God’s Purpose Was Greater Than We Had Imagined

The Friends group responded to what we believe was God’s call and began our work in April of this year. Our group’s focus was to “shine a light” on the evolution of the UMC into a denomination that no longer represents its traditional members. The effort has led us to learn other things about the UMC that we have shared in our communications. Things that reinforced our belief that we need to take our church in a different direction.

Here are some of the beliefs that we encountered as a result of our efforts:

Some believe that it is a fight over church property. It is not.

Some believe that it is a fight against an expensive, bureaucratic and overbearing denomination. It is not.

Some believe that it is a fight over maintaining a historical legacy. It is not.

Some believe that it is a fight over issues of sexuality. It is not.

We came to understand that the real fight is over the belief in the truth of the words of our Bible. We must each decide what we believe. There is no compromise in the answer.

Each member has a clear choice when casting their ballot. Members who are theologically traditional should vote for Buncombe Street to remain a traditional church by voting to disaffiliate.  Members who are theologically progressive should vote for Buncombe Street to remain in the UMC.

Should the congregation vote to remain in the UMC, congregants who continue to worship at Buncombe Street will belong to a church that will become theologically progressive.

As the Friends continued our efforts, we began to see that God’s purpose was greater than we had imagined. As a result of the documentation and sharing of the changes occurring in the UMC, most members of the congregation now understand what is at stake when we vote on October 30.

By providing clarity, God has brought each of us to this time. Now we must decide and declare what we believe. It is a decision we believe God created to separate those in our denomination with traditional beliefs and to empower them to work together to avoid losing the traditional churches that are being overtaken as a result of the changes occurring in the UMC.

As traditional members of Buncombe Street, God calls us to remain united and to continue to work together regardless of the outcome of the vote.

We are excited about either outcome of the vote because we know that He has great things in store for us. If the vote is to disaffiliate, we will grow His church here at Buncombe Street. If not, He will show us the way forward. We believe this with all our hearts.

We pray that you are with us in our journey. We have a long way to go and many blessings to receive before we are finished.

See you Sunday.