Therefore, we will have a vote in our next church conference on Sunday March 22nd following our potluck meal to answer this question. If there is an affirmative vote we will continue in the process and based on our current constitution this task of evaluating and adjusting our bylaws goes to our Long-Range Planning Committee. Our goal would then be for the next 6 months to create a plan of what adding Elders would look like in our church with the desire to finalize this process in our September 27th church conference. Provided we accomplish this task, then we have a goal of selecting potential elders to bring to the church for a vote in our December 6th church conference and implement the plan in January 2027 after a 15 month study of Elders.
If you are unable to attend on March 22nd, please stop by the office during normal office hours to fill out an absentee ballot.
Between now and March 22nd, there will be an insert in the church bulletin where anyone can ask a question about Elders and what it ‘may’ look like at UHBC. These sheets may be turned into the church office, the offering plate, or directly to a staff member and then from March 1 - March 22nd I will be answering these questions on a Sunday morning so we can all engage with the question and answer.
As I have stated since my first day at UHBC on July 1, 2024, my desire for us as a church is to be Biblical even if it requires us as individuals and/or a church to make adjustments and changes. I believe adding Elders is encouraged in Scripture and have seen the personal benefit of having multiple elders in churches I have been part of to both help carry the spiritual load and weight of ministry. What it looks like will be unique to UHBC, but one way to get an example of the possible impact is to replace “pastor or senior pastor” in our current constitution and bylaws and replace it with Elders. I envision a model where we continue to use committees to accomplish the work of the ministry, with active deacons who serve our congregation and are an example of servanthood, a staff that leads in specific areas of ministry, Elders who have now joined with the senior pastor to lead spiritually throughout our church, and a congregation that affirms those in their roles and is actively involved in accomplishing our mission, vision, and values.
I am praying for our church as we come to this first decision of whether we want to move forward in our process. If you have questions, please ask them, and I am happy to meet with anyone who would rather discuss Elders or church organizational structure one-on-one. I believe there are great things in store for us as a church as we keep our focus on Christ to love God, love people, make disciples.
As I have stated since my first day at UHBC on July 1, 2024, my desire for us as a church is to be Biblical even if it requires us as individuals and/or a church to make adjustments and changes. I believe adding Elders is encouraged in Scripture and have seen the personal benefit of having multiple elders in churches I have been part of to both help carry the spiritual load and weight of ministry. What it looks like will be unique to UHBC, but one way to get an example of the possible impact is to replace “pastor or senior pastor” in our current constitution and bylaws and replace it with Elders. I envision a model where we continue to use committees to accomplish the work of the ministry, with active deacons who serve our congregation and are an example of servanthood, a staff that leads in specific areas of ministry, Elders who have now joined with the senior pastor to lead spiritually throughout our church, and a congregation that affirms those in their roles and is actively involved in accomplishing our mission, vision, and values.
I am praying for our church as we come to this first decision of whether we want to move forward in our process. If you have questions, please ask them, and I am happy to meet with anyone who would rather discuss Elders or church organizational structure one-on-one. I believe there are great things in store for us as a church as we keep our focus on Christ to love God, love people, make disciples.
MEN'S FELLOWSHIP
Saturday, March 7th from 6:00-7:30pm. Guys grab some meat and cook it however you desire. Then bring enough for at least 20 people to have a taste and we will share with each other. If you attend, you must bring a meat dish. Fellowship, food, and a devotional all in one place.
Saturday, March 7th from 6:00-7:30pm. Guys grab some meat and cook it however you desire. Then bring enough for at least 20 people to have a taste and we will share with each other. If you attend, you must bring a meat dish. Fellowship, food, and a devotional all in one place.
POTLUCK & MEETING
The next Church Conference will be on Sunday, March 22nd, for a potluck meal followed by our scheduled business meeting
The next Church Conference will be on Sunday, March 22nd, for a potluck meal followed by our scheduled business meeting
SENIOR EVENT
The March Senior adult event will be on Thursday, March 12, at 1 pm in Fellowship Hall. We will hear from local author Debbie Williams as she discusses both her writing and publishing process. Refreshments will be provided after her talk! RSVP to the office, please!
