Everyone is invited to our Annual Celebration this Sun., Sept. 25! Members are encouraged to come for the Annual Meeting beginning at 9:00am. Everyone is then invited to a worship service in the Worship Center at 10:45am, followed by a potluck lunch at noon. More details to come! Please plan to bring a dish to share according to the first letter of your last name — A-H: appetizer; I-L: dessert; M-Z: main dish. Food can be dropped off that morning in the main kitchen. We also still need help with set up, receiving food, and clean up. To volunteer, click HERE. Questions? Contact Liliya Gor in the Bridges office: liliya@bridges.church.

There will be no Life Groups that morning. Nursery care and activities for pre-K – grade 5 will be offered 9:00am-noon. Student Ministries will be meeting normally.

Bridges is hosting a basketball event for international students this Fri., Sept. 23, and we need your help! Students from all over the world will be coming to our campus for fun, food, and fellowship. We will be serving them dinner as a way to connect and care for them, and we need volunteers to bring food and also help with rides to and from the event. This is a wonderful opportunity to show these students the love of Christ! Please reach out to Laura (laura@bridges.church) if you are able to help even in a small way.

At the Annual Celebration potluck this Sunday, we'll have some extra friends joining us from Abundant Life Christian Fellowship (ALCF)! Bridges provided worship space for ALCF over the summer while they were in transition between buildings, and now we are continuing to grow that relationship through sitting around a table and sharing lunch together. Some of their congregation may even join us for worship. Be sure to say hello and make a new friend!

The Elder Nominating Committee is one of the few committees specifically identified in Bridges' constitution and is tasked with screening and recommending candidates for the Bridges Elder Board. Elders must be Bridges members, possess the qualities laid out in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1, and be approved by the Elder Board and the congregation. Elders serve three-year terms and are limited to two consecutive terms.

This year's Nominating Team (Al Kruger, Jayne Bell, Allen Bates, Yuki Ichiriu, Sarah Sun, and Andrew Hill) is happy to present to the congregation the following names as candidates for elders. 

     • Elder: Danny Oh (for a three-year term)  

     • Elder: Austin Ward (for a three-year term)

The purpose of this message is to introduce you to the candidates and request any feedback or input you would like to provide in advance of the formal vote at the Annual Meeting this Sun., Sept. 25. If you would like to provide any feedback, please contact Liliya Gor: liliya@bridges.church.

Click HERE to read bios for the nominees.

Our Bridges Elders have identified several items in our church constitution that need attention. Primarily, the proposed changes will bring us into alignment with our practice. None of the changes concern doctrinal matters. Please read through the proposed changes and their explanations HERE. Any questions should be directed to Dan Stockum (dan@bridges.church) or Todd Kjos (todd.kjos@gmail.com) before the Annual Meeting this Sun., Sept. 25.

Bridges has the opportunity to join with numerous faith communities and civic organizations to kick off Compassion Week, which brings people of all ages and abilities together through acts of service to build a strong, compassionate, and empathetic community.

Bridges is participating in two ways: assembling hygiene kits for the homeless on Sat., Oct. 15, and by making greeting cards for active military members on Sun., Oct. 16. Mark your calendar for this wonderful weekend of serving together, and visit bridges.church/serviceopportunities for details.

After 2 years of pandemic isolation, we are thrilled to announce ManDay 2022! All men are invited to Bridges on Sat., Oct. 8, at 8:00am. Start with breakfast and a guest speaker, then join a one-time activity such as target shooting, golf, hiking, cycling, and more. There will also be sign-ups for ongoing activities such as movie nights, Foodie Chaps, apologetics discussion, etc. There is no cost for breakfast, but activity costs will vary. Teen boys under 18 are welcome to participate with a parent/guardian.

This Sun., Sept. 25, will be the last day to sign up in person outside of the Worship Center. After that, you will only be able to sign up by emailing Tom Hansen: twhansen@yahoo.com. Come bond once again at ManDay!

Los Altos Christian Schools are now accepting applications for two positions. Click to view more details about qualifications for an extended day care (EDC) leader and a substitute teacher.

