empty(v.) services
What are these about?
At The Oregon Community, we take very seriously the idea that the church is the only organization in the world that exists for the benefit of non-members.
So, we are always trying to find ways to be a blessing to our community.
When we started, we asked ourselves the question, "If Jesus lived in NE Portland, what would He be doing with His time?" We propose that he would not be overly concerned with getting together with a bunch of people that were just like Him, but that He would be out in the community. Serving.
Serving just to serve.
Serving to show this world what God is like.
Serving in order to change things.
Because what this world needs is not a treatise on all the things that are wrong with it, what it needs is the selfless and overwhelming love of its Creator to be shown, in a tangible way.
It needs a reminder of what this love of God looks like.
It needs an example to what grace looks like.
So, on the last Sunday of every month, our church is Empty(v.). We go out and serve our community. Together, we take on different service projects each month, no strings attached.
We are trying to be a Community that cares about our neighborhood, our people, and this world enough to actually do something about it.
So we are Empty(v.). We pour ourselves out. We serve.
If you would like to be a part of this, join us.
For more info about this month's Empty(v.) Service, email ryan@theoregoncommunity.com.
BRAKING CYCLES
Our Empty(v.) Service Project this month is with Braking Cycles, a non-profit coffee shop that is directed at helping young adults who are homeless develop job skills. They continually do new and exciting work that has immeasurable impacts on the you peoples' lives in our community. They do great things and we are really fortunate to get to partner with them.
This Sunday we will be helping with a variety of projects at their space. We will have an array of opportunities to serve and have some fun. There will be child-friendly projects as well. I hope you'll join us!
PORTLAND BACKPACK LUNCH PROGRAM
During the school year, the Northeast Portland Backpack Lunch Program provides weekend lunch sacks each Friday to 160 school children in need of food on the weekend. This Empty service, we get to help this amazing program by packing lunches together.
HOMEPDX
This month we are parterning with HOMEpdx!
Homepdx is a community of volunteers who live inside and outside.
• Share meals - Lunch on Sunday, and a light dinner on Tuesday. The importance is placed on eating together as a community desiring intimacy and relationship.
• Share hope - Listen to each others stories, and let each other know we are worth something even when times are rough. Through our connections with each other and outside resources we do what we can to meet real needs.
• Share supplies - When we have the resources in hand, we share anything from: socks, toiletries, backpacks, tarps, sleeping bags and much more. By meeting needs through relationship we ensure that these resources are given directly to our friends.
• Share ourselves - By being present, by meeting up with our friends at other times as needed, and by being part of a committed team that keeps HOMEpdx running. This team is all-volunteer based and is made up of folks who live outdoors and indoors. We meet twice a month in addition to weekly community gatherings.
COMMUNITY CYCLING CENTER
There are many ways to keep the momentum rolling. We rely on year-round volunteers, financial support, and bike donations. We would love to count you as one of the hundreds of people who are part of our community of supporters.
It truly takes a community to do what we do. We have a robust volunteer program with many opportunities to support our work to make bicycling more accessible to everyone. From leading bike rides to photographing our events, you don’t need to be an ace bike mechanic to support us!
