Faith Notes
Faith Notes are the monthly news and events from First Presbyterian.
2009 Annual Report
Faith Notes 
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I began my ministry over twenty years ago as a chaplain on the pediatric oncology unit at the University of Minnesota Hospital. This experience transformed my life and my ministry. Any theological training or counseling training quickly went out the window as I sat with children and their families waging valiant fights against cancer. I quickly learned that all I had to offer was my presence and my heart. This experience helped me understand that Jesus did not come into this world to take our suffering away from us or even explain why there is suffering. Jesus came into this world to suffer with us and for us. Jesus came into this world to reveal that God is with us . . . to reveal the heart of God who feels our pain and tastes the salt of our tears. More . . .
MapQuest - Inward Journey - Outward Passion
Sundays: 9:00 & 10:45 am, 5:01 pm More information . . .
One of the traditions of our church is to share a common journey by reading a book together as a church community and participate in a small group for six weeks during the season of Lent. The book we will be reading this year is called “The Hole In Our Gospel” by Rich Stearns. Books are on sale on Sunday mornings. “The Hole In Our Gospel” is an inspiring and challenging book that tell one person’s story of transformation as he encounters suffering in the world and he experiences God calling him to respond. More . . .
Can’t Miss Opportunity! The mission of the Sacred Art of
Living Center here in is to transform the suffering in
ourselves and other. They offer a program called the
‘Scared Art of Living and Dying’ for faith
communities and health care and hospice workers. The core
teaching of the ‘Sacred Art of Living and Dying’
series is that WE ARE ALL HEALERS – to ourselves, each
other and the world around us. The aim is to transform
life’s inevitable fear and pain – by awakening
the
healing potential when the sacred is discovered in everyday
experience. More . . .
There is a phrase I love which says, “We are the medicine
we each need.” Our presence with others in times of
transition, uncertainty and pain can be a source of enormous
strength and hope. Richard Rohr says that the best example of
the Jesus-kind-of-love, agape love, Christian love is
solidarity. Solidarity means to
stay in there with brokenness and let it lead you where it
will. Our mission statement says we are called to
“share the unconditional love and compassion of
Jesus.” I believe one of the most profound ways we live
this mission is to walk alongside others in times of pain and
brokenness offering the gift of our presence. We are not trying
to “fix” them or “convert” them or
“distract” them away from their pain. We are
helping them to know that God-is-with them. More . . .
Epiphany is the time in the church year when we remember the journey the Magi took, following the star to Bethlehem to honor the newborn Messiah. Legend says there were three wisemen (although the gospel of Matthew makes no mention of a number). The legend uses “three” wise men to represent all races and all ages. The legend of the Magi suggests to us that we are all on this pilgrimage and journey wondering, seeking, questing. More . . .
All are welcome, always!
Christmas Eve
Candlelight & Carols
4:30, 7:30 & 10:30 p.m. More . . .
A grateful heart
is a peaceful heart
is a loving heart.
In this season of thanksgiving, I want to pause and make a list
of some of those things for which I am grateful. I suggest you
do the same. When you orient your heart towards gratitude it
changes the way you look at your world. Here’s some of
what fills my heart to overflowing: More . . .
There’s a story in the Bible where Jesus and his followers were sitting outside the temple treasury watching good, faithful, religious people place their well-calculated tithes into the offering plate as they had been taught to do. A widow appeared on the scene who did not calculate the gift she offered. She gave ALL she had, which wasn’t much. her gift amounted to about one cent. More . . .
Henri Nouwen encapsulated the Christian faith in one sentence.
He wrote, “The invitation of Christ is the invitation to
walk away from the house of fear and walk into the house of
love.” Fear constricts. Love expands. Fear binds. Love
frees. Fear fears. Love trusts.
What does it look like in the church to live by faith instead
of fear? How might living by faith instead of fear impact how
we live into our mission of sharing the
unconditional love and compassion of Jesus? More . . .
In the Gospel of Matthew it says, “For everyone who has
will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does
not have, even what he has will be taken from him.”
(Matthew 25.29)
This Bible reading has always been somewhat puzzling. I suspect
we need to get beyond looking at this passage literally and
seek a deeper meaning. I don’t believe Jesus is talking
about material things. I believe he is talking about a
different kind of treasure where the more you draw on it, the
more you will have. More . . .
A new worship service is set to begin on Sunday, October 4 at . . . yes . . . you guessed it . . . 5:01 pm. This worship celebration will be relaxed and comfortable where you will be encouraged to “come as you are.” (Did you catch the play on 501 Levi jeans?) The worship service will be 45 minutes of energizing music, an inspiring message and engaging prayer. Following worship, there will be a simple meal each and every week that we might break bread together and build a strong sense of community. We need your help! More . . .
Excitement is in the air at your church! Rally Day is Sunday, September 13. THERE WILL BE ONE COMBINED WORSHIP SERVICE at 10:45 am FOLLOWED BY A BARBEQUE. More . . .
I read an article recently about using the social media TWITTER as a spiritual practice. Twitter invites you to answer the question “What are you doing?” using 40 characters or less. Uniting Church in Australia minister Gerard Kelly was stirred into prayer following a tragedy using Twitter. He was moved to start sharing his answer to the question “What are you praying?” in 140 characters or less. He then invited others to answer the question “What are you praying?” More . . .
A profound core value of First Presbyterian is that each and every person is welcomed into God’s love. All are welcome always! If this faith community isn’t for everyone, then it is for no one. Our hope is that through our mission, ministry and life together that people will discover they are loved beyond their wildest hopes and dreams. And, from the fountain of this ceaseless flow of love and grace, we will be empowered, inspired and equipped to live each day the unconditional love and compassion revealed in Jesus. More . . .
