General

Dear Church Family,                                                                                                               April 14, 2022

In the Midweek Update that we sent out yesterday (Wed., April 13), I invited you to join with us in a churchwide fast on Monday, April 18. Throughout history, God’s people have declared their devotion and dependence on God through the practice of fasting. Fasting is the abstaining from food for spiritual purposes and should always be done in conjunction with prayer. God’s people have fasted for a variety of reasons including in times of crises, in times of mourning, in times of uncertainty, and in times of repentance.

As a church, we are in a time of staff transition. God has been gracious to our church in the past as we’ve brought in new staff members, and we should expect that He will be gracious again. However, considering our current and soon to be staff openings, I sense a need to collectively seek the Lord in prayer together as a church. So please join with your church family on Monday, April 18 in a churchwide fast. I recognize that not everyone will be able to fast the entire day, but my hope is that you will consider giving up one, two, or three meals that day to pursue the Lord in prayer concerning the following requests:

• That God will quickly provide for our staff needs with people who will embrace our mission to proclaim Christ and make disciples.
• That God will protect the unity of our church family as we humbly seek Him and stay engaged.
• That God will give our church leadership wisdom as we consider expectations and responsibilities associated with various staff positions going forward.

Officially, we’ve been seeking a Music/Worship Pastor for over a year. We have experienced disappointments on a few occasions as candidates that we thought highly of ultimately declined to continue in our process. We need wisdom for our next steps as a committee. We seem to have exhausted our resources for securing candidates and resumes. Unless God moves quickly and provides further candidates, our Personnel Team and Church Council have approved the move to contract with a Church Staffing Agency.

Concerning our Discipleship Pastor search, my hope is to have someone here by the end of summer. We have begun to have informal communication with potential candidates and with people who may be in a position to recommend candidates. Additionally, we will be posting this position soon.

As far as our Student Pastor search, we are looking forward to Hunter and Heather Wilkerson being with us April 22-24. As a reminder, here is the schedule for the weekend:

• Friday 6-9pm - Hunter and Heather with the 5^th Grade Activity (The Messy Event)
• Saturday 10-11:30am - Churchwide Meet-n-Greet in the ROC Coffee Shop 
• Saturday 7pm - Youth leaders/volunteers dessert fellowship and Q&A with Hunter and Heather
• Sunday 8:30 & 11am - Hunter and Heather Testimony in Worship Service
• Sunday 9:45am - Hunter teaches combined Student Ministry BFG
• Sunday 7:10pm - Business Meeting for the purpose of voting to call Hunter to TBC.

While change is not easy, it is clearly part of life. For whatever reason, God has chosen to lead various members of our ministry staff to other churches and ministry locations. For almost 15 years now, God has been gracious to allow me to serve at Trinity Baptist. We’ve seen lots of change as a church, and we will continue to see change in the future. Even still, God is in control.

So let’s seek Him and trust Him. And let’s humble ourselves before Him on Monday, April 18 as we fast and pray together as a church.

Be Strong and Courageous

Pastor Nate

Stewardship During a Global Pandemic

As I sit down to write this letter, a few thoughts flood my mind. First, I am so grateful to God for His faithfulness to stir the hearts of our church members to be generous and faithful to give. In what has been a difficult year, our church has entered the final month of the year in a healthy financial position. While God has been gracious to our church, we continue to pray for a strong financial finish to the year to make budget and to meet our March for Missions Offering goal.  

I have also been considering the concept of stewardship. Scripture is clear that all that we have belongs to God and that we are simply managers of what He entrusts to us. God calls us to steward the resources that He has entrusted to us for His glory. This is a humbling thought, especially during a global pandemic. Faithful stewardship may seem more challenging when facing society uncertainty, but it is what we are called to nonetheless.

On Sunday, December 13, we will hold our annual March for Missions Offering. While our collection of the offering will look different this year (we will not be marching collectively to place our offerings in baskets at the front of the Worship Center), the importance of this offering remains the same – all monies collected for March for Missions Offering will be used to support Southern Baptist Missionaries in Texas, North America, and around the world.

