Good Shepherd

Lutheran Church

4000 Clayton Road

Concord, CA 94521

925-682-8410

gsconcord.com

Sunday Worship at 9:00 a.m.

Refreshments and

Sunday School for children

begins at 10:15 a.m.

Shepherd’s Voice Good Shepherd Lutheran Church

Feeding bodies, minds and souls...

Volume 13 • Issue 12

2 December Happenings

5 Council President News

6 School in El Salvador

7 Sparkling Holiday Music

9 Friends Feeding Friends

January Newsletter Articles

Due January 4, 2018

December

Rev’s Reflections One of my favorite interactions in scripture is between Mary, the mother of

Jesus, and the Angel at the Annunciation.

The author of Luke records the account,

“And [The Angel] came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored one! The Lord

is with you.’ But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what

sort of greeting this might be.”

I like this interaction because Mary’s response is real. She is afraid and

perplexed at what the Angel is talking about. When God comes to us we

often experience both of these emotions confusion and fear. We are confused as to why God is interrupting our lives and setting us in a different

direction. We are scared that the divine has interfered with the course we

have laid out for ourselves.

Mother Mary received the Angel’s greeting. She carried Jesus, God in the

flesh, in her body for nine months, and bore him to the world. Meditating

on her action of receiving the Holy Spirit, having Jesus formed within her,

and then pushing him out for the world to see is a worthy past time. As we

await his coming at Christmas in the manger, and his coming again we

remember Mary’s faithfulness to God’s Kingdom.

In the Eastern Church they refer to Mary as “Theotokos” which means God

bearer. Mary is the archetype for all Christians, as we seek to have God

take up residence within us daily. But, it doesn’t end with us, our faith leads

us to live as one united to God. In baptism we receive the Holy Spirit, we

are united to Jesus, and then we are called to bear him in our bodies to the

world. We, as followers of Jesus, are his hands and feet in the world.

May we remember Mary and her faithfulness as we approach Christmas.

May we seek to follow her example of saying “yes” when angels come to us.

And May we always seek to show others the God who ls within.

Peace,

Rev.

Page 2

Please help Friends Feeding Friends, in their charitable fundraising by donating your unwanted gently used

or new athletic shoes. No muddy, or shoes with holes should be offered. All shoes are refurbished and given to

those in need here in the U.S. and around the world! Clean out your closet and help a good cause!

Our goal is to collect as many pairs as possible by December 31st. Shoes may be dropped off at

Tabernacle Christian School, or Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Concord.

Or contact Shoe Drive Coordinator Dara Merritt at: accessdara@prodigy.net for pick up or questions.

GOT SHOES?

Join us at the Parsonage on Sunday, December 17,

for this festive and fun holiday treat...

Hot Cocoa, Cookies and Carols

6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Don’t miss this most memorable event!

Join Us for Christmas Caroling and a Trip to Starbucks!

On Saturday, December 16, from 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m., you are invited

to go Christmas Caroling and then visit the local Starbucks afterwards to

enjoy some Christmas fellowship. Questions? Ask Sue Hertless or Rev.

December 2017

SHARE FOOD PANTRY UPDATE

SHARE started in 1986 at the First Christian Church, 3036 Willow Pass Road, in Concord.

Open 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. Director is Ken Carpoff,

a member of Concord United Methodist Church. During the month of October, SHARE helped 320

families with food, 474 adults, 134 children and 46 homeless, for a total of 654 people.

Donna Bauders volunteers Monday and Tuesday. Jan Harman volunteers on Friday. Any questions?

Talked to Donna or Jan or call SHARE at 925-827-4273.

Church Office Holiday Information

The church office will be closed the week from Monday, Christmas, December 25 to

New Year’s Day, Monday, January 1. We will return on Tuesday, January 2, 2018.

Thanks to modern technology, the office phone will be monitored during business hours, should there be

an immediate need, please leave a detailed message and you will receive a call back.

WE NEED USHERS!

Interested?

Please contact Laura in the office or

talk to Rev or one of our ushers.

DURING ADVENT HELP FRIENDS FEEDING FRIENDS HELP OTHERS

This year Friends Feeding Friends is asking for useful household items for those in

need during the Season of Advent.

Each week we will request a different item.

Week 1 - Dish Soap

Week 2 - Toilet Paper

Week 3 - Paper Towels

Week 4 - Laundry Detergent.

Friends Feeding Friends will distribute these items. Thank you!

Page 4

December

Birthdays

Elizabeth Kich 04

Richard Koehler 05

Kathy Price 05

Carter Munson-Ring 06

Wilma Seppala 06

Lori Randolph 07

Monica Berg 13

Madelyn Setchell 14

Lilah Roza 17

Carin Olson 18

Bob Ripley 19

Luke Bartlett 20

Karl Bohling 22

Madison Berg-LeDoux 23

Dylan Magic 23

Judy Haier 25

Allison Buchholz 31

Rosemary Fassl 31

DON’T FORGET TO SHOP AMAZON SMILE & HELP FRIENDS FEEDING FRIENDS!

