Traditionally, we have a pattern for worship, our practice of Holy Communion, that has four basic elements - gathering, word, meal, and sending. This structure allows for freedom and flexibility in the ways worship may be shaped locally, while focusing on what the church holds in common: the means of grace: the saving word of God and the sacraments...
Jason Lee Middle School is opening a calming/focusing room for students and is in need of some items for the room. They may be dropped off at the church office during business hours or brought to any worship service. Contact Jessica Potts (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) for more information. Items needed include: Drawing/art suppl...
My wife Gretchen and I live in a co-housing condominium. There are 39 of us, 55+, living in intentional community. You'll not be surprised to hear that we've been having the same kinds of COVID conversations Messiah Lutheran has been having over the past three years. Gretchen, with her Masters Degree in Nursing, has been an active and interest...
Messiah is excited to kick off Wild Wednesdays starting May 31! Wild Wednesdays will be held on Wednesday morning from 9:30-11am in two different 3-week series during the summer (see schedule below). Each Wednesday will look a little different, but will include a combination of Bible stories, music/art, snack, and time to run and play! Please...
The Call Committee continues to meet weekly, and has committed to keeping the congregation informed as to our actions and progress. In our meeting held on May 15th, we asked Pastor Rebecca of the Synod to provide us with the list of candidates and their statement of qualifications and interest (RMPs) for our consideration. We also are in the proces...
Beginning May 28, the Prayground in the Sanctuary will be staffed by a nursery attendant. The nursery itself is closed for the summer. Parents are welcome to drop off their child and sit wherever they would like in the Sanctuary. The Prayground is refreshed regularly so there are always new activities!
A Wallowa backpacking trip, the first since Covid, is being organized for this summer. The plan is to go to Echo Lake in the Eagle Cap Wilderness of Northeastern Oregon for a 4-night 5-day trip from August 4-8. The cost is $95 and payment is needed to hold your spot. Participants are responsible for carrying all of their own gear plus u...
The Messiah Semi-Annual meeting of the congregation is June 4 in the Hazel Dell Campus sanctuary at 11:45am. This meeting will be an in-person event. Agenda items include staff reports, a report on the recent synod assembly, financial reports, church leadership team reports and the presentation of the 2023-24 operating budget. Reports and agenda it...
The Endowment Committee is seeking grant request submissions in these areas: National and International Outreach, Ministries, and Missions (examples: World Gospel mission feeding children, Messiah Mission trip support)Local Community Outreach, Ministries and Missions (examples: Winter clothing for local school children, emergency refugee fund, shut...
The Call Committee continues to meet weekly. In our meeting held May 1st, we finalized and distributed the forms to be used by the congregation to nominate candidates for consideration. Those forms are available from Tom Zimmer or Julie Backous at the North County site, and at the church office in Hazel Dell. There are instructions to follow with t...
Do you want to help with worship? Do you like to bake cookies? Do your kids or grandkids like to bake cookies? Saturday, June 24th, is the next opportunity to help bake cookies for coffee time on Sunday mornings. We will meet in the downstairs kitchen at Hazel Dell campus. All ingredients will be provided. Fun and laughter will be share...
Graduate recognition Sunday is coming up on June 4, 2023 at the 10:30am service at Hazel Dell and the Messiah community wants to acknowledge all those who are graduating this year. If you are a graduate, or the family member of one, Messiah invites you to submit the following information, as well as a recent picture of the graduate and a picture fr...
If you are new to Messiah, just coming back to in-person services, or want to try something new, we can use your help. I am looking for worship helpers. We need greeter/ushers, readers, and communion servers. Any instruction is gladly given. Most of our current helpers serve every 6 to 8 weeks. You are welcome to try it once and see how it goes. If...
The Call Committee held its initial meeting on April 27 as well as another meeting on May 1. The congregation has already indicated an interest in nominating potential candidates, and the form and process to be used for this purpose is being established, and will be announced very shortly. The Call Committee is preparing to conduct inte...
Did you know that here is a Qigong class meeting weekly at Messiah? It meets 9:30 to 10:30am on Saturdays in the gym. The class is led by Liz Bolza. Liz has been leading Qigong classes for over 20 years. According to Liz, "Qigong was developed in China thousands of years ago as part of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Qigong practice ...
