summer fun!
I was able to get away last weekend for Thursday evening and all day Friday. Sometimes you just have to step away from your daily grind to deepen your intention. I needed to focus on what we would be doing for the summer. Mark has already finished the youth calendar and Linda’s kid’s calendar was complete. Seungrok had laid out the missions for the year and I was the missing piece for worship.
Last year, I leaned into the Vacation Bible School theme for June because the church is transformed and the kids sing for us in worship. It is just easier to join them then to try and do something different. Besides, I love it when the whole church is involved in what the kids are doing. So in June, we will be considering road trips. (The VBS theme is Road Trip.) These trips consist of making a plan and packing, setting out to experience new people, food and places. Then as we head back to our own beds and familiar places, we reflect on who we have encountered and hopefully have the wisdom to have widened our understanding of the world. Abraham and Sarah went on a road trip that was a mystery destination, trusting God to lead them. Moses and the Israelites took the scenic route across the wilderness on their road trip. We will encounter the characteristics of these journeys and have fun doing it in June.
On the weekend of July 4th, we will have one worship service at 10:00 am followed by a total church pot luck at 11:15. I will again buy hundreds of pieces of chicken to pair with the treats that you will be making. Jon and I were gone to Colorado last year and I am looking forward to gathering with you all this year.
One of the other important things that we will be doing this summer is launching a new location in Bixby. Some of us went over for the inspection today and we have a long list of little things that need to be done. Seungrok has scheduled a Men’s Weekend of mission and building community for July 11-12. Please save this date on your calendar.
Our sermon series for July will be “God and the Cosmos” It will be designed to consider creation, God, science and the vast awesomeness of the galaxies. I was thinking that it would be fun to go out to the country and do some star gazing and maybe have a cook out. If you live on property that you can see the stars and would be willing to host the church, please let me know and we can plan the fun together. I also thought that folks of all ages might enjoy the Jenks planetarium. My youngest son’s voice is one of the characters in the air conditioned star gazing.
I am still debating what to do for August. I know that this will be the season where we are inviting people to our new location and I want the messaging to be impactful and memorable. Do we lean into love or service? Do we proclaim the Come As You Are value for this important season? I’m still praying about it. I have three good options and will choose one as soon as God shows me which one is the right one.
Next week is going to be big. We are closed on Monday for the Memorial Day holiday at the church. Then on Tuesday, our parking lot will be closed to be restriped. If you need to get in the church, you will have to park on the street behind and walk over. Then on Wednesday, Annual Conference starts and will be hosted by Boston Avenue UMC. This conference is open to everyone and I invite you to join us for one of the worship services. The agenda is here. They have asked to use one of our vans on Wednesday to help shuttle guests. I need a van driver to act as host and shuttle people from 1-5 pm. If you are willing to help in this way and we have a copy of your drivers license, please email me to volunteer.
Let us pray for all those who will be traveling on the holiday weekend to be kept safe. Let us pray for our missionaries as they head back to us filled with the stories of their work. And may we thank those who are Veterans for the service that they have done on our behalf as we remember and decorate the graves of those who didn’t make it home.
God loves you and I love you,
