Here’s a collection of stories from Year One at Hub City Church.  Stories are important to us.  These are stories that need to be told.  They tell about God working in the lives of his people.  Read, reflect, comment and let the story continue.

Jacob’s Story,

Indecisive… Give any of my friends one bad quality to apply to my personality and that’s what you will get. I am notorious for not being able to make everyday-not-a-big-deal decisions, much less important ones.
(I’m getting to how Hub City helped I promise 🙂
So me, the indecisive kid, comes to a pivotal and big decision making time in his life. That time right around 18 when you have to figure out what college you wanna go to, what you want to do with your life, you know the whole deal. So as I start trying to make these decisions I begin to realize that I can’t figure anything out. I have no clue what I want to do with my life, therefore I have no clue what major to choose, therefore I have no clue what college is ideal for me, therefore I can’t make a decision on a college, and therefore I envision myself being an indecisive 35 year old that still lives with his parents and owns, um lets say at least 8 cats; nothing crazy, just 8.
So now I have a lot of pressure on my shoulders and I start becoming very overwhelmed and feel helpless. I know that I love music and would love to use it for God’s glory but there’s no degree that could guarantee me a job doing that. If it was bound to happen it was bound to happen. College is really more of a practical thing; well maybe I can figure at least one thing out huh? :/
Okay so I’ve found myself at an overwhelming point of having no clue how loving music and not knowing what to major in is going to work out in my life. So God does his thing and brings along the church we’ve all come to love, Hub City.
God began using Hub City as kind of a guiding/ hope factor in my life. God used Hub City to begin speaking to me in various ways, and also began to show me how my love of music and not knowing what to do with it did not mean I was hopeless.
He placed me in a position to become a part of the praise band at Hub City. And to use my love of music to assist in bringing glory to him. Because of this I’ve learned that God does have a plan for us and there truly is a method to it if you step back and look at how it all has worked out.
So… in a nut shell, God has used Hub City Church to show me that my future is not hopeless, that I can be of some use in this world just by doing the things that I love, and ultimately that I have a good chance of NOT owning 8 cats and still holding residence with my parents at age 35.
So thank you Hub City for giving me that hope of not being a Cat Man. Ha-ha. I’ll let you know how my story all works out. The serious and even the funny parts of it.

A.J. Hicks

–  Well a couple of friends told me about it so I figured I would check it out.  I saw it was in a movie theater and was like Whoa! That’s different.  I found out it really was different.  I loved the service and really felt welcome.  I never really enjoyed going to my parent’s church because it was so huge and people had their own clicks/groups and never really branched out.  I battled cancer for 2 and a half years (only knowing about it during the last 6 months)  and had a fear that people would look at me differently…Hub City never did.  I have been able to grow so much in the Lord thanks to Hub City and love going every Sunday.  Thanks Hub City! You Rock!

Jaimee Holmes

So I should have been on here in the middle of the night last night blogging about the thoughts that were keeping me up… but now my brain is numb from the fatigue of having tried to fight off the circular thinking that refused to let me sleep. It just didn’t seem right somehow to be up writing at 2:30am, however now that I try to do it with the kids all dancing jigs around me… I do see some logic in the idea! So thanks God! Just maybe next time be a little more forceful? LoL

I was mostly thinking of how things were when we first came to Hub City Church last year… the events that brought us there and some of the changes that have taken place this last year. When I got to the point (around 4:00am) of thinking about what comes next… that’s when I got the Melatonin out and compelled myself to stop thinking!

You probably noticed that the title of my blog is “Scattered Seed” and that there is a scripture reference to the left with the passage about the scattered seed. There is a story behind that story for me, important enough for me to want to remind myself of it every time I get on here to type about my thoughts on life… It reminds me of where I have been and how I got to where I am.

