If you prefer to print the newsletter, you may download it here: Printable May 2023 Here is also a printable May calendar: 05 2023 Calendar
pastor’s perspective
“Summer of the Spirit”
By Dave Hendrickson, Lead Pastor
Back in my March newsletter article, I discussed the “Awakening” which Asbury University experienced. Students, faculty, staff, and the local community felt thepresence of God in such a mighty way that people from all around the country and world were traveling to Wilmore, Kentucky to get a “taste” (Ps. 34:8). What caused people to respond in such a way to want to go and experience it for themselves? I believe it was the Holy Spirit! God himself was connecting with a vast array of people! Lives were being changed: forgiven, healed, restored, made whole, and much more!
This summer, beginning on May 28th, Pentecost Sunday (yes, I know it’s also Memorial Day Weekend), LvCC is going to study, learn, invite, and hopefully experience the power and work of the Holy Spirit! Now, before some of you begin to worry and question…No, this does not mean LvCC is going full Pentecostal or Charismatic! What it does mean is that we are going to invite God himself (aka The Holy Spirit) to come in ways we as followers of Jesus might never have experienced before!
Often times, I hear comments like, “it’s ok for them to have the Spirit, but ‘its’ not for me” or “if that is what the Spirit does to someone, I don’t want that.” Quite honestly, those with the first response confuse me. Why? Well, according to the scripture and the Apostles Creed, the Holy Spirit is God, a person, not some “it” or thing! Jesus says in John 14, “The Holy Spirit will come and help you, because the Father will send the Spirit to take my place. The Spirit will teach you everything and will remind you of what I said while I was with you.” If we believe Jesus was sent by the Father and is God, then we should also believe (according to John 14) that the Holy Spirit is sent by the Father and is God. Secondly, who does not want more of God?! John the Baptist says, “he (Jesus) must increase, and I must decrease.” Jesus invites us to follow his example, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” The only way I understand following Jesus more closely is by having more of the Holy Spirit within me!
The second comment makes more sense to me. I do admit there are some who have represented the Holy Spirit in ways that are not scripturally sound or correct. I’m sure some of us have watched on TV, been part of worshiping services, or attended a conference where pastors, evangelists, and congregants behave and act in ways which make us feel uncomfortable while, “under the power of the Holy Spirit.” Yes, I do believe the Holy Spirit can do things we cannot explain or comprehend. Once again, Jesus says in John 14, “I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me, you will do the same things I am doing. You will do even greater things, now that I am going back to the Father…The Spirit will show you what is true. The people of this world cannot accept the Spirit, because they don’t see or know him. But you know the Spirit, who is with you and will keep on living in you.” But I also believe there are things we learn from scripture that help us identify the biblical characteristics of the Holy Spirit.
This summer’s sermon series will help us understand both the orthodoxy and orthopraxy of the Holy Spirit. Orthodoxy will help us understand theological truth of who the Spirit is and His purpose in the biblical narrative while orthopraxy will help us navigate how the fruits, gifts, and other works of the Holy Spirit practically function through the disciples of Jesus!
Jesus says, “The Spirit is like the wind that blows wherever it wants to. You can hear the wind, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going.” (John 3:8, CEV) My prayer is that we will hear and feel the effects of the Spirit this summer at LvCC. I invite you to pray and sing with me the lyrics from Katie and Bryan Torwalt, “Holy Spirit you are welcomed here; come flood this place and fill the atmosphere!”
community corner
By Caleb Strom, Pastor of Discipleship and Community Life
Help Wanted!
We need your help! Yes, you! Our Monday Night Homeless Ministry has an amazing opportunity this summer to serve our unhoused community under the tent right here at Longview Community Church. We are striving to reach more folks and get more of our church congregants involved. Here are some of the tasks that the team will need to cover on Monday Nights so the ministry can run well:
Cooks
Setup
Food Servers
Restroom Escorts
Tear Down
Clean Grounds (as needed)
Security (Grounds/Parking Lot)
Prayer Partners
Do you love to cook, but just absolutely hate cleaning the dishes afterward? (That’s me) Never fear! We need cooks to help early Monday afternoon/Sunday evening to prepare and prep meals that our teams serve. No grocery buying is needed either! That is already taken care of for you. Grab a friend or two and commit to cooking once or twice a month and make it a fun bonding time!
