2023 March Tapestry

The First Baptist Church of Redlands

TAPESTRY

Freeing Jesus

We have entered Lent as a season in our spiritual lives and in our church life. N.T. Wright said:

Lent is a time for discipline, for confession, for honesty, not because God is mean or fault-finding or finger-pointing but because he wants us to know the joy of being cleaned out, ready for all the good things he now has in store.

As we journey toward Easter, we allow ourselves to open ourselves up more and more so that when Easter gets here, we have made space for the impact of the Resurrection—our need for it, the power of it in our daily lives.

This season we are using as a template for drawing near to Jesus in this time, a book by Diana Butler Bass called, Freeing Jesus: Rediscovering Jesus as Friend, Teacher, Savior, Lord, Way, and Presence. Each week we will focus on one facet of our relationship with Jesus. We will do this in worship, in our gatherings on Wednesday nights and in daily meditations that will be available online and in print. In addition, we will have the opportunity to meet with Diana Butler Bass over Zoom when she will share with us more from “Freeing Jesus” and she will answer questions (Wednesday, March 29, 5:30 PM). We will also have a group that will discuss the book on four Monday nights on Zoom.

We will begin the season with an Ash Wednesday Service, at 5:30 PM on February 22, in the Chapel. We will be led by our young people in this time of reflection. The season will culminate with worship services during Holy Week on Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter.

As we explore these facets of our relationship with Jesus, in some ways we may be rediscovering or even reclaiming ways in which we connect with Jesus. We may discover a love for Jesus that we didn’t know, or that we forgot, we had. As each of us takes this time to get to know Jesus in a deeper way we will be strengthened, individually and corporately. We may even discover a new sense of vision or a fresh look at life.

May this be a time when each of us gains a new perspective on who Jesus is. May we draw closer to Jesus and get to know him better in fresh and powerful ways. May this time of reflection, rediscovery and reclaiming be one in which our church is empowered to do and be a community of followers of Jesus, making a difference in the world for Good.

Grace and Peace in Christ, Pastor Shawn

“ For God, who said, ‘Let there be light in the darkness,’ has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.”

A Message from Pastor Shawn

COVER

1 A Message from Pastor Shawn: “ Freeing Jesus ”

2 Staff and Contents

MINISTRY

3 Sara Swift Tharpe: “Freeing Jesus: A Journey to Easter”

4 Sara Swift Tharpe: “Children Ministry Special Events”

5 Glenn Molina: Scales”

6 Rhiannon Fisher: “Winter Camp”

STAFF

Rev. Dr. Shawn Zambrows

Senior Pastor

Glenn Molina

Associate Pastor of Arts in Worship and Community Life

Sara Swift Tharpe

Associate Pastor of Spiritual Formation and Community Life

Angel Florence

Church Administrator

Stephen Stark

Senior Maintenance Custodian

MISSION

7 Worldwide Prayer Concerns: Turkey/Syria Earthquake, Worldwide

8 Kay Kallander: “Gregory Gifts Report”

10 Gregg Sneller: “Bridges for Mission with Mike and Becky Mann”

FELLOWSHIP

12 Sara Swift Tharpe: “Journey to Easter”

13 “It’s a New Day” Catalina Trip Information

NEWS

14 Church News

11 March Calendar

Sally Rehfeldt Organist

Isa Terrell Communications Specialist

Rhiannon Fisher Youth Director

Abby Kishimoto Children’s Ministry Associate

Jared Sumners Intern for Young Adult Ministry

The Tapestry is published monthly by The First Baptist Church of Redlands, 51 West Olive Avenue, Redlands, CA 92373.

All material for the Tapestry should be typed and emailed no later than the 15th of each month to tapestry@fbcredlands.org.

If you would like to be added or removed from the Tapestry mailing list, please email tapestry@fbcredlands.org. Current and previous Tapestry issues are available in digital format at issuu.com/fbcr.

Office Hours Monday

Freeing Jesus: A Journey to Easter

by Pastor Sara

“I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year, Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown and he replied: Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of GOD, that shall be to you better than a light and safer than a known way.”