The story from the Bible (in a very small nutshell) goes something like this: A farmer scatters some seed on the ground. Some lands on the road and is eaten by birds, some lands in the gravel and withered in the sun because it hadn’t put down roots, some fell in the weeds and was strangled before it produced anything, and some fell on the good soil and produced more than the farmer could have imagined. Then Jesus goes on to explain what that means: the seed is The Word. Some people are like the hard soil of the road… Satan picks up the seed before it has a chance to take root. Some are like the rocks… the soil is shallow and when difficult times come, they have nothing to show for it. Some are like the weeds and are choked out by the cares and worries of the world. But the seed sown in good dirt is those who hear the Word, embrace it and produce a great harvest.

At one of our very first Hub Group meetings, this was the story that was told. And the only question I remember was “What kind of soil do you identify with, and what is God telling you to do about it?” I think it was one of those times where we all just look around the room and hope nobody calls on us? I just had this overwhelming feeling that God wanted me to speak up, and for probably the first time ever, I did and was completely honest. Before I said anything, I told God that I would be open, on purpose, from that moment on, no matter what the outcome was. I can’t remember if I said my heart was like the hard soil or the rocks or the weeds… But I did not have an answer for what God wants me to do about it. I felt so hopeless. I had grown so calloused and closed off from The Church, and had not allowed myself to really learn from anyone or do anything to make myself vulnerable… it had affected not only how I related with other people, but it also had decreased my sensitivity to God. I had been living a life of trying to be good enough, trying to please God, and fearing the consequences if I didn’t. I didn’t have a real relationship with anyone, not even my husband, and saying out loud to this group of complete strangers who I didn’t know, didn’t trust… that my heart was not soft, not good soil, and that I had no idea what the heck I was supposed to do to change that… was the first step in coming back to God and The Church.

I feel kind of bad for not remembering what Jonathan’s response was…  I do remember feeling oddly accepted, even though I thought perhaps people were a little shocked that I was so open.  And I really felt God saying, “See?  It’s not so bad… You’re in the right place and you are responding to Me!”

Those first months of attending Hub Groups were rough.  I had some major nerves each week when it came time to go… I really did not want to!  And we were already effectively avoiding “The Gathering,” which to me sounded more like a horror movie than a church service, but each week, I got a call from Liz saying, “We missed you this morning!  We’re looking forward to seeing you tonight at Hub Group!”  It was definitely not easy to fall through the cracks!  I knew God wanted us there, but it was so, so hard to open up, not knowing if these people could be trusted, or if Hub City Church would end up just another name on the ever-growing list of churches/”Christians” who had hurt or taken advantage of us.

When we first came to Hub City, mostly out of curiosity and just a little desperation, we had been out of church for about 6 months, and during that time had decided that there would probably never be a reason for us to step foot in a church again.  I had in my mind that the house church movement was what we needed to pursue in order to find real Christians and real fellowship… lack of friendship was a gaping hole in my life… a constant reminder of The Church I was pushing away.  We had been through a string of exceptionally demoralizing church experiences… the legalism and bad doctrine I held on to so tightly, thinking I could somehow win God’s favor, virtually destroying my marriage, any hope of relationship with my children, and rendering me purposeless, faithless, and friendless.  The strong foundations that had been laid early in my Christian life had been demolished and I no longer knew what I believed about a lot of things I had placed my hope of salvation in.  Basically, I didn’t know which way was up, and even though I thought I could hear the faint whisper of God urging us to go deeper, I didn’t trust my ability to recognize His voice anymore, and so I walked into Hub City Church with a fortress up around me, expecting to be taken, mislead, and manipulated.