The Can-Am (Canadian-American) book club has started reading "Embody" by Karoline Lewis, which focuses on church leadership. This group meets via Zoom each Wednesday at 10 a.m. They just finished reading another book by the same author, "Belonging" which focused on discipleship, featuring the story of the Woman at the Well. This grou...
Beginning May 7, 2023 at 10:30 a.m. Messiah North will start a new adventure of meeting for Brunch after church at local restaurants in the Ridgefield area. This idea was suggested at a meeting for Messiah North to brainstorm ideas for fellowship and is now about to become a reality! The May 7 brunch will be held at Sportsman's Public Hou...
What's a Synod Assembly? (For that matter, what's a "synod"?!) Well, the "Synod" is the 88 congregations and 30,000 some ELCA Lutherans in SW Washington. There are 65 synods in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and each synod is served by a bishop and the bishop's staff. Our bishop is Rick Jaech, and the Bishop's Associate is R...
Vacation Bible School is just around the corner! Vacation Bible School will take place July 17-21, and the program is available for all children ages 4-years-old* (*must be 4 by August 31, 2023) - 5th grade. VBS for 1st-5th grade will run in the church building from 9am-12pm, and VBS for preschoolers and kindergartners will take place a...
Did you notice a lot more singing than usual during the Easter Sunday service at Hazel Dell? The liturgy that the Messiah worship team is using throughout the Easter season is a setting called "Now the Feast" by contemporary composer Marty Haugen. In addition to short liturgical music, it contains two of Haugen's standalone hymns, As the Grains of ...
One of Messiah's members, Hope Quinn, has suggested that she would like to organize and support a Prayer Team specifically focused on our Call Committee members and their work. Thank you, Hope. What a wonderful gift! Hope's vision is that this is something anybody who feels called could do from home on their own schedule. She'll keep the Team ...
Dear Friends, We are off and running with the Call Committee - and I'm excited to be moving into this phase of our congregational transition. Thank you all for your prayers, trust and support! Wednesday evening, April 12, our Call Committee met together for the first time via ZOOM with SWWA Synod Bishop's Associate Rev. Rebecca Shjerven. I was able...
Ellen Andres. in memory of Arnie Andres Loretta Babbitt. in honor of A Great Family Julie Backous and Todd Dugdale in memory of Lily and in honor of our children Wes, Jennifer, Joel, Crystal and Amanda Rick and Sheri Backous in memory of our daughter, Sara, as well as other family members who have passed away; in honor of our daughters and their fa...
"Jesus loves me, this I know!" A common response to the call of God in Jesus Christ is baptism. When baptized the pastor traces the sign of the cross on an individual's forehead and says "'Bob,' child of God, you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever." To be baptized is not only to ...
The votes are officially in, and we will be showing the film Encanto! All are invited to a free movie night at Messiah Lutheran Church on Friday, April 14th at 6:00 PM! The film will be shown in the sanctuary where there is plenty of seating available as well as space to lounge on the floor if preferred. You are also invited to we...
Godly Play has returned at a new time, Wednesdays from 6-7pm. Godly Play will occur weekly on Wednesdays through May 24th.All children ages 3 years old - 5th grade are welcome! Godly Play meets in the downstairs Godly Play classroom 105.If you have any questions, or if you would like more information about the Godly Play program, please contact Tor...
Holy Week is a pause in the usual routine of our lives. Functionally it's a pause because our focus and time moves to the special services of the season - Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter!. Spiritually it is the same. I encourage you to set other things aside as much as possible and spend time internally focusing on what the death and r...
The Church Leadership Team (CLT) met March 28 and created the Call Committee from the many members of the congregation who came forward to volunteer for service. The CLT had many more candidates than they were able to place on the committee.Thank you to all who came forward and were willing to serve. The Call Committee is: Vicki Taylor-Roskopf, Cha...
We are now in the middle of Holy Week. Sunday we raised Palms and sang "Hosanna!" This is the beginning of the week that was. In the party (and politically charged) atmosphere that was Passover - with everybody who was anybody in Jerusalem - Jesus rode into town as a Fan Fav who hailed him as a prophet and the promised "Son of David." This was our ...
