Daily Intentional Encounters

By Rhonda Jones

My head has been spinning with lots of fresh ideas since this new year has begun. What will 2018 unfold for me?   The main thought that keeps returning to my mind is the need to be present and intentional in all my relationships.

Last week my husband and I went out to dinner and the first thing we did when we sat down to the table was bring out our cell phones as we waited for our food.  Was there anything wrong with this picture?  I looked around the restaurant and saw that everybody else was doing the same thing (justification, right)?

And then I began taking a deeper look at myself.  God revealed to me that when the waitress came to the table, rarely did I look her directly in the eye and engage in personal conversation.   It was as if I saw a moving picture of myself going through the day, touching the lives of people around me but not really “engaging” with them.   What a sad motion picture my life had become!  I had to repent and ask God to help me wake up to the moments in my life that He intends for me.

A day later, I was walking through Bell-Square and just as I approached the opening to Macy’s Department Store, a tiny girl toddled out with such great enthusiasm of being able to walk (you could see the pride all over her face) that I just had to laugh and say, “Well, look at you, Princess…you go, girl!”  Her mama was right behind her, encouraging her to step out and explore the world around her.  Right then I knew I had just experienced a godly encounter and thanked Jesus for that little moment of joy He brought to my heart.

I believe that every moment we live is a moment God has planned for us (See Jeremiah 29:11-13), whether we travel a smooth path with rich blessings or a deep valley of sadness, sorrow or pain.  And I also believe that He brings people into our lives for an intentional purpose, whether they encourage us, or we in turn do the same for them.  But that won’t happen unless we become vulnerable enough to allow God to show us how to see the people around us with His eyes, from His godly perspective. 

I Samuel 16:7b says: “The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”  

 So, here is my daily prayer for 2018: “Lord, help me live my life today from Your perspective, serving those I encounter with a humble heart filled with love.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

(Rhonda Jones is the Music Director at Washington Cathedral.  She’s been involved with the music ministry for almost 23 years, was a single mom for 15 years and met her husband Ted at this church.  Her testimony is one of God’s faithfulness through times of abandonment and loneliness, healing and restoration.  She always welcomes anyone willing to praise God with their voice into the Cathedral Choir).
 

Prayers that Change the World

Prayer is an underutilized path to strength and a healthy life.  It doesn’t take long on this adventure of following Christ before you make life-long friends.  Friends who will pour out their hearts to you and who are there for you as you share each other’s burdens.  Where are you going to find those kinds of friends?   All you need to do is join a small group, or what we call, Tiny Little Church (TLC) groups.  Because, when you march on the battlefield for the ideals of heaven, you will soon make friends with people who would give their lives for you. 

With those friends, soon the conversation will come up about prayer.  It is like two tennis players giving one another tips.  Or two golf players who are sharing their journey in the great game of golf.  (My marriage advice, however, is don’t coach your spouse in golf. -- But that is off the subject.)  Prayer is the topic that good Christian friends always keep coming back to when it comes to following Christ. Discussions like, “What has God been teaching you about prayer?”  “What exciting things are you seeing in your prayer life?”  Or maybe even, “How has prayer been a struggle for you lately?”  

The other day I was spending some time with a good friend and he handed me the book “The Battle Plan for Prayer” by Stephen & Alex Kendrick.  He was having everyone at his company (where he is a Chief Financial Officer) read the book together.  There is a lot of good information out there on the topic of prayer. In this book, the author compares prayer to WWI.  In that war millions of people lost their lives in that bogged-down, bloody, trench warfare.  It was a hopeless situation until the British developed the tank.  That was the beginning of the end of stalemate warfare that came from digging trenches.  The author uses the analogy that prayer breaks through the stalemate for the believer by giving them the protection of a tank.  

We are studying together SOAR, RUN, WALK and the prayers of Jesus.  This weekend I will be speaking on the metaphor Jesus uses of the widow and the wicked judge. In this passage, Jesus is teaching us a startling truth about prayer.  It appears to be a seemingly stark contradiction of what we would intuitively believe the Bible teaches about prayer and what we know about God.  But many times, the greatest truths are hidden in the most baffling contradictions. Luke 18:1-8 is kind of like the old song: “My boyfriend’s back and you’re gonna be in trouble,” or the little kid who says to the bully, “My big brother is going to be here in just a minute.”  I think when you discover the meaning of this important teaching of Jesus you are going to find new wings and deeper roots in your prayer life.  You find yourself becoming one of those who pray prayers that change the world. Please join us for inspirational worship this weekend.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

Soar, Run, Walk

A Brand-New Year -- 2018.  For some of us it almost seems like science fiction.  (And I love science fiction.)  I am more excited to live this year than any other year of my life.  I don’t think it is an accident that God has given us the gift of life.  Discovering his purposes for this year is an all-time adventure.  We have never had a more fruitful Christmas worship than this year.  In terms of reaching out to new prospects and seeing people make fresh commitments to Christ, it was beyond anything we expected.  After 33 years of leading Christmas services at Washington Cathedral, never have so many people left saying “this was the best yet!”  Thank you to all who did so much for our church family allowing so many to enjoy this great blessing!