Truthfully, I didn’t much care for the setup of the Hub Group…  In fact there were lots of things I didn’t like about all kinds of things!  The bitter seed of legalism had sown in me all kinds of critical, judgmental thinking.  I didn’t want to be that way and sometimes didn’t even realize I was doing it, but I really tore everything apart pretty constantly.  The thing is, I probably was not a very nice person to be around a lot of the time.  But like I said, I was strangely aware of the condition of my heart, and I really wanted to change…  It felt like magic at the time, but Jonathan and Liz (who lead our Hub Group) really seemed to love me anyway…  ignoring my rants or claiming to see the positives in what I was saying…  They were really abnormally patient and relaxed with me… graceful…in fact I frequently wondered “What are these people selling anyway?  They can’t possibly be this nice for real… and they certainly can’t love me for real!  I mean, look at me… I’m a mess!  I criticize everything, I’m always arguing my point (which who even knows what that is!), and I’m a nervous wreck!  Who are they kidding?  I’m no sucker… What is the catch?”

The thing was, that over time, we formed some other relationships in our Hub Group.  I became a bit more comfortable sharing, and what I had once thought was kind of boring and uninspiring (the storying we do in Hub Group) really started to sink into me.  I don’t know exactly when it happened, but I felt something “give.”  I started to learn.  I found myself focused more on the basics of faith and grace and Jesus Himself.  I began extending that same grace to others that had been given to me.  I looked forward to sharing what God was doing in my life and hearing how He was working in the others in our group.  I was devouring books at breakneck speed… literally weeping at each revelation of God’s grace and love for me.

At some point, we broke down and started participating in the Sunday morning Gathering.  I was excited to learn more through the teachings that Frankie and Jonathan presented… they really helped me stick to the basics and continue to focus on what’s really important.  It was also really neat to find some ways to help… it had been a long time since I had been a part of anything big, and suddenly I felt needed and useful.  But the thing about The Gathering (I still think it sounds a bit like a horror movie, though in an endearing sort of way now, LoL!) that really pushed me forward was the music…  Much of my life has been about music (singing and guitar) and it’s maybe kind of odd, but when things started going wrong and the color went out of my life, music was the first thing I let go.  There was just something so real about the music at Hub City… I think it was that whether it was just Josh or when they put together the band… it never felt like I was watching a performance.  In fact, there are times I almost feel like I’m intruding on their worship!  That experience has really helped me to open back up that area of my life and has given me practical (by example) instruction on how to adore God through music and worship.

I did have some crisis points this past year while at Hub City.  Times when the ball was obviously in my court and I had to decide whether I was going to be the kind of person I was seeing modeled, the kind who will “listen to God and do what He says,” or whether I would fall back on my own understanding and react in fear to things that made me uncomfortable.  One such crisis surrounded the first Immersion class we took part in.  The discipleship process for me started out as kind of a love/hate relationship.  When I found out there was a “process” for discipleship at Hub City, I was really mad.  I thought, “Ha!  I was right all along!  They weren’t really loving me at all… it’s part of the program!”  Dang, I’m jaded…  But I don’t know…  I guess because I had already opened back up to God, it was hard to shut His voice off completely, and even though I let Jonathan know I didn’t like the process and felt manipulated, he and Liz just continued doing everything the same!  I stuck it out and realized that I was basically just being an idiot…  I mean, they continued being my friends even though I didn’t like their stupid program… and besides they already knew what “level” I was and everything… My needs were being met.  What did I have to lose?

Quite some time later, a major conflict arose in a key relationship in my life.  And something strange happened that I wasn’t expecting.  I responded differently than I normally would have prior to my time with Hub City Church.  I showed grace.  I was patient (more or less).  I was forgiving.  I was doing some of the Fruits of the Spirit that I had seen demonstrated the last several months.  It really surprised me!  So much so that that ended up being a huge turning point in my relationship with God… I was so in awe of what He was doing in my life… it was ALL Him, and I wanted more!  Around that time, we also had a teaching series called “Man Up,” dealing with “doing the right thing, even when it’s hard.”  I started reading my Bible very consistently and God gave me the courage to make some tough decisions and start to really seek His will for my life.  I started to feel like I had purpose, an identity, bigger than all the things that could go wrong in my life, family, marriage…  God was caring for me.  He was ministering to me.  And at times He was chasing after me… and all this through His Church, through the people he had set up to surround us with Him.  I know I said this before, but there were times that it really did seem like magic.