From the poem ‘God Only Knows’ by Minnie Louise Haskins

These words are engraved on the wall of St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle in England. “Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God.” Though this sounds dangerous and scary, the promise is that the hand of GOD will be safer, more comforting, brighter than any light. The hand of God that holds us, guides us, stays by our side. This reminds me of my mother’s hands and the mother’s hands that my hands have become. A parent’s hands are strong, tender, firm, yet forgiving. They guide and are trusted implicitly. Even when we drop limp to the ground in anger, confusion, fear, or pure exhaustion, a parent’s hand follows, bracing our fall. This is the hand of God.

I would like to invite each of you on journey this Lenten season. Our theme, Freeing Jesus, by Diana Butler Bass will create the framework for our journey but within that framework we will be inviting you to free yourself, to be open to new ways of experiencing Jesus at work within and around you. It is the Jesus of OUR experience - rooted in our feelings, our knowings, our interactions with the Son of God – that we invite you to explore this Lenten season. We have a Wednesday evening program that offers a variety of ways to experience Jesus, from writing to prayer practices to discussion of the previous week’s sermon. Each Wednesday you may participate in whatever group you feel drawn to, staying with the same group for all four sessions or participating in a new group each week. I encourage you to try something new or return to a practice that may have fallen by the wayside in the busyness of life. What interests you? What is calling you? What scares you? You will also have opportunity on Ash Wednesday, in worship each Sunday, and during Holy Week to put out your hand and be open to where God may lead you to know Jesus more deeply and intimately. Jesus is mystery. There is darkness. There is blinding light. The unknown may be scary and dangerous. What we know with certainty is that we hold the hand of God through it all. God is with us as we travel this journey and beyond. Welcome to our journey to Easter.

Children’s Ministry Special Events

JD Worship

Sunday, February 26th

and continuing every 2nd & 4th Sunday through May (except Easter Sunday, April 9th)

Immediately following a Lenten Children’s Moment (just prior to the sermon), JD’s will be invited to the Lounge for a special worship-full activity.

Thank you to the parents who have already volunteered to help! A volunteer signup will be coming soon.

Kids Night In

Saturday, March 4, 2023

5-8pm

Fellowship Hall

Kids (birth-5th grade), come join us for dinner, games and fun with friends! Parents can do “parent stuff.” Who do you think will have more FUN?!?

RSVP to Sara (email or text) by Wednesday, March 1st

Please include children attending & any food allergies in your RSVP.

Vacation Bible School 2023

July 10-14, 2023

9am-noon (afternoon care will be available)

Mark your calendars for this fun week with Redlands First UMC & Redlands First Presbyterian and be on the lookout for more information coming soon!

Please contact Pastor Sara at sara@fbcredlands.org or 336-354-8194 with questions or for more information.

by Pastor Glenn Scales

My eighth grade year was a mess.

I’m guessing that I’m not alone here in this admission. Most of us remember the challenges that came during our middle school years (it was still called “junior high” when I was a kid), as the transition into adolescence can result in challenging times. I was still a very shy, awkward, and socially inept kid in eighth grade, and I was in the early years of trying to work out what my relationship with God was supposed to look like. I remember a period of several months during that year when I came up with this daily system of reflecting on “how good of a Christian” I had been each day before my evening prayers. (Yes, I was THAT analytical at thirteen years old.) I had a scale from one to ten; starting from ten, I would subtract a point for every incident during the day where I felt I had gone against God’s will. Used a swear word? Deduct one point. Lied to a parent about finishing an assignment? One point. At the end of each day’s assessment, I would start my evening prayer by apologizing to God for my typically low scores.

I remember keeping this regimen up for several months. By the summer after finishing eighth grade, this practice faded away from my evening routine. The guilt of continuously feeling that I had fallen short so regularly had worn me down spiritually and emotionally. I think my newly-adolescent self had good intentions in creating this system, but there was a component that was clearly absent in this process. I remember that I would feel very apologetic and guilty about my shortcomings, but I don’t remember reminding myself about the Grace that God grants. I rarely finished my prayers being grateful to God for his forgiveness, for his mercy, or for his promise that he loves us unconditionally. The epiphany of the wideness and grandness of the Grace of God was to come many years later in my spiritual journey (which is a story for another time).

