Washington Cathedral Anniversary

After one service I saw some of my favorite people getting a piano lesson by one of our worship leaders, Chelsea Maitland. Namuli was there with one of her buddies, Violet. Chelsea's sons were there of course waiting their turn and Nassali was trying to join in also. These are some of my favorite new people and we are so excited to see who they will become, and how we can build our church to support them as they live out God's fabulous plan for their lives. I call that prayer and growth project Legacy.

All of us who have been here at the Cathedral pray that all of the work, sacrifice, and miracles, are directed into the church that will be rising up under the leadership of Mark and Anne Nsimbi.

38 years of the Washington Cathedral adventure and I can hardly believe it. For me it is at least 48 years of being a full-time pastor. But this coming Sunday is not about the past as much as it is about preparing for a splendid future- for our part of the local church- on the Eastside of the greater Seattle area.

Join us this Sunday for a celebration of what God has done and is getting ready to do within our beloved church.

I am going to be sharing a message from Galatians chapter 5 on Spirit life in the church- but my sermon title is, "Legacy". Following the service we'll have bounce-houses for the kids, great music with Vanessa Love visiting us, a vote on the senior pastor of our church and the new board of directors, a presentation of fiscal information, and of course- an anniversary cake. Worship will be from 10:30am to 11:30am, and the annual meeting will be from 11:30am to 12pm.

We would really love your attendance on this all-important Sunday. We can’t vote online yet so the vote will be in-person.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

I just love the story of the Prodigal Son.  I know I say that about so many Bible stories- but this weekend pastor Mark Nsimbi is preaching about the Prodigal Son, and I am excited. I want to tell Jesus, "You had me at the 'Prodigal Son' story." A copy of the painting, Return of the Prodigal Son, by Rembrandt, is on the wall of our daughter and son-in-law- Elise and Rey’s home.   What a masterpiece!  The dark emotional colors emphasize the bright story in the faces of the characters. 

Yes, I really, really love the story of the Prodigal Son. Because…well, I am the prodigal son. I'm not afraid to admit it because it’s true.  

I wanted to go it on my own without God. As if I were saying, "Give me everything coming to me- I can do this without you, God."  And yes, it all fell through. The resources ran out and the fair-weather friends didn’t last. 

As the story goes, the youngest son is too ashamed to ask for help- so he gets a job taking care of the hogs and then falls into the muck.  Yea, that’s me: finally embarrassed and ashamed to go back to God to ask for a second chance. Too afraid even to hope for love, acceptance, and forgiveness. Walk towards God's place and there He is, waiting outside for my return. God runs to me and hugs me. He puts his ring on my finger, his coat on my shoulders, and invites me to His party. I admit it: that is me. 

But I'm not just the youngest son in the story. I’m the self-important eldest son also. I worked hard for what I’ve got. I don’t want God to waste His time and money on the broken- they deserve what they have because of the poor choices they made.  That’s me too!

And the truth of the matter is, it’s you also. 

So why wouldn’t I be excited to hear Pastor Mark Nsimbi teach this weekend about how Jesus brings us together in celebration of His healing? About how God heals us broken-people and teaches us to be a Holy Spirit-filled community, of God's Kingdom of love?

You're going to love this one. Join us at 10:30 Sunday morning in-person or online via YouTube, Facebook Live, or our church app . What a life-giving moment it’s going to be.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

A Spark From Heaven

What a great time to be alive!

I am filled with such excitement as we prepare our pastoral staff for the coming year. October 2022 to October 2023. Is going to be an outstanding year in our lives. 

Pastor Mark and I are continuing the series, Rekindle The Fire Within You.  It’s my turn this week and we are studying Acts 1:1-9: a preview of the Holy Spirit’s work in Acts as well as your future. This week’s title is, “A Spark From Heaven”.

The spark of encouragement that you need is sent from heaven. The miracle-working love that you need to break through all the barriers facing you is from heaven.

