Brian Farone is the district superintendent of the North Central District of the EFCA. As part of the NCD team, Brian is passionate about serving pastors, church leaders and churches as they invite people from every nation, tribe, people and language to trust, walk with and serve Jesus Christ.
Guest Speaker: Will Miron
Will Miron will be giving the sermon at Trinity City Church this Sunday, June 16th. Will and his wife, with their three children, are headed to Ireland with the aim to plant gospel-centered churches. They are currently raising support before heading over to Ireland . Find out more at their website.
Guest Speaker: Jordan Monson
Pastor Jordan Monson will be preaching the sermon June 9th. Jordan is the founding pastor of Capital City Church. They launched in the Spring of this year, and have a heart for the city where ideas are exchanged, and where the neediest gather. He and his wife Aubrey live in the West 7th neighborhood in St. Paul with their two wonderful boys. Find out more at capitalcitystpaul.com
Guest Speaker: Carl Johnson
Pastor Carl Johnson will be giving the sermon at Trinity City Church on March 24. Carl and his team are planting Faith City Church. They will be launching in Dayton’s Bluff, Saint Paul on Easter Sunday. This local church has a mission to not only make disciples of Jesus in this neighborhood, but also to serve those with food insecurity. Find out more at the Faith City Church website.
2019 Lent and Holy Week
Lent is here! At Trinity City Church, we started the season of Lent with an Ash Wednesday service. Things kick into high gear during Holy Week when we'll be gathering for Maunday Thursday meals, a Good Friday service, a community egg hunt, and finally celebrating Easter with baptisms.
What is the meaning and significance of this time in the church calendar? Let's consider some of the explanations from The Worship Sourcebook (the rest of the post quotes The Worship Sourcebook under each heading).
The Season of Lent
The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ are at the heart of the Christian gospel, and Good Friday and Easter are two of the most significant celebrations of the Christian year. Lent is a season of preparation and repentance during which we anticipate Good Friday and Easter. Just as we carefully prepare for big events in our personal lives, such as a wedding or commencement, Lent invites us to make our hearts ready for remembering Jesus’ passion and celebrating Jesus’ resurrection.
The practice of a forty-day preparation period began in the Christian church during the third and fourth centuries. The number forty carries biblical significance based on the forty years Israel spent in the wilderness and Jesus’ forty-day fast in the wilderness. The forty days of Lent begin on Ash Wednesday and continue through holy week, not counting Sundays (which are reserved for celebratory worship). In practice, many congregations choose to focus Sunday worship on the themes of repentance and renewal. As a period of preparation, Lent has historically included the instruction of persons for baptism and profession of faith on Easter Sunday; the calling back of those who have become estranged from the church; and efforts by all Christians to deepen their piety, devotion, and readiness to mark the death and resurrection of their Savior. As such, the primary focus of the season is to explore and deepen a “baptismal spirituality” that centers on our union with Christ rather than to function only as an extended meditation on Christ’s suffering and death.
Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. By the fourth century the Western church had determined that the Lenten period of fasting and renewal should correspond to Christ’s forty-day fast (Matt. 4:2), and, by counting forty days back from Easter (excluding Sundays, which remain “feast” days), arrived at the Wednesday seven weeks before Easter. At one time Lent was primarily viewed as a period during which converts prepared for baptism on Easter Sunday, but later the season became a general time of penitence and renewal for all Christians. Thus Ash Wednesday became the day that marked the beginning of the Lenten renewal.
The aim of Ash Wednesday worship is threefold: to meditate on our mortality, sinfulness, and need of a savior; to renew our commitment to daily repentance in the Lenten season and in all of life; and to remember with confidence and gratitude that Christ has conquered death and sin. Ash Wednesday worship, then, is filled with gospel truth. It is a witness to the power and beauty of our union with Christ and to the daily dying and rising with Christ that this entails.