Is your cooking a curse instead of a blessing to people? Don’t worry, we have work for you as well. We need help with setup/tear down, dishes, security, parking lot watch, or just grabbing a plate of food yourself and sitting down with people and asking if they want prayer or to share their story.
There is plenty to do in and with this amazing ministry! If you have any questions about where you would best fit, what “jobs” are available within the ministry, or just want to learn more about how we are going to serve those who are less fortunate please feel free to reach out to either:
Dan Durben, Phone: (215) 527-8229 Email: dan.durben@swissmail.org
Matt Avalon, Email: mattavlon4@gmail.com
elder meeting highlights
Sean Kelly reported that March was the lowest for total income in five years; net income for the month was -$15,000 mostly due to the quarterly payment of Missions checks in March; also two natural gas bills were paid in same month. PUD is budgeted evenly across twelve months but not billed that way, so winter months are always high comparatively. Patrick Allen asked if we were on or could be on the budget plan; Randy Sundberg will check on it. Randy reported he has been tracking utilities this year vs. last year and they are down this year by one-third, due to more efficiency from the repaired boiler/condensate lines.
Monday Night Ministry Update–Caleb introduced Dan Durben and Matt Avalon who have been working originally with the Tent City, and more recently Hope Village. They explained how the changes have impacted the vision of our food outreach ministry. Matt shared that when visiting Tent City, there were more opportunities to connect and pray with the same people week after week. At Hope Village, there isn’t much connection with the residents or opportunity to actually minister. He explained that they are hoping to utilize our tent as a venue to serve meals on Monday nights; also to sit with, speak and pray with them. Susie Kirkpatrick asked if they had any concerns. Matt shared they didn’t have problems in the past three years at the Tent City; he doesn’t expect any here. They also have more experience, and a more well-rounded support team than before. It would be easier to encourage people from our church to help serve because they could just come to our church, not go out in the community. Susie feels that one of the most important things to focus on is the desire to minister and connect with people, beyond just giving out food. Caleb suggested anyone who had questions to come be part of it on a Monday. Norm Krehbiel stated that it sounds like the Elders are in support of the idea and Dan and Matt should move ahead.
The Annual Congregational Meeting will be May 21 and will be announced in the May newsletter and from the pulpit for the two weeks prior. Revised Bylaws will be available in the Office 30 days prior and will be emailed to the Active Members list.
Norm shared that the TriHOP contract was renewed through April 2025.
Randy Sundberg shared that ElaineTheriault is pursuing getting a grant to help pay for the boiler. He also explained that the vans are not used regularly and have been vandalized several times. He asked what are our needs for vans? It is mainly occasional SAM or youth outings. Options include selling, leasing, storing. Randy suggested keeping the Dually (Ford Econoline), selling the other two, and adding proceeds to dedicated van maintenance fund. Motion by Sean Kelly to keep the Dually and sell the other two vans, keeping the proceeds to be put in the designated account 3623; seconded by Randy Sundberg. Motion passed unanimously.
Randy also presented the “dreamlist”, drawings and spreadsheet for 40+ upcoming projects. He went over the project list and asked for input. He explained that there will be about $95,000 from the Tree Farm harvest available to be used. The Elders continued the discussion about potential projects.
The next Elders business meeting is scheduled for May 16, 2023 in the Youth Room.
trustees scholarships
Longview Community Church Trustees are accepting scholarship applications for the 2023-24 academic year.
The Trustees manage an endowment fund that provides scholarships for people interested in exploring service in Christian ministry. Eligible for scholarships are students of all ages beginning with high school graduates. Residents of Cowlitz County and Columbia County, Oregon, may apply.
Earnings from an endowment established in 1954 support the scholarship program. The scholarships fund only people pursuing studies to equip them for Christian service. Trustees have defined that term broadly. Past scholarship recipients have ranged from pastors pursuing advanced degrees to high school graduates taking “gap year” programs at Christian institutions.
