New Schedule for the Rest of the Summer

Okay, I realize how schizophrenic this blog has seemed lately (i.e., "Here's what's happening," "No wait, HERE'S what's happening," etc.). Honestly, I've been trying to determine what is best for our group, and it has resulted in a series of moments where I thought I had it figured out, but it turns out that I didn't. But here's the plan that we're going to stick with for the rest of the summer. Really.

We're simply going to get together and hang out at our house on the nights that we're in town. This is every Sunday except August 2 and 9 and September 6. We will serve dinner. There will be no childcare. Beginning on September 13, we will officially be a LifeGroup of Fellowship of the Parks. At that point, this blog that you are reading right now will no longer be active. Instead we will have 2 separate blogs, one for each of our groups:

TheSundayNightGathering.Blogspot.Com - This will be the blog for everything we do on Sunday nights. This will be a time primarily based on teaching and discussion. We will be exploring the concept of Spiritual Practices. Childcare will be provided at this time. The blog will not only be used for announcements and information, but it will also function as a discussion board for that week's topics.

TheTuesdayNightGathering.Blogspot.Com - This will be the blog for everything we do on Tuesday nights. This will be a time primarily based on reviewing the sermon from the previous Sunday morning at FOTP and for prayer. Childcare will be provided at this time.

Anyone can be a part of either one of these groups or both. You do not have to be a member of FOTP to be a part of either of these groups. We simply want to provide space for people to explore their faith.

Thanks for checking in. Be sure and stay tuned to the other blogs for new info.

Peace be with you.

-Rob

Sunday Night Gathering + Babe's Chicken = Tonight!

Hey everybody! Tonight (July 12) at 5:30, we will be meeting at our house (611 Monterey Drive in Keller) for our group gathering. Immediately following, we will proceed to Babe's Chicken for a dinner on us! Hope to see you then!

-Rob

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Echo Bible Church is now officially a part of Fellowship of the Parks (www.fellowshipoftheparks.com). We will still be functioning as a teaching/worship community on Sunday nights and a prayer group on Tuesday nights. We will simply be known as "Echo."

Here is the schedule of our gatherings (or lack thereof) for the next few weeks:

June 28: NO GATHERING
July 5: NO GATHERING
July 12: Teaching/Worship Gathering @ The Carmacks' house. This will immediately be followed by dinner at Babe's Chicken (on us)!
July 19: Teaching/Worship Gathering @ The Carmacks' house.
July 26: Teaching/Worship Gathering @ The Carmacks' house.
August 1: NO GATHERING
August 8: NO GATHERING
August 16: Teaching/Worship Gathering @ The Carmacks' house.
August 23: Teaching/Worship Gathering @ The Carmacks' house.
August 30: Teaching/Worship Gathering @ The Carmacks' house.
September 6: NO GATHERING.
September 13: Gathering - New Semester Begins.

This Week at Echo...

...we will be having a Teaching/Worship night at 611 Monterey Dr. in Keller. The topic is "Bright Lights, Loud Noises, and Other Common Occurrences on the Road to Damascus." Music by Chad Carpenter!

Big Changes at Echo Bible Church

Last night at Echo we came together and decided to make some changes. First of all, we will no longer be gathering at Resonate Artistic Studios. Instead, we will be returning to the format similar to a "house church" style. Most often, we will be gathering at Caroline's and my home in Keller (611 Monterey Dr., near Keller High School).

Also, our format will be changing a bit. Instead of doing the same thing every week, we are going to experiment with multiple styles and formats. They will mostly fit into four categories:

1) Teaching/Worship
This is what we have been doing every week already; these will be gatherings that revolve around the act of studying the Scriptures and understanding our place in the story that God is in the midst of telling. We will typically have music, communion, scripture readings, and other stuff that you wouldn't be too surprised to see in a churchy kind of setting.

2) Prayer
These will be gatherings that revolve around the act of prayer and encourage us to pursue empathy for one another and seek God's will for each other and for our church.

