Don't forget that tomorrow (Saturday) is our Parkside Fellowship All-Church Annual Meeting.  We will meet at 2:00pm in the Fireside Room.

At this meeting our church council will present our 2022 budget and the nominees for church council (Mark Hester and Shirley Anderson).  We will also share some goals for this year and end our time with prayer as we seek God's wisdom and direction for our future.  Voting to approve our budget and church council nominees will begin immediately after the conclusion of our meeting and will continue until Sunday at noon.  Ballots will be made available after the meeting and on Sunday morning.

NOTE:  For those who are not able to attend either the annual meeting or our Sunday worship service, you may request an electronic ballot by replying to this email.

Join us on Sunday at 9:30am, as we conclude our series, The Gospel: The Story of a Redeeming God.  The gospel is the story of a God who sent his son, Jesus to earth in order to redeem, restore and renew a broken relationship with man.  Simply put, the gospel is God's story invading our story so that you and I can experience true joy and eternal life!  This week we will focus on John 9 and the healing of the man born blind. 

Question:  How do you resolve the tension that exists between the unexplainable and the undeniable?  Join us Sunday at 9:30am, as we explore the answer to this question.

"But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name."  John 20:31

As we gather for our in-person service, Parkside church staff and leadership will be wearing masks and we are asking everyone to do the same. 

I want to invite you to stick around after our service, as we offer two opportunities for you to connect in community:

• Study of the Gospel of Luke
• Study in Wisdom

Thanks for praying!

For His Glory.

Pastor Doug

In his gospel, the Apostle John recorded these words of Jesus:

"I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete."  John 15:11

Joy.  Is joy simply overcoming our inner Eeyore, where no matter what amazing circumstances come our way, doom and gloom seem to dominate our thoughts?  Is joy more like Tigger, bouncing through life without a care in the world, seemingly unfazed when things go wrong?  In our daily lives, it's easy to have the attitude of Eeyore while wishing we could have the outlook of Tigger--two very extreme viewpoints of life. 

Having biblical joy does not mean simply overcoming our inner Eeyore.  Joy does not mean that we are never sad, that we never cry.  Instead, joy is a quiet confidence, a state of peace found in our relationship with Jesus.  Joy is produced in our hearts when we know that Jesus loves us and when we have a close personal relationship with Him.

Join us this Sunday at 9:30am, as we talk about Jesus, the Gospel and Joy.  We will be looking at I John 1:1-4, where John drives home the point that the outworking of a deep, spiritual union between God, Jesus and the believer, as well as between brothers and sisters in Christ produces a joyful life... joy that overflows!  

As we gather for our in-person service, Parkside church staff and leadership will be wearing masks and we are asking everyone to do the same. 

I want to invite you to stick around after our service, as we offer two opportunities for you to connect in community:

• Study of the Gospel of Luke
• Study in Wisdom

Parkside Fellowship Annual Meeting
Our annual church meeting will take place on Saturday, February 26th at 2:00pm in the Fireside room.  At this meeting, our church council will share ministry highlights from last year, along with some goals for this year.  We will also be voting on our 2022 budget and the nominees for church council.  Please circle Saturday, February 26th on your calendars and plan to attend.

Finally, attached is this week's prayer list.  Thanks for being a church committed to praying for one another.

See you Sunday.

Doug

​First of all, I want to thank all of you for your prayers, phone calls, text messages and cards over the last 10 days, as I recovered from hip replacement surgery.  I would say that I am now entering the rehab phase and would ask for your continued prayers.  Please pray for me, that I would listen and follow the prescribed rehab plan, and patience for Rose as she protects me from myself.  Believe it or not, but I can be an ornery patient sometimes! :)

Did you know that the God who created us and saved us by his grace knows us better than we know ourselves and desires for us what is much, much better than anything we would have desired for ourselves.  The kind of life God calls us to is a beautiful expression of everything humanity was intended to be.  God's desire for our lives is that they be an outward expression of our inward commitment to God and bring glory to his name.

This Sunday, at 9:30am, we will look at the doctrine of sanctification, which is the process God uses to make us what he has declared us to be...righteous.  Join us on Sunday at 9:30am as we look at life as God intended and to be reminded that sanctification is not meant to be a joy-killing burden to bear, but a welcome to a life where we surrender to the plan, purposes and call of God on our lives.  Remember what the Apostle Paul wrote to the early believers in Philippi:

"And I am certain that God, who began the good word within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns."  Philippians 1:6

Join us this Sunday at 9:30am for the good news of the gospel story.

As we gather for our in-person service, Parkside church staff and leadership will be wearing masks and we are asking everyone to do the same. 

I want to invite you to stick around after our service, as we offer two opportunities for you to connect in community:

• Study of the Gospel of Luke
• Study in Wisdom

Parkside Fellowship Annual Meeting
Our annual church meeting will take place on Saturday, February 26th at 2:00pm in the Fireside room.  At this meeting, our church council will share ministry highlights from last year, along with some goals for this year.  We will also be voting on our 2022 budget and the nominees for church council.  This year's Parkside Church Council Nominees are Mark Hester and Shirley Anderson.  Please circle Saturday, February 26th on your calendars and plan to attend.

Finally, attached is this week's prayer list.  Thanks for being a church committed to praying for one another.

See you Sunday.

