|
|
|
Volume 54 Issue 2 February 2012 Lent is an important season to focus on your spiritual growth. It takes up a little more than one-tenth or a tithe of the year. You are invited to give extra attention and emphasis to God’s loving action through the sacrifice, death and resurrection of Christ. Special worship services are offered to help your growth. Ash Wednesday is a solemn day of prayer that begins the season of Lent. This year it is on February 22 with a service at 7:00pm Returning to God’s mercy and grace, marked with the cross of Christ, we make our way through Lent, longing for the baptismal waters of Easter, our spiritual rebirth. Adult Forum will offer an opportunity of a Lenten study called Making Sense of the Cross by David J. Lose. We plan to team teach this with Patricia Bauer and Pastor Warren. We’ll have a DVD-led discussion on Sunday mornings at 9:00am beginning Feb. 19 and continuing through April 1 (except March 11 when New Spirit Forum will meet.) This year we will have a single Lenten service on Thursday, March 22, 7:00pm. The theme will be the Cross of Christ. On Thursday, April 5 we will have our Potluck Soup Supper beginning at 5:45pm and Maundy Thursday service at 7:00pm. As a remembrance of Jesus’ washing the disciples’ feet, there will be an opportunity to have your feet washed by the Pastor. It is also a communion service with the opportunity for first communions. Good Friday service will be at 7:00pm on April 6. Please note that all evening services begin at 7:00pm. Easter Festival Services are at our usual Sunday times of 8:00am and 10:15am on April 8. In order to better understand the meaning and value of taking part in these services, I have taken some ideas from the Manual on the Liturgy of the Lutheran Book of Worship. “’Lent’ is from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning ‘springtime’ and so is to be understood as the holy springtime of the soul, a time for preparation, planting, and growth.” (p.307) Starting with Ash Wednesday we take time for reflecting on the quality of our faith and life and looking at areas where we may want to change direction more toward God (repentance). We are given the opportunity to receive ashes on our foreheads, the same place we received the sign of the cross as a seal of our Baptisms. We are called to renewal in the grace of our Baptisms. The ashes can help us think of our frailty, and our total dependence on God for life. We are reminded forcefully of the words of the committal in the burial service, “…earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” One day those words may be said over each of us. Ashes suggest cleansing and renewal such as the ancient custom of burning the fields in the spring to destroy the old and to prepare for the new. The season of Lent has come to be 40 days not counting Sundays (always a resurrection day) that lead up to Easter. It originated as a time of preparation for candidates for Baptism. Now we see it also as renewing our own Baptismal gifts. The number 40 comes from such Biblical experiences as Jesus’ 40 days of fasting and temptation as he began his ministry; Moses’ stay on Mt. Sinai; the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness before coming to the Promised Land; and Elijah’s fast on his way to the mountain of God. All of these examples can be part of your own spiritual journey as you seek to be open to God’s transformative power now in your life. There is a practice in worship that may help us think about following Christ more in our lives. We have suggested it for the past couple of years. It is the simple action of looking toward the processional cross as it is carried in the service. When the cross-bearer brings it forward at the beginning of the service, you are invited to turn your body and move your eyes to follow it. You can also do the same at the end of the service. I encourage you to do this practice especially during Lent. Reflect on what it means to you to follow the Crucified and Risen Christ. (As a practical matter you will need to use the worship book or the bulletin, if the song is printed there, in order to turn and follow the cross rather than the projected words on the wall). Come and grow in the springtime of your soul! Pastor Warren **************************** CTK Council President’s Corner Council President’s Corner Hello everyone, This is my first Council President’s Corner and I guess I should introduce myself and give you some insight on what your council and I will be trying to do in the coming months. In 1973 my wife Linda and I bought a home in Fremont and became members of Christ the King. We were both Lutherans and CTK was our first choice for our home church. We have been active in CTK for about 39 years. We have two children, Janine and Alan. Both are married. Janine gave us our first grandchild named Grace. Alan and his wife are expecting our second grandchild, a son, in June. Now for church business, Christ the King, like many churches in the area is experiencing a decline in membership and thus a decline in revenue. For the last couple of years the council has kept the church budget at about the same level and has made cuts in our spending. This has worked so far but we cannot continue to do this without hurting or stopping our many ministries. It is the job of your council to find ways to increase membership and also to find new revenue sources to fund our ongoing and new ministries. With your help and our CTK family we will do just that. Remember this is our church and we are all stewards of that church. **************************** Who Packs Your Parachutes? (An e-mail I received from one of my Scouting