christ. We love and care for one another as God’s people. We commit ourselves to serve and to tell others about Jesus. We pursue God’s justice and peace in every area of life. What does the name Christian Reformed Church of North America mean? Christian – We have the word Christian in our name because we confess that we belong to Jesus Christ, and are His followers. We emphasize the centrality of the Bible and the all-powerful care of God. Reformed – We have the word Reformed in our name because we’re aligned with that historic branch of Christianity that withdrew from the Catholic church in the early 1500s. This branch has influenced many great historic preachers, such as Jonathan Edwards, George Whitfield, and Charles Spurgeon. In modern times, many people are familiar with the books of Reformed writers such as R.C. Sproul, J.I. Packer, John Stott, and John Piper. In America – The church was called Presbyterian in Scotland and Reformed in continental Europe. In the early 1800s, some of the Reformed people moved to the United States from the Netherlands, and in 1857 they started the Christian Reformed Church in North America. Today, the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) is racially and ethnically diverse and has churches throughout the world with about 230,000 members in North America in just over 1,000 churches. Click here to find out what we believe. We are grateful for a rich theological heritage in the Reformed tradition and energized by many opportunities to seek the kingdom. ​ Our History – New Life Church was started in 1979 by Jerry Holleman and Keith Tanis, both CRC pastors and church planters. But none of this would have been possible without the vision, prayer, and resources provided by Christian Reformed Home Missions (now Resonate Global Mission), our domestic missions agency here in North America. Resonate Global Mission continues to be an invaluable partner in our important work of starting new church plants today. Our Mission – God has been using the CRC to partner with Him in mission in a variety of ways. When Hurricane Ike and Hurricane Harvey hit our region in 2008 and 2017 respectively, hundreds of volunteers from all over North America helped with disaster relief. World Renew (formerly Christian Reformed World Relief Committee) coordinated these efforts. World Renew also helped locally with our Old Town Spring Heights ministry. Both Pastor Andy and his wife Jacie grew up oversees where their parents served as missionaries with Christian Reformed World Missions (now Resonate Global Mission). New Life’s previous pastor, Pastor John Medendorp, also served with CRWM. The CRC has an exciting vision, mission and calling. ​ Our Service – God has also been using the CRC to minister to our soldiers in the military. Our church was privileged to commission Chaplain Richard Hill to serve our troops bringing God’s Word and being the presence of Christ to them. Richard served several tours in Iraq, Afghanistan and Korea. The CRC’s Chaplaincy Ministry provides support and supervision for Richard. Richard is currently stationed in Germany. ​ Our Training – All four of New Life’s current and previous pastors received their theological education at Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Some of our members have attended Christian colleges affiliated with the CRC, such as Calvin University or Dordt University. ​ There are many other ways we have been blessed by our partnership with the CRC: We have mobilized our young people to SERVE others with needs. We have been supported by resourced by Disability Concerns. We have examined new pastors at Classis Rocky Mountain. We have received grants to help us with new ministry initiatives. We have taken out a loan for our building through the CRC Loan Fund. ​ For all of these blessings we are grateful. We honor our role in this partnership, not only by carrying out ministry at the local level but by supporting the work of our denomination through ministry shares.