Saturday, May 20, Lutheran Men in Mission is sponsoring a "Bold Gathering" for men. It will be at Trinity Lutheran Church Parkland in Tacoma, WA. There is no cost other than a freewill offering basket with lunch. I'm curious about the event and plan to attend personally. If you wish to make a day of it with me I'd be glad to have company. Time...
All are welcome to join in participating in worship throughout Holy Week at Messiah Lutheran Church. On Maundy Thursday, April 6, at Messiah's Hazel Dell location, worship will be at 6pm. On Good Friday, April 7, services will be at Hazel Dell at 10:30am and 6pm. The 6pm services on both days will also be livestreamed on the Messiah web...
Messiah's new prayer shawl group, Faith in Fiber, will meet next on March 30 at 6:00 p.m. in the Narthex at Hazel Dell. The group meets every other Thursday at 6:00 p.m. for devotions, prayer and "knitting in the round", making prayer shawls and lap blankets for those in need of a caring touch. All are welcome! Knitters (and crocheters) knit whiche...
I consider giving and gifting to be sacred acts. They are sacred because giving and gifting are woven into the very fabric of life. We are "given" life from the outset. Parents give so much to children as they grow, and children learn to give in return - smiles, a helping hand, trust, faith. We share a sandwich at lunch, give time to help a neighbo...
All are invited to a free movie night on Friday, April 14 at 6pm! This is a fun, free, and family-friendly event for people of all ages to enjoy, so share the news and invite your friends! Snacks will be provided, but guests are encouraged to eat dinner beforehand. You are also invited to wear your pajamas, bring a blanket, and whatever else will h...
Orders are now being taken for Easter flowers. The deadline to order is March 29. Cost is $16/plant. There will be both Easter lilies and spring flowers, but we cannot guarantee what type of plant you will receive. Plants may be picked up after Easter worship. To order, please fill out the sign up form at the link below: Easter flower sign up...
New and gently used clothing (all sizes) is now being collected. Donations can be brought to church during office hours or to any worship services. Donations are being collected through April 5. Please contact Jessica Potts at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with any questions.
The CLT is beginning it's process of putting together Messiah's Call Committee, a significant group in the calling of a new pastor. This communication is designed to 1) Explain the process, 2) Allow members to volunteer for service, and 3) Outline the responsibilities of the call committee and the timeline they will follow. 1. How Does this Wo...
The 6:00 AM Tuesday morning book group has just finished Bill McKibben's The Flag, the Cross and the Station Wagon and is now in recess until April 11. (The Tuesday after Easter.) Sometime between now and then I'll get a "vote" form out for you about our next book or focus. There are no space limitations on ZOOM so we'd love to have you! ...
The West Vancouver Parkinson's Disease Support Group meets the third Friday of every month in the Fellowship Hall. This support group is sponsored by the Parkinson's Resources of Oregon and SW Washington, headquartered in Beaverton. This group meets in person, but also has on-line attendees via Zoom. The group used to meet at Legacy Hospital before...
The Can-Am book group is starting a new book study. This small group meets weekly via Zoom, connecting Messiah with friends in Christ in Saskatchewan, Canada. The group is now reading Belonging: 5 Keys to unlock your potential as a disciple by Karoline Lewis. The group meets Wednesday from 10-11:30am via zoom Contact Julie Backous at ju...
This past week Messiah partnered with Jason Lee Middle School for a day of service. Messiah volunteers helped with eight service projects, five at Jason Lee and three onsite at Messiah. The projects at Messiah included packing personal care kits for Lutheran World Relief, packing snack bags for Ridgefield Family Resource Center, pa...
A new caring/crafting ministry has been formed! Beginning Thursday, March 2 at 6pm in the chapel at the Hazel Dell campus, knitters, crocheters, and weavers will meet together to create prayer shawls and/or lap blankets to give to those in need of prayer (shut ins, people on hospice, recovering from major illnesses, those who are grieving a l...
