March 2025
Together In Mission
Monthly Reflections from BCC
Sanctifying our Calendars
By Phil Rushton
Lead Pastor
Hi BCC Family,
This coming Wednesday we begin the season of Lent. This forty-day season leading up to Easter has historically been approached as a time of spiritual focus and renewal. Theologian John Witvliet writes that Lent invites us, ”to sanctify our calendars and make clear that nothing in the winter and springtime of the year – not Valentine’s Day, not spring break, not March Madness, not the hockey playoffs – is as important to our identity as Jesus’ death and resurrection.” Lent is an annual opportunity to reprioritize Christian discipleship in our lives.
To facilitate our Lenten journey, we are going to journey with Jesus to the cross in the gospel of John. Our sermon series will be based on John 18-19. Similarly, our Lent groups will be based on James Bryan Smith’s Lenten devotional “The Kingdom and the Cross.” My hope is that these studies will help us rediscover the way Jesus is a different kind of king who is ushering in a different kind of kingdom than the kingdoms of this world. As we journey with Jesus to the cross, we discover the ways he subverts our notions of power and ushers in the change we long to see in our lives and our world through his radical sacrificial love.
As I was discerning and praying about what to focus on in the coming weeks, I had a strong sense that we need to walk closely with Jesus right now. Jesus is often co-opted and repackaged to align with our own interests, tastes, or agendas. I know I am not immune from this danger. As Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 13:12, we have a limited view of God. We see through a lens dimly. The way we counteract this temptation is to humbly, rigorously, and communally immerse ourselves in the gospels.
Greg Jao, from Intervarsity Fellowship, shared at our midwinter conference about a discipleship retreat he participated in that invited students to read the entire gospel of Mark in one sitting. Numerous students reported how surprised they were by Jesus. When they actually sat down and read the entire gospel they encountered a depiction of Jesus that was radically different than what they had assumed! Some students shared that Jesus was more intense than the therapeutic Jesus they encountered in popular culture or the odd bible verse taken out of context. This reminded me again of the importance of staying rooted in the gospel story.
I’ve shared this quote before, but I like to return to it often. Bill Robinson, former president of Whitworth University, writes,
“Let Jesus be Jesus. If you decide not to follow him, let it be the real Jesus you decide not to follow, not the picture painted by human lives that fall so short of Christ’s example. And if you do decide to follow Jesus, let it be the real Jesus you follow, not the Jesus you manufacture to accommodate your social, political, and cultural tastes. And if you follow, pour out your most precious gifts at his feet. But whatever you do, let Jesus be Jesus.”
This really sums up a lot of the work I find myself attempting to do as a pastor and spiritual director.
This Lent, my hope is that we will let Jesus be Jesus as we journey with him to the cross. I am looking forward to sanctifying our calendars by prioritizing discipleship over the next few weeks.
God Bless,
Pastor Phil
Walking the Road with Jesus
By Adria Willett-Leonardo
Associate Pastor
The season of Lent seems to catch me by surprise every year! This is partly the case because of the mobility of the date of Easter, which means the season of Lent—the time of preparation for Easter—leapfrogs from February to March and back depending on the year. Some years it seems to come on the heels of Christmas; we are finally catching our breath after the wonder and busyness of Advent and Christmas, when suddenly, “Ash Wednesday is next week!”
Other years Lent seems far off—on the distant horizon—so I fall into the trap of thinking I don’t have to start planning for it yet. Which is wrong, because our Christian Formation Team needs time to pray and reflect on where God is leading us to focus next, then we need time to choose and order appropriate materials, announce the small groups, and so forth.
Most of all, however, Lent often takes me by surprise, because I expect it to be a dark, sad, or hard season. After all, we are remembering Jesus’ time of fasting and testing in the wilderness, then walking with him on the “via Dolorosa,” the way of suffering—all the way to the cross. And like many people, I use the season as a time of giving up things that pull my attention away from Jesus or have become obstacles in the road of discipleship.
But when, with the help of the Holy Spirit, I am able to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles” and fix my eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1), I find freedom, not shame. When I meditate on the sufferings of Jesus, I find comfort and hope, not gloom. It can be painful to pick up our own cross and follow Jesus—especially these days. Especially because in our culture and time, it might mean facing jeering crowds, false accusations, unjust punishments, and even death. Yet following Jesus will always lead—in his time—to resurrection life and joy everlasting.
Join me, then, in the surprises of the season of Lent. You may have your own methods of entering this season. If, however, you want to go deeper or need some more resources, we are offering the following ways to walk with Christ and one another:
— Join us for an Ash Wednesday Service on March 5, 6:30 PM. in the sanctuary.
— Join a Lent group or study with your current group: The Kingdom and the Cross, by James Bryan Smith. You can sign up for a group with this form or by emailing Pastor Adria. Or you can order your own copy of the book on Amazon or Barnes and Noble.