COUNCIL Our church is led by our church council which is comprised of elders, deacons and the pastor. The council serves by providing oversight to the congregation and normally meets on the 4th Tuesday of the month. Elders and deacons serve three year terms. Elders meet separately to oversee the life and doctrine of the congregation, exercise admonition and discipline, provide pastoral care and exercise admonition and discipline. Deacons meet separately to administer the mercy of Christ, promote faithful, obedient stewardship on behalf of the needy and work to promote unity of word and deed. ​ Council:​ Mike Casey (Elder) Scott Schreiber (Elder) Randy Wester (Elder / Treasurer) Stacey Frith-Smith (Deacon) Shelly Andrews (Deacon) ​ In addition to their general duties as elders and deacons, each council member serves as the liaison for one or more ministries. ​ SCHOOL BOARD Our school is one of the most important ministries of our church. As such, it is overseen by a separate board which reports to our church council. The school director reports to the school board. Our school board normally meets on the 3rd Tuesday of the month. School Board members are appointed by the council. We also have a council liaison that is a member of the school board. ​ Members: Samantha Medore (School Director, Ex-Officio) Lesa LaWall Donna Molegraaf Lori Ross Mary Domite Randy Wester (Treasurer, Council Liaison)

BEN COMPTON Interim Pastor I grew up in northeastern Ohio. Struthers to be exact. My wife Samantha grew up in Spring, Tx. We met at Grapevine Books, in 2007, during the last year of that wonderful little store's existence. We married about a year and a half later. In December of 2016, I received a Master's Degree in Christian apologetics from HCU (formerly HBU). In addition to being interim pastor at New Life, I have been an elder at Providence Community Church (my home church) for five plus years, and I have been on staff since 2011. First as Youth Director, then as Young Adult Director, and presently, as Discipleship and Apologetics Pastor. Long before I was ever officially paid to teach or preach, I was regularly leading Bible studies, and doing occasional lay preaching. Samantha has also led numerous Bible Studies and been in paid ministry. In addition to stateside ministry, my wife has done short term missions in India, Romania, Belize, and Africa. Stepping into this interim role has been an honor and a privilege— and also quite humbling. It's no small task to follow behind Andy Sytsma, a man so greatly loved by his church. My prayer is that as the search team looks to find God's man to fill the permanent position, that I can be faithful in providing vision for the church, and truly be a help to her fulfilling her present calling. My passion is to know Christ, to grow believers in knowing him, and to help those who do not yet know him come to know him. If we can be a church full of people who pursue that end, no matter what it might cost, then we will impact our community for Christ. In addition to being a wonderful wife, and mother of our two girls, Samantha is a district manager for Starbucks. Beyond that, she also makes time to be part of the Women's Bible Study at our church. We both love reading, movies, and Mexican food. My theological and pastoral hero is Dr. John Piper. If you're familiar with his preaching at all, then you'll have some idea of where I'm coming from—both theologically, and in terms of preaching style. To be sure, I have my own delivery style, but my theology and understanding of preaching have been dramatically impacted by his. I believe that God designed us to find our deepest joy in knowing Him, through deepest joy in knowing His Son, both now and forever. (see John 15; 17:3, Phil. 3:1, 7-17) If you are new to the faith, a long-term Christian, or simply have questions, please come and join us on any Sunday. I came to the faith a little later in life, and know what it's like to have questions. Having said that, the God I have come to know in Christ Jesus is more staggering and more beautiful than anyone or anything I could have ever imagined. It would be our honor as a church, to meet you. And it would be our privilege to help you along on this Faith Journey in any way possible. Grace and peace to you! —Ben Compton STAN ARMOR Position: Worship Director Phone: (281) 353-5935 Growing up in Farmerville, Louisiana, my earliest musical influences were singing and playing in my father’s church choir. It was a great place to grow up and just be a kid, and to watch my mom and dad model what it meant to be a Christian. And my dad never met anyone who couldn’t sing in his choir! ​ From those deep southern roots, I went on to perform, tour, and record with some well known contemporary Christian and country music artists in Nashville, Tennessee. During that time, I performed in all forty-eight contiguous United States and across Canada and Europe. After my Nashville days, I started serving as worship director for churches in Louisiana, Texas, and California. I’m married to my college sweetheart, Rhonda. We love LSU football, New Orleans (and the Saints), spicy food, going out to the movies and discovering good new restaurants. I also have a son, Peyton, who serves in the Air Force and is stationed in Dover, Delaware. God prepares us for what He wants to accomplish through our life experiences, and I believe it is no different at New Life. I’m looking forward to learning what talents God has placed within people of all ages at our church, and how we can best express our worship to Him. The most important qualification to be a part of New Life Worship is a willing heart and a teachable spirit. I am excited about the future God has in store for us! I’ve got some ideas, but He has probably got much bigger ones than I could ever