If you shop at Fred Meyer, you could be donating to Westside without spending an extra cent! Simply link your Rewards Card at https://www.fredmeyer.com/i/community/community-rewards (you will need an online account.)
Kroger/Fred Meyer donates a portion of your transactions. You still get all your usual benefits (gas discount, etc.) It is easy and Westside gets the benefits of your shopping.
Email Becky Walker at beckywalker19@msn.com with any questions.
Where have you seen God at work this past week?
Martha – I attended that community meeting online yesterday. Multidenominational – Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians and so on…I never thought I would see the day that Methodists & Lutherans would merge happily together. It’s quite interesting. All the Presbyterians & Methodists groups can join together – I knew that would work. But for the Lutherans (UCC?) people they were delighted to be in with us!
Sally – This man (Dave) has a Heart! And Martha, just like Ken, his heart is now in normal sinus rhythm lub dub, lub dub, lub dub. It was a very long day, it was about 10 hours before I could pick him up; everything went very well. It was a good procedure & actually a very positive experience at OHSU….
Martha – This is definitely a God Sighting and Dave it’s good to know that you finally got a Heart!
Bonnie – Dave has a Big heart. So glad you are doing well. Pastor Brett – Dave has a heart! Who knew? PTL! (Praise the Lord)
Laura – Hallelujah. Thank you for your service!
Kevin – I got to be present to a person who grew up with a vengeful, vindictive god. After decades with that, they found a new way to look at the situation. Now they can see a path back.
Paige – I had a super fun God connection. We have friends that I grew up with, I became friends with his wife; our girls dance together. She did a mission trip to Haiti & she made a really cool connection with a friend whose husband is Haitian. They were going back to visit the village; they have no running water, very little electricity. She works in the healthcare field, so she was quite nervous about going… She sent out a plea for masks, hand sanitizer & sanitizing wipes. With Gwen helping we made 100 masks, both adult & kids sizes. 2 bags of adult masks & 1 bag of kid masks – when we gave them to my friend she said they didn’t have any child masks so this was really cool…Also, Liam will be getting together this week with some friends that he has been playing games online with. Some from Las Vegas are traveling up to Bend, Oregon; then coming over to Portland to meet up with Liam on Wednesday. There are still good things going on!
Family Promise of Beaverton is requesting food and supplies for homeless individuals and families being housed in 10 hotel rooms.
The hotel rooms have a microwave and small refrigerator. This is their only way to cook, so the food needs to be microwaveable. Also needed are covered glass bowls to cook it in. The items can be brought to Westside and Bonnie will deliver them on Friday mornings, or you may deliver them directly to Sunset Presbyterian on Fridays between 9 and 11 am, OR if ordered online, packages may be sent to the FPB Day Center at Sunset Presbyterian Church. Sunset is located at 14986 NW Cornell Rd, Portland, OR 97229.
Besides microwaveable food, here is a list of other items needed.
Thank you for your continued support of Family Promise and their guests!
Are you prepared for God to do extraordinary things? Or are you banking on God showing up in the normal things?
If Ruth and Boaz are Jesus’s ancestors, pray for God’s leading in your life to mark out the next step or steps in becoming more like Jesus.
If you missed worship on Sunday, catch it here:
Baby Boy Stuvland will be joining the family at the end of July! During this time we want to bless the family with lots of love…..and of course FOOD!
Given they have so many baby (and specifically baby boy) items from big brother Kyrie, the best way we can help is to provide them meals, something we always do well!
We’ve set up a meal train so that they can know when food is coming. It includes lots of details about logistics, food preferences, and more. Contact Francie if you have questions or would like her to sign you up.
Meal Train Link: https://mealtrain.com/3g18rw
There are a lot of sharp contrasts in the book of Ruth, perhaps none sharper than the contrast between Ruth and Orpah and Boaz and the unnamed kinsman redeemer in chapter four.
Both Orpah and John Doe (or ‘Ploni Aloni’ in Hebrew) do the normal thing: Orpah returns to her people in Moab after her husband dies and John Doe passes up the opportunity to be Ruth and Naomi’s redeemer, worried about his estate.
On the other side stand Ruth and Boaz, who do extraordinary things throughout the story. Come join us as we explore these differences between the normal and the extraordinary in the book of Ruth.
Please take less than a minute, and watch this video from Elizabeth at Christ UMC:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tCHvvYnUhry0MRufvGgPZt9-lNucWoYB/view?usp=drivesdk
If so led by the Spirit, you can follow up here:
Pastor Brett’s message on Sunday was about Ruth and Boaz, and desire. Here are some ways you can incorporate the message into your own life:
Reflect on who you’ve been taught to desire. Does your desire for people move only in one direction - towards people in your own racial group or does it move towards all people?
Identify where this discipline of desire comes from in your life
Pray for God to give you God’s desire - the holy desire not of the world - and for God to break any strongholds in your life that work against God’s will and God’s plan.
Sharing a story from Choosing to Be like Jesus or other God Sightings:
Kari – I had 2 Hummingbird experiences this past week. One last Sunday and also one on Monday. They came right up really close to me and that was really special because the Hummingbird is my spiritual animal that reminds me to keep seeking all the time. So, I felt like God was giving me a little special message.
Martha – Kari…That’s wonderful! I love hummingbirds! We are getting them in our yard also! What a blessing!
