The Pastor’s Blog
Wednesday, November 1st at 7 p.m. Vision Meeting at MFC
Talent FWMF ladies are holding their Annual Christmas Bazaar & Bake Sale Saturday, November 4th, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Talent Friends Church, 50 Talent Avenue. Everyone is invited.
Sunday, November 5th Daylight Savings Time Ends! Be sure to set your clocks back 1 hour Saturday night, November 4th.
Tom Walker will be 90 on November 12th! The family will have birthday cake to celebrate the occasion! Please join us during the fellowship time that Sunday and feel free to bring a birthday card to honor Tom being 90!
FWMF November Monthly Meeting all ladies are invited to join us on Thursday, November 16th, at the home of Phebe McManama. The meeting begins at 10:30 a.m. with a luncheon to follow.
FWMF – November 19th will be the
Pre-Thanksgiving/Holiday Baked Goods Event
Look for ladies in the fellowship hall on Sunday, November 19th between services and following Sunday School. In addition to the usual cookies, cupcakes, brownies etc. they plan to have pies, sweet breads, yeast breads & rolls, holiday cookies & candy etc. If you would like to be sure to get a homemade pie you can reserve one by contacting Nadine Brood, choices are: pumpkin, apple or cherry!
All Church Thanksgiving Potluck
Sunday, November 19th
Please join us for a time of celebration, fellowship and good food! We will meet in the fellowship hall following the Sunday School & Bible Study hour. The church will provide the Turkey and Ham. Please bring Thanksgiving side dishes and desserts to share.
1000 Pairs of Shoes We are accepting donations of new shoes up until Easter time of next year! At this time, there are 199 pairs of shoes accounted for! New Arrival Shoes may be placed on the pew up front on the platform in the sanctuary on Sunday or given to one of the ushers! We want to tally them before they are placed behind the pew. So far we have collected 224 pairs!
Walnuts for Sale!!
Donna Hansen has walnuts in the shell for sale $1.50 per pound. Look for her on Sunday morning, or contact her at home.
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Russia Trip Reflection
From September 19th through 30th I had the opportunity to join Esther Mae Hinshaw (Newberg Emerging) and Tracy Wilson (Silverton) on a trip to visit Johan and Judy Maurer in Russia. This was a wonderful experience full of amazing moments. We spent time in Moscow orienting ourselves to some of the Russian history and culture by visiting some popular sites and museums. After a few days there we traveled to Elektrostal and got the chance to stay with one of the Maurer’s students, Sergei, in his home.
This was the highlight of the trip for me. We got to play a lot of games together and learn about Sergei and his fellow students. We were immersed in the culture of Russia and got to have some wonderful conversations until the wee small hours of the morning. We also visited the institute that Johan and Judy taught at and helped one of the other teachers with some of his classes for high school students. These times of speaking with and learning from the students about their country and how they see the world were so enlightening and I am very grateful that we had the chance to join Johan and Judy there for a short time and see their home and the lives they had built there.
We finished our trip in Saint Petersburg. We visited the Church of the Savior on the Spilled Blood and other historical sites, we went to the Winter Palace which is home to a beautiful collection of paintings and artifacts that span the last 4-500 years. This time also gave us a chance to reflect on some of the things we had experienced and to hear about some of the tragic history of the city and country.
As much as we enjoyed traveling all over the country and spending time with students one of the most memorable things was joining our Russian Friends for worship. We sat in silence together sharing the Spirit’s peace together and had a lovely time of fellowship. To me this was a beautiful preview of our future together with the Lord.
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Note from Kayla Davidson: “I have made a difficult decision to withdraw from my serve trip to Nepal. Instead, I will be spending some much needed family time at home for Christmas and getting rest to prepare for the rest of the school year to follow. I am confident that this plan is most beneficial for me and relieves me of a lot of stress. I know I will have many more opportunities to serve and travel in the years to come. I want to thank you all for your generous prayers and support not only for this trip, but for all the years I have attended MFC. You all have been a blessing in my life growing up and I appreciate your support in all my endeavors as an adult, even the unexpected ones. I will be contacting people personally who already donated, if there questions please contact me or my mom, Tammie Davidson.”
