A MESSAGE FROM REV. J.C. AUSTIN: Youth in Action “What’s going on with youth ministry these days?” I’ve heard several versions of this question recently, and this is a good time to answer it! Over the past few months, we’ve been living into the experiment that our hard-working Design Team...
A MESSAGE FROM REV. J.C. AUSTIN: Leadership in Action This Sunday, there are two special elements happening in worship of which I want to make you aware. The first is that it is Scout Sunday. First Presbyterian has chartered Troop 302 for over 100 continuous years, beginning just six years...
A MESSAGE FROM REV. J.C. AUSTIN: An exciting new season for FPCB’s life Last Sunday, we held our Annual Congregational and Corporation meeting and made some very important decisions. First, we elected new Elders and Deacons to serve for the next three years in those crucial ministries of leadership and...
A MESSAGE FROM REV. J.C. AUSTIN: Interesting – and exciting! As you hopefully know, this Sunday is our Annual Congregational and Corporation meeting, immediately following a combined worship service (with elements of both contemporary and traditional worship) at 10 a.m. in the Sanctuary. I have to admit, “Annual Meeting” is...
A MESSAGE FROM REV. J.C. AUSTIN: Learning more about Baptism Last week I reflected on some of the typical questions that come up about the sacrament of Communion. I heard some positive feedback about that as well as some requests for something similar about Baptism, so I thought I’d do...
A MESSAGE FROM REV. J.C. AUSTIN: Learning more about Communion Recently, we have had several opportunities, scheduled close together, to share Communion as a congregation. That also means that we’ve had several opportunities in which people have asked different questions about why we do what we do in celebrating Communion,...
A MESSAGE FROM REV. J.C. AUSTIN: Practicing our faith Well, it’s that time of year again: with the new year comes the discussion of New Year’s resolutions. And the most popular resolutions never seem to change: lose weight, eat healthier, exercise more, stop smoking, etc. Now, there’s nothing wrong with...
The poet W.H. Auden summed up how many people view the week after Christmas in his poem, For the Time Being. As he sits in the aftermath of Christmas celebrations, he reflects: Well, so that is that. Now we must dismantle the tree, putting the decorations back into their cardboard boxes...
Christmas is almost here! The busyness of the season is in full swing, I know, and that is certainly the case here at First Pres over the next few days. But in the midst of that busyness, I hope that you will both seek and find time for reflection, celebration,...
A MESSAGE FROM REV. J.C. AUSTIN: ALREADY BEGINNING TO HAPPEN When I was a child, Advent always made a lot more sense to me than Lent. In the Christian church, we typically talk about Advent as a season of waiting, and that’s exactly what Advent felt like: waiting for Christmas...