Wilderness Wonderings...

This is a unique time in the life of Western Hills. I have heard many ask "What are the elders planning to do about the preaching position?" Others have asked, "How long will we go without a preacher?" Still others have asked, "When will we finally know something about the future?" All of these are great questions. Let me now share what I understand to be the current "plan" for the future. The elders have decided to have an intentional interim time. This means the elders want Western Hills to have a span of time to adjust to the new future before we make some knee jerk decisions. The elders have entered into a time of prayer for the future of Western Hills. They are trying to hear God's voice to direct them into the future.

This is an in between time. This is a time of transition. In many ways this is a time of wandering in the wilderness. When God called his children out of slavery in Egypt he could have magically whisked them off and dropped them down into the promise land. He did not do that. Instead he led them on a journey through the wilderness, a journey that lasted for more than 40 years. WHY? Because God needed time to transform his children from slaves into a nation ready to posses the land. God used the time in the wilderness to shape and form his people. God has a track record of calling his people into the wilderness.

Consider these examples...

• Moses spends 40 years herding sheep before God calls him in a burning bush
• Israel wanders for 40 years before crossing the Jordan
• Joseph and Mary are commanded to flee into Egypt
• Jesus fasts for 40 days in the wilderness before beginning his ministry

God calls his people to spend time in the wilderness. It seems in the wilderness we are formed and shaped in new ways to listen to God. Following each wilderness, God calls his children into a new reality and future- one that could not even be conceived of before the wandering and wondering time.

So, take advantage of our "wilderness time." Let God shape us as individuals and especially as a church. Be in prayer for the elders and Western Hills. Continue to be the hands and feet of Jesus as we move into the future.

Love Ya Much

Scott

Kum Ba Yah....Koinonia

Well, it's that time of the summer again, time to pack the bug spray, the box fan, and the swimsuit (In case you couldn't tell I was just making sure I had everything). We are going to camp K. I am excited about heading through the hills of FM 1431 and starting a great week of Koinonia. This year's theme is ALIVE. We are going through the book of Ephesians, and learn what it means to be an ALIVE person. Paul writes words to the Ephesians all of us need to hear to understand what Christ did for us, what His sacrifice means for me now, and the implications for me after my physical body gives out.

This is going to be an intense, fun, life-changing two weeks. If you would like to post a prayer or an encouraging message for our kids, counselors, and other volunteers please do so. They will be appreciated. We will see you soon and miss you much.

Matt

The Life Saving Station

Last Sunday night during THE WELL, I shared this modern day parable. I thought it would be appropriate to share it here as a reminder to us and our mission in this world.

On a dangerous sea coast where shipwrecks often occur there was once a crude little live saving station. The building was just a hut, and there was only one boat but the few devoted members kept a constant watch over the sea, and with no thought for themselves went out day and night tirelessly searching for the last. Some of those who were saved, and various others in the surrounding area, wanted to become associated with the station and give of their time and money and effort for the support of its work. New boats were bought and new crews trained. The little life saving station grew.

Some of them members of the life saving station were unhappy that the building was so crude and poorly equipped. They felt that a more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge of those saved from the sea. They replaced the emergency cots with beds and put better furniture in the enlarged building. Now the life saving station became a popular gathering place for its members, and they decorated it beautifully and furnished it exquisitely, because they used it as a sort of club. Fewer members were now interested in going to sea on life saving missions, so they hired life boat crews to do this work. The life saving motif still prevailed in this club’s decoration, and there was liturgical life boat in the room where the club initiations were held. About this time a large ship was wrecked off the coast, and the hired crews brought in boat loads of cold, wet, and half drowned people. They were dirty and sick and some of them had black skin and some had yellow skin. The beautiful new club was in chaos. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where victims of shipwreck could be cleaned up before coming inside.

