Pathways Church Blog

First, let me say that last weekend, our first at Archbishop Murphy High School, was amazing. I loved celebrating our 3rd birthday by focusing on the mission that God has given to His people in being His ambassadors in the world – reconnecting people with their Creator. What better way to do that than with six baptisms and I know that there are several in the works. The weekend was near perfect.

This weekend we kick off a new series entitled, “Everyone Needs Second Chances”. We’ll take a look at people in Scripture who were in need of second chances, what that looked like and what they experienced in the aftermath.

I found this community on the web and I thought it describes well the role of the church.

The People of the Second Chance is a community of individuals who advocate radical grace and second chances. We champion lost causes and think that a second chance is a human right.

What does it mean to champion lost causes? What might radical grace look like? Why might second chances be a human right? Questions for us to ponder.

Well, we’re officially growing up.  When Pathways first started, we had our first service in and elementary school.  When we started to stretch the walls there, we graduated and moved to a middle school where we’ve been for a while now.  Until this weekend…

We have graduated!

Starting this Sunday, we will be having our weekend gatherings at

Archbishop Murphy High School
12911 39th Ave. SE in Everett

We hope that you’ll make a plan to join us there for an exciting Sunday!  Come at 9:30 for coffee and treat, and our gathering will begin at 10am.  See you there!

This is a big week for us at Pathways.

First, we move into our new school. Please, don’t miss the Grand Opening at Archbishop Murphy High School this weekend at 10am! It will be an awesome day.

Second, we conclude our “Convictions” series this weekend as I share with you something that God has laid heavily on my heart. Over the past several years at Pathways, I feel that we have done a very good job of encouraging people to consider what it means to step onto the Pathway of a journey pursuing God. However, I feel that God has convicted me that I have not done a great job of challenging people to take the first step of obedience in that Pathway – the step of baptism.

Perhaps this is something that you have heard about, seen or questioned. Perhaps you have considered being baptized or were baptized as an infant or child and have no memory of taking this step out of your own convictions. Perhaps you never thought it was that important as long as you were following God. Perhaps you have been baptized, but never pursued God’s heart any further. I think this weekend will have something to say to all of us.

I guess it’s safe to assume that some of you who have been around Pathways have probably heard (or will hear) that I have a little bit of history with the stage and screen.  In fact, I’m sure that if you ask Dean, he’d be more than happy to tell you about it.  I can’t deny it.  It is a part of me and my story, and I’m proud of that.

There’s something about getting into the mind of the character you are playing.  You have freedom to perhaps do and say things you wouldn’t normally do or say.  You have license to put on a mask, either physically or figuratively, and masquerade behind the facade of someone, or something else.  If you’re good, you can touch people’s hearts.  If you’re not…well…we’ve all seen those kinds of movies.

But what happens if this is real life?

What roles do you play?  And I don’t mean like the mother, father, student roles.  And I’m not even talking about anything theological at this point.  I mean, what masks do you wear that have everyone else fooled.  Maybe even fool yourself.  Maybe even fool God.

I’ve been convicted of some things, and I’m looking forward to sharing them with you this weekend.

This is one of those weeks where I am reminded of the incredible privelege of being a pastor and of the deep brokenness of the world in which we live. I got a call on Monday evening from John and Sue Piatt, some of my closest friends, to find out that their son, David, had taken his life. It is a privelege to sit in brokenness with people that you love. It also sucks and angers me to experience a broken and hurting world, especially when it impacts those you love.

I know there are many of you who have been blessed by John and Sue. I know that there are many of you who knew David and experienced the joy that he brought to life. If you would like to join with the Piatt family in memory of David, the Memorial Service will be held at 2pm on Saturday, October 11th. My friend, Steve Michiels, has opened the doors of his church, Northview Community Church, to host us. There will be a reception with light foods following the service.

Northview has a brand new location that is built into an industrial park (Canyon Creek Center) on Bothell Everett Highway in Bothell (right next to BioGenesis & Zipfizz). 18303 Bothell Everett Hwy bothell, Wa 98012

One thing I love to see is followers of Jesus taking their own natural passions for life and being a positive influence in the community around them. Here is a great story that appeared in the Herald Newspaper this week about Joel Aragon’s involvement in a chess club at Seattle Hill Elementary School.

You can find the story at the Everett Herald here or read it below.

