Grateful

I'm grateful today to God for allowing me and others to see His activity so evidently in the lives of people around me. Yesterday was an incredible day at UCity Fellowship. Celebrating the journeys of four very dear friends (Lonnie and Angela Clouse and Trent and Carmen Post) is an honor. I will miss them all tremendously, but I am so excited to be a part of the next thing that God has for them as they establish and lead orphan care initiatives in Ethiopia and Mexico. I look forward to visiting them in their new works and planning effective partnerships for the Kingdom.

To follow a morning like that with a Baptism Celebration - was amazing. The way God continues to transform the lives of people young and old just completely floors me at times. Here is an email I received last week from a man who was baptized yesterday.

David,

I’m writing to you because of the deep connection that my wife and I have felt since attending UCF for the past month. I can’t speak for Nancy but for me, the moment that I walked through the doors, for the first time, I knew that there was something powerful working and that I belonged.

I was raised in an Episcopal church and ran as fast and as far as I could when I turned sixteen. While I never stopped talking to God all of these years, I have not attended a church since long ago because the message that I kept hearing didn’t jive with what I knew to be true; it doesn’t matter who you are, where you’ve come from, or what you’ve done but it’s what’s in your heart.

We used to live in a small town named Stanfield. Nancy worked in Concord and I was self-employed working all over the area. Our oldest son was struggling in the local school system and we were struggling financially. One day on her way home, she still can’t explain it; she was passing First Assembly and pulled in. She walked into the school office and asked for a tour, it was pajama day and the Principal happily gave her a tour; in his pajamas!
She promptly came home and proclaimed that we were sending Blake, our only child then, to that school; HOW! was my reaction…? Well, we stepped off the edge and SOMEHOW we found a way.

It was Blake’s sixth-grade year that this occurred and now he is going into his senior year at college and the part that God has played in his life is almost overwhelming.

I recount that story, and of course there’s many more, just to acknowledge the role that God has always played in our lives but that I have never truly served HIM.

Listening to the Rhodes’ story Sunday was something that Nancy and I are way TOO familiar with. I know and believe that as Tim said, “God has been breaking me down”, over the past three years which has left a huge hole in my life, and I think Nancy’s too. That’s what got me to the doors of UCF a month ago. The really cool thing….since we’ve been attending, some of the stuff that I care about deeply, veterans and Marines in particular, has entered my life at UCF. Something wonderful happened with this on Sunday and I spent most of the gathering crying!

As I look back over the years, it is so obvious that God has played such a huge roll in our lives, because there really is no other explanation. And because of the love He has shone to us, Nancy and I know it’s time to get off the sidelines.

I have listened to the cd and read the booklet but I have to say that when I saw this booklet a couple of weeks ago, before even reading it, I knew what I was to do. The cd sealed my commitment. I am ready to make “a public declaration to a new association with Jesus Christ” and be washed. Since revealing my desire for Baptism to my family, Nancy has also expressed her desire to be baptized.

My oldest son Blake has never waivered from the path; he has been an amazing example of Gods’ handy work and, if you accept our request for Baptism, I would like for him to be involved, if possible.

Thank you for this ministry,
Ron DuDonis

And if this was the only story like this, it would blow me away. But there are so many more amazing stories of God's activity.

Again ... I am grateful... just very grateful.

This week at the UC!

This weekend is UCF all out!
-Friday - Movies in the Park @ Harrisburg Park @ 8
-Saturday - AIDS Walk @ Uptown Charlotte @ 9
-Sunday - Baptism Celebration right after the Neighborhood Gathering.

This Sunday is going to be incredible. I am anticipating an amazing day as we celebrate those who have trusted Christ over the last few months and are following him in baptism. I love the journeys that lead us to this point and I love being a part of the life-change that God brings when people trust him. I received this email this week from someone who will be baptized this Sunday and I wanted to share with you a glimpse of what God is doing in the lives of those around us at UCF.

The part about how those two guys were re-baptized by Paul is so personal to me because when I was first baptized I knew it was a public declaration of my faith in God, but that was its only significance to me- "Yes, I believe in God"- But, like I told you on the phone, Christ has become so personal to me over the past few years that I feel like I need to be baptized again. Its because though I always believed in God, Jesus was never my personal savior, I didn't relate Him to my life and he wasn't the center of my focus. Let me tell you, the reason why I wept and gave my heart and everything that I am to God on Decmber 24, 2004 was because two things kept running through my mind. One: "He went through that for me" (meaning crucifixion & even more painful; seperation from God) and two: "I don't deserve this" (meaning that kind of mercy). I don't remember who it was but someone told me once when I was growing up that even if I had been the only person on Earth, Jesus still would've come and given up His life for me, I didn't realize the magnitude of that statement until I was able to see what He went through.

But even more than the fact that I want to "publicly declare" my belief and faith in God, the bigger reason for why I want to be baptized is that I want to affirm to myself and to God "Hey, I'm with You, I believe in You and love You." I want to discard my old self and way of life and be re-born, this time with a Greater purpose. I am not the way I used to be and I know that that truth remains the same whether I get baptized or not, but I still have this desire to physically do something that says I AM NOT THE SAME.

You are not going to want to miss this baptism!

ALSO, I have had a huge thought over the last few weeks as I have anticipated receiving my tax rebate in the mail. I would really like for everyone to consider giving $210 of your tax rebate to support Mike and Amy Rodgers. For those of you who don't know, Mike and Amy are UCF's first missionaries in Ethiopia. They have been there for 9 months and UCF supplies about 25% of their daily support. $210 is what it takes to provide for the Rodgers family for one day. So whether you are already a regular supporter, or this is the first time you have heard about it, please consider making it happen. If everyone kicks in, we will be able to fully fund and go above and beyond. I know they will have several extra costs coming up as the transition from Addis Ababa down to Lake Langano. This would make a huge impact and be an incredible encouragement to them as they serve. The second thought I had was to give that amount to Starfish Ministries which is led by Dave and Robin Laney. You can give this to UCF and put the place in the memo line! Just think of it as the US Government's way of getting the gospel to Ethiopia... kind of cool!

Love Loud... Risk Often,
David

Baptism

This past Sunday's baptism was one of the highlights of the six years that UCF has existed. It is hard for me to put my finger on why, other than the obvious (people expressing faith in Jesus Christ, people's lives changing, celebrating God and those relationships that He has used in the process of salvation). But there was something else about this baptism... there was freedom... joy... life... community... love… all openly expressed and felt. My conclusion is that these are all things that come from God's Spirit. Now I know that God's Spirit was present, but it is always present when we a doing God's business. So what was the difference. I think the difference was me, my perspective, my awareness of how pervasive the Spirit always is, my realization of how he has worked in the lives of those in the water, my gratitude that God has used me to play a part in the process. It left me a little bit speechless... and overwhelmingly grateful. I love what God continues to do in this spiritual community called UCF!