At the next meeting, there was split in the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club’s life saving activities as being unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal social life of the club. Some members insisted upon life saving as their primary purpose and pointed out that they were still called a life saving station. But they were finally voted down and told that if they wanted to save lives of all the various kinds of people who were shipwrecked in those waters, they could begin their own life saving station down the coast.

As the years went by, the new station experienced the same changes that had occurred in the old. It evolved into a club, and yet, another life saving station was founded. History continued to repeat itself, and if you visit that sea coast today, you will find a number of exclusive clubs along that shore. Shipwrecks are frequent in those waters, but most of the people drown!

May God bless Western Hills, as we stay true to our mission in this world.

Love YA Much

Scott M.

A Father's Impact

We (okay, it was really just Qwynn) bought a Father’s Day card for her dad the other day. The text of the card reads: Dad, thanks to your lectures, I never change horses in the middle of a job worth doing, I know the squeaky wheel gets the worm, and I never count my chickens until I’ve walked a mile in their shoes. And you thought I wasn’t listening!

I can very much identify with this card. I’m pretty sure a lot of what my father’s told me over the years has not completely registered. There are a few phrases that have stuck, of course! Phrases such as:

“You can do what you want. You know what your mother and I would prefer you do, but you do what you want.”

And...

“I’m sure you’ve already thought of this, but what if you…”

There are many others, but that’s not my point here. For me, the impact of my father’s words do have power, but the impact of his actions have much more power in my life.

I’ll never forget the hours my dad (usually with me in tow) would spend helping others. Whether it was a home repair need, a computer problem or simply a difficult math problem (he was a math teacher), my dad would do what he could to help others. I also remember many Saturdays at the church building taking care of repair needs there or balancing the church books (he was the finance deacon).

It was those times together that reinforced what I knew my parents believed- “It’s not about us and our needs, it’s about others and their needs.” I guess one of the greatest things that I learned from my father was a heart of service. And for that, I will always be thankful!

-Scott S.

How about you? How has your father, or a special father figure, impacted your life? Share a story or two by clicking on the comments link below.

New Website Features

Exciting stuff is happening online for Western Hills. Our website now has the capacity to present the sermon from the most recent Sunday in streaming audio. To access this feature just go to www.westernhillsonline.org and click on "Hear the Sermon." (This feature works best if you have a high speed connection.) While this feature will never replace you being present with our church family it will allow you to hear the lesson from God's word if you are out of town or working on any given Sunday.

Some of our other features you may be interested in:
1. A link for Bible class teachers to access some great teaching resources available on the Web.
2. A link for resources related to personal spiritual growth.
3. Updated youth ministry website
4. Current prayer requests and hospital list
5. Updated church calendar

Every aspect of our site is designed to help you stay connected to Western Hills and encouraged in your ministry for Jesus.

Love Ya Much,
Scott M.

Home Again!

God is good and faithful! Late last night (12:30am) the Mexico Mission Team returned home to Central Texas. We are glad to report that God blessed the mission in many ways. He provided safe travel, good weather, open hearts, servant spirits, good food, sweet fellowship with our Mexican brethren, times of worship, and a week spent on holy ground. In short the mission was a blessed success. Please ask any team member (young or old) how they saw God at this past week? Also ask them how God worked on them personally during the week?

The mission effort in Monte Cristal continues to move forward. The construction of the medical clinic has advanced far beyond last year. The final shape can already be seen and it is easy to imagine folks from Monte Cristal filling the building to receive medical care.

The VBS effort was one of the best yet. Our mission teens shared the message of God through skits known as "Beyond Words." Like the name implies they dramatically acted out God's love and overcame the language barrier.

Thank you for your prayers. God answered them in dramatic ways.

Love Ya Much

Scott

I want to invite any member of the mission team to click on the comments link and share a story of the ways that you saw Jesus this week.

Join us as we GO-mission our teens!

