Getting to Know You(bc): Cristina Clancy

Age:

33

Where do you call home?

I am originally from Wichita, Kansas. I moved to Waco, TX in 1994 when I was about to start eighth grade.  My mother lost her job at the time during the Boeing layoffs that year.  However,  I consider myself a Wacoan now because I have lived here for over 10 years.

What do you do in Waco?

I am a stay-at-home mom to two wonderful boys Alex and my latest addition to my life Jayden.  I enjoy spending time with my family that I have built with my husband, as well as friends.  I enjoy going to the movies, bowling, skating, frisbee golf, and eating out with family or friends.  

What do you love most about UBC?

I was going through some tough times in 2006. I lost my job due to a nervous breakdown and ended up being hospitalized.  My husband and I lost our home because of this.  Our expenses piled up, and we ended up living with his parents for a few years.   I lost hope and faith in God because of my nervous breakdown.  At the time, I didn't understand why he had put me through this.  I had a lot on my shoulders between work, taking care of the pets, the house, and making time for my husband who was gone all the time.  I truly believe now that it was a sign that something was wrong in my life, and God wanted me to put faith in his hands to lead me to the right direction.   I have been to many different churches in Waco, none of which I felt comfortable and at home in.  I began to believe that I would not find a church that would help me heal spiritually with God, and yet still treat me like family.  I was introduced to UBC by friends from Baylor in 2006 after I got out of the hospital.  I thought I might as well try.  What else do I have to lose? UBC has been there for me before I had kids and was at my lowest point in my life.  Now they are still there for me, as well as my husband and kids.  There friendly smiles, laughter, and caring hearts are what I love the most about UBC.  I can worship God and still be myself knowing that each member of UBC that I meet will not treat me any differently.  They would treat me as if I was part of their family.

Favorite Movie?

 Hunger Games

Favorite Book/Author/reading material?

Harry Potter Series by JK Rowling

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

 I wanted to be a Veterinarian and help sick animals get well.

What do you want to be now when you grow up?

I'd like to be a speech pathologist.  My oldest son has had speech problems as well as other developmental delays since he was one.  The speech pathologist that helped him get to where he is today has inspired me to want to help others in language and hearing impaired.

Favorite artist/band/musician?

 I have two.  I am a huge fan of David Crowder Band, and I am very fond of Jackie Evancho the twelve year old Opera Singer from America's Got Talent.

Best Burger in Waco?

 Tom's Burger on Sanger.

What do we HAVE to know about you to really know you?

I am a devoted mother and love my children.  I sacrifice everything to make sure that they are happy.  Alex has developmental issues, which has been challenging to get him to where he needs to be.  I really had to put a lot of faith in God, as well as close family and friends last year in March for his Strabismus Surgery.  This surgery was a make or break for Alex.  It had a high success rate,  but there was a  chance that it could fail.  He has had quadruple vision in early childhood for so long, that he had become behind developmentally in fine motor skills, gross motor skills, as well as social skills.  He has been in countless therapy sessions with Klaras Early Childhood Development.  When he graduated at the age of three from the program, my husband and I had to look for another program to help him achieve his goals.  We found that in HOPE therapy of Waco.  He just recently started therapy this month, and we hope he will get to where he needs to be.  Because of Alex,  I try my best to be there for my friends and or family who are also going through hardships in their lives.  I believe in doing God's bidding, and he has always taught me to look to the bright side of things.  He has taught me to look out for those in need, whether it is my children, husband, or friends.  He has also taught me to have faith in him and to love him, which I strive to do my very best as a Christian today.

Getting to know You(bc): Will Parchman...

Name: Will Parchman

Age:  26

Where do you call home?

Born in Minnesota, lived in Tennessee, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, Texas, California and Florida. So I'll make Neil DeGrasse-Tyson happy and say 'Earth.'

What do you do in Waco?

I write about sports for the Waco Tribune-Herald. I dabble in Dothraki-based interpretive dancing as well.

What do you love most about UBC?

It's accommodating without going overboard on concession, intellectual without being stodgy, introspective without being ponderous. And it's filled with interesting folks and conscientious leaders. And those candles.

Favorite Movie?

Vacillates between Pan's Labyrinth and Commando, depending on mood.

 Book or author?

Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises.

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

 I remember more that I DIDN'T want to be an astronaut because of a particularly horrifying experience with freeze dried tomatoes. I think I wanted to be Pete Sampras more than anything.

What do you want to be now when you grow up?

If I can have a clean, well-lit cafe around me, a comfy chair under me and a means of writing in front of me, I'll be happy.

Favorite artist/band/musician?

Too tough. I love everything from Mongolian throat singing to roots-based indie folk. Right now, though, I'm pretty sure Thom Yorke's new project will alter my life's course in one way or another.

Best Burger in Waco?

Dubl-R. Hands down. No question.

What do we HAVE to know about you to really know you?

