Kairos Christian Fellowship (Gracepoint – Berkeley)

Join us (Rick/Sue & Andy/Amy’s Group) after Bible Study this Friday on our Hike up to the Big “C”! Get into the Cal spirit of things on this 20 minute hike with yummy snacks to celebrate with at the top.

What to bring:

• Water bottle
• Warm clothes and layers
• Tennis Shoes
• Flashlight

Hi everyone, this is not “Kairos related,” yet it pertains to everyone. Boundless is a webzine that is targeted towards young, Christian singles, and this Q&A article focuses on how Christians ought to view dating, marriage, and the role of the Christian community. It shouldn’t take you more than 5 minutes to read — it’s well worth it!

Here’s an excerpt:

…I’m 24 years old, currently in my third year of medical school. I’ve been a Christian for most of my life, but really started to walk with God the last few years. I have a decent network of Christian friends, though I’m not currently attached to a church or bible study, due to the fact that I travel a lot for my clinical rotations. I try to go to church when I can, but I haven’t been able to plug into one church since I am on the road so much.

Anyway, during my first year of medical school I met and started dating a wonderful guy and we’re starting to think about serious commitment (i.e. engagement). He is very sweet, kind, smart, funny, all those great things … and he’s a medical student like me. In short, we’re basically perfect for each other. The problem is, …

Continue reading »

Holas! This Friday night after Bible Study, we’ll be joining Rick & Sue’s group for a night hike up to the Big C. (Apparently Amy Tung STILL has not been up there yet, as well as several other staff members…shameful ) We’ll take a strenuous 15 minute hike and when we get up there, tired and hungry as I know many of you will be, we’ll be having some yummy snacks and fun fellowship time. Please wear comfy shoes (its not that bad of a hike, but it has quite an incline). Please also bring a flash light so you can see where you’re walking. I’m excited! See you all Friday!

Update: Afterwards, we will be going to Alameda High School for a gym night! We’ll play some organized games and then break up for some friendly games of volleyball & basketball…it will be some nice fellowship and an opportunity to get some good exercise! Make sure to bring your sports clothes and we’ll meet at the gym at 10pm. And just a reminder, Bible Study starts at 8PM today (not 8:40)!

Multiply Your Talent & Bible Study at Berkeley Gracepoint Multiply Your Talents resume this Friday at 7:00, followed by Bible Study. Even if you haven’t signed up, you can still check out what these classes have to offer. See you then!

Special Event This Week: Starting from 5:00 PM in the Gym at 1st Pres, we’ll be participating in a Bone Marrow Drive. If you would like to participate, please come at 5:00 PM. They will take a blood sample and add you to a registry so that people who need a transplant can hopefully find a match.

Thanks!

Entering my fourth full year with Kairos Christian Fellowship, I have been blessed with outings to some of Northern California’s most serene and majestic natural wonders, including Yosemite and the Sierra Nevadas. This past July 4^th, the opportunity to escape the frantic pace of daily life in Berkeley and San Francisco to pause, take a deep breath, and re-encounter the incredible natural beauty of the Sierra Nevadas, Lake Spaulding, and Lake Faucherie with Kairos was without a doubt one of the highlights of my summer.

One thing I reflected upon during this trip while gazing upon the mountainous panorama of Lake Faucherie was that thesplendor and majesty of Creation touched a deep part of my soul that continually seeks for life as it was genuinely meant to be lived. Surrounded by people who know me better than I know myself at times, as well as other people who I personally strive to understand on a deeper level, we were all able to experience true fellowship in daily being devoted to studying Biblical truths, laughing and working alongside one another, and being awestruck by the grandeur and reality of God’s majestic Creation.

As we have recently listened and observed in the Truth Project by Dr. Del Tackett, in Psalm 19: 1-2 King David writes that “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hand. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.” Lake Faucherie was a snapshot of Creation declaring the glory of God and proclaiming the work of his hand. We are too often blinded by the tunnel vision of needing to accomplish specific tasks or goals for the day and fail to take time to step back and see the grander picture that we are a part of. This is the life as it was truly meant to be lived.

I also wanted to thank the staff for organizing, planning, cooking, driving, and generally stressing over the trip in order to make it enjoyable for us undergrads. The sacrifices made by the staff were what made this trip possible, and they reminded me of how having so many leaders who have gone before me, walking the same path I am now walking, is just one example of God’s faithfulness and blessing in my life.