The imposition of ashes is often central part of the worship service. Ashes have a long history in biblical and church traditions. In Scripture ashes or dust symbolize frailty or death (Gen. 18:27), sadness or mourning (Esther 4:3), judgment (Lam. 3:16), and repentance (Jon. 3:6). Some traditions also have considered ash a purifying or cleansing agent. All these images are caught up in the church’s use of ashes as a symbol appropriate for Lent. In Christ’s passion we see God’s judgment on evil; in our penitence we express sorrow and repentance for our sins; in our rededication we show that we are purified and renewed. The ashes, which often are the burnt residue of the previous year’s palms from Palm Sunday, are often mixed with a little water and carried in a small dish. As the leader goes from worshiper to worshiper, or as worshipers come forward, the leader dips a finger in the moist ash and makes a cross on each person’s forehead (the “imposition”), saying words such as “Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return,” or, “Consider yourself dead to sin and alive in Jesus Christ.”
In some contexts, the imposition of ashes may be a barrier to thoughtful Lenten worship because of its newness or because it may be misunderstood. Most important is that worshipers rend their hearts (Joel 2:13). Decisions about whether or how to practice the imposition of ashes should always take into account that the service should build up the body of Christ.
Palm Sunday
The events framed by Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem and his resurrection are some of the most dramatic and theologically important of the entire scriptural narrative. These days feature not only the drama of the triumphal entry, trial, last supper, and crucifixion but also poignant prayers and prophetic teachings of our Lord. John’s gospel devotes eight of its twenty-one chapters to this week alone! The week begins with Passion/Palm Sunday and ends with the “three days” (also called the Triduum, from sunset on Thursday to sunset on Easter Day), the period during which we mark Jesus’ trial, death, and resurrection.
The first Sunday of Holy Week is commonly called either “Palm Sunday” or “Passion Sunday.” Those who call it “Palm Sunday” tend to focus on the entry of Christ into Jerusalem to shouts of “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Mark 11:9). Those who refer to the day as “Passion Sunday” tend to focus on Jesus’ suffering. This is especially appropriate in contexts in which participation in midweek services on Maundy Thursday or Good Friday is difficult or minimal, and, as a result, worshipers would sing “Hosanna” on one Sunday and “Christ arose” on the next, with little attention to Jesus’ suffering and death in between.
But even for congregations that celebrate the day as Palm Sunday, it’s important to capture the irony of the day. This is the day on which Jesus entered the city in triumph, but as a part of his journey to the cross; this is the week in which crowd’s cries of “Hosanna” would soon turn to “Crucify him!” One helpful approach to Palm Sunday worship is to begin by focusing on the procession into Jerusalem and then to concentrate on the suffering and passion of Jesus.
Maundy Thursday
On Maundy Thursday the church remembers the last evening Jesus shared with his disciples in the upper room before his arrest and crucifixion. Maundy Thursday marks three key events in Jesus’ last week: his washing of his disciples’ feet, his institution of the Lord’s Supper, and his new commandment to love one another.
The name “Maundy Thursday” comes from the Latin mandatum novum, referring to the “new commandment” Jesus taught his disciples (John 13:34). In other words, this is “new commandment Thursday.” Maundy Thursday worship naturally features the Lord’s Supper and, in some traditions, an act of foot washing or another sign of mutual love and dedication.
Celebrations of the Lord’s Supper can call attention to the many theologically rich dimensions of the Last Supper itself, including its attention to communal love and its clear eschatological orientation (its focus on hopeful anticipation of the coming kingdom).
Good Friday and Easter
Good Friday marks the death of Jesus Christ. It’s called “good” because of what Jesus’ death means for the redemption of the world. Worship on this day may focus on three aims: (1) to narrate and remember the events of Jesus’ death, (2) to open up the meaning of these events for our understanding of God and the redemption accomplished by the cross, and (3) to invite worshipers to renewed prayer and dedication.
All the hopes and expectations of Christians are realized in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, making Easter the most celebrative day of the church year.
New Sermon Series: Amos
Last Sunday, we started a new sermon series on the book of Amos. This sermon series will last until Easter.
Listen to the first sermon here. It is an overview of the entire book. Also, watch the Amos overview below from The Bible Project. It is only a seven minute video and it is extremely helpful.
The sermon graphic uses an image of a stained glass window from 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, erected in memoriam from the people of Wales following the 1963 bombing of the church. Hear more about the history of this image in the conclusion of the first message linked above.