Not that long ago, fear reared its ugly head again as I realized I needed to make yet another decision.  Not that it was being forced on me or anything, just that it was a longstanding issue that needed to be dealt with, and it was “time.”  We took the Hub City B.S. (that’s Basic Stuff, though I had other thoughts…) class.  I had a really difficult time sitting through the last class.  I felt angry about some things, and just disagreeable about some others, but knew that it was really fear that was the problem when it came right down to it.  I was having issues with the “following the leaders as they follow Jesus” point in our Family Commitment.  The thing was, I had been so messed up by doing that in the past, that the idea of actually signing a piece of paper, basically covenanting to let myself be guided by and live in agreement with the vision of church leaders… let’s just say my initial reaction was less than stellar.  But I was able to recognize it for what it was, and through prayer and fasting and study, grew very accepting of the next move God wanted me to make.  It was another one of those “manning up” moments.

It’s good to be part of a family.  I have never had a real relationship with anyone from church before.  I feel like God has given me an older (had to throw that in there!) brother and sister in Jonathan and Liz, and more and more extended family with each passing week at Hub City Church.  What I thought was “magic” early on is now so clearly the Holy Spirit working through the people who have cared for me, guided me and helped me grow over this last year.   I came to Hub City Church a broken, scared, skeptical mess. Now, I’m still a mess in some ways LoL BUT my heart has changed over the course of this last year. It’s soft and teachable now… I’m “good dirt.”   I love and trust the people who bothered to love me first, when I was such a mess and rather unlovable. I think it is a miracle that human beings can love like God does. That is the Holy Spirit more than any big loud extravagant wonder-working. That’s real life, and I think it’s pretty neat.

Melanie Creel

I am so excited to be a part of Hub City Church. It’s the first church I’ve ever been a part of where I think they truly take Jesus’ command to make disciples serious. As a result of that, a lot has changed in my own life. We came to Hub City Church (before it was named that!) because we knew God was calling us to something bigger than ourselves. Frankie felt called by God to plant a church in the future and we wanted to be a part of a current church plant and get a feel for what we were getting into! We, also, clearly felt that this is where God wanted us.
As we begin to meet weekly with the Everette’s and the Blackwell’s, we begin to realize that the vision of Hub City Church was and is vastly different from anything we were used to and not only that, but they were truly striving to be different, to reach people that were unchurched or dechurched. We realized that by being a part of Hub City Church, we would not merely be attending a Sunday morning service, but we would be missionaries to Spartanburg. It wasn’t at all about us and what we wanted or needed.
Now, I wouldn’t say that Frankie and I went to church to have our needs met, but churches we had gone to in the past had always tried to focus on the members more than the outsiders, to make sure the members had everything they wanted…. Hub City Church, even in the earliest days, didn’t really care that our weekly needs were met, but that we were able to make a difference in the lives of those around us… and incidentally, our needs were met in the process. God worked in and through us before we even started a weekly worship service. He lead Jonathan to embrace the idea of a Movies in the Park and with around 15 people, we were able to serve between 1500-2500 people at each of those MIP that first summer. I loved helping with Movies in the Park. It gave me an outlet to help others. Something, I can’t always do on my own. We have been able to help individual families and our second year of MIP was fantastic. But in those same times, when I have been able to be a part of something that is so clearly a God-thing and serve others, God met my inner needs as well.
I would also say that before I got involved with Hub City Church, I was trapped in a Christian bubble. I only knew Christians besides my family. Whenever a pastor would talk about the people in our lives that weren’t Christians, I would always think: I really don’t know anyone like that. I had a few people at work that I would say weren’t Christians but I really wasn’t close enough to them to say anything. Hub City Church changed all that for me because of their focus on relationships. Jonathan never asked us to witness to anyone and “lead them to Jesus,” but he asked us to get to know people, to develop friendships, and from there, God would open the doors for us to have conversations with those people about Jesus. In the past year, I have had several conversations with unchurched or dechurched people that I would have never considered before Hub City Church. I think this has been the biggest change in my life. I have sought to develop relationships with people I normally wouldn’t. I have become more approachable to people outside church. I still have a long way to go with my people skills, but I am a million times better at it than I was two years ago!
I am so excited to be a part of Hub City Church, to see lives changing in dramatic ways and in personal ways. We are looking forward to seeing what God has planned for us in the years to come.

