May 2022 Newsletter
Please join us for worship. Services will be both in person and live streamed. Contact Pastor Berg or Kristin Smith for the streaming information.
A Fanciful Dream
from Pastor Berg's Monthly Blog
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)

This above description of the early Christian church seems fantastical. Did, they really sell all they had and hand out their money to all in need? Did they really have the goodwill of all the people? The skeptic in me thinks if this were true it did not last long. And certainly we know that not all the people had goodwill toward those early followers of Christ. Yet, I want if to be true.
James B. Janknegt (American, 1953–), 
Make All Things New, 2005.
Oil on canvas, 48 × 96 in.
Creation Care
It’s About Plastics
If you were to guess, how long do you think it takes for 1 plastic bag to degrade in a landfill? Which would you pick: A) 10 years; B) 100 years; C) 1,000 years or D) Never?

If you picked “C,” 1000 years, you’d be close but that’s not the entire answer. Per the Center for Biological Diversity’s website (https.biologicaldiversity.org), even after 1,000 years the plastic bag still won’t completely break down. It becomes microplastic particles so small that they are less than 5mm in diameter but have a huge impact on the world’s ecosystems. These microplastics absorb toxins and continue to pollute our environment, kill our wildlife and work their way up the food chain into humans. 

And what happens before the plastic bag breaks down to microplastic particles? It's estimated that, as of 2021, there are at least 363,762,732,605 pounds of plastic pollution in the world's oceans, with around 8 million pieces of plastic going into our oceans every single day. This toxic waste makes the homes of oceans’ wildlife treacherous, entangling them in the plastic or by wildlife mistaking the plastic for food.  

That’s why it was ground-breaking when, on March 2nd, 2022, the United Nations announced that 175 of its member countries had joined together to adopt a resolution that acknowledges the damage plastic waste causes on a global basis. This resolution is the foundation for a written plastics treaty that will deal with the full lifecycle of plastic, including its production, its disposal and the design of reusable and recyclable products. The UN’s goal is to have this legally-binding agreement finalized by 2024.  

Meanwhile, there’s a lot that we can do. We can start by understanding the recycling and composting rules within our communities. Then we can implement changes at home, at church, at work and at play in order to protect our wildlife, our environment and our world!

Submitted by Christy Freriks and Ho Brown, FLC Church Council
Reception Coordinators: This is a very important ministry for grieving families planning a funeral service at First Lutheran. We would like to build a team of 12 people, as we know that many who have daytime availability are retired and like to travel. This position is paid $100 up to 100 person receptions and $200 for 100 - 200 person receptions.
Pew Angels: Help us keep the pews in tip-top condition for Sunday mornings by making sure there are enough communion cards, giving envelopes and sharpened pencils available for those worshipping on Sunday mornings. An excellent opportunity for family, friends or couples wanting to volunteer together. Can be done any day of the week!

Contact Kristin Smith in the church office to sign up for either or both opportunities!
Women's Bible Study & Fellowship opportunities available:

Deborah Circle: May 10, 10:30 am.
Gather Magazine Bible Study
Contact: Bonnie Ahlstedt 360-805-1743 or bobbon_9@msn.com.

Hannah Circle: May 16, 6:30 pm.
Contact: Linda Siebert 206-369-7047

Rebecca Circle: May 18, 10:00 am.
Contact: Barbara Thieme 425-898-8982

FLC circles welcome all women of the congregation! Please contact the persons listed above for meeting locations.
Men’s Breakfast and Bible Study! (Also available on Zoom)
Saturday, May 21, 9 – 10:15 am. 
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 16 men attended the April 2022 breakfast. Please join us for discussion and enrichment. Questions to Roger Steinke.
Roger Steinke's Notes
Director of REACH Ministries
Reach Ministries
OPPORTUNITIES FOR ALL AGES
CONUNDRUM ESCAPE ROOM in Redmond
Sunday, May 15th (11:30 AM to 4:00 PM)
Youth in Grades 7 – 12
Cost is $20 per person and includes a late lunch stop at 3 PM