Trinity Guests: Joel and Julie of Resurrection City Church
Joel and Julie Stegman
Credit: Resurrection City Church
On Sunday, December 16th, Joel and Julie Stegman will be joining us at Trinity City Church. Joel will be giving the message, Julie will be doing the call to worship, and Trinity leaders will be praying for them. Hope Community Church is sending out Joel and Julie with their team to plant Resurrection City Church in the Hamline Midway neighborhood of Saint Paul. Check out this video from their website to learn more about this new church launching in January:
Immanuel Sermon Series and Advent/Christmas
Sunday, December 2 is the first day of Advent and we’re beginning a new sermon series called “Immanuel: God With Us.” Here is the schedule for the sermon series followed by an explanation of the Advent and Christmas season.
Sermon Series Schedule
(12/02) Isaiah 7:1-17
(12/09) Isaiah 8:1-10
(12/16) Isaiah 8:19-9:7
(12/23) Isaiah 11:1-16
(12/30) Matthew 1:18-25
The Meaning of Advent
The Worship Sourcebook describes the season of Advent:
The great proclamation “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14) assures us that God has entered into human history through the incarnation of the Son. The season of Advent, a season of waiting, is designed to cultivate our awareness of God’s actions—past, present, and future. In Advent we hear the prophecies of the Messiah’s coming as addressed to us—people who wait for the second coming. In Advent we heighten our anticipation for the ultimate fulfillment of all Old Testament promises, when the wolf will lie down with the lamb, death will be swallowed up, and every tear will be wiped away. In this way Advent highlights for us the larger story of God’s redemptive plan.
A deliberate tension must be built into our practice of the Advent season. Christ has come, and yet not all things have reached completion. While we remember Israel’s waiting and hoping and we give thanks for Christ’s birth, we also anticipate his second coming at the end of time. For this reason Advent began as a penitential season, a time for discipline and intentional repentance in the confident expectation and hope of Christ’s coming again.
The Meaning of Christmas
The Worship Sourcebook on the meaning Christmas:
At Christmas, we remember and celebrate the nativity of Christ and the mystery of the incarnation. Whereas during Advent we anticipate the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah, at Christmas we identify with the angels who proclaimed, “Glory to God in the highest”; with the shepherds, who were afraid but nevertheless offered worship; and with Mary, who pondered the meaning of these events in her heart (Luke 2:13-20) [...]
The Christmas season extends from December 25 through January 5 and includes at least one and usually two Sundays. Celebrating Christmas as a season helps us both to enter into the meaning of the incarnation more fully than celebrating a single day and to focus on additional Scripture texts that explore the meaning of Christmas beyond the familiar words of Luke 2.
Though North American culture considers Christmas the most important day of the Christian year, we must be careful to see the significance of Christmas in the light of all that follows, particularly Easter. In fact, Christmas is the first in a series of celebrations (Christmas, Epiphany, the baptism of our Lord, and the transfiguration of Jesus) that affirm the identity of Jesus as not only fully human but also fully divine. If the intervening weeks between these celebrations focus on the remarkable content of Jesus’ teaching and the relationships he established with his disciples, these four events anchor the church’s reflection on the meaning of Jesus’ life for our understanding of God and of the coming kingdom. Together, these celebrations prepare us for the journey toward the cross and the empty tomb.
The Only Name That Matters
“In mid-September, at the annual Missional Summit—a gathering of leaders from all across the EFCA— four leaders with diverse perspectives shared with attendees about how they interpret the term ‘evangelical.’” Pastor Bryan was one of those leaders who addressed the specific question: What does it mean to be evangelical when you’re a young, urban church? Read his summarized talk below and make sure you read all of the perspectives at the EFCA blog.
A decade ago, I helped plant the church that I now pastor in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in an area of the city that is unique, diverse and constantly changing. There is a rich culture of food, art and summer festivals. And like many urban areas, we are in a progressive part of town. It’s common to see rainbow flags on front porches or signs promoting liberal positions and politicians in our neighbors’ yards. Anti-Trump protests happen regularly right around the corner from our church.
