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Let there be jubilation, celebration, and festivity! Christmas is almost here! With the arrival of Jesus comes hope, peace, love and joy. Our joy is found in the promise that one day every tear will be dried, every hurting heart mended, every broken body healed, every torn relationship restored. We are children of the Most High God. The only reasonable response to the birth of Jesus is...joy!
Psalm 126 reads: "When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream! We were filled with laughter, and we sang for joy. And the other nations said, 'What amazing things the Lord has done for them.' Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us! What joy! Restore our fortunes, Lord, as streams renew the desert. Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy." Join us this Sunday at 9:30am as we conclude our Advent series, Rediscovering Christmas. The joy and promise of Christmas is that the miracle of Bethlehem still happens. God still enters into the reality of our messy lives to restore hope that is found in a relationship with God. We can experience peace from knowing that our sins have been forever forgiven through the love of God made visible in the birth of Jesus. And so on this day, we open wide our hearts to receive Jesus, who brings "Joy To The World". The point of Christmas is that you and I need a Savior and because of Bethlehem we have one! Let's not keep this a secret. Invite someone to join you this Sunday morning at 9:30am for Christmas at Parkside! 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! I want to invite you to stick around after our service for one of our two discipleship classes. (see details below)
See you Sunday! Pastor Doug After not spending Christmas with our families last year, a first in 25 years of marriage, Rose and I will once again cram suitcases, presents, two dogs and ourselves into our car and make the long-trek to California. Why? We love to be with the ones we love. We will brave highway traffic, potential snow, sleeping on air mattress and possibly even a couch or two. Why? We love to be with the ones we love. We will sit around and watch each other open presents, smiling on the outside and cringing on the inside, when someone asks "why did you get me this?". Why? We love to be with the ones we love.
May I remind you? So does God. He loves to be with the ones he loves. How else do you explain what he did? God couldn't bear to be so far away from his children, so he did something about it. John 3:16-17 tells us what God did: "For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him." Why? Why did Jesus make the long trek to earth? Why did Jesus give up a heavenly throne for an earthly manger? What drove Jesus to move into our neighborhood and live among us? I tell you what...love! Jesus loves to be with the ones he loves. Join us this Sunday at 9:30am, as we continue our Advent series titled, Rediscovering Christmas. This Sunday, we will focus on the word "Love". The scandal of Christmas is that Jesus, the second member of the Godhead, left his throne in heaven and put on human flesh in order to be with us. Why? In order to provide us with a visible expression of how much God loves us. You might consider reading I John 4:7-21, as you prepare to gather together and worship the God of love. 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! I want to invite you to stick around after our service for one of our two discipleship classes. (see details below)
Again, this Sunday's after-church caroling has been cancelled due to predicted inclement weather. Thank you for continuing to pray for Parkside Fellowship. See you Sunday. Pastor Doug When most of us think about the Christmas story, we picture a neatly packaged nativity scene with a little baby Jesus lying in a manger and Mary, Joseph, some shepherds and a few animals standing nearby. Yet, the events leading up to and following the birth of Jesus were anything but neat and tidy. In fact, the birth of Jesus was mixed with messiness and controversy. You can feel the tension in Matthew 1:18-19 as he describes Mary's pregnancy and Joseph's contemplation of divorce. Then in chapter 2 of Matthew, we read how King Herod, after being outwitted by the wise men, ordered the massacre of every boy in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and younger. This act by King Herod forced Mary, Joseph and the newly born Jesus to flee to Egypt.
