This week's newsletter from Karen

I read* today about a school in British Columbia that is spending part of school class time teaching preteens (4th-6th graders) proper behavior on social media sites. Jay Donaldson, who teaches the class, says, “Although children now have cellphones…at the age of 9 or 10, they are rarely educated…on the safe and correct use of these communication devices.”

As a parent of a teenager and a young adult, I have found out (sometimes the hard way) that giving access to a preteen/teenager to the WORLD via a cellphone is not always a good idea. At first I justified their need for a phone in terms of safety – he/she needs a cellphone in case they need to reach me in an emergency. My next justification came in terms of my need – he/she needs a cellphone because it helps me know where they are. Then I moved onto justifications based on their needs – you know, all their friends have them and it will be easier for them to keep in contact with friends at school to ask about homework, rehearsals, etc. Then I just quit justifying.

Does your preteen have a cellphone? Do they have access to social media sites via the cellphone? Have you taken the time to properly educate them on the safe and correct use of their cellphone as it pertains to social media sites?

Would a class for parents and/or preteens regarding the proper use of cellphones in the social media sphere be useful?

If so, let me know.

*Social Network School.  (2015, January/February).  Children’s Ministry, p. 19

This week's newsletter from Steve

We had a great time with the youth last night during our Photo Scavenger Hunt! We had an amazing crew of youth and parents out canvassing the neighborhood looking for photo opportunities. Even Gene got in on the act as our groups tracked him down to sing him a special song. Thanks for being a good sport, Gene! Thank you to all of the youth parents that helped cart the kids around, and a great big thank you to Michael Slaughter for being there last night!

Speaking of Michael Slaughter, if your student was not at the first Youth Choir meeting yesterday, they missed out!  We had over 25 students there! It’s not too late, though. I would highly encourage you to let your students know that they can go ahead and show up this Sunday at 4:44pm in the Choir Room! There will be some great things going on with the choir this summer, so students… don’t miss out!

Lastly, if you are interested in hearing about our trip to Prague earlier this month to work with missionary families, then you will want to keep reading! This Sunday night, our team will be giving a report on our trip during the Praise Hill hour at 5:30 PM in the Praise Hill room. We would love to see you there!  Have a great week!

This week's newsletter from Gene

We had an excellent kick-off for the new youth choir this past Sunday, with 26 students present! Michael will do an excellent job with this group! If you have a student in grades 7-12, please do whatever you can to get them here. I’ve noticed over the years that many times when someone is asked to join a choir, they respond by saying “I can’t sing.” That is rarely true; some people can’t match pitch enough to sing, but they are the exceptions, not the rule. Most choirs are made up of lots of people with just ordinary voices joining together, and the sum is greater than the parts.

Choirs provide an excellent opportunity for individual growth, learning of spiritual principles, building confidence, and the list goes on. Choirs also provide a way for a broad number of our congregation to be involved in ministry.  This past Christmas, you saw our youngest choir, our 4-5 year old group, through our seniors, the oldest of whom is 93. The only age group we were missing was our students, and now we will have a ministry and personal development opportunity available to them also!!

We are working on the plans for this summer and Michael will be announcing in a couple of weeks what that schedule looks like and the major project the youth choir will be participating in.  Bring your students! Many of them can’t get here without you providing transportation. It was neat Sunday night to have some of the parents who brought their youth talk with me about the good memories being in the choir room brought back to them from when I had them in youth choir years ago. Another generation!!

Who God Says You Are

by Tom Goodman

When it comes to the names we’re given, I’m glad God puts more thought into it than some parents.

John Tierney once ran a contest for bad baby names. He got more than 1,000 entries of real names. There was Charman Toilette, Chastity Beltz, Wrigley Fields, Justin Credible, Candy Stohr, and Tiny Bimbo. I suppose Brook Traut had good reason to name his daughter Rainbow, but the dad who named his daughter Emma Royd should be shot.

The winner of the contest? Well, how to put this? Iona is a pretty name, but the mother really didn’t think about how it would sound when paired with the family name—Knipl. Before taking her husband’s name, she said that every time she introduced herself the typical reply was, “I own two.”

I’m reminded of a scene from the 70s sitcom, WKRP in Cincinnati (yes, I really am that old). Les Nessman was a slight, balding, bespectacled newsman for the radio station. When he met a young, handsome repairman, the exchange went like this:

Nessman: Steel, is it?

Hawthorne: Yeah, Steel Hawthorn.

Nessman: That's a nice name.

Hawthorne: Thanks. I like to think that a person's name says a lot about the type of person he is. What was your name again?

Nessman: [pauses] Les.