This is the environment where our ministry is taking place. So how do we reckon with the term “evangelical” and with all of the negative connotations it carries today? A simple answer I’d give is that we are protestant at the front door and evangelical around the table.
What does this mean? We’re protestant at the front door because there is a long history of Catholicism in Saint Paul. People are open to religious expression, tradition and Christian communities. When we decided to name our church, I called on my unchurched friends for their opinions. They didn’t like all of the hip names that were popular for churches at the time; they didn’t like “warehouse” or “vintage” or the “woodshed.” They didn’t trust those names, because if they wanted to explore the Christian faith, going to the “woodshed” didn’t sound like a safe place to be. They wanted names that were rooted in Christian tradition. And so we named our church Trinity City Church.
Some people ask me, “Are you a liberal or conservative church?” My answer is that we’re both. We believe that the Trinity has deep historical and theological roots. We don’t have any theological surprises here. We affirm the Apostle’s Creed and the Nicene Creed, and in that sense, I guess we’re conservative. But we’re also a city church that changes with the city, so in that sense, I guess we’re liberal.
We didn’t include the words “Evangelical” and “Free” in the name of our church. “Evangelical” comes with so many stereotypes. Even 10 years ago, for many in my city, “evangelical” meant a voting bloc rather than a people with a particular theological heritage. The current political climate has only heightened this assumption. So we don’t lead with the word “evangelical.” Our website says that we belong to a protestant denomination and if someone wants to have a conversation about it, we go deeper.
When I go deeper, I say that we’re part of the Free Church, a movement started by Scandinavian immigrants who were breaking free from the state-run Lutheran church. Typically, in my setting in Saint Paul, this reference to Scandinavians and Luther opens up the conversation more than the word “evangelical” would. But we’re honest and up front about it if people ask. I’m not ashamed of our evangelical heritage, but there are things we need to learn from and repent of in our history. To me, I define “evangelical” as people who believe in the five “Solas” and in the priesthood of all believers. American evangelicals can be known by their belief in the authority of Scripture, the centrality of the cross, the necessity of conversion and the expression of faith through activism.
Ultimately, we make a distinction between big-E Evangelicalism and little-e evangelicalism, drawing from Timothy Keller in his 2017 piece in the New Yorker. Big-E Evangelicals self-identify as evangelical but share few of the central theological beliefs that have united evangelicals throughout history. Big-E Evangelicalism has become a default identity that looks more like a civil religion or a political or nationalistic identity rather than a theological heritage.
In contrast, we’re little-e evangelicals: people united in the historical, confessional, multiethnic and global movement of the gospel of Jesus Christ, with no political allegiance or political identity. This is what we hold fast to. We are faithful to the Lord’s commission and lift high the Name that is above every name. I don’t know what we’ll call ourselves in the future, as a movement of enduring saints, but I know that the name we will continue to confess is that of Jesus Christ—and that is the only Name that matters.
“Alejandro Mandes, executive director of All People ministry, opens the Q&A session for the four speakers (left to right): Pablo Cachon, Bryan Lair, Jenni Key and Kenneth Young.”
Credit: EFCA
Immanuel Fellowship - Trent Senske
This week Immanuel Fellowship and it’s pastor Trent Senske are taking over Trinity’s social media. Check back through out the week as we will be getting a glimpse into Trinity’s first church plant
What neighborhood do you live in?
Bancroft. Minneapolis, MN.
What’s your vocation?
Pastor
What's your favorite thing about living in the Twin Cities?
The seasons. Really! Everyone in my family has a different favorite season. Living on the Southside gives us the privilege of experiencing urban seasons and also quick access to the most beautiful parks and lakes anywhere.
How long have you been planting IF?
Laura and I moved back home to Minnesota in August 2016. So, in some ways we have been planting Immanuel Fellowship since then, but back then we didn't have a name or neighborhood for the church. We merely moved to pursue God's call on our lives to plant urban, multiethnic churches. After getting assessed through the Acts 29 Network, I spent a year doing training through Fellowship Associates and another year as a Pastoral Resident at Trinity City Church.
How do you serve at IF?