Now on to a new year.  We on the Pastoral Staff felt led to begin an exciting new series of messages in weekend worship. The title was inspired by the favorite book of Jesus Christ; a book he quoted more than any other book…the Book of Isaiah.  The title:

"SOAR, RUN, WALK"
(A new adventure with the prayers of Jesus)

And, yes, that is the order of the words used in Isaiah 40. I think those words teach us something about prayer itself.  I am going to be challenging you to a new level of prayer through one practical New Years’ Resolution – “Will you dare to try and take a prayer-walk once a day until Easter?”  You can take it at the mall, or at the dog park, or with your best friend, or with a new friend. Just make sure to take the walk with Jesus by soaking up the surroundings in prayerful meditation and by having an open-hearted conversation.  Every day from now through Easter.

We will be studying many aspects of prayer:  The prayer metaphor of Jesus with the widow and the wicked judge. The baptism prayer of Jesus. The Lord’s Prayer. The Resurrection prayer for Lazarus. Jesus’ teaching on how not to pray.  Why we pray in Jesus’ name and what he says we should ask for. Why Jesus teaches us meditation and thanksgiving in our prayer. Why does Jesus say, “his house shall be a house of prayer?” The mystical prayer at the Mount of Transfiguration. The high priestly prayer of Jesus. Jesus' prayers from the cross. Jesus’ Easter prayer with St. Thomas.  And the great blessing prayer before his ascension.  

We have assembled a great team of preachers from across the state, within the staff and within the church.  You will witness an Ordination of new pastors out to change the world. You will discover what children can teach us about prayer.  I promise you we will all grow in our prayer lives.  So, expect great blessings, solid encouragement, visionary inspiration and just the best sermon series in the history of our church. 

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

The Icky, Bad, and Fantastic

by Pastor Linda Skinner

I don’t know about you, but 2017 was an up and down year at the Skinner household.  Last New Year’s Rich and I were down with the terrible flu bug that was going around our area.  On January 2, I sat at Urgent Care with about 150 other people waiting for hours to get in to see a doctor to be told my bug had turned into Bronchitis.  Rich fared a little better than I did so he waited in the downstairs lobby so as not to get a worse bug than he already had.  Not a fun way to begin 2017.

By February we were both feeling much better and then our Vinnie Dog got very sick and by March we had to let him go.  That was one of the hardest times in our life.  He had been with us for 15 ½ years.  For weeks, we cried every time we went for a walk and Vinnie wasn’t with us.  Even Panther cat mourned the loss of the little guy (and they were not the best of friends).  You have to be an animal lover to understand the deep connection a family gets to their pets.  

Easter was fantastic.  The services at Washington Cathedral were so uplifting.  How can you not be excited to celebrate the gift of eternal life and to see Jesus coming out of the tomb, always sends chills down my spine?  Then following Easter was our Festival of Miracles Auction, and we had one of our best ever results – raising money for children in Kenya, Africa and La Paz, Honduras.

Early July, Pastors Tim and Jackie headed up a medical mission’s team to Kenya.  They did amazing things for the kids in that terrible slum of Nairobi.  All of us back here, prayed and followed all of their activities with posts on Facebook, excited for the work that they were doing.  

Then in late July I had the opportunity to join the Youth team on their Mission’s Trip to La Paz, Honduras.  It was hotter than “blue blazes”, but it was so worth it to work with the children in the San Jose Orphanage and the NICO tutoring center.  Our hearts were filled with love for those kids and the wonderful workers and volunteers who serve them every day.   Our whole team gained so much more than we gave.

When I returned from that trip, I received a call that sometime in November there would be a puppy ready for us to adopt.  On November 10th, we drove to Port Angeles to pick up our 7 week old Cairn Terrier that we named Barclay Bear.  What joy and challenge that little guy has brought into our lives.  But God could not have given us a more perfect little dog.  This little guy loves people like you would not believe.  He was even part of the greeting team at our Christmas Services.  Not many puppies at 12 weeks old can handle all of that commotion.  He only escaped once from his kennel during the service on Friday night.  But thanks to Jana Goad we got him back quickly and without too much difficulty.