Trustees prioritize scholarship applicants as follows: Church staff first, seminary and post-graduate students second and undergraduates third. While the applicant pool has been expanded to people outside the church, priority will be given to applicants affiliated with Longview Community Church if funds are limited. To apply, email or call Bob Gaston, Trustee chairman: rbgaston@me.com or 360-562-7036. Applications are due June 12.
history
“Thomas and the centennial”
By Sandy Rountree, History Team
Thomas A. Catt had been away from the church for some time visiting his mom, Allie, and friend, Jerome R. Rodente. The loud noises and all the people working on replacing pipes had been just too much for him but it was good to be home.
He was surprised to see a sign on the museum door saying that they were closed while working on the centennial items and would be open in the Fall. Thomas was taken aback as he didn’t know what a centennial was and why the museum was closed. He decided to go find someone to ask.
He couldn’t find Randy, or Garrett, or Caleb or Dave. The office was empty but he heard some noise in the copy room and there was Patty. Thom was sure she would help him.
“Patty, what does “centennial” mean? Have my friends gone away? I’m afraid to be alone.” Patty reassured him that he wasn’t alone. “Centennial just means 100 years have passed and the church is getting ready to celebrate its birthday! A committee is planning special activities during the whole month of October.”
Thomas was excited to think the church was 100 years old and the congregation was going to rejoice and think about the past but also look forward to the future years. He sought out the museum people and learned that a special anniversary logo had been designed and the theme for the celebration was “Celebrating the Past…Pursuing the Future”. There would also be a special float of the Bell tower in the July 4th parade and also Longview’s Centennial parade in September. Self-guided Sanctuary tours, followed by an organ concert were also planned for July 4th.
T-shirts with the Centennial logo and theme on them would be sold, but only if they had enough pre-orders. He hoped there would be one in his size.
But the exciting thing to Thom were the activities planned for the 5 Sundays in October. Starting in mid-September, a video of church history would be played each Sunday with the last one looking towards the future. The congregation will also be asked to share their special memories of what the church has meant to them on thank you cards.
Michael Allen Harrison will be the special guest for the Hill Memorial Concert on the afternoon of October 15. “I hope they let me sing with him,” thought Thomas.
Thomas learned that the BIG celebration will be October 22nd. On that day, former pastors, staff, church leaders, and missionaries will be invited for Celebration Sunday, the date closest to the actual beginning of the church. “I hope they have cookies or cake. I do enjoy the goodies they serve,” he said. And there is even talk of an All-church sing-a-long. “Maybe there will be refreshments there, too.”
Thomas A. Catt realized he wasn’t alone and had a lot to look forward to, and to be thankful for his time at Longview Community Church. He couldn’t wait for the celebration to begin and decided he’d better go take a catnap to prepare.
fish report
By Peggy Reibe, FISH Co-Chairperson
Thanks for your continued support of FISH. We are going strong. In March we served 211 families consisting of 729 people. This is 16% more families than January. The need in our community is rising. We have begun giving toothbrushes to everyone 3 and over.
May food distribution should be fabulous! The tent will be bursting with extra items received free from Food Lifeline.
We are so very grateful to our faithful volunteers who help with food procurement and distribution. Our volunteer group is increasing as friends of volunteers and clients volunteer to work.
Thanks so very much for your continued support. We are looking forward to FISH week 5/22-5/26/2023.
lvcc youth news
By Nathaniel Duscha, Youth Pastor
We are getting closer and closer to the end of the school year! We have some awesome events planned for this summer and our full summer schedule will be coming out in the next few weeks. However, there are a couple of events that I want to highlight now!
Dunes Bible Camp is coming up in July! Middle School Camp is taking place July 5-9, and High School is July 15-20. If you have a teen or know a teen who is interested in going to camp this summer, go to dunesbiblecamp.com to get them registered! If you register before June 1st there is a free t-shirt included! We also have scholarships available, if you are interested in receiving a scholarship for camp, please reach out to me and we can get that set up.
