The Bridge
        
The Weekly Newsletter of St. Mark's Lutheran Church by The Narrows                  
   March 18, 2020  
        
 
Sunday Worship      
During this time when public gatherings are suspended, we will worship together online at 10 a.m. Please click here to join.
 
 
To hear podcast recordings of our Sunday Sermons
Click Here
 
       Contact Us  
St. Mark's Lutheran Church by The Narrows

6730 N. 17th St.
Tacoma, WA 98406

Office: 253-752-4966
Preschool: 253-752-4929
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"Behold, I am doing a new thing!" 

When we chose that theme for our life together in 2020, we had no idea that we would be relying on God to keep this promise every new day. In our minds, the coronavirus is not the "new thing" God speaks about. Rather, in the turbulence that the virus has brought to our world, the "new thing" every day is God's creative and redemptive presence in every person and community that rises to the occasion with love and compassion and care and hope.  
 
With God's creative spirit at work within us, we are also discovering new ways to be the Church and to be community for one another. In this edition of The Bridge, you will find short descriptions of some of those efforts, and links to fuller descriptions that are found at our St. Mark's website

Communications While Public Gatherings are Suspended

We will continue to send out one weekly edition of The Bridge on Wednesday mornings, unless there is a need for a special announcement. However, we encourage all of you to go to our website for daily updates and information in the new section called "Resources While Public Gatherings are Suspended."

Online Sunday Worship at 10:00 a.m.

Hundreds of you joined us in "real time" for our first online worship service last Sunday at 10 a.m., and many more have joined us since on the recorded service that remains available on our St. Mark's website and Facebook page! As we learn and grow into this new way of being together, watch for new opportunities to offer prayer requests, share God's peace, and participate in worship. For more information about worship during the time when public gatherings are suspended, please go  to the new Worship and Daily Devotions page in the new section of our website.

Compline Services

Tonight, you can listen to the first podcast of our Evening Prayer service that normally happens on Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. A new podcast will be posted every Wednesday evening at that time and then remain on our website for you to enjoy whenever you choose. Please go to the new Worship and Daily Devotions page of our website to learn more.

Daily Devotions Podcast

We are off to a good start with these, and many people have emailed or texted us to say how much these daily devotions have meant to them. A new podcast will be posted every morning at 6:00 a.m. and then remain on our website for you to enjoy whenever you choose. Please go to the  new Worship and Daily Devotions page of our website to learn more.

Staying Connected

In the new section of out St. Mark's website, we have included many ways that you can stay connected to other members of our congregation during this time of physical distance from each other. These include Virtual Care, Pew Presence, Take Them Groceries, and other ways that are being developed each week. Please go to the new Stay Connected page of our website to learn more.

Offering Gifts 

Your Regular Offering Gifts are vital to our shared mission at St. Mark's!  For the month of March, we budgeted $90,000 in General Offering income to sustain our mission and ministry. This supports everything from staff leadership to funding for all our programs and operational needs. It also enables us to give generously to partners in ministry who need our support, now more than ever! Normally, a large percentage of this offering income comes from gifts that are placed in the offering plate on Sunday morning. So, what will happen when we are not together in this way? Not surprisingly, we got off to a slow start on the first week of online worship, with offering income being about 60-70% of normal for a third Sunday of the month. So, we need to hit our full stride fast in order to catch up and then keep things on track. Please go to our  new Giving Page  to continue reading about ways that you can stay current with your giving during the time when public gatherings are suspended. 