And speaking of Christmas Eve!  What an amazing weekend that was.  Right to the final service at 11:00 pm on a snowy Christmas Eve, we had one of the greatest celebrations I can remember.  The music was fantastic, the kids were the cutest ever, the set and lighting was special.  On Christmas Eve in the falling snow, the manger took on a magical appearance.  It looked like something from a Disney production.

What have I learned from 2017?  I’ve learned that life has it “icky, bad and fantastic” moments, but in the end when you walk with Jesus, there will always be joy and peace.  I think it was what the Apostle Paul was telling us in Philippians:

“Always be full of joy in the Lord.  I say it again – rejoice.  Let everyone see that you are considerate in all that you do.  Remember, the Lord is coming soon.  Don’t worry about anything:  instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and that him for all he has done.  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

I’m making this my verse for 2018.  How about joining me?
 

Ho, Ho, Ho Merry Christmas

By Pastor Tim White

I came home from church last Sunday and as I drove up to the house where we have lived for the past 33 years, I got really excited.  There was Sarai Jacobs’ car parked in front of our house. I knew that meant my grandkids had arrived from Texas.  As I rushed from my car, I saw the Christmas lights on and my grandson Elijah Diaz and his little sister Isabela looking out the window.  I opened the door and at the top of the stairs was my eldest daughter Elise with my son-in-law Rey standing right next to her smiling.  When I opened our door, the bells jingled from the Christmas Wreath complete with bells hanging on our front door.  I couldn’t help myself, I had to yell out “Ho - Ho - Ho Merry Christmas.”

Then my phone rang and it was Eva our other granddaughter with her brother Oscar saying they were coming right over with their mommy Becca and daddy Ben.  I let out another “Ho - Ho - Ho.”  And Isabella cried out--” My GP is Santa Claus.” Sarai, Pastor Rey’s sister, was there carrying baby Cruz, whose birth will give us the best Christmas present of all.  The conversations were so fun -- Everyone was talking about going to the new Star Wars movie, and cherubs dancing at the Christmas services.  We laughed, we played, we danced, and we prayed.  Then we ate and still played.  It is the Christmas Season.

Please join our Washington Cathedral family for “Christmas Lights the Night” this Christmas.  We invite you to bring your family and friends. (Even if they go to another church, that’s okay, we love them because we are all still a family.) Dare to invite your neighbors and get free tickets on line at http://www.christmaslightsthenight.com/  or www.wacathedral.org .  Even better, isn’t it time to download the Washington Cathedral App.  Just go to the App Store on your iPhone or Android phone.

Christmas Lights the Night Services are Friday at 7:00 pm, Saturday at 5:00 pm, Sunday at 5:00 pm, and a special candlelight communion service led by Pastor Linda at 11:00 pm.

You will want to see the live manger scene this year.  It’s better than ever--the Bethlehem star is new and improved and the live animals are so cute.  Of course, you will see the shepherds, angels, Mary and Joseph. The music is beautiful from a band with strings, the choir, the ballet dancer--with the group of sweet baby cherubs.  It will be 60 minutes of incredible Christmas inspiration.

I look at my life from the mountain-tops, those moments when God was so close that he changed me.  This is going to be one of those moments and I don’t want you to miss it.

This Sunday morning, December 24th, worship at 9:30 and 11:00 am is also going to be a wonderful family service.  One of our favorite pastors, Dr. Rey Diaz, will be sharing on the reckless love of God demonstrated at Christmas.  And one of our all-time favorite musicians, Dave Irish, will leading us in wonderful songs of Christmas. Pastor David is cooking his down-home, Whidbey Island special breakfast in the Cafe from 10:00-11:30 so, regardless of the services you attend, we can eat together as one big happy church family. 

As a reminder, someone donated two passes for a family of four to enjoy a night in a family suite at Great Wolf Lodge, and a fun time in the waterpark. One pass will go to the person who brings the biggest number of new people who fill out a Connect Card and put name of the person who invited them in the comments section of that form. The second pass is for the winner of a drawing on New Year’s Eve Sunday, December 31, at 11:00 am. The people who will be eligible for that drawing will be those who have filled out a Connect Card for the very first time at any of our services from now through December 31st.

So “Ho - Ho – Ho Merry Christmas.”  We hope to see you.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

Merry Christmas from Washington Cathedral

by Pastor Tim White

Merry Christmas!  This Christmas is so important to us that a generous benefactor has donated two Great Wolf Lodge passes for two families of four—one night in family suite, family fun in waterpark, good for 2018 (there a few blackout dates).  One pass will be given to the person who brings the most new people who have filled out a contact card indicating who they were invited by between now and Christmas.  The second pass will be a drawing from all the contact cards received between now and Christmas that are filled out for the very first time.  The winners of both of these passes will be announced at the 11:00 am Service on New Year’s Eve Day, December 31, 2017. (Winner does not need to be present.)

