Twenty-five Years of Camaraderie, Grace, and Bible Study

Ralph Koll opened the 25th annual Men’s Life Bible Study Retreat at West Leonard Christian Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Mich., by speaking about something that has been close to his heart for many years.

“The story of God’s grace never grows old,” said Koll. “God’s grace has always been evident in Scripture and in our lives.”

God’s grace was, in fact, the focus of the retreat, which used the opening verses of Ephesians 2 to help guide the more than 20 men who participated in the gathering.

Verses 4-5 in Ephesians highlight the theme of grace, talking about how people are by nature “children of wrath,” but because God is rich in mercy and “because of the great love with which he loved us . . . [he has] made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.”

The retreat, an outgrowth of the Men’s Life Bible Study that Koll leads at the church every Wednesday morning from September through the end of April, drew men from different churches and began with breakfast, three hours of study, and then lunch.

Even though the retreat is brief, said Koll, it provides a time of “retreat,” a time away from the grind of life. And, in the process, the yearly Saturday-morning event reinforces the sense of community that the weekly Men’s Life study offers.

An Army veteran who served during World War II, the 91-year-old Koll began the Bible study, and subsequently the retreat, after he retired from working with his wife as director of the Christian Reformed Conference Grounds in Grand Haven, Mich.

Before that, he worked for 40 years in various positions at a manufacturing company in Grand Rapids. As a long-time member of West Leonard, Koll has taught Sunday school and volunteered in other ways.

“Once it began, the Bible study has been a steady thing,” he said. “It’s been an effective outreach for our church.We do one book of the Bible every year.”

When they began, they used Bible study materials from the CRC but fairly quickly turned to material that Koll has for the most part put together.

“I read a lot of commentaries and jot down notes and write our own Bible studies — from the other materials,” said Koll.

“In the studies I try to find ways to ask questions and encourage input from the guys. I thank God for the brotherhood and camaraderie and fellowship we’ve experienced over the years.”

Marv De Boer has been attending the weekly studies, as well as the retreats, for years and finds that both offer him and others the chance to learn and to share their thoughts with one another.

About the weekly Bible study, he said. “Not only can I share my ideas, but I can listen to other ideas and have a friendly, enjoyable discussion on ideas and issues that arise during this hour. It strengthens my resolve to serve my Savior in every way I can.”

Ralph Koll, he said, does a good job of preparing material that is both challenging and accessible.

“I think all of us like the atmosphere; no one is a biblical expert; our comments are allowed — more than that they are welcomed,” said De Boer. “I think the men enjoy that aspect. There is a free flow to the hour that is nonthreatening.”

While the weekly Wednesday morning study is mostly composed of retirees from the church, the annual retreat is open to everyone, often drawing younger men from the church and community.

For the most part, it is the weekly study that “provides a welcome point for newcomers to the Christian faith, and even those who are inquiring into the faith,” said Koll.

And the retreat, he said, provides “an open forum for church members to reflect together on the message of Scripture.”

Various speakers have led the retreats over the years. Koll was asked last year and this year to lead – and it is his joy, he said, “to tell the old story and to see others find the richness and depth of the story.”

This year the end of the retreat was especially moving, given that the theme of the day was grace, said Koll.

“We stood and sang all five verses of Amazing Grace. It was very touching. I felt the Spirit move,” said Koll. “It made the hairs on the back of my head stick out.”