Big question. In Germany, you'll offend a stranger if you ask how they are. They'll only answer it honestly. No platitudes. I love that. I'd like to think that sums up my approach toward people.

Favorite YouTube video of all time?

Now you're talking my language. There's an obscure Swedish TV show called Grotesco that employs a particularly irreverent style of humor. My favorite is a parody of the 1996 film 'A Time To Kill' in which they more or less speak gibberish over very solemn themes. It has me rolling every time. One of the better parts:

 Main character: "They say a man can walk a thousand miles and still don't know his butt from behind. Well I say a man can walk two yards and find the crown la-crue, and that's a fruit."

Who would you rather stare you down in anger and contempt-- Kim Mulkey or Emily, your wife?

Emily. Not only because she doesn't know the difference between a block and a charge (which I find really endearing), but because 'I'm sorry' floats a lot lighter in domestic settings than it does in professional ones.

In your job as a sportswriter, who has given the best interview?

A lot of good ones, but former Texas basketball great Slater Martin stands out. He told me one of my favorite stories of all time. At the age of 18, he hitchhiked from Houston to Austin on a total lark to play basketball for UT in the 40's with an Asian friend during the height of WW2 anti-Asian sentiment. They were nearly penniless and had no way to get to Austin, where Martin had to be the next day to try out for the team. After Martin was unsuccessful in hitching a ride, his Asian buddy flagged down a car instead and got him to Austin. Slater is now considered one of the best UT basketball players to ever live.

Getting to know You(bc)...

We are reviving the UBC blog in order to introduce you to the amazing folks who call UBC "home!"  Look for these about 2-3 times a week.  Take time to pray for the person being featured, learn their name and face and say "hi" when you see them at church. ______________________

Name:  Maxcey Kite

Age:  22

Where do you call home?

Aledo, TX (just west of Fort Worth)

What do you do in Waco?

Senior at Baylor (Professional Writing major, Religion minor)

What do you love most about UBC?

I love how UBC views life through the lens of its benediction (Love God. Embrace beauty. Live life to the fullest.). Through UBC I have found a community in which I feel both welcomed and comfortable but in which I am also continually challenged to feel uncomfortable so that through my struggles my faith may grow. 

Favorite Movie?

A Knight's Tale or Beauty and the Beast

Favorite book/author?

Francine Rivers' Mark of the Lion series followed closely by Harry Potter :)

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A teacher

What do you want to be now when you grow up?

When I grow up on May 18th, I would like to do marketing/communications for a nonprofit.

Favorite artist/band/musician?

Taylor Swift (we both love cats, Ellen, and I can actually sing along to her songs with my very limited vocal range.)

Best Burger in Waco?

Five Guys

What do we HAVE to know about you to really know you?

I love these seven things: my Lord and God, my fiancé, my family, my friends, kittens, chocolate, and travel. If I'm not busy, I'm bored. I believe a smile and good communication can solve nearly every conflict. My number one strength (according to the Baylor StrengthsFinder) is responsibility and it is also a strength I value highly in others. I don't like tomatoes and I have a little latte maker so I can make my own vanilla lattes.

What does Luke, your fiance, feel about Taylor Swift being your favorite artist?

Luke's feelings about T-Swift being my favorite artist, and really about Taylor herself, have developed over the past three years as a result of what can only be called immersion therapy. What started off as mere tolerance has progressed to secret admissions of singing along with her on the radio. In other words, he knows all of the words to her most popular songs, and (though he may not publicly admit it) he likes them. Win :)

What is your favorite YouTube video of all time?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwNi8dzj0S8 It never gets old :)

Advent Reflection...

(This was read before yesterday's service.) ______________

There is an argument being waged among us that is far more contentious than who you voted for in the last election.  In many cases this controversy causes emotions to flare up more than the abortion argument, gay marriage and tax policy, and it has divided friends and family along very distinct battle lines.  And it is this:  When is the appropriate time to begin listening to Christmas music?

Some, like myself, hold to the more traditional view that the Thanksgiving Holiday should be savored to the fullest, not to be mingled with the elements of Christmas, and therefore it is most appropriate to begin listening to Christmas music on the day after Thanksgiving.  This is, of course, the most Christian view and is (in all likelihood) held by many giants of our faith like St. Augustine, Martin Luther, Lottie Moon, C.S. Lewis Robert Griffin III and, of course, Jesus.

And then there are a several variations of the other view.  Some believe Halloween is the appropriate time and still others hold that there IS no “appropriate time,” that any day is an day in which Christmas music can be played.  This is the non-Christian, liberal view and is held, in all likelihood, by such historical figures as Genghis Khan, Kim Kardashian and, of course, Hitler.

This is an argument that is probably not going to be solved in our lifetimes, so when we encounter each other with differing views it is probably best just to nod our heads and quickly move on to the next subject, all while secretly judging each other.