I am praying so hard that we will reach many new people for Jesus Christ this Christmas.

This weekend Becca McCary has a powerful message on the Christmas story from the book of Matthew entitled Come Let Us Adore Him.  And we are going to have an extended Christmas sing-a-long in every service.

 Our special Christmas Lights the Night services are: Friday, Dec. 22nd, at 7pm; Saturday, Dec. 23rd, at 5:00 pm; and Christmas Eve, December 24th, at 5:00 and 11:00 pm.  Tickets are available and are being picked up quickly, so don’t delay in getting yours.  They are available online at our website or our Washington Cathedral app.

You can hear our ad on KCMS which tells about the inspirational service we are going to have this year.  Live manger scene, with real animals, choirs, strings, band, ballet dancers and our “baby cherubs” dancing to create a moment where the heavens open.  You will be blessed with one of the most inspirational moments of your life.  Please bring friends.  You can get free tickets at: christmaslightsthenight.com or wacathedral.org.  

On Christmas morning at 9:30 and 11:00am, Dr. Rey Diaz will be preaching, and special Guest Musician Dave Irish will be warming our hearts with his great music.  Pastor David’s wonderful down-home breakfast will be served in the Cafe with spuds, sausage, eggs, and his super-secret Whidbey Island oatmeal. Breakfast will be served from 10:30 to 11:30 - what a great time of fellowship.

At the 11pm late Christmas Eve service, pastor Linda Skinner will be preaching, and Rich Skinner will be using his trained voice to do a dramatic reading of the Christmas story with an incredible slide show.  There will be Candle lighting and I will lead in a very special Christmas communion.

Merry Christmas - Please join us.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

Touched by Angels

By Pastor Tim White

I have been touched by angels. “Touched by An Angel” is more than just a show on the Hallmark Channel in which the late great Della Reese starred. (And by the way, our friend Carolee Mayne wrote and performed music for this popular TV show.)  Yes, I have been touched by angels.  As far as I know, I have never seen an angel, in the flesh, so to speak.  

This weekend, I have the opportunity to discuss the glory of the Christmas story through the Gospel of Luke. I am not ashamed to confess that I need Christmas this year as much as any other time in my life. In fact, the whole world desperately needs the simple truth of the Christmas story.  

This Sunday, after the 11:00 am service, there is going to be a Christmas Cookie Decorating Party.  This is going to be one of those simple, fun events for everyone. A time of building genuine friendships.  Kids get to decorate the cookies and the adults get to eat them -- just kidding.  There will be plenty of cookies for the whole Cathedral family -- singles, kids who come without families and young adults with bottomless pit stomachs.  And even those of us who choose to not sample the cookies.  We will be able to explain why Christmas cookies are not food-- they are friends. 

Enough of my weak attempts at humor.  The point is that the worship leading up to Christmas is a very special season we call Advent. It is life transforming as we study the Gospel of Christmas.  Pastor Becca started with “Christmas Lights the Night in the Gospel of John.” Pastor Linda continued by sharing the Christmas story in the Gospel of Mark by letting us know that every time someone meets Jesus it is Christmas-- a promise fulfilled. And now I get to share with you the bold claims of this beautiful story of Christmas from the Gospel of Luke.  It is my prayer that your faith will be strengthened as we discuss:  

1. The virgin birth of Jesus (what does this mean) 
2. Angels - Are they real? 
3. Why the humility of the manger scene? 
4. The historicity of Christmas. Can a thinking person consider this ancient story as true?

It’s my observation that never before in the history of the United States, have more people doubted the practical truth of Christmas. Can I have 20 minutes of your time to attempt to strengthen your hope, that just maybe, the Christmas story is true?  I promise to consider this while treating those who choose to believe Christmas is just a nice story, with dignity, as we consider the claims of Luke in this incredible world-changing event.

Please join me this weekend as you can tell I am very excited about this message.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White
 

A Christmas Promise Kept

by Pastor Tim White

 A Christmas Promise Kept - that is the title of the message by Pastor Linda Skinner this weekend as we continue our series  "Christmas Lights the Night."  It is going to be an inspiring service as Linda brings us the Christmas story from the Gospel of Mark.  Yes, the Gospel of Mark has the Christmas story in it also.  Last week Pastor Becca McCary inspired us by kicking off the series "Christmas Lights the Night" by teaching the Christmas story from the Gospel of John. It is in John that we see the dramatic metaphor of Jesus being the "light of the world." 

