Please join us for worship. Services will be both in person and live streamed. Contact Pastor Berg or Kristin Smith for the streaming information.

The FLC Sunday school students will share The Christmas Story during the children's message. Please join us!

The Worship and Music Committee has recently reactivated and is refining and focusing its mission as the Church evolves post-Covid. We are seeking Congregation members who regularly attend the early or late service and would like to share their ideas and energy in this critical sphere. Meetings are quarterly and the Committee will next meet on February 4. Please consider this opportunity to engage with Pastor Berg and our music staff in their work to create a first class worship experience. Please contact Pastor Berg or Jean Peterson, Council liaison, to learn more and/or volunteer.

If you’ve been thinking of volunteering for a church role but haven’t found the right fit, consider the Altar Guild. We work behind the scenes to prepare for church services or support other events in the life of the church such as Holy Days, weddings, funerals and baptisms. We prepare Communion and the Chancel space each week. Our tasks are easy to learn, we’re a friendly group, and we need new members to carry on traditions.  Individuals or couples can become Altar Guild members. We meet on the first Saturday of the month as a group and volunteer as each is able to share in weekly duties. You’ll form friendships, learn about the rituals and seasons of the Church and perform an important service that supports our worship together. Stop by the Sacristy (the little room just through the door behind the piano!) after any service to volunteer or simply learn more about what we do.

Join other congregation and community members for breakfast and conversation! There will be “food for the body, food for the soul and food for thought!” A group of 17 men typically attend. Please join us for discussion and enrichment. Questions to Roger Steinke.

January Newsletter Articles are due on December 15! Please get your information in early to accommodate on-time publication during the holidays.

Listed below are ways for you to share with First Lutheran even when you can't attend in person:

* Mail in your checks. We are still doing weekly deposits.

* Set up electronic giving by using the Give Online button at flc.bothell.org, or calling Vanco services at 800-675-7430. Note: there is a one time fee to FLC for the set up of bank to bank transactions. There are approximately 3% transaction fees on all credit card donations, making credit card and debit card giving more effective if combined into a monthly transaction, rather than smaller amounts, weekly.

* Set up one time or auto payments through your bank’s pay service

Thank you for your faithfulness.

The Finance Committee

Bob Berg, Chair

Compass Housing Alliance is collecting $25 Gift Cards for their families. “Because Gift Cards allow our families and clients to select the gifts and items they need and want.” $25 Gift Cards for Amazon, Fred Meyer, Safeway, Target or Walmart are being accepted.  You can donate as many $25 Gift Cards as you wish!

The Donation DEADLINE is 1 PM on Monday, December 19th. Please contact Roger Steinke for more information. 

We plan to partner with Hopelink again this year. Please watch upcoming Weekly News publications for instructions to participate.

For more information, including a list of Suggested Food Bank Donations, please contact Roger Steinke. To learn more about the Northshore Nourishing Network, please click here.

CHANGE FOR CHANGE All money received in the Change for Change jar will be used to support HOPELINK food bank.

HOPELINK helps homeless and low-income families, children, seniors and people with disabilities gain stability, while providing others with the tools and skills they need to exit poverty for good. HopeLink is not accepting food or other goods at this time. Click here for donation information.

September Monthly Outreach: TBA

Purchase your Scrip gift cards on Sunday morning before and after worship or this is an excellent time to set up Shop with Scrip and Presto Pay for instant Scrip purchases and redemption on your smart phone. This is a super easy way to continue to support FLC's Scrip program. (See below for more information.)

If you have questions email Gordy Phelps.

Thank you from the Social Ministries Committee for supporting pumpkin pie donations for Compass Housing Alliance! First Lutheran Church collected over $500 in donations to help purchase 75 pumpkin pies and 12 cans of whipped cream for the more than 400 clients of Compass Housing Alliance.  Special thanks to Richard and Leona Keltner for their help with delivering pies to several Compass properties.

Attention all committee chairpersons! Annual reports will be due on January 2, right after the holidays! Please start working on your reports now, so they don't get lost in the Christmas shuffle! All reports should be submitted as a word document to Kristin Smith in the office for compilation into the 2022 Annual Report. (Non-word documents will be returned). Thank you!

Beginning in 2014, the United Nations General Assembly designated December 5th, annually, as World Soil Day. The title of 2022’s campaign is “Soils: Where food begins,” with a goal to raise awareness about how critical it is to maintain healthy ecosystems. Soils and water naturally contain salts, which move freely through the soil. But climate conditions such as droughts and human activities such as improper irrigation can increase the quantity of salts in the soils, thus degrading the soils and impacting the ability to grow food. The loss of nutrients in soil is one of the most important issues globally for agriculture, food security and sustainability.

On December 11th, we acknowledge another day designated by the UN General Assembly - International Mountain Day. Did you know that mountains are home to 15% of the world´s population and have about half of the world's biodiversity hotspots? These hotspots support large varieties of species that are unique to their geographic region and not found anywhere else in the world. Mountains are not only beautiful, enjoyed year-round by humans and animals alike, but also provide fresh water to sustain life. However, mountains and what they give to our world are threatened by climate change and constant exploitation.

If you missed picking up the flyer entitled “How to Deal with Holiday Waste Correctly” last month, you can find it on our website here and our Facebook page.