friends) Charles Plumb was a US Navy jet pilot in Vietnam. After 75 combat missions, his plane was destroyed by a surface-to-air missile. Plumb ejected and parachuted into enemy hands. He was captured and spent 6 years in a communist Vietnamese prison. He survived the ordeal and now lectures on lessons learned from that experience! One day, when Plumb and his wife were sitting in a restaurant, a man at another table came up and said, “You’re Plumb! You flew jet fighters in Vietnam from the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. You were shot down!” “How in the world did you know that?” asked Plumb. “I packed your parachute,” the man replied. Plumb gasped in surprise and gratitude. The man pumped his hand and said, “I guess it worked!” Plumb assured him, “It sure did. If your chute hadn’t worked, I wouldn’t be here today.” Plumb couldn’t sleep that night, thinking about that man. Plumb says, “I kept wondering what he had looked like in a Navy uniform: a white hat; a bib in the back; and bell-bottom trousers. I wonder how many times I might have seen him and not even said ‘Good morning, how are you?’ or anything because, you see, I was a fighter pilot and he was just a sailor.” Plumb thought of the many hours the sailor had spent at a long wooden table in the bowels of the ship, carefully weaving the shrouds and folding the silks of each chute, holding in his hands each time the fate of someone he didn’t know. Now, Plumb asks his audience,
“Who’s packing your parachute?” Everyone has someone who provides what they need
to make it through the day. He called on all these supports before reaching safety. Sometimes in the daily challenges that life gives us, we miss what is really important. We may fail to say hello, please, or thank you, congratulate someone on something wonderful that has happened to them, give a compliment, or just do something nice for no reason. As you go through this week, this month, this year, recognize people who pack your parachutes. I am sending you this as my way of thanking you for your part in packing my parachute. And I hope you will send it on to those who have helped pack yours! Sometimes, we wonder why friends keep forwarding jokes to us without writing a word. Maybe this could explain it: When you are very busy, but still want to keep in touch, guess what you do-you forward jokes. And to let you know that you are still remembered, you are still important, you are still loved, you are still cared for, guess what you get? A forwarded joke. So my friends, next time when you get a joke, don’t think that you’ve been sent just another forwarded e-mail joke, that you’ve been thought of today and your friend on the other end of your computer wanted to send you a smile, just helping you pack your parachute…
Terry Pearson **************************** Love to eat? Love to talk? Why not join the CTK Lunch Bunch at 1:00pm on Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Olive Garden Restaurant Everyone is welcome!
We
look forward to seeing you. **************************** Women’s Circle
The
Women’s Circle will be on long term hiatus until their Annual Spring Dinner in
June 2012. All are welcome. **************************** Eternal sanctuary candle for February given by Gail Queenan in memory of loved ones and Myrna Stephenson in memory of husband, Jack and dear friends, Louise Hackett and Ruth Buland **************************** Chancel Flowers February 5, given by the Shaffer family in celebration of Zack Shaffer’s 18th birthday and Eagle Scout awarded at his Court of Honor. February 12, given by Joe, Jan and Amy in memory of Peggy Tuleen. February 19, given by Erna Nore Lenten Greens will be displayed from February 26 ― April 1, 2012 **************************** Up and Coming Social Ministry Committee; Jean Morgan, from Abode Services, will visit Christ the King on February 19th at 10:15 to give a brief presentation on the “Abode Home Warming Program”, what it has accomplished to date, and what the plans are for the future. Sponsorship of our first family in 2011 was successful, therefore we hope to sponsor again this year, either a single person or a small family. CTK will collect “Souper Bowl” donations on February 5th and Thrivent Financial has generously approved matching dollar for dollar up to $500.00. All proceeds will go to “Abode Home Warming Program”. We thank you for whatever support you can give to this program in 2012. New Spirit Forum’s First Paul. All are welcome to join our next session featuring Marcus Borg’s book First Paul. Learn more detailed information of Saint Paul’s great mission to spread and explain God’s message to people like you and me. Paul Griffin leads these sessions and has the knowledge and experience to help us understand the intricacies of this wondrous gift from God Our Father and his son Jesus Christ our Savior. We will meet in the Forum Room of Carlson Hall on February 12, 2012 at 9:00am. Plan to join us on the second Sunday of each month. Robert Walker Adult Forum—beginning February 19, we will start a six session Lenten series called Making Sense of the Cross. There will be a DVD presentation accompanied by books. You may purchase a book for $14.00. Patricia Bauer and Pastor Warren will co-lead this series. Please attend the New Spirit Forum on the 2nd Sunday of each month, and come to these forums the other weeks. Farstrup-Mortensen Lecture Series, February 24-26, Bethania Lutheran Church in Solvang, CA; This year’s series is titled “Christianity in America Today” with guest speaker Marcus Borg. Enjoy thought provoking presentations, good food, singing, friendship, and folk dancing (led by Pastor Warren’s father