Parents may give their kids a name they have to live down, but God gives us titles to live up to! This wonderful truth is on my mind as I get ready to begin a study through the life of Gideon this Sunday. When the curtain rises on the tragicomedy of Gideon’s life, we see him threshing wheat in a winepress, hiding from Midianite marauders who had had their way with Israel for years. And yet when the angel of the Lord appeared before him, the angel said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”

He cowered in a winepress, yet he was a mighty warrior in God’s eyes. And he eventually rose to the man God knew he could be.

Have you ever thought about the ways God has named you? For a start, how about…

…Overcomer (1 John 5:4)

…Holy (Colossians 1:22)

…Free (John 8:36)

Do we live up to these titles? Not yet, not always. But, like Gideon, he calls you up to and in to the character he knows you can become.

Let’s think through what it means to live under God’s inspiring labels. Join us this Sunday at 10am as we begin a sermon series through the life of Gideon called Step Up! Finding the Courage You Need.

__________________________________________

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This week's newsletter from Karen

Judges 2:6-9 describes the nation of Israel taking possession of their promised land, how they lived, and the eventual death of Joshua and his generation.

Verse 7 is quite a remarkable statement about this particular generation: “And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work that the Lord had done for Israel.”

Then up pops verses 10 and 11: “And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel. And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.”

What? A generation came along that did not know what God had done for Israel? Hadn’t Moses and Joshua reminded these people to continually tell their children the stories of God’s faithfulness? Could it be possible they were serving (v. 7) but not making the “why” connection to their children?

And the result (v. 11) – they [another generation] did evil in the sight of the Lord.

Do we find ourselves guilty of the same thing? Is it possible that we can be busy serving the Lord but our children have no idea “why?”

This week, as you reflect on and respond to the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, find some time to sit down with your children and tell them “why” you serve Him.

Let’s raise up another generation that understands God’s faithfulness and responds by wanting to serve Him all the days of their lives.

This week's newsletter from Steve

I hope and pray that you had an amazing Christmas, and a very Happy New Year! It is hard to comprehend that is already 2015! It is off to a great start!

Our team just returned from Prague, Czech Republic where we hosted a youth camp for 85 Missionary Kids that live overseas. It was a wonderful time with these students and missionaries from that region. Each day we had three Bible study/worship times, recreation, late night activities, and much more. I think we had as much fun as the students did!

For many of these students, this is the only time each year that they get to see other English-speaking teenagers, and worship in English. One of the girls sitting next to Amy leaned over to her and said, "This is the first time I've had corporate worship in English in over six months. I can't get enough!" That right there is why we go! Thank you for all your prayer support. We could feel it while we were gone!

This week's newsletter from Gene

I hope all of you had a good holiday season. Lynn and I did. We were able to spend time with our kids here in Texas and traveled to Denver and Albuquerque to spend time with our moms and families there. We had some cold weather and plenty of snow, but only limited difficult travel because of bad roads, which is always a concern when driving to that part of the country this time of year.

We have now turned the page to a new year. None of us knows what tomorrow will bring, but it is a good time to set some directions and goals for our lives.  As you work through that process, ask the Lord what your ministry should be.  As I am shifting responsibilities to more time with our Baby Boomers and seniors, I will be asking them, “What does God have for you now?” As long as we have breath, He has a plan for us.  It is so easy to either be so comfortable with our circumstances, or maybe so wrapped up in our circumstances, that we don’t stop to think about what God wants and how He wants to be a part of our lives.

That statement “He wants to be a part of our lives” is a part of our modern church culture, but it’s not actually true. He wants to be Lord of our life.  That’s what we signed up for when we became believers. He invites us to be a part of His plan; it’s not us inviting Him to be a part of our plans. He should be the “Inviter” not the “Invitee.”

What Drives Your New Year’s Resolutions?

by Tom Goodman

Are you the foreman of a self-salvation project?

You’re involved in self-salvation if you’re saying, “I need to obey the rules more consistently so I can be accepted by God.”

The gospel shows us a different way. The one who lives in response to the gospel says, “I am accepted by God, therefore I obey.”

Most pastors know that our churches have both kinds of people in attendance. In his New York Times bestseller, The Reason for God, Tim Keller wrote, “Two people living their lives on the basis of these two different principles may sit next to each other in the church pew. They both pray, give money generously, and are loyal and faithful to their family and church, trying to live decent lives. However, they do so out of two radically different motivations, in two radically different spiritual identities, and the result is two radically different kinds of lives.”

Maybe you made some new year’s resolutions last week. Great! But make sure you’re living out these commitments with the right mindset. We work to improve ourselves not in order to be accepted by God but because we are accepted by God. Salvation comes through what Christ has done for us, not through what we have done for him.

Let’s talk about that a little more this Sunday at 10!

Special Thanks to Herb Ingram. Writing the Common Ground discussion guide has passed to me in 2015. Herb and I began Common Ground about 8 years ago when he was on staff as our Minister of Education and Outreach. It has been one of our most successful programs. Every week, Herb would get an early copy of my sermon manuscript and build a list of discussion questions from it. Most of his staff responsibilities became mine upon his retirement, but I asked him to keep writing the Common Ground guide for a while. This year, I take up that task. I’m so grateful for the creative ways Herb made each week’s discussion guide a joy to work through. I have big shoes to fill!

