Independendent from Sin-Dependent on Him

I’m so proud of our youth group as they ventured off to the cost to assist in Hurricane Relief at the beginning of this month. Many of you made special gifts to make this trip possible, and it’s a honor to send 15 of our young people to represent our compassion as a church. Thank you for your willingness to support our young people as they learn to express our faith in tangible ways.

As we celebrate the Fourth of July and our great country’s independence, we all need to reevaluate exactly what that means to us as Christians. To live “independently” means something totally different for the Christian.    I am independent from this world’s priorities and view on life, yet I live dependant on the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ.  My relationship with Jesus Christ makes me independent from the penalty of my sin, but it also makes me dependant on His mercy and grace while I struggle to live a life that pleases my Heavenly Father.

The times we live in provide us many an opportunity to be active in living out our dependant life on Christ, lets take advantage of living in a land of freedom to proclaim this good news. I hope you will take every opportunity to tell people about the love of Christ and invite people to church, but more importantly, I hope you take time this month to thank God for His wonderful role in our life of Dependence on Him!                                                              

 In Christ, Pastor Amos

Time for Maintainance

Today Beth Ann and I are having a visit from the Waco Fire Marshall. As a foster/adopt home, every two years we are required to have certain inspections done. It would seem that if you just passed a fire inspection two years ago you would still be good. Some smoke alarm batteries are even still good. But, requirements sometimes change and “consumables” need to be checked.

Fire extinguishers need to be checked by licensed professionals every year.

Here at the church someone comes to us to check/replace them. For my house I have to take extinguishers to south of Hwy 6 to the people who check it.

Smoke alarms need to be maintained and brush and bushes need be removed to prevent fire hazards. Without the need for an inspection it is doubtful we would be as mindful of these things.

Matthew 25 tells of 10 young women who were waiting in a state of readiness for the bridegroom. 5 did not take care to be prepared and were left out when the time came. It should not take the threat of inspections for us to be mindful of important things.

Inspect yourselves this week and do what it takes to pass.

May God’s presence be evident in your everyday obedience.

Pastor Clint

Summer Is Here

Summer is here! Kids and grandkids are out of school and vacation time will be sweeping the nation. I hope you take advantage of spending time with your school age family members. We’re excited to offer some great activities this summer like a Grandfather/Son/Grandson activity at the Ballpark in Arlington to watch the Texas Rangers play the Houston Astros. Tickets are $28 and include all you can eat hotdogs/chips/drink. We have 12 tickets left available, so reserve your tickets with the church office.

July 4th is on a Sunday this year, which means our annual church picnic, will be in place of Sunday Night services. We’ll have plenty of age-appropriate games, so bring the family and invite the neighbors to this family friendly event.

We’ve also rented out the Waco Water Park on Sunday Night, August 8th, to celebrate our kids going back to school! Our Back-2-School-Bash will be free to Park Lake Members and Guests, and we hope you take this opportunity to invite your neighbors to come spend the evening with us.

It’s a wonderful thing to be a part of an active, vibrant church. Continue to pray for God’s blessings on our church, and I look forward to seeing wonderful things happen for us this summer.

In Christ,

Pastor Amos

Saying Goodbye to an Old Friend

I always hate saying goodbye to a good old friend. Especially to one who has been so low maintenance, those high maintenance friends can be so much work. Sure, she makes some odd noises now and she is a little faded, but she continues to crank out results. She doesn’t mind being connected and she does email. If you push her buttons in the right order you can get her to do almost anything.

This week I am meeting with a gentleman that is going to help me trade her in for a new copier. It is usually an exciting process, but in includes “monkeying” with the network, uninstalling and installing of drivers on every computer, reprogramming of new access codes so people can make color copies, training on how to get the new one to do what we need and how to fix her if she has a jam, and discovering what is her favorite flavor of paper. You do have to get used to the new face in the office. For weeks we will all walk by and things will just seem different and feel different. In the end, though, that crispness will return to the copies made and color copies will be just a little more photo-like. Hopefully we will have worked out a better deal and even added a feature or two.

We are really not as emotionally attached to our Ricoh Afício 2232C, that is her name, as this might lead you to believe. It is just even expected and wanted changes have their consequences and settling in times. Of course this always seems to happen around VBS and Messenger both, but we got by last time.

It is our nature to change. It is our God’s nature to remain the same. He is outside of time, but is aware that each tick of the clock for us measures a change in us and it cannot be rewritten once it is written.

I hope to see you this Sunday morning.

-Pastor Clint

Kind of Like Allergy Season

There is nothing like allergy season in Waco. You just wake up one morning and there it is, or more correctly, there is the evidence of it. You are compelled to run out looking for some over the counter remedy. Some even go as far as turning to a “neti pot.” What is in a neti pot and why do you want to stick in your nose and drain it into your head?

I want our church to shed God’s grace like trees and plants in Waco shed pollen. As we sway in the blowing of the Holy Spirit, God’s grace falls covering everything. Indiscriminately, falling upon whatever/whoever is around it covers until even the blackest things are tinted by the color of grace. Pooling in low places and swirling around in the air and even the water at the height of the season.

Seasons of grace come and go at the will of the creator. Like trees and flowers when we have God working in us renewing life when we flower we have the opportunity to be a blessing to those around us. Come let us pray and worship together so God is renewing life in us. Together we can allow God to create through us a season of grace that can have a dramatic impact of Waco.

Come and study God’s Word together and be changed: 9:30 am Sunday mornings.

-Pastor Clint