The March Senior adult event will be on Thursday, March 12, at 1 pm in Fellowship Hall. We will hear from local author Debbie Williams as she discusses both her writing and publishing process. Refreshments will be provided after her talk! RSVP to the office, please!
VETERANS AND FIRST RESPONDER GOLF TOURNAMENT
Supporting Vet Chat and Fellowship of Christian Athletes - March 28th. See Gary Kennedy for more information.
Supporting Vet Chat and Fellowship of Christian Athletes - March 28th. See Gary Kennedy for more information.
Next Month
LAST ONE OF THE SEMESTER
Come be part of our last gathering of the semester and close it out with community. Wednesday, April 1 starting at 8pm.
Come be part of our last gathering of the semester and close it out with community. Wednesday, April 1 starting at 8pm.
SAVE THE DATES
Churchwide Sausage Sizzle - Join us Sunday, April 19th, after worship service for our next church outdoor grilling event. Stay and enjoy sausages and fellowship.
Shotguns and Hotdogs Event - Sunday, April 26th, Join us at the Redding abode for Shotguns & Hotdogs, a casual church get-together with a special emphasis on connecting with college students. Come enjoy good food, fellowship, and a relaxed evening together. Time and address to be shared soon.
Churchwide Sausage Sizzle - Join us Sunday, April 19th, after worship service for our next church outdoor grilling event. Stay and enjoy sausages and fellowship.
Shotguns and Hotdogs Event - Sunday, April 26th, Join us at the Redding abode for Shotguns & Hotdogs, a casual church get-together with a special emphasis on connecting with college students. Come enjoy good food, fellowship, and a relaxed evening together. Time and address to be shared soon.
▪ MISSION ▪
Annie Walker Armstrong was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1850. Raised by their mother after her father’s death when Annie was two years old, the five Armstrong children were active in church and learned about their mother’s Christian faith. Annie’s early teenage years saw the Civil War cause division among the population of Baltimore and in her church congregation. One Sunday during the war, Annie’s pastor told his congregation, “The religion of Jesus Christ gives peace in the midst of trouble.” Wanting this peace for herself—the kind of peace she saw in her widowed mother—Annie trusted Jesus as her Savior that day.
Through her mother’s work supporting foreign missionaries, Annie developed her own desire to raise money to send missionaries around the world. But when she was 30, Annie heard a presentation about home missions. Previously, she had focused solely on supporting mission work in foreign countries. But as she heard about the work among Native Americans who had been forced into poverty on reservations, Annie had a strong desire to help them. She worked to form a home missions society to raise money and build a school for children in what would become the state of Oklahoma.
Eventually, Annie’s work grew into the Southern Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union, although she and the other female leaders faced opposition from some of the men in Southern Baptist leadership. Thirty years before the nineteenth amendment granted women the right to vote, it was an uphill battle to get support for their organization. But Annie felt strongly that Southern Baptist women would best be able to help the mission efforts of their churches through their own organization. She believed their work was “a force fore-ordained of God.”
In 1934, the Woman’s Missionary Union recognized Annie’s lifetime of work by naming the annual Easter offering for home missions in her honor. Every dollar raised for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering supports the work of the Southern Baptist missionaries involved in church planting and compassion ministries in the United States and Canada.
Through her mother’s work supporting foreign missionaries, Annie developed her own desire to raise money to send missionaries around the world. But when she was 30, Annie heard a presentation about home missions. Previously, she had focused solely on supporting mission work in foreign countries. But as she heard about the work among Native Americans who had been forced into poverty on reservations, Annie had a strong desire to help them. She worked to form a home missions society to raise money and build a school for children in what would become the state of Oklahoma.
Eventually, Annie’s work grew into the Southern Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union, although she and the other female leaders faced opposition from some of the men in Southern Baptist leadership. Thirty years before the nineteenth amendment granted women the right to vote, it was an uphill battle to get support for their organization. But Annie felt strongly that Southern Baptist women would best be able to help the mission efforts of their churches through their own organization. She believed their work was “a force fore-ordained of God.”
In 1934, the Woman’s Missionary Union recognized Annie’s lifetime of work by naming the annual Easter offering for home missions in her honor. Every dollar raised for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering supports the work of the Southern Baptist missionaries involved in church planting and compassion ministries in the United States and Canada.