During Lent, we reflect on Christ’s journey during his final days towards his ultimate sacrifice on the cross. Many of us look at this season as a time to be solemn and humble, reflecting on our finite and imperfect nature and how God worked through his son Jesus to confront sin and darkness once and for all. However, just as Jesus’ death at Calvary on a Friday was not the end of the story, we have the promise and joy that Sunday is coming. We should remember that there are several movements in the symphony that was Jesus’ life journey, and so it is with our own journeys. It IS good for us to reflect on where we have come from, looking at both the celebrations and the challenges. But Christ’s death AND resurrection reminds us that we move forward, thanks to the God that never leaves us or gives up on us, and promises us life, forgiveness, and Grace.

The next time you see a middle schooler, consider giving them a hug and letting them know they are rated and loved with the highest possible score–by God and by us.

Winter Camp

by Rhiannon Fisher

The first time I went to Winter Camp was in 2008. I was eleven years old and more than excited to spend a weekend with my friends in the snow. There were five of us then: Sam Warren, Walker Price, Nick Daniel, Jeffery Kirkpatrick, and me. We spent the weekend attending services, sledding down icy hills, and playing in the basement of the chapel where dozens of wild and exotic taxidermied animals watched over us–ironic, since we were staying at a Seventh-Day-Adventist camp. Some of my fondest memories of being a youth at FBCR are from Winter Camp, and I was so excited to be able to share that joy with the kids in youth today.

During the last weekend of January 2023 we took thirteen kids up to Camp Cedar Crest in Running Springs to join dozens of other youth groups from all around our region. The kids spent time in worship services and in small groups where they discussed the theme of the weekend: What Time Is It, where they discussed where they are in their lives after Covid. They were focusing on Ecclesiastes 3:

The rest of the weekend was spent sledding down slick hills, loading up on carbs in the mess hall, playing ninja outside, and looking for mice in the girl’s cabin (RIP Gremlin, you will be missed). We even gave them some disposable cameras to take pictures with (a relic from the past, I know, and yes, they were confused), which was so fun to watch. I was so impressed by how our kids treated each other and the others at camp. They were so kind and supportive of everyone, they played games and hung out all together–no matter what grade they were in–and some even made friends with others in our cabin/small groups. It was amazing to see.

It has been an absolute joy to get to work with and plan events for the youth at our church. They are some of the kindest and funniest kids I know, and I really loved seeing them bond over the long weekend at camp. I’m so excited to keep planning events, service days, fellowship, and trips for the youth in the future, and I feel very grateful that I get to work with such wonderful kids.

Blessings, Rhiannon

Fisher

Top Photo: Natalie Olsen, Hanna Parks, Riley Miller, Lillian Peske, Maja Whitley, Pastor Sara Swift-Tharpe, Vivi Molina, Lily Applebee, Rhiannon Fisher

Bottom Photo: Jared Sumners, Robert Carpenter, Joseph Peske, Ethan Tejeiro, Jacob Molina, David Stanley

Worldwide Prayer Concerns

“But recall those earlier days when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to abuse and persecution, and sometimes being partners with those so treated.”

Hebrews

10:32-33

TurkEy/SyriA EArThquAkE

Wall Street Journal

Pray for all those affected by the twin earthquakes at the beginning of February that devastated entire neighborhoods in Turkey and Syria. Thousands of families have lost loved ones, as the death toll has exceeded 23,000 people. The affected area was already in crisis due to the Syrian civil war and rising inflation in Turkey. The Wall Street Journal noted that “The areas most affected are lacking in almost every resource necessary to respond: hospitals, clinics, construction gear, first responders, and other essential infrastructure.” Pray for relief workers and international aid to continue pouring into the region and help comfort and assist all those who are suffering right now. Pray for our ABC partner teams, including our Chinese partners from the Amity Foundation, who have traveled there to provide relief. Pray that God’s mercy would be poured out on those who desperately need it right now.

