Singing since the age of 9, Patty Kark has performed in many locations throughout the Twin Cities and surrounding area. After surrendering her life to Christ in 1996, Patty was given a heart for ministry and the desire to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. With her gift of music, she gives voice to the message of hope, healing and grace. Her passion is for all peoples—everywhere—to know the joy of abiding in the presence of the Lord.
Patty Kark: Bio
My Faith Journey
For 31 years of my life, I lived with an empty void in my heart that I was seeking to fill with the things of the world that never seemed to satisfy. I poured material belongings, good times and fast living into that God shaped hole that only He could fill. My self-worth was based on what others thought of me. I attended church regularly, sang in the choir, even taught Sunday school, but when I left that church building, I didn’t take Jesus with me. I bought into the notion that, if I went to church on Sunday, I could live however I wanted the rest of the week– model myself according the world standards. I believed in cheap grace.
I didn’t know what it meant to have a relationship with Christ until I visited a church and the pastor told a story about a child who was running away from home. (It was an analogy of how we turn our back and run away from our heavenly Father and our heavenly home.) In the story, the child had strayed so far that he was lost and unable to find his way back. The pastor then gave the child’s address – 215 Elm Street. Tears began streaming down my face. For I lived the first 18 years of my life at 215 Elm Street, Owatonna, MN. I was the lost child of that story! There was a deep awareness within me that I needed my Heavenly Father and that the only answer was to come home – to Him.
At first, I thought that I needed to “clean up my act” before I could be acceptable to Christ. But it was at a Billy Graham crusade where I came to understand God’s saving grace and that Christ calls us to come as we are, to come in our imperfection. One of my favorite sayings is “God loves you enough to accept you as you are, but loves you too much to leave you that way”. He slowly and gently began to reveal my sin and call me to live a life holy and pleasing to Him. To put away the patterns of this world and be transformed by the renewing of my mind, that by testing, I may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12:1-3).
It’s been just over 10 years and I am still in the process of being transformed as I draw closer to Him. He has shown me that my worth isn’t based on other’s approval but comes from knowing that I am a child of God through my faith in His only son Jesus (1 Samuel 16:7). Because of the saving grace of Christ, I desire to honor and worship God through service to others and in living a life that honors Him. He has given me a passion for all peoples – everywhere – to know the joy of abiding in the presence of the Lord and the desire to use my gift of music to give a voice to the message of hope, healing and grace. And for this I daily thank Him. May He continue to give me ears to hear and eyes to see where He is leading me, and a willingness to respond to this leading.
"He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God" Psalm 40:3