Aloha GPBC Ohana! (ohana means “family” in Hawaiian), In general “Aloha” means love. I send my love to each one of you. I must admit that I have taken for granted the opportunity to gather in groups and be a part of worship gatherings every Sunday morning. In other...
All of us at Stephen Ministries hope and pray that you, your loved ones, and the people you care for are healthy and safe. I hope you receive comfort in God’s words from Isaiah 41:10: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you...
WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON!?! Our lives have drastically changed in the last week due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We are adjusting to a new normal, and we don’t know how long this new normal will last. Kids don’t have school, people are isolating themselves in their homes, families...
My husband Doug and I first heard about the coronavirus while we were on vacation in Hawaii about four weeks ago. At that time we had a lot of questions, such as, “Will this affect our travel back to the mainland? How do I protect myself from catching the virus? Should I wear a mask? Do I...
I caught the virus last week. No, no, no, not the new and potentially fatal coronavirus (COVID-19), but the much more common and not dangerous GKID-5 virus. Paulette and I spent the week caring for five of our grandchildren while their parents were traveling and I came home with a cold. Had I...
At the beginning of February, Caris and I gathered a team of creatives at Greater Portland, and we began to dream for the coming Lent season that leads us to Good Friday and Easter. A recurring theme kept speaking to our collective hearts. That theme was, “GO!” At GPBC, we always...
It’s Community Sunday, HOORAY!!! We get to be all together for our service time and then afterwards keep the connecting going with a yummy potluck meal. Our focus for the morning will be PRAYER in the upside-down kingdom. “He was praying in a certain place, and when He stopped...
In a recent staff meeting, Pastor Greg asked us to dream. Then he said, "Dream about reaching out to the community around us…next week bring back your ideas to our meeting.” Right away, Wilson High School came to my mind. Our church has been involved with Wilson for over 10...
In November of last year, many of the men from GPBC joined one another at a Men’s Retreat in Turner, Oregon. It was a rich time of fellowship and fun. To have had the opportunity to spend time studying and thinking of things that God had to say to us was a blessing for all. As I have...
As many of you know, I just returned from a beautiful two and a half weeks in the Caribbean. (It hardly feels real that I can say that!) I went with two friends from college that have remained good friends over the years. We wanted to celebrate over two decades of friendship and the unbelievable...