Dear Friends,
We are really looking forward to the time together after church two Sundays from now - July 30. While some Sundays have education opportunities, business meetings, or property workdays, we like to reserve any time that there's a 5th Sunday in a month for something we call the “5th Sunday Social Justice Project” - a way we can show love to and achieve justice for those in our community. The team especially strives to find activities that all ages can do together. The Social Justice Team was already planning to do a school supply drive at the beginning of August, so as we looked at July 30, we began to brainstorm ways that we could connect with this project. Someone remarked that while teachers receive gifts and messages for winter holidays and teacher appreciation in the spring, it would be really nice to send them back to school with messages of support and encouragement to begin the school year! So that’s just what we’re doing. Sunday, July 30, after church, we’ll pull out the tables and paper, markers, stamps, stickers, and more to create lots of beautiful support cards to go along with the school supplies! We’ll have some wording suggestions and all of the crafting supplies to get your creative juices flowing. We’re going for heartfelt rather than fancy, but please feel free to get as creative with your words, scripting, designs, decorations as you’d like! Making the cards will also be a great project for parents and kids to work on together. Crafting not your thing? We will also have some period products and snack items from previous social justice projects that need to be sorted and bagged so they can be easily put in our Little Free Pantry. No matter which project (or projects!) you choose to help with, in just one Sunday afternoon you are going to be making an impact in the lives of others in our community. Please mark your calendars to help out after church on Sunday, July 30, and keep an eye out for further information about the school supply drive that will run from July 30 - August 13. We are excited to share God’s love and some UCC spirit through these projects. ~ The UCC Staff and UCC Social Justice Team
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This devotion is adapted from the daily devotion book that was provided to our team on the Mission Trip with the Appalachia Service Project. The prayers and questions provided led to a lot of wonderful reflection and inspiration for our team and beyond. We hope this one inspires you today:
_________________________________________________________________________________________ Scripture Inspiration: For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. -Romans 15:4 As followers of Christ, we are a people of story. We are part of the ongoing story of God's saving love for God's people. As this verse from Romans reminds us, all of God's stories in scripture encourage us in hope. Our faith is grounded in the stories we read in Scripture, our stories of service and the stories that have been passed on to us. As faithful people interacting with stories of other people each day in multiple dimensions, we have choices. We can choose to use stories to divide, disempower, and entrench, or we can use them to exercise vulnerability and humility and to expand our understanding of common ground we share through God's love. May we be strong in hope as we share in God's story. Personal Reflection: How is your story being told this week? How are you living into God's story? What are you learning about your story? July 7, 2023
This time last week, 20 of our youth, along with 8 adult leaders, were on our final day of service in Appalachia, Virginia. We spent a week at four different worksites, doing everything from ripping up subfloor to installing new siding on a house. For some of us, this was the first time we had used a hammer, and for others this was our umpteenth time using power tools. New skills were acquired, friendships were made or deepened, lessons were learned, songs were sung, meals were consumed, games were played, very little sleep was had, and much joy was shared. To put it lightly, this mission trip was a great one. On Sunday, we invite you to join us in worship and learn more about the work we did and the ways in which we learned to “Love Strong.” Each of our work crews will present a small sermonette about their worksite and how their week went. You will get to hear about how we learned to serve others through our talents and gifts, and how we can be a part of God’s ongoing story of love and serving our neighbor. Our hope is that you can pray on the messages you hear on Sunday, consider your own gifts and strengths, and how you can share those gifts with others. Peace, Meghan Dever Pastor of Pastoral Care and Youth Ministries I’d like to start this message with a snippet of the sermon on Sunday, given by Clark Thompson.