Thanks,
Melanie

Kenzie Rogers

Hub City Church is completely different from the traditional Baptist church that I grew up in.  And you know, that’s what I love about it.  Every week when I go, it feels “real” to me…no pretense.  It’s approachable and accepting.  You don’t have to get all dressed up, it truly is come as you are!  The actual gathering is awesome with the band and Jonathan’s relaxed style of teaching.  But, it is so much more than that.  We are building lasting relationships by attending Hub Group and serving our community together.  I think that is one of my favorite parts about Hub City, we are actually trying to make Spartanburg a better place.  I love how we don’t just talk about things that could/should be done, but we actually do them.  I hope we’re having a positive impact on the people of this city and they will realize that we aren’t doing this for ourselves or to get anything in return but that we love them simply because Jesus loves them.  All we’re trying to do is make disciples who make disciples who make disciples……

Josh Rogers

Okay, so here is my Hub City Story. My name is Joshua Rogers and I am the worship leader of Hub City Church.  Let me take you back a ways. I was born on January 28th 1979.  Okay that’s a little too far. Now for real, I first met Jonathan and Liz in the spring of 2007 when my wife and I visited The Point. I knew right away that Jonathan was and is a great speaker/teacher and on top of that he has an enormous passion for the people far away from God right here in Spartanburg. Unfortunately my wife and I were committed to the traditional Baptist church that we were then attending, and really weren’t able to become a bigger part of what Jonathan was doing then. However when our commitments were up for renewal, so to speak, at the traditional church, we decided it was time for us to move on. So within a few weeks I had emailed Jonathan to see if they were still meeting at the same place and time and that is when he invited Kenzie and me to a vision casting for a new church plant, which we now know as Hub City Church!

That is when the launch team began to meet weekly and things were brainstormed and discussed, and the idea of Movies in the Park started becoming a reality. I miss those days.

Then we had our launch on September 21st and we made the 6:00 news, wow! I was a happy greeter at that time, doing my best to make people feel welcomed at the door.

Roughly a month later, October 22nd, to be exact. Frankie asked me if I would lead worship that coming Sunday, since his other fifteen options didn’t come through for him. Can you say last resort? Hahahaha!

God has revealed a few things to me since then. Worship with music in a corporate setting can be a very beautiful, exciting and spiritual experience and should be. Unfortunately it can also be an awkward, uncomfortable or an “I wish the band would hurry up and finish because this sucks” type of experience. And yes we’ve had quite a few of those moments, and still do. But why do we meet every Sunday? Is it for a show or production and if the production isn’t that great this week does that mean our first timers won’t return. If I’m not careful I’ll start thinking like that. If Hub City has taught me something about doing church it would be this, it’s not just about Sunday, it will come and go and so will the people who are looking for entertainment, but the relationships and friendships that are formed along the way will last. Those are the people that come back week after week, join Hub Groups, and begin to serve wherever they are needed. They don’t care any more if the band sounded off, or if Jonathan said they should be shot and killed for leaving tracts as a tip for waiters, or if Frankie shows too many ninger videos. They are there because they’re our friends now, not to see a show. Don’t get me wrong I absolutely believe excellence should be our goal and that is what we should try to achieve for our Gatherings, but you can only go as far as your resources and talents will let you. And anyway were not trying to sell Hub City Church, we just want to make disciples who make disciples.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY   Hub City Church!!!!!

