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September 15, 2021

By the grace of God, we at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church are filled with the Holy Spirit and respond to God's love by sharing the Good News with our friends and neighbors. We go into our community and world to make a difference in the name of Jesus.

Who is the greatest?

This week’s gospel story from Mark describes Jesus’ disciples as arguing about who among them was the greatest? Jesus provides a famous reply, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” It is so counter cultural isn’t it. So much of our lives are spent jockeying for position among our peers and in our communities. Through money, influence or notoriety, we humans are good at seeking power over/against each other. Even our good friends may be targets of our judgement or in our competitive crosshairs.

Jesus points to another way of being that calls us to outdo each other in hospitality and service. I have always been against extremism and at some point, however, it dawned on me that there are a few things we can be extreme about. We can be extreme with compassion, mercy, volunteering and giving money away to the church and those who need it. We can be extreme in forgiveness, love, hope, respect and humility. We can be extreme not in our Christianity but in following the ways of Christ. Who is the greatest among us? It is Christ who exemplified all of these traits and calls us to do our best and do the same. What might we serve this week? In what ways might we let go of some of our need for competition? These are some great questions for us to ponder this week. What other questions does this bring up for you?

See you in worship in person or online,

Pastor Joel


Just a reminder that the office will be closed Wednesday through Friday this week.

In Memoriam

It is with sadness that we announce the peaceful passing of our brother in Christ, Gary Pettigrew. Gary was a longtime member and shared his gifts with the church for years. We ask God to comfort his wife Linda, daughters Kelly and Julie and all of their family and friends. A memorial service will happen at Our Saviour's on Wednesday, September 22nd at 11am, with a light reception to follow. Cards can be sent to: Linda Pettigrew, 5941 Vista Drive Ferndale, WA, 98248.
Our prayers are with the Ukrainian Evangelical Church whose church caught fire this past week. They worshiped at Our Saviour's for many years before buying the old St. John's Lutheran building. Pray for their community and we will share if we hear of ways we can help. 

In Memoriam

Please pray for Pastor Shannyn Fuerst and all of the family and friends of Rev. Jeremy Fuerst who died this past week in a mountain climbing accident. Pastor Jeremy was Pastor at Central Lutheran in Everett and was a good friend of Pastor Joel. Be with them as they grieve. 
The Very Improbable Story Of How I Became A Christian 
By Sue Campbell Cross

At age twelve I was feeling lost, angry and as if I had been shipwrecked on a foreign island where I didn’t fit in.
 
At eleven everything had been going really well for me. I was living in a small mill town (population 14,000) on the Lancashire/Yorkshire border where my mother’s family had lived for at least a century. I’d gone to the same small primary school that my mum had gone to and had just started to attend a mixed Grammar School in a bigger town nearby.
 
Secondary school was great. It got me away from the tough kids who had teased me in primary school and it opened up a whole world of opportunity. There was a house system that allowed you to excel in things other than academics and a great sports program. By the end of the first year (6th Grade), I was on track to be Junior Sports Champion the following year. I had also learned the British Sign Language Alphabet so that I could audition for the part of Helen Keller in the school play. Out of school, I was in Girl Guides (Girl Scouts) and was very excited at the prospect of “building a rope bridge between two trees” as part of my second-class badge. Girl Scouts most importantly was teaching me skills that helped me to become independent...(continue reading)
READINGS FOR SEPTEMBER


Every Thursday at 1 pm
Join Pastor Joel and your OSLC community as we check in and explore the coming weeks Gospel lesson. Pastor  Joel leads us through an informative PowerPoint presentation and facilitates discussion.
 


The Little Garden That Could is still producing. Be sure to stop by for a visit and consider picking a few tomatoes or other produce after church. If you would like to help volunteer with the garden, contact the church office.