From Our Parish Nurse: Five Wellness Ways for Living Alone and Confined to Home

1. Listen, sing, hum, and dance to music. Click on the following link for one music idea. 
Stand by Me Playing for Change. This will send you to the music on YouTube. If you have trouble, type the title into either the Google or YouTube search box. Note that most YouTube videos start with a commercial. You can usually shorten it by clicking on a box in the video that says "Skip Ad."
2. Get outside every day in the fresh air and sun. It is seriously cleansing. Go to a park and have a picnic in your car. For more information on fresh air and sun click on the following:  Coronavirus and the Sun: a Lesson from the 1918 Influenza Pandemic .
3. Keep sipping water all day. Keep your body hydrated.
4. Expand your lungs by taking 5 deep cleansing breaths every hour or two.
5. Stay connected by phone, FaceTime, or Skype with someone daily - neighbors, church members, friends, relatives - for your social wellbeing and theirs.

February 2020 - General Ministry Fund Financial Update
 
While we did not meet budgeted offering numbers for the first month since July (the first month of the current fiscal year), we ended up "in the black" for the month in real terms and budget-relative, so overall we had a favorable financial result. Offerings for February were $4,768 below budget ($76,792 versus budgeted offerings of $81,560). Fiscal year-to-date (FYTD), we are still $32,740 above budgeted offerings of $642,630, and 4.0% above last year's actual offerings over the same time period. 
 
Expenses for February were $7,563 below budget (spending $76,811 versus a budgeted $84,374). More than half of the savings for the month were again in the Staff line item. FYTD, we are now $36,919 below budgeted expenses of $656,981. Nearly all of those net savings are attributable to our pastoral transition.
 
The bottom line for February is that we brought in $793 more than we spent versus our projection to spend $2,539 more than we brought in. This puts us $3,332 ahead of budget for the month. On a FYTD basis, we are $72,637 ahead of budget on a net basis. We have brought in $60,486 more than we spent versus a projection to spend $12,151 more than we brought in at this point in the fiscal year.
 
A noteworthy update on our mortgage... Since last month, we sent another $100K principal-only payment from a recent bequest. That brings us to $200K in extra principal payments thus far this fiscal year! As our Blessing in Abundance capital campaign nears its end, we hope to have a strong finish!
 
Please feel free to contact Jennifer Droubay or Mike McKeller in the Church office with any questions. Thank you.




Caregivers Support Group

Caregivers support will not meet at church but will meet virtually online this Friday at 10:30 a.m.  If you wish to participate please email  sigi.helgeson@smlutheran.org.

Youth and Family Ministry: Trying a New Thing with Online Youth Programming

Thursday Youth Group--Middle School youth only 5:30-6:00pm March 19, bring your own snacks. To join the video meeting, click this link.
Otherwise, to join by phone, dial +1 413-338-4753 and enter this PIN: 598 989 398#

Sunday High School--The Well March 22 6:30-7:00pm Bring your own snacks. To join the video meeting, click this link. Otherwise, to join by phone, dial +1 916-750-2685 and enter this PIN: 616 205 853#

 *Both will be using Google Meeting--so make sure you log/sign in and download what you need ahead of time.  

Children and Youth Sunday Morning "Take Homes" will be sent out to each grade level later this week by either Char Leone or Ingelaurie Lisher--stay tuned. Don't forget to post your pictures to the St. Mark's Facebook page (St. Mark's Lutheran Church by The Narrows) Instagram (smlcbythenarrows) or text/email them to  ingelaurie@smlutheran.org to post. 

Young Adults

This week, we gathered for a neighborhood walk and talk, keeping the good practice of distancing ourselves 6 feet apart. Young adults, if you would like to host a walk and talk, please email   hallie.parkins@smlutheran.org.  

For Pub Theology in April, we will gather in the comfort of our own homes over Google Meet. Stay tuned to our website for more information. 
 
Adult Faith Formation

If you would like to join us on Wednesday for Bible Study at 12:00 p.m., please email hallie.parkins@smlutheran.org  for a Google Meet link. Similarly, if you would like to join Pastor Sigi online for Midweek renewal this Wednesday at 6:15 p.m., please email Pastor Hallie. 

