Waiting in the Wilderness In this busy Advent season as we await the coming of Jesus, we tend to have parties, events, and activities aplenty. I could sure use some caffeine to keep moving towards Christmas. Since coffee was on my mind, I saw this humorous revision of the beginning of the Gospel of Mark: In the wilderness, prepare the first cup of coffee. Make every weak cup strong, and every empty cup full. - John the Barista Jesus, too, probably needed a huge mug of coffee in order to survive his time in the wilderness at the beginning of his ministry. We recently completed a study of the Gospel of Mark on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings where we gave in depth attention to the earliest gospel. We don t naturally think about the beginning of Mark s Gospel and the adult Jesus when we approach this time of year. So, how does John the Baptist, a voice calling out in the wilderness, and Jesus coming to be baptized relate to Advent? How can an opening narrative of a prophet, a baptizer, a Messiah, and eager disciples be an appropriate story of Christmas? I think the opening of the Gospel of Mark reveals that Advent is a time of waiting, anticipation, and coming. For you see, Jesus came out of the wilderness and approached his cousin, he waited in the long line of humanity to be baptized into a new way of life, and then he went back out into the wilderness to find silence and solitude, gathering strength for his mission. I think the feeling of being in the wilderness is much more like Advent than we care to admit because those first century Christians were being persecuted by Rome and they were afraid for their lives. They didn t know how the story would end and if they d ever make it out of the wilderness of fear and foreboding. They needed good news and the only way good news would come to them was when they pushed through and survived the wilderness. And so, the Gospel of Mark begins in the wilderness and it is in that wilderness where good news has its beginnings. The author of Mark was calling those first Christian readers to remember early stories of salvation when Moses, Elijah, David, John, and Jesus all spent time in the wilderness as part of the redemption of God s people. Character is built in the wilderness, confidence in God s power is shaped in the wilderness, and the promise of salvation is found in the wilderness. So, I think during Advent, we are beckoned to wait patiently, not in fear, but in the hope that the Christ Child will come to us in the wilderness of our lives as long as we pay attention. My favorite author and mystic, Henri Nouwen, asks us to lean into the angels pronouncement to pay attention, give energy to the Advent waiting, and do not fear. He says, Waiting, then, is not passive. It involves nurturing the moment, as a mother nurtures the child that is growing in her. Zechariah, Elizabeth, and Mary were very present to the moment. That is why they could hear the angel. They were alert, attentive to the voice that spoke to them and said, Don t be afraid. Something is happening to you. Pay attention. As we wait in the wilderness, let us pay close attention as we anticipate the coming of Christ this Advent season. Pastor Mike The next issues of The Mosaic are scheduled for December 21, 2018 & January 5, 2019. The deadline for submissions will be 5:00 p.m. Tuesday prior to the date of publication.
Coming Events Sunday December 9 Second Sunday of Advent 8:30 am Deacons Meeting Portable 9:30 am Donuts, Coffee/Juice Family Hall 9:45 am Christian Education Christian Education Classrooms & Portable 1 10:55 am Morning Worship What Sweeter Music by John Leavitt, presented by the Sanctuary Choir Sanctuary Following Worship Tabulating Committee Library Monday December 10 6:00 pm Women of the Church Family Hall 7:00 pm Faith & Arts Committee Room 206 Tuesday December 11 8:30 pm Tech Committee Conference Call Wednesday December 12 3:30 pm Holy Rollers Mission Project Room 202 5:30 pm Family Supper Family Hall Beef Stew, Salad, Bread, Chocolate Cake 6:00 pm Youth Activities/Study Hall Youth Basement 6:15 pm Children s Choir/Missions Children s Building 6:15 pm Midweek Service Advent Study with Mike Gregg Family Hall 7:15 pm Sanctuary Choir Rehearsal Sanctuary Friday December 14 6:00 pm Youth Christmas Party Youth Basement (6:00 9:00 pm) 6:00 pm Parents of Children & Youth Christmas Party Family Hall (6:00 9:00 pm) Saturday December 15 9:00 am Men of the Church Breakfast First Watch, 1661 Forest Lane, Dallas, TX (Preston/Forest) Sunday December 16 Third Sunday of Advent 9:00 am Prayer Place Sunday School Class Library 9:30 am Donuts, Coffee/Juice Family Hall 9:45 am Christian Education Christian Education Classrooms & Portable 1 10:55 am Morning Worship Sanctuary 12:15 pm Program Council Planning & Calendaring Meeting Family Hall Wednesday December 19 Mosaic 3:30 pm Holy Rollers Mission Project Room 202 5:30 pm Family Supper Family Hall Chicken & Rice Soup, Salad, Bread, Christmas Cookies 6:15 pm Children s Choir/Missions Children s Building 6:15 pm Mourning Light & White Gift Offering Holy Communion offered Family Hall 7:15 pm Sanctuary Choir Rehearsal Sanctuary Looking Ahead Sunday December 23 Fourth Sunday of Advent 10:00 am Brunch and Ken Medema Family Hall (10:00 am 12:00 pm) Watch for Details (No Sunday School Classes) The deadline for the order of service, the Midweek, and the Mosaic is Tuesday, 5:00 p.m. prior to publication. Like RLBC on Facebook or Follow RLBC on Twitter Designs by Debi in Box-Hawkins Gallery Box-Hawkins Gallery is featuring seasonal wreaths created by our own Debi Wooten (Designs by Debi). They will be on display through December. Go by and see how beautiful they are and if you are interested in buying one, check with Debi. She is willing to negotiate on the price as we get closer to the end of the show. Also, you can check with her about a custom design that she could create for you.