Jessica Hall

It’s been so exciting and beautiful to be a part of Hub City Church. I’ve become so much closer and grown so much in my relationship with God. Our coming together to do for others, helping people in need, special events for the community have been so uplifting. Just to see God working in our lives and showing others his love through us is amazing! God has shown be hidden talents I didn’t know I even had, working with the 3-4 yr olds, who would have ever thought! They have inspired me greatly and I’ve learned so much from them, the simple messages God shows us through our children is such a blessing. I’ve also made new relationships through church and small groups. You need these special bonds with friends and family.We need to grow in our relationships and spread God’s love. I love all of you!

Jason Holden

“In the beginning, there was Kirk Cameron.” Just kidding, or am I? Hub City Church has done a ton of neat things to my less than ordinary life. It was not until my more recently experiences with “other” churches that I began to “feel” like I was missing an important element to the church setting. I have been to Northern churches, Southern Churches, Anti-Church Churches, different types of small groups, bible studies, and then eventually a Catholic Church. I still “felt” missing something. Then I meant Jaime and Allen Holmes.

When I first meant Jaimee and Allen, my wife, Joy, said I would love them because they are “just like us”. I loved Jaimee, hated Allen. Really, I hated Allen, could not stand him, he was just so annoying, in all kinds of bad ways. It took a few “forced” visits to see them, again, loved Jaimee, couldn’t stand Allen with all his teeth in his mouth, but then I saw his humor: Allen is a smartass, just like me. Not only did we start to bond immediately afterwards, they disappeared from our lives, for a long period. My new “brother from another mother” Allen had left me, oh and I missed Jaimee too.

Then by chance, or faith (your pick), we saw them one last time. When I had inquired of their more recent whereabouts, they told Joy and I what was going on. And to my shocker, they have been going through the same “stuff” as me. I was lost now, confused on what to do. Where were they going, why was the new place better; all questions that I had no answers. Allen had one though, “Come with us if you want to live” (sort of).

Do not get involved, do not get involved, stay in the back, and do not talk to nobody, be the hermit, be the hermit (thoughts going through my head on the first day of going to Hub City Church). Then the magical thing happened: this church was personal. This church is amazing, different, new, original, hated Kirk Cameron. I feel in love with it, which is rule number one not to do according to Dave Ramsey. Makes the divorce harder, more painful, plus child support is a killer.

Hub City Church had the missing “stuff” or “something” that was “missing” from all the “other” churches: connection. I was no longer a Jewish prisoner with a number tattoo poorly in my arm given crappy sawdust bread looking for hope and friendship. I was a free man with more than enough hope and friends, to the point I am beating them off with sticks. Friends that I could be my crazy self with, do the crazy things, and make fun during the service. It was perfect. I was no longer trapped anymore.

Hub City Church lets you be the person you are, without shame, without judgment, and lets you become naturally, who you are suppose to be through bonding together as friends and family. No more small talking before and after church, no, there is more. Hub City Church is about family, family that accepts, embraces, and changes together. Happy Birthday Hub City Church. I will see you there, seated right next to Allen.

(Oh, and we’re the people with the picket signs protesting Kirk Cameron’s “Left Behind 18” in the theatres. I mean, come on, really 18 of them? When is enough an enough.)

Jason M. Holden

Proud Member of Hub City Church

Kevin Simmons

I didn’t think that we would ever end up in a church…in a movie theater.  Shawna and I had been looking for a church for almost a year since we had been married.  Praise and worship was a big part of decision, being pentecostal background and all(you know pentecostals will be doin’ p&w for like 5 hours on Sundays).  We were more less looking for a “christian” church, not a “religious” church(as our fine pastor would say).  We kind of just stumbled across HCC and really felt a connection there.