The goal for our March for Missions Offering is $175,000. If you are not able to join us for worship on Sunday, you can still contribute through January 31, 2021, through online giving accessed on our church’s website – www.trinitybaptistamarillo.org (be sure to select the ‘missions’ option). You can also send your contribution to our church office through the United States Postal Service (1601 I 40 West, Amarillo, TX, 79109) or drop your contribution off at the church office. Please be sure to mark your contribution “March for Missions.”

I wonder, does $175,000 seem like too lofty of a goal to you during a global pandemic? If I am honest, I have wondered about this myself. However, I am confident that if each member of Trinity Baptist Church faithfully stewards the resources that God has entrusted to us, He will be pleased with whatever amount is given to the March for Missions Offering.

So, as you consider both a year end contribution to the ministries and expenses of Trinity Baptist Church and what you will give towards the March for Missions Offering, I pray that God will enlarge your heart of generosity. Our hope is to finish this year in a stronger financial position than last year so that we can continue to effectively proclaim Christ and make disciples of those who claim Christ, all for the glory of Christ.  With all the uncertainty that 2021 holds, our hope is to be financially equipped with the resources necessary to expand our own ministries and to continue to fund local ministries and world-wide mission efforts and missionaries.

Humbly,

Pastor Nate

Greetings Church Family,                                                                                           10/16/20

Greetings from my recliner as I am recovering from knee surgery. As you know, Amarillo has experienced a spike in COVID-19 cases recently, prompting city officials to move Amarillo back to a level red status. Based on the news reports, city officials will re-evaluate this level in two weeks. We encourage you to pray for our city officials and for those you know who may be struggling with COVID-19.

As a result, many have wondered if any ministry plans will be altered at the church. At this point, we plan to continue with Sunday activities as planned for October 18, 2020. We will continue with two worship services and Sunday School for all ages in the morning, and with Small Groups / Children’s Music in the evening. However, please understand how important it is to wear masks and to keep distanced as possible. As we follow safety guidelines, we are in the best position to fight the spread of COVID-19.

Beyond that, if you are not feeling well, please do not attend Worship, Bible Study or Small Groups. If your children are not well, please do not bring them to Children’s Ministry activities. Furthermore, if you are uncomfortable attending Worship, Bible Study, or Small Group, please know that we understand and trust you to make the appropriate decision for yourself and your family.

Our ministry staff will be meeting next Monday to discuss our current ministry schedule, including our expanded Sunday evening and Wed., evening ministries. While we do not anticipate major changes to our Sunday morning ministry schedule at this point, we will prayerfully review and consider the best options going forward.

While several months ago, few of us knew people who had contracted the virus personally, it seems that the last months have been different. Many of us know people who have been personally affected by the virus. And while I believe that we need to learn to live with the threat of the virus, we also want to be careful to protect others. Therefore, it is imperative that we continue to follow safety guidelines, consider the needs of others, and make sure that we ourselves are not doing anything to put the health of others in jeopardy.

May God Be Gracious,

Pastor Nate

Dear Church Family,                                                                                                      7/23/20

I am sure that we can all agree that this summer has been unique, to say the least. While we have been able to re-incorporate the Sunday Morning Worship Services, we have had to cancel or postpone so many of the things that are near and dear to us at TBC. As you can imagine, planning has been extremely challenging in light of the ever changing COVID-19 conditions, projections, executive orders, CDC guidelines, and of course both popular and not-so-popular opinions.

This week, our ministry staff has gathered to pray about and brainstorm how and when to begin expanding ministry offerings for our church family. In addition to that, I met with the Church Council this week to get their input as well. In light of these conversations, I want to share with you our immediate priorities and our next steps. Please understand, as with everything these days, what I am about to lay out is subject to change.

Our priority is to focus on expanding our Sunday morning ministry offerings, including worship care (birth – Pre-K), children’s ministry, youth ministry, and adult Bible study. We are currently discussing the best way to safely accommodate all these ministries. Some of the challenges that we are working through include having enough volunteers / workers in the children’s areas, upgrading some of our facilities to meet CDC guidelines, and working out a  Sunday morning rotation whereby we can safely accommodate adult classes.