High School and Middle School Youth Night (includes Night Games!). This is a combined event with youth from area Lutheran Churches. Friday, March 3 from 5:40pm – 10:00pm Meet at Messiah…the group will be traveling to Trinity the event. Pick up is at Trinity Lutheran (309 W. 39th St, Vancouver) at 10:00pm. Cost: A Snack Item to Share. Come dressed t...
"Lament" is the gift of giving voice to our anguish, pain or anger without the need to place blame or "fix" something. Many of the Old Testament Psalms are Psalms of Lament and they are given us for a reason. Psalms of Lament are given to us so that we, too, might find words for pains too deep to understand. How long O Lord?! During the ...
A Caring Closet is a non-profit place that accepts durable medical equipment from anyone and then gives the equipment away, free, to anyone.You don't have to donate to take.Things like bath benches, grab bars, hospital beds, walkers, wheelchairs, canes, Depends & Adult briefs are all available to anyone who wants them.They also accept donations...
The preschool and church office are both closed today, Feb. 23, due to snowy weather conditions. The staff of the preschool and church hope everyone stays safe and warm and enjoys the snow!
Due to adverse weather conditions the 5pm Soup Supper and 6pm Ash Wednesday service at the Messiah Hazel Dell Campus have been cancelled. All are invited to join in Sunday worship throughout Lent as well as participate in midweek soup suppers, worship and inter-generational service projects which will begin March 1.
Want to grow stuff - but short on space? Then you need to come to the next meeting of From Seed to Harvest, the Messiah Gardening Ministry. . Many people would like to grow a few veggies, herbs or flowers, but don't have the space to have a garden. Or perhaps you'd just like to try growing a few things without investing a lot of time or money. From...
Save the Date for VBS! Messiah Lutheran is happy to be hosting Vacation Bible School again this summer! Summer will be here before we know it, so mark your calendars for VBS July 17th-21st, 2023. Keep an eye out for online registration that will be opening up very soon! If you have any questions, or if you are interested in volunteering at VBS this...
Children ages 3 years old through 5th grade are invited to Godly Play during the season of Lent. We will be meeting on Sunday mornings during the 10:30 AM worship service at our Hazel Dell campus (Sundays Feb. 26th - March 26th). Participants will start downstairs in the Godly Play room at 10:15 AM, and then be accompanied to the sanctuary in time ...
Debra Rienstra writes: "Refugia Faith requires a sturdy capacity to grieve, lament and repent. It requires the humility that comes from feeling helpless and small. More important refugia faith compels us to grieve along with others, to build empathy and compassion for those whose griefs we may never have bothered about before."She continues: "Lente...
From ELCA,org: On Feb. 6 two powerful earthquakes hit Türkiye and significantly impacted neighboring Syria. The first was a magnitude 7.8 earthquake in south central Türkiye, followed hours later by a magnitude 7.5 quake in the southeastern part of the country. The two quakes have devastated Türkiye and Syria, collapsing thousands of buildings and ...
NeededOn Wednesday, March 1 from 9am - 11am, Messiah will be partnering with Jason Lee Middle School for an all-school day of service. Students will all sign up for service projects. Some will take place at the school and some will take place at Messiah Hazel Dell. Many volunteers are needed. Vancouver School District volunteer clearance is n...
The season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday on February 22nd. Messiah will offer two worship services that day for the distribution of ashes, both at Messiah Hazel Dell. The first will be at 10:30 am and the second at 6pm. Following Ash Wednesday, every Wednesday during Lent at Messiah will have a soup supper, mid-week worship and a service projec...
Are you a current Messiah preschool family? If so, it's time to start registering for next year! Registration for current Preschool families begins Feb.8 at 8:15am inside Messiah Lutheran Church. For those who have previously had a child at Messiah Preschool and are registering another, registration begins Feb. 13 in the Preschool. If you kno...
Attention guests of Messiah! Are you interested in becoming an official church member, or just want more information about Messiah? Messiah is hosting a dessert for people interested in membership at Messiah or those interested in more information. The meeting will be on February 19th at 6:30pm in the Fellowship Hall at Messiah Hazel Dell.&nb...
The Wednesday Bible Study with Pastor Dave is underway and had a great turnout at the first session! All are welcome to join in anytime with no commitment. Each week the study will go over the bible lessons for the coming Sunday with a study sheet provided weekly. The group meets each Wednesday at 2pm in the fellowship hall of Messiah Hazel Dell.