After visiting Hub City a couple of times I felt like this was where God was leading us at this point in our lives.  Since I have been at HCC I feel that my life has been 3X as busy.  Okay, seriously….It has been busier because I have decided to commit myself to praising God for the talents that he gave me.  Its a good to know that somebody, somewhere, has had an impact in their life from this church.  For me, that’s what its all about…I am proud to be a part of it.

Congratulations Hub City Church to the BIG 1 YEAR!

Shawna Simmons

What does Hub City Church mean to me?  Hub City Church is the true definition of church – People.  Through Sunday morning gatherings, Hub groups and Movies in the Park, I’ve developed relationships with people.  People that know, trust and desire God.  These people make me feel like I belong.  This sense of belonging holds me ACCOUNTABLE.  Through belonging, I develop a strong sense of godly fellowship.

Thanks to this fellowship, I can come to church in a dress or jeans and feel accepted, feel as if I belong.  I can help others to belong too.  Hub City Church creates in me a sens of belonging and the need to share that belonging to Christ with others.  Hub City Church is a people church.  I belong.  You belong.  We belong… to Christ.

Cathy Bachman

The birth of this church was an event that I was introduced to when my own small group leaders announced they would be leaving my home church to assist with the birthing process of this church.  Our own family unit of 4 tagged along during the early labor pains but we were quickly derailed by our own crisis as childhood leukemia relapsed in our daughter and dragged out its’ own second year battle.  As our 6 year old departed for heaven, we learned that part of grief is learning to move forward, as meaning shifts like sand and God becomes the lion’s mane where we cry the sadness of our shattered hearts.  Many things and places that were once havens, now are marred with memories too soon to visit.  It means a fresh start is necessary if there is to be a start at all.  God has been gentle with us as we listened for his voice on where we would fit, where we could start in, and where we might come alive in the clarity that we were granted having off-roaded with Jesus through the valley of life and death.  Where could we settle in to pay forward the love and grace that the circle of community had taught us to be such a powerful tool? Where could we begin to heal?  We felt broken and hurt, alive and fierce, all rolled up into one bag of spiritual psychosis known as the Bachmans.  We wanted to be around others of the same energy with that ALIVE in God almighty as the starting point.  I have to say, there are not alot of churches out there that mean it when they say “come as you are”…the first thing they want to do is fix you so you look bandaged up enough to look like “them”.  Hub City takes who YOU are as the gift.  The hunger we have for spiritual encouragement has been met with the hunger of a young church encouraging my own zest for life.  I have come to join the energy of God that is creating this ripple.  Bigger ripples are replaced by waves.  I stop and think of the power I feel when I am at the ball game and everyone participates in “The Wave”.  Everyone knows when to participate and on their own accord the successful sports wave is created.  It is a simple analogy.  At Hub City Church we arrive in various clothing and in various stages of our Journey with Christ.  We have so much to give, so much to learn.  Yet even in these early stages of discovery I see it.  The power of those who are already “waving” to my left, generating our own famiy desire to  throw our hands up in praise in a way that will then encourage those to our right to join right in with seamless attention not to let it fail.  We know what it takes to execute the plan and we are ever so surprised when it works.  ahh, the power of God in willing hands.

I love that we meet in a theatre.  Standing in an ecclectically non-church surrounding commands that the true worship come from within.  The lack of pomp and circumstance assures us that this band of believers each matter individually as we add our own desires to make that joyful noise into the mix.  It is us who come through the door, and not the door itself, that shines God’s works in progress.  It is also nice that you, Jonathon, do not fed us applesauce but rather a well rounded meal of meat- and- potatoes- Word -of- God that sticks to our ribs and does not give us that false sugar high.  I see practical greens are creatively applied to our plate of information as well.  We are off to a healthy start.

With this, I simply say, thank you for following the spiritual journey that it took to plant this church.  Jesus is the vine, we are the branches and this plot of tilled hearts will indeed produce much fruit as the roots of our hearts begin to penetrate the community around us.
Happy ONE, Hub City Church. Happy One.
Cathy Bachman