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You are all invited to the Open House celebrating the opening of the Rogue Valley Chaplains Association Jackson County office located upstairs in Medford Friends Church, on October 7th between 1 and 4 p.m. Refreshments will be served. The RVCA is very grateful for the generous gift of this space to allow chaplains to minister to those in crisis.
There will be an Activities Committee Meeting on Sunday, October 8th at noon in the fireside room.
Just A couple of Reminders!
October is Pastor Appreciation Month.
Jesse will resume the Wednesday Night Bible Study at MFC this month.
Sunday, November 5th Daylight Savings Time Ends. Be sure to set your clocks back 1-hour Saturday night, November 4th.
From Mark Burton, Clerk of Stewards
As I reflect on the work that has been done to refurbish the parsonage over the last six months I am reminded of chapters 35 through 40 of the book of Exodus. There we read about all of the gifts that the people brought and all of the work of the skilled craftsmen to build the tabernacle and the items needed for the priests. Some people brought gold and silver and bronze, some brought cloth, linen and yarn, and others brought animal skins. The craftsmen and skilled people then took all of the contributions and created works of beauty and function according to God’s plan, to create a place for worship and to meet with Him.
The parsonage isn’t a tabernacle, but it is a place for ministry to happen and its refurbishing has been a community effort. The work has involved craftspeople sharing their time, tools and skill. It has involved people sharing time and money to facilitate the work. It has involved skilled bakers sharing their goodies with the work crew. It has involved coffee being made most every morning for the crew. And it has all been done in the name of the Lord for His glory.
We plan to have the work completed in time for Jesse and his roommates to move in by October 20, 2017, but that won’t be the end of the story, but the beginning of a new chapter in the life of a house that for decades has housed pastoral families and been a place of ministry for the church and community. Thank you to all have helped to make this new chapter possible!
God’s Grace and Peace,
Mark
MFC Celebrating 75 Years – Sunday October 15th
Please join us in the fellowship hall for a time of celebration at our all church potluck at noon on Sunday, October 15th. Please bring your favorite potluck main dish, and a salad, vegetable, enough to feed eight people. Cake will be provided for dessert.
1000 Pairs of Shoes We are accepting donations of new shoes up until Easter time of next year! At this time, there are 199 pairs of shoes accounted for! New Arrival Shoes may be placed on the pew up front on the platform in the sanctuary on Sunday or given to one of the ushers! We want to tally them before they are placed behind the pew.
FWMF meets Thursday, October 19th
All ladies are welcome to join us at MFC at 10:30 a.m. Following the meeting we will have lunch & fellowship time at Wendy’s.
We are excited to announce that Kayla Davidson, Darren & Tammie Davidson’s daughter, currently attending George Fox University has felt the call to be a part of a team with EFM traveling to Nepal in December. She writes the following:
“I have the amazing opportunity to travel with George Fox University's Spiritual and Intercultural Life team to Kathmandu, Nepal for two weeks, (Dec. 26-Jan. 7). We are partnering with Evangelical Friend's Mission to provide humanitarian aid for people struggling physically and spiritually in an earthquake devastated country, I am very passionate about travel and helping other people so I am very excited to embark on this journey and see what God has to reveal to me through this act of service.” Please pray for preparations for this group of students and if you would like to support Kayla in this journey, there are 2017 Nepal Immersion & Service Trip Response Forms with instructions as to how checks can be made out on the usher’s table in the foyer. Mail checks to George Fox University, 414 Meridian Street Newberg, OR 97132.
ALL CHURCH WORKDAY AT MFC
Everyone is invited to join us Saturday, October 21st, 9 a.m. to noon
Our stewards committee have many inside and outside chores to accomplish at this time. Please join us, many hands will make the work load lighter.
Christian Ed Committee Invites you to join the Primary Sunday School Classes for a fun outing: Sunday, October 22nd After Sunday School
Where: Fort Vannoy Farms 5791 Lower River Rd., Grants Pass, OR
More Information: www.fortvannoyfarms.com
Tons of Fun Stuff to do: Corn Maze, Pumpkin Patch, Harvest Activities Galore!
Cost: Money for Lunch at Dairy Queen, $6 for Corn Maze, $6 for Pumpkin Blaster, Free Activities too!
Questions: Call Drew Krupp, 541-821-9199 or Patsy Burton, 541-941-4800
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