Trinity Blog

On Sunday April 20, 2008 we threw a big party in the Café! Twenty to thirty people:  Newcomers, first-time visitors, and members alike all found out just how easy it is to help local families.  (Check out some pictures.)

Here’s what we did…some of us brought a few bucks and others brought ourselves, and we said “Yes, we will, yes we can” inside our hearts. After making these 2 commitments - we came to the Café - and found to our surprise that we had not arrived so much at a volunteer event as a really fun party with all of our cool friends!

The 3/4 ton of food dispersed to 34 local families “almost” took a back seat to the jokes, talk, smiles and electric atmosphere in the Trinity Café!

Did you miss it? Not to worry - we will be holding the best party in town once per month on the 3rd Sunday of every month. Bring a few bucks if you have them, bring a heart that says “Yes”, but most importantly - bring yourself and spend an afternoon hanging around with your friends and making a big impact on several lives.

And if for no other reason than pure curiosity, aren’t you wondering where God will take our Out of the Box Ministries?

- Kevin Hansen

“Mr. Steve’s church is really going to give us another box this month?” - this comment from an Alyce Norman Elementary School recipient of April’s delivery - when she learned there would be a May delivery also.

An evening with sexual assault survivors changed my perspective

I was planning to write a rousing article about the amazing things happening in our church and preparing you for the exciting possibilities that lie ahead.  But then I went to WEAVE’s (Women Escaping A Violent Environment) sexual assault survivor clergy roundtable last night.  After I heard the stories of six different sexual assault survivors, I knew I needed to write a different article.

The survivors’ stories about their attacks were very different.  But almost all shared a common theme - their faith communities (in most cases, their churches and pastors) had let them down.  People had been blamed and given quick answers that suggested that God was OK with it all.  That’s inexcusable.  I know that pastors sometimes give unhelpful answers to people - especially when they are tired or stressed out.  But could those circumstances account for this many hurtful experiences?  Were all of these pastors at their worst at the time they were approached?  I think church simply has no idea about how to help people to recover from sexual assault.  We don’t know what to do, and making it up as we go along isn’t good enough.

First of all, if you are a victim of sexual assault or abuse, know this: It’s not your fault.  Whatever you might have done or not done does not mean that you deserved to be attacked or abused.  The sole fault lies with the attacker or abuser.  Second, it does not make you dirty or unclean.  It was not your choice, and God is able to heal us from the sinful actions of others.  God was with you through it all - crying with you, angry about what was done to you, and now working to restore you to wholeness.  Third, please don’t try to carry this burden alone.  Debra Johnston and I are here to listen to your story.  Or you can take it to your Journey Group.  Or take it to a trusted church friend.  The church is designed to be a community of faith where we bear one another’s burdens.

For those of us who are not sexual abuse or assault survivors I have this advice.  First, don’t feel the need to fix it.  You can’t fix it.  Only God can do that and it takes a long time.  Answers like “This is all part of God’s plan” are not helpful.  Listening silently is helpful.  Offering to pray with someone is helpful.  If you are the same gender, ask if you can give them a hug or offer a shoulder to cry on.  Admit that you don’t know what to say.  Let them cry.  Assure them that it’s not their fault and that God loves them - and so do you!  Later, you can ask how you might be helpful.  In some cases, a referral to WEAVE (916-448-2321, www.weaveinc.org/) or a counselor might be helpful.  Or you could offer to go with them to an appointment with Debbie or me.

For all of us, pray for those who feel that they cannot talk about what has been done to them.  It’s hard for women to talk about sexual abuse and assault, and it’s even harder for men to admit it.  Pray that our church will develop into a safe place with support systems, counselors, and loving members who know how to respond.  Pray for an end to harm done by the church to those who are already hurting enough.  Pray for God’s servants who have dedicated their lives to helping others recover from the violence that has been done against them.  Pray that God will build up the church and will find ways to restore what has been lost in the lives of those who have been hurt.

And if you have ideas on what we can do to help bring healing and to bear witness to God’s love to those who have been assaulted or abused, please let me know or talk to Debra Johnston.  You can reach either of us at the church office at 916-371-5875.

Working toward a more grace-filled world with you,

Pastor Steve

Did you ever wake up in the morning feeling depressed for no good reason? Of course, lack of sleep, fighting off an infection, poor diet, or any number of other physical issues may be the culprit, but don’t discount the possibility of a spiritual source for your emotional state. The enemy of our spirits likes nothing better than to keep our emotions in bondage by stealing our joy.

How can we help ourselves when we are feeling unaccountably blue? One of the ways God has helped me during those times is through the ministry of Christian music, whether a favorite hymn, praise song, or Bach chorale…anything written to glorify God will do. All have the power to lift our spirits above the realities of our life here on earth.

If you don’t have a radio or other means of playing recorded music, hum or sing a favorite hymn or praise song. In the Old Testament whenever the Jewish people went into battle, they sent their worship leaders ahead of the soldiers to pave the way with hymns of praise. You gather the support of the host of heaven around you when you sing God’s praises.

2 Chronicles 20:22 says, And when they began to sing and praise, the Lord set an ambush against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah, so that they were routed.