“We often harbor the illusion that we can fix all of our problems ourselves. We in the modern West are especially enamored of this illusion. We created the myth of the rugged individual who is totally self-sufficient and solves all challenges by simply pulling himself up by the bootstraps. Such individualism comes at a cost. It is one of many factors that have brought revolutionary, though ultimately negative, change to our society. The 20th century bore witness to the weakening of Americans’ sense of community, the fracturing of the American family, and an incremental rejection of God and church that continues to this day.” “The weakening of Americans’ sense of community.” Do you feel it? I do. In some ways, it’s because we ARE self-sufficient. During The Freeze in 2021, our neighbors had a group text where one set of neighbors offered to let others use their pool water to flush their toilet, and someone else said if anyone needed anything from the store to let her know because she might have what was needed. And while I was so appreciative of the concept, turns out, we didn’t actually end up needing each other. We all got on just fine. I sometimes think about that and wish I could go back and take someone up on their offer. Not because I NEEDED it. But just to feel connected. In other ways, of course, we DO have need, but we also don’t want to feel like a burden. Or we don’t feel safe enough to be vulnerable. Or we’re not sure who would even care enough about us to help. And so we make do. But we feel the lack. The lack of support. The lack of community. As we think about generosity here at UCC, I want us to think beyond just giving money. Money is a part of it, of course, but it’s not the only need and it’s not the only solution. Some of us need someone to listen. Or to take us to the airport. Or to watch our kids for a couple of hours so we can go to a doctor appointment. Or to fix that stupid door that doesn’t close right. Or to invite us over for Thanksgiving so we don’t spend the holiday alone. Or to ask us about how that visit with our mom went because they know the relationship is troubled. We like to be thought of as generous people, as people with excess. But in real community, we are both. Relationships, community, connection - that’s how we get our own needs met and meet the needs of others. Let’s be generous with our money, yes. But let’s also be generous with (and to) ourselves. Over the next week, try to think of a non-monetary way in which you can be generous with someone; and then think of a need you might have, one that can be met within community. In community with you, Meredith Quick, Stewardship Team Lead “The need for connection and community is primal, as fundamental as the need for air, water, and food.” -Dean Ornish “So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.” - Gen. 2: 3
[deep breath] It’s almost July. And here we are, breathing and busy. So maybe it’s time we take a moment to reflect.... In June, we celebrated Vacation Bible School – each day welcoming 40 children and 22 volunteers as we shared stories of building the kin-dom of God together. We have 20 Youth and 8 adults who are returning this weekend from a transformational week on their mission trip in Wise County, Virginia. We have wrapped up a very busy year of Small Groups, New Member Classes, Discussion Groups, building a playground, Youth Groups, Book Clubs, Christmas Pageants, Easter Egg Hunts, Second Sunday Socials, Social Justice projects… [deep breath] In Worship&Wonder, we tell the story of Creation using Godly Play. The story tells us that after each day of creation, God looked at that day and said, “It is good.” God creates day and night, land and plants, creatures of the air and water, and creatures with two legs, four legs, and more to live on the land. And then on the seventh day, God made a special day to rest – because after all the work of creation, God was tired! And so God asks us, too, to take a day to rest – each week. A day to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. A day to reflect, refresh, and refill our buckets. God says that when we rest, "It is good." [deep breath] Now, rest can look different for each family and for each person. Some rest by going camping, and some rest by staying at home and watching movies. Some rest by taking a walk, or going swimming, and some rest by napping. For some, rest looks like activity, and for others, rest looks like quiet time. In whatever way you find rest, God asks us to make it intentional – truly acknowledging our busy day-to-day tasks and taking a moment (a day, if we can) to honor that time by resting. God asks us to take Sabbath time. [deep breath] This summer, our church is taking some Sabbath time. July is the seventh month of the year, so it is fitting that in the seventh month we take some time to rest ourselves. Worship will continue each Sunday at 10 am. but our activity level may decrease a little. We will have a couple special events, including the Adult Discussion Group meeting on the 1st and 3rd Sundays, our Sip-N-Sing evening of hymn-singing and fellowship on July 11, and the 5th Sunday Social Justice Project. But our church staff is making time for travel and family, and so office hours will look a bit different during the month. Thank you to all of the amazing volunteers who made this year and this last month of VBS, Pride, and Mission Trip possible...you deserve a rest! [deep breath] Our hope is that you and your family will be able to find a way to rest. Find time to remember the Sabbath. Make intentional moments of refreshment and relaxation. Breathe. The work of building the kin-dom of God can be difficult and exhausting. But when we take time to honor the Sabbath by resting our bodies and minds, we are ensuring that we have renewed energy to begin again the work of sharing God’s love in the world. Breathe, dear family of faith, and rest. With love, always, Emily ☺ Dear Friends,