— Pick up a copy of The Road to Joy: A Lent-to-Easter Devotional from Christianity Today, available on Ash Wednesday on the Next Step Kiosks, or order your own copy here
— Consider serving in a new way during Lent—either volunteering with one of our partner organizations or serving with us on Sunday mornings. Follow this link for current opportunities to serve.
Living Lives of Purpose with BCC Youth
ByJeff Grosskopf
Youth Pastor
Waaay down at the end of the children and youth hall, our middle and high school students are in for a meaningful month! We’ll be working our way through an upcoming series on faith, identity, and purpose called Living a Life Of Purpose. We’ll have guest speakers each week share how their passions have helped them find and live a life of purpose. My prayer is that this helps our students think beyond their daily routine, dream about their future, and see how their gifts and passions can make a difference now. To put this into action, each student will receive $100 to donate to a cause they care about from the Mission Catalyst Fund! There’s a lot to be excited about this month, so please join me in praying for our students!
Here’s what we have in store…
Bellingham Covenant Preschool is now enrolling for the 2025-26 school year!
ByJill Takemura
Preschool Director
Bellingham Covenant Preschool is a faith-based program that focuses on the social and emotional development of little hearts and minds. We have spots in our 3 and 4-year-old classes and would love to have your preschooler join us! Or if you know of any families looking for a preschool, we’d be honored to have you direct them our way.
For more information, please see our website: bccpreschool.com. If you have questions or would like to schedule a tour, email Jill Takemura at jill@bellinghamcov.org.
FROM YOUR BCC LIBRARY
By Nancy Henderson
How is your devotional time? Regular? Sporadic? “I would like to have one”? Don’t know how to get started, or what would keep your interest long enough to become a regular practice? Your BCC Library has items that might help no matter where you are on this path. Below are quick glimpses of just a few of our resources.
Adults and Older Teens
You might consider Eugene Peterson’s A Month of Sundays: Thirty-one Days of Wrestling with Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Featuring gleanings from some of his never-before-published sermon material, Peterson opens familiar stories from the gospels in his average-person writing to help us consider more deeply how to walk in our lives as followers of Jesus.
Or you might choose Meeting God in Holy Places: A Devotional Journey by F. LaGard Smith. This book, beautifully illustrated with pencil drawings by Glenda Rae, takes the reader on a thirty-one-day journey through the land made holy by the presence of the Lord God himself and his promised Messiah, our Lord Jesus. Those who have had the privilege of visiting Israel will recognize much of what they’ve seen and perhaps experienced. Those who have not will find this book a journal of fascinating places and thoughts about our Father and Lord. “As we travel back through the centuries, what we will discover is not just history, but His story—and thus ours.… a new thought; a different perspective; a grander vision of who [we] can be as a servant of God.”
Younger Teens and Tweens
Our Youth section features two devotional guides by popular author Sarah Young: Jesus Calling: 365 Devotions for Kids and Jesus Today: Devotions for Kids. Written in her familiar style featuring a scripture, thoughts about and applications of the scripture, and “Read on Your Own” scripture suggestions, these one-page daily devotional readings will help young people develop a life-long habit of daily time with God.
Young Children
Yes, even for the very young there are books of thoughts and prayers that parents can use to encourage a habit of regular time set aside for and with God. One such is Give Me Grace; A Child’s Daybook of Prayers. Brightly illustrated with childlike pictures, these prayer-poems, one for each day of the week, encourage godly character and communication in the very young.
In addition to these few titles, our library offers devotional books for men, women, parents, those going through grief or other tough life situations, for liturgical seasons, and even for the month of March (or any time)—Christ, My Companion: Meditations of the Prayer of St. Patrick. We encourage you to check out all your BCC Library has to offer to help enrich your life as a follower of Jesus.
Up Next:
CoWork Corner
Every Tuesday & Thursday
12:00 pm-3:00 pm in Cafe Fika
*This is a shared workspace for those who work or study from home
Ash Wednesday Service
Wednesday, March 5
6:30 in the Sanctuary
*Join us at this contemplative service to begin the season of Lent
Prime Timers Brunch
Thursday, March 6
12:30 pm in the Dining Room
*Prime Timers is a ministry for those who are 60(ish) and above
Second Cup of Coffee
Saturday, March 8
10:00 am in Cafe Fika
*Ladies, join us for coffee and fellowship! If you are new to BCC, this is a great way to get to know other ladies in our church!
Stewards Of Children
Saturday, March 15
9:00-11:30
*Seminar on protecting our children. Ask Megan for more info
All-Church Game Night!
Saturday, March 29
6:30-8:30 pm in the Youth Room
*This month, we’ll be playing Railroad Ink.
Lenten Vespers Service
Sunday, March 30
6:30-7:30 in the Sanctuary
* Join us for an evening of contemplative prayer, scripture and singing
Looking beyond March…
Holy Week
April 13-20
All Church Campout
June 19-22