This week's news from our church | |
|
This week marks the first week of Pastor Lauren St. Martin among us. This is a bit misleading as Lauren has graciously contributed to the ministry of our church in a variety of ways—some public, some less so—over the past few years, but does so now as one of our pastors. Still, even as pastor, Lauren and I have been laying the groundwork for our ministry together. In particular, we have been thinking about what changes we might like to make in this new season of ministry in our church.
One thing we are doing (with the help of Sandy Nelson) is looking for new matching vestments. We are well underway in our search and can say that most likely these will be less billowy, probably off-white, and will have a collar rather than a cowl. Given that our pastoral staff trend ectomorph, these are probably good choices.
We also would like the ministry of the Word, its reading and its preaching, all to take place from the same place. For this reason we will be removing the lectern and having our readers read from the pulpit. In doing so, we hope to neither divide reading from preaching nor lay from clergy. The pulpit is a space for all.
Further, as pastors we are called from the community to serve the community. This is generally true in my case, but literally true in Lauren’s case, as she was a member of our church before becoming our pastor. To indicate our pastoral office, we wear albs that speak of our common baptism and that we represent the baptized, and by our stoles we indicate that we have been vested with authority by you, the congregation, to serve you as pastors. So when we are not in act of presiding in some way, we will be sitting among you in the pews.
In these ways we hope to both celebrate and reinforce that we are a community that is defined by the priesthood of all believers.
Most likely there will be more changes on the horizon, however this is all we have for now.
Please pray for us as we—you all, Lauren, and I—consider the ministries that God is calling us to in this season of our church’s life.
With audacious hope,
~ Pastor Todd and Pastor Lauren
P.S. Please do not be shy about volunteering to offer a prayer in response to a passage from Matthew this Lent. Openings remain to be filled, and pray with me that filled they will be.
(See below for the sign-up form)
| |
|
REMINDER:
> SIGN UP HERE
To participate in this year's Lenten prayer practice, sign up via this form.
-
to receive daily e-mails of the prayers during Lent
- to write a prayer based on a scripture passage
| |
NEXT SUNDAY: February 25
"The Kingdom Mosaic: Life Together,"
What Does God Require of Us?, (Micah 6)
Our Nurture Faith team has another class planned for adult education. Plan to stay after the worship service next Sunday, February 25, for a session on Micah 6, led by Andrea Johnson. We will meet in Fellowship Hall and the session will be followed by lunch for all. Join us!
| |
|
YOU ARE INVITED
Festive Choir for Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday
We are enlarging are regular choir to form a “Festive Choir” with limited rehearsal time! You are invited to join us — we will have four choir rehearsals during March, leading up to Holy Week. The rehearsals will happen in the Sanctuary on Thursdays at 7:00 pm on March 7, 14, 21, and 28. The choir will sing in the morning worship services on Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. You are welcome; the more the merrier!
| |
Stewardship of our Space
We are back into full swing using our church building for joining together! As we make good use of our spaces, just a reminder that volunteers organizing events are responsible for setting up and taking down tables and chairs. When reserving a space for an event, reach out to Cinda Madonna and she can help with all the details. Thank you for your considerate use of our church!
~ Jo Portinga
on behalf of the Church Council
| |
|
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16
12:00 pm Bible Reading
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 17
9:00 am Community Breakfast
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18
10:00 am Sunday Worship (link to livestream)
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22
12:00 pm Bible Study, Zoom link
Meeting ID: 861 0242 1704 • Passcode: 929248
7:00 pm Choir Rehearsal
| | |
|
|
Calendar
A PDF of our church calendar for February can be viewed and/or downloaded here.
If you would like to add a meeting, event, or a time that you want to use a space at church, please let Cinda Madonna know and she will add it to the public calendar.
> Contact Cinda
| |
Adding books to our church library
You are invited to donate books that you are done reading to our church library shelves in Fellowship Hall. Our Saturday morning Community Breakfast guests appreciate new books to read.
