Family
Ulana Chapman
Child Dedication - November 17

On Sunday, November 17, we celebrated the commitment of six families to raise their children to know and love Jesus. It’s a special moment in their families, and for all of us in our BP Family as well. Celebrate with us and pray for these parents and their children!

Child Dedication - November 17
Ulana Chapman
Saying Goodbye to one of our Shepherds

On Sunday, November 10th, BridgePointe said goodbye to one of our Shepherds, Dave Halligan. Dave and his wife, Pam, have served in various roles over the last couple of years, caring for our BP family. Over the summer, they sensed that God was calling them to care for the spiritual walk of their children and grandchildren in a new way. In obedience to this, Dave and Pam moved to Oregon to support their family and be a gospel influence for them. Read our blog post for more…

Saying Goodbye to one of our Shepherds
News
Ulana Chapman
BPYTH Update & Student Sponsorships

This fall has been one of energy and growth for the student ministry at BridgePointe: we had our largest student event with 85 students attending Flannel Fest, and our largest mid-week gathering a couple of weeks ago with 74 students in attendance! Watching God at work among our youth has been truly inspiring, and we’re excited to share some updates and opportunities with you.

BPYTH Update & Student Sponsorships
Stories
Ulana Chapman
Baptism Stories - November 10

During services on November 10, Trinity D. was baptized in front of witnesses from the BP Family. All in attendance heard Trinity declare her commitment to following Jesus, profess her faith and be baptized. Read her story by clicking through. .

Baptism Stories - November 10
Stories
Ulana Chapman
Baptism Stories - October 6

After services on October 6th members of the BP Family met the Rebelos at Crescent Park beach in Riverside to witness their baptisms. On a beautiful fall afternoon on the shore of Narragansett Bay, we heard the family declare their commitment to following Jesus together, profess their faith and be baptized. Join us in celebrating by reading their baptism stories.

Baptism Stories - October 6

Holy Spirit

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Dependance on the Holy Spirit

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On Sunday we began Better Than Our Best, a message series to learn more about the Holy Spirit and His role in our lives. I don’t know about you, but even after a few days, I’m acutely aware of my need for dependence on the Holy Spirit.  

As we walk this 5-week journey together, I wanted to find songs that help us focus on the Holy Spirit, remember to ask for His help, and teach us about His attributes. We often sing songs about and directed toward God and Jesus. But in worshipping the triune God— the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—we gain a deeper appreciation and awe of God’s complexity and greatness.

During this series, we are introducing three new songs that focus on the Holy Spirit:  

“You Are My Vision” -  Rend Collective

A remake of the Irish hymn “Be Thou My Vision,” I like that Rend Collective maintained the melody and that despite modernizing a few words, the richness of the original lyrics weren’t lost. Phrases like “you are my vision…You are my wisdom…You are my battleshield sword for the fight…” capture some of the attributes of the Holy Spirit we’ll be focusing on in the next several weeks.

“Holy Spirit (Living Breath of God)” - Keith Getty and Stuart Townend 

Written by the same authors of another song we sing—“In Christ Alone,” this song is an amazing prayer focused to the Holy Spirit. The lyrics are beautiful and rich - you can read through them here.

“FREEDOM" - Christa Black Gifford, Matthew Sparks & William Matthews

“Freedom” has a fun and catchy tune, but more than that, I connected with the refrain “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (see 2 Corinthians 3:17-18). Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we are free, free to experience life empowered by the Spirit as we surrender and stay connected to Him.
 

As you’re driving to or from work, cleaning your kitchen for the 100th time this week, or just needing to take a minute to be still, listen through these songs. This will help you get a jump start on Sunday, so that when you hear these songs, you can allow your mind to focus more on expressing love and devotion to God rather than being distracted by their newness.

We are being challenged during this series to remember our dependence on the Holy Spirit. I hope  these songs help focus our thoughts to Who He is, remind us how much we need Him, and give us new words with which to pray to Him. 

Rachel Cowgur
Director of Worship Arts