Christ Lutheran's Rev. Dr. Jana Schofield and Dave Schlack are teaming up with United Church of Ferndale's Rev. Joel Aosved and our own office manager Rebecca Hobbs, along with Interfaith's Deanna Wildermuth, to race a bed! Come out and show them your support. Can't make it out? Use the Donate button below to offer financial support to the Interfaith Coalition.
Donate to the Bed Race
September Events and Celebrations!

Monday, September 20th, 9-12: The Quilting Group will begin meeting in the Fellowship Hall.

September 20th and 21st, 11-2: New Student Activities Fair: Pastor Joel, Megan and Emily will welcome new students on campus.

 
Saturday, October 2, 11:00am–12noon
Nooksack Tribe Land and History

Pre-register: wcls.org/readandshare
 ~
Wednesday, November 3, 7:00–8:00pm
Traditional Places of the Lummi Nation

Pre-register: wcls.org/readandshare


In addition to serving OSLC, Pastor Joel also serves as Campus Pastor at WWU. Our student group currently meets on Zoom at 6pm on Wednesday evenings for Bible Study and social time. We are currently discussing Healing Our Broken Humanity: Practices for Revitalizing the Church and Renewing the Word. Let Pastor know if you want the Zoom link.

We are currently following the Governor's guidance, and we strongly encourage both un-vaccinated and vaccinated alike to wear a mask in worship. This will help us to ensure that we can continue to worship in person and we will continue to adjust based upon any new information we receive.

Sunday Worship Service

Join us at 10:30 am

We meet in person and also live stream to YouTube. 

If joining us by live stream click here to go to our YouTube Channel and click here to download a printer-friendly version of the bulletin for home (printed copies will still be available at the church on Sunday).

We are singing!
You are welcome to sing while wearing a mask.
You can take communion!
We have individual communion kits available on your way into the sanctuary.
We are social distancing!
We require masks and 6 feet of social distancing at all times. We have disposable masks available for anyone who needs one. There is also a contact trace sign-in sheet to keep track of people in attendance, just in case someone is exposed to the COVID virus.
Bring a friend or neighbor and join us soon!
Please hold in prayer...

Members
~ Larry Jackson (and his wife and caregiver Marlene) for comfort and strength
~ Darlene Moore for comfort and healing after eye surgery
~ Friends and family of Gary Pettigrew as they grieve his passing

~ Margaret Smithson for comfort and strength
~ Summer Trudell for healing
 
Friends and Family
~ Ann (friend of Elin Valtyrson) for comfort and healing following surgery

 ~ Charlene (Cochran, sister of Merrilee) for comfort and strength
~ Jenny (Daughter-in-law of Elin Valtyrson) for strength and healing
~ Karen Lyon for comfort and peace in assisted living
~ Kristi (wife of William Warnekros) for comfort and strength following surgery
~ Laurel (Leigh, friend and mentor of Sue Cross) for healing and strength
    during treatment for advanced lung cancer
~ Linda (Earl, sister-in-law of Elin Valtyrson) for strength and healing
~ Lydia (Barren, daughter of the Jacksons) for strength and healing
~ Margie (sister of Alice Reberger) for strength and comfort
~ Rev. Dr. Ray Bakke (former interim pastor) for comfort and strength as he
    lives with cancer
~ Sarah (daughter of Larry & Bonnie Larson) for strength fighting cancer
~ Rev. Shannyn Fuerst (friend of Pastor Joel) for comfort following the death of 
     her husband Rev. Jeremy Fuerst
~ Ukranian Evangelical Church for strength after losing their church to fire
 
As a Reconciling in Christ congregation, we believe in a God who loves all people unconditionally. You are welcome here regardless of age, race, sexual orientation, religion, economic status or gender identity. We stand by our belief that God loves us all, no matter what.
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Church Office Hours: Mon & Wed 9–12; Tues, Thurs-Fri 1–5
office@oursavioursbham.org   |   360-733-6749
Copyright © 2021 Our Saviour's Lutheran Church, All rights reserved.


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