You will want to be apart of our evening service this coming Sunday, June 5. During our service we call "THE WELL" we will be talking about what it means to be followers of Jesus who "go into all of the world." During the service we will charge our teens to be "go-ers" as they head to Monte Cristal on a mission trip. Following the service EVERYONE is invited to the gym to share in some hotdogs and a Mexico packing party.

If you haven't figured it out yet you soon will - Western Hills is a mission passionate church. We are actively in the business of equipping our young people to live lives of mission. We want them to always see their responsibility as people who "GO".

So be there Sunday night. Be apart of this church sending its own out to be the Hands & Feet of Jesus into the world.

Love Ya Much
Scott M.

Bless our Teens - If YOU want to bless our teens with your prayers click the "comments" link below and leave a prayer/blessing for them. We will print out all the prayers that are posted and share them with the teens on Sunday night during the service. So click the link and be apart of the spiritual prayer cover for our mission team.

The Great GO-Mission!

The Gospel of Matthew ends with these words...

"Therefore GO and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."

The Message version phrases it this way...

"GO out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit."

Either way the marching orders that Jesus leaves for us is GO! We are to be people who GO. In today's life we are definitely people "on the go" as we rush through our day from one event to the next. In fact we seem to be going lots of places: the store, work, the mall, soccer practice, the lake, and of course one more trip to Wal-Mart.

The question for us to wrestle with in all of our going is "are we going with a sense of mission"? Do we go through our day with the realization that we are right now in the middle of the mission field? In our days of rushing remember that God expects more from us than a frantic pace. We are called to more than membership, we are called to discipleship. Disciples go with a sense of mission.

Love Ya Much,
Scott M.

Questions for Matt Peacock

Matt Peacock recently joined the Western Hills staff in the role of youth ministry resident. Matt will serving in our youth ministry for the next 15 months. Recently we sat down with Matt and asked him these questions. Here is how he answered them...

Western Hills Blog: What is your role at Western Hills?
Matt: My role here at Western Hills is a Youth Ministry Resident. My role here is to serve this church by helping Scott with the youth. Because both of us will be working with the youth we will be able to divide the work and put more time into other areas such as small groups, worship, and family ministries. I want my time here to be seen not as a time in which this church has two guys working with the youth, but as a time where this church has two ministers willing to serve in all facets to this church.

WHB: After already being here for 2 summers previously why did you decide to return to WH again?
Matt: This church has blessed me many times over and I want to give back to this church. I want to serve and be used by God in this place. I could have interviewed all over, but I know that this is a place of Godly people with elders that are looking towards the cross. This is a good place to be! And I want to serve here.

WHB: What do you hope happens during your time with us over the next several months?
Matt: I hope to be a minister that is always pushing this congregation towards more cross shaped lives, and in that process become more cross shaped myself. I hope to see more excitement and joy in this place. I want the community to see this congregation as the church that loves them and a place that they want to be. There are some great things going here and I want to keep them moving, never growing stagnant. And of course, I hope to teach Jesus Christ and what it means to be His disciples to the teenagers of Western Hills.

WHB: Why do you love working with teenagers?
Matt: I love working with teenagers because they are like little sponges: Teenagers are going to be filled with something. They will listen and take it all in. Teenagers, because they are still trying to find who they are, will be moldable. I think it is important that the mold they become is that of our savior Jesus Christ. Another thing that I love about working with teenagers is that they are so creative and fun. It is amazing what a teenager can do with a little direction and creative freedom. Teenagers are a unique breed of human being and are in many ways frustrating but in many ways bring so much joy. Despite the broad range a teenager may fit in, I love them all.

WHB: Are there any other big changes in your life besides coming to WH?
Matt: I just graduated from ACU, but I don't think that was the big change you were referring to. I just recently (5/11) got engaged to a beautiful, Godly woman named Megan Towery.

