Your generosity and hard work on Day of Action 2020 has made headlines in the Greater Northwest area of the United Methodist Church!
In the weekly GNW newsletter, it was the lead story for the Oregon-Idaho conference:
When it comes to migrant workers in Oregon, financial stability has never been a reality and the COVID-19 crisis has only made things worse for several families served by the Western Farm Workers Association…
You may read the entire article here
If you’re in need of some outdoor exercise, come to the church and weed! Along with all the beautiful spring flowers, the weeds are flourishing.
Bring your own tools, glove, etc. The yard debris bin is on the east side of the building.
Remember not to use the north entrance to the parking lot but do admire how nice it looks since it’s been repaired!
And here are some of the flowers on the campus:
If you missed your opportunity to write a note in the journals at church, it’s not too late!
Email or mail your message to Kari and she will attach it to the journal.
Words of thanks, welcome, encouragement; favorite scripture; or whatever you feel led to share - all will be a blessing to these two servants of Christ, Pastor Brian and Pastor Brett.
From Family Promise —
TWO YEARS – Happy Anniversary!
We are celebrating our two-year anniversary of serving children and their families suffering homelessness in the Beaverton School District!! THANK YOU to all our hosts, donors, volunteers, staff, past and present board members. We could never have opened in such a short timeframe, run a successful 1st phase capital campaign, and survived the early months of a pandemic without the help of so many. For our children and families we say THANK YOU!! With your help we have provided 6785 bednights, and 20,355 nutritious meals in our first two years!!!
Continue in browser —
If you ever see a great work of God,
something joyous,
alive and real
something of Christ,
something that is Christ,
something enduring,
then you may be certain of one thing:
some lonely saint
silent, alone
went to the cross,
suffered, died
and fell into the earth.
And for what did that someone die?
For that lovely harvest,
that work of God
which now you see
and declare to be so beautiful.
There must be another day,
and another body of believers.
A day when someone else
must fall into the earth
and die.
And that someone may be you.
From “Celtic Daily Prayer“ (c) 2000 The Northumbria Community Trust. Compiled by Andy Raine.
If you missed worship on Sunday, catch it here:
Here’s a note from Pastor Brian about this recording:
Hi all!
Here is the Sunday recording. It was a wildly unpredictable Sunday! But the music was awesome. And even though I never had video (!), you can see the screen share that Fred does. I could see no one! It was like being on radio I guess this time! All kinds of new experiences.
A note from Wendy F regarding Day of Action 2020:
My friends, we have truly been the hands and feet of Jesus this week!
From those who have been making masks for many many days, to those who made lunches so folks could have a fresh meal, to those who drove all over creation to pick up donations so others didn't have to drive to church, to those who made posters so communities could know that Western Farm Workers Assn was still open to help, to those who took pictures of others to capture these moments, to those who stood out in the rain to weigh donated food on a scale before putting it into cars, to those who took extra time to make kind notes and decorated lunch bags to bring a smile to recipients, to those who drove cars overflowing with donations to recipient organizations, to those who submitted applications to the UMC Conference office for gift cards for food and gas, to those who went back through the grocery store a second time because the donations they bought in addition to their own groceries overfilled their cart, to those who got neighbors and coworkers involved to multiply the donations, to those who amazingly had extra oranges to go into lunches that didn't have fruit because the lunch maker found their oranges to be moldy, and to even more efforts that go unseen in the group eye but God knows your good works! Take this moment to know that you are amazing, as individuals and as a group. We are all cogs in a system that God inspired to do something tremendous. Something that none of us could have done on our own, and when put together is simply astounding.
Grand totals:
Masks = 172!
Sack lunches = 274!
Food donations = 637 lbs!
Gift cards = $4000 (to be given across 70 families)!
Recipient organizations:
City Team
Western Farm Workers Association
Free Food Ministries
North by Northeast Community Health Center
I'm honored to be part of what just happened here. You all amaze me.
With much love and admiration,
Wendy
P.S. Please don't forget to upload your pictures using this link !
I stood in the phone booth in January 1992 -- no, not just before changing into Superman! By the way, do you remember phone booths? They were those ancient things, boxes actually. Perhaps you have seen them in Superman or Harry Potter movies? They were these glassed-in boxes on street corners in which was a black or silver box phone, a “pay phone” it was called, into which you put dimes, nickles and quarters to make a call. This was in those ancient times: before cell phones, computers at home, and Netflix. Yes, there was a day before Netflix! Indeed, in that era, everyone had “land lines.” I know a few of you who still have those. Those are phones directly connected to a phone line that is a physical thing brought into the house! Anyway, I distract myself.
