But we aren’t going to end with lament.
As we heard last night from Gordon Brander, there is a pressing need for more durable shelter than what tarps are currently providing. This is especially true in light of the fact that monsoon season is approaching.
Through Gordon, we have a connection to a small nonprofit organization (Portal) in Nepal that is building sustainable, safe, cost effective shelters. You can read their story, see pictures of the shelters and connect by visiting their website: http://www.portalbikes.org/shelters/.
Through Portal, one shelter costs roughy $100. We set the goal to, as a community, raise the funds for two shelters. We hope to do this By Next Thursday, May 21.
So, check out what Portal is up to. Ask Gordon your questions. Pray for Nepal and the rescue and rebuilding efforts of Portal and other organizations on the ground. Consider what you might give. And then bring your donation on Thursday.
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Do you want to see the Church grow in how it engages scientists and their work?
Do you ever wonder about your role in making that happen?
If so, join us for a conversation with Dr. Deborah Haarsma as she speaks from her experience as President of Biologos, articulating for us what she sees as the current issues in science with which the Church is wrestling. We will discuss how these issues are perceived among Christians, how the Church is or isn’t communicating about them and how Christians in science can help the Church navigate them. If you are interested in the intersection of faith and science and want to see the Church grow in its engagement with science, please join us for this important conversation.
Saturday, May 9, from 9:30 to 11:30 am
University of Washington
Husky Union Building (HUB) 214
If you are able to join us, please rsvp to Geoff Van Dragt by Friday, May 8.
Deborah Haarsma serves as the President of BioLogos, a position she has held since January 2013. Previously, she served as a professor and chair of Physics and Astronomy at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Haarsma completed her doctoral work in astrophysics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and her undergraduate work in physics and music at Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota.
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Graduate Christian Fellowship invites you to join us on Friday, May 8 at 7 P.M. at University Presbyterian Church for an evening of exploration as Dr. Deborah Haarsma, astrophysicist and President of Biologos, leads us on a visual tour of the universe. Dr. Haarsma will draw on her scientific expertise and her Christian faith as she points out the myriad of ways in which “the heavens declare the glory of God” (Psalm 19:1). When viewed through the lens of Christian faith, recent astronomical discoveries like exoplanets, galaxy formation, and dark energy serve to illustrate the extravagance, creativity, and mystery of the God of the Bible.
We say “I’ll pray for you” and leave out “when I remember, and I probably won’t.” Or “I’ll pray for you” and it’s our cue that we want the conversation to end. Or “I’ll pray for you” because we want it known that we have our stuff together more than everyone else.
But you know how you feel when you meet that person who says “I’ll pray for you” and they really mean it? It’s like you’ve just met a person who actually cares about you, loves you even. You feel a little lighter because someone is willing to carry your cares along with you to the One who cares the most. In a lot of ways, when we meet these people, we feel a little like we’ve met Jesus in the flesh.
And in a way we have.
Throughout the Bible, we are encouraged to pray. We’re told to pray without ceasing, even.
What if we did?
What if we genuinely prayed for each other?
What if we took time to know what to pray for?
What if we learned anew how to pray?
What if we did this for a whole quarter, in small groups, following dinner together?
Maybe we’d all feel a little more loved and a little more like Jesus is with us because we’d be like Jesus to each other. So this quarter let’s pray.
Join us. Every Thursday. Dinner is at 6. Small groups start at 7. At the Chapel on the AVE.
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