In the fall of 2019, the ELCA voted to become a sanctuary denomination. Broadly, this means that the ELCA publicly declared that walking with immigrants and refugees is a matter of faith.  We continue our five-week series on Sanctuary this Sunday with a Bible study with Mark Gravrock, which will be posted on our website under the Faith Formation tab. 


Plans for Giving in 2020-2021

Last Sunday, March 15, was supposed to be the day when we all brought our Plans for Giving in 2020-2021 to worship. So, please use one of two ways to get your Plan for Giving to us as soon as possible: 1) Mail us the card you received in your Stewardship Packet; 2) Email your information to Pat Buck, our Financial Recording Secretary, and she will fill out a card for you. Just provide information for the following categories in the body of an email to  pat.buck@smlutheran.org:
 
Name: 
Address: 
Today's Date:
I/We commit to support the  General Ministry Fund of St. Mark's through our regular offerings from July 2020 through June 2021.
 
(1)   Please Indicate Giving Frequency:         Weekly             Monthly          One Time
 
(2)   Gift Amount per Frequency: $____________
 
(3)   Total Giving to General Ministry Fund from July 2020 through June 2021: $________________
 
(4)   Please indicate means of giving:
Offering Envelopes     Bank Bill Pay   Online Giving (St. Mark's website)     Stocks/Securities 

Additional Information
 
(1)   I/We would like to make an additional gift to the Blessing in Abundance Fund to reduce the mortgage in the amount of $____________
 
(2)   I/We have named St. Mark's as a beneficiary in a will or estate plan:       Yes       No
 
(3)   I/We have an account with Thrivent Financial and would like to know how to designate Thrivent Choice Dollars or Thrivent Action Team Funds to support mission at St. Mark's: Yes          No

Thrivent Choice Dollars - Don't Let Them Expire!

Are you a member of Thrivent Financial who's eligible to direct Choice Dollars?  Would you like to designate them for St. Mark's?  If so, simply go to Thrivent.com/thriventchoice to learn more or call  800-847-4836 and say "Thrivent Choice" after the prompt. Our church is listed on the Thrivent webpage as " St Marks by the Narrows Lutheran Church." Every dollar directed to St. Mark's will be applied to our Mortgage Principal Retirement Fund, unless specified otherwise in an email to Pat Buck  pat.buck@smlutheran.org (detail the dollar amount and designation). If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Jennifer Droubay in the church office.   2019 Choice Dollars expire on March 31, 2020.

Third Quarter

Those in the "3rd Quarter" of life are welcome to join others age 50ish-75ish to share hope, laughter and love through monthly active events.

SAVE THE DATES:  
Thursday, March 19 - service project canceled. No March gathering. 
Thursday, April 16 - potluck at church Fireside Room at 6:00 pm if church building reopens.
Saturday, May 16  - carpool on the Vashon ferry midmorning - optional walk in Vashon Forest and lunch at the Hardware Store.
Thursday, June 18 - potluck picnic supper near Point Defiance Rose Garden.

Cross Lighting

If you happen to drive by our church at night, make sure you take notice of the new lighting of our exterior cross! Thanks to the generosity of one of our members, we now can see the beautiful cross in both the light and the dark!

Member Picture Directory Update! 

We will still be updating our directory, but we have postponed with the photographer, the date is to be determined.



Call for Nominations

The Greater Tacoma Peace Prize invites nominations from individuals and organizations. The purpose of the Prize is to recognize, honor, and encourage peacebuilding by members of our community; and to promote peace and understanding locally, nationally, and internationally.

"GTPP places a spotlight on the amazing peacemakers in our own back yard who donate their time and resources to the cause of peace."
~ Janet Lee Ruud, GTPP President

For information about the GTPP and a nomination form,
Phone: 253.564.2832

Nominations for 2020 end April 17.

GTPP would like to thank St Mark's for its continued support.

Have an item for The Bridge?
Send it to communications@smlutheran.org by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. All items will  run for two weeks prior to the relevant date, and will be edited for length. Don't forget to send your member notes and news!