Faith Bible Church

“Toothy Cow!”

On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness is Book One of The Wingfeather Saga. Written by Andrew Peterson, a Christian author and singer/songwriter, this series is a family favorite of ours. The audiobook is a great listen at home or in the car. Some preteens may enjoy it on their own, but it includes some peril and may be best to listen to or read aloud as a family.

The story begins in the township of Glipwood, above the cliffs of the Dark Sea of Darkness. A mother, Nia, and her father, Podo, with her three kids, Janner, Tink and Leeli, are exiled to the Fang infested continent of Skree, forced to live their lives under the leadership of the evil Gnag the Nameless. A secret integral to the family’s history changes their lives from one of dull monotony to one of thrilling adventure, as the children realize their importance in a wider world.

The story blossoms into a magnificent adventure with unexpected twists and turns, between continents, clearly contrasting good and evil while keeping true to the importance of family. While the writing starts out a little shaky, hold on: It just gets better and better, especially as the books unfold.

Many children’s stories have the kids trying to solve problems without their parents’ help or knowledge. In this series, the family is working together and doing their best to seek help from “The Maker.” When the children do try to solve problems on their own, it doesn’t go well for them. The dialogue between the family members, especially the siblings, is real and honest, easy to identify with, and could spark great discussion within your own family.

Read the full review by Stephen, Campbell and Wendy Dougherty on our website.

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This Sunday, the Discovery kids' choir will lead us in singing, and Brian Sayers will preach from Genesis 2:18-25. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

When Hannah Weber was in middle school and high school, she volunteered in the toddlers’ room in Children’s Ministry. That’s where she was drawn to working with kids with special needs. Such needs could be physical, but there are also many who experience behavioral and developmental difficulties that aren’t visible on the surface.

Hannah decided to go into a teaching career, with an emphasis in special education. For her first five years of teaching, Hannah worked closely with kids in special education, mostly in preschool, and some with severe needs. While the job was taxing, Hannah found joy in seeing her students make progress through specially designed instruction and accommodations.

Throughout these years of teaching, however, Hannah had a dream for a special needs ministry within Faith’s Children’s Ministry. She wanted to see a place where kids with special needs could learn about the Lord with proper supports in place—and where parents could feel comfortable leaving their kids during the service.

About a year ago, that dream was realized when Hannah and a few others started the special needs ministry. In the summer of 2023, Children’s Ministry Director Joe Swanson met with Hannah, Wendy Dougherty, Mitzi Peterson, and Diana Ford about kickstarting the special needs ministry. These women all have a background in special education, so they were prepared to start a program that offered support for families who needed something a little different from the standard activities in Sunday School.

Hannah was appointed the Team Lead for the project and has led the shaping of the ministry. Right now, the ministry consists of special needs aides who support the Sunday School classroom teachers and specific students who need extra help. Ultimately, the goal is for them all to learn the gospel in a way that is accessible for them.

Read Lydia Kinne’s full article on our website.

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This Sunday, we'll celebrate a baptism! Plus college pastor Josh Gilchrist will continue our sermon series in Genesis. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

Last night pastor Dan Jarms got in on the Fun at Discovery—our Wednesday night program for K-5th graders! What a blast!

Ladies, hosting a table at the Women's Christmas Dessert is a great opportunity to share the gospel with other women through hospitality. Members can go to fbchurch.org/events to sign up as a table hostess.

Hostesses are required to attend one of two informational meetings, November 3 or November 10. They also get early access to tickets for the guests they’d like to invite.

How People Change by Timothy Lane and Paul David Tripp is the most practical book I’ve read on discipleship to date. This is a dense volume chock-full of biblical truth and encouragement, belying its humble 254 pages, leaving little excuse for leaders and disciplers not to read it. Any Christian leader, teacher, deacon, elder, father, mother, sibling, or friend (see: everyone) who desires to love, lead, teach, exhort, encourage their fellow Christians (see: everyone) would find this book encouraging, enlightening, and exceedingly helpful.

Using the analogy of heat (the trials and difficulty of life), thorns (our sinful “flesh” responses), cross (God’s power in us to change), and fruit (the good change that God’s grace produces in us), Lane and Tripp provide a easily digestible and quickly remembered structure for how we can assess the struggles of those around us and point them to Christ and His sanctifying grace.