This Sunday, ABIA will get the joy of being filled with many faces of UCC youth and adults as we prepare to head out on our summer mission trip. For one week, we will serve with Appalachia Service Project doing home repair in Appalachia, where 21% of the community lives below the poverty line. ASP’s theme for the week is Love Strong and is based on Luke 10:27 which says “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself.” As stated in our introductory email from ASP: This verse is a call to action, urging us to live as people who love God with everything we have and who extend the love of God to all people in need, our neighbors. We love God when we live fully in relationship with God and our neighbor. We love our neighbor when we reach out with compassion to all in need. This connects deeply with ASP’s core value of “accepting people right where they are and just the way they are.” When we accept all people, share God’s love with them, and embrace them as neighbor--we become those who Love Strong. I couldn’t think of a better theme for our group of youth who work tirelessly to live out their faith and live out their call to love one another exactly as they are. I am grateful to our youth for constantly leading by example. My gratitude doesn’t only extend to our youth though. I am beyond grateful for a congregation that continues to support our youth through all of their various programming. Through fundraising, mentoring, volunteering, words of encouragement, and of course - donations of snacks, you help to make these important trips possible. These trips are foundational to building a program that lets youth know that they can be the hands and feet of Christ in this world through their service to others, as well as through their welcoming and inclusive nature. Please be in prayer for all of our participants over the next week, that they may grow together and may learn from each other and from the homeowners that they will serve. Please also keep all of the homeowners in your prayers, as well as the staff of Appalachia Service Project. Peace be with you always, Pastor Meghan Thank you to everyone who helped make Vacation Bible School a success! Throughout the week, we have had 40 children with 22 adult volunteers supervising (and that’s not counting all of the volunteers who helped prep the church for this week!). Our building has been wonderfully full of energy and joy!
We have learned about the people of Babel and that building a tower so high it reaches the clouds is not really what God has asked us to do. Staying in one place, completely in our comfort zone isn’t the goal either. God wants us to make life a journey – knowing that sometimes, we have to go someplace unexpected. We learned that Abram and Sarai set out on a journey through the desert. But God was with them on this journey, just as God is with all of us. Abram built altars many times during their trip to mark their gratitude for God being with them. We reminded each other that God is with us and loves us – always. So, how do we mark important times or places – significant moments – in our lives? Then the story of Nehemiah brought up ideas of teamwork. How do we work together to make music, or buildings, or towers of marshmallows? But more importantly, how are we to care for others and include people with different ideas and experiences than our own? We shared two parables this week. Our drama team presented the Parable of the House on the Rock, which brought up the question – what is the foundation in our lives and how can we build our houses (our lives) on solid rock? And the Parable of the Mustard Seed helped us wonder about tiny things that grow into big and wonderful and welcoming things. Also, how teamwork, cooperation, and collaboration can get some amazing things done! At the close of the week, we shared the story of the Breakfast on the Beach. The disciples had been fishing all night and caught nothing. When Jesus tells the disciples to cast their nets on the other side of the boat, they are shocked to pull in nets, bursting full of fish. Back on the beach, they fellowship together around a fire, enjoying a meal of freshly caught fish and bread. Jesus then says to them – go out into the world. Care for others, share love, and welcome all people. We talked about how we can do just that in our own lives, every day! And so I thank you, dear friends! Thank you for understanding how important this week of ministry is to our church family and our community. Thank you for believing in, encouraging, and supporting our adults, youth, and children as we planned and prepared for this incredibly meaningful and beautiful Vacation Bible School! Thank you for always making time for the important work of our children. Thank you for loving people of all ages for who they are and where they are on life’s journey. I am grateful for ALL of you. With love, always, Emily :) Dear friends, June marks an exciting month in many ways: VBS begins next week, our youth travel to Appalachia for their mission trip at the end of the month, and of course, it’s Pride Month! I love that I am part of a congregation that values the importance of Pride Month and recognizes all of those in the Pride Community, however they identify. As part of our celebration of Pride Month, we’ll have a booth at the Pflugerville Pride Pfestival on June 10th. Our booth is themed “Chapel of Love” and we need volunteers to join us from 3-8pm on the 10th to help us share the love! Our hope is that we provide a space that lets all in the Pride Community know that we want to affirm and love them for exactly who they are. We believe that Love is Love and ALL are welcome at the table. So come help us offer blessings over all who choose to visit our booth. Last year for Pride Sunday I preached on Psalm 139. I spoke about waiting until I was 45 to come out, about how while I have been constantly searching for myself, God has always known me. Through my relationship with God, I have come to know myself better. I want to continually get to know myself better so that I can hopefully help others to see themselves better, and see themselves as what we all are, beautiful children of God. This Sunday I look forward to preaching on Genesis 1:26-31. We are all made in the image of God, and God proclaimed that it was good - very good. Each and every one of us is who we are intended to be, beautiful children of God, created as God’s reflection. I hope you will join me in all of your fabulous rainbow colors this Sunday as we celebrate Pride Sunday at UCC. Peace, Pastor Meghan Dever Greetings to all, in the name of Christ our Redeemer! This coming Sunday we will be celebrating the festival of Pentecost. The term "Pentecost" is derived from a Greek word that means "fiftieth" and marks the fiftieth day after Easter and the Resurrection. It was a moment of transition between the Ascension of Christ and the shocking and unexpected outpouring of the Holy Spirit on a very diverse early Christian community.
