When Bert Knapp talks about the neighborhood around Drake Park in Des Moines, he describes it simply: “the middle of the hood.” He also describes it as home. Just four houses down from where he lives, crowds gathered this fall for The Awakening, a multi-church outreach event marked by worship, testimonies, baptisms, and the unmistakable presence of God. What unfolded there was more than an event; it was a picture of the church at its best—unified, humble, and alive.

But to understand The Awakening, you first have to understand Bert.

Bert’s story is one of radical transformation. He spent eighteen years in prison (ten of them consecutive) after a childhood marked by unthinkable trauma and a young adulthood consumed by violence, crime, gangs, and drugs. “I grew up in a world void of Jesus,” he says. “Fear was king.” He witnessed stabbings, shootings, and overdoses. As a child, he was abused; as a teenager, he became a gang member; as a young man, he landed in prison for attempted murder and arson.

But God pursued him.

When Jesus finally broke through the darkness of his life, everything changed. Today, he leads Thugging to Loving, a ministry dedicated to reaching the very people he once ran with—pimps, prostitutes, drug dealers, the unhoused, and those entrenched in street life. “If you’ve ever committed crimes and now walk with Jesus,” he says, “you’re going from thugging to loving. That’s the lane God has allowed me to walk down.” 

Bert, his wife Rachel, and their Thugging to Loving ministry team now spend their days going where most churches never go. Their heart is simple: go outside the walls, preach the gospel through relationships, and bring people into the family of God.

Since spring, Bert and Rachel have shown up every other week for what they call park pull-ups. They don’t preach sermons or hold microphones. They just set up speakers with Christian music, put out a sign offering prayer, hand out Bibles, grill food, and build relationships with the neighborhood. They do it for months leading up to The Awakening, so that when the big day comes, people know they’re not there for the spotlight. They’re there for the people. That consistency—those small, faithful deposits—helped prepare the ground for something bigger.

The idea for The Awakening began in 2022 after a drive-by shooting outside East High School left one teenager dead and two others gravely wounded. The shooters, who were just teenagers themselves, were later sentenced to life in prison.

Bert was stirred by the tragedy, and God began giving him a picture: churches and ministries of all kinds coming together, laying down their denominational differences, and uniting in a public display of the gospel. He saw believers waking up to their calling—not to play church, but to be the Church.

That dream became The Awakening.

The first gathering took place at Evelyn K. Davis Park. About 1,000 people came, twenty-five were baptized, and seven local ministries participated.

This year, the event returned—this time to Drake Park, right in Bert’s neighborhood. Approximately 1,400 people attended, more than thirty people were baptized, and eighteen churches and organizations participated, representing a wide range of backgrounds—Pentecostal, Baptist, Lutheran, and more.

The leadership structure was intentionally upside down. Well-known pastors came, but their names weren’t featured, and they didn’t take the microphone. Instead, they picked up trash. They prayed for people, baptized strangers, and served in complete humility.

The stage was filled instead with testimonies and Christian rap artists—people sharing their stories and preaching the gospel through lyrics and spoken word. At the end, Bert gave an altar call, but not before something remarkable happened.

After months of prayer and fasting, God told Bert to have the entire crowd pray over the pastors. One of the artists unexpectedly called the pastors up and did exactly that, before Bert even said a word. It was confirmation that God was orchestrating every part.

Throughout the park, people were healed, delivered, and baptized. One young woman, just eighteen years old and battling addiction, homelessness, and exploitation, attended after meeting Bert at another event. She was baptized, connected to a transitional home, linked with a pastor, and given a job. “Her whole life changed,” Bert said. “Just like that.”

For Bert, the greatest miracle wasn’t the crowd size or the baptisms. It was the unity.

“I would like to thank God for my pastors at Kingdom City Church, who believe in the call of God on my life and came alongside me, as well as the other churches, ministries, and organizations that came and locked arms with us.” Bert said that seeing all these pastors with linked arms around the park was like a physical picture of Psalm 133:
 

At the core of Bert’s story is one truth: Jesus awakens what’s dead.
 He awakens cities.
 He awakens churches.
 He awakens people who think they’re too far gone.

Bert says, “When you’ve had a real awakening—when you’ve encountered God for yourself—it’s impossible to go back. You’d have to intentionally deny Him.” 

The fruit of The Awakening continues: new believers are being discipled, plugged into churches, and supported by a network of pastors now connected in unity. Park pull-ups will continue again in the spring. The firetruck-turned-mobile-baptistry is ready for the next outreach. And Bert believes what God is doing in Des Moines is just beginning. “We’re just one piece of a big puzzle,” he says. “But God is awakening His people.”

*AI tools were used for interview transcription and summarization; all content has been verified by editors.

By Darrick Young

We are at a strategic hinge in American history. The Boomer generation that has long dominated leadership and culture is aging and stepping off center stage. Meanwhile, members of Generation Z (twentysomethings) are becoming the leading edge of a new religious designation in America: the “Nones.” Nones have no religious preference, preferring an eclectic, mix-your-own religious outlook and philosophy.

A massive turnover of church leadership is underway, and the potential successor pool will continue to dwindle unless we proactively reverse that trend. God continues to call people to follow Him, and that includes Gen Z. However, many members of Gen Z are drifting, unsure of their purpose and usefulness in life. They need something, more like Someone, to seize their hearts with mission, energy, and a sense of purpose. They can be won, discipled, and developed into a new vanguard of dedicated servants for the Lord.  But we must make that vision a priority.

On September 18-20, 2025, we will be gathering hundreds of Open Bible young adults from across the nation in Denver, Colorado, for Movement United 2025. This conference for young adults (18-32ish) is designed to challenge and empower a generation of young leaders and then equip them to serve and lead in their local churches and communities.