Missions Matters Royal Lane has a long history of answering God s call to love through service. Missions Matters will appear in the Mosaic on a regular basis. It will highlight our continuing commitment to missions and other matters where we reach out to the community. This will be a place where we will tell our stories and perhaps help you find what matters most to you. Send your mission story to Karen Miller. Staff Love Gift During this Giving time of year let s not forget those who give so much to us all year. Our church staff willingly and lovingly provide many services for us throughout the year. As in the past, if you d like to express your personal appreciation, please mail your check to the Church Office or place it in the offering plate by Sunday, December 9. Be sure your contribution is clearly marked Staff Love Gift. You may also go online and donate under Staff Love Offering at onrealm.org/royallane/give Rebecca Rempert, Deacon Chair It s Chores for Chickens Time! Chores for Chickens is our annual mission project where the children and youth do chores and odd jobs to earn money for Heifer International. Each year we work for family, friends and neighbors, and then the children and youth vote on which gifts to give families in need. Last year we raised around $650, and we were able to buy two goats and a sheep, seeds, several flocks of chicks, and some honeybees. If you want to hire the children to do a chore for you contact Charlotte Sewell (214) 533-7326. We also accept cash donations if you want to help but have no chores for us. Please help us help families in need! We have these time slots available for church friends. Let Charlotte know what works for you! Saturday Dec. 8 (morning) Sunday Dec. 9 (after church) Saturday Dec. 15 (morning) Sunday Dec. 16 (after church) Stewardship Update We invite you to join your RLBC Family in celebrating the ministries of this church with generosity and love. As of Tuesday, December 4, we have received 99 pledges for a total of $576,625 toward the 2019 operating budget. Our goal is $700,000 to continue to support all the ministries of Royal Lane. Please consider increasing your pledge, making a pledge, or giving a one-time gift to help us reach our goal. You may place your pledge card in the offering plate or email Janet Schultz, jschultz@royallane.org.
Mourning Light Service & White Gift Offering December 19, 6:15 p.m. Family Hall. We will gather at 5:30 p.m. for a meal of soup and bread. A service of healing and wholeness for those who mourn during the Advent and Christmas seasons will be held at 6:15 p.m. We will receive communion as a part of this service. Bring a gift of canned goods or nonperishable food, wrapped in white to bring forward at communion to support North Dallas Shared Ministries. (childcare provided) NDSM Needs: Chili, Soup, Pasta, Canned Pasta sauce. (NDSM cannot accept glass containers.) The tradition of White Gift has its roots in a small Methodist church in Ohio in 1904. What began as a humble way to reflect on the love and devotion of the giver and not the value of the gift has grown into today's white gift services in many churches across several denominations. The story is told that a minister's wife initiated the idea to solve the problem of inequity of gifts given at the Sunday school Christmas party. Instead of focusing on receiving gifts, the focus shifted to bringing gifts to Jesus that could in turn be shared with people around the world who did not have much. All the gifts would come wrapped in plain white paper, so that no one would know which was an expensive gift and which was a more modest one. No one would feel ashamed of their gift and everyone would share in the joy of giving to others. (Artwork Blue Christmas Candle, John Stuart used by permission)
Women of the Church and RLBC Holiday Mission 2018 You are invited to Women of the Church, Monday, December 10. Dinner 6:00 pm Baked Potato Bar with all the trimmings. Bring salads and desserts to share. Women of the Church will be stuffing stockings for Healing Hands Ministries Medical Clinic. No time to shop? Make contributions to the Stocking Stuffer fund by Sunday, December 9, and we will shop for you. Mark your gift Stocking Stuffer and give to Laura Keller. Congratulations to Sarah Wells Macias on her ordination, November 4, 2018.