There is a poetry in Scripture that was probably well understood in the early Church. Though the Fall of Humankind in the Garden of Eden was initiated by our symbolic mother Eve, the redemption of the world was made possible through the actions and obedience of our spiritual mother Mary. And so it is with Pentecost. A few weeks ago, Rev. Cam Burton spoke to us about the story of the Tower of Babel. In that story God responds to humanity's hubris by confounding their speech so that they could not understand each other. In the story of Pentecost the opposite happens. God as Holy Spirit descends on people who speak many languages and makes it so that they can understand what each other is saying. In this act I invite you to see the seeds of unity, acceptance, and equality. So, what should you expect this Sunday at UCC? First off, come to church wearing fiery-colored clothing. Red is the official color of Pentecost. Pastor Carl will be preaching, and if you feel moved to officially join our church on this festival day, you will be invited to move to the front of the sanctuary and go through a short liturgy with Linda Laurence, our Community Connections Team Lead. We will end the service with a neat worship moment by circling the sanctuary with candles and singing "This Little Light of Mine" like we do "Silent Night" on Christmas Eve. The children will be invited to come back into the service for this if they'd like to join, and those who join us online are encouraged to participate as well. This is a wonderful, exciting time at our church and we hope you will be able to join us this Sunday and beyond. June will be off to a big start at UCC with Pride Celebration Sunday on June 4, VBS running from June 5-9 , and VBS Celebration Sunday on June 11. See you in church! Clark Thompson Worship Team Lead Dear Church Family,
Just as Christ calls us, this community consistently supports "the least of these," and this Spring has been an amazing example of that. Our April Social Justice project collected for and assembled 35 Birthday Bags for the Round Rock Area Serving Center. This was no small task, so thank you for the generosity of time and donations to make this possible. This month, we are writing postcards to legislators in our state. The legislative session is drawing to a close at the end of May, and there are many issues that need to be addressed. Our legislators and governor need to know where people of faith stand. There is a table up in the fellowship hall with suggestions about bills you might specifically want to speak to, as suggested by Texas Impact, Equality Texas, and the League of Women Voters. Postcards, pens, and a writing prompt are all provided so you can easily write messages if you wish. We will address them, add stamps, then mail them to make it as easy as possible for you. Please use your voice. Next month, we will be hosting a booth at the Pflugerville Pride Pfestival. On Saturday, June 10th, we need volunteers to join us at Pflugerville Pride from 3-8pm and help us with our Chapel of Love! Our hope is that we provide a space that lets all in the Pride Community know that we want to affirm and love them for exactly who they are. We believe that Love is Love and ALL are welcome at the table. So come help us offer blessings over all who choose to visit our booth! Thank you, as always, for being the hands and feet of Christ as we work together to build the kin-dom of God. ~ The Social Justice Team |
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Worship at 10am each Sunday In-Person and Online
We are proudly affiliated with both the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
3500 West Parmer Lane, Austin TX 78727
512-218-8110
We are proudly affiliated with both the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
3500 West Parmer Lane, Austin TX 78727
512-218-8110