This and That

 Friends,  

I am happy to announce some upcoming Staff changes that will begin at St. Mark on April 1^st. Judith Hug, our Business Manager, has been wearing two hats for quite some time, handling both the business management duties and overseeing the facility maintenance, upkeep, and replacement projects. And, as the campus has aged a bit, the facility duties have grown a lot. In addition, Judith is ready to begin the slow tread toward retirement, but neither she nor we are ready for her to take the plunge. So, starting April 1, Judith will become our Business Manager exclusively, at 75% time. This is a very happy outcome for all of us. Also starting April 1, Kathy Roberts, our Event Coordinator, will take on the additional role as our Facilities Manager. Kathy’s long experience in property management, as well as her service here as our Event Coordinator, makes this a very good hire for us. Please join me in offering thanks and congratulations to both Judith and Kathy as they embark on their newly revised roles in April. (And for anyone who is wondering, the job changes are lateral and will not add more costs to our budget. Another win!) 

 

Last weekend was full of joy. We welcomed three new members into our church family, two of whom were received by profession of faith with baptism. Also last weekend,14 of our youth and 8 adults attended a “Confirmation Retreat,” during which the youth studied and considered what it means to confirm the vows that we made on their behalf in their baptism. Eleven of them are submitting their Statements of Faith to the Session this weekend, as an indication of their desire to join the church. All in all, an extraordinary weekend. 

 

And we continue to have good things ahead. This weekend we will introduce some new musical instrumentation during our Saturday service, the handbell ensemble will play during our Sunday service, and our youth will provide a Pancake Breakfast fundraiser following Sunday worship. It is such a joy to see so much active and talented participation in our worship and community leadership. 

 

Throughout this week, we’ve been inviting you to hold this question: What challenge before me scares me the most? We might call that challenge our “cross to bear,” which raises a second question: “How would my life change if I saw that cross as an opportunity to serve God and extend God’s live to others?” Many people treat Christianity almost as an escape from life’s painful journeys and hard places. Our hope is that our Christianity provides the strength and courage to face those journeys with hope. 

 

As we continue our Lenten journey, let’s encounter those challenges together. 

 

Mark of St. Mark