June 28, 2016

Dear LABC,
After a very pleasant two weeks of vacation highlighted by the birth of my fourth grandson, Dayton Phillips, I happily return to our life together at LABC. A busy summer awaits with the need to hire a Church Business Manager and preparations for Vacation Bible Camp, the Church Retreat and the Long Range Planning Conversations among my priorities.
Beginning this coming Sunday, July 3, I will be preaching a three sermon series based on the  affirmations about Jesus found in Revelation 1:5, “Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of earth.” This week my focus will be on the Jesus, the faithful witness. I will note that just as the signers of the Declaration of Independence pledged themselves to be faithful witnesses to the cause of liberty, Jesus pledged himself to be a faithful witness to the truths that though life is hard, God is good and change can come.
As is our tradition on first Sundays, Communion will be part of our worship.  After worship and coffee hour I will host a sermon talk back which include some conversation about the state of religious liberty in the summer of 2016.

Prayers of the Congregation

• Ruben Artery for his father
• Allison Tanner for her father
• Ben Maruca as he moves to Delaware
• Al Johnson and Roy Browner
• Celestine Bennett (health concerns)
• George Harper (health concerns)
• Zondra Martin for the York family and the Martin family
• The Evans and Leche families
• Larry Sims for his family
• Joan Patten for Paula and Robbie
• Elizabeth Osajindu
• Marie Johnson for Sherie and Matthew
• Preparations for Vacation Bible Camp and the Church Retreat
• Ned Roscoe and the congregation of First Presbyterian Church of Napa
• Thanksgiving with Rick Mixon the congregation of FBC Palo Alto on his 10th anniversary as their pastor and the 20th anniversary of his ordination
• The City of Oakland as it works to enact policies conducive to the well-being of the residents of our city as well as the well-being of our planet
• Tim Phillips, pastor of FBC Seattle (health concerns)
• Steve Bils, Executive Minister American Baptist Churches of the Central Pacific Coast (health concerns)
• Thanksgiving for the good work of Pastor Tanner and Vice-Moderator Paige Bence in procuring a grant from the American Baptist Home Mission Societies to support our Aspire and Achieve work at Oakland Tech
• The homeless and those that minister to them
• The incarcerated and those that minister to them
• The United States as we celebrate the Fourth of July and continue to grow into a full understanding of what it means for us all to created equal