FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY
Light shines in the darkness for the upright, the psalmist sings. Isaiah declares that when we loose the bonds of injustice and share our bread with the hungry, the light breaks forth like the dawn. In another passage from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus, the light of the world, calls his followers to let the light of their good works shine before others. Through baptism we are sent into the world to shine with the light of Christ.
THIS SUNDAY AT ST. MARK'S
9:00 am - SF Interfaith Winter Shelter - Auditorium
9:00 am - Holy Communion with Children's Time - Sanctuary
10:00 am - Journeys in Faith - Fireside Room
10:00 am - Refreshments and Fellowship Hour - Heritage Hall
10:00 am - Confirmation - Confirmation Room
10:00 am - Parents with Kidlettes - Heritage Hall
10:15 am - Sunday School - School Rooms
11:00 am - Choral Eucharist Worship Service - Sanctuary
12:15 pm - Refreshments and Fellowship Hour - Heritage Hall
GAME ON! ST. MARK'S BOARD GAME NIGHT ON SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 4:30 P.M. TO 7:30 P.M. IN HERITAGE HALL.
Come for a night of board game fun, food and fellowship! Please free to bring your favorite board games. If you don't have any games to bring, please don't worry; we'll have plenty of games for all ages (3 to 103) and abilities on hand. Pizza will be served (free-will offering).
FEBRUARY 11 PROPERTY PROJECT MORNING
Spring and the Lenten Season will soon be here! Please join the Property Ministry Team on Saturday, February 11th, starting at 9 AM for a morning of activities and projects to prepare the church building and grounds for the coming months.
FESTIVE AND THANKSGIVING COFFEE HOUR FOR PR. TITA VALERIANO ON SUNDAY, FEB. 12
Please join the festivities after the 11:00 service on Feb. 12 in thanksgiving for Pastor Tita and her family, Jen and Ta’al.
With the arrival of Pr. Ron Moe-Lobeda as our Associate Pastor, we will soon be saying farewell to Pr. Tita.
Please bring a card of thanks for Pr. Tita as we celebrate her presence among us for 16 months and give thanks to God for her many gifts.
ST. MARK’S HANDCRAFTERS RETREAT AND REPORT FROM MACEDONIA
Knitters, crocheters and all handcrafters are invited to join a retreat on Saturday, February 18th, in Heritage Hall beginning at 10 AM. Greg Jahnke will report back on the handmade items St. Mark’s sent to The Republic of Macedonia during his recent trip there with Thrivent Builds.
TV SPECIAL ON THE REFORMATION HAS JUST BEEN ANNOUNCED BY LUTHERAN TRAVEL GURU RICK STEVES.
"Luther and the Reformation" is available on DVD - for just $2 - until THIS SUNDAY, FEB. 5.
The one-hour program can be watched on-line FOR FREE (no time limit was stated) or check the local public TV schedule. Order the DVD or view the program at: www.ricksteves.com.
WOMEN’S MONTHLY STUDY GATHERINGS
All women are welcome to come and study together at our evening and/or morning Women of the ELCA Gatherings. In February our groups will meet on:
Evening Gathering – February 7 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm in the Conference Room
All women are invited to come for dessert and fellowship for the first half hour and then discussion until 8:30. This month we will be reading the first half of Resilient Reformer: The Life and Thought of Martin Luther by Timothy Lull (pp 1 to 220 or the end of Chapter 8)- .
Second Tuesday – February 14 from 11:00am to 1:00pm in the Fireside Room
All women are invited to come for study at 11:00 and then at noon to eat their sandwich or salad and share fellowship. Drinks and dessert will be provided. Our Bible Study of Galatians will focus on “Children of God through Faith” as found in the January/February issue of Gather Magazine.
If you have any questions, please contact Suzanne Smith at 415.285.7438 or suzathome@comcast.net.
SPIRITUALITY AND AGING GROUP
On Mondays from 11:00 - 12:00 Pr. Elizabeth will be hosting a group on "Spirituality and Aging" in the Brockie lounge of Martin Luther Tower. This group is open to the St. Mark's community as well. This group will offer a safe place to reflect on aging issues in light of our faith - whatever our faith may be or wherever we are in our faith journey.
2017 STEWARDSHIP UPDATE - FORWARD IN FAITH - LIFTED BY LOVE 2
Sincere GRATITUDE and THANKS for your 2017 annual pledge to the General Fund and the Capital Campaign!! Your pledge of financial support becomes the foundation upon which the ministries and missions of St. Mark's depend*.
Intend to pledge? You are welcome to pledge anytime (use online form on St. Mark's website or call the church office).
We also are so grateful for the two anonymous donors who provided an additional financial incentive. (They donated $100 to the general fund for each additional pledge received between January 10th and February 1st, up to a total donation of $2,000. They shared, "This is a tangible thanksgiving for a successful call process and in support of "full staffing". We encourage the community of St. Mark's to take a definitive step to support the church we love.")
We reached 15 new pledges. Thank you to all who pledged and to the additional gift of $1,500!!
Where we are to date:
2017: 117 pledges for a total of $397,644
Versus 2016: 114 pledges for a total of $386,646
(Note: all pledges are strictly confidential.)
