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November Newsletter

 Friends of Shalom,

Last month Beth and I helped move our oldest son Sam into his first apartment. We brought him a futon we weren't using (he was sleeping on a camping mat) and took him to Ikea to help him get set up. The experience reminded me of church planting and where we are as a church plant.

When you finally move out and get your first apartment it's easy to think because you have a bed, a table, perhaps a couch, that you basically have what you need. When you put the "big things" into your apartment it can feel like you're moved in. Until you realize you don't have a shower curtain, a broom, trash bags, a plunger, paper towels, etc. 

Shalom Anglican has moved into our first apartment. The church is going and growing. We have most of the "big things." We have a place to meet, a priest, a team of leaders, a website, a bank account, a core group of committed folks, coffee pots (very important!), etc. So that feels great! Compared to how far we've come in a year we're deeply encouraged. But now it's time to get all the "little things" in place. We have a lot of things to set up, to pass off to other leaders, and to give attention to. Please continue to pray for us as we set up "our first apartment!" 

Updates

  • Our catechism class is going really well. We have had consistent attendance and have seen folks make some rich discoveries in the scriptures and doctrines of our faith!
  • We had one of our core members give an extra $3000 designated toward supplies, vestments, etc.  
  • This last week I prayed on the way to church that God would send a new family. And a few minutes before the service he answered my prayer! We were able to welcome a new family checking out our church. 
  • A few weeks ago a man showed up a 10 minutes late to service. He found us on google after feeling a longing for a more liturgical service than what he was used to. After the service we scheduled a time to meet for coffee and ended up talking for two hours! 
  • On Sunday November 3rd we celebrated All Saints Day. There's a part of the service where each of us can name those we've lost (family and friends) or saints from church history that have meant a lot to us. As the names started flowing so did the tears for many of us. It was such a powerful experience to name and remember the saints together!
  • I've trained two elementary aged students to process the cross and participate in our liturgy. They're both excited to serve! 
  • We had our first baptism (see pics below)! We baptized one infant and three children. Here's my sermon from that Sunday if you'd like to learn more about baptism and infant baptism. 

Prayer Requests

  • Pray for this season of Advent. We'll be having a mid week service (Evening Prayer/Advent Meditation). We'll also have a Christmas Eve and Christmas Day service. Pray these services may reach new folks and provide rich moments of rest and reflection for our people. 
  • Pray for Rob as he's going on a retreat for silence and solitude at the end of the month. 
  • Pray for a potential new lay preacher who is in the process of preparing to preach. 
  • Pray for our core team as we seek to engage with our neighbors with love and the gospel. 
Reminder: We're on Apple Podcast and Spotify if you'd like to listen to our sermons or weekly word. Just look for "shalom anglican" and you'll find us. 

Thanks so much for your prayers!

For the Shalom of Kitsap,

Rob and Beth Steinbach


















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