We hope to begin the expansion of Sunday morning ministry offerings after Labor Day. While local school boards have released their projected start dates, many people I have spoken with expect a delay for in-classroom learning to begin. We believe it is prudent to begin any age-graded activities following the start the school year and specifically, in-classroom instruction.

We continue to hear that many of you are still not getting out much and are not planning to return to church activities until a later date (maybe even until a COVID-19 vaccine is produced). If our Sunday morning attendance is any indication, we expect about 50% of our church family to participate in these expanded Sunday morning ministry opportunities. Expect to hear more information about this in the coming days weeks. 

While Equip U is a valuable aspect of our ministry here at TBC, as it stands now, our Wed. evening ministries, except for The Gathering (Student Ministry), are on hold. We are hopeful that later this fall, we will be able to resume adult Equip U, as well as Team Kid for children, but there will be no fellowship meal or adult choir. 

Finally, Sunday Night Small Groups and Children’s Music Ministries are also on hold for now. There are multiple factors at play that currently make caring for kids and conducting children’s music problematic.

Let me say thank you for your prayers. Many of you have contacted me and other staff members to let us know that you are praying for us. We recognize that opinions concerning COVID-19 vary and that some of you would choose to do things differently. Thank you for extending grace where we have differences, and for being patient during this difficult season. In God’s wisdom, He has allowed this pandemic to hit our world and our community, and it is our responsibility to be live faithfully before Him.

Finally, I want to encourage you to link up with your church family while we are not able to meet as much as we would prefer. If you do not feel comfortable attending worship yet, link up with people from your Bible Study Class or Small Group and worship together via the livestream. Make it a priority to stay connected with other church members, and as you are able link up for fellowship and encouragement. 

I am convinced that the more we link up and stay connected during this time, the healthier our church will be on the other side of the pandemic. And the same is true for our individual spiritual health as well. Do not go at this alone. Reach out to others. Stay connected. Link up!  

Keep Pressing On!

Pastor Nate

Dear Church Family,                                                                                                 4/22/20

With Easter Sunday in the rearview mirror, we are preparing to enter the month of May. While May is usually a busy month full of activities associated with the end of school and the end of spring programming at church, we all understand that this May will be different. While we are making plans to reschedule Family Dedication Sunday, unfortunately our children’s music programs will not be taking place, and Graduate Recognition Sunday will look much different than it has in the past. 

Concerning the summer months, unfortunately, several things have been cancelled and nearly everything else is tentative. Earlier this month, the Annual Meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention set for June 8-10 was cancelled. We got word this week that Panfork Baptist Camp has cancelled our children’s camp. We are awaiting word on the Student Ministry camp at Glorieta; however, we do know that all Student Life camps nation-wide were cancelled for the month of June. Even if the July camp dates are not cancelled, I am certain that Gary will proceed with caution and gather input from parents before making any further commitments. VBS is also on hold. We are currently discussing if and how we could conduct a VBS, even if in a much different format. Each week, we learn of more churches who have made the difficult decision to cut all summer programming with the hopes of re-starting in the fall. As the end of April approaches, we will need to make decisions regarding summer mission trips as well. As we stated previously, the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention advised churches not to make definitive plans before April 30. We have been and will continue to be in communication with our contacts in Taiwan, Thailand, and Peru. While our desire is to go with the gospel, we recognize that there are many factors that may prevent us from traveling overseas this year. 