Detailed information about Movement United and registration is available here. 

About the Author

Darrick Young serves as the lead pastor for Journey Church of the Open Bible in Urbandale, Iowa, which he planted in 2012. He also serves on the Central Region and national boards of Open Bible Churches and the board of Discover Church Planting Network. Darrick and his wife, Ranada, have two amazing children and two awesome kids-in-law. 

One Monday afternoon in the early spring of 2024, as I finished my personal sabbath at the church where I pastor, I felt a prompting from the Holy Spirit to go outside. I sensed that [the Holy Spirit] wanted me to meet new individuals as they walked by the church, introducing myself as the pastor and learning their names. This was out of the ordinary for me, but I was excited by a new assignment, so I obeyed and went outside immediately.

As I waited in front of the church, I soon met four individuals as they were leaving their A.A. Fellowship meeting. One of these was the attorney who worked across the street, whom I got to know a little better during our conversation. I also met a woman named Michelle who turned out to be my wife Cheryl’s childhood next door neighbor. Thanking the Lord for these meaningful connections, I got in my truck to go home when I heard the Holy Spirit’s voice say, “MAGNIFY!” I responded in my spirit, “Okay, God, I magnify You.” The Holy Spirit spoke again, this time explaining to me, “‘MAGNIFY’ is an acronym that means MEET AND GREET NEW INDIVIDUALS FOR YESHUA. I realized that this was what God was newly calling me to do every day when I was at the church. After committing to the Lord that I would do it, I logged the acronym in my cell phone notes so I could capture the moment.

Just as I began to back up in my truck, I saw a couple walking down the nearby sidewalk carrying a heavy-looking kitchen table. Sensing the Holy Spirit’s prompting again, I asked them if I could help. The woman spoke to her husband, who hadn’t heard me, after which he replied, “Yes, you can help us.” I told them to put the table in the back of the truck and get in, which they did.

When I asked them where they were going, they said three blocks north to their apartment. As we drove the short distance, I asked them their names and the man answered, “Abdul and Maria.” When I arrived at Abdul and Maria’s apartment, they immediately got out of the truck and carried the table toward their doorway. I waved and began to drive away, but Abdul quickly called after me, “No, it is our custom to feed you.” Excited and honored to be a guest in their home, I parked and went inside.

Inside their home I found an empty living room with only blankets on the floor that they used for seating and a television. I sat down on the floor and before I knew it, Maria was bringing food on trays for me to eat (and I mean, it was a lot of food!).

As we sat and dined together, I learned that they were from Afghanistan. I asked them their story, and Abdul shared in full detail how they came to live in Tacoma. The story was so moving to me that I asked them, “How can I help?” Abdul said that they needed chairs for their new table, a vacuum cleaner, and a sofa. Our church had all those things, so I told them, “Let’s get back in the truck and go get those things right now.” They were so thankful for the help that they invited me back for lunch the next day. (Apparently, I didn’t eat enough to satisfy them). I told them I would return with my wife Cheryl.

The next day, to my surprise, they had set the table to look like a feast for a king! Their appreciation for my assistance was evident in their heartfelt hospitality. As Cheryl and I sat to eat with them, I asked if I could pray over the food, and Abdul said yes. I asked because I assumed that they were Muslims, which I learned they were. After I prayed, we had a conversation about faith. Most of my conversation was with Abdul, since Maria doesn’t speak much English yet, which explained why I’d spotted them coming from the direction of Bates Vocational College, where Maria is taking English lessons.

During our conversation I asked Abdul if he believes Jesus is the Christ, and he responded twice that he believes Jesus is coming again, which really didn’t answer the question. I shared the story about the Samaritan woman at the well who acknowledged Jesus as a prophet, after which Jesus revealed Himself to her as the Messiah. Abdul said he knew the story, since it had been told to him at the dinner table when he was a child. I left it at that and proceeded with the luncheon.

When it was time to depart, I thanked them for their wonderful hospitality, and they invited us to come over any time for tea or for lunch. I did not invite them to church, since I didn’t want them to think that was the only reason I had helped and had lunch with them.

That following Sunday, to my surprise, I looked up and saw Abdul and Maria walking through the doors! Abdul served as Maria’s interpreter throughout the whole service.  My heart was overjoyed that simple acts of kindness had led to drawing these new people to our worship service. Abdul and Maria do not attend regularly yet but have attended a few times since. Our relationship has continued to grow. I was able to transport Abdul to a job interview, and he got the job. Today, he and Maria are both working, both have driver’s licenses, and own a car.

Since the Lord called me to go out into the neighborhood and “MAGNIFY,” I have met over one hundred people. All their names are on a list that I keep, both so I can remember them the next time I see them out in the community and so I can call their names out in prayer. Some of them are even showing up in our worship services! I cannot begin to tell you how many lives have been touched by the light of the Lord through MAGNIFY. The conversations I have had with the “down and out” and the “up and out” have been priceless and insightful. Many of them have allowed me to pray for them, and I have found the most precious people in the homeless community surrounding our church. As a pastor, my goal is always to win souls to Christ, and this endeavor is no different.  However, what I have learned through MAGNIFY is this: soul winning begins with seed planting. Will you join me and MAGNIFY?

About the Author

Gary Wyatt

Gary Wyatt has been the lead pastor of SureHouse Open Bible Church, an urban ministry in the inner city of Tacoma, Washington, for over 25 years. He is the author of The Art of Blending, a book about mixing cultures in a biased society. The Art of Blending is a book intended for racial reconciliation within the body of Christ.