WorldWidE

OpenDoors.org

Open Doors, whose mission is to ensure that persecuted Christians do not suffer alone but are connected to the worldwide church for support and encouragement, recently released their World Watch list for 2023. Open Doors’. This is the 30th year they have published the list and it shows rising levels of persecution around the world. According to the report, 360 million Christians worldwide suffer “high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith.” In the past year, they counted 5,621 Christians murdered, 4,542 Christians jailed or otherwise detained, and 2,110 churches that were attacked. North Korea ranked number 1 on their list with the highest levels of persecution due to a new “anti-reactionary thought law” that has been used to close house churches and arrest Christians. Nigeria remains a country of particular concern since it accounts for 89% the persecution deaths worldwide. The rise of more authoritarian governments in countries around the world is leading to crackdowns on free expression of Christian faith in those places. Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa have seen increasing levels of persecution. However, the report also notes increasing tolerance in some of the Gulf states, such as Bahrain and United Arab Emirates, as governments there are seeking to allow greater religious freedom within their existing Islamic framework. Please continue to pray for fellow Christians like Nigerian mother Tassi Ghata, whose reality includes her six-year old daughter asking, “Mommy, when the kidnappers come to our house and want to kill us, how will they do it?” Pray that our brothers and sisters in faith can remain strong and see God’s kingdom growing, even in dark times and places.

- Jonathan Peske

If you have information to share about the persecuted church or news from the mission field, please share it with Jonathan Peske.

Gregory Gifts Report

by Kay Kallander

For those of you who attended the recent church business meeting, you received this handout. For those who were not in attendance, we want to make sure you have the same information.

The first page reflects the financial position of the Finance & Property’s responsibility for Bucket #2 (Physical Plant and Property). You will see the full amount of the Gregory gifts as well as the percentage that Finance and Property is managing. Included are the projects that have been completed as well as those approved and anticipated are listed.

The second page reflects the expenses related to maintenance and repair to the church property that is not covered under the Gregory Gift Fund.

Our church has celebrated its 135th anniversary and this building has been serving us well over many of those years. But, it is aging and we are responsibly caring for long needed projects as well as current and future work.

We are blessed with the gift of resources to be ensure that our church buildings continue as faithful servants.

Bridges for Mission with Mike and Becky Mann

by Gregg Sneller

Becky and Mike serve in Thailand with hill tribe villagers who are living below the poverty line. They work to ensure the well-being of these people and provide them with the kind of development that will last for generations. As an International Ministries Global Consultant for rural development based in northern Thailand, Mike serves as Director of the Integrated Tribal Development Foundation (ITDF) where he and Becky assist hill tribe people and tribal farmers with clean water, sanitation, agriculture, education, health, and cash crops. Becky works with Hands to Heart Hill Tribe Women’s Cooperative and Lanna Foundation. She also helps to market Thai coffee.

Here is some information learned about their ministry from a podcast.

In Thailand, coffee was not really know about. Cheryl and I travelled in 1989 with Mike’s father into the hills that were filled with opium fields. When Mike and Becky were called to their work 33 years ago, they started to grow coffee. It was a tough start because no one had ever heard of coffee so we started with four villages and 15 families. We started a coffee shop that bought their coffee and then moved into exporting into the world. Mike built a fair trade co-op that allowed them to enter the international market with fair trade standards coffee. We follow fair trade practices and procedures working directly with farmers. It has made a very big impact upon farmers in Thailand

Over 30 years we have seen changes with families getting out of poverty, families stopping the growth of opium. They could get more money for coffee. We would find a buyer who would roast it and then sell the coffee. In this world the farmers get the money up front. We can get a family out of poverty now in six years. We have taught farmers how to treat the berries so they can keep it for a year and sell at the right time for pricing. This way the farmer cannot be at the mercy of a middleman. We help them get it to the dry phase in the production process.

What really opened up our business is that we sell to Starbucks. People tried to break up our co-op with higher and better prices, but the next year they may not be back. We have been doing this for 32 years and it’s been very stable for our growers. This aided all coffee producers in Thailand.

