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Dear Friends,

It was a very moving moment and a signature weekend for Christ Church. In one weekend we saw three amazing things. First, Michael Boone was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Lebhar. Second, we had a great group of new members join the church at the 11 a.m. service. Third, we saw the finished product of what our Children’s Ministry has been up to for the last few months. I’ll explain.

Michael Boone’s ordination signaled the answer to a prayer that so many of us have been praying. During the Renew campaign last year, we prayed and searched for the right team to lead our student ministries. I first connected with Eric Willits, our Middle School minister, about this time last year. Then in April, I interviewed Michael. And as we got to know these two, we saw that God was calling them one-by-one into the ministry here. First Michael, and then, when we had a vacancy in Middle School, we welcomed Eric to the staff.

To me, these two men joining our staff and Michael’s ordination are a symbol of the strength behind this church. We are committed to focus on our youth. Many people contributed with their campaign pledges, and the Lord has been faithful. We have two great leaders, one of whom was just ordained to the priesthood.

Second, we had a great Gateway class. This is also a symbol to me of the faithfulness of God. We are seeing more and more visitors each week. Our visitors are from all over. Some are new believers; others are seasoned followers of Christ. Most are young (younger than me anyway!) and looking for a parish family to grow deep in their faith.

Third, the Children’s Ministry has changed in the last year also. There are great things going on. The new space and worship environment for the kids is terrific. Again, this is the result of our congregation-wide effort to eliminate our debt and raise the profile of our student and family ministries.

 

What a joy! By the way, our debt has gone from $5.2M to $1.9M in just over a year! We have a ways to go, but you and I know that this is the right and wise thing to do. We are nearly free to pursue more of the ministry efforts that God wants from us.

Here are some other things that I want to share:

Vestry Election

Our vestry election will take place at all four of our services this weekend. In addition, the Annual Report is available for you to review. Copies are available in the Narthex or you can download it now.

A word about our election; it is obvious that with five candidates running for four positions, there will be one person not elected. Many people have come to me with a pastoral concern. Wouldn’t that one lone person feel bad? My reaction is to say no. This election process is not about winners and losers. It is about completing the process of a call. Trust me, there are many members who have served with distinction who knew that they hadn’t won anything in their election. But when we place ourselves before God for his service, He will always say, “Yes.” But He might say, “Yes, but not in this area.”

Holy Land Trip

Please pray for Fran and me beginning next week. We will lead a tour of the Holy Land from January 30 to February 8. This will be our 8th tour, and we are as excited about this trip as any previous trips. Why? Because we get to make a house call to the land of the Bible. We see the things that God did in history. And we experience afresh the way he does things today. We have about 30 people going. If you want to follow our trip, please follow me on Twitter.

Follow @dhroseberry

Update from Addison, TX

According to my son, Jed, his church in Addison is blowing and going. Jed and Stacy planted the church 2 years ago, and now they have a new facility, a new sense of mission and a growing group of young families and new members.

If you know anyone in the Addison area, have them to check out Restoration Anglican Church.

Dilemma of Life

And finally…

Do you believe in unconditional love? Inquiring minds want to know.

See you Sunday.
In Christ,

David+

Dear Friends,

I was ordained to the priesthood on February 4, 1983. It was literally a dark and stormy night in Tucson, Arizona. My father-in-law took pictures of a young man who was ready to commit himself to the service of God through the Church. I can remember the evening, the moment, the friends and family who were there. I will never forget it.

We have a chance to have a moment like that this week. Deacon Michael Boone will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Priests on Sunday at the 11 a.m. service. This is an incredibly special moment for Mike and his wife, Katie; and especially for our youth. It signifies many things that we should all be aware of and give thanks to God for.

1. It says that the Anglican Church in North America has some great young leaders who are emerging. Mike is 27 years old and is among the finest young leaders I have seen come through the ordination process. He has a full life of ministry and service to the Lord ahead. The church will be stronger because of what God will do through him.
    
2. It says that God has blessed the Renew efforts of Christ Church. You will remember that we began to focus our prayers and ministry on the youth and children of our parish. The Lord connected this young man to our church. He has come to us and begun building a Senior High fellowship. A lot of our youth will be there on Sunday to celebrate with Mike and Katie.
    