Alice: Save the Tea Party! “Time has stopped in the Wonderland! The Tea Party is ruined and the Queen wants the clock torn to pieces! Take part in a crazy adventure through Wonderland and help it regain the normal flow of time. You will meet all kinds of colorful and exciting characters that will help you solve the mystery of the broken heart.” Then, help plan The Mona Lisa Heist!  “This is the most famous heist of the 20th Century. Be part of an amazing adventure through the Louvre! Can you successfully deactivate the Alarm Systems, get to the priceless paintings exhibit and steal the Mona Lisa without being detected?” Join us!
Graduation is Near!
Please forward information (college, awards, scholarships, etcc) about your high school and college graduates to Roger Steinke.
High School Grad Recognition is June 12 at 10 am worship service
3 Week Book Study via Zoom
Lutheran Theology - A Grammar of Faith by Kirsi Stjerna
Leader: Seminary student, Jill Nichols-Hicks
May 4, May 11 and May 18 at 7 pm (Standard Lutheran Time)

Please purchase the book on bookshop.org or Amazon (Also available on Kindle)

Lutheran Theology gives students the tools they need to understand Lutheran perspectives in the light of historical sources, to see the underlying motivations of past theological discourses and to apply this knowledge to current debates. Introducing the Book of Concord and Martin Luther's freedom theology, it shows them how to engage critically and constructively with key topics in theology and spirituality, such as freedom and confession. Stjerna pays particular attention to the contribution of women theologians and empowers students to bring Lutheran theology into conversation with other faith languages and traditions.

From Jill: “We will focus on chapter 4, justification and freedom perspectives, chapter 5, God talks ecumenically with creeds and contemporary questions, chapter 6, the human condition, sin and hopes, and we will spend a little time in chapter 7, communities of faith and means of grace. There are study questions at the end of each chapter that I will lead for us to dive in deeper.”  
Looking Ahead
Vacation Bible School ages 3 - 6th Grade July 11 - July 14
Preschool & Kindergarten 9 am - Noon
1st - 6th Graders 9 am - 3 pm (lunch included).
Registration opens in May!
Summer Mission Trip to Camp Lutherhaven, Idaho
July 31 - August 5
Grades 7 - 12
Work together and serve Jesus at this premier Christian camp on Lake Coeur d'Alene. Work projects at Camp Lutherhaven * campfire * bible study * hiking * team building * climbing tower * zip line * water fun in the sun! Please sign up on the youth board!
Movie Review
Just Mercy
Sunday, May 22, 3 pm
This powerful and thought-provoking true-story, follows young lawyer Bryan Stevenson (Michael B. Jordan) and his history-making battle for justice. After graduating from Harvard, Bryan might have had his pick of lucrative jobs. Instead, he heads to Alabama to defend those wrongly condemned, with the support of local advocate Eva Ansley (Brie Larson.) One of his first, and most incendiary, cases is that of Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx,) who, in 1987, was sentenced to die for the notorious murder of an 18-year-old girl, despite a preponderance of evidence proving his innocence. In the years that follow, Bryan becomes embroiled in a labyrinth of legal and political maneuverings and overt and unabashed racism as he fights for Walter, and others like him, with the odds-and the system-stacked against them.”
MOVIE REVIEW: Please watch the movie prior to our ZOOM Movie Review. As of this writing, this movie is available on Amazon Prime and Vudu. Our discussion begins with a review of the main parts of the movie. We will also explore some of the spiritual themes of the movie and share corresponding Bible verses during our discussion. Join us!
The First Lutheran Book Club continues to meet on Zoom for thoughtful discussions of our monthly book selections. Please join us!
Book Club!
Discussion Book: News of the World
by Paulette Jiles
May 24, 7:00 pm on Zoom
Discussion Leader: Roger Steinke

“In the aftermath of the Civil War, an aging itinerant news reader agrees to transport a young captive of the Kiowa back to her people in this exquisitely rendered, morally complex, multilayered novel of historical fiction from author Paulette Jiles that explores the boundaries of family, responsibility, honor, and trust. Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd travels through northern Texas, giving live readings from newspapers to paying audiences hungry for news of the world. He is offered a $50 gold piece to deliver a young orphan to her relatives in San Antonio. Four years earlier, a band of Kiowa raiders killed Johanna’s parents and sister; sparing the little girl, they raised her as one of their own. Recently rescued by the U. S. Army, the ten-year-old has once again been torn away from the only home she knows.”

