| This Sunday, September 3rd Holy Communion - 10 AM All are welcome to receive Communion!
The prophet Jeremiah speaks of the incurable wound of his suffering, yet finds in God's words the delight of his heart. When Peter doesn't grasp Jesus' words about suffering, Jesus tells the disciples they will find their lives in losing them. Such sacrificial love is described by Paul when he urges us to associate with the lowly and not repay evil with evil. In worship we gather as a community that we might offer ourselves for the sake of our suffering world.
Sunday's readings: |
Serving God on Sunday September 3rd
Assisting Minister: Holy Trinity Crucifer/Acolyte: Holy Trinity Lector: Holy Trinity Ushers: Holy Trinity Organist/Pianist: Holy Trinity Flowers: Holy Trinity
Fellowship: Holy Trinity Sacristans: Holy Trinity Counters: Anita Patten, Wayne Olson
Janitorial: Judy Faye Groundskeeper: Matt Thelen
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| Worship Schedule As voted on and approved at the May 21 Congregation Meeting, our late summer/fall worship schedule will be as follows:
| September 2017 | 10:00 a.m. Worship Service | at Holy Trinity* | | October 2017 | 10:00 a.m. Worship Service | at St Paul's |
*No flowers or alter care at St. Paul's.
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| Urgent Notice from Lutheran Disaster Response Hurricane Harvey is one of the most powerful storms to hit the United State in years. Your gifts are needed now to help those affected by Hurricane Harvey. Your support through Lutheran Disaster Response will bring hope and healing tho those who have or will be affected. Donations can be made on line at (http://www.elca.org/give) or by mail. If donating by mail, make checks payable to Hurricane Response-United States and send to Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, P.O. Box 1809, Merrifiedld, VA 22116- 8009. You can also call (800) 638-3522 to make a donation with a credit card. Operators are available Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Central Time.
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DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING?
No, this is not a trick theological question regarding heaven or hell! I ask it to determine the focus of your congregation's mission. I am prompted to ask the question based upon my driving habits as I cruise around the synod territory.
First of all, a confession: I don't have a GPS either built into my cars or a plug-in. I keep thinking I need it, but so far MapQuest has guided me into places I am not familiar with. Well...kind of guided me...The first two times I drove to Fremont to work with four congregations seeking ways of cooperating, even with MapQuest! I had to be guided in via helpful persons on the other end of my phone. In truth, I was WAY lost! I had no sense of direction, no real idea where I was.
I can't help but think it must feel the same way among congregations today who have been used to directions in their ministry that have been time and true. But today, doing the same thing year after year may no longer work. Our population is more diverse, our youth often are no longer in church, our leaders may be tired, our finances drained. Our call still is there: sharing the Good News of Jesus' Love with all. But, the directions to and for our ministry have changed, and we may feel lost. And, the harder we try to find out the answer, the more frustrated we may become, and we start questioning our competency or direction in our ministry.
Well, soon I know I need a GPS to guide me, and my guess is most of our congregations need some ministry guideposts to get the wheels of ministry going again. One source of that could be the ELCA Congregational Vitality Project. It's GPS is set on three vital mutual relationships: God, each other, and the world. Through these relationships flow the Holy Spirit so that congregations carry out the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. But, it's not just about being vital congregations, we also are called to sustain the ministry so vitality is an ongoing quest of ministry beyond our four walls, and not simply to maintain what and who we have to always look at new opportunities God nudges us towards.
I have no doubt all of our congregations live out the Great Commandment: "Love God with all your heart, soul and mind, and your neighbor as yourself. " I believe however we may struggle mightily with "Go into all the world". I emphasize the word, "Go", because as congregations we want to invite people "into the church" We have this notion if we can only get them "in" to our sanctuary, then we can give them what they need. Rather, the direction of the church today is a call outside of our doors to where people are and by listening carefully, being in the community and part of it, we can learn how we can become a catalyst for compassion, new life and a presence that brings new hope and vitality to all people. Jesus went out into the towns, villages and countryside because that is where people were, and most often when he observed their needs for physically healing, food to sustain their lives and their families, they were taught a new story about a God who came to be with them, and guard, and guide them to a new life, centered not in a building, but in a Savior who gave his all for them, and us today.
And, when Jesus gave his all for us and our world, he turned it over to us, and the Holy Spirit to continue that life-giving ministry God sent for all humanity. So, I suggest we continue to discover that call by being outside our four walls, and guided by the Holy Spirit listen attentively to our neighbors, our communities, wise leaders, and the children, to help our churches find the way. It is letting the word of Scripture float off the pages of the Bible into our communities, neighborhoods, and villages and guide what we are called to do next.
So ultimately, I will learn that relying on a map or a guide gets me only so far. I can miss a turn, or turn too quickly before my destination. But listening to God, listening to each other, and listening for clues in our community, will get us to the destiny God is calling us towards. Take God's GPS on your journey and you will find the way.