But there is something about the Christmas season that I think we can all agree on:  Once Thanksgiving is over, things get frantic and busy and loud.  The time of the year when we most anticipate that Silent and Holy night when eternity broke into our world in the form of the baby is often accompanied by a lot of noise.  Stress levels rise as a season that is meant to be reflective and joyful becomes, instead, burdensome.  And we wonder, is there any cure for all of this frenzy that ends with Christmas day coming and going before we even have a chance to savor it?

And as if on cue the church clears her throat, steps forward and says yes, there is a cure:  Advent.

Advent begins the church year and acts as a counterbalance to the speed and anxiety that the culture around us has burdened Christmas with.  Advent sees us running full steam ahead toward Christmas and it gently presses its foot on the break and says, slow down, wait a second, stop.  Christmas will come in due time.  The day to welcome the light of the world is coming, but first let’s remember something:  We are in darkness.  Wars are raging both around the world, and in our hearts and before the savior comes we must, like John the Baptist, prepare the way.

Joan Chittister reminds us that the purpose of Advent is "not to delay the celebration of Christmas, but to enhance it. It's a kind of delayed gratification that culminates in a … satisfaction that is all the richer for the waiting."

Phillips Brooks: IT WAS NOT suddenly and unannounced that Jesus came into the world. He came into a world that had been prepared for him. The whole Old Testament is the story of a special preparation. Only when all was ready, only in the fullness of his time, did Jesus come.

For us, the next four weeks is about preparation and slowly watching the light overcome the darkness.  To symbolize this we will light candles that represent the themes of Hope, Love, Joy and Peace.  We will sing songs of hope and expectation that will slowly give way to songs of joy and jubilation.  And we will wait with baited breaths for the salvation of the world, both in remembrance of the first time, and in expectation of the final time that Christ will bring heaven to earth…

Thanksgiving Love Feast!...

That's right, you read that correctly.  Thanksgiving Love Feast.  Everyone's FAVORITE Love Feast of the year, and many people's favorite UBC event period, is upon us. When: This Sunday, November 18th at 6:00pm.

Where: UBC

What should you bring:  If you are a part of a Mi Casa, you have been assigned a particular type of food.  See the list below.  If you are not a part of a Mi Casa, bring a main dish of some kind.

Can't wait to see everyone there!

Mi Casa Love Feast Assignments

Starchy Foods (Mashed Potatoes, Potato casserole, Mac and Cheese, etc.)

Winn

Browning

Wilhite

Heins

Tweedt

Vegetable Dishes

Nash/Gunvordahl

BJ and Courtney Parker

McCarty

Jack and Jana Parker

Main Dishes

(Meat and Protein Dishes, except for Turkey.  That is being taken care of.)

Duke

McGregor

Desserts

Walter

Harp

Barrett

Shane/Hodge

Kyle's Benediction: Beth McCarty

Today marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle’s legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC’ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle’s benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days. __________________________

Today I post these words, but it is something I try to live everyday. We miss Kyle but I am thankful for the community that was left behind.  These words created people who truly learned how to celebrate the good in life and to ache with each other in the difficult times.  We don't always get it right but I always come back to these words. They are my reset button.

Love God, Embrace Beauty and Live Life to the Fullest.

So much has changed in seven years.

I am now married.

I am now a mom to two precious boys.

But it's the little things in my daily life that have really changed.

I sip my coffee a little slower.

I intentionally roll my windows down to feel the crispness of a fall day.

The smack of the cool air jolts me back to that difficult time.

To many difficult times.

But then the sun shines on and warms me and I am washed with all the good that is in my life.

I breath a little deeper.

I have learned to live in the moments.  I get lost building blocks and playing cars with my boys.

We get messy.

We tickle a lot!

I hug my husband a little tighter and try to sneak in more kisses just to make him smile.

I turn the radio up, we dance and giggle until we are out of breath.

Sometimes I wipe my kids nose and try to miss with the Kleenex, just to remember.

I listen more, because I have learned that we have so much to learn from each other.

I get lost in girls nights.

I open our home and our lives so that we are not alone.

I watch squirrels bury nuts.

I watch bees dance on flowers.

I have slowed down.

I force myself to be vulnerable so that I can really feel community.

I know that life will have difficult times, and I have surrounded myself with the best support system.

I am thankful.

I sit back and watch, I jump in and do.

I am learning more everyday and now I am trying to teach little ones of my own to love, embrace and live.

__________________________

Beth McCarty is a graduate of Baylor and has been a part of UBC for many years.  She has been a teacher and recently served for several years as UBC's Children's Ministry Coordinator.  She and her husband Tom live in Waco with their two boys, Aiden (who LOVES tools) and Asher (who can throw any ball you give him like a pro.)  

Kyle's Benediction: Josh Carney

Today marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle’s legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC’ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle’s benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days. ________________________________

I came to UBC tangled.  As a business major who had just enough time left in undergrad to take 20^th century theology and other classes that called into the question presuppositions of my rock solid faith, I became confused.