When I was in college in the 1970’s, many of my friends were world class athletes who enjoyed R&B soul music. So the love song when Jackie and I fell in love was, “It’s Too Late to Turn Back Now”  by the Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose. And I love Marvin Gaye’s song which goes like this,

“Oh, heaven must have sent you from above

Oh, heaven must have sent your precious love (oh)

And I, I've got a song to sing (oh, darling)
Tellin' the world about the joy you bring (oh, sweet heart)
And you gave me a reason for livin' (oh, honey)
And ooh, you taught me, you taught me the meaning of givin”

There is a lot more to this love song, but the point is that in the gospel roots of Marvin Gaye comes from this idea that Heaven must have “sent your love”.

That’s true, and it’s a great lens to help us understand Acts 1:1-9. In a few days in Jerusalem you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit brings God’s work into our lives.  When someone sings, “heaven must have sent your love”, they are right.

Let’s open the window into your life from Heaven to let some fresh air and sunshine in and begin to do the work. I really think you are going to be blessed by the worship this Sunday morning at 10:30 AM either in-person at our Sanctuary in Redmond or online.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

"Running Towards Freedom"

You can run away from your problems and they'll catch you later or you can run towards an atmosphere of freedom and experience positivity. When you confess your mistakes to God, you allow God to give you a new edge on your mistakes because everything is out in the open.

Kids learn to lie when the punishment from telling the truth is greater than the lie.  Running away can seem like the safest thing to do, but we all know that the truth often has consequences. But it is so freeing and empowering to confess our mistakes to God and our closest spiritual guides. There, the aim is restoration and to end the power of hidden unconfessed sin in our life.

You can never grow or get better until you can publicly admit you are wrong and set a plan to make your heart right.  It’s just repeated mistakes until that time.  That’s where pastor Mark Nsimbi’s sermon comes in this weekend from Psalm 51, "Running Towards Freedom".

My Grandpa White used to tell the true story of a boy who grew up in the cattle country around Joseph, Oregon. When he was old enough he moved out of his parents' home and started to run with the wrong crowd of cowboys.  He started carousing with bad influences in his life.  He thought he was discovering his real self but as almost anyone in town could tell -  he was instead discovering his worst self.

 Soon he and some of his friends made a plan to rob the Joseph city bank.  He was a kid among the older bank robbers. They all had spent time in prison and he was the naive one taken in by all their talk. When they robbed Joseph bank they knew there wasn’t much law there. In fact they knew the sheriff and his deputy were out of town for the day. But what they failed to recognize was that this little cattle town had seven saloons full of hard working cowboys. So when they came out of the bank with the banks' money there were loads of hard working cowboys coming out of their saloons and they shot the bandits up.  He was shot in the thumb and was the only one to make it out alive with the money. The posse chased him all the way to Nevada but he got away.  He had such a great childhood in Joseph Oregon that the Holy Spirit started to convict him that what the new-him had done, was wrong.

So he came back to Joseph and returned the money to his neighbors and friends. After spending time in prison he got out to get a job at a neighbors' ranch and then worked at the bank he had robbed. Eventually this friend of my Grandpa was so entrusted by the cattlemen in the valley that they voted him as the bank president of the very bank he had robbed as a young man.  He and Grandpa have long since died but once-a-week the town reenacts the bank robbery and the shoot-out for tourists so that they can also celebrate in the power of confession and friendship.

Join us this Sunday at 10:30am in-person or online as pastor Mark Nsimbi brings a fresh perspective to our church story, and teaches from Psalm 51: “Running Towards Freedom".

 Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

Rekindle the fire within you!

Pastor Mark Nsimbi and I are beginning a new sermon series together at Washington Cathedral. This Sunday, September 11th, in-person in our Redmond sanctuary and online (via YouTube, Facebook Live, and our church app), I will begin the series on living in the fullness of the Spirit.

Imagine you invite Jesus into your home, but you forbid him to go into the garage, your kid’s rooms, or your bedroom! Imagine you limit him from going into your office, entertainment room, or your kitchen.