The book ends with two detailed case studies. In both, the authors challenge readers to apply what they have learned and place the details of the struggles in the heat/thorns/cross/fruit structure. This allows the reader to immediately practice the principles learned.

Throughout this book I was reminded of the case studies I did in nursing school, but instead of injuries and maladies I was presented with different persons and their thoughts, feelings, strengths, weaknesses and the various trials and obstacles of life. These well-described example “cases” let readers practice applying the principles.

While exceptionally practical, this book is still rooted firmly in the Bible, leading the reader through what God has to say about our thoughts and feelings and motivations and, of course, how we change. It’s the gospel and God’s grace that changes people, but we can be instruments of that change by God’s power.

Read Justin Holland’s full article on our website.

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This Sunday, Dan Jarms will continue our series preaching from Genesis 2:4-9, where God makes man and plants the Garden of Eden. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

Justin is shopping for this Saturday's Men's Breakfast! Get ready, men!

Caryl and Frank Sousa both came from big families where food was meant to go far. Married 56 years, this couple has seen the food from their kitchen go far as well.

From exchange students and Spokane Indians baseball players to touring bands and homeless people, the Sousas have found joy and blessing in providing a warm and welcoming place to stay. They have had countless opportunities to use the resources God has given them to meet the needs of others.

Caryl’s simplified Chicken Kiev recipe uses ingredients many people already have on hand, and it can and should be added to a weekly rotation. Beginners and beyond will love this recipe that goes well with whatever they have on hand as a side dish.

Her simple and delightful “Depression Cake” will make you want to always have cocoa powder in your pantry in order to whip up this quick treat for whoever may be joining you at the table.

Get the recipes on our website, and listen to the Sousas’ interview on the Faith Matters podcast, posted September 11! Caryl gives tips on how to stock your pantry to be able to serve meals on short notice, and Frank recounts story after story of how God changed their plans and displayed His power as they exercised their gift of hospitality.

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This Sunday we’ll worship the Creator, with Dan Jarms continuing to preach God's Word from the book of Genesis. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

On todays episode of the Faith Matters podcast, In response to a question from the Second Coming sermon series, Dan Jarms and John Gardner discuss different end times views, focusing on the amillennial and postmillennial views. These different views come from different interpretations of Revelation 20:1-6, which describes a thousand year period of peace and Jesus' return.

Postmillennialists envision a golden age of Christian rule before Jesus' return while amillennialists see the Millennium as a long, ongoing period of gospel spread, that takes place between Christ's first and second coming—in other words, that we are currently living in the "millennium".

They also discuss the continuity of promises from the Old Testament to the New Testament, emphasizing that these views are interpretive differences within the Church and not barriers to fellowship or membership at Faith.

Listen in your favorite podcast listening app or on our website.

One of my favorite things about doing home projects or repairing a car is when I have a good excuse to go buy a tool. There is great joy in procuring the tool, learning how to use it, and then having that tool and the acquired skills for the future – for your own projects and others’ projects!

The elders at Faith want you to have all the tools you need in your “tool belt” of the Christian life so that you can thrive and be fruitful in your following of Jesus and in helping others to follow Jesus. We are planning three “Equipping Nights” this year for just that purpose.

First, we want everyone at Faith to be continually growing in their ability to read, understand and apply God’s Word. Second, we want everyone to have a robust understanding of the systematic teaching of the Bible. Finally, we want everyone to know how to practically apply the Bible to all areas of life.

Every sermon, every Growth Group meeting, every class, and many other channels at Faith Bible Church are helping us with these three areas. However, we want to have a focused workshop to sharpen your skills and to give you new tools in each of these areas.

This year, we will focus on equipping you with knowledge and practical questions to help you know how to read through the different sections of the Old Testament. What do you do with those sections describing how to build the tabernacle? What about all the things that are clean and unclean in Leviticus? Why are those genealogies in there? We want to try to answer these and many other questions and give you time with your Growth Group to practice using the tools we’re giving you.

Mark your calendars for the following Wednesday evenings: November 13, February 5 and May 7 from 6:30 until 8:00 at the church. Most Growth Groups will not meet during those weeks to hopefully free you up for the all-church Equipping Night.

