I’m with the DJ | follow up from worship this morning

Updated links to sign up for my book study

Several folks mentioned at church this morning that the link to sign up for my zoom study wasn’t working. I’ve created a new signup form. If you experience any issues, please email me. My plan is to have sign ups through the first week of May. Then, I’ll email folks who signed up with a few options that works best us all to have a weekly study. The online study will be based off of Amy Jill-Levine’s book “The Difficult Words of Jesus: A beginners guide to His most perplexing teachings”. If you are interested in joining this study, will you please use this updated sign up?

Native American Ministries Sunday

I’m remiss that I failed to acknowledge that today is Native American Ministries Sunday. From their website you can read “What is Native American Ministries Sunday?

Native American Ministries Sunday serves to remind United Methodists of the gifts and contributions made by Native Americans to our society. A gap in knowledge exists in The United Methodist Church, in congregations and other United Methodist entities, relative to comprehending concepts of Native American life, cultures, languages, spirit, values, contemporary issues, and such. We affirm the sacredness of American Indian people, their languages, cultures, and gifts to the church and the world.

An offering is taken on this Special Sunday to support vital ministries and churches in the Native American communities and allow The United Methodist Church to partner with existing native ministries to develop new programs on behalf of Native Americans.”

To learn more or to give please use this link.

Book recommendations from my sermon today

I mentioned this during my sermon today. “My friend and colleague Jeremy Smith has an excellent blog https://hackingchristianity.net . One of his posts from years ago is fantastic in the ways he explains the varieties of atonement theologies. Here’s the link if you are interested in reading more. There are many theologians and scholars who have written excellent works about the significance of the Jesus death and ressurection. Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan wrote “the Last Week, What the Gospels really teach about Jesus Final Days in Jerusalem”. Rita Nakashima Brock and Rebecca Ann Parker wrote an excellent book “Proverbs of Ashes : Violence, Redemptive Suffering, and the Search for What Saves Us” also. “

I'm with the DJ

Friends and families of Federal Way United Methodist Church,

I pray that you an your loved ones are well and staying warm right now. It’s been such a joy to worship alongside you these past few weeks.

Deepening your discipleship

Spoiler alert: if you are reading this, there’s a chance I’m going to share some of these same thoughts during my sermon. Something that’s been on my heart lately is the different ways we, as the Church teach and preach about atonement. My friend and colleague Jeremy Smith has an excellent blog https://hackingchristianity.net . One of his posts from years ago is fantastic in the ways he explains the varieties of atonement theologies. Here’s the link if you are interested in reading more. There are many theologians and scholars who have written excellent works about the significance of the Jesus death and ressurection. Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan wrote “the Last Week, What the Gospels really teach about Jesus Final Days in Jerusalem”. Rita Nakashima Brock and Rebecca Ann Parker wrote an excellent book “Proverbs of Ashes : Violence, Redemptive Suffering, and the Search for What Saves Us” also.

I share all of these resources with you because my hope and prayer for our church is that we study, learn and reflect on some of the key pieces of theology that make up the Christian faith as we know it. Recently I mentioned that I plan on offering an online study based off of Amy Jill-Levine’s book “The Difficult Words of Jesus: A beginners guide to His most perplexing teachings”. If you are interested in joining this study, will you please use this update sign up?

This Sunday

This Sunday, we will also be hosting our next membership class after the church service. It’s a great time to spend time together as I share more about the history of our church and the United Methodist Church. In that time, we will also talk about ways for you to connect to our community as well as opportunities to deepen your faith.

Coming up

Jars for Jamaa Letu is a way to support the two orphanages in the Congo which our church helps fund.  The money goes to support the operating expenses, including food, shelter, clothing, school fees, medical care and salaries for the staff.

A colorful label for JARS will be available this Sunday.  Tape it to your own jar and collect cash from now until mid-June.  Or, make a donation in the offering plate or on the website.

I’m with the DJ

Church friends and families,

What a wonderful service we had this morning in person and online. I’m including a few pictures from todays fair after the service. We also had the privilege of hosting South King Tool Library’s Executive Director Amanda. I’m including a link to their website here. Their service for South King county is wonderful.

