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Pay Special Attention to Green!
In today's eNewsletter, new and updated items are outlined in green (like this one!) to make it easier to find the latest information. Check out what's brand new this week at BCC by closely reading all of the green items.
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A Note From Pastor Dan & Beth Stockum
Over the past 5 months, we've heard the reference more times than we can count, and we've said it ourselves a time or two. Sheltering in place feels like Groundhog Day. If you haven't seen the movie, Bill Murray's character gets stuck living the same day over and over again in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Every morning when he wakes up, it's the same song on the radio, he has the same job to do, and nothing--not even the slightest detail--ever changes.
With no way out of the repetition, the main character fumbles through a range of reactions from confusion, to anger, to despair, to the worst kinds of greed and selfishness. However, after finding deadends down all those roads, he eventually begins making every effort to help others instead of thinking only of himself. By doing so, of course, he not only finds the happiness which had eluded him, but a way out of his deja vu dungeon. What Bill Murray's character discovered should be no surprise to Christians. The more we focus on ourselves, the less fulfilled we actually are. The more we focus on others, the more purpose and contentment we will experience. As Paul wrote, "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others." (Phil 2:3-4). Here's what that might look like for us today. When we're out taking walks (because what else can we do?), we could pray for the houses we pass. We can ask God to give us open doors into people's lives. When we see a neighbor we know, we could start a conversation and ask, "How are you doing with all of this?" We could add, "Because this hasn't been easy for us [insert some personal stories of frustration here], so we want to be encouraging to others in whatever way we can. Is there maybe a way we could pray for you?" Instead of only wondering how we can make ourselves feel better, which leads back to that dungeon of repetition, if we reorient our focus outward and give ourselves a mission in our neighborhood, we will actually find a bit of the life and purpose we've been missing. Seeking that breath of fresh purpose with you, Dan and Beth
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God Hears and Answers Prayer
Every Wednesday since March 18, we as a church family have joined with other churches in the Bay Area to come before God's throne of grace in prayer and fasting, to find mercy and help in the midst of this pandemic. If you have not yet united your hearts with other believers here in the Bay Area on Wednesdays in prayer, we invite you to join us. And would you also join us in fasting from food as well as from the media stream of information and your social media feeds until dinner, as you seek God's intervention? We believe one of the best things we can do in times of trouble is pray alone and with others. So we invite you to join our Zoom Video Corporate Prayer time every Wednesday at noon, led by Pastor Dave. A couple minutes before noon, simply click HERE to join this very special time of prayer. Or for more information contact [email protected].
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In place of our regular on-campus worship services, on Sunday mornings simply click HERE and it will lead you to our online ministries. You will find our current worship service (a time of worship through song and a message from one of our teaching pastors) along with links to other resources for you and your family.
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Dial In and Listen to Our Sunday Worship Service on Your Phone
That's right: If you or someone you know is not able to connect online to our worship services, you can now hear our entire worship service (music included) by way of telephone. On Sundays after 9:00AM, simply call 650-209-7367 and you will hear that Sunday's worship service. The service will be available at that number all week. Then the following Sunday the new worship service will replace the previous Sunday's recording. In the words of John Atwell, our telephone worship service connection is "worth listening to and in this difficult time it keeps us connected." That's music to our ears!
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Online K-5 Sunday School!
Children's Director Alba Kellejian will be making weekly videos and lessons for remote Sunday School for our Kindergarten through grade 5 kids, as well as family devotions and more. You can find them HERE!
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Join us for Coffee with a Pastor
Check out Coffee with a Pastor on Zoom on Sundays at 3:00PM, where people can chat with one of our BCC pastors, ask questions, and enjoy a special time of connectedness. Please pray that this opportunity would be meaningful and enable an additional time of ministry each week. Encourage and invite friends to join who are newer members of our church body! For info on how to access this Zoom meeting, email [email protected].
