Moving with the Holy Spirit
When the day of Pentecost came, the disciples were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
-Acts 2:1-4
Moving to a new place is difficult. Even if your move is simply across town, you still have to pack everything up, move it to the new location and then unpack. It often means improved living conditions, but it also takes a lot of time and effort to adjust to the transition. When the Holy Spirit moves us as a congregation, it also feels awkward at first, takes a great deal of effort, and we don’t always know where things are!
The Session of the church believes that the Holy Spirit is moving among us and expanding our opportunity for ministry by partnering with the House of Hope Ukrainian congregation. Beginning this Spring, the House of Hope plans to meet full-time in our facility; not only on Sundays for worship. This means our already busy facility will be used even more often and regularly than before! We are excited to see God using every inch of the building that God has blessed us with every day of the week. It is such a powerful testament to God’s work in this place, honoring the legacy of those who came before and built our church.
One important objective of the Session is making every space in the church as streamlined and functional as possible. We all need to strive to keep shared spaces clean and in excellent working order. If you see something broken or in disrepair, please inform the Facility Elders Bill Thackaberry and Bob Spaulding, or you can reach out to our Church Office Administrator and Facility Manager, Libertie Lord. When you need to meet in the church, Libertie will be happy to work with you to schedule a space that meets your needs at a time that fits into the facility calendar.
A few of the spaces we plan to update are the Fireside Room and the Church Library to accommodate the new facility needs. We have several Deacons taking on the task of updating and renovating the Fireside Room. If you are interested in helping with this project, please contact Deacon Coordinator, Shannon Carpenter. The north end of the Church Library will be partitioned off in order to provide a small office space for Pastor Vasily Doruschuk. If you would like to help with sorting through the Library books, finding new homes for a few outdated resources, and creating a more user-friendly Church Library, please contact myself, or Pastor Sara Benedetti.
Please share your questions or concerns with the Elders on Session or with me directly. I know how difficult it can be to adjust to change. I am happy to discuss anything you are concerned about with this expanded ministry partnership. Just as the first disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit and able to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them, God is filling our church with many languages. I also ask you to pray for the Session of our church and for the leadership of the Ukrainian House of Hope as well as the Spanish Iglesia Vida Abundante, as we navigate the growing pains of shared space. God is doing a beautiful thing here at Kennewick First Pres and we are excited to see where God takes us as a unified Body of Christ.
Our Holy Father, we confess the weakness and sinfulness of our lives. We have often turned away from you to seek our own desires. And often when we have done no evil, we have undertaken nothing of good, and so have been guilty of uselessness and neglect. From this sin of idleness and indifference set us free. Lead us into fruitful effort, and deliver us from profitless lives. We ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Special Thanks
Thank you to Bob Merriman for filling the pulpit this Sunday and to Pastor Sara for leading our worship service this week. Pastor Hanna is recovering from hand surgery. Thank you for your prayers and love.
