Easter! Talk tonight at Homewood! Special Saturday PHCF gathering! and more

Dear Public Health Christian Fellowship,

Welcome back for the 4th term - and what a special time it is: Holy Week, a special time to remember the path of celebration, teaching, betrayal, suffering, death, and resurrection that Jesus took for the sake of the world, for each of us. (Here's a song to reflect on.) With our brethren in Christian Connections for International Health, let us give praise for the loving sacrifice of Jesus, who suffered and died so we may have eternal life. Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." (Mt 26:27-28) Pray that we continue to be inspired by our Christian faith to serve those in need. Give thanks for those who integrate their faith into their lifesaving work - and for God giving each of us good work to do!

This week, we are going to have a special PHCF gathering on Saturday afternoon instead of our typical Wednesday lunch. Potluck style: afternoon tea (i.e. hors d'oeuvres), worship, crafts, and reflection/sharing/prayer. Saturday Mar 31, 4-6pm, at Teresa and Anne-Marie's house (1526 E Fairmount Ave, 21231). If it's pretty, we can also go for a walk to Patterson Park before folks head out for Saturday evening service before Easter Sunday.

For those who are staying at JHSPH/in Baltimore after May, we are also looking to expand the PHCF leadership team - please pray! and email jhsph.phcf@gmail.com if you're interested in seeing what role you can play in this group.

You are welcome to join us at any/all of our recurring gatherings:- Lunch meetings on Wednesdays at 12:15pm in Room W3011 *note room change! (contact PHCF)
- Small group on Mondays at 7:30pm in the 929 Apartments (contact Esther)
- Writing Accountability Group (i.e. study group) on Fridays at 4pm (contact Teresa)
Helpful links: PHCF website | map/list of local churches

If you have prayers, reflections, or announcements you'd like to share with the rest of PHCF, please email jhsph.phcf@gmail.com!

Grace and peace,
Teresa - for PHCF

Other announcements:

1. Praises and prayers
2. Housing opportunities
3. TONIGHT! Talk on "Christianity in the Human Sciences", 730pm, Charles Commons / Homewood Campus 
4. Joint fellowship worship night
5. Christian Community Health Fellowship Conference "Risen & Awake" - Cincinnati OH - Apr 19-21

1. Praises and prayers:

• Pray for Easter and for hearts to be renewed as we remember Christ's work on the cross! 
• Pray for local churches as people gather in remembrance and celebration of Christ's resurrection! If you are looking for a place to attend service for Good Friday or Easter, please do not hesitate to reach out.
• Pray for outreach - for inviting specific people who have been on your heart to come with you to church, and for having opportunity to share the good news!
• Pray for the Johns Hopkins International Fellowship, for outreach among our nonbeliever friends and connections to local churches and sharing the glorious story of Resurrection Day!
• Praise the Lord with us - and thank you for praying for Wai Jia (MPH candidate '18) and her Kitesong Global social venture kickoff event last week. Read her praise report here: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10159919117920635&id=615750634
• If you would like to volunteer for Kitesong Global, please write to her at waijia.tam@jhu.edu. Find out more about her God-led journey at www.kitesong.sg and bless someone with her picture books at www.amazon.com/author/waijia
• Praise the Lord with us - for a successfull Symposium on Christian Faith, Reason, and Vocation on 2/17. We are glad for all those who joined us at Charles Commons, and grateful for prayers. Recordings from the talks will be released on 832society.com/symposium in a few weeks, if you'd like to listen later!
• Pray for the persecuted church around the world.
• Pray for our seeking of holiness, and not just efficiency or growing in talents/knowledge//giftedness but keeping our focus on Jesus and his glory! Recen conviction from this testimony by Joni Eareckson Tada: https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/beware-of-running-too-hard
• Pray for prospective/new students, as they wait for admission decisions and consider where to attend, that God brings exactly who he wants to JHSPH at exactly the right time.
• Pray for our PHCF brothers and sisters who are currently afar for work/practicum/missions/dissertation research, for favor in their work and traveling mercies.
• Pray for our PHCF brothers and sisters who are graduating in a few months and/or who are seeking God's direction/calling for jobs and career.

