904 Washington St SE, Olympia, WA 98501
Signed in as:
filler@godaddy.com
My surgery is next week. Actually, by the time you read this, surgery day will have arrived. I am so thankful for you, the people of God, here on the corner of 9th and Washington. Your prayers, encouragement, love, and support for myself and for Kathleen, has made this process and mini-journey with Cornelius manageable and fear-less. Though we will not see one another, face-to-face, during my recovery, I find a great deal of comfort and confidence in knowing that our life together with God is not dependent on me.
What we do here at Oly First, for God and others, is truly: “the work of the people.”
I am thankful for a strong congregation; strong lay leadership; a strong staff; strong region support. Mostly, I am thankful for a God who has gifted each of you; gifted us as a congregation; and a God who works endlessly, behind the scenes ,to bring good into our lives and into our world. Even in the midst of tough stuff, like cancer, broken relationships, reconciling and repairing relationships, uncertainty & despair, etc., God is at work, loving, forgiving, healing, repairing, extending grace and acceptance.
I am thankful that the Rev. Joan Friesen is willing, and has the time, to step in as “Acting Pastor” during my medical leave. Joan brings a sharp mind, compassionate heart, and great organizational skills and ministerial experience to us. Joan, along with our Executive Leader-ship Team, will bring their gifts, experience, and trust in God to the forefront as we continue to be a people, called by God, to engage others with the love and grace of Jesus Christ. Add to that mix, the wonderful staff of Lela DePaolo, John Fesenbek, and Jonathan Spatola-Knoll, and it will seem like we haven’t skipped a beat at all. Ministry will continue. Worship will continue. Serving others with grace, compassion and care will continue. Checking in on one another, providing congregational care, praying, encouraging, visiting, loving one another, will continue. The work of Christ will continue as we walk humbly, love completely, and live differently!
Last thing. I’m a person who relies upon two things that God has given to all of us:
Hope and Perseverance
These gifts are not separate but intertwined, I believe. Each of us needs hope. We need to believe that there are better days ahead of us; to believe that we have purpose, a place & people where we belong. But hope by itself is incomplete. We need that inner strength, that inner drive to move us forward when obstacles get in our way and/or, when we fail. Likewise, that perseverance is incomplete if we don’t believe in a future, a place of hopefulness for ____________ (fill-in-your-own-response).
Below are two scriptures from Paul’s Letter to the church in Rome, that speak to this intertwined gift from God, hope and perseverance…
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13
NRSV
Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Romans 5: 3-5
Contemporary English Version
During my medical leave/recovery, be mindful of these two pieces of scripture. Read them from time to time; pray over them and through them. Fill yourself, led by the surprising work of the Spirit, with hope & perseverance! I am so proud to be the Pastor of this faith community of ragamuffins! I am proud of who you are and who we are becoming as God continues to do a good work in you, individually and as a community.
Blessings and Joy!
Humble over Hype!
Pastor Mark (Rev)
With Pastor Mark on medical leave and Rev. Joan Friesen stepping in as Acting Pastor during this time, if you have a question, need, need a visit, etc., please contact Lela in the Church Office, your team of Deacons, and/or Rev. Joan, directly.
Please do not call on Pastor Caroline as she is no longer, officially, on staff. We do plan to throw her an official retirement party, later in the year, once Pastor Mark is back and we have finished up hosting the Evergreen Annual Gathering.
Thank you!
The Rev. Joan Friesen will serve as “Acting Pastor” during this interim time frame. There will be a few Sundays that Joan will not be available due to previous commitments, but she will secure pulpit supply for those Sundays.
She will also coordinate/facilitate with Lela, in the church office, as well as with the Deacons and Executive Leadership team, when it comes to congregational care and other needs. Joan and Sandi Swarthout, as Church Moderator, have met with Pastor Mark to come up with a comprehensive plan of pastoral care and ministerial presence during his time away.
This is not a full-time position, but Joan will be the point person to coordinate and facilitate many of the areas that Pastor Mark is responsible for.
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