This blog post was written by Theresa Adams, a Redeemer member, wife and mom, who would love to have her own roller skating rink & thinks getting her kids to eat kale is a major victory!

Loving others. Serving others. Meeting needs. All of those things can seem so daunting. So overwhelming. It can be paralyzing to know even where to begin. Sometimes people do get immobilized and don't even start. They think the circumstances have to be just so. They think when their kids get older when they have more spare time when they don't have such a heavy class load when they find a cause that breaks their heart then they will begin. I get it. I was that person. I wanted to "do something." I wanted to be a drop in the bucket that would turn into an ocean of loving, compassionate acts. But I didn't even know where to begin. I didn't know what broke my heart. What would make me weep? Sometimes I didn't even want to know that a need was out there. 

When you are living in oblivion/innocence/ignorance, it is so effortless to look the other way. Once you are made aware, it makes it near impossible to go on living without doing something. There is no going back to blissful naivety once you've become acquainted with a need. It's like Nehemiah. He was a Jew, born in Persia during the exile, so he didn't know Jerusalem other than he had relatives there. When he inquired as to the conditions among the Jews there who had survived exile in Jerusalem he went from being unaware of having his heart wrecked. "They told me, "The exile survivors who are left there in the province are in bad shape. Conditions are appalling. The wall of Jerusalem is still in rubble; the city gates are still cinders." When I heard this, I sat down and wept. I mourned for days, fasting and praying before the God-of-Heaven." (NE 1:3,4) The need was not directly affecting Nehemiah, yet he wept. For days. He sought God and then he set out to meet the need.

Perhaps you think: God wouldn't use me.  Why in the world when He has his pick of all the great, kind, loving people on the planet would He ever want to use the likes of me to accomplish something for His Glory? Why would He entrust me to love others?  To serve others? With my past? With my weaknesses? With my judgmental tendencies?  With my greed? With my selfishness?  With my potty mouth? With my grades? Whatever the reason you think you aren't "good" enough to accomplish something for His purpose have you ever thought that when we say we are incapable of being used by Him that we are saying He's made some mistake?  

God made each one of us perfectly and intentionally. He doesn't make mistakes.  It's not as though He had some terrible no-good-very-bad-day when He was creating you.  He knows you from the hairs on your head to the tips of your toes.  He knows your thoughts, your words, your heartbeat and the rhythm of your soul. It's because of the exquisite detail that makes you -you- that no one else can accomplish what you can. No one else can meet a need in the specifically same way as you. No one else can love as you love. Your gifts, skills & compassion differ from mine. What breaks my heart may not break yours. 

If you find yourself longing to "do something"  to serve your neighborhood, your city, your county, your campus, but you don't know what said something is can I encourage you to pray about it? To ask God what breaks your heart? He will be faithful and reveal something to you. He did to me. Years ago it was human trafficking that first gave an awareness to the myriad of needs of our world, country, state, county. And I began small. Sending letters & cards to a shelter in Greece that housed women freed from trafficking. Then it was building an awareness of what went on in our county and connecting with local resources.

 Since that time there have been many different opportunities I've been able to take part in: from giving my credit at a consignment store to a homeless woman so she could buy clothes with dignity, to having garage sales for at-risk-teens, to providing Christmas presents to kids whose parents were unable to provide one of their own.. I don't share this with you as a "look-at-me-I've-got-it-all-figured-out" kind of pat on the back, because truly, I am pretty sure I mess up & miss opportunities on a regular basis. 

What I hope to do by sharing with you is to encourage you. I too once wanted to love others. I wanted to "do something," I wanted to help to serve to make a difference. Sometimes I wonder if that is what Jesus meant when he told his followers: "Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." (John 13:34,35)  He didn't say people would know we were set apart because of the fish logo on the back of our cars. Nor by the verses & well-meaning quotes we share on Facebook. Not even by the in-depth knowledge of doctrine we may have. None of which are insignificant.  But by our love. Maybe it's just me, but I don't think it's by the feeling of love, but rather the action. An outpouring of activity regardless of the outcome. Regardless of what we gain in return. Love as He loved us.

 If your heart is to love others (Or you want to have that heart) and you'd like to serve alongside those in our county who are already meeting a need here are some possibilities. The list is by no means exhaustive, but it's a start. And isn't that what we need sometimes? Just a start?

http://www.engedirefuge.com/engedi_house.html

http://www.skookumkids.org/

http://www.bellinghamhopehouse.com/

http://www.amysplaceforyouth.org/

http://thewhatcomdream.org/

http://www.reboundwc.com/who-we-are

http://www.pass-the-hat.org/

Post written by Brandon Adent

Some years ago, I had a conversation with a friend. I think he was in his mid-late 40s, and I in my early 20s. At the time, I was quite free-spirited in my thinking. I had no emotional attachment, I thought, no reason to stay in Bellingham. I’d moved from the Portland, OR area and had no intention of returning. I’d get my degree and chase whatever dream I had when I was done.

I’d do what I came to do, and move on.

As I explained this, my friend looked at me and said, “Save yourself the trouble. I’ve been a lot of places, and this is the place to be.”

I half chuckled. Sure. Whatever.

But now, seven years later, I’m still here. And Bellingham is still growing on me.

Redeemer Church is a community of people from a variety of backgrounds, with a variety of preferences. Some of us live in Lynden, or out in the county. Others would prefer not to wake to the smell of cow manure (kidding... love you, Lynden!) Here's two of many reasons that Bellingham is really, really awesome.