The final feedback session on the site ministry profile will be virtual, with participants able to provide feedback via zoom. The session will be held February 28 from 6:30:pm-8pm. All members are welcome to attend the meeting to provide feedback on this important part of the pastoral call process. Zoom link for meeting »
Make plans to attend Messiah's annual meeting at 11:45am on February 5, 2023 in the Hazel Dell church sanctuary. This meeting will be in person only, there will be no online option. The meeting will include a vote to revise the church constitution, reports from the Church Leadership team and staff and updates on the site ministry profile and ...
Winter Hospitality Overflow Opportunities Messiah Lutheran has been involved with supporting WHO since its inception in 2003. Two of our sister churches, St. Andrew Lutheran in Orchards and St. Paul Lutheran in downtown Vancouver, agreed to provide space for this ministry in their church facilities From November 1 through March 31 during the coldes...
This week I'll be at the SWWA Synod Bishop's Convocation in Seabeck, WA. The Bishop's Convocation is an annual event in which our synodical bishop, currently Bp. Rick Jaech, calls all of our deacons and pastors together to "build a greater sense of community and be deepened in our theological, spiritual and educational formation." I ...
Happy New Year!! 2023 would be a great year to invest in some noggin nuddlin' with Pr. Dave!! Face to Face Bible Study - Yea!!This past Fall we had a second, virtual, book group that paralleled our Tuesday Study. This group met Wednesday mornings. However, this study used to be Face to Face, and a Bible Study to boot. So, we're returning ...
Messiah Preschool has had many things over the years. Support from the congregation, amazing students, caring staff. What it hasn't had is its own stand-alone website. Until now. Messiahpreschoolvancouver.org launched last week, giving the preschool its first stand-alone web presence since its founding. The new website will be the home for all info...
Messiah is excited to be hosting a Godly Play training at Messiah this January! This is a wonderful opportunity for anyone who is interested in learning about Godly Play, regardless of your experience and familiarity with the program. As Messiah prepares to reboot the Godly Play program in the near future, there will be many volunteer opportunities...
Endowment Committee Grant Request for last Fall The Endowment Committee met Dec 4 and considered the requests that had been received. The following were approved by the committee and then were also approved by the CLT. $4000 will be sent to Compassion International which will provide food for 80 families for one month overseas. Because fair trade c...
The Messiah vegetable gardening ministry, From Seed to Harvest, will have our first meeting of the year on Saturday, January 28 at 9:30 AM in the sanctuary at Hazel Dell campus. If you are planning or even thinking about growing veggies this year, please plan to attend. Everyone is welcome. If you would like to do some growing but don't have space ...
Young adults are invited to celebrate the New Year this Sunday, January 8th from 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM! Pizza will be provided, but please bring a food item to share with the group. There will also be a White Elephant gift exchange, so please bring a gift (approximately $5 value) to swap. The gathering will be at 1017 NW 94th St. Vancouver, WA, 98...
The Can-Am Book group will continue reading Part III of "Seeing Gray in a Black and White World" by Adam Hamilton and will be meeting Wednesday mornings at 9:00 am via Zoom beginning January 4. Contact is Julie Backous, 360-910-2022.
The Tuesday and Wednesday morning bookgroups just finished Refugias Faith by Debra Rienstra. Thank you to all who participated. Beginning Tuesday, Janaury 10, at 6 AM the Tuesday morning bookgroup will be discussing The Flag, the Cross and the Station Wagon by Bill McKibben. It's available in digital, paper and audio versions at Amazon, and it...
Notice to Members of the Congregation: The ELCA, in Churchwide Assembly, has approved revisions to the constitution of the Church. Messiah Lutheran Church has our Annual Meeting called for February 5, 2023, during which we will need to vote on revising our constitution to conform to that of the Southwestern Washington Synod. Link to constitution as...
The Chatter Books book group (formerly Pastor Kathy's book group) has been meeting continuously for the last nine years, maintaining contact via Zoom during the pandemic. They have read nearly 100 books during their tenure from many different genres, which include the classics, mysteries, fiction and non fiction and have explored some of the ...