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How We're Staying Connected
In this strange time of minimal social interaction, we are finding so many ways to stay connected to one another online. Some BCC Life Groups are now meeting regularly by Zoom, an online video conferencing tool. Whether you use Zoom, Apple FaceTime, Google Hangouts, or make a 3-way conference call on your landline, there are lots of ways to keep in touch with one another and to continue the great connections that usually happen at church on Sunday mornings. For links to these tools, check out connectbcc.org/stayconnected.
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Some of our BCC Life Groups and ministries are using Zoom, an online video conferencing tool. Here are the groups meeting regularly (so far!):
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ZOOM GROUP
| Group Leader | Email | Meeting Time | Deeper Roots
| Dave Stenfort
| [email protected]
| Sun, 9:00am
| | Eagles Wings | Fritz Mueller | [email protected] | Sun, 9:00am | |
AIM (Adventures in Marriage)
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Dan Stockum
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Sun, 10:00am
| Common Need
| Mark Chen
| [email protected]
| Sun, 10:45am
| | Alpha Kara |
Al Kruger
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Sun, 11:00am
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Common Ground
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Pat Rossler
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| Sun, 11:00am | |
Mariners
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Mel Rosowski
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Sun, 11:00am
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Reflections
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Laura Rodolari
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Sun, 11:00am
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GriefShare
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Charlie Mason
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| Mon, 6:30pm | |
Book Discussion
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Steve Durand
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Mon, 8:00pm
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Young Adults
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Dan Stockum
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Tues, 8:00pm
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Men's Bible Study
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Bob Maldewin
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| Wed., 9:00am | Prayer Gathering
| Dave Gudgel
| [email protected]
| Wed, 12:00pm
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High School Ministry
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Dave Kellejian
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Wed, 7:30pm
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College
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Dan Stockum
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Fri, 3:00pm
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Global Intercessors
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Mel Rosowski
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2nd Tues./month
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Mel's Missional Community
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Mel Rosowski
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3rd Mon./month
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We thank God that Zoom is already giving us a way to keep our groups connected, and we want to help your group do that as well! If you'd like to be in one of our Zoom Life Groups, please contact the leader listed above. If you want help setting up a Zoom connections group of any kind, email [email protected].
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Connect with Us on Facebook
Are you following the BCC groups you're a part of on Facebook? Especially now, this is oftentimes the best way to stay connected to your group and get the most up-to-date information from them. Here are a few:
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Are You Receiving Our Informative Emails?
Every week, especially now as we continue to "shelter-in-place," we are communicating important happenings to our Bridges family by way of email. On Tuesdays we send an eNewsletter (which you're reading right now); on Fridays we send a Friday Video Roundup (from Pastor Dave); and on Saturdays we send a Weekend Watch to recap what's going on in the BCC community. If you're not yet getting these weekly updates, you can get on the list by signing up HERE.
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If you have a prayer request that you would like our staff to pray over, please email it to: [email protected].
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Your God-Given S.H.A.P.E. -- Save the Date
If you'd like help knowing or confirming your unique design, mark your calendar for Thurs., Sept. 3. That night at 7:30PM, Pastor Dave will begin a 5-week Zoom course that will give you the insights you need to better understand the person God created you to be, and to help you make the best use of your time. For more information or to sign up for this course, contact Kelsey at [email protected].
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Congratulations to Nora & AJ Beamon for the birth of their daughter, Rachel Anne! Rachel was born on July 12 at 8:01AM, weighing 7 lbs. 9 oz. and measuring 20 inches long. She is welcomed by proud big sister Hannah!
Congratulations to Charlotte Wylie & Claude Mandy for the birth of their daughter, Isla Grace! Isla was born on July 30 at 12:37PM, weighing 8 lbs. 7 oz. and measuring 53.5 centimeters long. She is welcomed by proud big brother Finn!
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Hume Lake Christian Camp Needs Our Help
Update: Hume Lake has now raised a little over $2 million of the $6 million they are hoping to raise this summer. They still have a long way to go, so please consider making a donation in support of this incredible ministry that has blessed our BCC families for so many years.
