According to the 22nd chapter of the book of Second Kings, a shocking discovery was made in the Temple at Jerusalem. The text states: “Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord.” That’s right, the Israelites LOST the book of the Law!
I’ve often wondered how it happened. How does a people whose social, economic, political, and religious structures depended upon a particular sacred text, lose that sacred text?
I have to admit, I had not found any theories that truly speak to how profoundly dumbfounding this is to me. It would be akin to Josh Borderud forgetting what the Constitution is, or Doug Weaver not knowing the Baptist history, or more unlikely yet, Mary Alice Birdwhistell forgetting Kentucky! How could something like this happen?
And then, I did a tour of Calvary with Glen Guthrie and I found the answer. The Israelites must have had closets like Calvary’s in the Temple! Great people likely served in the Temple, they had just decided every time a sacred spoon needed to be disposed of or one of the acacia poles of the ark cracked or when an ephod wore out, to stick them in a closet. Over the course of years, the book of the Law was simply covered over by the accumulated accoutrements related to their religious apparatus. If this sounds implausible to you, I want to invite you on October 5th to join me for Calvary Clean-up Day.
We have a terrific but aging building that serves not only our congregation, but also our neighborhood and wider community. Calvary Clean-Up day is an effort to make sure we are maintaining our building in ways that not only benefit our church community, but also all of our neighbors and partnering organizations who utilize our space. We’ll get started at 8:30 AM with a quick breakfast and then work in groups from 9 until about Noon, although you are welcome to come and go as you are able. Our small groups we be taking leadership in some of our building projects, but the more people we have involved this morning, the more we can accomplish. Who knows, perhaps we’ll find the bones of A.J. Holt himself!
09/29 9:30a - Sunday School 9:30a - Color of Compromise Small Group 10:45a - Worship
10/01 10:00a - Meals on Wheels
10/02 6:00p - Bible Study: David 6:00p - Bible Study: Color of Compromise 6:00p - FUSE Kids 6:00p - Student Preaching Series 6:00p - Youth Bible Study 7:00p - Intergenerational Choir Rehearsal
Financials Jan-Aug 2019 Projected Budget Receipts: $412,144
Jan-Aug 2019 Actual Budget Receipts $377,618
Jan-Aug 2019 Actual BELOW Projection $34,526
Birthdays 09/27 - Sharon Reed 09/29 - Carol Edmondson
Worship 09/29 Message
Messy: Calling Us Into The Mess
Mary Alice Birdwhistell
Community Yard Sale and Fall Festival
Our fall community yard sale will be Saturday, October 26 from 6:30 AM to 12 Noon. This year, we will also be adding a children’s fall festival that morning as another way to connect with families in our neighborhood. Whether you want to help with our global missions sale, serve on our hospitality team, or help with children’s games and activities, there will be a way for everyone to participate that morning. Sign-ups coming soon! In the meantime, we welcome any gently-used items for the yard sale that you would like to donate: clothes, furniture, household items, electronics, children’s toys, etc. (No televisions, please). Donations can be stored behind the stage.
Join the Missions Team!
Did you know Calvary has a team of folks who meet regularly to pray, discuss, discern and dream together about how God may be calling us to love our neighbors; near and far, local and global, at work and across the street? If you’d like to be a part of these conversations and/or desire to get more involved in Calvary’s efforts to live out our call to be God’s hands and feet, contact our Missions Chair, Jennifer Low, at jlow@hot.rr.com. We are preparing for a half-day missions retreat on October 6 to pray, dream, and discern about future mission opportunities at Calvary, and we would love for some new voices to join us.
First Wednesday Food Truck and Student Preaching Series
Next Wednesday, October 2nd, Calvary will host up-and-coming Waco food truck “Waffle Chic” for dinner. We are working on details this week, including a menu and pricing, but we want to invite you to join us next Wednesday night before our various mid-week activities begin. Dinner will begin at 5:00!
Following dinner, we will host a student preaching spotlight to give some of our college and seminary students experience preaching in a church setting. Our first student preacher of this series will be Geneece Goertzen. Come hear a short sermon from Geneece, followed by a space to offer affirmations, helpful feedback, and blessing for Geneece. We will meet in the Chapel from 6:00-6:50 PM.