So, I was standing in the phone booth. I’d dialed Karen at home. It was about 3 in the afternoon. I had just stepped out of the committee meetings with the Board of Ordained Ministry in the California-Pacific Annual Conference. I’d been interviewing with them all day, sitting before the whole board of 25+ people asking me questions about theology, the practice of ministry and my personal life habits. It was daunting. I had been working in pastoral ministry at that point for about four years. This was my interview to be ordained an Elder. They had deliberated and decided to wait on that ordination. They wanted me to take another theology course and apply another year. They had just given me their decision. I felt rejected and defeated. In addition, I was mad.
Karen answered and I unloaded my feelings about the day, the sense of defeat, the real sense that this meant my whole life was a failure. See, I am prone to exaggeration! She listened. She asked good questions. Then she said this, “Well, Brian, if you are this angry about their decision, I think then, they have made a good choice!”
What? Wisdom is not always what we are seeking when we are up against a wall.
When life doesn't go as you wished it would, when you hit a dead end, when the failures stack up so high they look like the Empire State Building next to your small, insignificant life, you need a God-sighting. You need a point of seeing that Jesus gets you and gets the dilemma, and gets the journey you are on. But often when in the middle of defeat, seeing and hearing from God is toughest. For me, it took my wife on the other end of the phone line to hold up the mirror. And through her wisdom, I began to listen for Jesus. It’s not that God is absent. God is never absent. Indeed, the disciples discovered this on more than one occasion.
It is that when God is closest to us, oftentimes he is behind us, holding tightly. And that’s when we are least aware of the fact that not only is he holding us, but often crying with us, too. Or sometimes, you might see God and Jesus having a belly laugh that finally, you are just where God wants you to be!
Standing there in that telephone booth I had no sense of God, only of my self-righteous anger. I had no sense of God’s design, nor plan, nor even the inkling that God was in THEIR decision. Instead, I only saw “red” and my justifications that they were wrong and I was right.
But God was there.
What opened up in my life because of that decision to make me “wait” was first a great class in theology by a guy who has since become a world-renowned author and professor. That was beautiful. But more than this, through counseling with a man named Randy, He began to unpack the source of anger in my heart and led to the discovering of the abuse I had encountered as a kid more fully. Jesus was behind the “wait,” for He had plans I could not have seen.
In times of defeat, God does show up.
When has God shown up in your points of defeat? How has God surprised you with, what looked like a dead-end, was an open door?
And sometimes, those points of defeat also lead to reconciling our lives with others and with God. That’s what we see happening in this week’s God sighting. Jesus showed up to get the disciples back on track, to take them from a place of stepping back to the familiar into a place of again reconciling with Jesus and with one another in new ways. Don’t miss worship. 9 am. Sunday morning.
Here are the Next Steps for your faith journey:
Establish daily practice: Look for Jesus.
Read a good book, do a puzzle, be.
If wearing a mask, remember to smile with your eyes toward others around you.
Give and receive -- this is a season for learning both.
Peter had denied knowing Jesus. He had seen Jesus since but they hadn’t talked. Still, he felt a bit disconnected, a bit like a failure, a bit like he had royally blown it. At this juncture, he had done what any good follower will do -- he had stepped back to doing something he knew HOW to do before Jesus had said, “Follow Me!” He went fishing.
"The heart. The head. The gut. These define three approaches to life that divide into nine personality types which relate to how we respond to the world and how we interpret it. Life and its situations all relate to our sense of who we are. Some of us walk through life unaware, and our personalities crash into others along the way. But when we have some understanding, it makes such a difference. Where do you fall? Do you know? Would you like to learn more about yourself and others?
Join the ENNEAGRAM COURSE beginning May 4th at 1:00 pm. We will meet via ZOOM from 1:00 - 3:00 pm on Monday, May 4, 11, 18 and 3:00 -5:00 pm on Tuesday, May 26th. We will watch together and discuss a course written and presented by Ian Cron whose book on the enneagram “The Road Back to You” is excellent.
The course comes with a workbook which Pastor Brian will email to you.
Do you want to learn more about life and how to approach it from a place of centeredness? Join this course.
Do you want to solve relationship issues you have had with others? Join this course.
Do you want to learn how God has authored your own character? Don’t miss this opportunity.
We will start Monday May 4th at 1:00 pm. Email the church office, office@westsidejourney.org, to register and receive your workbook.