Read Nathan Thiry’s full article on our website.

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This Sunday we’ll study God's creation of humans in His image, with Dan Jarms preaching from Genesis 1:26-31. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

Throwback Thursday: Does the Bible require the Christian to vote? While there are no clear commands telling us to vote, in this episode of the One Simple Truth Podcast from October 2020, Dan Jarms looks at some compelling reasons why Christians should. Listen at https://fbchurch.org/vote

Today we sent out Phil and Lainey as new Global Outreach Partners to Southeast Asia. Pray for their endurance as they begin a huge life transition.

What do our groups do when summer comes along and they aren’t structured as they are during the school year?

Howard Amland has led a year-round Growth Group for many years. In the summer, he prepares discussion questions in place of the Growth Guides the church provides during the rest of the year. Howard says their group is designed to “do life together; be there for each other, disciple one another, and encourage each other.”

But, not all groups have the ability or desire to continue the same way all year round. Here are several ways they work to stay connected to the body and grow in Christ all summer long.

The most common form of summertime Growth Group meetings is having meals or fellowship gatherings, without a study topic or agenda. The season of outdoor barbecues and pool parties is not just for fun: It’s a chance to grow in affection for and enjoyment of our family in faith.

At the end of the regular year, Dustin Erbeznik’s Growth Group had members sign up to host potlucks, two per month, so that they would meet in different homes for fellowship throughout the summer. It was good for the members to take initiative and open up their homes, and meeting at different places helped share the work of hospitality.

Dustin’s group were also invited to their family’s annual camping trip, and while not everyone could come, they had a good time together. Last summer their camping group was nearly 30 people, and “we actually did our own little Sunday worship service,” he said. They grew closer in their personal relationships, as “living together, you’re cooking food out there, eating together. It’s a little different. It’s a different dynamic, just enjoying one another.”

Read the full article on our website.

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This Sunday, we'll hear from some global outreach partners being sent soon, plus Dan Jarms will preach from Genesis 1:3-25. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

The fiscal year at Faith Bible Church ended August 31, and God faithfully provided for a fruitful ministry year! General Fund giving outstripped projections while expenses stayed under budget.

In addition to General Fund giving, the Next Generation Facility campaign kicked off in January to help adapt our facilities for ministry to the next three generations. Since then, Faith members have generously pledged to give to the campaign and are faithfully fulfilling their pledges. It will be exciting to see some of those capital projects get started over the coming year, as well as how new Faith members get on board with the campaign.

Giving units, a measure that is helpful in tracking the number of regular, consistent givers in the church, is trending lower than last year. The more members are giving regularly as Scripture teaches, even in small amounts, the more we share the work of the church and experience the blessings of generosity!

Read the full Stewardship Update from Living Faith magazine on our website.

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This Sunday, we'll recognize 15 new Faith members, plus Nathan Thiry will preach from Genesis 1:1-2 about the Trinity who created everything. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

We have a tree in our backyard that has grown substantially since we bought the house eight years ago. A few weeks ago, I set to tame it a bit. Dirty, sweaty, and covered in sawdust, I saw that it was better, but not perfected.

Such labor takes me back to the Garden of Eden in Genesis 1–3. God created everything by the word of His power, and He made it all good. He made human beings, male and female, in His image to be the managers of his good creation.

What happens next is critical: “And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every creeping thing that moves on the earth’” (1:28).

God communicated to human beings what they were designed to do. They were to be his stewards, caring for His good creation with His authority, giving praise and honor to Him. He did not put the animals in charge, nor did He make them in His image. It is humanity that was stamped with His image to exercise dominion as His representatives.

God did not create human beings to rule however they wanted. They were not to be cruel to the creatures or destructive to nature, but they were to show regard for animals (see Proverbs 12:10) and bring order to their environment.

When you hire a house sitter, that person should keep the house the way it was found, not making a mess or doing whatever she feels like doing to it, like painting it a new color. Good house sitters will honor the fact that the house is not their own and will act in the interests of the homeowner.

In the same way, God desires us to act in His interests, caring for the things He has entrusted to us. Our property, our lawns, our homes, our bedrooms, our supplies, our pets, and our very lives all belong to Him. Should not the way we care for those things reflect that truth?