3. It says that Anglicanism is a method of being a Christian that is still very appealing to the emerging generations. Mike, and there are many more like him, love being Anglican Christians. In fact, I am meeting with a group of about 14 young men and women who are praying about their vocation as ordained leaders in the Anglican Church in North America. It is growing.

I will preach the same message at all the services over the weekend, but I especially hope that you can make it for the Ordination Service at 11 a.m. Also, we welcome Bishop Neil Lebhar from the Gulf Atlantic Diocese in Jacksonville, Florida to officiate the proceedings.

Until then, here are the things you need to know.

The Numbers Are In

The Lord was moving mightily in December in terms of our financial stewardship. We ended the year in the black, but inquiring minds want to know how in the black? God be praised, it was just under $110,000 in the black! But here are some more interesting highlights:

• On a year-to-year comparison, 2011 was extremely similar to 2010 for the operating fund.
• Giving came from across the congregation, not from one or two large, lump-sum donations. It was definitely a church-wide effort in December to end the year in the black.
• Total giving for 2011 exceeded 2010 by $1.2 million.
• The current debt balance (as of 1/17/12) is $1,955,000.

Did you take note of the last number? The total indebtedness is under the $2,000,000 mark! Press On!

Gateway Recap

Besides this great finish (Praise God!), January is off to a great start with a packed house last Sunday night for the Gateway class. I don’t know how many of those in attendance will become members, but there was a great sense of joy in the room. One man had been visiting for six years; another family had been visiting for 3 weeks.

In the Twittersphere

I have joined the Twitter world, if you’d like to follow me. Every day I have an interesting life, and I have tried to tweet what I see God doing. Click the button below to follow me:

Follow @dhroseberry

Anglican 1000 Summit

Finally, our church is hosting the Anglican 1000 Summit again. Last year we had over 325 church planters join us for the three-day conference on church planting. We just crossed the 100 mark in terms of registration. I think it will be a great group of leaders. Go here to find our more about Anglican 1000.

That’s about it. I’ll see you all this week. And I thank God for all my remembrance of you. (Phil 1:3)

In Christ,

Fr. David+

I don’t think you can send this to friends too many times.

Dear Friends,

First of all, Happy New Year! The last few weeks have been a wonderful time for our church. We were together for Lessons and Carols and Christmas Eve in what I felt were two of the most uplifting, God-honoring, Christ-centered worship services that I have ever attended.

January is a great time to look backwards and forwards at the same time. Look back over the year just past. Do you see God’s redemptive hand at work in your life? Healing wounds? Teaching lessons of faithfulness? Do you sense that Christ was walking with you? Did you feel the presence of the Holy Spirit within you? Give thanks to God for these things. They are unique privileges that we have as Children who are born of God. (John 1:13)

Take a look at this video, too. Give thanks to God for this work here at Christ Church. Be sure to send this video off to your friends and family. What a great story we have to tell here!

[Video link: 2011 Year In Review]

The future? Well, that is in God’s hands too, as it should be. There is a well-known saying that is worth memorizing, “I don’t know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future.” The Great Apostle Paul had this to say about it in 1 Corinthians 2:9:

What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God as prepared for those who love him

And from the Book of Common Prayer (p.60), based on Ephesians 3:20-21:

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to Him from generation to generation in the church, and in Christ Jesus…

Let’s pray about these things together…this weekend. But in the meantime, please know of my joy in sharing another year with this fine church.

Sunday School & Bible Studies

Ministry for every age and stage of life starts again for the new year. Children and Youth will be back in Sunday School January 8. Sunday Bible studies for adults begin the same day with 360 at 9:15 a.m. On Point Men’s Study and Women’s Bible studies will also begin next week.

Financial Peace

In addition, I am sure many of you made a commitment to get your financial life in order in 2012. Let me suggest Financial Peace University which begins this Saturday, January 7. It has made a tremendous impact on many in our congregation. Think about taking this course to learn more about faithful stewardship of the financial resources God has given you!

We Are Here For You

And, as always, our clergy and ministry staff are available for you if there is ever a moment when you need someone to come alongside you during a difficult season. They would find it a privilege to talk and pray with you.