Mike was asked, how have you been surprised by God through this time? When they began, Mike came with a background in plant pathology. But as he entered villages more important needs became present so he set the pathology aside and started building wells because people would walk two miles for water. Then we found people were not being educated so we started building schools. Then we realized families were living in poverty so we got into coffee. The coffee industry has exploded. 15 years ago there was no coffee business and now there are shops next to one another. God has surprised us with the directions in which we would be working alongside the people in Thailand. We started having teams come and they were a blessing. They ate strange foods, slept in unusual places for them, allowed mosquitos to bite them and have really shown the Hill Tribe people how to serve. Now we have villages serving other villages. We have had over 1000 people come through the years and have never had a bad experience.

“Is there Justice in what we are doing? This has been a standard for 31 years on the field. Villagers are second class citizens. They do not own their land, they have no citizenship, access to medical care or best access to education. Being justice minded we introduced coffee so they could be on par with other Thai communities that are growing coffee. We do not pay them less but a living wage. Often the Hill Tribe people are abused like laborers in the U.S. who do not have citizenship. Mike and Becky have worked to ensure that the Hill Tribes people are treated with dignity and respect. We have worked on fair pricing for coffee, getting health clinics and working that our villager partners are treated with humility and respect. They have taught us so much, in fact we have learned more from them than we have taught them.

Mike and Becky Mann are two Global Servants committed to Justice and Economic Development that we will be supporting in this year’s church budget. Thank you for your faithful giving to our church family.

“it’s a New day”

FBCR All Church Family Retreat

At Campus By the Sea, Catalina Island

June 10-12, 2023

We invite you to consider spending a fun and fellowship weekend with your church family. Campus by the Sea (CBS) is a non-profit camp located on Catalina Island, three miles west of the town of Avalon. Its secluded beach is nestled between two mountain ridges. The only access to camp is by boat or hiking, as there is no road into camp. CBS provides a setting for retreats that is free from many of the mainland distractions. It is a place to appreciate nature and enjoy a simple lifestyle. While at CBS, we will enjoy opportunities to connect, recreate, study, play and eat together. Meals will be provided from Saturday lunch through Monday breakfast plus sack lunch. Sleeping will be on beds in enclosed cabins, open air cabins or tent cabins.

It is our goal to have as many of our church family attend so we will be having fundraisers and scholarships to make attending affordable for as many that would like to participate.

The cost includes the boat to Catalina and camp plus meals.

COST: $300 Adults, $25* Children and Youth (through high school) includes roundtrip boat transportation, 6 meals (plus a sack lunch on Monday), lodging and materials. Scholarships are available.

We understand that having a family can make this camp unaffordable for some, so our committee decided to have a special rate for our active and participating Children and Youth (through high school).

*The $25 registration is only being offered for active and participating children and youth (through high school). The committee wanted to also give a significant discount for Children and Youth (through high school) that are non-participating for a cost of $100.00.

Now to give a little insight to how much of a discount this is for children and youth below is the fixed boat fare from San Pedro to Catalina round trip.

$83.50 for adults 12+ including tax.

$68.00 for children 2-11 including tax.

ACTIVITIES INCLUDE: Gathering times for worship, learning, fellowship and fun. Outdoor fun such as hiking, snorkeling, kayaking, beachfront activities, basketball, volleyball, ping pong, and a children’s playground area. Singing and sharing around a campfire and a “talent” show.

More information (some details subject to change): ARRIVE at the San Pedro Catalina Express Terminal BEFORE 7:00 A.M. ON SATURDAY, JUNE 10, 2023. BOARDING WITH A PROMPT DEPARTURE AT 8:30 A.M. Bring snack/food for the two-hour boat ride. Parking at the Catalina Express terminal is $20 a day (cash or credit card). RETURN: Leaving camp before lunch and arriving back to San Pedro early afternoon on Monday, June 12, 2023.

Registration forms will be available online and in the church office. Please contact Hien Huynh for logistical information at Catalina@fbcredlands.org or call the church office 909-793-3289.

Trip is limited to 60 participants.