2. Housing opportunities

• Lovely private bedroom and bathroom available in Charles Village, $650/month. All utilities and furniture included; shared common space including large fully equipped kitchen, dining room, and living room. The landlords' heart is to make this house open to international students and scholars, and for those who have a heart to interact with internationals too. (Though anyone is welcome.) More information here. If interested, email Karl Dortzbach at kdortzbach@mac.com or text at 443-570-3668, and he can send you pictures or tell you more!
• Upstairs unit apartment for rent, listing here: https://www.trulia.com/p/md/baltimore/829-e-belvedere-ave-2-baltimore-md-21212--2345922141 The landlord Ananda and his wife live in the downstairs apartment, and are believers, Hopkins alum, and members of Faith Christian Fellowship. Special consideration given if two students/fellows are interested in sharing the upstairs apartment. Anyone interested can contact Ananda directly at 410-435-6417 or by email at ankumar1120@yahoo.com
• Incoming female MPH student looking for roommates! Contact Ruth at +972-58-678-1862 (whatsapp) or rchadwick6@gmail.com
• I am currently a 3rd year medical student studying in Israel but will be taking a gap year next year to get my MPH at JH. I grew up as an MK in Papua New Guinea and China but eventually my family settled in Colorado and that's where I now consider 'home'. In college, I studied Chemistry and Biblical Studies at Gordon College before going to medical school in Israel. Eventually I would like to work in international health development in post-disaster settings, which is why I'm pursuing my MPH. 
• In terms of housing, I'm looking for 1-2 female roommates and living with other believers would be nice but isn't necessarily a deal breaker. As a roommate, I tend to be fairly introverted and usually study at home. I view wherever I live to be a type of sanctuary for restoration and would prefer my own room. That being said, I love to be hospitable and invite people into the sanctuary, which for me primarily consists of feeding people and conversations over tea, coffee, or a glass of wine (I do drink alcohol occasionally). I'm both a baker and a chef, so tasty things are always around and access to a decent kitchen is a must and space to host occasionally would be great. I tend to be on the cleaner side but don't necessarily expect everything to be spotless all the time. As long as common areas and the kitchen are cleaned regularly, I'm quite happy and chill. I do prefer not to have regular overnight guests, especially significant others and male friends, but I am very welcoming to the occasional guest in need of a place to crash. 
• One big thing is that I come with a lovely calico cat named Audrey, so a place that is accepting of pets is a must. She is entirely an indoor cat and is more dog-like than any other cat I've met. She's very friendly with humans but not really with other animals since she's been solo all her life (except for a few intermittent fosters). She has historically warmed up to kittens slowly, but it's a process. Other adult cats have not gone over well. If she were to live with another animal it would have to be done with consideration and careful introduction.

3. TONIGHT! Talk on "Christianity in the Human Sciences", 730pm, Charles Commons Multi-Purpose Room/ Homewood Campus

Our friends at the Hopkins Dialectic (a journal of Christian thought) invite us to a special talk on Christianity in the Human Sciences at 730pm tonight at Charles Commons MPR (3301 N Charles St). Come hear Dr. Richard Spady, professor of economics at JHU, discuss some of the challenges and opportunities Christians face when seriously studying the "human sciences" (political science, sociology, public health, etc.). Does an emergent illiberal liberalism silence Christian voices on contentious topics within these disciplines? Or is there nothing to fear?

For more of a background on Dr. Spady and his approach to this topic, we encourage you to read his recently published article in First Things: https://www.firstthings.com/article/2018/03/sacred-sociology

More information at: https://www.facebook.com/events/369912700084225/

4. Joint fellowship worship night

Hi everyone! Leaders from the Medical Student Christian Fellowship (SOM), the Fellowship of Christian Nurses (SON), and PHCF are working on putting together a joint fellowship worship night in 4th term. Please email Teresa if you would like to get involved!

5. Christian Community Health Fellowship Conference "Risen & Awake" - Cincinnati OH - Apr 19-21
Encouragement. We could all use some. Especially when we are in the throes of intense training.
The CCHF Conference offers medical students and residents hope as they interact with providers and others who are caring for the poor and the marginalized in their communities.
Join us at the only domestic missions conference specifically for those working to provide excellent and holistic health care to the poor and marginalized in the United States.
Scholarship applications are now available. For more info go to: www.cchfconference.org.
Let me know if you have any questions. I would love to help! - Jessie Thomas

*please note: our sister Rachel Pinto is going, and would love to connect with other JHSPH'ers - also, more scholarships for travel are available!

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people—the faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel that has come to you. In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world—just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace. (Col 1:2-6)