Help One Child, a local ministry with whom we have partnered several times in the past, is hosting the Replanted Conference simulcast in Palo Alto, Oct. 14-15. Replanted is a faith-based ministry that supports foster and adoptive parents, those considering, and those on the journey. The Replanted Conference provides a time away for parents to be refreshed, equipped, and inspired! All members of the foster and adoptive community are invited. This conference is an opportunity for caregivers to be pampered, blessed, inspired, and refreshed. Childcare will be provided both Friday and Saturday. For details, visit the conference web page or watch this video.

We will be taking a short-term mission trip to Baja Mexico, Dec. 27-31, during which we will be working with Baja Christian Ministries to build a home for a needy family and to serve local churches there. The trip will cost $650/person, and is open to ages 13 and up. No prior construction experience is necessary. We will begin meeting together as a team in the month of October in preparation for the trip. If interested in participating or for more information, please contact Pastor Steve at steve@bridges.church.

In May, we partnered with local Jewish Family Services (JFS) to host our Picnic for Refugee Families, and JFS has given us a few more opportunities to help serve refugees in our area! These include transportation, basic one-on-one computer training, teaching English in a small group, and more. Check out bridges.church/serviceopportunities for more information.

The Bridges Nursery and Preschool Ministries are looking for warm, loving volunteers to help care for our babies and kids on Sunday mornings. The nursery needs help during the first or second hour on a weekly, monthly, or quarterly basis. For details or to volunteer, email Liliya Gor at liliya@bridges.church. The preschool needs help during the first or second hour on a monthly basis. For details or to volunteer, email Kathy Spillar at kathy@bridges.church.

We're looking for help providing transportation for people wanting to come to Bridges on Sunday mornings. If you are willing to help once or twice a month, contact Pastor Steve at steve@bridges.church. You can use your own car or our regular-sized church van (no special license required).

These are our current year-to-date giving figures: Actual is $52,340; budgeted is $84,000; shortfall is $31,660. These figures were reset at the beginning of the church year, which runs Sept. 1 - Aug. 31.

Did you know that you can text to give? Use your phone’s text messaging function and enter 650-864-4437 as the recipient. In the message field, type “Give” and tap the “send” button. You will receive a text in response with further instructions. More information is available on the BCC giving page.

"YouVersion Bible" is a free app available on most smart phones and mobile devices. Each week, we upload our message notes to YouVersion so you can connect more deeply with the day's teaching. Download the app from Apple's App Store or wherever applications for your device are available.

Missed last week's message? Click HERE to watch September 18: "People. Truth. Gospel. Part 2." by Pastor Dan Stockum. All past Sunday messages are available on our Sermons page.

Can't make it to our on-campus service on Sunday? You can watch a recording online beginning Monday afternoon every week.

You can also listen to our entire worship service on your phone by calling 650-209-7367 anytime after Sunday night football concludes. The service will be accessible all week.

Do you have a question about this week's sermon? We want to hear it! Click the green box next to the sermon video on THIS page to submit a question. The more we get, the more we know you are interacting with the message, so please send them our way. Depending on the number of questions we receive, we will vary how often we record responses and make those available to you. To see our pastors answer past sermon questions, click HERE.

Our Bridges family prays together virtually on Wednesdays at noon. We'd love to have you join us, even if you can only get away from other things for five minutes. When we come before God's throne of grace to find mercy and help in our time of need, God hears our prayers and always answers. We invite you to join our prayer time HERE on Zoom every Wednesday at noon. The passcode is: Prayer.

If you can't make the noon meeting, a prayer group also meets on Wednesdays at 7:00pm on Zoom. Please use the same Zoom link and passcode as above.

A third prayer group meets in person on Sunday mornings, 8:15-8:45am in Room 116.

We’d love for each person to find a place to use their God given-gifts within our Bridges family. If you haven’t already, please take a moment to prayerfully consider how God would like you to serve at Bridges, and let us know by filling out this online form: bridges.church/serve. If you've already filled out the form, a ministry leader will contact you in the coming weeks to arrange next steps. Thank you for helping build our church!

Need help picking up groceries, setting up tech tools or equipment, running errands, etc.? We have a team of people who are ready and willing to help. Just click HERE to let us know your need, and we will make sure you're taken care of.

If you're able and willing to help others during this time, especially those who cannot leave their homes, please click HERE.

If you have a prayer request that our BCC staff can pray over, please click HERE.