Church planting is not for the faint of heart, nor for those don't like to wear many hats! In short, I get to serve Immanuel Fellowship as its founding pastor. That's the answer to the "vocation" question, but it might be more helpful to say that I serve the church uniquely as the direction setter and the team leader.
What’s something you appreciate about IF?
Hmmm... one of the things I love about Immanuel Fellowship thus far is that our people are "unassuming." Don't get me wrong, the people God has called into planting the church are a bunch of All-Stars. Every week I find something out like, "Oh, didn't know that guy has been a part of starting 3 businesses. Wow, she is opening her own music venue. Geez, I had no clue he's been mentoring those high school dudes and helping them get to graduation." Our crew is wonderfully talented but they don't wear it on their sleeves. There is a humility about them and a servant-hearted mindset among them. I pray the Lord sustains that quality and that many in our neighborhoods are attracted to it.
Getting Through the 2018 Twin Cities Marathon
This Sunday the runners in the Twin Cities Marathon will be going through our neighborhood via Summit Avenue. Our Sunday Gathering will still be at 10am. In general, if you're coming to the Sunday Gathering from north of Summit, then you'll have no problem getting to the church building. However, if you're coming from south of Summit, then you may have some of your typical routes blocked off.
Here is the route:
Here are the relevant notes about road closures:
Miles 15-21 - Shut down approximately 6:40 a.m. Reopened approximately: 12:00 p.m.
Take nearest thru street to freeways
Lake Street crosses the course without delays
Miles 21-26 - Shut down approximately 6:40 a.m. Reopened approximately: 2:30 p.m.
Take Ayd Mill or Grand Avenue into downtown Saint Paul to go around State Capitol area
Ford Parkway crosses the course without delays
I-35E through Downtown Saint Paul is an alternate route around the course
Trinity Faces - Maddie Binsfed
This week we will be getting know Maddie Binsfed in our effort to learn more about the people that make up Trinity City Church. Be sure to check out Instagram and Facebook this week as Maddie shares life from her point of view.
What neighborhood do you live in?
I currently live in the dorms at the University of Northwestern, but I grew up in Rockford, Minnesota.
What’s your vocation?
I’m finishing up the last semester of my visual arts education degree, hoping to be licensed and teaching art after I graduate in December.
What’s something a lot of people don’t know about you?
I’m never bored! Even though life is crazy busy right now, whenever I have a lull or free time, I always have so many things I enjoy doing, like reading, baking, painting, drawing, or spending time with friends.
What's your favorite thing about living in the Twin Cities?
I love being so close to so many things, like the Minneapolis institute of art, a plethora of coffee shops, and being close to friends at Northwestern and Trinity.
How long have you attended TCC?
Since November of 2016, almost two years.
How do you serve at TCC?
Currently I serve as a scripture reader, and I would love to get more involved after I graduate.
What’s something you appreciate about TCC?
I love the layout of the services, how Bible-based the sermons are and the friendly, welcoming atmosphere.
Tell us about your art show? Inspiration?
I have always loved photographing landscapes, whether I see a beautiful sunset while on a bike ride, or stormy clouds while I’m driving home. I was inspired to try translating these little moments onto canvases, not to create a piece identical to the photo but to have a new little world existing on its own.
Questions for Christians Sermon Series
This Sunday we start a new sermon series called “Questions for Christians.” We did this series back in 2014 as well. The 2018 series repeats three questions from 2014 (numbers 2, 3, and 8 below) and adds five new questions.
For several weeks, the congregation submitted common questions they receive from those who don’t identify with the Christian faith. The selected questions below include the most asked questions or questions with common themes.
Here is the schedule for the series:
(09/23) How is the church any different than a business protecting its brand?
(09/30) Is Christianity and science compatible?
(10/07) Why does God allow so much suffering in this world?
(10/14) Don't the OT stories and laws contradict the life and teachings of Jesus?
(10/21) How can Christians be so hateful and arrogant?
(10/28) Do Christians really believe God torments people in hell for eternity?
(11/04) What is the relationship between the Christian faith and politics?
(11/11) Why do Christians have such a narrow view of sex?