God's Blessings bring new life to you and your congregation, Pr.Ron Zoesch, Interim DEM, Sierra Pacific Synod
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| Excerpt from Pr. Dawn's sermon July 27: "As we seek once to focus on those things needing our attention, the gratitude that fills our hearts allows us to see them differently. Maybe we can let them be less burdensome. Maybe we can reframe this so they do not take all our energy. As we go back into the world, a world that needs to hear words of love and peace, maybe we can let a prayer based on the prayer of St. Francis lead us:
Lord God, we pray that you would arm us with courage and compassion
sufficient to the challenges of these days and make us heralds of your grace and instruments of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let us sow love;
where there is harm, let us bring healing;
where there is prejudice and intolerance, let us offer understanding; where there is enmity, let us be agents of reconciliation;
where there is despair, let us speak hope:
where there is doubt, let us spark faith;
where there is fear, let us kindle courage;
and wherever there is darkness, let us offer the light of your mercy that enlightens the whole world."
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| Events
Saint Paul's to Host Ingathering for Lutheran World Relief
Many of you either participate in making or at least know about the quilts and kits that are lovingly prepared each year at Saint Paul's during our sewing Thursdays on the first Thursday of each month and by volunteers at home. Marge Johnson, a Key Leader (volunteer) for Northern California Ingatherings states, "The Holy Spirit is working thorough the collection of quilts and kits. God has blessed us so much; what an opportunity we have to spread God's love to others in faraway places." Once a year the quilts and kits have to be collected from all participating congregations at identified sites in preparation for mailing. Saint Paul's is blessed to again be one of these sites, Representatives from churches across the Synod will be bringing their contributions to St. Paul's on Saturday, October 14, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. Four persons will be needed to serve as welcoming greeters. Cookies, quick breads, coffee and juice will also be needed to serve our guests. Dollies will be needed to unload and load boxes. Anita says she needs four strong men, (but she probably wouldn't turn away strong women), to help unload boxes from cars on Oct. 14. Four strong persons will also be need on Oct. 21, to load collected boxes, which have been stored at our church, onto a truck, so they can be delivered to their intended destinations. Anita says she will put a sign up sheet out on October 1, asking for your help with all these needs. When the quilts and kits are blessed and dedicated during the church service on October 8, you will also be asked for good will donations to help with the cost of mailing the kits. It costs $2.25 to mail each quilt, $1.40 to mail each School Kit and $2.65 to mail each Personal Care Kit. The higher price for the Personal Care Kit includes the toothpaste added nearer the time of shipment to disaster sites by Lutheran World Relief.
Contact Anita Patten with any further questions you might have about the Ingathering (P) (707) 745-0648. (Email) anitapatten@comcast.net.
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| Kindly Remember Submissions to The Weekly e-pistle are due on Tuesday of each week as we agreed to at our Congregation Meeting. If you submit an article late, and it still has significance for the next week it will be included then.
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| Brown Bag Lunch Program Update "Many thanks to all who continue to give out Brown Bags to the hungry, as you encounter them when in your car or in a parking lot. If you haven't participated as yet, I urge you to do so. Simply roll down your car window or approach a person requesting help, and ask if they would like a meal. That's all there is to it. I have found universal appreciation for the bags, sometimes seeing them dig in and begin drinking or eating before the light changes. We are blessed to be a blessing." - Karen
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| Opportunities for Study Book Study: The Cross in Our Context: Jesus and the Suffering World by Douglas John Hall, meets 8:00 am downstairs at Holy Trinity during the month of September. Book can be ordered on-line. Martha Circle, women's Bible Study using "Gather" magazine meets the third Thursday of each month in Fellowship Hall at St. Paul's. Bring your own bag lunch and dessert will be served by the monthly hostess.
Book Study: Daughter of the Reformation: A Historical Perspective of the Life of the Wife of Martin Luther which meets every second Tuesday of the month at 4 pm, at Holy Trinity. |
| Opportunities for Service Saint Paul's Choir Rehearsals will resume Sept 3 at 8:45 am in the basement at Holy Trinity. Old and new singers alike are welcome to join. Food Basket Sunday. The first Sunday of each month at St. Paul's. Food donations go to the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano Counties. Brown Bag Lunches for distribution to the homeless are located in Fellowship Hall. School Kits: (The following items are needed.) 4-Spiral 70-sheet notebooks, 1-12" ruler, 1-Pencil sharpener, 1-pair of blunt school scissors, 5-Unsharpened #2 pencils with erasers, 5-Black or blue ballpoint pens (no gel ink), 1-Box of 16 0r 24 crayons, 1-2 1/2" eraser. Sewing Ministry: The 1st Thursday of every month in Fellowship Hall from 1 to 4 pm. Both women and men are welcome. No prior sewing experience is required. |
| Opportunities for community Reserve your spot on the bus for Reformation Sunday at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, October 29, 2017. Contact Linda Bowen of Holy Trinity to sign up or for additional information (707) 644-9541 or linjb@comcast.net. |
| Council and Committee Information
Joint council Meeting September 10th at Holly Trinity following service.