Here is more information, from Pastor Brian, on the organization that the Free Food Ministries works with:
Birch Community Services is a facility located on the Portland/Gresham line. Birch was formed in 1999 in a response to seeing people struggling to even obtain bread. The Birch family began collecting bread from local bakeries and stores and providing it to area families. This grew over time to redistributing millions of pounds of wholesome food, clothing and household goods deemed surplus by product donors; and providing workshops and courses designed to equip families with new knowledge and skills for achieving fiscal stability.
BCS gives families the means to reach their goals of decreasing or eliminating consumer debt, catching up with mortgage or car payments, meeting medical bills, or helping pay for vocational training to earn a livable wage.
Agencies are allowed to shop once per week for a monthly charge of $125. Agencies are allowed to take as much food as they need to service their community. We at Free Food Ministries have been able to obtain loads of 2100 lbs, 2300lbs, and 3100 lbs of products ranging from meat to dairy to dry goods, and more.
We are blessed to have this service as it allows us to provide a wider range of goods to our visitors as well as our partnerships with local school districts during this challenging time.
Currently our food tents run by Amy Fiederowicz are sharing 12,000-15,000 pounds of food and serving 2000 families a week. Contact Amy to volunteer to help. If you would like to donate, please mail a check (payable to WUMC, memo:FFM) or give through our website.
Glory to God
As bishop of the Greater Northwest Area of The United Methodist Church, I am extending the suspension of in-person worship in United Methodist Churches and other ministries and the closure of church facilities to all but essential services throughout the Alaska, Oregon-Idaho and Pacific Northwest Conferences through May 30, 2020, despite the loosening of restrictions in some or all of the states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. This date may be reconsidered as circumstances change.
You may read her entire message here.
Thank God for the technology we have today that keeps us together!
If you missed your opportunity to write a note in the journals at church, it’s not too late!
Email or mail your message to Kari and she will attach it to the journal.
Words of thanks, welcome, encouragement; favorite scripture; or whatever you feel led to share - all will be a blessing to these two servants of Christ, Pastor Brian and Pastor Brett.
Just a reminder that the signup for our Day of Action closes tomorrow!
We are partnering with CityHope, the Western Farm Workers Association, and the North by Northeast Community Health Center this year.
Please read the directions carefully for each slot and sign up for as many as you like.
We particularly need posters made for the WFWA, to notify their clients that they are still open. They are requesting handmade, 11”x17” posters that they will post around town. Things to know:
Posterboard and markers are available from the WFWA office at 725 SE 7th Ave, Hillsboro. Call 503-681-9399 first, and they will leave the items on the front porch. You may return them in the same manner.
Use LARGE BOLD LETTERS that can be seen from a distance.
Feel free to use color
Slogans for the posters are listed here. Use one slogan in one language for each poster.
If writing in Spanish, please pay attention to accents, e.g. Atención
Day of Action 2020 signup here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050B4BABAF22AB9-dayofaction2
Thanks!
"The heart. The head. The gut. These define three approaches to life that divide into nine personality types which relate to how we respond to the world and how we interpret it. Life and its situations all relate to our sense of who we are. Some of us walk through life unaware, and our personalities crash into others along the way. But when we have some understanding, it makes such a difference. Where do you fall? Do you know? Would you like to learn more about yourself and others?
Join the ENNEAGRAM COURSE beginning May 4th at 1:00 pm. We will meet via ZOOM from 1:00 - 3:00 pm on Monday, May 4, 11, 18 and 3:00 -5:00 pm on Tuesday, May 26th. We will watch together and discuss a course written and presented by Ian Cron whose book on the enneagram “The Road Back to You” is excellent.
The course comes with a workbook which Pastor Brian will email to you.
Do you want to learn more about life and how to approach it from a place of centeredness? Join this course.
Do you want to solve relationship issues you have had with others? Join this course.
Do you want to learn how God has authored your own character? Don’t miss this opportunity.
We will start Monday May 4th at 1:00 pm. Email the church office, office@westsidejourney.org, to register and receive your workbook.
If you missed worship on Sunday, catch it here:
Amy F and her Free Food Ministries team do a remarkable job of providing food for free, literally, for anyone who needs it. And there are lots of people who need it now. The requests have leaped from 200 to 2000 families per week.
But where does the food come from? A portion comes from the Birch Community, a non-profit that acts somewhat as a brokerage location for food. Similar to the Oregon Food Bank but easier to work with, and with a better variety.
The Free Food Ministries pays $125 per month for their participation.
