Hello New Hopers,
Hope you are doing well today. Here are some random thoughts and observations from the past 7 days.
Season of Service
Christ Birthday Offering
Last December as part of the Advent Conspiracy teaching series, hundreds of you committed to buy one less Christmas gift and then give to the Christ Birthday Offering. Maybe you were wondering ‘where’ that money went? Well, last Thursday New Hope (& 14 other local churches) presented a $100,000 check to the City of Portland. These dollars are going toward the ‘Home Again Mentoring Project’, which helps homeless families transition into stable housing & ‘Portland Schools Transition Center’, which encourages youth who have dropped out of school to resume their education. Way to go New Hope! Your love for God IS impacting our city for Jesus!
New Hope Families In Crisis
This week you should be receiving a ‘snail mail’ letter from me talking about an opportunity we have as a congregation to practically and tangibly help those in our church family who have been directly impacted by our present economic downturn. Through the New Hope Families in Crisis Offering, we have the chance to ‘literally’ respond to our current economic challenge with a New Testament spirit of generosity and sacrifice. On the second Sunday of every month we will be receiving this special offering to provide emergency housing, utilities, and living expenses for New Hope families. This should be an ‘over and above’ gift, and not replace your regular tithe and offering.
New Hope Works
In addition to the monthly special offering, New Hope has created a 24 hour a day web environment called New Hope Works. This is New Hope’s proactive attempt to provide hope and help for people who are unemployed or underemployed.
Good Friday Breakfast
This morning, Ray and I joined a handful of local Christian leaders at Western Seminary to learn more about this year’s Good Friday Breakfast – hosted by our ministry partner Open Arms International. Last year almost 1,000 people met at the Oregon Convention Center for a moving morning of reflection, celebration and prayer. You will be hearing more about this wonderful event in the weeks ahead, but I wanted you to know that tickets are now available.
Pivotal Circumstances
Life can be full of surprises – some good, some not so good. But each unexpected event that comes our way is actually a divine opportunity. Ray will be finishing up our current series this Sunday by focusing on the role Pivotal Circumstances play in the development of our confidence in God. If you missed last Sunday’s message, you can view it now online.
Time Change Sunday
Don’t forget to ‘set forward’ your clock one hour this Saturday night before you go to bed. That’s right, this weekend we celebrate the dreaded ‘time change Sunday’! Even Wikipedia suggests that DST is ‘controversial’. Can I hear an Amen!? Check out this fun/weird video on YouTube that one church showed last weekend. So let’s make sure we not only show up on time this Sunday …but why not plan on showing up 15 minutes early? That’s right …show up 15 minutes early and intentionally introduce yourself to 15 new people (you can call this ‘speed greeting’). Who knows, you might make a new friend?
Make it a GREAT day!
Pastor Brent
iMarriage
6:30-8pm Wednesday’s March 11 – April 15 in Room 156 @ New Hope
Men’s Quarterly Gathering
9-10:30am Saturday March 14 @ New Hope
facebook & twitter
You can now stay connected with New Hope through facebook & up to date with the daily inside happenings through twitter.
Random stuff I found interesting this week
Erwin McManus: beatitudes – blessed are the poor in spirit
Andy Stanley: becoming a student not a critic
John Maxwell: don’t bankrupt your leadership!
John Catanzaro: eastern healing, alternative medicine, and Christian Faith
Mark Driscoll: spiritual disciplines – service
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