3) Discussion
These will be gatherings that revolve around the act of listening and contributing to the conversation. Rather than simply hearing a message or a sermon, each of us will be a voice that adds to the conversation. These nights will give us the opportunity to learn from each other.

4) "Family Dinner"
These will be gatherings that could be described as "intentionally informal." These nights will give us an opportunity to simply enjoy the company of one another and interact with each other as the body of Christ. Sometimes these nights will be held at a home while at other times they may take place at a local restaurant.


Here is the current schedule for our gathering formats: (each gathering begins at 5:30pm and will occur at 611 Monterey Dr. in Keller unless otherwise noted)

May 24 (this Sunday): Discussion. Topic: "She" (NOOMA). "Is there a feminine side to God?"

May 31: Family Dinner. Location: Chapps Hamburgers in Keller (1004 Keller Parkway in the Tom Thumb parking lot)

June 7: NO GATHERING.

June 14: Teaching/Worship: Acts 9:1-31 - "Bright Lights, Loud Noises, and Other Common Occurrences on the Road to Damascus." Music by Chad Carpenter.

June 21: Prayer. John 13:34-35.

July 28: Discussion. Topic: "Team Spirit In The Sky." A fly on the wall for a not-so-successful evangelical conversation.

July 5: NO GATHERING.

July 12: Family Dinner. Location: Babe's Chicken in Roanoke (104 North Oak)

July 19: Teaching/Worship: Acts 9:32-41 - "The Fabulous Life and Death and Life of a Woman Named Dorcas."

July 26: Prayer. 1 Thessalonians 5:5-11.

August 2: NO GATHERING.

August 9: NO GATHERING.

August 16: Discussion. Topic: TBA

August 23: Family Dinner. Location: TBA.

August 30: Teaching/Worship: Acts 10 - "Do Not Call Anything Impure That God Has Made Clean."

September 6: Prayer. Ephesians 4:1-2.

Calling All Childcare Workers and Button Pushers

We have two huge service needs right now here at Echo Bible Church:

1) We have an enormous need for people to join our Childcare Team to serve once per month. The more people who join the team, the lighter the load for everyone else. Joining the team is only a six-month commitment, which means that you will only end up serving up to six times (unless you would like more). If you would like to serve or if you know someone who would like to serve, you would be celebrated as a hero among mere mortals... Well, that may be overstating it a tad, but we will really appreciate it, and it will enable people with kids to attend church.

2) Also, because we now have the capacity to have visual elements in our services (i.e., songs with words on a screen), we also need people to join the newly formed "Button Pusher Team." This is a much easier commitment than the childcare team (and joining one does not exclude you from the other). This will involve simply sitting at the computer and running the Power Point during the singing time and the message. Like the Childcare team, this will be on a rotation basis, which means that the more people who sign up, there will be less work for everyone else.

This is truly a situation in which many hands can make for very light work. But while the work may be light, that does not make it any less significant. We believe that a church is a place where everyone contributes to the whole. If you've been looking for a way to get involved a serve, here are some opportunities that are available right now.

If you are interested in either of these serving opportunities, please email me at echobiblechurch@gmail.com.

Thanks so much for checking in, and I hope you're having a great week!

-Rob

Game Night @ The Carmacks' and the Upcoming Business Meeting

Here's what's happing soon at Echo:

1) Friday, March 27 (6pm): Game Night at the Carmacks'
Anyone and everyone is invited over the Rob and Caroline Carmack's house for dinner, Guitar Hero, and other stuff. There will be no official church business or a Bible study or anything like that. There is no agenda for this evening except to simply hang out and enjoy each other's company. Feel free to bring the kids. If you need directions to the house, please email Rob (echobiblechurch@gmail.com).

2) Sunday, March 29 (Immediately following the Sunday evening service): Church Wide Business Meeting
If you are a covenant member of Echo Bible Church, you are eligible to vote at our business meetings (very exciting, I know). On Sunday, March 29 immiedately following the Sunday evening gathering, we will be holding such a meeting. The agenda will be vote on the approval of the church bylaws and the budget for the second quarter.