I’m writing this in a haze of holiday activity, when all other matters can “wait until after Christmas.” So, I’m pretending it’s now January 1st and the Oregon Ducks have successfully dispatched their first playoff opponent!
For starters, thank you, Bethesda, for a strong year of ministry together in 2024. Our annual report will be published in early February, in anticipation of our annual meeting on February 23. Thanks be to God, for calling us into His mission and proving ever faithful to provide for his people.
In mapping our course for 2025, I’m thinking about past “crew meetings” around coffee tables and council meetings. We identified a need for several clearer “pathways” in key areas:
- For newcomers moving from first impressions to next steps
- For those seeking opportunities for Christian growth and service
- For those seeking a community to support family life through various seasons
- For those in need of assistance, from prayer to basic necessities to counseling
Detailing these pathways and sharing them in published formats is something I feel strongly about addressing this winter.
Our coffee hour on Sunday, January 12, will include optional crew meetings for those who wish to join a specific table topic:
- Deanna and Sarah will host a crew meeting related to planning upcoming events and gatherings. Our events tend to alternate between in-house Bethesda events (think of Thanksgiving Prayer, Praise & Pie Social) and outreach Neighborhood Gatherings (think of Trunk or Treat). We would like to open up the planning team for these huge efforts, to share the load, and include more talents and ideas. Ideally, we would like to lay out a calendar for 2025 events by February.
- I will host a crew meeting related to Spiritual growth and education opportunities, current and potential. I would be grateful for a table’s input on how we can reasonably widen our opportunities without over-extending time and attention.
- Select CPC members will host a crew meeting related to the budget planning process, which will begin in earnest with a CPC work session the following evening.
- Other Crew Meetings may be planned for, TBD
Finally, please note that Sunday, January 19, we will host a Newcomers brunch following worship. People might attend for several reasons:
- You are quite new around here!
- You have expressed interest in formally joining as members of Bethesda
- You have recently joined or been involved for a year or two, but missed the last newcomers’sbrunch!
- You are a council member who would like to spend time with newcomers
- You aren’t a newcomer, but you feel called to meet newcomers and help them feel welcome
If any of these fit you, please RSVP with Pr. Tom, the church office, or by signing the clipboard on the signup table in the entryway!
Peace,
Pastor Tom
Financial Update…
Thank you for your generous support of God’s mission through Bethesda in 2024! We will pass along year-end figures once these have been finalized. We entered December about $15,000 in the black for the year ($316,264 in contributions vs. $301,282 in expenses).
- Here’s a quick list of actions and plans for the turn of the year:
- Giving Envelopes are now available on entryway table (electronic/automatic givers N/A)
- Please consider automating your giving. This can be done through your bank or we can help set up automatic withdrawals or card payments through Breeze (our church management service).
- Please consider increasing your giving in 2025. A little goes a long way when we share this work together. For example, consider a household that increases it’s giving from 2% to 3% of its annual income. For the household, this is a 1% increase, but for Bethesda, it represents a 50% increase in giving received from this household.
- Our Annual Congregational Meeting will be February 23, 10:30am. This will include passing spending guidelines for 2025. Annual reports and the draft Budget will be available by February 9 for your review.