Having now pastored a church where there is a large number of college students I now realize I entered seminary in the midst of a process that often gets worked out in college.

I remember sitting in Betty Talbert’s office (Truett’s then Spiritual Formation Director) confessing that UBC had as much or more to do with my formation process than Truett did.  I think that’s just right.  The Academy ought to be the place where rigorous questioning and thought pull apart what we know, and church ought to be the place where those same questions find their place in the great mystery of God’s story that is enacted by the worship of the Church.

Love God

Embrace Beauty &

Live Life to the Fullest

Kyle was masterful at providing that space.

I only knew Kyle as my pastor for a little over a year, but in that time I observed that the benediction was something he changed up from time to time.  Having just spent some time in the book of Job, I’m reminded of how careful we must be when using the word “providence,” but in the least, I find it serendipitous that these words seemed to pass out of time and into eternity with Kyle.

Of the three imperatives, it the second, embrace beauty, that helped untangle the knots in my soul.  I’ve oft said in sermons that “Be in the world, but not of the world,” is the most famous Bible verse that doesn’t actually appear in the Bible.  It’s probably a loose construction based on John 17 in particular verse 16 “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”  Someone recently told me that John is the Evangelical’s gospel.  Indeed.  One of the take-aways from John is that “the world” is bad.  I should probably work harder here to get John off the hook, but to be honest it doesn’t really matter what John meant, it matters how he has been interpreted.

I believed that the world was a scary place full of the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.  There is a lot wrong with the world, but without ever preaching it Kyle reminded me that, “The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; (Psalm 24:1),” and that “God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good (Genesis 1:31).”

In a recent issue of Christian Century John Buchanan tackles this same problem: “My problem was that I loved the world. There was plenty of evidence that there is something wrong at the heart of things, enough suffering, tragedy and evil in human history to suggest that original sin isn’t an inaccurate description. Yet I couldn’t stop thinking that original, essential goodness is still there—and that whatever is wrong does not cancel out this goodness.”

Kyle knew that.  So I am learning to embrace the beauty of a God who loved me first in a world so full.  Kyle helped me understand that I never really stop going to church.  The gathering of the community is Sundays is just where we report on what we’ve “what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life,” (1 John 1:1) and “things too wonderful for us, which we did not know.” (Job 42:3).

How is this beauty being embraced you might wonder?  I will tell you.  We find beauty in the movies we watch with a critical eye.  In the music we hear with critical ears.  In the walks we take through fall colored woods.  In the art we see. In the conversation we have.  In the discoveries we make.  In the games we cheer. In the painful growth we undertake.  In, yes, wiping the snot form three-year-old noses.  In the aromas we smell.  In the food we taste.  In the grace we receive.  In death we mourn and in the life we anticipate.

In all of this we embrace the beauty.

__________________________________

Josh Carney is a native of Wisconsin and a graduate of Bethel University located in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. Shortly after marrying his high school sweetheart, he and Lindsay packed up their belongings and moved to Waco so Josh could attend Truett seminary.  After graduating from Truett he became UBC's teaching pastor, a position that had remained unfilled since Kyle's passing.  Josh and Lindsay are the parents of Roy, Lillian and Mabel, who are real children, not 90-year-old shut ins, as their names may suggest.

Kyle's Benediction: Craig Nash

Today marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle’s legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC’ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle’s benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days. _________________________________

Kyle had a gift.  He had many gifts, but one I remember quite well always amused me.

When we were around town, going to lunch or a midday movie, Kyle Lake never had to look for a parking spot.  Almost without fail, the second he pulled into a parking lot the car closest to the door of wherever we were going would be pulling out.  If we were in separate cars I would usually be stuck parking as far away as possible.  If I was ahead of Kyle, I'd drive by the first row of cars and nothing would be open. But the second I drove past, someone would walk out of the restaurant or theater and head directly to their car in the front row.

When I rode with him in his car, once he pulled in and saw the open spot right in the front, he would giggle with such childlike intensity at his luck.  Over time we made a joke of it.  It started with one of us (I can't remember who began this) exclaiming that the Lord sure is blessing him today.  (We were not-so-subtly mocking a strain of theology that suggests God blesses his children with things like convenient parking spots.)  Over time the joke morphed away from being a simple blessing and toward a works/reward theology of righteousness.  He would scream at the top of his lungs, "I'm being blessed by God because of my CLEAN LIVING!"

The evolution of the joke settled into a statement we shared among ourselves whenever the parking spot would open.  The giddiness subsided into a simple, routine phrase, almost as perfunctory as saying "Thank You" and "You're Welcome."  He simply saw the open spot and said, "That's clean livin' right there."

A couple of weeks ago at Common Grounds, the coffee shop near the Baylor campus that often served as Kyle's informal office, during the busiest time of day I drove to the back parking lot and a spot closest to the building opened up.  After I pulled into it and got out of my car, a student walked by. On my way walking past him I instinctively nodded toward the car and said, in passing, "That's clean livin' right there."

