ITLOTC
(In The Life Of The Church)
Pentecost
From Movement to Institution
In 1984, Roxanne Quimby found Burt Shavitz on the side of a Maine country highway. Shavitz was selling honey out of the back of his truck. Shavitz was an earthy hippie, Quimby an ambitious entrepreneur who wanted to get into the candle-made-from-beeswax business. The two formed a friendship and a business relationship. Shavitz turned out to be the perfect image for the product line. Burt’s Bees would eventually develop several market segments ranging from personal care items to household decorations.
Their progress was remarkable. They started in a one-room school house they rented from a friend for $150 a year. That space quickly became insufficient. The company’s value went from $200 at the Dover-Foxcroft Junior High School craft fair to $20,0000 by the end of the first year. In 1989, Quimby and Shavitz got a huge break when the New York boutique Zona ordered several hundred of their beeswax candles.
The business continued to grow, and then four years later in 1993, Burt decided it had grown too much. The business had gotten too far from his truck on the side of a Maine highway. For Shavitz, the integrity of the product was called into question. Quimby didn’t feel the same way; she wanted to keep growing. So Shavitz called it quits. Quimby went on to become a multimillionaire.
On Sunday, I voiced something that I saw developing in the room during the town hall. All the conversations were derived from the same place. UBC is growing.
We’ve never put a premium on growing. We’ve never had a church marketing plan. We’ve never talked about strategies to grow or increase giving. All of that seemed inconsistent with who we said we are. With time, though, our reluctance for using those kinds of mechanisms has probably dwindled. In a lot of ways, we’ve found that there are some pretty good wheels that don’t need reinventing. Something is happening and has been happening at UBC for a long time. Another Burt—Burt Burleson—gave the language to understand it a long time ago. He said every movement eventually becomes an institution.
On Sunday, we talked about redesigning and managing our space, our increased need for volunteers, our need to improve systems within the church, and our need for more resources to be put toward the children’s ministry, including the possibility of hiring a full-time children’s pastor. If you weren’t able to attend the town hall this last Sunday and have strong opinions on any of that, we invite you to email someone from leadership, finance, or HR.
In some ways, UBC finds herself in the place Burt Shavitz was in 1993. We have to decide if these changes take us too far from our ethos.
I want to submit that UBC’s gift has always been an ability to do old things in new ways. We find the language and the narrative framework to renew our sense of wonder and worship as we pick the color of the carpet. I think it is possible to grow and grow with our existing identity, but we need to do it thoughtfully and prayerfully. So please join me, the staff, and our teams as we prayerfully move through these decisions.
Fall Retreat (Juniors/Seniors)
If you are an upperclassmen, we would love for you to come on our Fall Retreat this year. We will leave Thursday night, October 20th, and you can come back Saturday evening or Sunday evening. The cost of the retreat is $20. Space is limited, so the first 19 who sign-up and turn in their money will be given priority. If you have any questions, please contact toph@ubcwaco.org. Sign-up sheets will be in the foyer this Sunday.
SWCC Halloween Festival
It is that time of year again, our annual Halloween Festival with the South Waco Community Center is fast approaching. Be sure to put October 19th down on your calendar. We will have sign-ups starting this week, and we will need close to 100 volunteers this year. If you have any questions, please contact
Backside
We are hosting the first of two Backside open mic/open wall events tonight at 7pm. If you are a musician, poet, storyteller, visual artist, etc., this is a night for you to share your gifts with the community. If you aren't a creative type, this is a night for you to engage the beauty that our congregation is creating. Also, there will be coffee and baked goods. So if you roast coffee or bake things, feel free to showcase those arts as well! If you have questions, or want to sign up, email jamie@ubcwaco.org.
Satan Slayer Basketball
he Slayers bounced back from a disappointing loss last week with hard fought overtime victory, 90-78, over the Episcopalians. The 1 - 3 play of point guard Adam Tilson and small forward Jonathon White was reminiscent of Westbrook and Durant when they were still together in OKC. Tilson looked like General George Washington controlling tempo, pace, and delivering the seasons first triple double. And what can we say about Jonathon White? To quote assistant coach David Wilhite, "he's (White) the next Larry Bird." We'll see, but White's three point shot ability the penetrate had the Slayers flying.
The Slayers will be back in action this next Thursday night as they take on a though Presbyterian team. Their motto? "Predestined to win!"
CASA 5K
We don't normally advertise for outside organizations, but we're including this one. CASA, which stands for court appointed special advocate, is an organization that develops leaders to lobby for the welfare of foster children in our judicial system. They, the good people at CASA, are hosting an extravaganza that is laid out in the nifty picture below. Please consider going.
Work is Worship
Greeters: Rachael, Carson, Christian
Coffee Makers: Emmy & Stephen
Mug Cleaners: Dilan & Shane
Money Counter: Anna Tilson
Announcements
- Sunday Sermon: Luke 16:19-31 "when will you hear?"
- Backside Event: Sept 23rd
- New UBCer Luncheon: Sept 25
- St. Francis Feast Day/Blessing of the Animals: Oct 4th
- Parents Night Out (Date Night): Oct 7th
- Family Tailgate at the Soccer Game Night: Oct 14th
- SWCC Halloween Bash: October 19th
- Fall Retreat for Juniors and Seniors: October 20-23
- Order of Phoenix Game Night: Nov 4th
- Made in Waco: Nov 5th
- Thanksgiving Love Feast: Nov 20th
- Backside Event: Dec 2nd
- Order of Phoenix Dallas Event: Dec. 3
- Study Hall: Dec 7th
- We are gearing up for another school year which means we will resume our work with Cesar Chavez middle school. If you would like to mentor a student or serve the middle school in another capacity email marshall@ubcwaco.org
Do you have an emergency and need to talk to a pastor?
254 413 2611
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- Jon Davis: jdavis83@gmail.com
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
Emma Wood: emmaj.wood@yahoo.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
Rob Engblom: Rob_Engblom@baylor.edu
Ross Van Dyke: Ross_Vandyke@baylor.edu
Jared Gould: jared.gould1@gmail.com