Also, as I mentioned during announcements this morning, you will be receiving an email asking if you want to confirm subscription to my weekly e-note. If you would like to receive them via email, please click the link in the next email.

I’m with the DJ | 4.14.23

Hello church families and friends,

I hope that you are having a blessed week. In the liturgical world, we shift our attention to the life and ministry of Jesus after he resurrected. This weekend, we will have a special guest preacher. District Superintendent Revered Derek Nakano will be preaching on the text from John 20:19-31. It’s an interesting and well known passage about Jesus interaction with the disciples after he rose again.

Did you know that we have a LinkedIn account? We would love to connect with you, you can find us by searching Federal Way United Methodist Church. My hope is that it can be a place to encourage one another, share job opportunities and for support. You can also use this link.

On April 23rd, we will also be hosting our next membership class after the church service. It’s a great time to spend time together as I share more about the history of our church and the United Methodist Church. In that time, we will also talk about ways for you to connect to our community as well as opportunities to deepen your faith. In addition, we will begin a new sermon series on 1 Peter. I’m copying the Scripture texts for the next two Sundays.

April 16th - John 20:19-31

April 23rd - Luke 24:13-35

I look forward to seeing you all soon!

Pastor DJ

I’m with the DJ | 4.7.23

Church friends and families,

Can you believe that Easter is a few days away? Tonight, at 7pm we will have our Good Friday service at the church. We will be live-streaming this service as well. Rev. Bruce Reyes Chow described Good Friday this way…”Our Good Friday service rests in the belief that in places of sorrow, lament, and grief we meet God differently. In our culture of conflict avoidance, we too often rush through these moments, touching down as lightly as possible as we reach out for the new life offered on Easter Sunday. In doing so, we do not give ourselves a chance to meet the God who sits with us in our sorrow. With this in mind, central to this service is creating a space where people can gather around the cross with as much vulnerability as possible in silence and in sorrow.”

I hope you take the time to join us tonight. The power and meaning of Easter is greatly enhanced when we honor the days of Holy Week. On Easter morning, we will be offering communion during both of our services this Sunday morning. Starting at 7am, we will gather by Star Lake at the Mayer house (email office@fwumc.org for their address). It’ll be a 30 minute service where we celebrate the sacrament of communion, sing songs together and I’ll share a shorter homily as the sun rises and warms us all. Be sure to bring an umbrella and a chair to be ready for any weather we might encounter.

During our 10am service, we will celebrate together! We will dig up the Hallelujah banner that was buried at the start of Lent. In addition, there will be amazing music, we will listen to the story of Jesus resurrection from the eye witness account of the Gospel of John and of course we will celebrate Holy Communion together. Something worth noting is that our furnaces aren’t working 100%, so if you tend to get a little cold, bless dress accordingly.

In addition, here’s a chance for you to join our online poll for church this Sunday. Click here to respond to our poll. I’ll share the results on Sunday.

This weekend is a perfect weekend to invite friends and family members as we celebrate the joy and love found in Jesus. See you soon!

I’m with the DJ | 3.31.23

Church friends and families,

Holy Week is just days away! As you can see with the graphics and videos below, your church has lots of exciting opportunities to connect. All our services will be available in person and online with the exception of our sunrise Easter service. You’ve probably heard me say it, but the sunrise service on Easter is one of my favorite services of the year. I’m really looking forward to worshipping with you at the Mayer house on the edge of Star Lake. I imagine it to be beautiful and sacred.

The Scripture for Palm Sunday will be Matthew 21:1-11 and for Easter Sunday we will be focusing on John 20:1-18. These passages of Scripture are powerful and worth your time to read.

I’m with the DJ | 3.24.23

Church friends and family,

I pray that you are enjoying the sacredness and joy of Lent this season. This weekend, we are entering the fifth Sunday of Lent. I’ll be preaching on John 11. As always, I want to encourage you to read the whole chapter aloud. Readings aloud is similar to the way the early house churches shared Scriptural letters from one faith community to another.