The People

I often joke that in Bellingham, 5-10 minutes late is still on time. This unspoken rule has definitely saved my tofu a number of times.

Our slogan is “The City of Subdued Excitement”. People tend to be mellow, friendly, and perhaps a bit private. But once you start developing friendships and make connections in the community, you see people you know everywhere, and you realize how small Bellingham is for being 80,000 people large, in addition to the 13,000 students that call Bellingham home during the academic year while attending Western Washington University.

A lot of people are into biking, hiking, rock climbing, mountaineering, skiing, boating, or one of a number of other outdoor activities due to our incredible location, and many people are into sustainable living and trying to be good stewards of the planet.

Over all, Bellingham is full of chill, awesome people. Honestly, if the people weren't as cool as they are, there's not a whole lot that could compensate.

The Location

Bellingham is basically close to everything.

The beautiful San Juan Islands are only a ferry ride away.

Mountain escapes are easy, if you’re into that sort of thing; less than an hour to the national forest and Mt Baker Ski Area, and about two hours to the North Cascades National Park. The Canadian Coast Range is about two hours to the north, and Whistler Ski Resort just over a three hour drive away.

And that’s travel time relative to what? The ocean. Yes. Beach to mountains in about an hour.

Maybe the mountains aren’t your thing? There’s parks everywhere, and trails connecting them. There’s lots of community events like Ski To Sea, movies on the Fairhaven green, Downtown Sounds, minor league baseball games, First Friday Art Walks, and so much more. We’re also driving within an hour and a half from Seattle to the south and Vancouver, BC to the north.

Whatever environment you’re into, you’re not far from it in Bellingham. Unless, I guess, you want coconuts and palm trees... and hundred degree heat... yeah. We don't have those. But there's nothing like a PNW summer.

There's A Lot To Love

There’s a lot to love about Bellingham. I asked our community group what they loved about the place we live, and here’s what they had to say.

• Most of all, I love the community.
• I love Bellingham because I feel like it has the amenities of a city with the feel of a small town.
• I love the good schools.
• I love the mountains and the lakes and the streams and rivers and oceans.
• I love that we do progressive (annoying) things like banning plastic bags and having a thousand different garbage can options.
• I love the focus on sustainability and how bike friendly the city is.
• I love all the events put on by the city that encourage us to love Bellingham and get to know one another.
• It’s not pretentious.
• I love the non-for profits that focus on making our community a better place.
• I love the many churches that I see come together for events and that make a difference in our community.
• There is a large focus on loving the city and those in it.

Redeemer Church is a community of people who love Jesus, love where we live, and want to see Him glorified in our lives as we interact with the people in our city. If you have lived here for awhile, take a second and reflect on why you love it here.

If you’re moving to the area, have no fear! We trust that you’ll at the very least find it a beautiful place filled with friendly people.

(Written by Theresa Adams)

Serving our city has been an ongoing conversation at Redeemer. We wanted it to be something tangible and something that would foster relationships with those in our community. We looked around and as you can imagine Bellingham has many needs. It can actually be overwhelming to consider all of the needs and even immobilizing to know where to begin. We hope you agree that by choosing to serve Roosevelt Elementary this summer in our first ever Backpack Drive that it will be a great stepping stone to serving our beautiful Bellingham. 

To some Roosevelt Elementary is known for it's tough (some might call it neglected) exterior. To others it's known for it's Title 1 Reputation. To me (and a few other Redeemer parents) it's known for far more than it's brick & mortar exterior. It's more than it's untended or out-of-date flowerbeds. It's even more than the staggering percentage of kiddos who qualify for free lunch.  You see the school itself has very little to do with the building at all. The heart of the school is the vast array of kiddos & the staff, administrators, teachers & parents who love these kids. They work together tirelessly to ensure the students not only have a high-standard of learning but that they also get to do things like garden or paint a mural. Such simple things many of us would take for granted, but when experienced by so many kiddos who come from homes that just don't have quite enough you're able to see what a special place it is. 

Roosevelt would love to be able to provide back packs to new registering students who don't have the option to go out & buy one. The school would also love to be able to replace back packs for kiddos who are unable to do so but who's bags have seen better days. We hope that by joining together, as the church and provide backpacks for these students that we will be able to lift a bit of a burden from some of these families. The school also has a need for underwear, leggings (for girls) & sweats (for boys)  Often times kids need replacement items throughout the day and unlike many schools Roosevelt chooses not to ask for the items back. Quite simply they believe that the kiddos need the clothes more than the school does & it's evidenced as the kids can usually be found wearing the items the remainder of the year.

Here Is How You Can Help

Over this next year we will have three giving stations located at Redeemer Church (Sanctuary, Redeemer Kids and Commons Building). Every Sunday someone will take those items that you purchase to Roosevelt Elementary School. So if you are out shopping for yourself or your family, please pick up one of the following items listed below and bring it to Redeemer Church for Roosevelt Elementary.

If you are super busy with life and have no time to shop, don't worry, you can still help out. Below are links to Amazon.com and if you purchase these items through these links, Amazon will donate a small amount of the proceeds to Redeemer Church so we can put money back into Roosevelt Elementary. And if you are still to busy, and don't want to forget to bring the items you purchased online feel free to have the items shipped to: (Dane Burgess 820 32nd St Apt 57 Bellingham, WA 98225) 

And he will make sure to take the item to Roosevelt for you. 

Boys Backpack

Girls Backpack

Boys Underwear

Girls Underwear

Boys Sweat Pants

Girls Leggings