Above all, just as Apostle Paul exhorts Timothy to “…join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us into a holy life…” (v.8) in our week’s devotional text from 2 Timothy 1, I was reminded of the difficulties of Christian life back home in Berkeley and our need to join in suffering for the gospel. We gleaned a firsthand taste of the true fellowship and freedom that accompanies embracing God’s plan for our lives through our July 4^th trip, and it is our responsibility to respond to that calling.

Multiply Your Talents resume this Friday at 7:00, followed by Bible Study. Even if you haven’t signed up, you can still check out what these classes have to offer. See you then!

This past weekend Kairos had a special opportunity to stay in a charming and lovely house in the Sierras. Instead of roughing it, Richard T was able to find us a gorgeous house where all forty of us packed it in. The house was so cozy, each room having their own themes and decorations — there was even a purple room! We were all pretty comfortable even though we had to squeeze forty people into five rooms.

When we arrived and got settled, we prepared to go to Lake Spaulding. When we got there we had a picnic lunch and waited for our kayaks to arrive. However, when some of the brothers brought the trailer, it was empty. (They shall not be named.) Despite this minor setback, the rest of us found a way to occupy ourselves, either by eating, skipping stones, and/or playing with the kids. A short time later, the brothers brought a trailer full of kayaks and oars, and very soon after we were all off into the lake. Of course, regular old kayaking would be boring so we spiced it up a little with splash fights, paddle races, and kayak jousting. It was a full day when we headed back to the house where we thoroughly enjoyed Dora’s Chicken Tiki Masala with garlic naan. After washing and showering up we went outside to play a mysterious game that Josh invented. Once we split into teams, he explained the rules of the game. Needless to say, many of us got quite nauseous after Josh mentioned the title of the game, “Eating Trash Relay”. Each team had to run to and grab and eat an item from a trashbag. Some items include: a whole watermelon slice, Durian wafers, Saltine crackers, black licorice, Spicy V8, and a PB sandwich (yes, there was no J). It didn’t really matter who won or lost, because everyone walked away a loser because of the stomach upset that was caused. After that unusual game, the brothers and sister split off to play normal games like Spoons, Catchphrase, and Pokemon. We all went to bed tired and ready for our next day of adventure!

The next day we woke up and had a wonderful breakfast of corned beef hash and leftover Tiki Masala. We did our DT and drove out to Lake Faucherie. The ride was pretty nice halfway through until we hit unpaved road where all of us bumped along a 45 minuted drive to the lake. A SUV full of brothers bumped too hard and punctured two of their tires. While the rest of us were at the lake having lunch, they had to go back to get the tires fixed. Some sisters made them a lunch to go and we all missed them while having fun at the lake. At the lake we tried catching snakes (some of us successful), fished, skipped stones, played games, and rafted. We then went on a short 0.2 mile hike to see a beautiful waterfall on the other side of the lake. The water was cold and very clear, and the picturesque scene really made me appreciate God’s awesome artistry (who would have thought that water falling from a higher place to a lower place could look so amazing?). We took a memorable picture and hiked back quickly so we could get back to the house in time for dinner and fireworks. We prepared a Korean BBQ feast of salad and kalbi. The house had a great view of the fireworks already so we didn’t have to fight the crowds. After dinner and clean-up the sisters and brothers again split up to play games of our own. The sister played an intense game of King Kong shower. After wards we played…girl stuff, while the brothers were calmly playing instruments in the music room and playing Pokemon again. We all then went to bed, resting before we headed out home the next day.

We woke up the next day and had chicken soup while doing DT. We then cleaned the house hoping it would be spotless so we could develop a good relationship with the owner. Afterwards, we packed all our things and headed to Sierra Lodge to have Sunday worship with Koinoinia, Praxis, and the Staff. Pastor Ed gave a great message about 2 Kings 5 and the story of Naaman, focusing on the other “minor” characters like the servant girl and Naaman’s soldiers. After worship service, we had meatball sandwiches for lunch and then made our way back home. Although we were hindered by the traffic, the sisters made efforts to entertain ouselves with games and singing. When we got to Berkeley, most of us went to Racha Cafe to eat a late dinner. We enjoyed the great food and company telling each other riddles and sharing our food.

It was such a shame to go back home and having to get ready for another week of school, but this Kairos trip was certainly very memorable since it was our whole group together and the first with the newly added A2F Blue group. I made so many great memories (and ate such great food!) and can’t wait for our next Kairos wide trip .