Much like the Christmas story of the Bible, many of us may feel torn between the excitement of the birth of Jesus and the global turmoil of today. May I offer one suggestion: allow the Incarnation of Jesus to move you toward a deep-rooted faith in a Savior who indwells his people through the Holy Spirit. God is with us. We can live confidently and victoriously, knowing that Jesus came to "save his people from their sins". Join us this Sunday at 9:30am, as we continue our Advent series titled, Rediscovering Christmas. This Sunday, we will focus on the word "Peace". Is peace merely the absence of trouble? For Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus, trouble was all around them and yet, they were able to experience peace, as they waited on God to reveal His perfect plan...in His perfect time! Come and discover how you can experience the same peace as Mary and Joseph, a peace not based on our circumstances; but rather, a peace based on a God who pardons, a God who is with us, a God who guides us and a God who provides for us. 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! I want to invite you to stick around after our service for two opportunities to connect. The first is with each through one of our on-campus discipleship classes that meet at 10:45am. (see details below)
Let’s go a caroling! I will be passing out song with words as we sing acapella style. You’ll know these songs haha! We’ll meet at Beaverton Lodge (12900 SW 9TH ST) AT 12:15pm to sing in the front entryway. Parking is limited so I recommend a nice short walk or carpooling. After we sing at Beaverton Lodge (12:30ish), we’ll take a 5-minute walk over to Creekside Village (5450 SW Erickson Avenue) to sing. Use the main entryway. If you have a fun Christmas hat, shirt, scarf, etc., please wear it! We want to be festive and bring to cheer to everyone we see. Once we finish with these two locations, we’ll walk (or drive) to 1st & Watson. There is some parking but limited. Meet in the commons (right next to Lionheart Coffee: 4590 SW Watson) at 1pm. We’ll sing one last time. Once we are finished singing, there are plenty of restaurants around us or you can head out. See ya Sunday! Roger Thank you for continuing to pray for Parkside Fellowship. See you Sunday. Pastor Doug Greetings from sunny California! I hope you and your family had a fun, relaxing, food-filled Thanksgiving.
This Sunday at 9:30am, Rediscovering Christmas kicks-off with week #1 of Advent. I love this time of year...the church is decorated, our gatherings are praise-filled and people are expectant with thoughts of Hope, Peace, Love and Joy. Join us on this first Sunday of Advent as Pastor Norm shares on the topic of Hope. If you think about it, most of us run our lives on hope. Hope gets us out of bed in the morning, it focuses our attention, brings us energy and helps us overcome our fears. I like what Tim Keller says about hope, "Human beings are hope-shaped creatures. The way you live now is completely controlled by what you believe about your future". Hope is seeing our future as good--believing that things will be okay. God's word has a lot to say about the future of His people. Take time to read Revelation 21:1-5 and discover the hope we have as children of God. Believing in God for our future has the power to change everything! 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! It's not too late to join one of our Sunday discipleship classes. We have two studies currently meeting each Sunday morning at 10:45am. See Class details below: Topic: A Study in the book of James Facilitator: Mark Hester and Jonella Malinowski 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Senior Adult Discipleship Class Topic: A Study in the book of Mark Facilitator: Martha Bailey 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Thank you for continuing to pray for Parkside Fellowship. See you Sunday. Pastor Doug Few men suffered as the Apostle Paul did, yet he learned how to remain content, even thankful, in the midst of his pain and suffering. Paul learned to live above his circumstances--even in a prison cell. We can do the same. Refuse to let circumstances get you down. Billy Graham liked to tell the story of a man named Matthew Henry and his reaction to being mugged. "Let me be thankful first because I was never robbed before; second, although they took my purse, they did not take my life; third, because although they took my all, it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed." Personally, I wonder if I could be so thankful if I experienced a similar situation. What about you?
Join us Sunday at 9:30am for a special Thanksgiving Service. In preparation for Sunday, pray Psalm 121 as a prayer of thanksgiving to God. "I look up to the mountains--does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever. 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! It's not too late to join one of our Sunday discipleship classes. We have two studies currently meeting each Sunday morning at 10:45am. See Class details below: Topic: A Study in the book of James Facilitator: Mark Hester and Jonella Malinowski 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Senior Adult Discipleship Class Topic: A Study in the book of Mark Facilitator: Martha Bailey 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Thank you for continuing to pray for Parkside Fellowship. See you Sunday. Pastor Doug This week, I started reading a book titled, Rediscover Church, by Collin Hansen and Jonathan Leeman. The premise of the book is that a "Christian without a church is a Christian in trouble". As I talk with other pastors, we all agree that since the abrupt closing of churches due to the pandemic, many Christians have yet to return to being an active participant in their local churches. If the church really is the hope of the world, now more than ever, we must recommit ourselves to gathering together as individual followers of Jesus, who together, make up the body of Christ. We've all heard the statement, "A church is not a building, it's people". I would like you to consider a follow-up question to this statement. Is a church merely people, or is it people who gather together to be shaped by God's Word, for the purpose of encouragement, accountability and love? I believe gathering together is what makes a church...a church. Even the author of Hebrews stressed the importance of gathering together when he wrote: "Some people have gotten out of the habit of meeting for worship, but we must not do that. We should keep on encouraging each other, especially since you know that the day of the Lord's coming is getting closer." Consider gathering with us in-person this Sunday at 9:30am, as we will conclude our series called, EXODUS: Discovery God in the Journey. We started our journey in Exodus 3, where we listened and watched as God enlisted Moses and Aaron for the purpose of drawing his people out of slavery. As we wrap up our time in Exodus, we will seek to answer the question, "In drawing His people out of slavery, what was He wanting to draw them into?". 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! It's not too late to join one of our Sunday discipleship classes. We have two studies currently meeting each Sunday morning at 10:45am. See Class details below: Topic: A Study in the book of James Facilitator: Mark Hester and Jonella Malinowski 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Senior Adult Discipleship Class Topic: A Study in the book of Mark Facilitator: Martha Bailey 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Please reserve Sunday, November 14th, for a Parkside Fellowship All-Church Meeting. I, along with our church council, will be sharing with you the report that we received from the NWBC Church Health Assessment Team. The meeting will take place in the Fireside Room, immediately following our Sunday morning worship service. See you Sunday. Pastor Doug This Sunday at 9:30am, we will continue our series called, EXODUS: Discovering God in the Journey, as we take a look at the giving of the Ten Commandments by God, to the nation of Israel. Ironically, Christianity Today recently published an article on the 10 Commandments. Below is an excerpt from this article.