Discover Hillcrest. This Sunday I host my “Discover Hillcrest” class for those ready to join and for those just checking out the church. It’s a one-time class that meets for one hour in the MPC after the morning service. Visit our website or contact Lisa for more information (512-535-3771 or lisa@hillcrestaustin.org).

ICYMI New Year’s Day Edition

by Tom Goodman

Well, now that’s counterintuitive: “A collaborative study at Kansas State University revealed that people who openly discuss their religion in the workplace are happier on average than those who don’t.”

 

“2014 was the last year in which the United States could claim to be the world’s largest economic power. China enters 2015 in the top position, where it will likely remain for a very long time” (VF)

 

Austin economist reveals top concerns for 2015: Water, affordability [particularly in rentals], and traffic.

 

The world’s 10 most popular Bible verses in 2014.

 

Albert Mohler: “Newsweek‘s cover story [on the Bible]…is an irresponsible screed of post-Christian invective leveled against the Bible and, even more to the point, against evangelical Christianity. It is one of the most irresponsible articles ever to appear in a journalistic guise.” Truly, how did this hit piece ever make it past an editor with a degree in journalism?  We’re always prepared for the mainstream media cover stories that appear every Christmas and Easter casting doubt on central tenants of the faith. (Something you’ll never see paralleled at Passover, Ramadan, or Diwali.) But this one takes the cake. In addition to Mohler, NT professor Michael Kruger picks apart the easy-to-pick-apart cover story.

 

“The sorts of meaning that Americans will attach to aging and death will become richer, more public, and more prevalent among people of all ages.” Michael Erard reflects on the widespread changes he predicts will come to society as Boomers age and die. Some of his predictions are whimsical, some are likely and welcomed, and some are disturbing. 

Kings Kaleidoscope All Glory Be To Christ from jesse bryan on Vimeo.

ICYMI Christmas Edition

by Tom Goodman

“Santa doesn’t prepare you for disillusionment—he prepares you for belief.” Here’s Rich Cohen in the WSJ explaining the faith value of the Santa story. Nah, there’s neither harm nor benefit that the Santa story brings to a child’s nascent Christian faith. So, on the one hand, I really don’t think that the Santa story makes it harder for kids to believe the other things, the serious faith things, that parents tell them. But neither do I believe Cohen is correct to say Santa is “a kind of training-wheel Jesus, presenting aspects of faith in a manner that kids can handle.”

 

What was Jon Bon Jovi’s first professional credit? If you said, “For the track ‘R2-D2 We Wish You a Merry Christmas’” you’d be right. It’s on 1980’s Star Wars themed Christmas in the Stars. Evidence.

 

White Christmas, Black Christmas: Though minority and white evangelical Protestants have more in common than any other Christian groups, they are deeply divided on matters of race and justice. 

 

“Religion is not in decline so much as inherited religion is in decline." WSJ profiles Tim Keller. If clicking the link doesn't give you the whole article, you can pass the pay wall by entering the title in a search engine and clicking the results. Here’s the link.

 

"The second man to walk on the moon?" his father said. "Number two?" Buzz Aldrin’s father was hard to please.

 

Too busy to read The Silmarillion? Here’s a 4-minute video to explain the mythology behind Tolkien’s works, The Hobbit and (especially) The Lord of the Rings.

Or you could just watch Stephen Colbert school James Franco on the Valar:

This week's newsletter from Michael

Gene is traveling this week, so we are blessed to have Michael provide us with a newsletter article.

Traditions: we all have them, whether they are big or small. Have you ever wondered why we stand for the “Hallelujah Chorus?” The Hallelujah Chorus has its own tradition that has emerged over time. A standard practice is for the audience to stand while this portion of Messiah is being performed.  The tradition began by the example of King George II. It was understood that whenever the King stood, everyone else was supposed to as well. For over 200 years, this tradition has continued. Few people know exactly why the King stood, but most of us will never know. Some speculations for this standing range from King George showing respect, he may have mistaken it for the national anthem, or maybe his legs were falling asleep. 

One of our traditions since Rachel and I have been married is taking family pictures every year before Christmas and after Christmas! So far we have kept it going. As Rachel and I were driving home the other day, I told her we needed to start more traditions now that our family is growing. We are now going to start eating out for breakfast once a month before we come to church. I can’t wait until we purchase a home! My next tradition would be singing carols around the piano with the entire family. I have seen many families do this and I am eager to start!

Keep your family traditions alive and going! Make it a tradition to attend a Christmas Eve service, whether it be here or someplace else. I hope you and your family have a wonderful Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!