Our Church Family Walks with the Reed Family
For the fifth year since her mother died, Trinity City Church member Laurel Reed will participate in the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation Team for Cures 5k Walk/Run in St. Paul.
Laurel’s mother, Ardy Germann, was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2008. Multiple myeloma is a cancer that forms in plasma cells, a type of white blood cell, according to the Mayo Clinic website. Multiple Myeloma causes cancer cells to build up in the bone marrow and leaves the body unable to fight infections.
There is no cure.
“It’s not curable, just treatable,” Laurel said. “You can do chemotherapy, or my mom had a stem cell transplant that they can try to give you more time, but it’s kind of like maintenance.”
When Germann was diagnosed, Laurel was a freshman in college. In 2011, Reed moved to Minnesota to help her father take care of her mother.
“One of the medications she was on to fight a fungal infection … one of the side effects caused her to lose her vision, so she was legally blind from that,” Laurel said. “That took away a lot of her independence.”
Laurel and her family also began to attend Trinity City Church in 2011, thanks to her mother’s research.
“My mom was actually the one who found the church online and told my husband, Jack, to go there,” Laurel said. “She was really into finding churches for people and helping them look. She was always up for doing research for people.”
In 2013, Germann died due to multiple myeloma.
“She still had a lot of really good quality of life,” Laurel said. “In those five years of life, she saw all her kids get married and was able to live with it for as long as she did, which was a huge gift and blessing to our family.”
The next year, Laurel and her family did the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation Team for Cures 5k Walk/Run for the first time. The 5k wraps around Lake Phalen in St. Paul.
“We did it the first year after she died,” Laurel said. “My family does it as a way to honor her and raise awareness. The first year, we had six people on our team and last year, we had over 50. It’s grown as a fun thing to do in her honor.”
This year, the 5k is on Sept. 23 at 11 a.m. The overall Twin Cities goal is to raise $250,000 for multiple myeloma research, of which more than $55,000 has been raised. The Ardy Germann team are hoping to raise $10,060 and have raised more than $4,000 so far.
People are able to sign up to participate in the race as part of the Ardy Germann team at walkrun.themmrf.org/twincities18/team/view/80374/Ardy-Germann-Team. The website also has an option to donate for those who aren’t able to participate in the 5k.
Funds raised from the 5k have tripled patient survival, developed 10 new treatments in 10 years and launched more than 60 clinical trials, according to the foundation’s website.
“I wish it wasn’t a thing, or even something we had to do or talk about, but that’s the reality we have in our family,” Laurel said.
Laurel said people who attend Trinity City Church who never ended up meeting her mom have participated in the race in the past.
“It’s really, really awesome,” Laurel said. “That’s been kind of a weird thing that people don’t know that part of who I am. It means a lot that even if they didn’t meet her, they still come and support. It’s really awesome.”
Registration for the race for adults is $35, $15 for children ages 6-17 and $5 for children five years old or younger.
Go to themmrf.org for more information.
By Maggie Stanwood. Stanwood is a multimedia reporter for the Prior Lake American newspaper in Prior Lake, Minnesota.
Rooted: The Ministry Year Ahead
Merriam Park was built between the 1880’s and the 1930’s as a neighborhood between the two downtowns. It holds not only turn-of-the-century buildings but established institutions in this neighborhood. Protestant and Catholic congregations built church buildings and schools during this time. A Catholic priest started the University of Saint Thomas in 1885. Just south of this neighborhood in MacGrove, a Presbyterian minister started Macalester College in 1874 and the college has been at the present site since 1883. A Methodist congregation built our church building in 1913 until they merged in 2010 with Hamline Church in Midway, which is when Trinity City Church started weekly Sunday Gatherings.
1849 Marshall Avenue as it looked in 1913 before the later additions.
Look around this neighborhood and you’ll see not only century-old properties, but also the long established presence of the communities who have grown deep roots here. As a new church, we’re like a young tree recently planted on the boulevard. Yet we’re growing deeper and deeper roots in this community with no plans of transplanting. Our vision is to be rooted in our neighborhood as an established Christian presence, making disciples that join in the renewal of our city and world for the next 100 plus years.