"Huh?" he said?

"I said 'that's clean living' right there.'"

"Oh, uh, ok."

*****

I've been given a gift as well.  On almost every Sunday I get to lead our congregation in Kyle's benediction-- "As we approach this week, may we Love God, Embrace Beauty, and Live Life to the Fullest."

Growing up in an evangelical church, it isn't uncommon for us to be taught about loving God.  I mean, the Bible tells us to love him with all we are.  So "As we approach this week, may we love God..." isn't strange to hear. But "...embrace beauty, and live life to the fullest?"  Seems a little odd.

Yet in our immersion into these words of our friend Kyle, they have proven not to be odd.  Embracing beauty and living life to the fullest are not addendums to loving God, they are signposts, guides along the way in our efforts to love God.  For Kyle, we do love God in the same ways we were always taught to love God-- we pray, read the Scriptures, worship and devote our lives to being transformed into the image of Jesus.  But we also love God by embracing beauty, by seeking it out like detectives or, more appropriately, like treasure hunters. We love God by living life to the fullest, expanding our capacities as humans to love, laugh and, yes, even to grieve.

Kyle lived life to the fullest.  While I don't believe those parking spots opened up for him because of God's special blessing on his life, nor do I believe special rewards always come to those who live "clean," (and he didn't believe these things either,) I still think the story is a perfect metaphor for what Kyle tried to teach us with his life, and what we've tried to do after his death-- Regardless of whether we park in the front or have a long way to go, there's always reason to laugh.  And laughter is never an impediment to loving God, but an accomplice.

______________________________________

Craig Nash finds it strange to be writing about himself like Jimmy or George, in the third person.  He is a community pastor at UBC, a graduate of East Texas Baptist University and (kind of, soon-to-be) of Truett seminary.  With Kyle as his inspiration and teacher, he has mastered the art of sneaking away from the church in the middle of the day to watch a movie without anyone noticing.

Kyle's Benediction: Ashley Googe and Tim Buechsel

Today marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle’s legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC’ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle’s benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days. ________________________________

Kyle's benediction blessed me. I still think about it a lot. I think that I translated it into German and used it a couple of times in the youth group. I've also used it a few times in my Hong Kong ministry setting. His benediction has gone global!

-- From Tim Buechsel

- - - -

I remember, so clearly, the first time I heard the benediction. I had attended UBC as a freshman in 1998 and had returned a few years later after a time of searching. It was a balm, a prayer, words for what my heart had been trying to say for a long time. Kyle was the embodiment of this. His lived in such a way that gave room for us to do the same. His death punched holes in us, left an indelible mark. And yet the benediction kept surfacing, a siren call to return to this life we were given. We used these words as a foundation for our wedding vows, have whispered them over our baby son and have them written as a frame over the doorway, and hearts, of our house.

Love God.

Embrace Beauty.

Live life to the fullest.

-- From Ashley Googe

________________________________________

Tim Buechsel is a graduate of George Fox University and of Truett Seminary.  He is from Germany and currently lives with his wife Isabel in Hong Kong, where he pastors a church.

Ashley Googe is a graduate of Baylor and is married to Matt.  Ashley was a part of UBC during her college years and beyond.  She and Matt currently live in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Kyle's Benediction: Hannah Howard

Today marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle’s legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC’ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle’s benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days.

______________________________________________

I’ve spent seven years trying to live by words that I never heard spoken by their original author.

 Love God, embrace beauty, live life to the fullest…. Simple words – innocent phrases with so much power. I didn’t know Kyle, but his legacy continues to influence me.

 I came to UBC with my family two weeks after the tragedy struck the community. I was ten, not an age that should have been able to grasp the gravity of the situation. But as a girl who had lost her own father two years earlier in an unexpected tragedy, this pain was real and relatable no matter my age. I’m not sure if I knew it then, but looking back now I know that we were supposed to end up at UBC.

My most formative years were spent in a community that had wrestled together with a grief that I understood. As I grew up, I watched people I look up to search for answers to the same questions I had. And through it all, we were guided by the words that are forever engrained in my mind.

So I guess I ultimately have Kyle to thank – for his life, his powerful words, and his legacy in a community that made me who I am. The chapter of my life spent with UBC has come to a close, but I will go forward with the lessons learned from the benediction – lessons in grief, community and faith.

May I always love, embrace, live… 

___________________________

Throughout her years growing up at UBC, Hannah Grace Howard exuded the qualities implied by her middle name.  As noted in her piece, she and her family came to us, in a sense, broken, just as we were broken. For those of us who know Hannah, we agree with her: She was meant to be with us.  We helped each other be a little less broken in the wake of our losses.  Hannah recently graduated from Vanguard Preparatory School in Waco and is currently a Freshman at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia.  

