Spiritual Life
6A
Thursday, April 22, 2021
HIGHLIGHTS
Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints
Submissions
Churches and faith-based groups are encouraged to submit Highlights for the Spiritual Life page by 4 p.m. Tuesday
for publication Thursday. Submit by email to news@lagrandeobserver.com (with Highlights in the subject line).
LA GRANDE — Rev-
elations given through the
Prophet Joseph Smith about
the second coming of Jesus
Christ, as recorded in Doc-
trine and Covenants sec-
tion 45, is the subject of the
Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints’ “Come,
Follow Me” lesson for the
week of April 26. These
revelations were received
at a time when many false
reports and foolish stories
were published and cir-
culated about the young
church, which had been
organized for less than a
year. All lesson material
is available from the free
Gospel Library mobile app.
The 2021 BYU Wom-
en’s Conference, which is
cosponsored by the Relief
Society of The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints and Brigham Young
University, will be held
Thursday and Friday, April
29–30. The annual confer-
ence, in its 45th year, will be
online and will include both
free and paid experiences.
The theme is “I Am a Child
of God, His Promises Are
Sure” and no registration
is required for the free ses-
sions. Anyone 16 and older
is invited to participate.
Learn more at www.news-
room.churchofjesuschrist.
org/event/2021-byu-women-
s-conference.
Zion Lutheran Church
LA GRANDE — Zion
Lutheran Church will
meet for an in-person wor-
ship service Sunday, April
25, at 9 a.m. COVID pre-
cautions will be in place,
including masks and social
distancing, and there will
not be a coff ee hour. The
service will include Holy
Communion. Those plan-
ning to attend are asked
to RSVP to the offi ce via
email or phone by noon Sat-
urday. The service will be
livestreamed to Youtube,
and the link for that stream
will be posted Saturday
on Zion’s Facebook and
website.
urday on the church’s
Facebook page.
Faith Lutheran Church
LA GRANDE — Jesus
said, “I am the Good Shep-
herd” (John 10:11). Many
Ask us about FREE DELIVERY
ELGIN ELECTRIC
43 N. 8th Elgin, OR 541-437-2054
Book review
ISLAND
EXPRESS
What would Jesus do? Are
you sure you want to know?
By RENEE STRUTHERS
East Oregonian
There’s a battle going
on, and I’m not talking
about the coronavirus
pandemic.
Full disclosure, I’m not a
religious person; I do enjoy
a well-researched book that
gets me thinking about reli-
gion in a diff erent way. And
I love it when the religious
juggernaut that dominates
our faith system gets a poke
in the eye. Chris Kaufman’s
fi rst book does just that.
Churches around the
globe think they have a
lock on the truth of who,
or what, God is. Wars have
been fought over it. Mil-
lions have died to defend
their interpretation of what
God wants his followers to
do, and be, and believe. But
what does the New Testa-
ment really say about Jesus,
and his message to his
followers?
Kaufman, a youth
pastor at the Free Meth-
odist Church in Pend-
leton, outlined his take
on the age-old debate in a
book geared toward young
people — but adults can
Chris Kaufman/Contributed Photo
Chris Kaufman, youth pastor at the
Free Methodist Church in Pend-
leton, outlined his take on the
debate about what the New Tes-
tament says about Jesus and his
message to his followers in “King-
dom Over Empire: Following Jesus
in the American Empire.”
get just as much out of his
no-nonsense, straightfor-
ward approach to the story
of Jesus and his impact on
a group of struggling Jews
trying to survive under the
yoke of Roman tyranny.
“Kingdom Over Empire:
Following Jesus in the
American Empire” is a
call to not just step outside
your comfort zone, but to
truly live as Jesus says we
must in order to enter the
kingdom promised to his
followers.
Though Kaufman has an
upbeat style that will res-
onate with young people,
it’s not a fl owery, feel-good
story. Following the Ten
Commandments and going
to church every Sunday
isn’t enough to get you
through. Feeding the poor
and ministering to the sick
isn’t going to win you that
golden ticket.
Jesus called his disci-
ples to give up everything
— even their lives — in
order to understand true
sacrifi ce. Most of them
turned away rather than
meet his fate; they couldn’t
give up the oppressive
empire that was holding
them down even for the
promise of heaven. But
Jesus loved them anyway.
And that, Kaufman says,
is really the key.
———
Renee Struthers is the
community records editor
for the East Oregonian.
WORDS OF THE BUDDHA
Delight in heedfulness! Guard well your thoughts! Draw yourself out of this bog of
evil, even as an elephant draws itself out of the mud.