This commitment of established and deep presence is the main emphasis for this ministry year. It’s an emphasis that’ll take more than one year. Yet even large endeavors need to begin somewhere. This ministry year of 2018-19 is about being “Rooted.”
The last ministry year (2017-18) was a time of “Reset.” This included re-organizing our staff and leadership teams, re-thinking the budget, and re-energizing our volunteers. What do we hope to accomplish for the “Rooted” year?
Over the next five weeks, I’ll be preaching through a sermon series called “Rooted” in order to highlight the goals for the “Rooted” year. These sermons will include:
08/19: Rooted in Christ
08/26: Rooted in Community
09/02: Rooted in the City
09/09: Rooted to Plant Churches
09/16: Rooted on Campus
In addition to the sermon series, we have some important events coming up that will highlight the Rooted theme and begin accomplishing some of the goals. These include:
Trinity Leadership Conference (09/08). This is a one day conference for our volunteer leaders, deacons, Community Group leaders, etc. to prepare for the upcoming year.
Rally and Commissioning Sunday (09/09). This Sunday will be a time to re-launch Community Groups and to join ministry teams for the next year. In addition, we will be praying and commissioning the Immanuel Fellowship team to begin weekly Sunday Gatherings.
Immanuel Fellowship Begins Weekly Services (09/16). The Wilder Complex in south Minneapolis is the place to gather this Sunday. There will be a “vision lunch” afterwards to talk values, vision, and answer questions.
In addition to these dates, there are other important things coming this fall. Children’s Church will be restarting, and a new Sunday School class will begin meeting from 9:15 to 9:45am for kids third grade and up. There will be a couple luncheons after the service for undergraduate and graduate students. A new monthly gathering for those new to Trinity will begin in September.
With just a couple more weeks of August left, things are picking up steam for the next ministry year. There is so much more ahead for this year of “Rooted.” It’ll be a year of growing together in our rootedness in Christ, in Christian community, in service to our city, in our support of a new church plant, and in our impact on the local campuses.
Let’s get started. May God work in us in order to fulfill his good purpose for this ministry year!
From 10,000 Lakes to a Skyline of Mountains
Trinity City Church will soon be missing out on a few familiar faces.
Daniel Parks and Annika Parks, who have both volunteered in various positions throughout their time at the church, are moving to Boulder, Colorado soon for Daniel to pursue a doctorate in conducting at the University of Colorado.
“I’m looking forward to living in the mountains or having mountains in the skyline,” Annika said. “And the climate is a bit more stable — not as midwestern crazy.”
Daniel has been the music director for the music team and deacon of music for two years. Annika served as the kitchen coordinator last year and also serves on the music team.
“I have been involved with music ministry since I was about 12 or 13 years old, Daniel said. “I started volunteering with the music team almost immediately. I think the second Sunday we were attending, I introduced myself to the music leader at the time. Annika started helping out in the kitchen not long after and did that for a few years.”
The couple — who have been married for almost eight years — met in high school. Though they attended different high schools, their families attended the same church in Appleton, Wisconsin. Daniel and Annika started dating a few years later, when they were in college.
Daniel and Annika both said they grew up looking to their families as an example of volunteerism, especially in the church.
“I think that’s something that’s modeled in our families and that’s a normal part of our experience was volunteering,” Daniel said.
In 2013, Daniel got a job teaching in River Falls, Wisconsin, so they moved to St. Paul. They found Trinity in its early years after an online search.
“It felt normal to be in a smaller church plant,” Annika said.
Annika is a professional photographer, specializing in wedding, engagement and family photographer. Daniel is a music educator and musician who recently finished up a Master’s program at the University of Minnesota.
While Annika said she’s looking forward to the new topography, Daniel said he’s looking forward to starting his doctoral program in Colorado.
“I love learning and I really enjoy being a student,” Daniel said. “I’m excited to begin my last run of schooling in my life.”
Neither of them work for solely a paycheck, and are passionate about their jobs, Annika said.
“It’s nice to love what you do,” Annika said.
