January 3, 2021

Coming in January – The Gospel of Mark

St. Andrew’s Adult Education offering in January will focus on “The Gospel of Mark: A Narrative Theology,” taught by Jim Aageson. Mark’s gospel presents its theology in narrative form where the actions and words of Jesus reveal a powerful vision of God’s reign. As Aageson notes, “in this kingdom, things are turned upside down: the first are last, the sinners and the dishonored are invited to the table of fellowship, and those closest to Jesus are often filled with fear rather than faith.” The class will begin at 10:00 am on Sunday, January 10.

Resolutions 2021

What will you do for the Earth in 2021? Even though we’ve already cheered the arrival of a new year, it’s not too late to make a plan to increase our commitment to Earth Care. For the good of the planet and generations to come, why not challenge ourselves to live more sustainably this year?

Even small efforts, repeated again and again, can make an impact. Write down your goal. Keep track of the actions you take. I did this a year ago, pledging to rack up at least one no-drive-day a week. Even before the pandemic hit, it was clear I could easily make my goal. Imagine how many no-drive-days we’ve accumulated together this year!

One of the benefits of living our values comes from the example
we set. Our enthusiasm for a healthy planet can infect others and
encourage them to do their part. And that’s a good thing.

Carol Harker

Fantasy Football: Won & Done!

Congratulations to Julia Emerson and her dad, Jeff Smith, owners of The Wingmen, who bested Ben Moore’s COVID Crushers to win the championship for this year’s St. Andrew Fantasy Football League.

The Wingmen victory proves anything can happen in Fantasy Football! With an overall record of 6-7, the Emerson/Smith team actually finished 8th in league standings. At season’s end, the top three teams with the best records overall were Mark and Kofi Brocker’s FC Aortic Power, Ben Moore’s COVID Crushers, and Carol and Sam Harker’s Gridiron Greats!

Family Promise Update 2020

Thanks to the strong participation and support of our congregation, St. Andrew’s commitment to being a host site for Family Promise has remained steady this year.

We hosted on-site in January and February and then the world turned upside down! When host sites closed, families were then moved to the new day center on Erickson Ave. in Beaverton and also to an extended stay hotel. Hosting then became “remote.” This involved providing meals, groceries, or restaurant gift cards to be delivered to families wherever they were staying. We hosted remotely in October and November using both gift cards and a team of “on-call” cooks. Flexibility is a Family Promise mantra that we have embraced!

Thanks to generous donations to the Family Promise designated fund, we have also been able to give much-needed money to a Family Promise COVID-19 fund. This has assisted “graduated” families who have struggled with the financial impact of the pandemic. In addition, we sponsored a graduated family for Christmas.

Remote hosting will continue in 2021. The hosting schedule will be made on a quarterly basis at this point. St. Andrew is scheduled for the weeks of January 24 and February 21. Stay tuned for volunteer opportunities!

Many thanks for your donations of time, meals, money, and prayers. We are making a difference.

The Family Promise Leadership Team

Raise Your Voice and Sing!

Opportunities to sing special music for upcoming worship services are now available. I will be organizing duets, solos, and other small ensembles for the offertory during the Epiphany season. Rehearsal time will be scheduled with the person(s) singing and myself and each offering will be pre recorded at a time that works for one of St. Andrew’s tech teams. If you’re interested, please contact me.

Susan Werner Reiser
srwerner.reiser@standrewlutheran.com
503-334-6353

A Winter Prayer

There is a winter in all of our lives, a chill and darkness that makes us yearn for days that have gone by or put our hope in days yet to be.

Father God, you created seasons for a purpose. Spring is full of expectation –buds breaking, frosts abating, and an awakening of creation before the first days of summer. Then the sun gives warmth and comfort to our lives, reviving aching joints, bringing color, new life, and crops to produce their harvests. Autumn gives nature space to lean back, relax, and enjoy the fruits of its labor. Then in winter, cold and bare, nature takes stock, rests, unwinds, and sleeps until the time is right. An endless cycle and yet a perfect model.