Paige – We definitely got to see the little tiny glimpse of the big picture by going on a drive with the kids and seeing the comet. Just this idea of there is this massive thing; we had to get out the spotting scope - get in just the right spot to be able to actually see it. It was a really cool experience, but man does it make you feel small! And really see there is just an amazing amount that we don’t know & we can’t see; it’s just all happening around us…and… He’s got it! (Neowise Comet is visible in the Northwest sky an hour before sunrise and an hour after sunset)
Merry – The comet reminds us of the immense power in our tiny world.
Paige - Gwen was excited to go adventuring with Neil on Free Comic Book Day…
Gwen – I got a comic book, Moon Girl: Devil Dinosaur… She is 8 years old and the smartest person on the planet & she has a pet dinosaur!
Krista – We had an amazing day at the beach Friday.
Pastor Brett – I am getting ready for a Holy Spirit Sighting, in being able to witness a birth that’s coming to our family. So that is on the horizon for me. In just the first couple of weeks at Westside, I have seen God move in my conversations with people. Transition seems to be going very well, which is a God thing in my estimation. I feel that all of us being together online and in person when we are able to; I can sense that the Holy Spirit is moving among us. So, this is very encouraging for me.
If you missed worship on Sunday, catch it here:
Who do we desire?
Though we don’t often reflect on this question enough, our desires are often disciplined and co-opted in powerful ways that we cannot see. The ban against interracial marriage across the nation and in our state lasted late into the twentieth century. Though the laws were lifted, we’ve inherited, generationally, a sense of who we should desire, and it’s often members of our own racial group.
What does our faith have to say to us about our desires? Does it move in tandem with our racialized condition? Or does it cut against the smooth grain? This Sunday we explore these dynamics through what happens when an Israelite (Boaz) and a forbidden Moabite (Ruth) spend the night together on the threshing floor.
Baby Boy Stuvland will be joining the family at the end of July! During this time we want to bless the family with lots of love…..and of course FOOD!
Given they have so many baby (and specifically baby boy) items from big brother Kyrie, the best way we can help is to provide them meals, something we always do well!
We’ve set up a meal train so that they can know when food is coming. It includes lots of details about logistics, food preferences, and more. Please sign up and contact Francie if you have questions.
Meal Train Link: https://mealtrain.com/3g18rw
Tom Ely passed away on the morning of July 13. Please hold his wife Tami and the rest of his family and friends in your prayers.
Were you struck by the way Pastor Brian used to share the story of the Scripture? Are you interested in becoming a better storyteller of Scripture?
An online 'Simply the Story' training will be available beginning July 21, which will be about 7 hours per day from Tuesday through Friday, beginning at 9:00 am PDT.
Check out Simply the Story (http://simplythestory.org/oralbiblestories/) and the Registration form if you are interested (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfRoCFzKFEiNAN_XSvcMhzJBkjiAx9x8TPyiKeqNuohRYJClw/viewform)
Sharing a story from Choosing to Be like Jesus or other God Sightings:
Gayellyn – Jerome & Molly got engaged this week!!!
Pastor Brett – Bonnie & Virginia and I were contacted by an organization distributing leftovers form Starbucks – this will be starting up again! Reminded me of Ruth and gleaning.
Share your “God Sighting” in the comments!
We’re happy to report that it continues to look like our Help Build Hope event will be able to happen on August 1st, beginning at 8:00 am.
It’s an opportunity for Westside to partner with Christ UMC and other friends and family to construct all the walls of a house that Habitat for Humanity will build for a family in need.
Safety dictates some extra protocol that we’ll be following: staying completely outdoors, wearing masks the entire time, having fewer people participate, maintaining 20 feet between wall-building groups, bringing your own hammer, and temperature checks for all who participate. Groups will be kept small, 4-8 people in each. Additional safety precautions may be found at http://cedarmillchristumc.org/serve/help-build-hope
There will be a limit of 13 wall-building groups to ensure we adhere to gathering and distancing requirements, so make sure to sign up soon at https://crossroadsmissions.breezechms.com/form/cumc20
Contact Wendy Fedderly (wendy.fedderly@comcast.net) or Stephanie Raether (slraether@yahoo.com) if you have questions.
Immigrant transformation and assimilation stands at the heart of our life together in America. The possibilities of new life in a land often revolve around the dynamics of submission through labor, being accepted through bodily transformation, and dwelling in the space of the inter-racial, which are all wrapped up inside of the engine of survival. We do what we must do to survive in this place. This Sunday we will explore Ruth’s arrival as a migrant worker in a land not her own in a place not her own. How does she assimilate? Will she have to leave her old identity behind in order to survive?
Pastor Brett’s new phone number: 503.410.3155. Call or text. Leave a message if he’s unable to pick up and it will be transcribed and emailed to him.
Isn’t technology grand?
Washington County is pleased to announce the opening of a new COVID-19 supportive counseling program. The COVID Community Counseling Program (CCCP) will provide support to Washington County residents seeking mental health help during and following the pandemic. Core services include:
Supportive counseling with an emphasis on developing coping skills and resilience;
Support in understanding personal reactions, planning action steps and developing solutions to resolve losses and overcome adversities;
Referral and connection to longer-term behavioral health care if needed.
This program is provided at no cost to Washington County residents and services are provided by several local community behavioral health agencies.
Services are offered in over a dozen languages. Phone numbers and more information may be found here