We are having Burger Bash at the lake on June 21st. This event is a great time to get together with other local youth groups for a time of fellowship as we kick off the summer. We will be at Martin’s Dock from 6-8 pm and this event is open to EVERYONE.
For the month of May, we are going to be in a teaching series called “Reasonable Doubt”. Through Scripture, we’ll discover that when we have doubts and questions, we don’t need to ignore them or sweep them under the rug. Instead, we can look to Jesus, look to the Holy Spirit, look to God’s words, and look for God in unexpected places.
children’s ministry news
By Sarah Fix, Director of Children’s Ministry
April has been so rainy and busy! I don’t know about you, but I am really looking forward to some warmer weather! This month in Community Kids we successfully hosted our first community Easter Egg hunt out on the lawn! I was busy prepping and praying hard for no rain for the hunt! God answered our prayers, and although it was windy, we had NO RAIN! We never got an official count, but we had an estimated 150 people come for the fun. This was another way for us to develop a trusting, loving relationship with our neighbors in the community and I’m so thankful God answered our prayers and blessed our effort. Thank YOU to all the AMAZING volunteers who made this a blast for the kids!
VBS season is here! It’s time to register! You may use this link: VBS Registration You will then see an option to either register as a participant or volunteer. There are so many ways to serve in this awesome event. Whether you’ve served for 20 years, or never- please join us! It’s such a fun week and we can’t wait to BLAST OFF into space and shine Jesus’ light with the kids.
this and that
The Annual Congregational Meeting will be after the worship service on Sunday, May 21. We will be voting on the nominees for the Nominating Committee and two Elder positions. The proposed revised Bylaws will also be presented along with staff ministry and vision updates.
If you or someone you know is wanting to get rid of a refrigerator/freezer that is still in good working condition, we may be able to use it! Please call the Church Office for more details.
Food Donations Speaking of refrigerators, please label any items that are put into the church refrigerator with the date and name of ministry. Many mystery items just appear and no one knows where they came from or who they are for! While the Monday Night ministry appreciates food donations, they are unable to use anything with expired “use by” dates. If you have items to donate, it would be helpful if you would first call the Church Office to verify that there is a need for them. Thank you!
The Missions Committee has sponsored a table at the Cowlitz Chaplaincy Benefit Dinner on Saturday, May 13 beginning at 5:30pm If you would like to attend this event, contact Shannon Inman at 360-636-0289 for a complimentary ticket.
Join us during Discipleship Time at 8:45am for a class for Adults and Youth called “Community in the Book of Acts”, co-taught by Ian Rutherford and Caleb Strom in the Chapel. The class will continue through May 28. The children’s classes are available as usual during that time also.
Please start saving plastic container lids of all sizes to be used for VBS decorations and crafts. You may bring the clean lids to the tub in the hallway by the Church Office.
The 100th Anniversary committee is considering ordering t-shirts with a logo commemorating the anniversary, but they would like to verify that there is enough interest before purchasing the shirts. There will be a sign up form at the Welcome Center and during Fellowship Time in May for those interested in purchasing a shirt.
The Friday Fellowship Adult Group will be “visiting” Australia via potluck and slideshow on May 5 at 6pm (this is the first Friday of the month due to a scheduling conflict on the second Friday). Please bring a main dish, side dish, salad, bread or dessert representing Australia and join us in the Fellowship Hall! The group will take a break for the summer but will resume in September with more shows! Be watching for an updated schedule of the shows next year.
90+ Birthdays This Month
To honor our most senior members and attenders, we will be listing their birthdays each month using the records in our database. If you or someone you know is 90+ years of age and has an upcoming birthday, please contact the Church Office by the 20th of the prior month so we may be sure to include it!
We are unaware of any May birthdays for those who are 90+ years old but please let us know if we missed you so we may include you next year!
MARCH FINANCIALS
YTD CONTRIBUTIONS: $115,314
YTD OTHER INCOME $ 1,258
YTD EXPENSE: $145,529
YTD NET INCOME: -$ 28,957
MAY MISSIONS FOCUS:
Cowlitz Chaplaincy
Cowlitz Chaplaincy