Read Josh Gilchrist’s full article on our website.

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This Sunday, the new Living Faith magazine is available and our new series in Genesis begins! Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

Services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

What is God teaching you?

“Suffering is for my good and God’s glory … He disciplines His legitimate sons and daughters. Sometimes it’s instructional, sometimes it’s corrective, but just knowing that we can stand before Him righteous because of what Jesus has done.” – Toph Parkin

“[As a biblical counselor] I’m just a tool, I’m just a waterer and a planter of seeds. It’s up to God to figure all the other stuff out.” – Tamara Henning

The Faith Matters podcast is back from summer hiatus! Listen to Toph and Tamara’s full Someone You Should Know interviews on our website or your favorite podcast listening app.

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This Sunday, Dan Jarms will wrap up the Second Coming series - unless Jesus comes back before then! Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

Anyone else wish we could do Church in the Park every week!?

Thanks Spokane Parks and Recreation for the use of the beautiful Corbin Park on Sunday!

Photo credit: Julie Thiry

We hope to see you at Church in the Park! There’s only one service this Sunday, in Corbin Park at 10:30 am.

Please bring camp chairs/blankets and allow extra time to drop them off and park in the Faith parking lot if you're able to make the short walk to the park.

Drivers dropping family off before parking at the church building should follow a one-way loop south on Stevens Street and back north on Calispel to help traffic move smoothly.

Dan Jarms will continue the Second Coming series, preaching from 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11. We'll worship all together and then picnic together afterward!

Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email. If there is adverse weather or air quality, we will worship in our church building instead, in a single service at 10:30.

For those who took on the Summer Reading Challenge, make sure to turn in your checklist by next Sunday, September 8 in the Library. There's a little tray you can set them in next the the self-checkout station.

Prizes (like these cool bookmarks) will be handed out in the weeks following!

You may have noticed some heavy equipment and hardhats operating to the west of our church building. Excitingly, that is evidence of God’s ongoing work to save people from every tribe and language and nation of the earth! We wanted to answer a few questions you may have about this project.

What is happening on the west side of Faith Bible Church?

Last year, Faith’s elder board finalized the sale of the church’s unused property west of the main parking lot to a company led by Faith elder Jim Greenup, for $300,000. This sale price was determined by independent market experts, and Jim recused himself from decisions made by the elder board about this.

The company is developing the property for housing that is friendly to the church and neighborhood. Pardon the dust for the next few months, and get ready for some new neighbors!

What happened to the proceeds from the sale?

Proceeds from the sale are going into the All Nations Fund, which was created to fulfill the elders’ desire to put the property to use for global outreach, the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all nations of the world. The sale price of the property is being paid into the fund over time, with interest.

What is the All Nations Fund for?

As the name suggests, this fund is for global outreach to unreached people groups. “Unreached” means that they do not have a thriving indigenous church that is able to reach others in that people group. Many of these people groups do not have any church at all, and some have no believers at all. Most do not have a Bible in their language yet.

About 70% of this fund’s outlay will go towards sending people or supporting projects happening among these groups. The remaining 30% will go toward training those who are preparing to reach the unreached.

Read the full Q&A on our website.

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This Sunday, Dan Jarms will continue the Second Coming series looking forward to the return of Christ! Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heav'nly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Amen.

Thank you John Gardner and the whole Creative Arts worship team who helped make last night such a beautiful expression of worship.

Good things are happening at Faith this Sunday!

After second service, please stick around for the Welcome Lunch in the Reception Room if you’re new to Faith Bible Church in the last few months. Meet some of our leadership, ask questions, let us get to know you and help you get connected into our loving community making disciples of Jesus Christ.

In the evening, all are welcome to the Summer Worship Concert at 6:30 pm! Enjoy choir, orchestra, and congregational music exalting our faithful God using His Word in the Psalms. Let’s praise our risen Lord Jesus and give Him the glory in song! This concert will not be livestreamed, so we hope you can join us in person.

