ITLOTC
(In The Life Of The Church)
(Almost) Pentecost
The Spirit ... the Renaissance member of Trinity
Romans 8:15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, "Abba! Father!" 8:16 it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God
If I were a better theologian I could list off for you all the jobs of each person within the Trinity. There are a few theologically approved taglines that sum it up like, "Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer" or "Creator, Redeemer, Sanctifier," but the problem with those is that each member of the Trinity has more jobs than those words imply. Still I can't help but be impressed with the versatility of the Spirit. Here's a compiled list of the all the jobs the Spirit has. In this way I've always thought that Spirit has a kind of Renaissance quality.
Rarely do I preach the epistles, but as I glanced at the lectionary texts for Sunday I was taken with a new image.
Adoption. This is one of the jobs of the Spirit.
The reason this image stood out to me is because of my life circumstances. This last year my sister and her husband adopted their son from Haiti. They did as much thoughtful research and preparation as they could. They read books. They talked with people who have been through this experience. They read blogs. They visited Haiti. They invested in organizations that try and reunite families before they let children be adopted. They did all they could.
Bringing Widnel home. Picture taken at the MSP Airport.
And yet, in much the same way first time parents substitute actually having a child with reading books about it, it has been a process of learning. My sister, on several occasions, has spoken about it as a “brutiful” experience.
As I’ve watched them learn and grow as a family, I think I have been most impressed with my sister and brother in law’s efforts to create a sense of equal love among their children. They desire, so deeply, for their adopted son to lose that adjective and simply be their son. That desire comes with effort.
It’s that effort that has my attention and has focused it vicariously on the Spirit’s work as described in Romans 8:15-16. One of the first things we are told as Christians is that we are loved and accepted by God. And yet as a pastor, I can attest that one of the most difficult concepts for us to accept as humans is that we are loved and accepted by God. Martin Luther said that we need to hear the gospel every day. And in hearing the good news we are told again and again by the Spirit that we are children of God. Believing it takes faith. How are you doing?
Meet Our Newest UBCer
Duncan Thomas Rettler
birthday: May 5, 2016
birth weight: 7 pounds, 15.5 ounces
birth height: 18.5 inches
favorite packer: Brett Goode
Enneagram Number: 5
Baptism Sunday
Please be in prayer this weekend for our dear friend and sister in Christ Sarah Guberman who will be baptized this Sunday.
UBC in Thailand
This Sunday, 13 of us will travel to Chiang Mai, Thailand, to work with missionaries who minister alongside people from South Asia. We will have the opportunity to partner with people from Thailand, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan. We will be working in a main tourist area of Chiang Mai, helping to expand the outreach of the missionaries there. Please pray for our team as we go, pray for the missionaries we are partnering with, and pray for the shopkeepers we will encounter in Chiang Mai. We will be posting a few blog posts on the UBC page while we are there, so follow the UBC blog for more information. The folks from UBC going on the trip are: Toph, Melissa Rowland Whisnant, Kareem Shane, Adam Beckman, Dilan Braddock, Joy Wineman, Kaylin Campbell, Madison Schreckengost, Carson Kleinbeck, Katie Walton, Jacob Schreiber, David MacDonald, and Bri McDermott.
Trip to Franklins BBQ.
Will Knight and Rick Lhotan will be leading a trip to Franklin's BBQ on Thursday May 19th. The trip will meat at and leave from UBC @ 6:30 A.M. If you have questions please email Will @ will.ray.knight@gmail.com.
Discernment Committee
It's fitting that I find myself writing this as we approach Pentecost. For the last few months I have been addressing the fact that UBC has a space issue, mostly related to serving our children. In the January and March town hall meetings I addressed this briefly, and a few weeks ago I asked you all to be in prayer about this issue.
On Monday night in our finance team meeting, we talked about investigating the cost of some solutions and potentially doing a capital campaign. Let me be clear, this could mean spending money on a solution (i.e. a building for kids, office space across the street) and money spent is a theological decision and reflection of the church's values. So that is where you come in.
1. We'd like to assemble a discernment committee so that everyone has a chance to give input into this moment.
2. We'd like to assemble a discernment committee so that we can move to putting together a solution that reflects the thoughts and wisdom of a group.
So if you feel that this is something you might be called to please think about the following things.
1. Am I willing to give a significant amount of time to help with this? I have not set meeting times, but I would imagine 1 or 2 a month for four months. (could be more).
2. Am I willing to listen and value opinions different than my own?
3. Am I willing to be a point person and talk with and listen to people who are not on the committee who would like to give input?
4. Am I ok if I don't get picked to be on the committee? If we have a large number people that would like to serve in this role, we won't be able to take everyone. Are you willing to trust that the committee is a representation of the diversity at UBC including me?
We Need Your Help
UBC has a few small home improvement type projects that we need to do and could probably get done in a morning work day. Projects include:
- Fixing the bamboo fence in the back
- Laying new vinyl flooring in the children's rooms
- hauling furniture to the dump
If this is a skill set you have or even if you just have an eager heart and would like to help, we will take it. Please email josh@ubcwaco.org.
Work is Worship
Greeters:
Coffee Makers: Emmy
Mug Cleaners: Carrons
Money Counter: Hannah Kuhl
Announcements:
- Sunday Sermon Text: Genesis 11:1-9
Do you have an emergency and need to talk to a pastor?
254 498 2261
Leadership Team
If you have a concern or an idea for UBC that you’d like to share with someone that is not on staff, feel free to contact one of our leadership team members.
Chair- Kristin Dodson: kschwebke@prodigy.net
Joy Wineman: joy.wineman@gmail.com
Stan Denman: Stan_Denman@baylor.edu
David Wilhite: David_Wilhite@baylor.edu
Bridget Heins: bheins@hot.rr.com
Sharyl Loeung: sharylwl@gmail.com
Jon Davis: jdavis83@gmail.com
UBC Finance Team
Do you have a question about UBC’s financial affairs? Please feel free to contact any of your finance team members.
Josh McCormick: Josh.McCormick@dwyergroup.com
Hannah Kuhl: HannahKuhl@hotmail.com
Justin Pond: pondjw@gmail.com
Anna Tilson: Anna_Tilson@jrbt.com
Doug McNamee: douglas_mcnamee@baylor.edu
UBC HR Team
If you have concerns about staff and would like contact our human resources team, please feel free to email any of the following members.
Maxcey Blaylock: maxceykite@gmail.com
Mathew Crawford: mathewcrawford@yahoo.com
Callie Schrank: Callie_Schrank@baylor.edu
Rob Engblom: Rob_Engblom@baylor.edu
Ross Van Dyke: Ross_Vandyke@baylor.edu