Maybe you don’t, can’t, or won’t sing—then start thanking God for all the mercies you have received from him—even if you don’t feel particularly thankful at the moment. If you can’t think of a specific reason to be thankful, try reading a psalm—147, 148, 149, and 150 are all powerful psalms of praise. Try it, and you will find that not only have you gladdened God’s heart, but you have also lifted your own.

It is no accident Nehemiah 8:10b reads,

“Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

The Lord inhabits our praises; it is one way we invite him to draw near.

Debbie Johnston

Do you ever feel overwhelmed? I’m guilty of looking at some of my goals and thinking, “It’s just too hard.” Or, “I can’t do that.” Or even, “I’ve tried it before and I CAN’T – why even bother?” I often give up before I really begin to work!

I found myself wondering in the lead up to Easter whether Jesus ever felt that way during his life. I guess I’ve always assumed that he knew what God’s plan was for him and yet Jesus followed it faithfully.

Surely his ultimate goal of death on the cross had to seem awfully overwhelming!

Yet, Jesus remained faithful to God’s plan and he lived his life one step at a time moving ever closer to that overwhelming end. He even taught and healed and nurtured along the way. I don’t know that the Bible tells us a lot about how Jesus felt and thought during his life on earth, but we do know that he was fully human, and I’m guessing that he felt the very same human emotions we all feel.

Then I started to think what a great example Jesus is (yet again!). He lived his life one day at a time, and didn’t race to the cross to get it over with. He also didn’t wallow and holler at God that it was just too hard and that he couldn’t do it. Jesus spent time with God in prayer and God gave him the strength to continue on the path to the goal of the cross one step at a time. The gift of Easter is that we don’t have to take those steps in our lives alone either. We believe in a God that loves us so much that he gave his son for us! God will walk each and every little step with us, and I believe He can give us strength that we never knew we had!

Now please don’t look for me to be completely organized, have lost 30 pounds within the month and to be telling you that my financial house is in order just because I’ve had this revelation! But I am praying that God will walk with me as I work toward some of those goals one small step at a time (just as I know He will walk with you toward yours if you ask Him to!)

The other thing Jesus did was to surround himself with friends who walked with him. Perhaps, we can walk with each other toward our goals as individuals and as a church. With God, all things ARE possible, even when they feel overwhelming! I encourage you to ask somebody to take a step with you, and I trust that God will guide us through the journey one step at a time toward being the people and the church that he wants us to be!

Walking with you in Him,

Sue Goodwin

A couple of hours of time from a lot of people can change the world.

You’ve probably heard the comments.  Why are you wasting your time with that church.  They say the word “church” like an obscene word.  If you wanted to do something that matters in the world, you’d go somewhere else, right?

The idea that the church doesn’t change the world is dead wrong – at least for the Christian church.  It’s not only possible for the church to change the world, Jesus demands it.  Have you ever read the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats in Matthew 25?  Jesus tells the story about the day of his return.  (Read the actual words in Matthew 25:31-46.)  A time will come when he will separate the faithful (represented by sheep) from the unfaithful (represented by goats).  The faithful ones are surprised by their reward – why are we being rewarded, they ask?  “Because when I was hungry, you fed me.  When I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink.  When I was naked, you clothed me.  When I was sick and in prison, you came to visit me,” the king responds.

“But we never saw you in any of those situations!” they protested.

“Whenever you did it for the least of my brothers and sisters, you did it for me.”  He replies. Jesus tells us that whenever we help one of the least of his brothers and sisters, we do it for him as surely as if he were standing there.  And when we ignore their plight, we ignore him.

I once heard a sermon that asked us to decide whether each of us is a sheep (faithful) or a goat (unfaithful), but it’s much more complicated than that.  We have our sheepish moments and our goatish moments.  Thankfully, Jesus isn’t keeping a tally of them.  His grace is enough for us.

So if God’s grace, in Jesus Christ, is the source of our salvation, why does Jesus tell the story of the sheep and goats?  It’s clear to me that Jesus wants us to take care of each other.  How can we be a Christian, full of the love of God, and not care what’s happening to others?

When we come together as the church, we help each other to show compassion and to work for justice, and Trinity is working hard to step up to the challenge.  Our most consistent work right now is at Alyce Norman Elementary School, where 14 members of our church family have lunch each week with a young “lunch buddy” who may not otherwise have any one-on-one connection with healthy adults.  Research shows that one of the most important factors for determining a child’s future success is relationships with healthy adults.  Clearly being part of the church is one way to find that, but what about kids who have been born into tough situations?  Is it fair that a child born to a drug-addicted mom should suffer forever for her choices (and usually, the choices the mom had were limited too.)?  Those children are God’s children as surely as the ones who sit with us on Sunday mornings.  God loves them deeply and wants us to love them as well.

Kevin Hansen sent out some email recently.  I’ll encourage him to share more of this with you soon, but I can tell you that it moved me and others to tears.  Part of what the principal of Alyce Norman School told Kevin is that every day the kids in the “lunch buddy” program ask, “Is today my day?”  They can’t wait to see their “buddy.”  What an impact on a young life!  The kids we’re helping there have pretty difficult lives at home – and often what they call “home” changes periodically.  Their connection with their lunch buddies may well be the most stable relationship in their lives.