Chess Champ Teaches Seattle Hill Kids a Lesson

By Eric Stevick
Herald Writer
One by one, nearly three dozen Seattle Hill Elementary School students put former Washington state chess champion William Schill into checkmate.
For the most efficient young players, it took 19 moves; for others, up to 40.
“That’s the perfect move,” he would tell one opponent.
“Your logic is perfect,” he would tell another.
No one was jumping out of their chairs with glee. After all, it was just a drill with Schill, who competes internationally. He started with just his king and the kids were armed with a king and a rook. The goal of the exercise was to teach them to quickly and aggressively narrow the squares where Schill could move his king.
This is the first year Seattle Hill Elementary has had a chess club and Schill, a U.S. Chess Federation master, is their coach. He gently but firmly gives advice as he sizes up their skills.
Chess enthusiast Joel Aragon of Snohomish picks up the teaching fee to bring Schill to the campus on the west side of the Snohomish School District each Friday afternoon. He also gives the students tips of his own.
“This is my way of putting back a little bit into the world,” Aragon said.
Aragon figures students are learning about life as well as chess. “It teaches them how to develop a plan and how to execute a plan, but they also learn about flexibility,” he said.
Organizers were overwhelmed by the level of interest. They had hoped for 15 to 20 students but ended up with double that.
Fifth-grader Erika Tonning, 10, has high hopes — and one big goal — for the experience.
“All my life, my (older) brother and I have been playing chess,” she said. “He has always been beating me. I was hoping I can figure out how to beat him.”
Students play against each other while they wait for tutoring from Schill. Most games are relatively quick. There are no tears or struts, just nods and handshakes before setting up the board for another game.
A few parents roam around the cafeteria tables, watching but resisting the urge to coach.
Adrian Woods is glad his third-grade daughter, Rachael, 8, decided to sign up for the chess team.
“We practice at home,” he said. “I like it because it teaches analytical thinking and to solve a problem.”
Fifth-grader Kyle Sylte, 10, quickly found value in the king-and-rook checkmate lesson. In a match last Friday, that’s all he had left.
“We played it all the way down to that,” he said. “I couldn’t believe it, but the lesson worked.”
Reporter Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446 or e-mail stevick@heraldnet.com.

When Pathways was in its inception, my desire was that it would be a place that was “different”. I want people to experience grace in a way that is unlike this world or perhaps, their past church encounters. I want people to feel the freedom to give out of their gifts and passions, really believing that we are all the hands and feet of Jesus in this world. I want people to have the freedom to try and to fail. I believe all of these things are what the community of the church ought to be.

In my desire to be different, there also came with it a fear of not being different. A fear that has led me down some paths that have brought me new convictions – primary among them, I don’t want to lead out of fear.

My primary fear has to do with money. I don’t want to be lumped into the category that so many churches have been of being all about money. I want to be different. However, in my desire to be different, I have failed to address the number one issue that Americans deal with on a daily basis. I have failed to acknowledge that Jesus talks more about money than he talks about either heaven or hell. I have failed to teach the truth that where our money is, there our heart is, also. I have failed to bring the truth to the forefront that God has a lot to say about how to stay out of debt and handle our finances in a way that honors Him.

I have been convicted that I can no longer fear talking about something that is so real to all of us and something that God addresses so often in Scripture.

This is one of those weeks where I am reminded of the incredible privelege of being a pastor and of the deep brokenness of the world in which we live. I got a call on Monday evening from John and Sue Piatt, some of my closest friends, to find out that their son, David, had taken his life. It is a privelege to sit in brokenness with people that you love. It also sucks and angers me to experience a broken and hurting world, especially when it impacts those you love.

I know there are many of you who have been blessed by John and Sue. I know that there are many of you who knew David and experienced the joy that he brought to life. If you would like to join with the Piatt family in memory of David, the Memorial Service will be held at 2pm on Saturday, October 11th. My friend, Steve Michiels, has opened the doors of his church, Northview Community Church, to host us. There will be a reception with light foods following the service.

Northview has a brand new location that is built into an industrial park (Canyon Creek Center) on Bothell Everett Highway in Bothell (right next to BioGenesis & Zipfizz). 18303 Bothell Everett Hwy bothell, Wa 98012

In November we will be launching into a new series called, “Everyone Needs Second Chances”. What we will be doing is telling the story of people in Scripture who needed a second chance and allow the reality of their life to touch the reality of our lives.

We’ve not done this before, but I would like you to post your suggestions as to whose life you would like to study in this series. Who needed a second chance? Who got it all wrong the first time around – perhaps they got it all wrong several times around. Did they ever get it right?

Post your suggestions here and it is quite possible we’ll be talking about them in the month of November.

I recently saw this poster. You may have trouble reading the fine print. It says: “Every oak tree started out as a couple of nuts who stood their ground.”

The idea behind convictions is that they root deeply into the soil of our lives. Embedded by struggle and journey and failure and faith.

In the three years that I have led Pathways Church, I have certainly encountered all of those things along the way and, in the process, developed some convictions. Most of these convictions are in regard to a way of leading and living that were not deeply embedded into my fiber three years ago when Pathways was planted. They are now.

Over the next four weeks, I want to share with you some of these convictions that God has been…well…convicting me of. This week, I want to talk about a faith to believe that God wants to move and act and heal and embrace and challenge and bless and further His Kingdom work far more than we can imagine. He longs to use us toward His purpose.

Four times in Matthew, here, here, here and here, Jesus utters the phrase, “O you of little faith.” I don’t want that phrase to describe me. Too often…it does.

How can we be a community of great faith?