Council Meeting September 17 at 7pm at St. Paul's The Budget Committee: Kathy Sutin, Vicki Pyle, Anita Patten, and Dean Ahlberg had their first meeting 8/29/2017 and they will be doing pledges starting on October 1st to give them enough time to have the Budget out to congregational members 2 weeks before the Congregational meeting scheduled on November 12, 2017. |
| Know Your Church Council
Don Ockrassa, President (510) 719-7730, d.ockrassa@gmail.com Craig Pyle, Vice President (707) 645-7092, capylepe@pacbell.net Keith Domingo, Secretary (707) 373-2774, k-s-domingo@sbcglobal.net Corie Hervey, returning member (510) 691-2728 Kim Hervey, new member (707) 334-4872 (Use text messaging) Kathy Sutin , Church Treasurer, Ex officio member (707) 333-0150 (use text messaging) Rev. Dr. Dawn Roginski (650) 771-4241 Please know that you are free to contact your council members with questions you might have about church governance. Remember to be patient while waiting for a response as most council members hold full time jobs and volunteer their free time to the church. They will get back to you as soon as possible. You are also welcome to attend council meetings with the exception of occasional closed executive sessions dealing with such things as personnel matters. If you wish to get something on the council agenda for a regular council meeting, contact Keith Domingo. If you wish to view council minutes, they are on file in the office. Any council member can help you access these. Remember if you are viewing minutes, they do not become final and official until approved at the next meeting. |
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| Christ's Care List
Healing of body, mind, and spirit...
(Recent Additions) Lilly (Cynthia Bettini's friend who is recovering from surgery and needs prayers for peace of mind) Susan Barton (broken wrist)
Darren & Eline Campass (Kathy Campass-Sutin's son & daughter-in law expecting a baby 1/2018)
Pr. Larry Nelson (John Patten's friend)
Craig Pyle, (continuing recovery from surgery)
Louisa Johnson and Don Johnson (as he provides care for Louisa)
Pr. Dawn Roginski (severe right shoulder tendinitis)
Robin Slusher (as she navigates the legal process in pursuit of justice for her granddaughter and other children at risk)
Those Who Grieve: - The family of Felicia Nunez (Carmen Harnish's sister)
Those Who Rejoice: - Christ the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church of San Jose celebrating 30 years as a RIC (Reconciling in Christ Congregation)
- Mike Tomlinson & Ben Tyler (Mike's Spouse) are thankful for their love & relationship since 1984. They are thankful for the prayers of the Saint Paul's community which helped support them through their recent rental crisis. "We are very thankful for God's unending and continuing blessings." (Mike is Teresa Arellano's brother.
- The Bremer Family (Callie, Robert, Aiden & Kenzie) announce the birth of Amali Christine Bremer on July 28, 2017 (Jessica Nelson is the proud grandmother.
- Tom and Laura Schmiegel on the birth of their daughter, Aurora
God Speed: To Jody and Gary Schumacher. We are thankful for their years of service and loving presence in our community and wish them well as they make their new home in Syracuse, New York near their daughter and grandchildren. They will be living with their daughter at 223 Germanic Ave., Syracuse, N.Y. 13219 while they look for their new house. Cell phone for Jody is (707) 334-2702 and Gary (707) 334-2557. Email for Jody is akafopy@yahoo.com and for Gary bacon1947@yahoo.com. Those Who Need Long Term Prayer:
Gladys Jones (Kathy Campass Sutin's mother) Margaret Cole
Dee Fix Anna Hervey
Louisa Johnson and Don Johnson (as he provides care for Louisa) Angelika Shanley
Jan Jackson
Caryl Kroan
We also pray for: - Those affected by Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Louisiana.
- The people of Charlottesville, the family of the slain, 32 year old, Heather Heyer, and the dozens of others injured in an act of domestic terrorism. Pray for healing and an end to acts of hatred in our country. Pray also for those who hate that their hearts might be changed.
- The communities of both St. Paul's and HolyTrinity as we share in joint services over the next few months and continue to explore the possibility of merger.
- Safety in our community - An end to racism and its injustice
- A just and lasting peace in the Hold LandRefugees
- Those serving the armed forces.
Note: With Councils consultation we are in the process updating Christ's Care List. If you submit new names, be sure to use an identifier such as friend of Karen Spears or daughter of Jessica Nelson or recent surgery to your submission. Briefly tell us the reason you are requesting prayers so people will know what to pray for. If you see names on the list that it is time to remove, your own or an old submission please contact Judy Faye at judithfaye@aol.com or (707) 557-4531(H) or (707) 980-9667 (C). We are in the process of removing names without identifiers. If a name disappears that you want to stay in, just contact Judy with the reason you are requesting prayer and she will add it back. With the exception of the Long Term Category, Council has recommended that names will be placed on the list for one month after submission and then removed unless a new request with an update is submitted.
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