 This week Pastor Linda will be sharing the incredible drama that comes when adult disciples, followers of Jesus, discover Him for the first time and experience all the magic, joy and salvation that comes with that personal relationship with Jesus.  It truly is Christmas.  To top it off, we have one of our wonderful actresses playing the part of Anna the prophetess doing a dramatic monologue of her first encounter with the baby Jesus.  We will all learn something powerful as we see how long God has been working on the promise of Christmas -- all so we will be able to experience the true miracle of Christmas 2017.  The prophesy shows the down-to-earth power of the Gospel as told in Mark - I am so excited to experience it firsthand.  Of course, the music will be a real lift to your life.  

I am so proud of Pastor Linda and 30 years of ministry at Washington Cathedral and many years of preparation for her Good News ministry to be at its very best.  Would you make it a priority to be there for one of the three services? You honor us with your presence.

Your friend for the rest of your life,
 
Pastor Tim White
 

Christmas at Washington Cathedral

By Pastor Tim White

Happy Holidays.  What a great time of year! It looks like the holidays outside.  Rain and wind make for a perfect time to sit by the fire, read a book or have a soul-filled conversation over a cup of coffee.  It just feels like the holidays with this kind of weather.  And the joke is that we have this weather almost all year long.  But we don’t care.  It is a great time of the year.  

This Sunday Pastor Becca will be kicking off a life-changing message series called: Christmas Lights the Night.  She is sharing the Christmas story in an expository message from the Gospel of John.  At the same time, Pastor Michael and his elves will begin to decorate the campus with lights getting ready for our dazzling Christmas Eve services with real live animals and a petting area.  (Pastor Michael loves Christmas - he has It’s a Wonderful Life memorized.)  

And of course, we will be participating in all of our special projects to help those who are hurting in our community and around the world.  Every year it seems like Christmas ministries just grow at Washington Cathedral. One of our post-Christmas evaluations told us we needed to do less -- but do it better.  When we met as a staff we asked the question – “What should focus on?”  Every staff member was so passionate about the different areas of ministry that no one wanted to cut anything.  So, as the leader in this movement, I was led to lead the way. Therefore, after 33 years of Santa Conspiracy we are going to take a year off. This was a ministry that was so dear to my heart and you have heard the story of how the Lord started it.  We still have some bears, so we will be sending out a few Santa’s to carry on the good work.  

This year we need to impact our community with the life-rescuing message of Jesus Christ focusing on the impact of Christmas.  We have our ministry to the homeless; to the convalescent homes; the building of a new school in the Patmos slum of Kenya; hospitals, and neighbors who are looking for a faith -- these will continue.  It will be, I think, the most dramatic Christmas we have ever experienced as a church family.   Christmas Lights the Night dramas will be Friday, December 22, at 7:00 pm; Saturday, December 23, at 5:00pm, and Sunday, December 24, at 5:00pm. Our special guest for Sunday morning, December24 9:30am and 11:00am, worship services will be Dave Irish.  And of course, we will have our beautiful Candlelight Communion Worship at 11:00pm Christmas Eve.

Going into Christmas: 

• Washington Cathedral Choir Christmas concert at Redmond Town Center Saturday, November 25, from 1-2pm.
• The Mix Worship with Pastor Helio preaching and international praise including a potluck dinner on Saturday, November 25, at 5:30pm
• Pastor Becca McCary preaching on the Sunday, November 26, at 9:30am and 11:00am, kicking off the series: Christmas Lights the Night.
• Pastor Linda Skinner will preach the following week, December 2 & 3, on Christmas Lights the Night from the Gospel of Mark. Saturday, December 2, is our Volunteer Christmas party at the Café put on by Bill & Millie Porter.
• I will be preaching the weekend of December 9 & 10 on Christmas Lights the Night from the Gospel of Luke.  For the kids (and anyone else who wants to join in) a special Christmas Cookie Decorating time led by Pastor Becca in the Café.
• Pastor Becca McCary will be preaching the weekend of December 16 & 17 on Christmas Lights the Night from the Gospel of Matthew.  Plus - an all-church Christmas Carol sing-a-long with hot apple cider for 20 minutes of the service.  In addition, the youth will be having their Christmas party that afternoon.
• Pastor Rey Diaz will be joining our preaching team at the weekend service on December 30 & 31, New Year’s Eve.

There are going to be a lot of great events and special ministry opportunities as we enjoy a focused - refreshing - incredibly inspiring Christmas at Washington Cathedral this year.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White