We have the opportunity to be part of the solution to a unique issue facing Hume Lake Christian Camps this summer. For the first time in 74 years, Hume has had to cancel ALL of their summer camps. Summer camps are the model for all that is Hume, and two-thirds of their annual budget is brought in during the 10 weeks of summer in which they host 2,000 students per week. You can easily see how having NO students at camp this year will have a serious impact on them financially. For 10 years, BCC has sent a group of students to Hume Lake for a week each summer. Those of us in Student Ministries have had a front-row seat to the positive things God has done in our students' lives. Please join us as we pray for Hume, that they will be able to weather this financial storm, and pray for the many students who had planned to attend camp this summer, that God would bless them in a special way despite it looking different from what they had expected. BCC is sending a donation to Hume through our Benevolence Fund. If you can help by sending a personal donation as well, it would be such a blessing to them and would help ensure that more students will have life-changing experiences at Hume in the future. You can donate online to the Hume Relief Fund by going to hume.org/give. Thank you for considering this!
- BCC Student Ministries Team
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Are You Inviting Others to Join Us?
This is a great time for you to invite others -- especially those who don't normally attend church -- to join us for one of our online services. This is the most nonthreatening way for them to attend one of our Bridges services that they will ever have! You can direct them to our church webpage in a phone call or through an email or text, or you can simply click the Facebook or Twitter logos found on the "This Week's Sermon" page found HERE. Or, you can click the brown LIKE & SHARE button located HERE. This button will take you to our Bridges Community Church Facebook page where you can like and share a worship service with others.
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Use YouVersion Live This Sunday
"YouVersion Bible" is a free app available on most smart phones and mobile devices. Each week, we upload our sermon notes and Scriptures to YouVersion for you to use to connect more deeply with the day's Bible verses and message. You can download the app from the App Store or wherever applications for your device are available.
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Did You Miss Last Sunday's Sermon?
Did you miss this past Sunday's sermon? Click to watch August 9: "The Final Showdown" by Pastor Steve Durand. All past Sunday sermons are available on our BCC website's Sermons page.
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We thank God for your faithful giving to the Lord through the ministries of Bridges Community Church. Your ongoing sacrificial gifts, especially in this time of hardship, are not only a testimony of your trust in our God to provide, they also express your commitment to the good work that God continues to do locally and globally through the ministries and ministers that Bridges supports. We as a church family express our sincere thanks. If you're not giving online yet, but would like to, you can do so HERE. If you'd like a little help in getting started, check out our "Giving Online" video HERE. Or if you'd like help from one of our staff members, please send an email to: [email protected]. And as always, if you prefer to give by check, our church address is: 625 Magdalena Avenue, Los Altos, CA 94024.
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As of this past Sunday, 8/9/2020, these are our current year-to-date giving figures: Actual is $1,671,255; budgeted is $1,718,426; shortfall is $47,171. We are now 2.7% below General Fund budgeted contributions for the church year, which runs Sept. 1 - Aug. 31.
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Future Hope
Speaker: Pastor Dave Gudgel
Message Title: Thy Kingdom Come
Scripture Focus: Revelation 20:4-6
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It's the time of year when teachers, parents, and students are thinking about the coming school year. And with the start of school just hours away, last minute preparations are a must. But with uncertainty in the air, knowing what preparations to make are somewhat of a guess -- at best.
Blame it on COVID. No one -- not Dr. Fauci, Governor Newsom, teachers, or anyone -- can tell you for sure what's ahead. So everyone is doing their best to prepare for "who knows what." It's a strange way to live.
Fortunately, we don't have to live with uncertainty about God's coming Kingdom. And the certainties of what's ahead can lift our spirits and energize our efforts in today's difficult times. |
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Although the BCC office is closed, let's not allow this to stand between the staff helping in whatever ways we can. Our pastors and staff are just a phone call or email away. If you call the office at 650-948-5698, one of our staff or pastors will get back to you as soon as possible. Or you can send a general email to [email protected].
Since we will not be in the office to receive your offerings, please give online HERE or send your donations by mail to: 625 Magdalena Ave, Los Altos, CA 94024.