If you are able to contribute, above and beyond your giving to the church, so many people would be benefited. You may mail a check to the church (made out to WUMC, memo: FFM) or give through the link on our website (put FFM in the special instructions.)
Thank you so much for your generous hearts!
Object lessons. You know them. The ones where a leader usually working with children cuts open the pumpkin and says, “Did you know that carving a pumpkin for Halloween is a lot like being a Christian?” And everyone thinks, “No way?”
And then as she cuts off the top. “When Jesus comes into our lives he takes out all the things that we had become accustomed to which were not helpful to us being the person He’s called us to be.” She begins to scoop out the seeds and says, “He scoops out the sins, the attitudes, the hurts, the injuries. As we forgive, more is taken away or released. Then,” and now she carves the face, two eyes and a smile, “Jesus brings joy to us we had not known, and finally,” and lighting a candle she places it inside, “We have light shining from the inside.”
There’s something about those kinds of lessons that stick. You know, you cannot shake them. You leave thinking about them. You chuckle about the idea of Jesus “taking your top off,” but then realize that God had done just that -- changed you from the inside out.
I find that Jesus still uses those kinds of lessons on me. Week by week, day by day, God uses object lessons.
Back in December, I took the plunge and bought three new pairs of shoes. I’m not a shoe person. I tend to have one pair of dress shoes, one pair of tennis / walking shoes, boots and flip flops. So, I needed to replace tennis, dress and casual walking shoes all at once. So, I got some sales at this online store and ordered them. They all fit, which was a surprise, and after wearing them inside the house, enjoyed them outside. Then in late February or early March, my toes began to hurt. They felt like the ends of the toes all had blisters. It was painful. They began to hurt all the time. The ends of the middle toes were bright red and swollen. I began to wonder what was going on.
At a doctor’s appointment, I had her check and her first question was, “Did you get new shoes recently?” And even though it had been a few months, suddenly the connection seemed possible. That even though I had purchased the normal sizes, the shoes were a narrow width, and were pushing my toes into the ends of the shoes. With the pandemic, I have been home more, so have been going barefoot to give my toes a break. During Holy Week I led us in a nightly time of Examen -- it is the Ignatian practice of prayer in which you first review your day with thanksgiving and then pay attention to the emotions of your day. Finally, you choose one event or moment, whatever catches your attention, and pray from that. In that short period of time, one night, the Lord focused upon my shoes that did not fit my feet. And the object lesson came forth as a poem, entitled, “Shoes”:
I bought three pair
Yes I did
And found them too small
My feet don’t fit
So I find that I am
Frustrated and mad
My feet don’t fit
And that feels bad.
But you say to me
“These shoes are a sign
of bigger shoes for you
Shoes that are Mine
I’ll fit you for them
I’ll show you my plan.“
“Lord I submit,
And won’t complain again.“
I don’t know what this might mean, really, but I am still waiting for God to “show His plan.” And in the meantime, I ordered another pair which I hope this time will work!
On another front, I made some cookies and really wanted gingerbread, so I got out “Grandma’s” recipe from Cindy Loayza and went to make them. The recipe called for shortening, which I know sometimes makes for a good consistency, but we were out. Butter is my go-to for cookies, but I hesitated since they were a rollout. Karen suggested the lard we had on hand. Now, we had had it “on hand” for a long, long time. Does lard go bad? I used it. It smelled a bit rancid, but I thought, “It’s worth it for we can use this up.” The dough tasted a bit off, but I thought, “It will taste better once baked.” The baked cookies tasted a bit off. But, I thought, “I bet they will get better once frozen.” But I took three out of the freezer the next day and ate them, and they tasted a bit off, and my stomach felt “off” for some time. So, finally, I threw them all away.
Some reading this are like, “Brian, what? Just throw them away!”
The thing that was hilarious about myself was that I used the lard to “use it up,” but could have thrown it away, based upon what it smelled like, and saved wasting all those other ingredients. Another day during the time of Examen, the cookies came to mind and I prayed from them, and felt a parallel to faith. We cannot hope to apply stale, rancid faith to life and have it work. Faith needs to be fresh, or our lives will taste stale. A stale and rancid faith will flavor everything in life. Keep it fresh, current, connected to the Source.
Object lessons. God still uses them. May God keep speaking to you during this time of pandemic for you to listen and hear what He might speak to you.
Here are the Next Steps for your faith journey:
Establish daily practices of word, prayer, and getting outside.
Pray: “Lord, I look to you and find my hope in you.”
Greet others when you are out -- show love.
Give to help those in need via food gifts or extra financial gifts.