Leah Gonzalez is Messiah's new Administrative Assistant. She will be in the front office Monday - Thursday from 9am - Noon. Please welcome Leah!
I would like to add my personal "Thank You" to that of the entire staff for the wonderful Christmas Season with all of you. Thank you for your support, your various forms of service and help, and thank you for your gift of time and presence through the whole of the Advent/Christmas cycle. It's been wonderful. By extension I wish to also thank you f...
The staff of Messiah Lutheran Church extend their deepest thanks and gratitude to all who helped in big ways and small with their time, talents and presence to make this Christmas season special at Messiah.While the weather may have made things challenging this year, we still consider ourselves truly blessed. Whether you were a long time memb...
Update: Due to persistently icy conditions at Windy Hills Winery in Ridgefield, the 4pm Service at Messiah North has also been cancelled. Due to icy weather conditions the 10:30am service and 2:00pm service at Messiah Hazel Dell have been cancelled. All are welcome to join in worship at the 7pm service at Messiah Hazel Dell. For th...
The Messiah Church office will be closed from Dec. 26-Jan. 2. While the office is closed, voicemail messages will be checked regularly. Additionally, in the event of urgent pastoral needs, please email Pastor Dave at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Pastor Tom at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Messiah is always evaluating procedures surrounding access to the Church building and campus buildings. To allow for a better guest experience and provide more consistent security during worship, effective immediately the side doors to the church will be locked shortly after the start of worship on Sunday. To access the church building,...
Order your poinsettia to grace Messiah Christmas Eve services. The cost is $15 each. You may also/instead make a contribution toward Christmas decorations for the holiday season. Poinsettias and decorations may be placed in memory or honor of loved ones (these will be noted in the Christmas Eve bulletin.) Online order form for Poi...
You, Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light. Psalm 18:28 A Winter Solstice Service Offering Comfort and Hope during the year's longest night: Wednesday, December 21 at 3PM Hazel Dell sanctuary Time with God and others to unburden yourself of life's stresses and sorrows. Time to feel enveloped in God's love and be consoled. ...
December and the Advent season at Messiah will feature multiple opportunities for Christmas Eve worship, the annual special Comfort and Hope service, as well as services on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. The worship schedule is as follows: Dec 21- Comfort and Hope Service Messiah Hazel Dell 3pm (also livestreamed) A special service for anyone wh...
Chatter Books will be reading The Lost City of the Monkey God by Douglas Preston for December 8th. Judy Duncan has several copies available. She can be contacted at 360-991-8146 to arrange for book pickup. For January, the group will readThe Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman for the January 4th discussion. Judy Duncan has several copies that ca...
Messiah has accumulated many Lost and Found items. If you are looking for an item, please contact the main office at 360.574.7081. Items not claimed by December 18 will be donated.
The giving tree at Messiah is now up and displayed in the church Narthex. Tags on the giving tree display gifts that can help families and children in need this Christmas season. All gifts for the giving tree must be returned unwrapped to the church office by Dec. 7 with the giving tree tag attached to the item.
Awake! Awake, and Greet the New Morn is a beautiful Advent hymn by Marty Haugen, and captures much of the prophet Isaiah's witness to the coming hope and anticipation of the Messiah. Advent is a season of looking forward and looking back. Looking forward to Christmas obviously and the celebration of the Incarnate one born in Bethlehem. In retrospec...
by Julie Backous One of the missions supported by Messiah is the Ridgefield Family Resource Center, located at the Ridgefield School District's district office at the RACC on Pioneer in Ridgefield. This busy center serves many families in need, especially this time of year. Messiah has helped with the Family Event each Christmas for the past ...
Children ages three years old through fifth grade are invited to join us for an Advent Godly Play series! This will be a 3-week series on Wednesday evenings meeting from 6:00-7:00 PM, starting on November 30th and ending on December 14th. We will meet in the lower level Godly Play classrooms at Messiah Lutheran Church. This opportunity will be a fu...
