Spiritual Life
A6
Thursday, March 24, 2022
SPIRITUAL LIFE HIGHLIGHTS
The truth shows us
the full reality of God
SUBMISSIONS
ENTERPRISE — The Enter-
prise Community Congregational
Church on Sunday, March 27, will
hear a message about Jesus’ pur-
pose, as the Truth, the Way and
the Life, to show us the full reality
of God. Interim pastor Rev. Dr.
Craig Pesti-Strobel will deliver
the message, referring to Peter
2:2-10 and John 14:1-7. The wor-
ship service at the Community
Church, also known as the big,
brown church, begins at 11 a.m.
Bible Study, which is currently
discussing 1 Corinthians, is held
at 9:30 a.m.
Churches and faith-based groups are
encouraged to submit Highlights for the
Spiritual Life page by noon Tuesday for
publication Thursday. Submit by email
to news@lagrandeobserver.com (with
Highlights in the subject line).
Fast Sunday moved up
one week to March 27
NORTHEASTERN OREGON
— Fast Sunday will be March 27,
as the General Conference of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Lat-
ter-day Saints will be held the fi rst
weekend of April. Members are
encouraged to fast for two meals
and donate at least the meal value
to the church for the support of
those in need in local communi-
ties. Testimonies will be shared
during Sunday’s Sacrament ser-
vice, and Priesthood, Relief
Society and youth groups will
meet during the second hour.
Donations to the church’s
humanitarian aid fund will help sup-
port those suff ering from the con-
fl icts in Ukraine, along with others
in need of help in various parts of
the world. Visit www.churchofjesus-
christ.org to learn how these funds
are being used to help the refugees.
The “Come, Follow Me” lesson
for the week of March 28 will be
based on Exodus 7-13 and what
we can learn from the plagues that
befell Egypt as the Lord, through
Moses, sought the freedom of the
people of Israel.
Pastor asks, ‘Our we our
brother’s keeper?’
LA GRANDE — On March
27, the fourth Sunday of Lent, the
First Christian Church (Disciples
of Christ) will worship together at
10:30 a.m. Pastor Archie Hook’s
message — “Are We Our Broth-
er’s Keeper?” — will explore
2 Corinthians 5:16-21. Verse 17
says, “If anyone is in Christ, the
new creation has come: The old
has gone, the new is here!”
Zion Lutheran service
will be streamed live
LA GRANDE — Zion Lutheran
Church meets for worship this
Sunday, March 27, at 9 a.m. Masks
are no longer required but are rec-
ommended for those at risk. The
service will include Holy Com-
munion and be followed by a time
of fellowship. The service will be
streamed live to Youtube. The link
for that stream will be posted on
Zion’s Facebook page and website
on March 26.
— The Observer
What to do when you don’t know what to do
DONALD
BASTIAN
JUST CALL ME PASTOR
S
olving perplexing situations
in family, workplace, church
and society prompts funda-
mental questions: Should I remain
silent? If I speak up, what should
I say?
When involved with a compli-
cated circumstance, I’ve learned
the wisdom of weighing my
response in light of the day we
will come before the judgment
seat of Christ.
Of course, our performance is
not what saves us at the fi nal judg-
ment. The scriptures teach that we
are saved by grace alone, through
faith in Christ. But the scrip-
tures also say, “For we must all
appear before the judgment seat of
Christ, that each one may receive
what is due him for the things
done while in the body, whether
good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10).
That is, it is at the same time
true that, in the words of Romans
8:1, “there is now no condemnation
for those who are in Christ Jesus,”
and that the believer’s performance
will also come into account, which
will include the quality of the life
we have lived for him.
If I consider a problem in the
light of the fi nal judgment I often,
though of course not always, gain
clarity about what I should do.
Such an exercise helps me keep
distracting emotions, selfi shness
and shortsightedness at bay.
I recall a time when I was
leading a committee in dealing
with a complex and contentious
church matter. I was thinking my
way toward what I saw as a res-
olution. But not everyone agreed
with my plan.
After one meeting with the
committee, I went with two of
its members for coff ee before we
started for home. At the table, the
situation again bubbled to the sur-
face. As the one who was ulti-
mately responsible for the deci-
sion, I gestured upward and said,
“We will have to answer to God
for how this matter is resolved.”
The initial response was a sur-
prised silence, as if I had intro-
duced a new idea to my com-
panions. The discussion to this
point had seemed to have moved
on a purely human level: Which
of the groups involved will we
favor? How can we close up this
matter quickly? Which way would
require the least damage control?
A sense of accountability to God
for a wise judgment hadn’t fac-
tored into our deliberations.
Thinking about a thorny
problem in the light of the fi nal
judgment takes the problem out of
the moment and into the context
of eternity. It keeps the focus on
God and his wisdom.
Christians, by remembering
the fi nal judgment, can practice
the mental and spiritual discipline
of making all of life’s decisions in
the awareness that God is present
at every moment and in every
circumstance. This obedience
enriches faith.
———
Donald N. Bastian, of Ontario,
Canada, is the bishop emeritus
of the Free Methodist Church of
North America. For more of his
writings, go to justcallmepastor.
wordpress.com.