Prayer Requests: Connie Bechtol Georgia Bradford, mother of Terry Berrier Aidan Brown, son of Gregg & Dawn Brown Rick Crutcher Robbye Foster s brother, Robert Rita Gell, aunt of Mike Hurder Barney Gilbreath, friend of Karen Miller Heather Graves, niece of Daryl Willey s cousin, Byron Willey Marilyn Lanfear, mother of Theresa Helms Lauren Madeley, friend of Brett Washburn Ruth May Wayne McClellan Forrest McKinney Gary Raiza, son, Joan Wright, sister of Maebelle Raiza Danny Ray Liz & Matt Rowan, daughter & son-in-law of Bill & Jo Ferguson Daniel Solyom Ron Sumter, father of Steve Sumter Sandra Tilden, daughter of Dorothy Tilden Ray & Sharon Vickrey Garry Walker, cousin of Melissa Walker-Luckett, his father, Milburn Walker and brother, Mike Walker Jordan Weilage Byron Willey, cousin of Daryl Willey John Wolf, Garland Pipe Organ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Please continue to pray for: Jackie Arnold, sister of Cathy Webb; Lyn & Gordon Brown; Jerome Collins, friend of Mike Hurder; Robbye Foster s brother, Robert; Doug Leinneweber; Minnie Macias, mother of Rodney Macias; Barbara Mandeville, sister of Sandy Washington; William Oz Osborne; Robert Putman; Emelda Schultz, mother of Laurence Schultz; Ray Thompson, father of Dan Thompson ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Remember the homebound: Norman Morris; Betty Renfroe; Libba Studdard; James C. Walker Thank You Note Dear Royal Lane Church, May your church thrive and grow as you share God s blessings. Thank you, LINKS (Sandy Washington s organization) Sunday, December 9 What Sweeter Music A service of Choral Music by John Leavitt presented by the Sanctuary Choir Note from Laura Alicia, our faithful nursery worker, is getting married!! I am so excited for her and her fiancé, Gabriel. I am sad though to announce that she will be leaving us. Gabriel and Alicia will be moving to a base in Nebraska where he will be serving in the US Armed Forces. Sunday, December 9, is Alicia's last day. We will throw her a small going away/happy wedding/thank you and we will miss you party on Sunday morning. If you feel so moved - I will have a gift bowl to collect cash and gift cards as a way to send her and her new husband off with our best wishes. Alicia has been in our Royal Lane nursery for nearly five years and been such a good friend every Sunday and Wednesday to our youngest Loves. Let us pray for her happiness and many blessings for her new beginnings! Laura
Deacons of the Week December 9 Rebecca Rempert [214] 563-6535 Karen Miller [214] 724-0655 December 16 Cathy Webb [214] 354-4766 Harry Hunter [469] 662-1855 Midweek Service 6:15 p.m. Wednesday in Family Hall December 12 Advent Study with Mike Gregg December 19 Mourning Light & White Gift Offering Join us for a Fellowship Meal at 5:30 pm. In the Box-Hawkins Gallery Designs by Debi Gallery open by appointment 10-4, weekdays, 10-5 Wednesdays To change mail or email preferences for The Mosaic, contact Barbara Merry, 214-361-2809, ext. 10 or bmerry@royallane.org. Scriptures of the Week December 9 Malachi 3:1-4 Luke 1:68-79 Philippians 1:3-11 Luke 3:1-6 December 16 Zephaniah 3:14-20 Isaiah 12:2-6 Philippians 4:4-7 Luke 3:7-18 Midweek Menu Wednesday, December 12 Beef Stew, Salad, Bread, Chocolate Cake Wednesday, December 19 Chicken & Rice Soup, Salad, Bread, Christmas Cookies Midweek Meal Prices Adults - $7 per person Families - $15 per family Seniors - $5 per person Menus are available on the RLBC website calendar. Happy Birthday! December Charlotte Sewell... 5 Brodie Keller... 6 Tim Schefer... 8 Sean Berrier... 13 Linda Binder... 14 David Soames... 14 Kevin Hall... 15 Janet Schultz... 15 Jordan Simmons... 16 Kate Thompson... 16 Chris Cechan... 17 Clint Cechan... 17
Royal Lane Baptist Church 6707 Royal Lane Dallas, Texas 75230-4145 The Mosaic is published twice a month Royal Lane Baptist Church 6707 Royal Lane Office Hours: Dallas, TX 75230-4145 Monday - Friday: 9:00 am - 5:00 pm Wednesday Midweek: 6:15 pm Office: [214] 361-2809 Sunday School: 9:45 am Fax: [214] 361-2988 Sunday Worship: 10:55 am www.royallane.org Rosa Barrientos, Housekeeping Michael Gregg, Pastor Michael Hurder, Facilities Manager Laura Keller, Minister to Children Barbara Merry, Administrative Assistant Samuel Quesada, Video Technician Tim Schaefer, Minister to Youth Janet Schultz, Administrative Assistant Blake Vickrey, Sound Technician Ray Vickrey, Pastor Emeritus David Weigle, Organist Harry Wooten, Minister of Music and Worship