Real spiritual health is allowing Jesus to come into all parts of your home, to bless every part of your life.
_______________

Many of you have been asking if hiring Pastor Mark means that my time as a pastor here is over. Let me share again the church’s plan for transition:

For the next year and a half Pastor Mark will focus on building up our young families ministry, and my job will be to continue to lead Washington Cathedral through this exciting transition. I will pour my heart and life into Pastor Mark and the future leaders of our great caring network. Then, in March 2024 we will transition Pastor Mark into becoming our new lead pastor. For a year and a half following that I hope to be on staff working and backing-up pastor Mark. I will then resign from the church as a pastor and in September of 2025 I will retire and continue to be a member of this church- supporting pastor Mark’s ministry any way I can.

It is going to be an exciting three years. Won’t you join me in following God through this transition?

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

What a great week to worship God!

How do we invite God into our decisions?

This week we will hear from our new family ministries pastor, Mark Nsimbi. He will share with us some biblical principles on walking in the Spirit by studying with us about David’s mighty men- who learned to rely on God for direction, rather than run away from worry.

It’s going to be a great Sunday to kick-off the autumn because the music is going to be great. We'll share a potluck barbecue to welcome the Nsimbi family to our church family. I’m looking forward to an outstanding moment to start the coming year. So bring yourself, bring a side dish, and let’s celebrate together.

Bless us all by your attendance and join us at 10:30 AM in-person or online via Facebook Live, YouTube, or our church App.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

By Pastor Tim White

The other night Jackie and I drove all the way from Wallowa Lake to our home in one long trip.  Earlier I had driven from Redmond to the Lapwai, Idaho Nez Perce reservation to meet with their tribal council.  I came back with some kind of a bug which gave me body aches and chills. I also had a world record sore throat and headache. To say I was looking forward to soaking in a hot bath would to be like saying no one really appreciates modern indoor plumbing.

Yes, I needed a hot bath!  So, I had a smile on my face a mile long when I sat in the tub and started the water. Just the sound of the water flowing, the smell of bath salts in the water, and the steam rising, made me so excited about this much-needed soak.

I climbed in and realized the water was lukewarm.  Not freezing cold but not warm in the slightest. And to top it off it was not holding water- my bathtub was slowly leaking out.  Within 5 minutes I was out of the tub and getting ready for bed. Jackie asked me, how was your bath?  Was it really nice? Do you feel better?

I didn’t say no it was terrible. But I did confess it was lukewarm.  I think we blew a fuse.  She looked at me compassionately. Because everyone knows what it’s like to get lukewarm when you are dreaming of a hot bath. Right?

Well the text in Revelation sums up the book by teaching us that lukewarm is not good enough. The last book of the Bible will teach us how to escape being lukewarm.  And this could save your marriage, your family, and your career. Won’t you join us this Sunday morning at 10:30? We are meeting in-person or online via Facebook Live, YouTube, or the church app.

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim White

Be Careful Who You Follow

 Have you ever known a good person whose downfall came when they simply followed the wrong leader?  Of course, we all have.   
 
Maybe they started doing drugs in high school.  It was an understandable slip. All of us needed to be a part of the cool crowd when we were that young and our hormones were raging.  Maybe they were told it was marijuana and they accidentally used some drug which took over their lives.  Years later it feels like they do not have a soul. They would lie to their mother to get what they want. 
 
The Book of Revelation warns us to be careful who you follow.  It predicts a day when churches are going to do everything they can to undercut pastors so that morality melts into something no one believes in, then the whole church will slide. There will no longer be a safe place for those who need conversion. The church will become an afterthought priority for Christians. Christians will become people who follow Christ in name only. All of this and so much more is predicted because we allow ourselves to follow the wrong people.   
 
If you want to succeed in sports, business, family, or anything else in life then be careful who you follow. Join us this Sunday at 10:30 am online or in person as I return to the pulpit to share a life changing message - from the Book of Revelation. 
 
Your friend for the rest of my life. 
 
