Back to School

Many of us remember the anxiety we felt as we anticipated that first day of school.  From butterflies in the stomach to pure dread, you could say that the years brought forth a mixture of emotions.  What if my friends weren’t in my class?  What if I couldn’t handle this semesters schedule?  What if I forgot to bring my lunch?  These questions and many more filled our minds.  But it seems there are a new set of questions-some involving security, some involving curriculum, and even some the future of education in the U.S.   Perhaps that’s a parent’s perspective.  But whether you are a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, or a concerned citizen, we realize that education is important!  Education shapes our perspective, our worldview, and it gives us a hope for future.  With the return of school I can’t help but think about the future.  The future that teachers, administrators, school board members, mentors, parents, and leaders are investing in--our kids!  It’s also our job as the church to invest in these future generations.  One of the ways that we have committed to investing in our kids is to pray for them.  From prayer during Vacation Bible School to the start of the school year, we want to pray for our kids!   So, on weekend of September 7th & 8th we will be praying over our kids and this 2013-2014 school year.  It’s the blessing of the backpacks.  We want to encourage your kids to bring their backpacks to one of our weekend services: Saturday Night at 5:30pm, Sunday at 9:30am or 11:00am.  Yes, we will bless the backpacks, but more than just blessing the backpacks, we will be praying over our kids.  Prayers for their safety, prayers for focus, and prayers for an incredible school year.  This is a great way to get this school year started!  So come to worship on the weekend of September 7th & 8th and invest in future generations!  

Blessings 

Pastor Rachel 

The Bigger Picture

Sometimes it’s easy to get so focused on our own lives, our own stuff, and even our own drama that we miss the bigger picture.  We are part of something larger than ourselves.  The same kind of self-focus is true for the church.  It’s easy to get so wrapped up in what God is doing in a single location and forget God’s work throughout our community, city, nation, and world.  You may not realize it, but as a United Methodist Church we are part of a larger network of churches (over 8 million people) throughout the world!  United Methodism is our brand, it’s the branch of the movement of Jesus Christ that we are a part of, and although there is a lot of diversity throughout the world when it comes to Methodism, it’s part of our bigger picture.  

Since Methodism shapes who we are, it’s important to know a few things about this network of churches.  For example, Did you know we are part of The West Ohio Conference of The United Methodist Church?  Geographically The West Ohio Conference makes up 58 of the 88 counties in Ohio; it includes Cincinnati, Columbus, Toledo, Dayton, and Marietta, and incorporates nearly 1100 churches!  Within the West Ohio Conference there are 8 districts and we are a part of the Ohio River Valley District.   United Methodist churches in Hamilton, Warren, Clinton, Clermont, and Butler Counties come together to form the Ohio River Valley District.  We certainly are not alone in claiming our community and the city of Cincinnati for Jesus Christ!  

Since we are connected, it’s important to name and see this part of our bigger picture.  How do we see it?  Next weekend we will have the honor of meeting our new Assistant District Superintendent, Reverend Doug Johns. Rev. Johns will be preaching on Saturday Night, August 24th at 5:30pm and Sunday, August 25th at 9:30am & 11:00am.  It’s a great opportunity for us to welcome Rev. Johns and to catch a glimpse of our bigger picture! 

We are United Methodists.  It’s our brand, our movement, and our part of the larger body of Christ.  Church, that’s the whole picture- all of us together no matter what church we come from- we are all part of the body of Jesus Christ!  

Blessings, 

Pastor Rachel 

   

We Are Family

We Are Family

In 1979 Sister Sledge released the hit dance song, “We are Family.”  This catchy tune is a reminder that family is more than just biology, it’s more than the people that share your DNA, family is a reality that crosses social, economic, and political structures.  Family is such a strong word that drums within us emotional responses.  Sometimes when we think of family our hearts are flooded with joy-filled memories and then there are moments where the term family tears open a wound.  Family is complicated, but one of the greatest realities of the word “family” is a spiritual one.  From the Old Testament to the New, we Christians embrace our identity as members of the family of God.  We are family.  Perhaps one of the most profound examples of being family is the early church.  As people started following Jesus a new family reality began to emerge.  A reality where widows were taken care of, children that were abandoned adopted in, and the poor and powerless embraced.  No longer were religious people concerned with DNA and biology, now they embraced a family marked by the waters of baptism.  Baptism, not biology became the marker of what it meant to be part of the family of God.