Clayton Nielsen). Talk with Pastor or Erin, Mae Kaven, Bob and RoseAnne Lawrence or Ann Walla, who have all attended in past years. Brochures (including registration forms) are available in the narthex or go to www.hwy46.net/users/bethania. The cost is $140 with registration received by February 1, or $160 after. Fellowship sponsor(s) are needed for 2012. There are information pamphlets in the narthex to help you plan for sponsorship of a fellowship following worship service. Without sponsors, fellowship is not possible. Please take a turn and sign-up today. Friends and groups are welcome to sign-up, make it a cooperative effort. Wondering what to do with all those Christmas cards and other greeting cards you received this past year? Well, the Day Worker Center in Mountain View as a part of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development could use people’s greeting cards. They will recycle them into Christmas projects for next year. Cards can be dropped off or mailed to the Day Workers Center, 113 Escuela Avenue, Mt. View, CA 94040. Their phone number is 650/903-4102. Tri-City Volunteers Silver Barrel Donations. Focus for January is hot or cold cereal. **************************** Charles and Renee Family Update from Abode Services In March of 2011, thanks to the generous donations of CTK members and The Center for Well-Being, we helped the Charles and Renee family move into an apartment. At that time the two youngest boys were living with relatives. The following is an update we received from the “Abode Services Home Warming Program”: Renee and Charles continue to work full time. They received custody of their two boys, and their daughter had a baby girl in September. This necessitated moving into a larger home. With the help of the program, they were able to move into a three-bedroom single family home in Fremont in December. They received sponsorship from Niles Discovery Church for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. They received lots of food and additional furnishings for their new home. They will exit the program successfully after a year at the end of February 2012. Abode Services and The Winter Relief Program would like to thank you for your support. We appreciate your generosity and look forward to a long productive relationship of making a positive change in the lives of our program participants. **************************** CTK COUNCIL HIGHLIGHTS
December 13, 2011 Call to order: 7:20 pm by Patricia Bauer, Vice President. Body and Soul: Sharing of experiences. Minutes of the previous meeting: Minutes of the November 15, 2011 council meeting were approved. Treasurer’s report: Net income for 2011 year to date is -$6785.40. Financial Secretary’s report: Financial Secretary’s report for 1/1 through 11/29/2011 was filed, showing income for the period, with $244,497.44 received year-to-date. Pastor’s report: Worship— Youth service was held 12/4. Council sees this as a beginning and hopes to see this become a regular occurrence. New Chrismons were dedicated and blessed at the 12/10 service. There will be one service for Christmas Day. 12/18 will be Christmas concert. Lay service for 1/1 and 1/8. Evangelism— Continue emphasis on cultural humility. Pastoral Care—Attended members and their families who are on the CTK prayer list for health concerns via visits and phone calls. Of late we have had a number of members with medical issues. Youth and Learning—Cam Bauer was recognized for his work with youth in the church and in scouting on 11/20. Weekly adult bible study on Thursdays. Adult Forum on Sunday. Sent recommendation letter in support of Zack Shaffer for Eagle Scout and spoke with him regarding his becoming an usher. Communication—Wrote monthly letter for Tabletalk. Connect with members via e-mail regularly. Property—Participated with volunteer group to move the choir platform and chairs to allow room for the Christmas tree at the front of the sanctuary. Fellowship—Visit with groups that meet in our hall and communicated about set up for fellowship to Chinese Church. Congregational Meeting—Meeting was held 12/10. Budget was approved and Bill Kemp (1 year), Deborah Griffin (3 years) and Bob Kufeld (3 years) were elected to council. Reports of committees: Property— Had to use landscape service to clean up after the windstorm. Four exit lights are being replaced in sanctuary and three in Carlson Hall. Will replace plug by coffee cart in Narthex with a GFI. Scouts were not able to paint shed last week. Probably won’t be done until weather gets warmer - next year. Unfinished Business Bill will get Christmas Banners put up. New Business • Laurel King requested on behalf of Social Ministry that the “Souper” Bowl Sunday collection go toward an ABODE family or single person. After discussion the board made a motion the motion to use the “Souper” Bowl Sunday collection for an ABODE family or single person, motion was seconded it and carried unanimously. • Motion was made to approve Pastor’s Annual Housing Allowance resolution was made, seconded and carried unanimous. •Motion was made to approve CTK being recipient of $1,000 in funds from a San Francisco Lutheran Organization to pass through for ASL Interpretation of Al-anon meetings in the Bay Area and that a letter of acceptance of the pass through funds will be signed. Motion was seconded and carried. Announcements: 1/1 Randy Cooper, 1/8 Joan Keyser, 1/15 Robert Kufeld, 1/22 Bill Kemp, 1/29 Terry Pearson Next meeting January 10, 2011 at 7:15 pm; Bill Kemp Body and Soul Meeting adjourned at 8:37 pm.
Respectfully submitted, **************************** |
|
Christ the King
Lutheran Church Last updated 01 February 2012 |