Kyle's Benediction: Amanda Horton

Today marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle’s legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC’ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle’s benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days. _______________________________

Seven years ago.  Seven.  It’s hard to believe it has been that long.  Isn’t time funny how it feels so close and far away at the same time?

I remember this day seven years ago so vividly.  I remember what I wore that day.  Green corduroy pants and a tan Jimmy Eat World shirt, it had a western scene on it.  I remember parts of the conversations I had that morning, lighting the candles in front of the baptistry, and then that fateful moment full of resounding commotion and silence.  All. At. Once.

The death of my friend Kyle and the days that followed it, fundamentally changed me.  Grief and death no longer were to be held at arms length and community could no longer be a practice only spoken about.

In the past six years in my professional life I have found myself looking into the eyes of those that are grieving, hearing the voices of those that are in such deep pain, and there have been so so many.  Each situation and person unique in its own way.  Grief never gets any easier.  Period.  It just gets different.  I have learned a great deal in the past seven years, not only from my personal experience with loss but also from those I’ve walked alongside of.

1-    Grief is not selective about who it touches, no one is immune, and we all suffer loss.

2-    Grief is not something you recover from.

3-    There is no template for grief.

4-    After a loss, you have to reconfigure parts of your life – relationships, behaviors, routines.

5-    Sometimes, the smallest of things call up the biggest of memories

6-    It’s ok to cry, to be angry, to be still…

7-    Grieving well is not all about sadness but is about gladness and celebration too.

But probably the biggest lesson I have learned is that grief and faith live this sort of intertwined life.  Faith not only serves as a comfort in times of grief, it sometimes serves as a frustration in times of grief.  Yet faith teaches me that grief is good.

Experiencing grief is to experience the loss of something that mattered to you. Did you catch that?  I’ll repeat it.  That MATTERED to you.   In a strange way it is grief that calls our faith to be human.  If we spent all our time with our faith focused on what’s beyond this world we would miss the beauty of this world.  If I never grieved a loss then I was never living.

My family and I recently moved to North Carolina after almost a decade in Waco.  We were ready to go where we felt called to go, to step out on faith that we are on a divine journey beyond our own understanding.  But we grieve the loss of our friends in Waco, of our routines, of our favorite places, of the house we brought our son home to, and of the memories of our life there.   Had we never planted roots, leaving would have never hurt and those 9+ years would have been boring.

(If I had never known Kyle – I fully believe life would have been way more boring!)

UBC has this benediction that was started by Kyle “as we approach this week may we Love God, embrace beauty, and live life to the fullest.”  You’ll notice there are no qualifiers to this charge.  It’s not “when you feel like it” or “only on good hair days” or “only on Sundays” or “only when it’s not messy”.  Long before his death, Kyle was already teaching us that living life to the fullest doesn’t always mean we get to pick the terms.  In a way, he was already teaching us about grief.  That grief is a part of living and that the best part of living is that it’s messy and beautiful and with each other!

So yes, on this day, I hold my grief a little closer and little more carefully but I also know that I hold my faith alongside it and I celebrate the life of the most infectious person I’ve ever known. Love God.  Embrace Beauty.  Live Life to the Fullest.

________________________________

Amanda Horton is a graduate of North Carolina State University and recently completed her masters in Higher Education-- Student Affairs at Baylor.  She and her husband Adam, who was a student at Truett at the time, were close friends with Kyle and Jen.  After almost a decade in Waco, the Hortons, along with their son Everett, have returned to their native North Carolina where Amanda is the Assistant Director for Campus Life and Programs at Wake Forest University.

Kyle's Benediction: Lynnette Davidson

This week marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle’s legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC’ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle’s benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days.

____________________________________

Within my arms, these flesh and bones,

the beat of life that is my own,

the blood that pulses in my veins

and in my chest reverberates.

The steady press; again, again,

on and on, beneath my skin.

Seven hundred fifty eight—

the miles that kept me far away in space

and in a different place and time.

I have a different name. I tried

to reconcile the meaning of

the calls that came to me that day.

They seemed to say

the end had come.

And now the months, the years have passed.

The distance stays; the empty lasts.

The missing you, the missing me,

and everything I used to see,

and all the ways things used to be,

and all the possibilities

remain

and yet have slipped into the grave.

I close my eyes to look inside

and take account of what has died

and what is left. God knows I’ve tried

to do my best to extricate

the remnants of a lifetime’s faith,

the threads that somehow still have stayed

unchanged and say to come awake

and rise.

Love, embrace, and live, you said.

We took these words to be as bread

and wine. A fine reminder of

that time and of the way to build a life.

And like the echo of a song’s refrain,

like lyrics on repeat they play.

Implanted in our souls, they stay.

This benediction—it remains

a life-sustaining, heart-remaking,

altogether rearranging

gospel that from here

we carry on.