For bonus points, you can also read Ezekiel 37:1-14. For both passages of the Bible, you can learn more by reading Sanctified Art’s daily devotional. If you don’t have a copy, feel free to reach out to the church office office@fwumc.org.

Here are some ways to stay connected with our faith community…

Clothes Donations

Meredith Hill Elementary is in need of extra

children's socks, underwear and sweatpants for

their health room In case of accidents. There will be a box in the gathering place where you can place your donations.

Thanks for supporting our students in need!

Soup suppers

During Lent, we have soup suppers and a program. The last one this year is on Thursday, March 30. Please join in for dinner and conversation during the last 2 opportunities of this year.

Tomorrow, the first of two services will be held honoring the life of Jan Crews. This first one will be held in Arizona and a livestream is available. The second will be hosted by our church on June 17th.
Please find the livestream link for this Saturday's service below.
vimeo.com/event/3187984/d09db27a62

Below, I’m sharing Hannah Garrity’s artwork and her statement she released with it.

Holy Week invitation

unbind him

by Hannah Garrity

Inspired by John 11:1-45

Paper lace over oil paint on linen

As I met with this text, I was drawn to Jesus’ call for Lazarus to be unbound. To represent the fabrics used in preparation for burial, I wrapped a canvas in linen. You’re not really supposed to do that. The canvas was already stretched and gessoed. It was ready to resist the oil paint medium I was applying. However, the texture of the binding cloth matters for this tactile text. I began to scrape the paint onto the woven strands. The linen fabric absorbed the paint as I scraped it on with a palette knife. In the final image, the linen shows through the paint and the paper lace design, representing the bindings.

Jesus’ call for unbinding also includes the community. The foreshortened hands of the community, tasked with unbinding his body, reach in toward Lazarus. They reach through the concentric binding lines so that he can go free. Can these bones live?

In the strength of community, they can. The community made up of Jews, Gentiles, Samaritans, and others all joined one another at the tomb to grieve for Lazarus that day. They came to support Mary and Martha. Jesus arrives as the community mourns together. Jesus cries in his grief. Their collective tears create the backdrop for this paper lace design. This diverse and neighborly community is who Jesus calls on to do the unbinding. Jesus makes sure that the community knows about this miracle so that they can share

the news. Can these bones live? Lazarus lives, and Jesus’ miracle lives on in the telling.

—Hannah Garrity

I’m with the DJ | 3.15.23

May the Peace of Christ be with you,

I pray that you are experiencing the sacred joy of this Lenten season. This week, we will study the Gospel of John 9:1-7. Please remember to take a look at your Lenten devotional booklet. It’s a really helpful way to stay calibrated with the Scriptures.

As always, our weekly Soup Supper Lenten study will be happening this Thursday at 6pm. It’s a great way to connect with our faith community this season. Just a heads up, starting next week, I’ll be moving the release of my weekly e-note from Wednesday’s to Friday’s.

Below, I’m including an artist statement from Sanctified Art.

son, rise

by T. Denise Anderson Inspired by John 9: 1-7 Oil on canvas

Jesus’ community saw this man’s blindness as a curse or a punishment for sin (either his parents’ sin or his own). While it is true that blindness comes with challenges in a world made for sightedness, it is important that we do not problematize blindness in preaching and teaching this story the way they did. What happened here was an apocalypse—a revelation of the nature of Jesus and the heart and mind of God. That revelation challenged the epistemologies of the community, and it is the ones in the story who’d been sighted all along who were ironically unable to perceive what God was doing.

Jesus said that he “must work the works of him who sent me while it is day” (John 9:4). Daybreak is also an apocalypse of sorts; it reveals what we couldn’t readily see at night and allows us to perceive the work in front of us. In my portrait, I’ve lit this man’s face as if the earth and the sun’s light are moving slowly across the surface, signaling the

dawn of a new day. His eyes remain closed in my portrait because, for me, his newfound sightedness is not the miracle or the most important part of this story. What’s most important is the revelation of who Jesus is. Jesus has been revealed to this man in a way that even the witnesses around him could not comprehend. His encounter with Jesus raises him to a new life and offers the whole community a new understanding of God’s works. It’s a new day for everyone, though that proves to be a difficult gift to receive.