This week as I have embraced the newest member of the Billups’ family, I am reminded of just how awesome and powerful it is to be part of the family of God.  Throughout this week, not only have I received hundreds of messages through cards, Facebook, email, and text, but also I have felt the prayers of my family.  It is incredible to be a part of the family of God right here at Shiloh Church!  Jon and I are grateful for your love and support during this time of new life in our lives!  And I am also incredibly grateful for the leadership of Shiloh Church, both our staff and also our lay leaders.  Everyday I am reminded of the gifts and passion of Pastor Brent, Pastor Danny, and Pastor Dorian and how they are giving their all to gift me with this time away.  As family I want you to know that I am praying for you daily and I ask you to pray for me, Jon, Adeline, Christopher, and Baby David.  We will need all the prayers you can send our way.  

Shiloh, we are family!  I thank God that I have such an incredible family at Shiloh Church!  

Blessings, 

Pastor Rachel 

New Life

New Life is always something we marvel at: from the birth of new babies to the tree buds of spring.  New life fills us with wonder, anticipation and a sense of hope.  And even though our mornings of late feel more like fall than the heart of summer, new life is all around us: a new Shiloh campus in Price Hill, a regular stream of new faces in Delhi,  and even a new order of worship in all Delhi services!  This weekend we will have passed out 800 back packs at Shiloh Fest to families eager to prepare for this new school year.  Our building will be full to over flowing with people looking to the future in the faces of their children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.  It’s an awesome experience!  But Shiloh Fest isn’t just about the back packs, it’s about relationships.  We want to build relationship with people in our community, people in our church, and ultimately we want our relationships to point people to a relationship with Jesus Christ! We want people to experience the new life that only comes from Jesus!  Whether you’ve been a Shiloh for a while, or you are brand new, a relationship with Jesus can bring a renewed hope to our lives every single day.  And we need it!  We need that regular reminder that new life is possible, that abundant life is possible!   In John 10:10, Jesus said, “I have come that you might have life and have it to the full.”  Jesus wants us to live and I mean really live.  No matter what we are experiencing in our everyday lives, Jesus can bring a hope, a refreshment, and a renewal that will open our hearts, minds, bodies, and souls to the new life all around us!  He is making all things new!  

Hopefully as you are reading this, I am celebrating new life!  Like the rest of my kids, David Isaiah Billups has decided to take a few extra days to hang out in the womb, but I know I will not be pregnant forever.  New life will happen!  Not only in my life, but also in yours.  Jesus has come to bring us life!

Blessings, 

Pastor Rachel 

Hurry Up and Wait

“Wait for the Lord;  be strong and take heart  and wait for the Lord” (Psalm 27: 14 NIV).  

I’ve got to be honest, I hate to wait.  I’m not naturally a patient person.  I don’t like to wait in lines, I don’t like to wait for my Wifi to work, and I certainly am not found of waiting for big events to happen in my life.  So you can imagine that I am not doing a great job of waiting on the Lord these days.  As I write today’s blog I am 12 days and counting from my due date.  If the past is any indication of the future, I may have to wait a few extra days before I meet the child that has occupied my body over the last 9 months.  You could say, “it’s worth the wait.” True, but in the midst of being uncomfortable, anxious, and just in general as busy as I can possibly be, waiting is the last thing on my to do list.  

You might find yourself waiting.  Maybe it’s not a baby that you are waiting for.  Maybe it’s an answer, a decision, a job, or even a friend.  But a lot of life seems like a hurry up and wait.  If we don’t pay attention to the waiting, we will miss a lot.  In our “need for speed” sometimes we can fail to reflect, fail to enjoy, and fail to wait for the presence of the Lord in our lives.  Just as a new born baby is worth the wait, so is the presence of God.  God is worth the wait.  I wonder do you ever spend time waiting for the Lord.  Sitting in a quiet place: on a porch, in the woods, or even just at your kitchen table; quiet, listening, waiting on the Lord?  It’s not easy, especially for hurry up and wait people like me, but it makes all the difference.  It gives us time to breathe, it gives us time to reflect, it gives us time to live in the present moment.  