• Prayer Line: (972) 491-7729
• Online Prayer Request »
• General Contact Form »

Happy New Year,

Fr. David+

Dear Friends,

My heart is full to overflowing from the worship we had together on Sunday morning. If there was ever anything that traced the pattern of God’s saving purposes, it was on display with the traditional lessons and carols Scripture reading. What a blessing.

And someone wrote me that they had discovered a new favorite Christmas carol. It was sung as an anthem. The music was beautiful, but the words themselves are gospel-rich. Read it as a poem…and thank Him (Father) who sent and Him (Jesus) to come, and He (Holy Spirit) who stays with us.

Dream Team

I want you all to know the joy that I have in being your rector. Each week I find new meaning and new joy as I search the Scriptures and ask God to convey his eternal truths through this all-too-human vessel. Thank you for the privilege of doing this in a church filled with grace. Thanks to our incredible staff. I have told many people this year that we have a dream team as at no other time in the life of our church. The right people doing the right thing. They are terrific. I love them and pray for them all.

Roseberry Family

Finally, we had a family-only surprise for Fran on a significant birthday of hers. All of our children came in to overwhelm her with love. Here is a shot of our family.

 

Taye and Tray on the left, Jed on the couch. His wife Stacy on the far right. Liz and Daniel on her left. That young lady on the couch next to the middle-aged bald guy…that’s Fran and me, joy-filled and full of thanks.

Merry Christmas!

+David

 

Dear Friends,

There is a lot going on, and all of it shows a healthy church getting ready for a great celebration as a parish family.

Away in a Manger

I was at the Christmas Pageant on Sunday afternoon to ‘behold’ the manger scene. It was beautiful. What a sweet, serious and beautiful offering it was. It seemed a bit old-fashioned, in a sense. I mean that in a good way. The script of Christ’s birth was taken from the King James Version. The children spoke their lines with a wonderful combination of nervousness and rehearsed confidence. The choir of shepherds was confident and firm as they sang the choruses of the carols. The sheep…well, the sheep were the cutest things I have seen in a long time. “Baaaaaing” their way through the whole performance while on stage. You may be able detect their bellowing on this short video clip.

Share the Celebration

This is all in preparation for the great moment on Christmas Eve when we gather to celebrate the Lord’s birth. We have four services; all of them are wide open to anyone. The 4 o’clock service is for small children and young families. It is a bit noisy, always fun, short and celebratory. The 6, 8 and 10 are beautiful and inspiring candlelight services.

Now that you know the schedule, I want to ask a favor. We have invested in some radio advertisement on WRR and KLTY to invite the wider community to our Christmas Eve services. But the most well received invitation will come from you. So please, invite your friends to celebrate with us on December 24.

Share the Christmas Eve event on Facebook »

 

Now, here are a few things you need to know.

Sermon Queries

My sermon on Sunday produced a number of requests for further information.

Shirt Pocket Quote
Moving from the sublime to the ridiculous, here is the quote I mentioned that I had carried in my shirt pocket for a week.

In the day-to-day trenches of adult life, there is no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship. And an outstanding reason for choosing (God) is that pretty much anything else you worship will eat you alive.

I think it is a powerful reminder of the unfaithfulness of the gods of our own making. It is not something I would quote without some qualification. I cannot be sure of the writer’s specific intent. It is pretty depressing if you imagine a world without a true and sovereign God. I do know that the God I chose actually chose me; and He is faithful to the end.

(Find the source of the quote here. Reader warning. The context is from from a commencement address at Kenyon College by writer, David Foster Wallace. His speech is a bit colorful and profane at times. Without saying it, he is making a bold case for God.)

Monkey Brains
Now the ridiculous. Here is the recipe for what our children and grandchildren call “Monkey Brains” including a shot from the last time we made it (Thanksgiving).

Angel Tree Project ‘Wraps’ Up

I walked through the hallway between the Sanctuary and the Fellowship Hall between the 9:15 and 11 a.m. services. I thought for a moment I was at the North Pole at Santa’s staging area. What a display of generosity and love that so many of you gave this year. There were over 800 people served, and over 250 volunteers came together to make this Angel Tree event happen.

Thanks to Bill Boyd for the photography.

World Gift Market

And the World Gift Market was a great success. Many of you saw all the mission-oriented vendors and did some serious shopping. Again, the numbers show a congregation that is generous and giving and cares about mission.