A Journey to Easter

SuNdAyS

February 26th

Freeing the Jesus of Experience

March 5th

Jesus as Friend

March 12th

Jesus as Teacher

March 19th

Jesus as Savior

March 26th

Jesus as Lord

Palm Sunday April 2nd

Jesus as The Way

Easter Sunday April 9th

WEdNESdAy NiGhTS

*February 22nd*

Ash Wednesday 5:30pm

Youth-led service and imposition of ashes

*March 1st – March 22nd*

Children

Experiencing Jesus through Art, Prayer & Movement

God’s Kids Classroom & Sanctuary

Youth & Adults

Experiencing Jesus through Writing

Led by Rhiannon Fisher

Experiencing Jesus through Prayer, Art, & Contemplation

Led by Melanie Medlin/Brad Tharpe

Experiencing Jesus through Sermon Discussion

Led by Gregg Sneller/Sunny Hyon

*March 29th*

A Conversation with Diana Butler Bass, author of ‘Freeing Jesus’

5:30pm (on Zoom)

MoNdAy

NiGhTS

*March 6th-20th*

‘Freeing Jesus’ Book Study

7:00pm

Led by Pastor Shawn (on Zoom)

*Beginning March 27th*

A Study of the Book of Romans

7:00pm

Led by Peter Armacost (on Zoom)

holy WEEk

*Saturday, April 1st*

Sidewalk Chalk Festival

12:00-5:00pm

*Sunday, April 2nd*

Palm Sunday

10:15 am

*Thursday, April 6th*

Maundy Thursday

7:00pm (Dinner @ 6:00pm)

*Friday, April 7th*

Good Friday

7:00pm

Ecumenical worship at Redlands United Methodist Church

*Sunday, April 9th*

EASTER SUNDAY

h APPy

M A r C h B ir T hd AyS T o ...

1 Zelda Sumners

2 Gwen Jones

2 Gregg Sneller

2 Daniel Winter

4 Sydney Keierleber

5 June Copple

5 Anne Hansen

7 Violet Allen

7 Angela Keierleber

8 Sandy Carlson

10 Blane Harrington

10 Ellie Huynh

10 Sarah Whitley

10 Mary Wolfe

11 Nathan Jones

11 Mason Wolfe

12 Christine Carpenter

12 Christine Carpenter

13 Lillian Peske

14 Ashley Hansen

16 Don Craw

16 Aaron Zureick

18 Tom Kirkpatrick

18 Daniel Reade

20 Dorothy Somers

21 Joseph Peske

22 Marion Jensen

22 Shelby Pleiss

25 Lily Applebee

26 Wendy Peske

28 Shannon Pleiss

29 Andrea Zureick

31 Cheryl Sneller

W

E d NES d Ay d i NNE r M EN u

March 1

Meat and vegetarian chili, Corn Bread, Salad; Peach Cobbler for dessert.

March 8

Lemon Herb Chicken, Rice Pilaf, Veggies; Carrot Cake for dessert.

March 15

Shephard’s Pie, Salad; Pistachio Cake for dessert.

March 22

BBQ Chicken, Baked Beans, Coleslaw; Chocolate Pudding Pie for dessert.

March 29

Meat and Veggies Lasagna, Garlic Bread, Salad; Spice Cake for dessert.

upcoming Photo directory

Submissions for the Tapestry should be sent to tapestry@fbcredlands.org by the 15th of each month.

Birthday Celebrations

Please join us on the patio after church church on March 5th to celebrate Anne Hansen’s birthday.

Dorothy Somers is turning 98, please join us after church on March 19th to celebrate her birthday.

In the past, our church has published a photo directory to make it easier to connect names and faces of people within our congregation. It’s been several years now since our last one came out and it’s time to update it! You may remember that last time it was published by LifeTouch photography and we had many problems with that company. This time we will self-publish, and we need your help. Jonathan Peske and Tom Herron will be taking photos, and we want to be able to get clear headshot of everyone, but it won’t be as formal as a portrait. Because it’s going to a quick informal shot, it will only take a few minutes and you won’t have to sit through any sales pitches! We will begin this process in March and you will see us taking pictures before church, after church, and before dinner on Wednesday night. Look for the chance to sign up for your time block. In the future we will also schedule a time to take pictures at Plymouth Village. More info will be forthcoming, but please be sure to sign up for a time block so we can get your photo. Thank you for helping us pull this off!

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to:

The First Baptist Church of Redlands

51 West Olive Avenue, Redlands CA 92373-5243

909-793-3289 | www. fbcredlands.org