But, the couple will miss the relationships they’ve cultivated through Trinity. Annika said she will miss the family she used to nanny for and Daniel said he will miss the people he’s gotten to know through volunteering at the church.
Both of them also said they’ll miss the tacos at a few of their favorite restaurants, Maya Cuisine and El Taco Riendo, and will have to find a new taco place in Boulder.
By Maggie Stanwood. Stanwood is a multimedia reporter for the Prior Lake American newspaper in Prior Lake, Minnesota.
Duluth Baptisms
On July 5th, Pastor Bryan baptized Jacob Cloutier and Katherine Chmielewski (now Katherine Cloutier) in Lake Superior near downtown Duluth. The next day he officiated their wedding. Watch the video of these baptisms above.
"We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life," (Romans 6:4).
Antioch Community Church's New Home
Antioch Community Church is a sister church of Trinity City Church as Hope Community Church planted Antioch in 2008 and Trinity in 2010. Antioch and Trinity have partnered in various ministries throughout the year and share a common vision and mission.
Both Antioch and Trinity share a vision to make disciples of Jesus Christ who transform the urban neighborhoods where they live and worship. A part of realizing this vision includes local churches ministering from physical spaces within their neighborhoods. Every church family needs a church home. Trinity has a home at 1849 Marshall Avenue in St. Paul and Antioch recently moved into their new home at 1121 NE Jackson Street in Minneapolis.
Antioch moved from the Ukrainian Event Center to the Waterbury Building this spring. This new space meets the needs of this growing local church as they continue to minister in Northeast Minneapolis. Trinity was one of many supporters who made this move and space renovation possible.
In the video above, Pastor Andy gives Pastor Bryan a tour of Antioch’s new home.
Image: Antioch service at the Waterbury Building
Credit: Antioch Community Church
Trinity City Church Sending Out Immanuel Fellowship this Fall
Trinity City Church is a community of witnesses who not only share the gospel personally but also corporately by starting new churches. This last Sunday, Pastor Bryan announced that Trent Senske is now a Church Planting Resident at Trinity, which means Trinity is the sending church for Immanuel Fellowship.
Immanuel Fellowship will have preview services and neighborhood parties throughout the summer. In addition, here are some key dates coming up this fall:
- September 9: The Immanuel Fellowship Team will be commissioned at Trinity City Church
- September 16: Immanuel Fellowship begins weekly services at Laura Ingalls Wilder Complex in south Minneapolis.
- October 14: Celebration Service for Immanuel Fellowship supporters at the Wilder Complex.
Stay updated on the latest details by following Immanuel Fellowship on Facebook.
In the audio above, Pastor Bryan exhorted everyone to support Immanuel Fellowship by doing one (or more) of the following:
- Praying: commit to praying regularly for this church plant.
- Giving: donate to Immanuel Fellowship.
- Advocating: spread the word about Immanuel Fellowship especially among those in south MPLS.
- Joining: become a part of the Immanuel Fellowship team!
Everyone at Trinity City Church can do at least one of the above options. It's a specific way we may continue to make disciples who join God in the renewal of our city and world!
Pastor Trent shares the vision and values of Immanuel Fellowship at the Space Preview.
Trinity Faces - Jole Miller
It's time for the next installment of Trinity Faces, Jole Miller! This week we will be getting know Jole in our effort to learn more about the people that make up Trinity City Church. Be sure to check out Instagram and Facebook this week as Jole shares life from his point of view.
What neighborhood do you live in?
Macalester-Groveland
What’s your vocation?
I'm a collegiate rep with Fellowship of Christian Athletes. I work with athletes and coaches from Mac, UST, and CSP.
What’s something a lot of people don’t know about you?
I was a member of the skydiving club at the University of Edinburgh.
What's your favorite thing about living in the Twin Cities?
I like the cultural diversity, the outdoorsiness, and the unique shops and restaurants.
How long have you attended TCC?
Since the spring of 2014.
How do you serve at TCC?
I serve with children's church, grounds crew/ snow removal, van driving, and carrying around miscellaneous objects.
What’s something you appreciate about TCC?
TCC is the first church I went to where I feel connected to the other members. Family is one of the core identities at TCC, and we genuinely live that out.