____________________________

Lynnette Davidson attended and was a vital part of the community of UBC during her time at Baylor and Truett Seminary.  She and her husband Sam currently live in Nashville, Tennessee with their beautiful daughter Lindley.  Lynnette is a therapist at Vanderbilt Psychological and Counseling Center.

Kyle's Benediction: Matt Addington...

This week marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle’s legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC’ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle’s benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days. _____________________________________

In the days after Kyle's passing, UBC's friend Genevieve Grinnan Peel created a graphic of Kyle's benediction that served as a header for a blog meant to keep the community updated on the life of the church during that especially dark and confusing time.  The graphic spread and was embraced by many people.  One such person was Matt Addington, who was a seminary student and UBC'er at the time.  The next January, Matt decided to make the graphic, and Kyle's benediction, a permanent part of his life.  Below is his tattoo...

____________________________________

Matt received his M.Div. from Truett Seminary in 2007 and returned home to his native North Carolina.  He is a minister in the Episcopal Church.

Kyle's Benediction: Jordan Browning

This week marks the seven year anniversary of the loss of our pastor and dear friend Kyle Lake.  Kyle's legacy lives on in many ways.  One thing that has been especially meaningful for UBC'ers, those who knew him and those who have joined us along the way since his passing, has been Kyle's benediction that we say as a congregation at the end of the service.  I have asked several people to reflect on the benediction and share thoughts with us.  I will be posting their stories and artwork here for the next few days.

________________________________

Love God. Embrace Beauty. Live life to the fullest.

Based on my rough calculations, I have repeated these words about 336 times over the past 7 years.  These are the words that our church says together as a congregation at the close of our service every Sunday.  To me, though, this simple benediction is more than just words.

Every time I say these words, I can’t help but picture my friend Kyle.  I picture his toothy grin and can instantly remember his giddy laugh.  Even though it’s been seven years, I can close my eyes and remember exactly what his voice sounded like when he repeated this same benediction.

Every time I say these words, I am reminded…of what a great friend Kyle was to both me & Blair.  What a great husband Kyle was to Jen and what a great father he was to Avery, Sutton, & Jude.  I am reminded of how much he loved this church…he loved the building, he loved the city that it was placed in, and most of all he loved the people that filled it up.  At the same time, as I repeat these words, I am reminded of the pain & shock that we felt when Kyle died.  Not a week goes by that I don’t miss Kyle.

Every time that I say these words, I am grateful.  I am grateful for the legacy of Kyle’s life that lives on through this benediction.  I am grateful that even though I am repeating the same words that I repeated at the end of every service this time seven years ago, I am not the same person.  Kyle’s death changed me…I’ll admit that when I used to say these words, it was with an earthly perspective.  Small things seemed big, big things seemed small…I’m not sure that I knew what loving, embracing, and living truly looked like.  But in the days, months, and now years following Kyle’s death, I have learned more and more about what it means to have a Kingdom perspective.  Although there is still pain, and heartache, and death, in the same breath there is life, grace, and redemption…and as a result of our faith in Jesus Christ, we can experience that now…it’s not something reserved for eternity.

So to me, this benediction will always be more than just words.  I choose to Love God because when life took me by surprise, God showed me that He is not shaken by surprises.  I will embrace beauty because when I felt anger, grief, and sadness like I had never felt before God met me there and taught me some of the most beautiful lessons I’ve ever learned.  I will live life to the fullest because I know that this life is a gift and such a small speck of time compared to the eternity that we will spend in heaven.

At Kyle’s funeral, his childhood Sunday school teacher spoke and said “Kyle, you have given us even more of a reason to long for heaven.”.  I do long for heaven…but not just so that I can see Kyle again.  I long for the moment when I stand face to face with my Savior and I can love, embrace, and truly live in all of His glory.   It is my prayer, and I believe Kyle’s intention, that these words stir something in you and cause you to long for the same.

__________________

Jordan Browning has been at UBC since she moved to Waco to attend Baylor, and her husband has been here since its inception in 1995.  The Brownings were very close friends with Kyle and Jen.  Below is artwork that is in their living room, assuring that their three children-- Keely, Boone and Addy-- grow up under the influence and inspiration of Kyle's words.

UBC's Presidential Endorsement...

(There's no way you really fell for that, is there?) Among those who call UBC home, there will be some who vote Democrat, some Republican, some Libertarian, and several more who will be writing in their own candidates.  (FYI-- Our favorite write-in candidate won't be eligible for president until 2025, so don't waste your vote on him this time around.)  Others, either out of apathy or protest, will be refraining from the political process altogether.  As long as reflection and prayer are involved in the decision, we are supportive of whatever our people choose.  (We would, of course, discourage apathy.)