WHB: How did you "pop the question?"
Matt: The morning of the 11th I drove into College Station and left an invitation for her to meet me at this park in College Station that she and I have picnics at quite often. I had a blanket, rose petals, Gerber Daisies, candles, the whole bit. Something funny happened as I prepared, though. I lit the candles and so as not to start a fire went to throw the matches in the pond. When I got back to the blanket I looked down and saw this brown stuff. I had stepped in dog mess and got it on the blanket. So I was scrambling to get the blanket turned over. It was a mess. When she got there I gave here a Bible that I had wrapped with "Megan Peacock" embroidered on it. I read to her the last part of Psalm 85 which is "our verse." After I got done reading, I turned the Bible toward her and the ring was tied to the place marker. I got down on one knee and she said "Yes."

WHB: What is it about Megan that attracted you to her?
Matt: How much time do you have? Oh, where to begin? She and I were first kisses (I was hers and she was mine) way back in junior high school. So I guess I had always been attracted to her. One of the most attractive things about Megan is her servant heart. She is always ready to serve. She and I have been best friends since those junior high days and she has always been able to challenge me spiritually. We have the best time together. We can make a game out of just about anything. Just thinking about her now makes me smile. Plus, she's hot. :)

WHB: Do you see Megan feeling comfortable as a part of the WH family?
Matt: She already does. One of the best qualities of this church is its ability to embrace people. She has commented to me several times how much she love the people here and how excited she is to become a part of this church family. I personally want to thank all of you for embracing her. Obviously she is important to me and the fact that you have opened your arms to her means a lot to me.

WHB: You are quite a movie buff, what is your favorite all time movie?
Matt: This may be the hardest question you have asked. I have to be honest I have a very eclectic taste in movies. What I really mean is that I like some weird movies. This may sound like a cop-out, but I love movies so much that I never have an all time favorite, just a favorite of the moment. The favorites of the moment might be a three way split between "The Notebook" (I know, I can already hear the comments, but I am a sucker for a good love story),"Troy" (It is not Homer's original, but such a good story. Plus, who does not like a good one on one sword battle), and "Finding Neverland" (If you like Peter Pan, this ones for you.) Now that you have got me thinking, let me make a suggestion. For all who love "Star Wars" the newest one is by far the best of the prequals.

If you wish to leave Matt an encouraging word or give him your suggestions for movies just click the comments link and let him know.

Crossing Jordan

Joshua Chapter 3 finds Joshua, and all of God's people, camped out beside the Jordan River during flood stage. The word of the Lord comes to Joshua, the new leader of Israel, and the command is this, "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you." (Joshua 3:5). In this command the people of God are called to do something they have never done before - cross the Jordan and posses the land.

It is my belief that these words are God's call on Western Hills today. In recent weeks this church has faced struggles, trials, and loss. In many ways it appears that a river at flood stage separates us from our future. How in the world do we move forward? We need to hear God's call for us, "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you."

What does that mean? It means that collectively and individually, publicly and privately we pray and we fast. We pray for ears to hear the voice of God and eyes to see the movement of God. We get ready for God to declare himself. Remember, it is he who will DO the amazing things. And when the call to move comes, we head out.

Love Ya Much,
Scott M.

So what is your prayer for Western Hills? What amazing things are you praying for God to do among us? Share them with us. Click the comments link and let us know what God is doing in your heart and in your life?

What is a BLOG?

A Blog is a shorthand term for "web-log." Blogs exist on the internet in all kinds of forms for all kinds of reasons. But simply they exist as a kind of running journal or diary. On each blog the most recent entry or "post" will appear at the top of the page.

Our blog will be a way to give you a "behind the scenes" look at the on going life of this church. Western Hills is far more active than just Sundays. This blog will be a way to highlight many more of the exciting things that God is doing. In this blog you will discover devotional thoughts, upcoming events, theological reflections, words of encouragement, and those random thoughts that fall out of our heads.

We enourage you to check back often to stay current. We also encourage you to click on the comment link and leave a comment. This will be a way we can have an on going conversation and you can be part of the dialogue. Can't wait to hear what God is doing in your life.

Love Ya Much
Scott