Thank you!
| |
|
Sunday, February 25: "The Kingdom Mosaic: Life Together," What Does God Require of
Us?, (Micah 6) led by Andrea Johnson
Friday, March 1: Craft Night
Sunday, March 3: Israel Historical Presentation, led by Tom and Diney Ruebel
Thursday, March 7: "Festive Choir" rehearsal
Saturday, March 9: Movie Night, "The Straight Story"
| |
|
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18
Greeters: Ron and Judy Hedstrom
Readers: Aaron and Rachael Nilson
Children's Message: Corbin Sheffels
Sermon: Lauren St. Martin
Coffee Servers: Tom and Linda Morris
Usher: Claire Scranton
Livestream: Catelyn Anderson
| |
|
Tom LaPaze
Daniel Sundholm
Carol Nelson
Ann Scranton
Brian Westerlund
| |
|
THIS SUNDAY'S SCRIPTURE READINGS
| |
|
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
~ Philippians 4:6-7
| |
|
THANKSGIVINGS
We pray for our world with thanksgiving
- for those who welcome the presence of Christ into our world in the most unexpected places
- for those people who are advocates for preservation of God's creation, peace, equality, and justice in the world
- for those who protest for justice in their homeland and from afar, especially people from all over the world calling for restraint, even peace, in the Middle East
- for those who care for the sick, the infirmed, and the dying with love and compassion
- for those we support who live the gospel in very different contexts than ours
- for the efforts made by those to care for our neighbors who are housing insecure or food insecure
We pray for our church with thanksgiving
- for the gifts and opportunities our new Associate Pastor for Family, Youth, and Children Lauren St. Martin will bring to the ministry of our church. May God's guidance and blessing be upon us all in this season of transition.
- for the gift of being an intergenerational congregation
- for the efforts towards Christian formation in our church and forming every generation in the faith
- for the facilities we steward, and those who care for them
- for the skill and diligence of the workers who are repairing our dome and roof
- for the many visitors who continue to grace our church
- for those to whom we serve breakfast each Saturday morning
- for those who volunteer in our many ministries
|  | |  |
|
INTERCESSIONS
We intercede on behalf of the world
- for those who, hearing a call to repentance, redirect their lives toward God
- for those who endure constant threats of oppression and violence in their homeland
- for a diminishment of violence, especially gun violence around the world, and for those who grieve the senseless killing of loved ones
- for the many people whose needs are not being met because of reduced giving to humanitarian aid
- for lawmakers who struggle to complete the tasks before them and to do so with civility
- for those who feel alone, forgotten, or a burden: might they see God's unique imprint in themselves
- for those who grieve, both those who have died and those they see slipping away
- for peace in the Holy Land and the broader Middle East. May the innocent be protected from attacks, and may those trapped by war find the essentials to keep them alive.
- for all those around the world who work behind the scenes to broker peace
- for the health of our planet
- for civility in our country in this potentially divisive election year. Might peace, love and unity have the final say.
We intercede on behalf of our church
- for all those in our community who grieve the diminishment of friends and their abilities, who grieve the loss of partners, parents, and dear friends, and who grieve the absence of people they love
- that we might find ways we can be witnesses to God's work in our world that offer people faith, hope, and love in Christ
- for the family and friends of Karlene Johnson and Michael Collison who grieve their deaths
-
for Verna and Doris in their ongoing health struggles. For Darryl and his upcoming move to a new facility. May we be a support and encouragement to them and all who care for them.
- for individuals, couples, and families who find themselves in a difficult season of life
- for discerning where and how God is moving in our church and our world, and how to respond
- for those in need outside our church doors, and resources for our church staff to respond effectively to their needs
- for our denomination and its leaders in churches, conferences, and the national office to have wisdom, compassion, and vision for the days at hand
| |
Happenings around the Covenant | |
|
Evangelical Covenant Church
Weekly update on Covenant news, stories, and resources:
| |
|
Pacific Northwest Conference
“The Catch” newsletter of the Pacific Northwest Conference:
| |
|
Cascades Camp and Conference Center
> Covenant Men's Retreat, March 22-24
| |
|
Do you have an announcement to include in a future e-newsletter?
Send it to Sandy Nelson before Wednesday at 12 noon, the week you'd like it to appear.
| | | | |