Amazon donates to The Good Shepherd Evangelical Lutheran

Church of Concord. Shop for great deals

at: smile.amazon.com/ch/94-1564846

Christmas Eve Worship Assistants Needed

Lector for both the 7:00 p.m. & 11:00 p.m. services Two Communion Assistants for both the 7:00 &11:00 p.m. services

Usher Teams are needed for both the 7:00 & 11:00 p.m. services

Greeters are also needed at both the 7:00 & 11:00 p.m. services

If you can serve, please call the church office and let Laura or Rev know you are available. Thank You!

Sunday Morning, Dec. 24 at 9:00 a.m. will be celebrated as the 4th Sunday of Advent.

Sunday, Christmas Eve, Dec. 24 Worship Schedule 7:00 & 11:00 p.m.

December 2017

Wedding

Anniversaries

Ron and Mary

Figueroa

December 15, 1967

News from the Council President Hello everyone, and Merry Christmas!

First off, I would like to thank everyone who helped make the Thanksgiving

dinner such a great event! There were too many people involved to name

them all, but a special thanks to Carin Olson for stepping up and coordinating

everything, and for working so hard with the meal. It was a great meal and

great fellowship! Here are some highlights from our Church Council meeting on November

14th. I covered several of these topics during my Temple Talk on November 12th, so please forgive me if I am repeating myself.

Recognitions:

From Nancy Judge, Stewardship Chairperson - Laura Mott, Susan

Metzger and Vicki Smiglewski for all of their help with the

Stewardship Drive!

2017 Contributions/2018 Pledges – As a whole, our income from

contributions is well below what was pledged late last year. As we work

to prepare next year’s budget I would like to ask that everyone please do

what they can to meet their pledges if possible. Also, let’s please be as

generous as possible, but realistic in our pledges for next year. It will be a

difficult budget year as we work to ensure our Church community remains

strong and fiscally responsible. We will be having more conversations on

the topic throughout December and January as we work up to the Annual

Meeting.

2018 Church Council – Our constitution sets the membership of Church

Council at between 10 and 12 people. The only requirement is that they

are Members of the congregation. Our Council is currently at 9 members

with the relocation of Kelly Schaefer and Joseph Husary. We have had at

least one member volunteer to run for election and have room for two

more. We decided as a Council to not bother with a Nominating

Committee since we should have at least the minimum number of

members. However, we are always open to having a full Council and would welcome any additional volunteers to add their names to the list.

We are still in need of someone to take over Kelly’s position as the Chair

of Fellowship.

Our next Council meeting is on Monday, December 11th at 7:00 p.m.

All are welcome!

Lastly, as always, a reminder that full minutes of our Council meetings are posted on the Good Shepherd web site.

In God’s Peace, Greg Buchholz

Council President

Your Evangelism

Committee would like to

remind you to bring your

empty aluminum cans and empty plastic

water bottles to church in

a plastic bag and leave

them outside the church

doors on the right.

Each Sunday the bags are

picked up for recycling.

This is a fundraiser for

our sister parish in

El Salvador.

Thank you!

School Days, School Days in San Salvador

Our sister parish in El Salvador has a school. Students pay $13 per month ($166 per year) to go to the

school, but that’s not enough to cover all the cost of educating a student. It cost over $200 per student per year to run the school. I know that doesn’t sound like a lot but the average salary for a professional in San

Salvador is only about $250 per month. And when you consider the school is in one of the poorest parts of

town, help is needed to keep the school afloat and you can help. .

Do you want to help?

Support one student by giving $5 per month for one year or support a teacher’s salary for one month by

contributing $20 a month for one year. Or contribute $25 per month and support one student and one

teacher. Get the satisfaction of knowing you are helping in some small way to help those less fortunate in

El Salvador.

Just give to Good Shepherd and indicate that the monies you are contributing should go to

‘El Salvador-School’. All monies contributed will be sent to Resurrection Lutheran Church to help

them as they continue to educate students.

We are Helping Our Sister Parish

Good Shepherd Luther is following Christ’s command to help feed the poor, cloth the naked and care for

the sick. On our recent trip to San Salvador (July 29 to August 7) we took the following:

Four large suitcases of new and slightly used clothing,

Four lap top computers,

$1,000 for the medical and dental clinic to buy supplies,

$200 for supplies for Sunday School, and

$200 for Hope house that feeds the homeless.

The used clothing we took went to the rural areas where it will be distributed by pastors who are familiar

with the needs of the people. The lap top computers will be used at the church to help young people

become more familiar with current computer technology. Monies for supplies were taken so people in San

Salvador could purchase exactly what they wanted and we avoided charges for overweight luggage.

Bishop Medardo Gomez was very appreciative of Good Shepherd’s contributed to “Raising the Roof” and

the clothing, lap tops and the monies we gave our sister parish on this visit.

Thank you for your continued support,

Your Evangelism Team

Page 6

December 2017

Not feeling the sparkle of the holidays yet?

The Contra Costa Wind Symphony presents its annual Winterfest concert on Wednesday,

December 13, at 7:30 p.m. The concert will be at Walnut Creek Presbyterian Church at

1801 Lacassie Ave. in Walnut Creek. The spacious church has ample seating and parking. Admission is free!

BEST OF ALL OUR VERY OWN EMILIE PATTON WILL BE PLAYING!