These kids have physical needs too.  Kevin was at Alyce Norman delivering ten food boxes from Trinity’s new “One Love” food ministry (thanks to Kevin and Liz Hansen and Arturo Jiménez for getting that started!)  Not having food in the house causes an awful lot of stress.  Your donations of time and money to the food ministry are creating more peaceful nights at home for these kids.

I am deeply moved by what our church has done to change the lives of some of the “least of our brothers and sisters.”  Can you imagine what we will be able to do as our whole church family comes together to help?  Wow!  I can hear the angels singing now!

Looking forward to changing the world with you,
Pastor Steve

Melissa Garrick just created a facebook group for our church.  Check it out here http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10753631450

Those of us who have had the unwanted experience of grieving over the loss of a loved one are
frequently so overwhelmed we cannot imagine any good will ever come of our loss. But time and the mercy of God have a way of weaving our hearts back together with new insights and an increased ability to be a blessing to others. After you have experienced a serious loss, you have a greater sensitivity to what others are feeling. One of Trinity’s grief group members remarked,

“I had no idea how deep or intense the grieving process was, and I realize I have let others down in the past…never imagining how painful the anniversary dates of love lost can be…birthdays, anniversaries, anniversary of the death. I didn’t realize how much it meant to know that others still remembered the days that were so important to me (us) and still cared. I will be a much better friend in the future.”

While emotions can at times seem overwhelming, you begin to realize you are living in an enriched emotional state. Every act of kindness or thoughtfulness feels more intense, and every aggression or slight feels more bitter. If, by the mercy of the Holy Spirit, you are able to keep your heart open, these insights can help you become a much better person than you ever were before—more like the Savior we worship.

One of the major challenges of grieving can be to find meaning for your life on earth after the loss of a significant other. You CAN start to develop a more generalized love for hurting humanity and a more eternal perspective. If you lost your loved one to the ravages of cancer or diabetes or some as-of-yet incurable condition, it may motivate you to work on behalf of others who are still suffering. Your grief can turn into a magnificent legacy of loving service on behalf of the one you lost. And you can begin to see that life on earth is not about all the goodies or comforts (even love) we can gather to ourselves, but whether we are able to treat everyone around us as though we are already citizens of the Kingdom of God.

Of course, none of this is easy or automatic. It requires staying with your pain, trusting God, and having friends, a pastor or counselor you trust to help you through the barren places. But the prize is real: beginning to live as a citizen of heaven NOW.

Blessings on your Journey,

Debbie Johnston, Director of Congregational Care

I am personally very grateful for the army of people who served our Lord by helping us to welcome 438 people on Easter Sunday morning. Everything went very smoothly, and the people I have talked to all experienced a warm welcome and the sense of love (ours and God’s) that our church always strives to communicate. Many plan to return. Thanks to those who planned and worked on the wonderful Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services as well! I am honored to be the pastor of this fine church – you make me proud regularly.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Steve

One of the reasons I love working with kids is that they see things in such simple ways that it makes me take a new look. During our confirmation class recently, we were playing a game to help open the discussion about “Who is Jesus?” In this game anybody who makes a mistake has “sinned” and is deserving of punishment, but only one person in the group gets “punished”. (Now, please don’t be alarmed! I got permission from the teen taking the
punishment for everyone first, and it consisted of me swatting him on the knee with a paper – harmless, but it made the point.) Anyway, after administering the “punishment” several times, one of the younger kids who was in the room with her older siblings said, “Why do you keep punishing him? That’s not fair!” It was the perfect comment to open our discussion – it really wasn’t fair. He didn’t deserve that punishment, but he had agreed to the plan ahead of time.

Does that remind you of anyone you know?!

Hopefully, your answer is Jesus Christ!!

He didn’t deserve what he got either. The simple reaction of that little one has really stuck with me.  Wow! What Jesus did for us on Good Friday was so incredibly not fair – he didn’t earn that punishment, and yet, he had agreed to the plan - God’s plan - and he allowed it to continue. He took the punishment that he didn’t deserve, and he took it for you and for me, so we wouldn’t have to. Wow! What an unimaginable sacrifice! But the Good News in all this “unfairness” is that Jesus didn’t JUST die on the cross. He rose again on Easter morning, and that’s what makes the story bearable. It is incredibly sad to think about the unfair and horrendous punishment that Jesus took on our behalf. Just like the seemingly unfair game, though, there was a point to the plan. What an amazing gift of love for us Jesus gave! But he is also such an incredible example of faith in His Father’s plan and protection. He knew God’s plan and he followed through with it even when the road got tougher than any of us can imagine. My prayer for us this month is not only that we could see the amazing gift of Easter through the simple, trusting eyes of a child, but that we could also walk in just a little bit of the faith Jesus had. God has a plan involving each and every one of us, and I believe that if we can strive to trust in Him and follow his lead, far better things than we can even imagine can happen!

Jesus didn’t deserve to die on the cross, but he did for you and for me. Hallelujah!

- Sue Goodwin