The River Church Community

“On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.’"  John 7:37,38
 
Dear River friends,
 
I was very moved by this past Sunday’s service . . . especially by the wave of folks who came forward to receive prayer.  We are indeed a thirsty people.  Thanks be to Jesus who calls us to come and drink freely.  I impressed that Jesus makes his invitation with force – he stands and shouts.  He desires to be heard over the multitude of voices and noises in our world.  He longs for us to come.  And He’s eager to pour out living water upon our thirsty souls.  This past Sunday’s ministry time was a token of this wonderful reality.
 
In my own times of prayer, I often see an image that our souls are like Lexington reservoir.  Because of long seasons of drought, even a torrential downpour leaves the water-line low.  I believe that God wants to fill our hearts with renewed faith and hope.  Faith and hope that multiplies our joy.  Faith and hope that spills over into the abandoned places of our community, bearing the sweet fruit of new life . . . of conversion and transformation.  To that end, we’re hosting an extended time of Worship and Prayer this Sunday evening (March 22) from 6-8pm (701 N. First St.).  It will be an excellent time to soak in God’s presence and to receive the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  I hope many of you will come.
 
Peace,
Brad Wong,
Lead Pastor

Last Saturday (3/14), Mark Phifer-Houseman hosted a very thorough Peacemaking training on what it means for us to be Spiritual Health Ministers. We learned about mutual admonition, conflict coaching, and how to separate out all the components (issues, positions, and interests) in a conflict. If you are interested in getting the handouts or listening to the audio from the training, we should have those up on the Leader's section of the website very soon!

The River is in the midst of formalizing a lay-led Governing Board. Tom Tsao shared a guideline document that outlines the composition and responsibilities of the Board to the Leadership Community after the Peacemaking Training on Saturday. If you missed it, fear not, there will be a Congregational Meeting on April 5th after church with a repeat of the information shared.

Kay Maitz and Laurie Butler were hard at work last night taping down the path for our Labyrinth, opening next Thursday, March 26th. If you're not sure what a Labyrinth is, check out photos and listen to a sample of the audio narration here. Come and walk the labyrinth this Lenten season!

What's happening around the office? Brad, Krista-Dawn, and Tony are at the Unleased Forum today... David is preparing to teach at SJSU Intervarsity tonight... Tony is putting the finishing touches on his message for this Sunday... Michelle is busy following up with a surge of new people looking for small groups... Jill is (sadly) grieving the loss of her father who passed away last week... Kyle is gearing up for a friendly game of Paintball this Saturday with the youth and friends... Dave is on vacation, visiting family in Vancouver... and me (Angela), I am writing this announcement. Do you like the new headers, btw? 

• We showed Episode 3 of FLOW. FLOW is The River's way to share stories of missional engagement by our church body. This episode highlights Andy Singleterry and the Apostle's Feet Ministry. Watch the video here! Special thanks to Jason Chandra who edited the video.

• Loving San Jose - If you have not signed up for a service opportunity, you can now read all about them here. Also, please note that after the service opportunities, there will be LUNCH served in the ballroom. We will have food from Pizza-My-Heart as we listen and share stories from our morning of serving/loving San Jose.

• There will be a combination Nicaragua and Honduras ICE Info Meeting this Sunday (March 22) after church. Come and hear about our exciting partnerships with La Vida Education and Iglesia Transformacion. If you are even considering going on a trip this year, come to the meeting and learn more. For more information, contact Meredith Chew at about Nicaragua or Rick Schertle at about Honduras.

• Celebrate the events of Easter with us! Look for the playing card inside your River invitation this month for you to invite your family and friends to the Labyrinth, Passover Seder, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday. The information is also available online. Please note that there is limited seating for the Passover Seder and you must RSVP online for that event.