“Their 400-mile journey south through unsettled territory and unforgiving terrain proves difficult and at times dangerous. Yet as the miles pass, the two lonely survivors begin to trust each other, forming a bond that marks the difference between life and death in a treacherous world.”

Here are the upcoming books and meeting dates through July 2022:  
  
June 28 Pew by Catherine Lacey. Leader - TBA
July 26 Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown. Leader - TBA

Questions to Clint Bastin (Book Club Coordinator) or Roger Steinke. Copies of the book are available on table outside the library. Zoom link will be sent March 21.

Last chance to submit your Pandemic Story! The Library Committee is considering creating a book from this historical presentation, and are asking you, our church family members, to add to or submit your Pandemic Story to be preserved in the records of this FLC church history book. Several members have already spoken to the committee about including their projects. Please contact Linda Siebert or leave your photo or written story in the basket just inside the church library by May 2022. Thank You! 

Check it Out!
The above link will be updated with April's financial information after the Finance Committee is able to review the financial statements at their monthly meeting.
 Thank you to all who have continued their faithful giving.
 
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 
Social Ministry Update
May Lutheran World Relief

May 1, 9:30 am Stuff and Pack LWR School Kits Many hands make light work!
May 8, Worship Quilt, School and Personal Kits Blessing
May 12, 9 am Pack Quilts and kits for LWR shipping
COMMUNITY FOOD DRIVE: Thank you for your generous support of the Northshore Nourishing Network food drive during March & April! We received over 800 non-perishable food items through Easter Sunday. Food items were distributed to local food pantries, school food banks and Hopelink. Learn more about the Northshore Nourishing Network.
The FLC Social Ministries Committee invites the congregation to the WA Poor Peoples Campaign monthly Open House, on May 2 at 7 pm on zoom. We are excited for you to join us as we continue the work of the Poor People's Campaign by planning our actions on June 18th!  Come and See! 
Monthly Outreach

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.

January Monthly Outreach: Compass Housing Alliance
February Monthly Outreach: Hopelink
March Monthly Outreach: Lutheran Community Services
April Monthly Outreach: Poor Peoples Campaign
May Monthly Outreach:
June Monthly Outreach:
July Monthly Outreach:
August Monthly Outreach:
September Monthly Outreach:
October Monthly Outreach:
November Monthly Outreach:
December Monthly Outreach:
Scrip is a Great Way to Increase Your Giving
with Purchases You'd Make Anyway!
Proceeds from FLC's Scrip program recently paid for the shipment of quilts and school/health kits to Lutheran World Relief. Your purchases really do make a difference!

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 are unable to attend worship or purchase Scrip online, you may mail a check to FLC Scrip, attention Gordy Phelps, with a note of what scrip cards you wish to purchase, and he will mail the cards back to you.

We have several other opportunities for earning money while you shop, for FLC's many social ministry programs:

2. Sign up for Amazon Smile and name First Lutheran Church as your charity. Every time you shop with Amazon Smile FLC receive .05% of your purchase price. You can still use Amazon Prime. Get your kids to sign up, too! In the 3rd quarter of 2021, your Amazon Smile purchases earned $84 for Social Ministries!

3. Link your Fred Meyer rewards card to their Community Rewards program for First Lutheran Church. All of your purchases will result in a quarterly donation to FLC.

If you have questions email Gordy Phelps.
From Our Partners
Maybe you’ve never considered walking or running a half marathon before but being a part of this team is SO MUCH bigger than that!
1. Cross the finish line of Rock ‘n Roll Washington Half Marathon on September 4th.
2. Find an incredible community of people doing this same wild thing with you.
3. Bring fullness of life through clean water to children and communities who desperately need it!

Training starts with 20 minutes of moving your feet on May 2nd
Get registered at: World Vision
Questions? Contact Kaaren Hatlen (kaarenhatlen@gmail.com)
Cub Scout Pack 584 Helping Hands Day
May 7, 10 am - 12 pm
FLC's chartered Cub Scout Pack 584 will be helping with some Spring Cleaning! They will be working with the FLC Garden Guild cleaning the church parking lot, general clean-up around the church and washing the church van and trailer. Many Hands make Light Work!
A Publication of the NW Washington Synod
First Lutheran Church | 425-486-2314 | 425-297-4898 |office@flcbothell.org