—Rev. Denise Anderson

Special invitation to Federal Way UMC’s Sunrise service

I’m with the DJ | 3.6.23

Hello church friends and families,

Welcome to the 3rd week of Lent. Thank you to the many who joined us for the sacrament of communion yesterday. This weekend we continue our seeking journey by studying John 4:5-20. If you haven’t started using Sanctified Art’s daily devotional, please grab your free copy at our church office or reach out to our admin’s via email office@fwumc.org.

If you would like to watch our latest church service, click here.

Please remember that will continue our Soup Suppers every Thursday night starting at 6pm at the church. This is a great way to connect with old friends, make new ones and engage your faith in community.

Below, I’m including some poetry from our friends at Sanctified Arts. It’s worth reading aloud.

THE THIRD SUNDAY IN LENT

seeking: Will you give me a drink?

blackout poetry

Below is a creative retelling of John 4:6-15, written by Rev. Anna Strickland. As you read the story, use a black marker or pen to underline or circle the words and phrases that speak to you. Then, blackout the rest of the words on the page. From the words that remain, you may find that a new message, poem, or image emerges. Visit this link to view examples of blackout poetry: pinterest.com/sanctifiedart/ blackout-poetry-ideas

Around noon, a Samaritan woman came to the well to get some water. Jesus asked her for a drink of water, which surprised her. She asked, “Why are you, a Jewish man, asking me for a drink? Don’t you know that I am a Samaritan?” Jesus responded, “If you knew who I am, you would be asking me for living water.” The Samaritan woman was confused. She said, “You don’t have a bucket, and the well is too deep to get water without one. Where are you going to get this living water? This is the best well around—our ancestor Jacob drank from it himself!” But Jesus wasn’t talking about that kind of water. He said, “Everyone who drinks the water from this well will get thirsty again. But the water I have to give is like a spring that never runs out, so anyone who drinks it will never be thirsty again.” The Samaritan woman asked Jesus, “Please give me this water so I never have to come back to the well to get water!”

I’m with the DJ | 2.27.23

Church friends and families,

As we wade into this season of Lent together. I’m particularly grateful for our friends at Sanctified Art. Their artists and theologians do a masterful job curating this Lenten season so we may experience the Holy Spirit. If you haven’t picked up the daily devotion we are offering, please drop by the church office or email Sharon office@fwumc.org

I want to encourage you to join me in these daily devotions so we may focus our time and energies on the activity of the Holy one. This Sunday, we will dive deeper into the second week of Lent by studying John 3:1-7. For bonus points, read Genesis 12:1-4a as well. Both texts speak to the heart of our calling to seek in this sacred season. This Thursday, we will also continue our Lenten Soup Suppers at church at 6pm.

I’m including some poetry from our friends at Sanctified Art. It’s a lovely reading that’s worth reading aloud.

THE SECOND SUNDAY IN LENT

seeking: How do we begin again?

how do we begin again?

Do we slide into something new?

Do we make a formal announcement? Dearest reader,

I have decided to begin again. Do we turn gradually, a gentle yield in a new direction; or like a wave,

do we crash onto the shore of a new day?

Do we grieve the change? Are there breadcrumbs on the path? Will Nicodemus be there?

Will it ever be easy?

I’m not sure exactly how we begin again,

but I know that moths wrap themselves in silk,

and after quite some time,

after many long nights,

after days spent alone,

they break out of their shell.

They pull themselves out under open sky,

and they spend the rest of their days chasing the light.

Maybe it’s always that way with beginnings.

Maybe it feels like the protective layer falling away.

Maybe we have to go it alone at first.

Maybe it feels like pulling and dragging yourself into something new. Maybe there’s always open sky at the other end.

I’m with the DJ | 2.22.23

Come join us for the start of Lent as it begins tonight during our Ash Wednesday service at 7pm. Our series this Lenten season is entitled “Seeking”. We will begin tonight with the imposition of Ashes. We will continue worship this Sunday by studying Matthew 4.