What Matters Most

Hello friends - 

If your weekend plans include worship at Sherwood Park Alliance, we’re meeting at 7 pm Saturday and 10 am Sunday, online and in person. These gatherings will feature communion, so if you’re participating remotely, try to have some elements ready so you can make your experience more meaningful. I’ll also be wrapping up a short teaching series on P̶e̶r̶f̶e̶c̶t̶ Purposeful Parenting, with a challenge about defining true north for you and your family.

And while I’ve got you, a quick plug about something I talk about too little - membership. Sure, formal membership in a church is a bit of a human construct. Biblically, it’s more implied than mandated. You can worship, serve, give, and find rich community in our church without being a member. Yet, there’s good reasons for formal membership.

Sharad Yadav is a pastor from Portland, and a couple years ago he posted some reasons for formally joining a local congregation. Among them: 

1. To join a church is to commit to a social circle you do not get to choose and can therefore show whether your spirituality is genuine.
2. Joining a church is a way of practicing what you’d like the world to be like.
3. To join a church is to rebel against consumer desires being the centre of your world.
4. Joining a church is a way to organize your life around a time to confess limitations and imperfections so you get used to receiving divine forgiveness and hope in response to your honesty.
5. To join a church is to resist all traditional loyalties to party, culture, family, or affinity in an act of loyalty to a group that transcends all natural categories.
6. Joining a church is a life lesson in how to deal with difficult people without retaliating, dehumanizing, or running away.

Got you thinking?

Please consider joining me for 60 minutes on the evening of Wednesday, October 12. I’ll describe more about why membership matters and what it looks like to take this step. And to make it easy, it’ll all be online via Zoom. I promise to wrap things up on time so you won’t miss the puck drop on opening night for the Oilers (8 pm start vs. Vancouver). Click here to learn more and to register!

Greg Hochhalter | Lead Pastor

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We Care Food Drive

As the Thanksgiving season approaches, one way to engage in giving is by participating in our WeCare Food Drive. Starting this weekend, in the atrium, we will be collecting items for our We Care Ministry. We have a team that meets each Sunday in a parking lot downtown and provides bagged lunches and donated clothes to people who are in need or may be experiencing homelessness.. The love and word of Jesus are shared. We are looking for non perishable food items - please see here for more information. 

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Clothing Exchange

Bring what you've outgrown and take what you need! On October 15th we will be hosting our Clothing Exchange event! This is a big event we hold to serve our church and surrounding community. Put clothing or household items aside that would like to donate or plan to come and maybe find some items you are needing! You don't have to donate to attend.

Items can be dropped off starting at 4pm on October 14 through 11am on October 15th.

• All clothing must be washed and clean.

• Items accepting: Men, women and children's clothing, footwear, belts, purses, small household items, small children's toys, and books

• Items not accepted: Car seats, sports equipment, helmets, furniture, damaged goods

We are looking for volunteers to help run this event - please see here for more information

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Groups and Events

We are in full swing of this ministry season and there are a multitude of ways to get plugged in, connect and grow. There are many different groups you can join, to find connection and community!  

This week we have 2 new courses starting up:

• The New Identity: Who I Am and Why I Am Here?

• The Sanctuary Course. A course about mental health and faith.