We need a winter in our lives, a time of rest, a time to stand still, a time to reacquaint ourselves with the faith in which we live. It is only then that we can draw strength from the one in whom we are rooted, take time to grow and rise through the darkness into the warm glow of your springtime to blossom and flourish, to bring color and vitality into this world, your garden.

Thank you, Father, for the seasons of our lives. Amen.

Bread for the Day and Daily Texts Available

The 2021 edition of Daily Texts, Bible texts selected annually by the Moravian Church and shared worldwide since 1731, are now available, as are copies of Bread for the Day, a book of Bible readings and prayers published by Augsburg Fortress. A donation of $9.00 is suggested to defray the cost of each book.

If you’d like one or more copies, please contact the church office at
office@standrewlutheran.com or call 503-646-0629.

Preparing for Next Sunday

January 10, 2020

Reading: Genesis 1:1-5
Gospel: Mark 1:4-11

Go to “Preparing for Worship” for the bulletins, the complete Lectionary, and more.

Let’s Talk, Let’s Listen Reboot

Last summer, the St. Andrew MACG Core Team organized a listening campaign, encouraging members to make phone calls to people we missed seeing at church. Now that we’re in the midst of another alarming surge in coronavirus cases and our colder weather prevents outdoor gatherings, it’s time to check in once again. Look for details coming soon about how to be a part of our calling initiative reboot.

In the meantime, please let the Core Team know if you have ideas on ways to improve the program. Contact any of us—Pat Christiansen, Larry Bliesner, Scott Taylor, Bob Stadel, Victoria Kovalenko, Lynn Santelmann, or Pastor Robyn—if you have any feedback.

A Milestone Birthday

This Sunday is Jean Fredrickson’s 95th birthday! Make her day special by remembering her with a card or phone call. Please note, though, that Jean’s contact information changed after the printing of St. Andrew’s photo directory. You can direct mail to her at 280 SW 150th Ave, Beaverton, OR 97006, or call her at 971-294-8740.

Spread even more cheer and remember others on our January birthday list, too. And if you’re curious how it could be that 11 people in our community share New Year’s Day birthdays, be aware that they probably don’t. If we’re missing an actual birth date for anyone, we designate the first day of their birth month as an unofficial birthday. If you’d like to be remembered on your real birthday, let the church office know when that is.

January Birthdays

In Need of Prayers…

Family and friends of Colleen Warnes	Peace and God’s comfort at her death	Staff
Tom (friend’s father)	Healing and recovery from COVID-19	Rebecca Fako Uecker
Jude Augustine Blandy & Charlotte Lovelace Blandy	Thanksgiving for their birth	Bob & Terry Buchholz (grandparents)
Everyone affected by COVID-19	Strength and support	Staff
Health care workers	Strength, courage, protection, and support	Staff
Bishop Laurie Larson Caesar Oregon Synod and Staff	Strength and Wisdom	Staff
Refugees and immigrants	Acceptance, safety, and just treatment	Staff
Military personnel, especially Justina Hailey Hope Brocker, Evan Dahlquist, Dawson Dethlefs, Neil Fiegenbaum, and Jerami Reyna	Courage and Protection	Staff
Individual friends and loved ones in need of prayer	Whatever they most need; say their names in your heart or aloud	Everyone
First Lutheran Church (Clatskanie, OR) Our Savior’s Lutheran Church (Seaside, OR)	Serving with us in the Oregon Synod	Staff
Al Furqan Islamic Center (Portland, OR)	Blessings on our interfaith partners	Staff

If you know someone in need of prayers, please contact the church office by phone at 503-646-0629 or email office@standrewlutheran.com Tuesday-Friday, prayerchain@standrewlutheran.com Saturday-Monday.