The Koski’s in Australia - Worshipped at Brougham Place
Uniting Church last Sunday. Wonderful memories cascaded over
me. Seeing the Baptismal fount reminded me of the boys Baptism
and the community of faith that surrounded my whole family with
love and grace. Remembered how accepting and
forgiving this community was in welcoming and encouraging a
brash, young (very young) American with bold ideas and lots of
naiveté. More . . .
Prayer Gathering for The Trailhead - Feeling a need for a quiet
morning? Wanting to hear how God is present in our community?
Wondering about The Trailhead and how it will evolve? If so,
you are invited to attend a prayer and discernment gathering
for The Trailhead on Saturday, July 25, at 9:00 a.m. in
the Youth Room at the church. More . . .
A couple of weeks ago I quoted Martin Heidegger who said,
“We either live in a forgetfulness of being or a
mindfulness of being. “ Someone asked me, “How can
I live more mindfully?” One of my favorite books is by
Thich Nhat Hanh—The Miracle of Mindfulness. It
gives the example of doing the dishes. Instead of rushing
through doing the dishes, barely noticing what you are doing as
your mind goes through its rarely ceasing ramble of
to-do’s and what if’s and what’s
next, SLOW DOWN, feel the warm water, notice the sounds and
quiet the mind, breathing deep full breaths saying silently to
yourself, “I know that I am
washing the dishes . . . I am washing the dishes.”
More . . .
In what way do you wish church would be different? What do you
wish church was like? E-mail me, skoski@bendfp.org and let me
know what you think.
Our denomination has lost 50% of it’s members since 1966.
Howard Rice was addressing a congregation and was asked what he
thought was the cause of
this decline. He responded, “Look around. Where are your
children? Where are your grandchildren?” More . .
.
The Koski’s are headed Down Under in July! You may recall
last year St. Michael’s Uniting Church in Melbourne,
Australia invited me to preach for
three weeks to celebrate the 20th anniversary of my ordination.
I was associate pastor at St. Michaels from 1988-1990
immediately following seminary. I was
then invited to become Senior Pastor of Brougham Place Uniting
Church in Adelaide, Australia where I served for 10 years from
1990-2000. (Presbyterians, Methodists and Congregationalists
united in 1977 to form the Uniting Church in Australia). More . .
.
Upcoming Message Series - R2 – Road to Recovery
Everyone is hoping for an economic recovery. When an addict
talks about recovery, they are not referring to the way things
were.
They are talking about new life and a new healthier way of
being and living in the world. Join me as we explore R2 –
Road to Recovery over the next seven weeks. More . . .
This Sunday, April 26, is a DON’T MISS IT Sunday if you
have children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews or if you value
children (which I hope means ALL of
us in case you were wondering). This Sunday is BLUE RIBBON
Sunday. April has been Child Abuse Prevention month. A
representative from the KIDS Center in Bend will be our special
guest. The KIDS Center is dedicated to the prevention,
evaluation and treatment of child abuse and neglect. Their
motto is: “Because it shouldn’t hurt to be a
kid.” The theme of my message Sunday is: CHILDREN SHOULD
BE SEEN and NOT HURT. The Blue Ribbon for Blue Ribbon Sunday
symbolizes the bruises and wounds both external and internal
that child abuse creates. More . . .
Holy Week More . . .
INVITE A FRIEND TO CHURCH ON SUNDAY, APRIL 5 - Friendship is a central theme of our Lenten Book, “Same Kind of Different as Me.” The theme of our worship on Sunday, April 5 is “Choose to Accept: Can I be a true friend?” Celebrate the gift of friendship and let someone know how much you value their friendship by inviting them to join you for worship on Sunday, April 5. More . . .
Coat Collection - Did your kids outgrow a coat this winter? Do you have a coat in the back of your closet that just doesn’t get worn? We are collecting coats and jackets for Palm Sunday. Bring a coat to Sunday Service on Palm Sunday, April 5. The coats will be donated to help keep those in need warm. Early donations will be collected by Janet Pearson in the church office. Luke 3:11 More . . .
A traditional practice for Lent is to give something up that you might focus more of your attention on God. I urge you to give up two hours of your week and join a Lenten small group. We are exploring together the book Same Kind of Different as Me which is a true story of the life-changing power of unconditional love. I am extremely excited to travel this road with you exploring what it means to “Choose to Love!” More . . .
“So speak encouraging words to one another. Build up hope so you’ll all be together in this, no one left out, no one left behind . . . Gently encourage the stragglers, and reach out for the exhausted, pulling them to their feet. Be patient with each person, attentive to individual needs.” (1 Thessalonians 5.11, 14, 15) More . . .
I keep hearing people say, “I’m not very optimistic.” The good news is that OPTIMISM and HOPE are radically different attitudes and approaches to the challenges we face. A meditation from the Henri Nouwen Society this week wrote, “Optimism More . . .
There are two wonderful opportunities this month I highly recommend you consider participating in to deepen our faith and grow spiritually. The first is a workshop at our church on January 16 and 17 called “And God Saw That it Was Good.” This workshop will be led by Dr. Mark Brocker (the son of our much-loved guest preacher Frank Brocker). Dr. Brocker is the Pastor at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Beaverton and lecturer in Theology and Ethics for Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary. This is an important opportunity to deepen our understanding of environmental issues and the environmental crisis through the lens of our faith. More . . .