Also this Sunday morning, we will learn a new worship song and Dan Jarms will continue the Second Coming series, preaching from 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

Kittens, rhubarb, war, and death may not seem to go together, but many unexpected subjects can come up at a family dinner table. Laughter and jokes are quickly followed by sighs and tears, and then there’s another round of laughter, as people share the joys and pains of life on earth.
College family dinners are a beautiful place to see this happening in God’s family at Faith Bible Church. Every couple months, host families from Faith invite small groups of young men and women from Doxa, the college ministry, to dinner in their homes. There's no specific agenda, just practicing hospitality and getting to know each other.
Doug and Lisa Demmert have been hosting since the dinners began a couple years ago. They also invite Nancy Dannen to their dinners, including the one I had the privilege to visit. Nancy said it is sweet and encouraging to spend that time with younger adults (it was hard not to call them “kids”).
In contrast to their dorm rooms or apartments, at the Demmerts’ home south of Spokane the young guests enjoy open space, beautiful natural views and animals – and the simple comfort of being in a loving family home.
The family dinners came about a few years ago after college ministry staff discussed strategies to get students into worship services on Sundays. Tanya Cammack, who serves on the volunteer staff and coordinates the dinners, said they wanted to help students connect with people outside Doxa, knowing it would be a little less awkward to come into Sunday worship if they saw people there they already knew.
After being invited to a Doxa Bible study her freshman year, Sarah Summitt was drawn to Faith Bible Church by attending the family dinner at the Demmerts’.
“They just invited us into their home. And they really took an interest in our lives, and they really wanted to get to know us and invest in us.”

Read Lynn Yount’s full article on our website.

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This Sunday, Dan Jarms will return and teach about the return of Christ! Plus, the choir and orchestra will lead us in new music. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

“You mustn’t wish for another life. You mustn’t want to be somebody else. What you must do is this: ‘Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks.’

“I am not all the way capable of so much, but those are the right instructions.”

At Faith Bible Church, one of the things that we strive to be intentional about is discipleship. That looks like coffee with a mentor, a phone call to a trusted friend, or engaging with our Growth Groups. I think fictional characters can help teach us, too. One of my mentors from fiction has been Hannah Coulter of Wendell Berry’s novel of the same name.

Born in a hardworking farming family in 1922, Hannah lives with her father, mother, and grandmother until her mother dies unexpectedly from the flu when Hannah is 12. This begins a life full of loss and grief.

Hannah tells her story in first person as an elderly woman looking back over her life. Hannah has been widowed twice, lived through the consequences of World War II, and seen technology change the landscape and values of her home in Port William, Kentucky. Through all the difficult circumstances she continues to live according to her steady values of love and charity.

“The living can’t quit living because the world has turned terrible and the people they love and need are killed. They can’t because they don’t. The light that shines into darkness and never goes out calls them on into life. It calls them back again into the great room. It calls them into their bodies and into the world, into whatever the world will require. It calls them into work and pleasure, goodness and beauty, and the company of other loved ones.”

Wendell Berry’s lyrical writing brings beauty and truth to how we can meet difficult, unexpected circumstances in our own lives. Hannah is an example of walking a faithful life.

Review by Stacy Ott
Find the book in Faith’s library: fbchurch.org/library

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This Sunday, Corey Millican will be our guest preacher from Romans 16:25-27. Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.

“The principle that real encouragement takes place only when people are ready to take action has some implications. Not everyone desires to move forward. Some people wallow in guilt, or bask in self-pity, or look for shallow sympathy. These people are not ready for encouragement the way the Bible defines it. They may need instruction about confession and forgiveness, or admonishment to think humbly about their circumstances and responses. But without readiness for action and change, you can’t really empower them to pursue it. This may explain why your words seem to fall on deaf ears at times.”

- Excerpt from “Don’t Be Discouraged About Encouraging,” an article by Brian Sayers that was originally posted November 5, 2017. To read the rest of Brian’s article, go to fbchurch.org/resources.

Join us this Sunday to worship the Lord in song and Scripture! Josh Gilchrist will continue our Romans overview series, preaching from Romans 15:1-7. We’ll also come to the Lord in gathered prayer for kids and leaders at youth camp this weekend and for our summer short-term teams sent to Southeast Asia and Tenerife, Spain.

Preview the service in your Faith Weekly email or on our website.

In-person services at 8:30am and 10:30am at 440 W Cora Ave. Livestream on YouTube at 10:30am.