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If you've lost a spouse, child, family member, or friend, you've probably found there are not many people who understand the deep hurt you feel. BCC invites you to join our GriefShare group to help you face these challenges and move toward rebuilding your life. We will meet online via Zoom on Monday nights, Aug. 17 - Nov. 9, 6:30-8:00PM. For details and to register, visit griefshare.org/groups/123668. Cost is $20 for the workbook. Questions? Email Charlie Mason: [email protected].
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We will be offering a weekly DivorceCare group to help anyone work through the emotional pain of separation or divorce. All are welcome to come and have a supportive team walk alongside you, regardless of where you are in the process. We will meet online via Zoom on Thursday nights, Aug. 20 - Nov. 12, 6:30-8:30PM. For details and registration, visit connectbcc.org/divorcecare.
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Messages went out to church members recently, asking for affirmation of 1) a new BCC Elder, Todd Kjos, and 2) Financial Secretary, Jackie Ogdon. Please reply to the message no later than September 3. For those who do not have email, letters went out as well. If you are a member of Bridges Community Church and did not receive the message, please contact Evelyn Sigg ([email protected]). We would like to thank this year's leadership Nominating Team: Stan Egger, Michael Rivers, Marjie Fischer, Anna Lee, Sujana Panthulu, and Sarah Aubuchon.
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We recently completed Phase 2 of our campus security project that was begun a couple of years ago. In Phase 1, most doors on campus were armed with access control units that require key fobs to activate. In Phase 2, doors that previously used a mechanical "master key" were rekeyed. Completing these two phases ensures greater security of our campus buildings. If you need access to any of our buildings on an ongoing basis, please contact Evelyn Sigg at [email protected] to request a key fob.
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Housing Needed for New LACS Teacher
A new teacher will be moving to the Bay Area to join the LACS staff and is looking for an accommodation to rent. The new teacher and her husband (age 40's-50's) are looking for a 2-bedroom condo/apartment/house in the Redwood City area. They are available to move in on August 1. If you have a rental property that is available, please email [email protected].
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Our Daily Bread Devotionals
Our Daily Bread devotionals for June-August 2020 may be picked up at BCC. We apologize that these are late for distribution. They will be available in a box in front of the Worship Center. Please contact Evelyn Sigg ([email protected]) if you have any questions or if you cannot get to the church and would like to have a devotional delivered to your home.You can also read the daily devotions online: odb.org. Click on the READ NOW button under "Today's Devotional."
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Our Fellowship Patio is Available for Use
If you would like to gather with a group of up to 25 people on our BCC patio, you are welcome to do that. Before you do, please contact Evelyn Sigg, who can get you set up with a time and also go over the necessary health and safety requirements: [email protected].
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Many in the BCC church family have donated items for the BCC Pantry. Here are some of the items we have on hand: toilet paper, paper towels, soap, disposable gloves, face masks, and disinfectant sprays. The pantry was initially set up to help our seniors, but the supply has outpaced the need. If you or someone you know has a need for the items listed, please let Sujana Panthulu ([email protected]) or Mark Liu ([email protected]) know and we can share these items with you. The Pantry is open by appointment only, so please contact Sujana or Mark first.
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How can we help you? We want anyone who needs help to get it -- picking up groceries, setting up tech tools or equipment, running errands, etc. We have a team of people who are ready and willing to help. Just let us know your need, and we will make sure you're taken care of. Please click HERE to let us know what you need.
If you're able and willing to help others during this time, especially those who cannot leave their homes, please click HERE.
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We are working on producing a new church directory, which will be available sometime in the next couple of months. Emails have started going out to our church family regarding what we plan to publish based on our records, and we are gathering updates and photos in return. We are still sending out emails so if you haven't received a message yet, please be patient as we complete this task. Each household will be given a chance to give or deny consent to publish its info. Be sure to send in a photo -- it will help to put a face to a name. If you have questions, contact [email protected].
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625 Magdalena Ave.
Los Altos, CA 94024
Ph: 650.948.5698 Fax: 650.949.6052
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