Finally, our governor released a revised document titled “Guidance for Houses of Worship During the COVID-19 Crisis” today (https://txvalues.org/2020/04/21/texas-opens-door-for-in-person-church-services/). Please know that our ministry staff and church council are prayerfully considering several options concerning when and how we can begin meeting again. Here are a few of the details that we are considering:

• Can we begin on-campus Corporate Worship and Sunday School Classes the same week?
• Will phase one of our re-opening include a worship only strategy?
  • If so, will we spread people out throughout the building using livestream technology?
  • Will we offer multiple worship services?
  • Will we encourage people over 65 to continue to worship from home, online?
• Can our Sunday School classrooms accommodate social distancing recommendations?
  • What will we do with larger classes that include the most vulnerable age groups?
• When will we be able to offer Children’s Sunday School, Nursery, and Worship Care options that take into consideration all the safety guidelines with which we have grown accustomed (and give parents confidence)?

There are many other questions that we are considering. Once the city’s emergency declaration expires, we may consider a few other options for Sunday morning worship. In the meantime, we anticipate continuing our online worship approach at least through the month of May, as COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Amarillo and the surrounding areas. Our hope is to begin utilizing more musicians on Sunday mornings again soon as well. While other churches in the area may decide to re-open their doors more quickly, our desire is to best serve the safety and needs of our church members. Please know that we eagerly await the day that we can return to physically gathering for worship each Sunday.

Pressing On,

Pastor Nate

Blankets (and Gowns & Masks) of Love

As many of you know, Blankets of Love  is a sewing ministry of Trinity Baptist Church. While the ministry began in 2015, for the past several years, Thelma Martinez and her crew of nearly 20 ladies have been meeting at Trinity Baptist Church to sew double fleece blankets. These blankets are then distributed either personally and individually, or through the nearly 30 different organizations in Amarillo with whom the ministry partners.  

In light of the global pandemic and the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the medical community, Blankets of Love  has been asked by the medical community to sew masks and gowns for the Neighborhood ERs.  While the ministry has already sewn nearly 300 masks, materials will need to be purchased to meet the request for at least 100 gowns.

Trinity Baptist Church will be purchasing the material so that Blankets of Love  can continue to serve the medical community. However, if you are able and willing to volunteer to help make these gowns, Blankets of Love  would like to know. Please contact Thelma Martinez at thelma.martinez1947@yahoo.com if you are willing to cut fabric and / or sew material.

Thank you!

Pastor Nate / Thelma Martinez

Dear Church Family,                                                                                                 3/31/20

As I’m sure most of you know by now, our Mayor declared a state of disaster and public health emergency for Amarillo, effective from 11:59pm on March 30, 2020, until 11:59pm on April 14, 2020. I wanted to take a moment to update you on how this declaration affects Trinity Baptist Church. Please help us get the word out by sharing this information with people you know that may not check their email or Facebook page regularly.

• We understand that this decision was made in conjunction with much prayer and wise counsel. We are grateful for the people who the Lord has placed in authority over us here in Amarillo and are committed to praying for them. While the idea of shelter in place seems radical, it falls in line with the strong recommendations that we’ve already heard from multiple places.

   

• In my communication with the Office of the City Manager, it was clear that the city’s desire is not to put undue or unnecessary restriction on churches. They do not want to infringe upon our right to worship God, nor do they desire to make life more difficult for anyone, churches included. They did ask that we abide by the social distancing guidelines that have been emphasized by our federal, state, and local government.

   

• The city is encouraging people to work from home if possible. Again, while the city is not trying to put restrictions on churches, we have determined to close our church offices for the time being. While there will be people at the church building on a limited basis in order to carry out essential functions, including preparation for worship services, the doors will be locked. Should you have a need, we encourage you to email or call the person you are trying to reach directly, or to leave a message on the church’s answering system. We will do our best to get back with you as soon as possible. We will notify you when we are able to go back to normal office hours.

   

• While our desire is to continue with a livestream worship service as we have in previous weeks, we will continue to evaluate our best options on a weekly basis. However, based on the Amarillo Area Coronavirus (COVID-19) Status Level being elevated to RED, we have decided to reduce the number of volunteers who will be participating in the livestream for the time being.

   

• As much as we had hoped to physically gather on Easter Sunday (April 12), this is not going to be possible. We will continue with our online worship services for the foreseeable future. Along with all of you, our ministry staff looks forward to the day when we can physically gather for worship again.