"Considering they are among the most influential words ever written, there are a number of curious things about the 10 commandments. To start, there are two versions with subtly different wording (Exodus 20:1-17; Deuteronomy 5:6-21). Most awkwardly, there appear to be more than 10. The phrase "you shall not..." appears 12 times, and that does not include commands to 'remember the sabbath day' or 'honor your father and mother.' The Orthodox Church and most Protestants solve this problem by combining all the commands on coveting into one. Roman Catholics address it by grouping the prohibitions on idolatry: Augustine argued that the first commandment (no other gods) includes what many would consider the second commandment (no graven image). But another curious feature of the Ten Commandments, and which frequently goes unnoticed, is the fact that there are ten theological affirmations--ten attributes of God, if you like--woven through them. If the text tells us who we should be, it also tells us who God is. Revelation sits alongside regulation." Join us this Sunday as we take a deep-dive into one of the most beautiful parts of the book of Exodus, as the 10 commandments reveal to us who we are as God's children, and is the key to understanding God's desire for His children. 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. We were created by God to worship and praise Him together, in community, so plan on being at Parkside this Sunday at 9:30am and don't forget your mask! Also, for those that are not able to join us in-person, you can still join us online. If you haven't taken the opportunity to attend one of our Sunday discipleship classes, I would like to encourage you to take time this Sunday and do just that. We have two studies currently meeting each Sunday morning at 10:45am. See Class details below: Topic: A Study in the book of James Facilitator: Mark Hester and Jonella Malinowski 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Senior Adult Discipleship Class Topic: A Study in the book of Mark Facilitator: Martha Bailey 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Both of these classes are designed around the premise that no one is meant to walk alone. At Parkside, we want to be a bridge that anyone can cross over in order to explore faith, Jesus, and how a faith in Jesus brings life-change. We believe this type of life-change happens best in the context of community. Note: The results are in! This past week, our church council met with the NWBC Church Health Assessment Team. During our time together, they presented their report and answered questions. Please reserve Sunday, November 14th, for a Parkside Fellowship Sunday Lunch Gathering. This lunch gathering will include a time of discovery, as we hear from our church council regarding the church health assessment. See you Sunday. Pastor Doug If you haven't taken the opportunity to attend one of our Sunday discipleship classes, I would like to encourage you to take time this Sunday and do just that. We have two studies currently meeting each Sunday morning at 10:45am. See Class details below:
Topic: A Study in the book of James Facilitator: Mark Hester and Jonella Malinowski 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Senior Adult Discipleship Class Topic: A Study in the book of Mark Facilitator: Martha Bailey 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Both of these classes are designed around the premise that no one is meant to walk alone. At Parkside, we want to be a bridge that anyone can cross over in order to explore faith, Jesus, and how a faith in Jesus brings life-change. We believe this type of life-change happens best in the context of community. Speaking of community, I am so thankful to be a part of a group of pastors that collaborate together on our campus, in order to blanket our community with the gospel of Jesus. Please continue to pray for the other churches that meet on our campus and the pastors who lead them. One benefit of having multiple churches share our campus is the ability to lean on each other when needed. Yesterday, I tested positive for COVID-19, thankfully, my symptoms are mild. However, I must quarantine for 10 days from the onset of my symptoms, which means that I will not be able to preach on Sunday. While I am disappointed that I will not be able to be with you on Sunday, Pastor Avery from Common Ground, has graciously agreed to preach in my place. So, please join us this Sunday, at 9:30am, as Pastor Avery shares God's word with us and Nancy Hester leads us in giving glory, honor and praise to our God! 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. We were created by God to worship and praise Him together, in community, so plan on being at Parkside this Sunday at 9:30am and don't forget your mask! Also, for those that are not able to join us in-person, you can still join us online. See you Sunday. Pastor Doug Last week in our discipleship class on the book of James, one of the passages we looked at was James 1:3-4, which reads:
