Navigating the Wilderness – Wednesdays through Sept. 23, 6 p.m. on Facebook Live. Led by pastoral residents Jenna Sullivan & Ashley Robinson. Chaos. Disorienting. Lost. Uncertainty. These are words that have swirled through our minds as we have all tried to navigate a year of global pandemic. This sounds a bit like the wilderness experience described in the Old Testament. We are undoubtedly in a new place. Many of us are missing home and wondering what is next. In a weekly reflective gathering on Facebook Live, we will explore an Old Testament wilderness passage and discover a spiritual practice that might help us find our way in this strange land.
Flu shots Sept. 19 by Linda Garner, parish nurse. You’ve likely heard that it is time to get your flu shots, and some may have wondered if it is really necessary during this time of COVID-19. It is particularly crucial this year since both the flu and COVID-19 are contagious respiratory illnesses. There are similarities and differences. Typically the flu develops one to four days after exposure, while COVID-19 develops between two to 14 days after exposure. Symptoms of upper respiratory illness like cough, fever, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle aches or headache may be present in both. Both may cause mild to severe illness. Prevent the flu by getting the flu vaccine. It will be available at Wilshire on Saturday Sept. 19 from 9 a.m. to noon in the north parking lot. You can drive through or park and walk up. Masks and social distancing are required. Flu shots are free for those with Medicare or most Medicare replacement plans. The cost for others without insurance is $69 for the senior shot and $29 for the Quadrivalent Flu shot (age 9 and up). You must register in advance at wilshirebc.org/registration. When registering, please indicate in the comment field whether you will drive through or park and walk up to receive your shot. A consent form is available at the registration link; it must be printed, filled out and brought on the 19th. Be sure to also bring your Medicare Insurance Card and ID. Payment by check, cash or credit card (Mastercard, Visa, American Express, Discover) must be made in person on Sept. 19. A portion of each fee will be returned to Wilshire for ministry activities. If you have questions, contact Linda at 214-926-1125 or email lgarner@wilshirebc.org.
Meet Wilshire’s Interns. Trent Juarez and Leah Lucas began as Wilshire interns Sept. 1, joining Jacob Leal, who started in June. All three work under Associate Pastor Darren DeMent. Juarez attends SMU’s Perkins School of Theology, where he serves on the board of visitors of the Baptist House of Studies. A member of Royal Lane Baptist, Juarez will work with Wilshire’s young adults. Lucas also attends Perkins, having transferred from Abilene’s Logsdon Seminary, which recently announced its closure. She will work in student ministry with Leal, who began a year-long internship in June. He is a Duke Divinity School graduate and also interned at Wilshire in summer, 2019.
Organ concert Sept. 24. Jeff Brummel, associate minister of music and organist, will present a concert on Thursday, Sept. 24. It will premiere at 7:30 p.m. on Wilshire’s YouTube channel. The brief recital will feature familiar pieces that all ages can enjoy, and Jeff will also share information about Wilshire’s 80-rank Schantz organ. Selections include Bach’s Toccata in D Minor, a set of variations on “God is So Good,” and three piano pieces transcribed for organ: Beethoven’s Für Elise, Chopin’s Prelude in E Minor and Scott Joplin’s The Entertainer.
Facebook Live Bible Study. A rotation of teachers leads the Facebook Live Bible study Sundays at 10:15 a.m. All are invited to participate via Wilshire’s Facebook page.
*Sept. 6: Chad Mustain
*Sept. 13: Alan Wright
Anti-Racism Book Club. All are invited to join a new book club focused on anti-racism. Planned dates are Sept. 17, Nov. 19, Jan. 21, March 25 and May 20. The book for Sept. 17 is the New York Times bestseller I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown, an illuminating look at how white, middle-class, Evangelicalism has participated in an era of rising racial hostility, inviting the reader to confront apathy, recognize God’s ongoing work in the world, and discover how Blackness — if we let it — can save us all. Sign up at wilshirebc.org/registration to receive the Zoom information. Questions? Contact Abbey Adcox at aadcox@wilshirebc.org.