Doug

On the last night of his life Jesus prayed a prayer that stands as a citadel for all Christians:

I pray for these followers, but I am also praying for all those who will believe in me because of their teaching.  Father, I pray that they can be one.  As you are in me and I am in you, I pray that they can also be one in us.  Then the world will believe that you sent me.  John 17:20-21

It's overwhelming to think that Jesus, knowing the end is near, prays for us.  Notice he didn't pray for our success, safety, health or happiness.  He prayed for our unity.  He prayed that we would love each other.  I also want to point out that he prayed for "those who will believe because of their teaching."  Jesus, before he went to the cross to die for our sins, prayed that together, we would spread the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Join us this Sunday at 9:30am as we continue our series, Gospel:  The Story of a Redeeming God.  This week, we will unpack one of Jesus' most famous parables...the sower, the seed and the soil.  In this parable, Jesus is going to scatter seeds over the crowd, landing on all kinds of soil.  The harvest would, in time, reveal which kind of soil the seed found in each person.  Would their hearts look to the Lord for more, or turn away?  While this parable is included in Matthew, Mark and Luke, we will be focusing on Luke's account in Luke 8:4-15.  As we prepare to gather together to give God praise, consider taking a few moments to read Luke 8:4-15.

Join us this Sunday at 9:30am for the good news of the gospel story.

As we gather for our in-person service, Parkside church staff and leadership will be wearing masks and we are asking everyone to do the same. 

I want to invite you to stick around after our service, as we offer two opportunities for you to connect in community:

• Study of Gospel of Luke
• Study in Wisdom

Sunday Morning Tech Volunteers
We are still in need of volunteers to help with the sound, live-streaming and PowerPoint on Sunday mornings.  No experience required!  Please see Doug or Roger for more information.

Church Council Nominations
This Sunday is the last day to submit nominations for our church council.  You can nominate by submitting their name via email to doug.boyd@parksidefellowship.org or there will be submission forms available on Sunday.

Parkside Fellowship Annual Meeting
Our annual church meeting will take place on Saturday, February 26th at 2:00pm in the Fireside room.  At this meeting, our church council will share with you ministry goals and opportunities for the coming year.  We will also be voting on our 2022 budget and the nominees for church council.  Please circle Saturday, February 26th on your calendars and plan to attend.

Finally, attached is this week's prayer list.  Thanks for being a church committed to praying for one another.

See you Sunday.

Doug

Join us this Sunday at 9:30am, as we continue our series called, The Gospel: The Story of a Redeeming God.  This Sunday, Larry Annes will unpack for us the amazing, indescribable, unconditional, mind-blowing, unshakeable love of God. 

Jeremiah 31:3 reads: "Long ago the Lord said to Israel: 'I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love.  With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself'."

In commenting on this verse, the Dutch theologian, Geerhardus Vos, once wrote: "The best proof that He will never cease to love us lies in that He never began."  If God loves you eternally, there was never a time when that love began, so there will never be a time when that love ends.  It is an eternal, everlasting love.  There was never a moment in time when God didn't love us.  He has loved us eternally.  He has forever loved us and will forever love us.

On days when it doesn't feel like it...you are eternally loved by God.
When you are plagued by doubt...you are eternally loved by God.
When his promises seem absent and he seems distant...you are eternally loved by God.
When you feel alone and misunderstood...you are eternally loved by God.
On you best day and in your darkest moment...you are eternally loved by God.
His eternal love is your foundation.  Live in this hope.

Join us at 9:30am, as we continue our deep-dive into the nature, character and love of God; the person of Jesus Christ; the scope of salvation; and the finality of eternity.  A journey that will help us discover our own place in the gospel story and will fuel a passion to point others to the work of Christ in our own lives.

As we gather for our in-person service, Parkside church staff and leadership will be wearing masks and we are asking everyone to do the same.  Please consider joining us this weekend at 9:30am...and don't forget your mask!

Thanks in advance for being a church that values prayer.

See you Sunday!

Pastor Doug

Happy New Year Parkside Family!

As we close the book on 2021, I don't think anyone would argue that the last two years have been filled with loss, disappointment, hope, confusion, frustration and constant changes.  The pandemic has forever changed our world and yet we will gather this Sunday to thank God for a brand-new year.  Like the beginning of 2021, many are speculating that 2022 will turn out to be better than 2021, but if the pandemic has taught us anything, it's that nothing is certain...except God and His love for us!  COVID-19 may have changed our world, but it cannot change my God.  James 1:17 reminds us that God never changes or casts a shifting shadow.  He is the Alpha and Omega--the beginning and the end.  The God who was and is and is to come!

As we begin a brand-new year, let's place our hope and trust in the one who redeems, restores and renews.  This is what God does for us when we come to Him and confess our sin.  How many times in your life have you wished you could start all over again with a clean slate, with a new life?  Resolve right now to allow God to wipe your slate clean by placing your hope and trust in Him and let Him give you a brand-new start to a brand-new year.  The apostle Paul did this when he said, "Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Jesus Christ, is calling us." (Philippians 3:13-14) 

Join us this Sunday at 9:30am, as we launch a brand-new series called, The Gospel: The Story of a Redeeming God.  Our story of forgiveness and redemption, although personal to each of us, was never meant to be kept private.  The vision behind this series is, as we take a deep-dive into the nature, character and love of God; the person of Jesus Christ; the scope of salvation; and the finality of eternity; that each of us will fall in love with our own place in the gospel story, that will fuel a passion to point others to the work of Christ in our own lives.  Join us this Sunday at 9:30am, as we embark on a journey to what the apostle Paul referred to as, "of first importance".

As we gather for our in-person service, Parkside church staff and leadership will be wearing masks and we are asking everyone to do the same.  Please consider joining us this weekend at 9:30am...and don't forget your mask!

Also, our Sunday Discipleship classes will resume this Sunday.  (see details below)

• Topic:  A Study in the book of James
• Topic:  A Study in the book of Mark

NOTE:  Pastor Roger's sister, Kelly passed away this past Wednesday.  Please pray for Pastor Roger and Mary Jo as they fly to Oklahoma to be with family.   

Thanks in advance for being a church that values prayer.

See you Sunday!

Pastor Doug