"For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing." With these verses, James is providing us with a picture of the reason God took the Nation of Israel through the wilderness. The purpose of a wilderness experience is to test us and to stretch our spiritual muscles. As commentator Philip Ryken wrote: "Going through the wilderness was not necessary for Israel's salvation, but it was necessary for their sanctification." Join us this Sunday, at 9:30am, as we continue our series called, Exodus: Seeing God in the Journey. This week, we be in Exodus 16 and 17, as we look at a trio of tests, God took the Israelites through, in order to prepare them for a covenant relationship with himself. Prior to our 9:30am service, join us at 8:45am in Pastor Doug's office, for a special time of praying for Parkside and the other churches that meet on our campus. 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. We were created by God to worship and praise Him together, in community, so plan on being at Parkside this Sunday at 9:30am and don't forget your mask! Also, for those that are not able to join us in-person, you can still join us online As our church continues to move toward a sense of normalcy on Sunday mornings, Roger and I are excited to announce that our Sunday Morning Bible Study classes have resumed meeting at 10:45am, for the purpose of supporting each other on our individual spiritual growth journeys. Please consider taking advantage of one of these discipleship opportunities. See class details below: Topic: A Study in the book of James Facilitator: Mark Hester and Jonella Malinowski 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Senior Adult Discipleship Class Topic: A Study in the book of Mark Facilitator: Martha Bailey 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY See you Sunday. Pastor Doug Of all the letters Paul wrote, II Corinthians is the most autobiographical. In it, Paul lifts the veil on his private life and allows us to catch a glimpse of his needs and weaknesses. In his letter, Paul records the specifics of his pain and sufferings. He spells out the details of his persecution, imprisonments, beatings and feelings of despair. However, in the midst of revealing the "dark" side of his life, Paul begins his letter by writing:
"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us." II Corinthians 1:3-4 Sometimes, God uses suffering so that we might learn what it means to depend on Him. Over and over He reminds us of the danger of pride, but it frequently takes suffering to make the lesson stick. Paul reminds us to welcome hard times as opportunities to stop trusting in our own wisdom and strength, to start leaning on God and to give Him thanks for His sovereignty over our lives. Take time over the next few days to read II Corinthians chapters 1-5 and may the words of Paul encourage you the next time you find yourself in a God-orchestrated dilemma. Join us this Sunday, at 9:30am, as we continue our series called, Exodus: Seeing God in the Journey. This week, we be in Exodus 13 and 14, as we look at probably the most notable story and most celebrated miracle in Israel's history...the crossing of the Red Sea. It was in this moment that the nation of Israel experienced a divine encounter with God, as His power flowed through their obedience, which led them into some tense, uneasy, scary moments for this tired, yet hopeful nation. Prior to our 9:30am service, join us at 8:45am in Pastor Doug's office, for a special time of praying for Parkside and the other churches that meet on our campus. 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. We were created by God to worship and praise Him together, in community, so plan on being at Parkside this Sunday at 9:30am and don't forget your mask! Also, for those that are not able to join us in-person, you can still join us online As our church continues to move toward a sense of normalcy on Sunday mornings, Roger and I are excited to announce that our Sunday Morning Bible Study classes will begin meeting this Sunday, October 3rd at 10:45am. It's been over 18 months since either our Senior Adult Class or the Hester/Malinowski class has been able to meet. It will be awesome to see many of you reconnect in these smaller communities. Please consider taking advantage of one of these discipleship opportunities. See class details below: Topic: A Study in the book of James Facilitator: Mark Hester and Jonella Malinowski 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY Senior Adult Discipleship Class Topic: A Study in the book of Mark Facilitator: Martha Bailey 10:45am to 11:45am In-person ONLY See you Sunday. Pastor Doug |
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