Kyle Lake (June 12, 1972 – October 30, 2005) was an American

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

pastor and author. He was pastor of University Baptist Church in

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the ...

, until his death in 2005. He was considered part of the

Emerging church The emerging church is a Christian Protestant movement of the late 20th and early 21st centuries that crosses a number of theological boundaries: participants are variously described as Protestant, post-Protestant, evangelical, post-evangelical, l ...

movement.

Biography

Jeffery Kyle Lake was born on June 12, 1972, in

Tyler, Texas Tyler is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the largest city and county seat of Smith County, Texas, Smith County. It is also the largest city in Northeast Texas. With a 2020 census population of 105,995, Tyler was the List of cities in Texa ...

, to David and Shirley Lake.CT STAFF
Pastor Electrocuted in Baptismal
christianitytoday.com, USA, October 31, 2005 He attended Andy Woods Elementary and graduated from Robert E. Lee High School in 1990 where he was co-captain of the state runner-up Lee Soccer Team. On May 30, 1998, he married Jennifer Gornto of

Clear Lake, Texas Clear Lake is a populated place located in Collin County, Texas on the south end of the Lavon Lake Peninsula. By land it is south of Princeton and over water northwest of Lavon, southwest of Copeville, and north of Wylie. Population In 1910 ...

. Lake earned a Bachelor's degree in Speech Communications and Religion from

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

in 1994 before receiving a

Master of Divinity For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and divi ...

degree from

George W. Truett Theological Seminary George W. Truett Theological Seminary is a Baptist theological seminary in Waco, Texas. The seminary, named after Southern Baptist preacher George Washington Truett, was founded in 1993 as part of Baylor University and is affiliated with the Ba ...

in 1997.Mike Copeland
Waco pastor electrocuted during baptism subject of father's book
wacotrib.com, USA, September 23, 2011

Ministry

Kyle Lake was pastor of University Baptist Church, founded in 1995 by Chris Seay and Christian recording artist

David Crowder David Wallace Crowder (born November 29, 1971), known professionally by his mononymous stage name Crowder since 2012, is an American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and author. He was the lead singer in ...

. Crowder is also a main worship leader in the collegiate Passion movement. Lake closed his sermons with the phrase "Love God, Embrace Beauty, and Live Life to the Fullest," a benediction that is still recited by the church at the end of every service. Lake was known for his ability to reach out to younger audiences such as the college-age crowd. Many students said they were drawn to his ability to preach the gospel in a way young people could understand and easily relate to their own lives.

Personal life

He was married, and the father of three children – a daughter named Avery, and twin boys, Jude and Sutton Lake.

Death

Lake was electrocuted on October 30, 2005, as he stepped into baptismal waters and reached out to adjust a microphone. The event corresponded with homecoming activities at nearby

and more than 800 people were present when the tragedy occurred. Several doctors in the congregation rushed to Lake when he collapsed, but efforts to revive him were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center around 11:30 a.m. The woman Lake was set to baptize was also rushed to the hospital, but she was not seriously injured and it is believed that she had not yet stepped into the water when the electrocution happened. "At first, there was definitely confusion just because everyone was trying to figure out what was going on," Ben Dudley, former community pastor at University Baptist, told the

Waco Tribune-Herald The ''Waco Tribune-Herald'' is an American daily newspaper serving Waco, Texas, and vicinity. Background The newspaper has its roots in five predecessors, beginning with the ''Waco Evening Telephone'' in 1892. The ''Tribune-Herald'' took its curr ...

. "Everyone just immediately started praying." At a remembrance attended by about 1,000 people that night at First Baptist Church Waco, Dudley told the UBC congregation that they would move forward as a church. "I don't know how, when, why, where or what's going to happen, but we will continue as a church in the community because that is what Kyle would have wanted."

Movie

In the spring of 2006, several

students and friends of Kyle created a short film based on his last sermon titled "Kyle's Film".Lauren Hightower
1 year later, UBC pastor not forgotten
baylor.edu, USA, October 20, 2006

David Crowder Band David Crowder Band (stylized as David Crowder*Band and The David Crowder*Band) was a six-piece Christian rock and modern worship band from Waco, Texas. Their final album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Christian and No. 2 on the B ...

and

Robbie Seay Band Robbie Seay Band (aka RSB) is a Christian contemporary band located in Houston, Texas. The band has led worship and performed all over the country for many years. Currently, Robbie, Ryan & Dave lead worship in the Northwest part of Houston. Many o ...

provided the music for the film, which features a montage of artistic images narrated to Lake's last sermon.

Book

In 2011, a book about his life, "That's Kyle", is published by his father, David Lake.

References

Published works

:*''(RE)Understanding Prayer: A Fresh Approach to Conversation With God'', 2005 (Relevant Books) :*''Understanding God's Will: How To Hack The Equation Without Formulas'', 2004 (Relevant Books)

External links

The Kyle Lake Foundation

UBC Waco

"Kyle's Film"

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lake, Kyle 1972 births 2005 deaths 20th-century American clergy 20th-century Baptists 21st-century American clergy 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century Baptists Accidental deaths by electrocution Accidental deaths in Texas American Christian writers Baptists from Texas Baylor University alumni Emerging church movement People from Tyler, Texas People from Waco, Texas Writers from Texas 20th-century American male writers