I may be in a hurry to have this baby but I don’t want to miss the opportunity to wait for God.  

Blessings, 

Pastor Rachel   

What does it mean to be ordained?

Throughout the last couple of weeks we have been talking about the next steps that our Associate Pastor and Director of Discipleship Ministries (birth-college age), Brent Dearnell, is taking toward becoming an ordained pastor in The United Methodist Church.  This Wednesday, July 17, at 7pm, we will be having a Charge Conference to confirm the SPPRC’s (Staff Pastor Parish Relations Committee) decision to affirm Brent’s request to become a Certified Candidate for Ordained Ministry.  Now some of you might be asking yourselves what does all of this mean?  

In The United Methodist Church we have a process for everything so it shouldn’t be surprising to note that there is a lengthy process for ordaining pastors within our denomination.  It takes years--a call from God, an education (both college and graduate school), and prayerful discernment both on the part of the person who is called and the people that are affirming that calling.  So what are we doing on Wednesday Night?  We are affirming the call on Brent’s life.  We are asking ourselves the question, “Do we see the fruit of pastoral ministry in Brent Dearnell?”  Although the Leadership Council will be the group to take the official vote, if you would like to be a part of the conversation you are more than welcome to attend Wednesday Night’s Meeting in Class Room 1.  

This is an exciting time in Brent’s life.  Not only is he taking the next steps toward his call in ministry, but he is also growing as a spiritual leader here at Shiloh.  That’s why it’s without hesitation that I will be passing the baton of leadership to Brent while I’m on maternity leave.  In other words, Brent is in charge!  Don’t hesitate to contact Brent with any pastoral care concerns or ministry concerns you might have.  He can be contacted at brent@shilohumc.com or 513-451-3600 #106.  Please join with me in praying for Brent while he takes these next steps in his faith journey.  

As always pray for your pastors.  I need it, Brent, Danny, and Dorian need it.  It is truly an honor to serve Shiloh United Methodist Church.

Blessings, 

Pastor Rachel 

   

A Real Treasure Book

When I was growing up, I can remember a book that my mother kept by her night stand.  It was a cloth- bound, bright red book with very old images throughout it.  It looked kind of like an ancient treasure book- with it’s funny pictures and fancy lettering.   It wasn’t until I got older that I discovered that this mysterious treasure book was none other than an old book of Psalms.  One could say that the book of Psalms is a treasure book.  

The book of Psalms is the longest book in the Bible, and it contains the longest chapter of the Bible- Psalm 119.  Written over hundreds of years, many of it’s chapters are attributed to Bible giants like David and Moses.  It seems that the book of Psalms was written as a kind of hymn book (book of liturgies) purposed for worship, first in the Tabernacle and then in the Temple.  Most of the Psalms are set to song.  You may notice as you read through the book of Psalms headings that describe the type of instrument that would have been used for a particular psalm.  For example Psalm 5, “For the director of music.  For flutes. A psalm of David.”  For thousands of years people have been using the book of psalms as a song book for worship.  One of the founders of the Reformation movement in the 16th century, John Calvin believed the book of Psalms to be the perfect book of worship.  He wrote, “There is no other book in which we are more perfectly taught the right manner of praising God, or in which we are more powerfully stirred up to the performance of this exercise of piety.”   His beliefs on the book of Psalms lead some Protestant faith traditions to limit their hymn singing to the psalms.  Although we, as United Methodist, don’t limit our praise to the Psalms, many of the songs found in our hymn book and modern worship songs are inspired by or a direct quote of a psalm.  

But these scriptural treasures are not just songs of praise, they also include words of lament (passionate grief), prayers of confession, declarations of trust, and words of wisdom.  In essence it is a treasure book, a book filled with expressions of our deepest emotions, our frustrations, our victories, our hopes, and our dreams.  My mom still keeps that little cloth book on her self, she still reads from its pages, she still sings it’s songs, and she still prays it’s prayers.  Reading through and praying through the book of Psalms is a great way to connect to God.  So throughout the month of July I want to challenge you to read the book of Psalms and discover it's treasures for yourself! 

Blessings, 

Rachel