Creation Justice Summit

Saturday, January 30, 2021
1:00-4:15 pm
Our Kinship with
Oregon’s Sacred Waters

The 8th annual Creation Justice Summit (formerly the Earth Care
Summit) will commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Columbia
River Watershed Pastoral Letter. The virtual event will include a
keynote panel, breakout workshops, and a closing address from U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley.

Register now
$20 general, $10 students,
scholarships available
Presented by EMO’s Creation Justice and
Oregon Interfaith Power & Light.

Baby Roses

Congratulations to Megan Buchholz Blandy and Harry Blandy, who welcomed twins Jude Augustine (6 lb, 10 oz) and Charlotte Lovelace (5 lb, 3 oz) on Christmas Eve. What a gift! Grandparents celebrating the babies’ births are Bob & Terry Buchholz and Simon & Sarah Blandy. We’re delighted to report that everyone is healthy and happy!

Thank You

Dear People of St. Andrew,
“I don’t know where I’d be without you,” 29-year-old mother and recent college graduate Adrianna says. She joins thousands who have found stability and hope through Outside In’s comprehensive line of medical and mental health programs and supporting social services—made possible by you.

Thank you, St. Andrew Lutheran, for your $300 gift supporting our Day Program! Your donation helps to build brighter tomorrows for the more than 11,000 people we serve every year.

Your contribution heals, feeds, houses, educates, inspires, and renews lives. This year, donations like yours made it possible for us to:

• Improve Health: More than 5,350 patients of all ages, 77 percent experiencing poverty, received medical and mental health care.
• Educate: 219 youth accessed our education services, developed job skills, and worked on goals to become self-sufficient.
• Prevent Chronic Homelessness: 96 percent of graduates from our housing program found safe, stable new homes off the streets.
• Provide Nutritious Meals: Nearly 1,000 youth experiencing homelessness welcomed more than 32,000 healthy meals. More than ever, in these exceptionally challenging times, your compassion and investment in our work helps us reach those who need our services the most. Thank you.

With warm gratitude,
Lori Slaughter
Director of Development

Highlights for the Week

Go to the complete online church calendar for the most up-to-date information.

Sunday, January 3, Second Sunday of Christmas

8:30 am	Livestream Worship	YouTube
9:30 am	Virtual Coffee Time	Zoom
11:00 am	Zoom Worship	Zoom
12:00 pm	Virtual Coffee Time	Zoom
2:00 pm	Mason Bee House Installation with the Yard Science Team	outside near Reformation Earth Garden

Tuesday, January 5

10:00 am	T’ai Chi	former Bales Thriftway on Cornell Rd
10:00 am	Worship Planners Meeting	Zoom
7:00 pm	MACG Meeting	Zoom

Wednesday, January 6 – Weekly News submissions due by 4:00 pm

12:30 pm	Bonhoeffer Seminar	Zoom
6:00 pm	Handbell Ensemble Rehearsal	Sanctuary
6:30 pm	Informal Gathering Time	Zoom
7:00 pm	Wednesday Evening Prayer	Zoom
7:30 pm	Centering Prayer & Other Breakout Room Opportunities	Zoom

Thursday, January 7

12:00 pm	Team Ministry Meeting	Zoom
2:00 pm	Website Review Subcommittee Meeting	Zoom
7:00 pm	Executive committee (Council) Meeting	Zoom

Thursday, January 8

10:00 am

T’ai Chi

former Bales Thriftway on Cornell Rd

Sunday, January 10: Baptism of Our Lord

8:30 am	Livestream Worship	YouTube
9:30 am	Virtual Coffee Time	Zoom
10:00 am	Sunday School Online: Baptism Lesson with Pastor Mark	Zoom
10:00 am	Confirmation	Zoom
10:00 am	High School Youth Group	Zoom
10:00 am	Adult Education: The Gospel of Mark	Zoom
11:00 am	Zoom Worship	Zoom
12:00 pm	Virtual Coffee Time	Zoom

Connecting to Worship

Ways to Give: Thank you for supporting our ministries!