If you are still looking for a gift for someone who has everything, consider a Gift of Hope. Order online by December 15 to receive in time for Christmas a beautiful card with details of the donation that can be given to the honoree.

Greetings from the Archbishop

The Sunday School class is receiving postcards from all over the world. Here is a kind note from our Archbishop, Robert Duncan.

How he finds time to write the children of Christ Church, I don’t know. But this was a great blessing to our leaders and our children.

That’s about it. Please pray for clarity this week as I begin to prepare for the Christmas Eve message.

In Christ,

David

Dear Friends,

One good man wrote me these words in response to my sermon on Sunday. “Your message of forgiveness is one that never gets old, or loses its punch. Especially for those of us who have much to be forgiven for, or worse, feel that we are beyond God’s grace.”

Yes, the words of John the Baptist, which seem so clear and direct, also provide the way for us to find this grace and mercy. Remember what John said, “After me comes one who is mightier than I.” He is speaking about the One; the One who has come and will come again.

Also, a member reminded me of this powerful prayer by Soren Kierkegaard:

Father in Heaven! Hold not our sins up against us but hold us up against our sins so that the thought of You when it wakens in our soul, and each time it wakens, should not remind us of what we have committed but of what You did forgive, not of how we went astray but of how You did save us!

And please remember this Collect for the Third Sunday in Advent. Remember my message of forgiveness. This is the Collect I have memorized and taken to heart.

Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and, because we are sorely hindered by our sins, let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

 

Now, here are some things you need to know.

Sacred Music Concert

What a blessing it was to have so many of you at the concert on Sunday night. Well over 900 people were in attendance. It was a sacred night.

When the strings were in full force, I leaned over to Fran and said, “This building was made for sounds like this.” Don’t you agree? Didn’t you notice the blending of the strings–-soft, long, elegant and smooth-–with the clear voices of the singers? We give thanks to God for His Glory which was so evident.

Be in the Know

I saw a regular visitor the next day at Home Depot, whom I hadn’t seen in church in a while. She had been working on Sunday mornings, but was looking forward to the Christmas concert. “When is it,” she asked. “Last night,” I said. “Oh no, darn. How come I missed it,” she asked. “Well, do you get The Call?” “No.”

You get the idea. If you know someone who is not getting The Call, please forward your copy to him or her. Or have them subscribe from our website.

Today is St. Nicholas Day

You probably know that St. Nicholas is the forerunner of Santa Claus. How St. Nick went from being a bishop of Myra (in Turkey) to a jolly fat man in a red suit is an interesting story of age, tradition, folklore and consumerism. It had little to do with Christmas, but everything to do with mercy and children and generosity. Read about it here and share the information with your children. St. Nicholas became (in Dutch) Sante Claus, who became Santa Claus. So yes, Virginia, there really is a Santa Claus.

A Cast of Children

If you were at the reception between the 9:15 and 11 a.m. service on Sunday, you saw angels and shepherds and even Magi walking around. In an act of genius, our Children’s Minister sent over the cast of the pageant to look for cookies. It was a reminder that these children are learning the gospel story. And it all comes together this Sunday at 4:30 for the Annual Christ Church Children’s Christmas Pageant. If you attend, you will see hundreds of children, hundreds more parents and even more video cameras.

Trivia Alert

Many long-time Anglicans know The Collect above as Stir-up Sunday. The tradition is not about forgiveness or grace, but a reminder to go home after church and stir up the batter for your rum cakes. I am not kidding. You can’t make this up. Go here for some background on the tradition of Stir-up Sunday. But it is also known as Gaudete Sunday based on the Latin wording of the traditional New Testament reading from Philippians 4:4. I rejoice, now you rejoice. In Latin, the phrase is written gaudeo, gaudete. Hence the name for the third Sunday in Advent, Gaudete Sunday.

(Yes, I’d win the trivia contest if they ask a question like this. Normally, I double-check the veracity of Wikipedia articles. In these cases, I think they have it right.)

Mail Forwarding

Can I remind people that we have moved? I am not fishing to get more Christmas cards, but many of you send us cards and updates on your family. We love to hear from you, and we try to respond with a card of our own. Please remember that Fran and I have moved to:

7709 Constitution Dr.
Plano, TX 75025

See you Sunday.

In Christ,
David