What we agree on is this-- Regardless of what happens on November 6th in the presidential election, Christ will still be the King of all creation on November 7th.  His kingdom transcends any temporary, human-built system of governance. Our hope is not in a party, a personality or a political platform.  (Alliteration unintended.) The symbols that tell the story of God's redemption of the world are a manger in a seemingly insignificant corner of the world, an execution under a brutal empire, and an empty tomb in a garden-- not an elephant, donkey or a flag.

No matter where our earthly residency is located, as followers of Christ our citizenship and true allegiance is to Him and the kingdom He is establishing.

We are most in need of this reminder during election season, the time when anxieties rise and divisions are magnified.  Because of this we are asking something both of those who call UBC home, and of the greater Waco community of believers.  We would like to invite anyone, regardless of political persuasion, to join us for times of communion on Tuesday, November 6th.  We will be having services at 7:15 a.m., 12:15 and at 5:30pm. Each will last about 20 minutes.  As a symbol of public proclamation, weather permitting, these services will occur in our parking lot. For those coming to and from polling places, this will be an important reminder and proclamation of who our King really is.

At UBC we practice open communion.  As long as your desire is to follow and embrace the Christ who has died, risen, and will come again, you are welcome at the table.  Please spread the word to all who count themselves among the citizens of His Kingdom.

For information, please contact craig@ubcwaco.org.

Sunday Song List (October 21, 2012)

Hope fall break was a good one.  Here is the set list from Sunday. But for you Who Fear My Name- Welcome Wagon

Alive- All Sons and Daughters

With Everything- Hillsong United

Revelation Song- Kari Jobe

Crazy- Seth Woods

Happy Listening,

Tye

Sunday Song List (October 14, 2012)

Hello everyone!  Here is the set list from this past Sunday. All Creatures of Our God and King

With Everything- Hillsong United

SMS Shine- Crowder

Doxology

It is Well

Enjoy your week,

Tye

Sunday Song List (October 7, 2012)

Here are the songs! What a great weekend with fall retreat and the cooler weather.  

This is Not the End- Gungor

Amazing Grace- We appropriated a version arranged by Citizens

Death in His Grave- John Mark McMillian

All the Poor and Powerless- All Sons and Daughters

Come Thou Fount

Have a great week.  Get outside and enjoy the fall.  And...your dog told me to let you know it wants a walk!

Tye

World Communion Sunday...

World Communion Sunday....

World Communion Sunday...

Churches around the world today, the first Sunday of October, are participating in two very distinct observances.  The first, you may have heard about on the news, is called “Pulpit Freedom Sunday.”  Pastors who lament the laws that keep tax-exempt churches from endorsing political candidates and taking strongly political stands, have decided to “Take Back” their pulpits.  They argue that if we look through the lens of Scripture and the Christian story, then we will see very clear dividing lines between political parties, local ballot initiatives and social issues and that it is their responsibility to share those clear dividing lines from their pulpit to their congregation. The second observance is World Communion Sunday, which proclaims something different. In celebrating World Communion Sunday we are not making a statement about the clear dividing lines that may or may not exist in culture, politics and society.  (In fact, I suspect there are at least a few churches observing both Pulpit Freedom Sunday AND World Communion Sunday.)  The spirit of World Communion Sunday is this…

The Lord Jesus, on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said…

To the disciple who loved him and remained with him until the very end—“This is my body that is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.”

And to the disciple who also loved him, but could never quite get it right and would, in just a few hours, deny that he even knew Jesus--- “This is my body that is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.”

And to the disciple who would eventually doubt the cold hard facts that Jesus had been resurrected—“This is my body that is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.”

And to the deceiver, the one who Jesus knew at that very moment already had plans in motion to turn him over to the political and religious authorities—“This is my body that is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.”

And to us—all of us—Democrats, Republicans, Independents, those against “Big Government” and those who are ok with a lot of government programs, those for Big Bird and those who wish he would just support himself, Jesus says “This is my body that is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.”

In the same way he took the cup after supper, and he takes the cup now and says to the tiny congregation in a Ugandan village, under fear of attack “This cup is the new covenant in my blood.  Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

He says to the pastor who, as I speak, is preaching against certain political candidates, gay marriage and abortion—This is the blood of Christ, shed for you, do this in remembrance of me.

He says to the gay teenager, the girl who still lives with the pain of her abortion, the middle aged mother whose halo is on a little too tight, to every political candidate, every welfare recipient and every Wall Street Banker, anyone from any corner of the world who is in need of mercy, grace and Love, this morning he says—This is my body, this is my blood, shed for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.

In celebrating World Communion Sunday we make a bold statement—Christ has destroyed the dividing lines.  And to be honest, we are also taking a bold risk—the risk that we will be associated with “The Other.”  When we recognize that in communion, in remembering the sacrifice of Jesus for all, that God has flung the door wide open, we put ourselves in company with people who are not like us—who look different than us and who talk different than us and even who vote different than us.

Today we remember that we make up a larger body of believers, desperate people from far corners of the world who believe one thing—We are all desperate and in need of salvation.

So if this is you, you are welcome to the table.