imagine! JOANNE DEAVER Position: Bookkeeper Phone: (281) 353-593 I was born in Canada and grew up in Illinois. My mother, a two-time published author of Christian-based novels, was very active in her church and community on the South side of Chicago where I lived until I was twelve. Her favorite hymn was What a Friend We Have in Jesus, and I grew up believing it. How fortunate I was to be so loved! Sunday school, VBS, youth group, and summer camp for seven years (every summer, all summer!) are all cherished memories of time spent with Mom in Foster Park Baptist Church, Chicago. My father and my grandfather, a Colonel, were both Salvation Army “soldiers”. Dad was a self-taught man, (an engineer by trade), who loved games, his family, and kept a lifelong interest in the support of the social work done by the Salvation Army. I have tried to appropriate the good things about their life into my own. I love most outreach ministries and through the years have served in a variety of activities through different Presbyterian congregations. My husband, David, and I met at the University of Texas-Austin and have been married for thirty-nine years. We are construction road warriors and have lived in states east to west, north to south. We have two grown boys. Our oldest, Josh, is married and lives in Round Rock. He and his wife, Lauren, blessed us with a beautiful grandson, Zack, who is six. Our youngest, Jason, is living with us right now attending the Art Institute of Houston delving into the challenges of the Game Art & Design program. Being New Life’s bookkeeper has been a growing experience for me in so many ways. I have met some wonderful, kind, caring, people — people who love our Lord and serve Him every day with integrity, love, creativity, and spirited dedication. I count my blessings that I work in their midst doing my small part. DONNA MOLEGRAAF Position: Office Manager Email: office@newlifecrc.org Phone: (281) 353-5935 I grew up in Wheaton Illinois with my 5 siblings who are now spread over 5 states. Family is a high priority for all of us, and we stay connected with each other and our mom every day. As a child and young adult my mother and grandmother were my spiritual role models. My mom was always very active in church activities and leadership and to this day prays for every member of the family faithfully. And I’m always reminded of my grandma when I complain about the Houston weather, as she would always say, don’t complain about the weather, the maker is a friend of mine. ​ I have attended Christian Reformed Churches all my life, beginning In Wheaton Illinois, then in Honolulu Hawaii, Big Rapids and Grand Rapids Michigan, Palo Alto and Visalia California, and now have been here at New Life since the summer of 1980. ​ My husband John and I met at the CRC in Honolulu on Thanksgiving Day 1969, were engaged 10 days later, and married 6 months later. He was in the navy and 3 of those months he was under water in a submarine! Needless to say, we didn’t know each other very well when we got married but knew it was orchestrated by God, who has proven that over and over again through the last 52 years. He has blessed us with 3 children. Our oldest son Hans is a marriage counselor and he and our daughter-in-law Star serve together in their ministry, Marriage Revolution. They have blessed us with 6 grandchildren and a grandson-in-law. Our son Brian was an accomplished chef. He left us recently to join family members in heaven. Our daughter Erin and her husband Justin are grandparents themselves so have blessed us with a grandson, granddaughter-in-law and 2 beautiful great granddaughters. ​ I guess my “hobbies” are serving in various ministries. I am active in the Old Town Spring Heights Community Association and serve on the New Life Preschool board. My hobby for relaxing is reading, but my greatest joy and favorite thing to do is spending time with our kids and grandkids. ​ In all but one church we have belonged to I have worked as a volunteer or employee in the church office. I volunteered and worked in the New Life office for many years long ago, and just this year (2022) came back as office manager. I love the atmosphere and the people I get to serve with every day, both in the church and preschool. SAMANTHA MEDORE Position: School Director Phone: (281) 288-7744 I am so thankful and excited to be a part of the New Life community. I began at NLCCS in 2020 as an Assistant Director and fell in love with the families, students, and staff. As director, I am dedicated to ensuring that New Life Community Christian School is a safe environment filled with Christ-centered learning and heart-felt joy. My husband, Derek, and I have three children: Caitlyn (15), Max (12), and Hadley (4). We enjoy board games, thrift-shopping, and quality time with our extended family.

The Bible says we are members of Christ’s body (Ephesians 5:30). As such, there are many benefits and responsibilities. It is impossible to be a part of Christ’s universal Church without being part of a local church nor is it healthy. Church membership runs counter to our individualistic culture, but we lift this up as God’s gift to us and a wonderful way to grow in your faith and serve others using your gifts. For a New Life Membership Brochure please click HERE. ​ HERE ARE FIVE STEPS TO BECOMING A MEMBER: Step 1: Receive Jesus Christ as your savior (How to Become a Christian). Step 2: Meet with the pastor to talk about your faith and membership in the church. Step 3: Review basics of Christianity and prepare for baptism and/or profession of faith. Step 4: Meet with an elder to share your profession of faith and pray together. Step 5: Baptism and/or profession of faith and reception as new member. ​ NOTE: Please contact Pastor Andy or the church office for more information.