Annual favorite Pie Fest returns to Messiah after a two year hiatus after Thanksgiving Eve Worship on November 23. Thanksgiving Eve worship will be at Messiah Hazel Dell at 6pm. After worship, join in for Pie Fest and sample some delicious pies! If you are able to bring a pie for the pie fest, please bring it pre-cut to the lower level kitchen of t...
Maria Kramer will continue in her role as Director of Worship and Music, but she has resigned her role as Administrative Assistant. Messiah is thankful to Maria and also thankful we will continue to see her around. For the time being when you call the church office or stop in, you will see a friendly Messiah volunteer.
You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth; that He may confirm His covenant, which He swore to your fathers, as at this day. Deuteronomy 8:18 In Holy Hands During the last few weeks, we have been discussing the power God gives us through Word and Sacrament. Simple elements like water, bread, and wine...
Messiah staff and leadership met October 29 for a retreat to help guide the process of moving the congregation toward a new pastor. Pastor Dave facilitated the meeting and provided thought provoking exercises to help participants gain an understanding of what the congregation could be feeling during this time of change and to help chart the path fo...
by Julie Backous Messiah North had a very special service on Sunday, November 6. As we gathered to celebrate All Saints Sunday with light and candles, a large power outage "blew out" the lights and sound system for most of the service. We made the best of it with the candles brought for All Saints Sunday, and, as Pastor Dave remarked, "...
by Laurie Ricket In 2004 the Messiah family had young members who were in the military and were deployed in harms way. Marian Erikson and I (Laurie Ricket) were on the Capital Campaign Committee together and whether it was to do with the campaign or not, I do not remember, but we decided to set up a display inviting Messiah's members to pray for ou...
Messiah has new coffee on Sunday mornings at Hazel Dell. It's Lutheran World Relief (LWR) Fair Trade coffee. Fair Trade is not only a better grade of coffee, it is also better for the farmers.LWR Farmers Market Coffee is sourced directly from coffee farmers participating in LWR projects. Every delicious cup helps transform poor co...
The annual treat street celebration on October 30 was a rousing success. Around 100 children and families visited the Messiah Hazel Dell parking lot which was full of ghosts, dragons, dinosaurs, super heroes, princesses and everything in between. Pastor Dave was also on hand to provide blessings for four legged friends and numerous volunteers gave ...
October 9 - "Storied Water" (Baptism) in which we died to this dysfunctional social matrix and were reborn in the faith, committed to the "Creation Community" spoken into life by God.October 16 - The story itself, written, spoken and walking among us in he person of Jesus Christ. October 23 - Of wheat and wine, feasting on bread made by our co...
From Seed to Harvest (the vegetable gardening ministry), will be meeting on Saturday, October 29 at 9:30 AM in the Fellowship Hall at Hazel Dell. The meeting will conclude at 11 AM. This gathering is open to anyone. If you'd like to learn more about growing veggies at home or contribute some of your knowledge to others, we'd love to see you. Believ...
The Can-Am Small Group is starting a new book after our summer study of "Wholehearted Faith" by Rachel Held Evans.New Book Study: "Seeing Gray in a Black and White World: Thoughts on Religion, Morality and Politics " by Adam Hamilton.When: Every Wednesday at 1:00 pm1.5 hours (Zoom only)Can-Am Small Group(Canada-America Group) with our friends from ...
My thanks to Ben McCarty, Messiah's Digital Media Coordinator, for helping me with posts about what's going on at church. AND, of course, keeping the website up, getting the Northern Highlights out, etc. One of my more joyful duties as one of your interim pastors is to teach confirmation. Our program is a three year program with rotating emphases. ...
This Tuesday and Wednesday - at 6 AM and 10 AM respectively - I am offering a book study opportunity. I'd love to have you join us! Our book is called Refugia Faith: : Seeking Hidden Shelters, Ordinary Wonders, and the Healing of the Earth by Debra Rienstra. Amazon says, "Refugia (reh-FU-jee-ah) is a biological term describing place...
Treat Street will be an outdoor event for all ages on Sunday, October 30th from 3:30-5:00 PM. All are welcome to join in the fun by walking or driving through the decorated parking lot at Messiah. Volunteers are needed to decorate a parking spot, direct participants, and hand out treats. If you are able to help, please contact Tori Beavin at torib@...