The Weekly View

Sunday, November 10, 2019

This Sunday

Dear St. Luke Community, 

This Sunday we hear from Mark 10:46-52; the story of Bartimaeus. You remember that one? That’s the story of the blind man who shouts out to Jesus for mercy while others in the crowd tell him to be quiet.

The word for blind can mean physically blind or psychologically blind. This morning in our Thursday meditation group we talked about what it means to be so attached to something; an idea, a person, fame, money; that we become blind to love.  

Anthony De Mello writes about how our attachments can blind us to what matters most in life.

De Mello uses the metaphor of a symphony, and writes this;

Imagine yourself listening to an orchestra in which the sound of a drum is so loud that nothing else can be heard. To enjoy the symphony you must be responsive to every instrument in the orchestra. To be in the state called love you must be sensitive to the uniqueness and beauty of every single thing and person around you. You can hardly be said to love what you do not even notice; and if you notice only a few things to the exclusion of others, that is not love at all, for love excludes no one at all; it embraces the whole of life.

If we understand Jesus as God’s love made flesh, then how are we, in our own lives, calling out for love to heal us and others? Are we allowing the crowds on the street and in our heads to shush us in shame? Or are we trusting the Christ who is with us, guiding us and hearing every instrument known to God? Come worship at 10:00 on Sunday and explore what it means to call out in faith for Jesus who sees and hears all.

See you Sunday,
Nicole

Outreach and Deacon Ministry

All are welcome to attend 

St Luke’s November Food Drive Barrel ~ San Francisco-Marin Food Bank - Fill a Plate This Thanksgiving. Many families, homeless or not, won’t go hungry this Thanksgiving thanks to our help. St Luke will collect all varieties of canned proteins/meats:  Beans, Peanut Butter, Tuna, Salmon, Sardines, Chicken, Turkey, Beef. You may also donate funds using the green envelope and with the notation FOOD DRIVE. $1 = 2 Meals! When you fill an empty plate, you ease a worried mind and you improve nutrition to help kids eat healthier. Every food item and every $1 changes lives. Please give generously.

Ritter Center Christmas Gift Barrel ~ We are supporting Ritter Center of San Rafael. Ritter Center serves Marin families & individuals who are homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless. St Luke’s Barrel will arrive Friday, November 8th. Simply take a tag from the Christmas tree in the Narthex and bring back an unwrapped gift for that child to the office by Thursday, December 12th.  Our barrel will be picked up by Ritter Center volunteers on Friday, December 13th. 

Mill Street Meal Providers ~  Monday, December 2nd, Group B
The first Monday of each month Group A or Group B is assigned a meal item to provide.

KIVA.ORG ~ St. Luke’s Women’s Association has supported KIVA for many years and they will be a Deacon’s Ministry in the Fall. KIVA is a San Francisco based non-profit that offers individuals or groups the opportunity to make a $25 or larger loan in many countries. 

Bible Study - Wednesdays at 9:30 AM
St. Luke Choir Rehearsal - Wednesdays at 7:00 PM
Women's Spirituality Group - Thursdays at 9:00 AM
Deacons Meeting - 2nd Tuesday, November 12th, 6:00 PM
Pizza and Theology - 3rd Tuesday, November 19th, 7:00 PM
St. Luke Women’s Bridge - 4th Tuesday, November 26th, 10:30 AM
Session Meeting - 4th Tuesday, November 26th, 7:00 PM

Sunday, November 3, 2019

This Sunday

Dear St. Luke Community, 

We had a lovely worship last Sunday in natural light by piano. We were reassured of what matters most in this life, which is life itself, as we prayed for those in harms way. 

As many of us continue to want to help those directly affected by the fire, our Outreach Committee is making phone calls to the churches in those areas for ways in which we can assist.

This Sunday in Worship we celebrate All Saints Sunday; a time to remember those who have gone before us and also a time to wake us up to our own lives and the daily choices we make.

All are invited to bring a photo of a loved one for the Communion table. We will once again take part in our Fallen Leaves ritual, prayerfully surrounding the table with leaves one by one as we process with flute and piano. 

For those who want to read scripture ahead of time; Psalm 121 and Luke 20:27-40. Both scriptures give us plenty to think about. And both remind us that our God is a God of the living here on earth and beyond, eternally present and exceeding all understanding. 

Please don’t forget to set your clocks back an hour or you will show up and have to wait an hour. Not a bad thing to sit and listen to the choir practice, watch flowers and candles being set, bread and cup being laid out on the table. Maybe showing up early could be a kind of worship in and of itself.

