WHEW.....I think this word best describes this past week. Besides the "normal" ministry activities that take place every week on our church campus, this week, through our Room 4 Hope ministry, we hosted 2 families who are struggling with homelessness. Each family came to us with their own unique set of circumstances, but as God has allowed us to minister to them throughout the week, I believe that they will leave with a better understanding of God's love! As they prepare to leave us on Sunday morning, please continue to pray for their practical, emotional and most importantly, their spiritual needs.
It's also not too late to get involved. We have 2 unfilled volunteer opportunities. We need a couple people to provide and serve dinner tomorrow (Saturday night) and we also have a need for an overnight host to sleep on campus and provide a safe environment for our guests. Larry Collins has already volunteered to be one of our Saturday overnight hosts, but we need two and I know Larry would appreciate the company.....right Larry! If you are able to help with either Saturday night dinner or as an overnight host, please call Pastor Doug at 949-838-6981. I also want to take this opportunity to say a huge "Thank You" to all those who donated food, prepared and served meals, helped set-up and tear-down bedrooms, helped with breakfast, spent time talking with and playing with the kids and spent the night on our campus, thus providing a safe experience for our guests. We could not have done it without all of our amazing volunteers! This next week will again be a busy one for our campus. On Thursday, both our Adults on Mission and Young at Heart will hold their monthly gatherings. Adults on Mission will meet at 10:30am in the Fireside Room (East), followed immediately by our Young at Heart Luncheon at Noon, also in the Fireside Room. Please join us on Thursday as we pray for those who are on the frontlines of spreading the Gospel. Then stick around for what is always an amazing lunch! Hope to see you there! On Sunday morning we will begin a 4 week series on Faith. Some of the questions we will answer are: 1. Where does faith in Jesus begin? 2. What is the definition of true Biblical faith? 3. What role do the promises of God play in our faith? 4. How can my faith stand the test of time? This week, our focus will be on the anchor for our faith.....Jesus! In preparation for Sunday, take some time over the next few days to read and meditate on I Corinthians 15:3-17, then join us on Sunday at 9:00am and learn about this God that loves us and wants to be in relationship with us. Don't come alone. Finally, a few weeks ago, our church council hosted a Soup Sunday business meeting. At this meeting, our leadership provided you with an update on the refinance of our church loan, that has a balloon payment due on June 5th. During this meeting, we shared with you the possibility that our refinance application could be denied and that we would need to consider selling our rental homes. We learned late last week that in fact, our request for a refinance had been denied and were encouraged by the bank to consider selling these homes. I then contacted the Northwest Baptist Foundation about the possibility of securing financing through them. They too, felt that our best option was to sell our rental homes, which would greatly reduce and possibly even help us eliminate our debt altogether. I then contacted Umpqua Bank, who is our current lender and asked them about the possibility of providing us with a 6 month loan extension, while we worked on selling these homes. They have verbally agreed to begin the paperwork to extend our loan, provided that we also begin the process of selling these properties. Because our Church Council views this as a significant decision in the future of our church, we are requesting a vote be taken of our church membership, seeking your approval to move forward in the sale of these homes. The opportunity to vote will take place on Sunday, June 3rd, immediately following the 9:00am service. Our Church Council would also like to provide you with the opportunity to ask questions prior to Sunday's vote. To accommodate this, members of our church council will be available to answer questions on Saturday, June 2nd from 4:00pm to 6:00pm. Please note that this Q&A time will not be a formal meeting, but is simply an opportunity for you to ask questions and make an informed decision as you cast your ballot. I want to personally thank all of you for your prayers during this season of transformation. I know God has an amazing plan for FBC and that His desire is for us to remain faithful to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. Please continue to pray as God continues to move and always remember, God still sits on the throne, He is in control and His plan, in His time, is PERFECT! See you Sunday. Pastor Doug
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I can't believe it's already March 1st and Easter is just one month away!
Today, I had the privilege of attending the Grand Opening of Family Promise Beaverton (Room 4 Hope), as they officially opened their doors to families in our community who are facing a homeless situation. It was an encouraging scene as I watched representatives from our local government, standing side-by-side with pastors and other faith leaders, to pray for and offer support for, the "least of these" in our community. FBC was well represented with 8 in attendance. As we prepare to serve in our role as a host church, we will be hosting another volunteer information meeting this coming Sunday, March 3rd at 11:45am in room 307. Lunch will be provided, so please consider attending this meeting and learn how you can be a part of providing hope to families who are facing homelessness. In order to have enough food, if you are planning to attend this meeting, please RSVP by emailing Doug at doug.boyd@fbcbeaverton.org. I hope to see you there! As we begin to turn our attention towards Easter, for the next 4 Sundays, we are going to be focusing our attention on some of the individuals who played key roles in the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. However, the people that we are going to look at are not held in very high esteem. They are not considered heroes of the faith. In fact, just the opposite. When you hear the name Pilate, Barabbas, the Sanhedrin(religious leaders), the crowd, who in one unified voice cried out for Jesus to be crucified, we tend to place these names in the "evil" category of the crucifixion story. But regardless of whether or not they believed that Jesus was the Son of God, they were still "Chosen" by God to play a significant role in the death of our Savior that provided us the opportunity to experience forgiveness. Join us this Sunday as we look into the lives of those who called themselves "religious" and see how their desire to be in charge, blinded them from the reality that Jesus was in fact the Son of God. Take some time before Sunday to read Luke 20:1-18. After the service, stick around and connect with others in our church family by joining one of our Adult Bible Study Groups. Two of them will be starting brand-new studies. One is called "Experiencing God's Presence" and the other is titled, "Guidance for the Seasons of Life." It's also not too late to join our third group, which is just a couple of weeks into their study of I Samuel. Consider joining one of these Sunday morning groups and experience the type of community that can only happen within a small group environment. Have a great weekend and I hope to see you on Sunday! Pastor Doug |
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