From the Pastor

Dear Oakdale family,

I hope you’re planning on attending the retreat on Saturday, February 1st!

Just as each of us has one body with many members—and these members don’t have the same function— so all of us, in union with Christ, form one body. And as members of that one body, we belong to each other. Romans 12:4-5

What a lovely thought – that we belong to those who pray for us, knit with us and support us and with whom we rake leaves and worship and for whom we pray and offer support in our lives. The Church—this church IS the body of Christ and each of us belongs to the others. We are accountable to one another in our Christian lives and in the edifying (building up) of this church and its mission and ministry to the surrounding community.

Edifying is a great word for our Christian lives together. Encourage each other and build each other up, just as you’re already doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11

The metaphor of building is used to convey the idea of growth, construction, and strengthening. The church is described as a body, a flock, and a building, all of which emphasize the communal aspect of faith. It’s not a solo act, although there are aspects of our spiritual growth that are deeply personal and it’s not only spiritual growth without mission or mission without spiritual growth. BOTH are essential for our Christian life, and for that of the church. To do one without the other would be like holding our breath instead of breathing in and out as we were created to do.

As we read these scriptures from Romans and 1Thessalonians, remember that they were letters from pastors to their churches, encouraging them to do the work of the church, which essentially boils down to Jesus ’commandment that we love each other. This imperative also includes loving those beyond our church family, those who are our neighbors in the community and world.

We come together as a church in order to edify ourselves, that is, grow spiritually and love our neighbor, that is, reach out in mission and ministry to the world. To that end, I hope you’re planning to attend Oakdale’s Grounding and Growth Retreat on Saturday, February 1st beginning at 9:00 am to ground ourselves in our purpose and mission and dream together about a vibrant future. We will look at our Strategic Plan and some of the ideas that we might implement for fun, fellowship, financial stability and the future with new members and missions.

Have you ever felt like you didn’t know what was going on? This is your opportunity to be in the thick of things—be in the know—start out together on the ground floor! It is vitally important that all of our members and friends be a part of making the decisions that will take us into the future, that of the next year and the next decade. You’ve all probably read a book or listened to a speaker hoping for a quick fix to revitalize the church but the work really has to be envisioned and enacted by the members. There has to be real buy-in from the people in the pews—a commitment to be involved and make it happen.

When you arrive on Saturday the 1stat 9am, there will be coffee and light snacks and we will pray and spiritually ground ourselves for the work of the day. We will hear about our community and think together about our part in it. We will be honest about our capacity and joyfully explore the gifts we bring to this work. We will consider the financial demands of the current economy and frankly consider how to meet them.

You’re welcome to bring a bag lunch or join others in ordering a pizza or subs to be delivered. We don’t want anyone left out of the conversation by spending time in the kitchen preparing or cleaning up. We’re all in this together.

I hope you’re planning to attend our church-wide retreat on Saturday, February 1st as we continue praising God, loving others, growing spiritually and sharing Jesus.

Bible Study: Some of us meet Tuesdays at 10:30 for Bible study. Now through February 25thwe’ll continue focusing on What Does it Mean to be Chosen? which studies how the apostles were chosen, their time of learning from Jesus and how each of us is chosen to follow Jesus. We’d love for you to join us any time.

The book is available through Amazon in paperback, audio or Kindle format at this link. You can watch The Chosen series which accompanies our study for free on The Chosen app which you can download on your phone, tablet, computer through the Google Play or AppStore or for your smart TV at Roku, Fire TV or Apple TV. You can also watch the episodes for free on Fandango and BYUtv. It is available on Amazon Prime with a subscription.

Worship: Our current Worship Series that will run through the end of February is called Six Stone Jars: The Economy of Jesus and invites us to build the Kin-dom of God by drawing from jars of Hope, Purpose, Healing, Meaning, Vision, and Grace for all people.

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, March 5th and we will have a short worship service of prayer that God create in us a clean heart and imposition of ashes at 7:00 pm that evening. Prior to that we will celebrate the tradition of ridding “the house” of fat and sweets by eating pancakes at a Shrove Tuesday dinner on Tuesday, March 4th at 6:00 pm!

Our Lenten series is called Purveyors of Awe and will explore elements of Beauty, Wonder, Curiosity Delight and more.

On Maundy Thursday, April 17th we will enjoy a Potluck meal together at 6:00 pm that will include prayers and scripture in a remembrance of the Last Supper.

We will hold our annual Easter Sunrise service at the Stone Church on Sunday, April 20th at 6:00 am.

Plan to join us for worship each Sunday at 10:30 at the church or on our YouTube livestream at this link.

Pastoral Care: Please contact me when you have a graduation, anniversary, or other special event that you would like me to pray for. When you are facing a difficult decision and would like someone to discuss it with, I am a trained Spiritual Director, here to listen and to offer prayer for wisdom and guidance. When planning a wedding, I can provide premarital counseling and planning for a Christian ceremony. When anticipating a death in the family, let me pray for you and your loved one as they transition from this life to the eternal. I am here to serve you and encourage you in all of life’s situations. I am available by appointment or by chance at the church office.

In Christ’s Love,

Pastor Cheryl