* We are enriched by our many and various ministries at St. Mark's, including Sunday and mid-week worship; music & choir; children & youth with nursery, Sunday School and Confirmation; Journeys in Faith; Adult Education, SF Interfaith Homeless Shelter at St. Mark's, SF Interfaith Food Shelter, MLT affordable housing for seniors; SF night ministries; Cordero de Dios in El Salvador, to name just some of our ministries!
We greatly appreciate your thoughtful consideration of your pledge to St. Mark's, and your continued giving of your time and talents. It is with gratitude and celebration that we embrace our love of our community, and continue to be lifted by love at St. Mark's!
DONATIONS INVITED FOR THE ST. MARK’S SENIOR CENTER LUNCHEONS!
Once a month, we provide a low-cost and delicious meal for all Martin Luther Tower residents and Seniors from St. Mark’s.
We are looking for donations of gift cards, candy, toiletries, movie tickets, hats, mittens, throws, and other household items to raffle off for the residents. The raffle would be free for all who attend the luncheon and your donations would be greatly appreciated.
Please contact Pr. Elizabeth (ekdale@stmarks-sf.org) if you can donate any items.
ST. MARK'S VOLUNTEERS NEEDED IN 2017!
We are in great need of new Volunteers who are looking for an opportunity to serve St. Mark's in 2017. Volunteers are needed to staff our church office, which is in the Urban Life Center. It is an excellent way to stay attuned to all that is happening at St. Mark's! Volunteers are needed to staff the office for a few hours each day between 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. We will be most grateful for any amount time you can volunteer on a weekly basis. You will be answering telephones, answering questions, distributing mail and packages for staff as well as ULC building tenants, greeting visitors, helping with mailings to congregation members (when needed), helping assemble the weekly Parish Announcement bulletin (usually on Thursdays), plus assisting the staff and Pastors, however and whenever needed.
If you are interested in joining this important ministry, please call the St. Mark's office or contact Jane Borg either by eMail(janebborg@att.net) or during a Sunday Coffee Hour. All are welcome, no prior office experience is necessary. We are a child and pet friendly office!
WEDNESDAY COMMUNITY DINNER AND WORSHIP
All are invited to our weekly community meal at 6:00 and worship at 6:45. Come and relax over a meal with members and visitors of the St. Mark's community. Immediately afterwards, join the Pastors and our Director of Music for a lovely, contemplative worship service at 6:45 in the sanctuary. The service lasts 30 minutes and will include Holy Communion.
This weekly worship service is a wonderful time to receive with open hearts the gifts and presence of God. Come and rest. Come and be refreshed. Come and just be!
We are also looking for volunteers to help make community dinner possible! If you are available to pick heat/prepare food or help clean up after the dinner, please contact Winnie Heslin at heslin@stmarks-sf.org or call the church office at 415.928.7770.
PARISH ANNOUNCEMENTS DEADLINE
Please submit all announcements to Stefani Lawrence (lawrence@stmarks-sf.org) by Wednesday at 12pm, if you would like them included in Sunday's Parish Announcements. All submissions received after the deadline will only appear in our online announcements that are published Friday evenings.
VOICE DEADLINE
Due to the Annual Meeting the Voice deadline has been moved to February 8th and will cover March, April and May. Please send all submissions to Stefani Lawrence (lawrence@stmarks-sf.org). Thank you!
NEW JOURNEYS IN FAITH GROUP STARTING IN THE NEW YEAR
All are invited to join this newest group of Journeys in Faith. Take advantage of this opportunity and set aside time this winter and Lent for faith reflection and renewal. Together, we journey to Easter, learning more about our faith and faith community. And, together we consider and prepare for joining St Mark's, being baptized, or affirming our baptism. You are welcome to join usthis Sunday at 10:00AM in the Fireside Room. If you are interested or have questions, contact Liv Beck (beckliv@gmail.com, (415) 205-3292) for more information.
PREPARING FOR LONG-TERM CARE
Did you know that developing a long-term care strategy can help you: Preserve your independence? Protect income and Assets? Reassure your family about the future? Please join us for a complimentary presentation to learn more. Saturday, March 11, 2017 10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. J P Murphy Club House, 1960 9th Avenue (at Pacheco), San Francisco. RSVP to Linda Jackson at Thrivent Financial at 415-437-7370 or email linda.jackson@thrivent.com. Lunch will be served.
WORSHIP LEADERS THIS SUNDAY
Director of Music...Dr. Timothy Zerlang
Assisting Ministers...Liv Beck (9); Kyle Schiefelbein, Ed Chitty (11)
Lectors...Jeremy McClain (9); Matthias Will (11)
Acolytes...Katherine Lam, Nora Hurley
Sacristan and Altar Guild...Richard Boyle, Ed Chitty
Ministry of Welcome...Pam Cheung, Kimberly and David Lam, Pedro Ospina, Tina Niu, Linda R. Jackson (11)
Coffee Hour Chairs...Diana and Greg Gomez
Next Week’s Coffee Hour Chairs...Gail Culp, Cal Culp, and Phil Krikau