See you Sunday,
Nicole

Outreach and Deacon Ministry

All are welcome to attend 

KIVA.ORG ~ St. Luke’s Women’s Association has supported KIVA for many years and they will be a Deacon’s Ministry in the Fall. KIVA is a San Francisco based non-profit that offers individuals or groups the opportunity to make a $25 or larger loan in many countries.

Mill Street Meal Providers ~  Monday, November 4th, Group A

DIAPER DRIVE ~ St. Luke is collecting diapers, sizes 3-5 Through SUNDAY NOVEMBER 3rd. Simply ORDER from AMAZON and have delivered to St Luke 10 BAYVIEW DR or  pick up some diapers today and bring them to St Luke and we’ll have them delivered to moms in need at Oma’s Village.

St Luke’s November Food Drive Barrel ~ San Francisco-Marin Food Bank - Fill a Plate This Thanksgiving. Many families, homeless or not, won’t go hungry this Thanksgiving thanks to our help. St Luke will collect all varieties of canned proteins/meats:  Beans, Peanut Butter, Tuna, Salmon, Sardines, Chicken, Turkey, Beef. You may also donate funds using the green envelope and with the notation FOOD DRIVE. $1 = 2 Meals! When you fill an empty plate, you ease a worried mind and you improve nutrition to help kids eat healthier. Every food item and every $1 changes lives. Please give generously.

Ritter Center Christmas Gift Barrel ~ We are supporting Ritter Center of San Rafael. Ritter Center serves Marin families & individuals who are homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless. St Luke’s Barrel will arrive Friday, November 8th. Simply take a tag from the Christmas tree in the Narthex and bring back an unwrapped gift for that child to the office by Thursday, December 12th.  Our barrel will be picked up by Ritter Center volunteers on Friday, December 13th. 

Bible Study - Wednesdays at 9:30 AM
St. Luke Choir Rehearsal - Wednesdays at 7:00 PM
Women's Spirituality Group - Thursdays at 9:00 AM
Deacons Meeting - 2nd Tuesday, November 12th, 6:00 PM
Pizza and Theology - 3rd Tuesday, November 19th, 7:00 PM
St. Luke Women’s Bridge - 4th Tuesday, November 26th, 10:30 AM
Session Meeting - 4th Tuesday, November 26th, 7:00 PM

First Annual St. Luke’s Christmas Concert ~ Sunday, December 8th, 4:00 PM
It’s not too early to start thinking about the holidays! Save the date for the first annual St. Luke Christmas Concert, featuring St. Luke members and friends as they share their gifts in song, music and a few surprises along the way. From classical to contemporary, there will be something for everyone in our decorated sanctuary. Following the concert, there will be a complimentary reception with beverages and appetizers in the Bayview Room. Be sure to invite friends and family, and start the Christmas season with music and friendship. All proceeds will go to benefit St. Luke ministries and church.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Dear St Luke Community,

I write this to you as the air fills with the smell of smoke around us. It’s heartbreaking and our prayers are with the communities directly affected. We pray that they find the support they need and the perseverance required to get through circumstances that we all pray we will never have to face.

I don’t believe God has a plan or that God is responsible for this kind of destruction and tragedy. I do however believe that God is always working autonomously and through us to bring healing in the form of kindness, loyalty and love for our fellow human beings during times of suffering. God is the yes to the no. God is the resurrection after death. God is the hope in despair and the light in the dark. And if God is all of that, than we, who are created in God’s own image, have the ability to bring healing by reflecting God’s love in how we choose to live.

I am grateful for our St Luke Community, in all the ways we show up for those who need assistance, and we’ll do it again this Sunday as we dedicate the offering to help those directly affected by the fire.

This Sunday in worship we’ll examine our giving. We’ll be hearing from scriptures that call on us to examine why we give. Dorothy Day, the founder of the Catholic Worker Movement, dedicated years of her life to caring for the poor on the lower east side of Manhattan. Theologian Parker Palmer writes of a time when he heard Dorthy Day (a hero of his) speak at a conference. He writes this;

I heard her start to ruminate about the "ungrateful poor.” I did not understand how such a dismissive phrase could come from the lips of a saint - until it hit me with the force of a Zen koan. Dorothy Day was saying, "Do not give to the poor expecting to get their gratitude so that you can feel good about yourself. If you do, your giving will be thin and short-lived, and that is not what the poor need; it will only impoverish them further. Give only if you have something you must give; give only if you are someone for whom giving is its own reward.”

I believe God created in us a “must give” muscle that needs exercise to develop. It's counter-cultural to give in a way that giving becomes its own reward, but it’s at the core of the kind of love we care called upon by God to express.

See you Sunday,
Nicole