   

• During this time of sheltering in place, it’s very likely that we have neighbors and friends who are anxious about life and perhaps even afraid to get out of their homes. What an opportunity we have been given to love our neighbors! If you are able, we encourage you to check on your neighbors to see if they need anything. Of course, we need to use wisdom in our interactions, but let’s show God’s love by caring for the people who live near us. Some may be in desperate need for groceries or other household items. Perhaps you can bless your neighbor by doing some yard work for them. Others just need to know that they are not alone. Ask people how you can be praying for them. Let’s initiate conversations and trust God with the results. Perhaps God will allow you to share the gospel with someone this week!

   

• Please let us know how we can be praying for you. We care for our church family, and in this tumultuous season, we need your help to know how we can best serve you. Please let us know your needs. If you’ve lost your job or have been furloughed during this time, please let us know. If you have physical or emotional needs, please let us know. We are committed to praying for you and doing what we can do to serve you and your family.

   

• As a church we are committed to supporting our staff and employees for as long as we possibly can. Initially, we determined that we would continue to support ministries and missions – both local and abroad – and to pay our staff and employees regular pay at least through Easter Sunday. Because you have continued to steward the resources that God has entrusted to you faithfully, we are able to continue with this support through the of the semester (May). Thank you! We appreciate your continued generosity and desire that the gospel not be hindered. That said, we want you to know that we have intentionally put a hold on non-essential spending, including previously approved updates to our building. While we will complete the work that has already begun, we will not begin other projects for which the church had previously voted to set aside money.

Finally, I want to reiterate my gratefulness to God to be part of this church family. We thank God often for the privilege to serve Trinity Baptist Church. And what a blessing and encouragement it is to serve with the team that God has assembled here. Every member of our ministry team has a passion for God’s glory and a deep love and concern for God’s people. I am blessed. Our church family is blessed!

Be Strong and Courageous!

Pastor Nate

Dear Church Family,                                                                                                       

As many of you have seen on our website (www.trinitybaptistamarillo.org), for at least the next three weeks our church will worship online via a livestream of our worship service, rather than gather physically to worship. You can access this livestream on our church’s website or through our church’s Facebook page (Sunday mornings at 10am). While this was a difficult decision, we believe that it is important to submit to the requests of our local government, as well as our president and other governmental agencies, in order to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, COVID-19.

Through much prayer and in consultation with our Ministry Staff and Church Council, we have cancelled all church programs, on campus meetings and gatherings, and other church sponsored activities at least through Saturday, April 11. While the situation concerning the coronavirus is ever changing, our prayer is that we will be able to physically gather for worship on Resurrection Sunday, April 12. We encourage you to visit the website regularly for additional information.

In the meantime, recall that in Peter’s first epistle, he reminds believers that the church is a living organism made up of living stones. He tells us that we are chosen and precious in God’s sight - living stones who are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ (2:4-5). In other words, Peter is telling us who we are and what we are to do as followers of Christ. As God’s chosen and loved ones, we are to offer the spiritual sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving to our Great God.

As God’s people, Peter tells us that we have received mercy, that we no longer walk in the darkness of sin, but in the marvelous light of His presence (2:9-10).  What a promise! What hope! This is hope that the world needs right now – and God calls us to proclaim His excellencies (2:10), to Proclaim Christ.  I want to encourage you to engage in spiritual conversations with people. People are asking questions and expressing concern. You have opportunity to give comfort and hope.

Peter goes on remind us that we are sojourners and exiles (2:11). Since this world is not our home – since we are just passing through - our values and hopes must be different from the rest of the world. As followers of Jesus, we need to filter the news and the headlines through what we know to be true of our God. The things that drive this world crazy and cause widespread anxiety should create a different response in us. Because our God is in control, instead of worry, we should pray; Instead of judging, we should be merciful; Instead of hoarding, we should be generous; Instead of being fearful, we should walk by faith, keeping our conduct honorable before God and people, living in good deeds for the glory of God (2:12).