Meet Julianna Marraccino
Julianna Marraccino is a dual-degree student at the Diana R. Garland School of Social Work and Truett Seminary at Baylor University, pursuing a Master of Divinity and Master of Social Work. Julianna is passionate about the relationship between churches and communities, on both a local and global scale. Through her engagement with theology, ministry, and social work, Julianna hopes to equip churches to faithfully engage with communities and embody gospel-centered witness through their care towards the emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual needs of people.
Through her internship with The Center for Church and Community Impact (C3I) at the Garland School of Social Work, Julianna will be coming alongside Calvary this school year to learn from our church family and engage in processes that identify and measure community impact within congregations. C3I’s mission is “to strengthen congregations engaging their communities at the intersection of faithful witness and community transformation.” She is excited to be with Calvary this year.
Currently, Julianna is going on her third year as a Resident Chaplain on Baylor University’s campus, providing pastoral care and a spiritual presence to first year women and recently received Baptist Women in Ministry’s 2019 Addie Davis Award for Outstanding Leadership in Pastoral Ministry. In her free time, Julianna enjoys going to the movies, iced coffee, quality time with family and friends, and traveling. We hope you will make Julianna feel welcome with us this year!
Michael Huerter’s Master’s Thesis Survey
Calvary Family, In my last semester before graduation, I am researching and writing a thesis for the Baylor School of Music. I am focusing on people's experiences of worship and the ways digital media may impact how music works in our lives today. I am reaching out to multiple groups and congregations to get a variety of perspectives, and feel that the Calvary family would have valuable insights to offer! Responses will be anonymous and will not be specifically associated with a particular person or even congregation. The survey asks for written responses recounting your experiences in worship, and will likely take around 20-30 minutes, depending on how in depth the responses are. Please submit responses by October 11. The survey is an important part of my project, so thank you for considering this!
Fall Sunday Lunches: October 20, and November 24 (Harvest Meal)
Parent-Child Dedication: Sunday, September 29 in worship
Messy: Learning to Meet God in the Mess Join us for our new worship series: Messy. From the beginning of creation, God has been working with chaos to make something beautiful. Even Jesus moved toward people’s messes instead of away from them. And living in community with people absolutely calls us to step into the messiness of each other’s lives. It’s a reminder that there are no “quick-fixes” or easy solutions in the Kingdom of God. Following God in authentic ways is always going to be messy.
However, can we learn to meet God in the mess?
September 29: Calling Us Into the Mess
Genesis 11 and Acts 2
October 6: Swallowed up in a Mess
Jonah 1-2
October 13: Entering Into the Mess
John 1:1-14 and John 9:1-12 Guest Preacher: Sharyn Dowd
October 20: Called to Mess Things Up
Matthew 21:12-17
October 27: The Messiness of Community Preacher: Ali Chappell DeHay
Providence Hospice is having a Kids’ Grief Workshop on Saturday, September 28, from 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM.
This is a workshop for school-aged children and teens (kindergarten through 12th grade) who have suffered a significant loss. This might be loss from death, loss from incarceration, or loss from divorce. Throughout the day, they will have games, activities, crafts, and discussions. Parents and guardians will be invited to return at 3:00 PM for a session on how to talk with kids about loss. The workshop will close with a short memorial service attended by the kids, teens, parents, and guardians.
Contributing Financially to Calvary
Each week, we present our offerings as an act of worship. However, many of us pay for the majority of our expenses online or through an automatic-withdraw from our bank accounts, and each month when we pay our expenses, we can present an offering to God in these ways too. You can give to Calvary online at http://cbcwaco.net/give-to-calvary, but please note that 1-2% of your gift will go toward transaction fees. If you would like to set up an automatic withdrawal from your bank account, which has no transaction fees, please contact Phil Sitton at psitton@cbcwaco.net.
Let's be in prayer for one another. Click HERE for the prayer list.
Ministerial Staff
Mary Alice Birdwhistell - Senior Pastor mab@cbcwaco.net