Waging Peace: A conversation with author Diana Oestreich. Wilshire will host Diana Oestreich, author of Waging Peace: One Soldier’s Story of Putting Love First, in a Zoom conversation Thursday, Oct. 29, at 7 p.m. Oestreich is an activist, veteran and sexual assault nurse who serves as Key Relationships Officer with global missions partner Preemptive Love Coalition. She first heard God’s call to love her enemies on the battlefield of Iraq, and is using her story of solider turned peacemaker to empower us to identify our own rural, urban, political or religious divides, to cross our own “enemy lines” in order to remake the world and heal all that’s tearing us apart. Reading the book is encouraged, but all are welcome to join the conversation. Sign up at wilshirebc.org/registration to receive the Zoom link. Contact Abbey Adcox at aadcox@wilshirebc.org for more info.
BNG mental health webinar. Baptist News Global is presenting a free webinar to address the mental and emotional impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mark Wingfield will moderate the panel of five mental health professionals, including Wilshire member Kathryn Keller. Another panelist is well-known counselor Brad Schwall, whose Center for Integrative Counseling and Psychology operates out of Wilshire. Panelists will discuss relevant trends and provide tips about how to cope with the mental health challenges of the pandemic. The webinar will take place Monday, Sept. 14, at 6 p.m. Registration is required. Learn more and register at BNG’s website.
World religion study . Former pastoral resident Aaron Coyle-Carr is inviting Wilshire members to join in a community Bible study. The McKinney-based group, which Wilshire helped start last year, meets via Zoom on Tuesday nights at 7 p.m. and starts a new survey of world religions on Sept. 15. The topic will be explored through reading and discussing Stephen Prothero’s book, God Is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions that Run the World. Aaron will draw on Wilshire’s interfaith connections to enable the group to hear the lived stories of faith leaders from around Dallas. To learn more or sign up, contact Aaron at acoylecarr@wilshirebc.org.
Evolving Faith Live Conference. Several Wilshire members will be virtually attending this year’s Evolving Faith Live Conference, which will be held online Oct. 2 and 3. WOW! will host a virtual follow-up discussion Tuesday, Oct. 6, and all who participate in Evolving Faith are encouraged to join. The conference will feature speakers like Sarah Bessey, Jen Hatmaker, Nadia Bolz-Weber and Barbara Brown Taylor. Registration is $99 and includes access to all sessions through March. Visit evolvingfaith.com to register for the conference, and sign up to get the discussion group Zoom info at wilshirebc.org/registration.
Women of Wilshire Book Clubs
*The WOW! Tuesday Evening Book Club meets on Zoom monthly at 7 p.m. Upcoming dates and titles: Sept. 8, Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah; Oct. 13, The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote by Elaine Weiss; Nov. 10, The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd; Dec. 8, A Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg. To participate, contact Debby Burton at dburton@wilshirebc.org.
*The WOW! Brown Bag Book Club meets on Zoom monthly on a Thursday at noon. Upcoming dates and titles: Sept. 10, The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson; Oct. 1, Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross. To participate, contact Abbey Adcox or Carolyn Murray.
Library offers curbside pickup. Wilshire librarian Barbara Peterson is making it possible to check out books from the church library even while the building is closed. First, search the library’s online catalog by visiting wilshirebc.booksys.net/opac/wbc/#menuHome. This link is also available in the library section of Wilshire’s app and website. Then email bpeterson@wilshirebc.org and tell her what titles you wish to check out (limit 5). Barbara will work out a safe plan to get the books to you via curbside pickup at Wilshire or delivery to your home.
Wilshire Mental Health Network Mental health providers are invited to the initial meeting of the Wilshire Mental Health Network. This group will help participants get to know one another while discussing how to better support our community. The meeting will take place via Zoom on Sunday, Sept. 13, at 12:30 p.m. Contact Rachel Murphy (rachel.j.rossiter@gmail.com) with questions or to get the link.
Gateway of Grace’s Project Mask . If you need face masks, consider getting them through Gateway of Grace, one of Wilshire’s missions partners. In Gateway’s Project Mask, refugee clients of the agency are making masks that are available to the public for a donation. All proceeds go to the refugees, and for many refugee women, this is the first time in their lives they’ve been paid for their work. How to order: https://form.keela.co/gateway-of-grace/project-mask-dfw
Unified Budget update
August gifts $235,367
August budget needs $328,000
YTD budget gifts $2,162,251
YTD budget needs $2,419,000
YTD budget income deficit $256,749