People are watching. People are looking for hope. Let’s do everything we can to point people to Jesus, the only sure foundation and only hope for this world. And by the way, as important as it is to physically gather for worship and encouragement, while we are unable to gather, notice that we don’t have to be gathered to offer spiritual sacrifice, to proclaim Christ to the world, to keep our hope in God, and to live in good deeds for His glory! We are the Church. Live as the Church!  

Pressing On..

Pastor Nate

Coronavirus 2020

Just about everywhere you turn, someone is talking about the coronavirus outbreak.  Depending on which websites one visits and which news organizations one follows, people are all over the spectrum as to their level of concern. Along with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) who are putting out plenty of information, we encourage each person to consult a trusted medical practitioner for advice on how to respond appropriately to the situation revolving around the coronavirus.

That said, there are some things we need to be clear on as followers of Jesus. First off, don’t forget that our God is in control, so we have no need to worry. Coronavirus didn’t catch God off guard. And not only is He in control, He is near to those who are in Christ. We can trust Him. He is good. In light of who God is, remember the words of the Apostle Paul, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Phil 4:6).

Second, whatever your personal thoughts are concerning the varying reactions and responses to the coronavirus outbreak, let’s remember that real people are struggling in light of this new reality – however temporary or serious it may be. Real people have lost their lives. Real people have lost loved ones. Real people have been infected and are battling real symptoms. Real people have been inconvenienced by quarantines and interrupted schedules. Real people are concerned, fearful, and anxious. Real people are asking questions and looking for answers.

Church lets pray for people who have been affected by this virus in some way. You may not know anyone who has been personally infected with this virus, but chances are you know people who are concerned about the situation. And while you are praying for people, be sure to look for opportunities to share an encouraging word about our God. Some of us may even have an opportunity to share the gospel with people who are uncertain about the future.

Finally, please know that your church leaders care for you. We have spent time asking God for wisdom as to how to best respond to the concerns that have been raised by the coronavirus. Here are some things that we are doing (and encouraging you to do) considering the coronavirus situation.

Concerning its spread:

·         As always, we encourage people to use good hygiene practices including the regular washing of hands with soap and water and covering your coughs and sneezes.

·         We are placing added hand-sanitizer dispenses throughout the church and encourage you to invest in some as well.

·         If you or your children are running fever, we encourage you not to attend worship services or bring your children to the nursery or Sunday School.

·         To minimize the spread of germs, we encourage you to respect people’s desire to minimize touching associated with handshakes and hugs. Let’s replace greeting each other with a holy kiss (Rom 16:16) with fist or elbow bumps!

Concerning Missions

·         Missions is such an important part of who we are at Trinity Baptist Church. We want you to know that we are seeking God’s wisdom concerning each trip that has been planned (or is being planned) this year.

·         Factors that we are considering as we make decisions concerning each mission trip include the spread of the disease, air travel to / through certain countries, chances of mandatory quarantine, governmental warnings, and cost.

·         While any and every mission trip has inherent dangers, we do not intend to knowingly place our people in harm’s way.

·         While we do not yet have firm deadlines for making calls on any specific trip, as we learn more information, we will do our best to keep you informed. 

·         Thailand and Taiwan - At this point, we have not purchased tickets for these trips. While we have had some people express interest in going, we are currently in a holding pattern until we know more information about what the summer is going to look like.

·         Peru – We are monitoring the situation in Peru closely. According to the World Health Organization, Peru is one of the latest countries to be hit by the coronavirus (though the numbers are still small). While some airfare had previously been purchased, we are holding off on purchasing any more tickets until we know more information.

·         Cuba – While information is not easy to come by in Cuba, we do have some contacts in country who have not sounded any alarms concerning coronavirus thus far. Tickets will not be purchased for this trip until early summer (the trip is scheduled for late October – early November), so we have plenty of time to make an informed decision.

Our prayer is that God will be gracious and put a stop to this virus. We hope that none of our people will experience any unnecessary inconveniences or any symptom associated with the coronavirus. That said, our hope remains in our gracious and sovereign God.

With Love,

Pastor Nate