Mission report from Kenya
By TAMMY MALGESINI
MORE INFORMATION
Hermiston Herald
HERMISTON — Stanley
Gitari, director of Maua
Methodist Hospital Commu-
nity Health Services, will be
visiting Hermiston to provide
an update on mission work
in Kenya. An experienced
speaker, he will share about
community health, programs
to help orphan children, the
eff ects of famine in Africa
and much more.
“There are people from
Walla Walla to Heppner,
Pendleton and La Grande who
are/have been involved with
this project,” said Pastor Patty
Nance of the Hermiston First
United Methodist Church.
Anyone interested in
hearing about this outreach
ministry in Kenya, including
how to get involved, is
encouraged to attend. The
free presentation is April 3,
5 p.m. at the Hermiston First
United Methodist Church,
191 E. Gladys Ave.
Hermiston residents
Louise and Jamie Kienzle
have taken several trips to
Kenya to work at the hospital
and surrounding area. As part
of the April 3 presentation,
Louise will share about other
upcoming opportunities:
• To participate in a Vir-
tual Mission to Maua Meth-
odist Hospital, April 6 and 8,
8-9:30 a.m.
• To join a team heading
Additional information,
including a link to the
upcoming Virtual Mission, is
available by searching www.
facebook.com/OR.IDKenyaMis-
sionTeams. For questions, con-
tact Louise Kienzle at umvim@
umoi.org, 541-620-0989 or
Pastor Patty Nance at
herfumc@outlook.com.
to Kenya in 2023 to build a
home for AIDS orphans and
support other projects related
to health and education.
The Kienzles, who fi rst
went to Kenya in 2009, are
especially excited about
what’s happening across the
globe in East Africa. Living
in John Day at the time, the
couple was motivated to get
involved in mission work
after their pastor encouraged
the church council to look
beyond their immediate area
and state.
“We did a lot of things
in the community,” Louise
Kienzle said. “I thought this
is my chance, this is a cue for
me to jump in.”
And jump, she did —
since that fi rst trip in 2009,
the Kienzles have returned
to Kenya six times. And they
are planning to lead a team in
July 2023.
A typical trip, she said,
includes building a house for
the family of an AIDS orphan,
as well as going to the schools
to provide de-worming and
working with an outreach pro-
gram for the hospital, pro-
viding basic medical services.
Those seen are weighed, have
their blood pressure checked
and often get tested for AIDS
and other medical condi-
tions. People can obtain eye-
glasses or needed medications.
People, Kienzle said, walk for
miles to be seen at the “med-
ical camp.”
Medical experience isn’t
required to participate in the
mission trips, Kienzle said.
One of their roles, she said,
is to promote the hospital
by helping alleviate people’s
fears about going there. Also,
Kienzle said people don’t
have to belong to the United
Methodist Church to get
involved.
“Anyone interested in mis-
sion work and learning about
another culture is invited to
come,” she said.
Gitari, the press release
said, has been the inspira-
tion and organizing force
behind the ongoing rela-
tionships between Amer-
ican teams and their mission
work in the area of Maua,
Kenya. As a nurse and hos-
pital administrator with a
master’s degree in com-
munity health from Ghana
University, and as a com-
mitted man of faith, Gitari
has worked tirelessly to help
the people in that area who
suff er from extreme poverty.
Patty Nance/Contributed Photo
Louise Kienzle of Hermiston hands keys to a family during a January 2018 house dedication in Maua,
Kenya. Stanley Gitari, director of Maua Methodist Hospital Community Health Services, is in the
background with a camera. He will provide an update about the Kenyan outreach ministry at 5 p.m. April
3, 2022, at the Hermiston First United Methodist Church.
Making
memories
doing
Laundry
CELEBRATION
Ask us about DELIVERY
ELGIN ELECTRIC
43 N. 8th Elgin, OR 541-437-2054
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!
Worship: 9:00 a.m. Cove
Worship: 10:00 a.m. N. Powder
SUMMERVILLE
BAPTIST 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
First Christian
Church
(Disciples of Christ)
GRACE COMMUNITY
LUTHERAN CHURCH
The Place
901 Penn Avenue 963-2623 62848 Philynda Loop in Island City
lgdisciples@gmail.com
“We are called to Serve”
Bible Study
Sunday School for all ages - 9:00 am
9:00 a.m.
Sunday Worship 10:00 am
Worship
Phone: 541-568-4230
10:30 a.m.
grace.lutherancove@gmail.com
~Join us at The Lord’s Table~
Sunday Services
9:00 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
Sunday School
Worship Service
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
1612 4th Street – 963-2498
www.lagrandeumc.org
www.imblercc@gmail.com
Adventist Church
“OPEN HEARTS, OPEN MINDS, OPEN DOORS”
For service information go to
440 Ruckman, Imbler 534-2201
La Grande Seventh-day
LA GRANDE UNITED
METHODIST CHURCH
Pastor Taylor Gould
Imbler
Christian
Church
2702 Adams Avenue, La Grande
963-4018
109 18th Street • 963-3402
Sunday School 9:15 a.m.
Sunday Worship 10:30 a.m.
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
FIRST LANDMARK
MISSIONARY BAPTIST
CHURCH
1812 1st St. La Grande
Pastor Dave Tierce • 541-605-0215
We use the King James Version Bible
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
Services
This
Week