Pastor Tim White 

Opposition In Life

By Pastor Michael Fernandez

The congregation of Smyrna, unlike Ephesus, was facing persecution, imprisonment for some, even death. The heart of the message was not repent but be faithful even to the point of death. In the message to Smyrna, the angel is a conquering Angel, and the Christians there a whole assembly of “conquerors”.

“Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.” Revelation: 2:11 (NIV)

Each and every one of us will face opposition in life which is my topic today. Whether it is on the job, socially, from the world, physically, mentally, or as we age at home. I could go on, but you get the idea. The idea here is how do we handle the situation? I think the best way to handle it would be to ask the question - What is Jesus Christ doing in my life at this moment in time?

 Maybe that is the question we need to ask ourselves?

I am a pretty competent person and a pretty good task master. It seems the one lesson I continue to learn is to rely on Jesus - not Michael. My humanness always seems to get in the way. Every time I go to pray with someone in the hospital or meet in their home, I ask myself “what am I going to say to them. How am I going to encourage them?” Then, I still my heart and ask The Holy Spirit to lead me and guide me in my endeavor. Most of my life now has been spent nurturing and blessing our church family.

I must confess, life has not been easy of late. I get tired easily if I overexert myself. This has brought out some very old habit patterns from my youth. Swearing has popped up its ugly side occasionally. I absolutely hate it. It appears more when I am driving if you can believe that. I thought I had gotten rid of that decades ago. Now I’m working on getting rid of that issue once again and I will with God’s help.

Most of you know that I have been dealing with some physical issues as I have been diagnosed with Amyloidosis. It is not a cancer, but kind of acts like one. This disease produces a bad protein in one's system, over and over again. That protein attaches itself to your internal organs, (heart, lungs, liver, kidney, tongue etc.)  and can harden them. The doctors still can’t tell me how I got it. It can be inherited, mine was not. You can get it from myeloma cancer which I do not have. Only God knows how I have it. It reminds me daily that life is all too short. Have I adjusted my lifestyle? Yes. That’s why I’m still wearing a mask since my immune system is compromised through disease and treatment. More importantly, I’m totally relying on Jesus for my healing and living a quality life. I’m a fix-it person and I can’t fix this only the infinite healer can. Treatment appears to be moving in the right direction as I am still able to work at a high level. I praise Our Lord every day for breathing new life into me and not taking life for granted.  When I get hangry or tired is when I mess up. Every day now I search for peace even in the midst of my exhaustion, and I try to eat before I get hangry.

Remember, Whoever is victorious will not be harmed by the second death. The second coming of Christ and permanent spiritual death is for those unbelievers. And victory is for those who believe.

To unpack this more watch our service this coming Sunday August 14th at 10:30 am. Or join us in-person in the Spirit Falls Sanctuary at 10:30am. I believe you will gain a greater understanding of what this means in the lives we are living now.

Turning Lemons into Lemonade! 

We’re starting a new series of messages on the Book of Revelation.  I love that book and everyone in society wants to talk about it; and that is great.  Sometimes though, it can become defeatist - almost like some Christians are hoping that plagues, famines, earthquakes, storms, and persecution are going to hit everyone they don’t like.

In reality Revelation is a book for more than just the end times.  It’s to be read throughout history right up to the end times.  Anti-Christs' (yes, it’s sometimes used in the plural) have been around throughout history: Nero, Napoleon, Hitler, Stalin, etc., and yes, Elijah’s have appeared on the scene including John the Baptist, St. Francis, Martin Luther, John Wesley, Billy Sunday and Billy Graham.

There is a lot of good news in the Book of Revelation. This week’s message is Don’t Lose Your First Love, Ephesus - Turning Lemons into Lemonade. There will be a picnic right after worship. Included are a Lemonade Contest, Grilled Barbecue Chicken and Roasted Corn on the Cob. Please bring Potluck Side Dishes or Desserts to share. There will be a Lemon Toss Contest, Lemon Relays and a whole bunch of more fun lemon games.

Join us Sunday online (via You Tube, Facebook Live or Church Apps) or in person at 10:30 AM

Your friends for the rest of our lives,
Tim and Jackie White