Maestro Brad Hogarth has planned a delightful evening of traditional holiday favorites, surprises,

and audience sing-alongs. The program includes "A Christmas Festival" and "Sleigh Ride" by Leroy

Anderson, beloved Christmas songs of Irving Berlin, the familiar tunes of Stephan Bulla's "Rhapsody

for Hanukkah", a "Fireside Christmas" medley, a solo by harpist Sophia Nieuwsma, and more.

The audience will be invited to join the Wind Symphony in performance of the "Hallelujah Chorus"

from Handel's Messiah with words printed in the program. There will also be an audience sing-along of traditional Christmas songs.

For more information, please go to www.ccwindsymphony.org.

Page 8

Good Shepherd Book Club

Join us at 7:30 p.m., in the Fireside Room, Tuesday, January 9, to discuss this book

Victoria & Abdul: The True Story of the Queen's Closest Confidant by Shrabani Basu

This is the extraordinary true story of an unexpected friendship in the later years of Queen Victoria's

remarkable rule. When Abdul Karim, a young clerk, travels from India to participate in the Queen's Golden

Jubilee, he is surprised to find favor with the Queen herself.

As the Queen questions the constrictions of her long-held position, the

two forge an unlikely and devoted alliance with a loyalty to one another

that her household and inner circle all attempt to destroy. As the

friendship deepens, the Queen begins to see a changing world through

new eyes and joyfully reclaims her humanity. This inspiring tale of love and devotion is a great read to start the new year.

Join us at 7:30 pm in the Fireside Room and join in the discussion of this

amazing biography. Questions? Contact donna-at-albrechts.com

Questions? Contact Donna at donna@albrechts.com.

DON’T FORGET

Please turn in your pledges of Time, Talent and

Treasure for 2018. Everyone’s contribution is vital to our

continued health as a caring congregation.

Thank you from your Stewardship & Finance Committees

MEN! No Breakfast and Bible Study in

December

See you in January!

Good Shepherd Book Exchange is January 14

Starting to clear things out for the holidays? We can help!

There will be a Book Exchange on January 14, 2018 after church

that you won't want to miss.

If you have books you've loved by don't really want to dust any more, drop them

off in the Fireside Room next to the rolling cart and you'll clear out your space

and we'll have books ready to go the day of the exchange!

Friends Feeding Friends

An outreach ministry of Good Shepherd that serves the needy in our county

Sarah Jean’s

Dream at age 4

—

“So people who

are really hungry

have food.”

For we are

God’s

workmanship

created in

Christ Jesus to

do good works,

which God

prepared in

advance for us

to do.

Ephesians

2:10

December 2017

1, 628 Families helped

1, 814 Bags of food distributed

1, 865 People helped with groceries

139 Hot Meals served

Highlights:

November was a great month for serving! FFF distributed Thanksgiving

groceries which included our turkey feather gift cards, and cooked a

Thanksgiving lunch for our friends at the shelter. Thank you to all who

donated to make this possible!!

We helped a grandpa who is raising his grandkids. FFF provided

clothing, shoes, jackets, pots and pans, household items, Christmas

decorations, and both new and donated toys. He especially requested

toys so the kids can have a nice Christmas.

Next Shelter Lunch: December 16, 2017: 9:00 at Good Shepherd to prep.

All are welcome!!

Items needed this month: Blankets * Cereal * New Socks * Beanies and Mittens

You can contact us at friendsfeedingfriends@yahoo.com or friendsfeedingfriend-

sca@gmail.com, and we are on the church website at http://gsconcord.com/outreach-

ministries/friends-feeding-friends/

And, if you order on Amazon, don’t forget to go to smile.amazon.com first and

specify The Good Shepherd Lutheran Church of Concord. Amazon will make a

contribution to FFF.

Friends Feeding Friends

Got shoes? We are collecting

athletic shoes this month. This is what 400 blessing bags of food looks

like before it is loaded in 2 Core SUVs.

Worship Assistants December 3 through December 31, 2017

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Merry Christmas!

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church 4000 Clayton Road

Concord, CA 94521

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church exists to reach out in Jesus name and gather in deep community, to learn and grow into God's Kingdom, to serve our neighbor

and worship the creator.

2017 Executive Committee: President: Greg Buchholz, Vice President: Sue Hertless, Secretary: John Mott

Member-at-Large: Adam Castle 2017 Congregational Council

Rebecca Berg, Candace Bradley, Greg Buchholz, Adam Castle, Tyler Costa,

Sue Hertless, Nancy Judge, John Mott, Tony Rogelstad

Ministry Staff:

Pastor: Rev. Jeremy Serrano - rev@gsconcord.com

Office Administrator: Laura Mott - lauramott@gsconcord.com

Organist: Gloria Chuang

Interim Choir Director: Emilie Patton

Contemporary Music Leader: Tom Deans Flegel - tdeans08@gmail.com

Sound/Technology: Jamie Rodemsky - jamier1263@gmail.com

Treasurer: Laura Mott - lauramott@gsconcord.com

Financial Secretary: Vicki Smiglewski