— Dhammapada 23.327
Things that are empty make a noise, the full is always quiet. The fool is like a half-
fi lled pot, the wise one is like a deep still pool.
— Sutta Nipata 3.726
Having killed anger you sleep in ease. Having killed anger you do not grieve. The
noble ones praise the slaying of anger, with its honeyed crest & poison root, for having
killed it you do not grieve.
— Saṃyutta Nikaya 1.71
Think not lightly of good, saying, “It will not come to me.” Drop by drop is the
water pot fi lled. Likewise, the wise one, gathering it little by little, fi lls oneself with
good.
— Dhammapada 9.122
Source: www.pariyatti.org
of trouble “because he is
a hired hand and cares
nothing for the sheep”
(verse 13). Faith Lutheran
will hold services in La
Grande at 10 a.m. and in
Enterprise at 2 p.m.
Faith Lutheran’s SHINE
Preschool is now registering
children ages 3-4 for the
2021-22 school year. Stop
by the church, call, or visit
www.lgfaithlcms.org/shine-
preschool to learn more.
Passing
down
recipes
St. Peter’s Episcopal
Church
LA GRANDE — St.
Peter’s Episcopal Church
will not worship in person
until at least mid-May due
to COVID-19.
A link to the lives-
treamed Zion Lutheran ser-
vice will be posted Sat-
churches recognize this
comforting truth on the
fourth Sunday of Easter.
Faith Lutheran Church’s
sermon Sunday, April 25,
will draw from John 10:11-
18. In these verses Christ
highlights the need for a
shepherd who would lay
down his life for his sheep.
However, there are false
spiritual beliefs in which
the one overseeing the
people “fl ees” in the face
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MEMBER FDIC
Northeast Oregon Directory of Churches
Cove United
Methodist Church
1708 Jasper St., Cove, OR
North Powder
United
Methodist Church
390 E. St., North Powder, OR
JOIN US... Catch the Spirit!
First Christian
Church
(Disciples of Christ)
901 Penn Avenue 963-2623
lgdisciples@gmail.com
Worship
10:00 a.m.
Worship: 9:00 a.m. Cove
Worship: 10:00 a.m. N. Powder
~Join us at The Lord’s Table~
SUMMERVILLE
BAPTIST CHURCH
LA GRANDE UNITED
METHODIST CHURCH
Sunday Services:
Sunday School & Adult Bible Classes
9:45AM
Children’s Church & Worship Service
11:00AM
Family Worship Service
6:00PM
Wednesday:
Prayer Mtg, Children’s Bible Club, Youth
Group 7:00PM
A church for your whole family
Visit us at summervillebaptistchurch.org
“OPEN HEARTS, OPEN MINDS, OPEN DOORS”
1612 4th Street – 963-2498
Pastor Taylor Gould
For service information go to
www.lagrandeumc.org
GRACE COMMUNITY
LUTHERAN CHURCH
The Place
62848 Philynda Loop in Island City
“We are called to Serve”
Sunday School for all ages - 9:00 am
Sunday Worship 10:00 am
Phone: 541-568-4230
grace.lutherancove@gmail.com
Zion Lutheran
Church
(an ELCA church)
902 Fourth Street,
La Grande, OR
(541) 963-5998
9:00 am - Worship
10:00 am - Fellowship & Refreshments
10:30 am - Classes
Pastor: Roberta Smythe
www.zionlagrande.org
Imbler
Christian
Church
440 Ruckman, Imbler 534-2201
www.imblercc@gmail.com
Sunday Services
9:00 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
Sunday School
Worship Service
Services
This
Week
La Grande Seventh-day
FIRST LANDMARK
MISSIONARY BAPTIST
CHURCH
Adventist Church
A Place where hope is found in Jesus
Join us in Fellowship & Worship
Saturday all age classes 9:30 am
Saturday Worship 11:00 am
1812 1st St. La Grande
Pastor Dave Tierce • 541-605-0215
2702 Adams Avenue, La Grande
963-4018
lagrandeor.adventistchurch.org
Learning for Today and Eternity
Little Friends
Christian Preschool/Childcare 963-6390
La Grande Adventist Christian School
K-8th Grade 963-6203
We use the King James Version Bible
109 18th Street • 963-3402
Sunday School 9:15 a.m.
Sunday Worship 10:30 a.m.
Sunday School - 10:00 am
Worship 11:00 am
Sunday Evening Bible Study - 3:00 pm (Effective June 10)
Wednesday Evening - 6:30 pm
“Where you can find TRUTH according to the scriptures”
www.flmbclagrande.com