Spring Fever
by Pastor Bea
“It's spring fever.... You don't quite know what it is you DO want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!” – Mark Twain.

A look out of the window confirms it: Spring has sprung. Trees which just yesterday were bare have burst into blossoms almost overnight. Some trees and shrubs take their time and daintily unfold petal after petal, but the majority just rushes forth in a pink or white flurry. If they could make a noise, these trees, I imagine them going: boing, boing, boing. Spring fever! I perceive such spring fever within myself as well - even here in our mild-weathered California, where harsh winters are distant events.

And in the midst of this outbreak of life we get Lent. 40 solemn days of preparation between Ash Wednesday and Easter. “Lent is like putting on shoes that are too tight, and then on Easter we get to take them off again, and it feels like such a relief….” This is how one church member once described her experience of Lent, and I have thought about her comment often.

My experience is different. For me Lent is a checking in with myself: As nature bursts forth with new life, I too feel a call to bring my faith to bloom, but there is much that is holding me back. And just like tight shoes can restrict movement, so too can bad habits restrict our faith from being fully alive. Lent is an opportunity to discover what exactly it is that is restricting. It is therefore not so much a matter of putting on tight shoes but rather checking in with myself whether my shoes are, in fact, too tight, and whether my life is too hectic (it usually is), whether my prayers are too shallow (they usually are), whether my compassion is too superficial, etc.

Such self-assessment cannot be made on the run. Tradition advocates that during Lent we take extra time for repentance, prayer, fasting, and for alms giving. These four disciplines can be great tools, but they can also be used for the wrong reason. (Which will then feel like putting on shoes that are too tight). But when the Lenten disciplines are used in the right way, they are life giving. They can help us break through bad habits so that the new life can blossom in us. I invite you to make use of these disciplines this Lent.

Lent begins with Ash Wednesday, March 9, with two services, one at noon and one at 7:00 p.m. Consider attending one of them. I wish you a holy Lent - a journey to spring.

Express Yourself
by Jean H.
Have you had the opportunity to Express Yourself at CGS? Are you aware of all of the opportunities that exist to express your interests and passions? Well, come to the Express Yourself Ministry Fair at CGS in the great hall following worship on Sunday, March 6th. There will be tables for each committee and activity that present an opportunity for each of us to get involved in something that is important to us. Come and talk to those involved in each activity and ask lots of questions! Come join the fun and express yourself!

A Great Vision
by Pr. Jim
What a wonderful vision Christ the Good Shepherd has: to create a vibrant Sunday School. I am excited and honored to be a partner with the family of Christ the Good Shepherd toward this goal. As I have been meeting with members of the family of Christ the Good Shepherd it has been clear that there is a shared vision of moving Christ the Good Shepherd toward an even greater welcoming of children.

It is my intent to work with all of the family of Christ the Good Shepherd to build a program based on a shared vision. To discern this shared vision I have been meeting with parents, teachers, and council members. I hope to meet with the rest of the family of CGS, because it takes more than parents and a Sunday School program to grow faith; it takes the whole body.

Some of you may feel that there is nothing wrong with what has happened in the past or what is happening now with Sunday School at CGS. I would agree. It is not a question of whether a program, system or plan is good or bad, the question is, “Are you getting the results that you want?” If you are not getting the results that you want, then you need to change what you are doing. So, what has happened at CGS (or any institution, home or person, for that matter) is perfect for what is in place. The question is: “what result is wanted?” If a different result is wanted, then change is needed.

As we move forward I will continue to meet with folks. As of this writing, we have added a nursery attendant, identified a possible area for a playground and will begin to transform part of the library to be even more kid-attractive than it is! The teachers seem to have settled on a curriculum as well.

We also need to bring some more members of CGS in to the lives of our children. This can be done in many different ways. As teachers aides, craft support, snack support, advocacy within the family of CGS, helping to guide the outreach through the Education committee, or simply just taking time to get to know the children and their families.

If you have any questions, feel free to call me at 408-761-2062 or email me at youth@cgslc.org.

Blessings and Regards, Pr. Jim

New Member Forum

Join us Saturday March 5 from 9am-1pm to learn more about being a member at CGS. What we do: We will take a detailed tour of the building. (In past orientation sessions this has been a hit, because it leads to a lot of questions related to the ministry of this congregation); then we sit down for a basic introduction to Lutheran core beliefs; we take time to hear from each other about what has brought us here, and what we are looking for in terms of a faith community; we discuss the membership process and address any questions you may have. Usually this takes about four hours, which seems a lot, but it is a 6 week introductory course condensed into a long one-day session. We take breaks and stretch a lot and keep it interactive. If you are interested to be part if this orientation, please contact the church office.

CGS Finance Ministry
by Janet K.
On Wednesday, February 16th, the Finance Committee met to finalize the proposed recommendations to the Council updating the check request and purchase order processes that were formulated at the January meeting. The recommendations will be presented at Council by CGS Treasurer, Lewis M.

The committee also evaluated the accounting procedures for donations for the Sunday flowers. As sign-ups for flowers is somewhat spotty for 2011, it was suggested that a Good News article would be appropriate to educate new members to the process and remind all members of this ministry. A review of CGS reserve fund guidelines was held to evaluate if these guidelines are functioning as intended. The consensus of the group was that CGS is not in a position to fulfill the guidelines at this time and recommended that this item be tabled and revisited in a few months.

The next meeting of the Finance Committee will be held May 11, 2001 at 6pm in the Fireside Room. All interested members are welcome and encouraged to participate in this process. Your thoughts, ideas and, most importantly your prayers, are vital to our efforts to be good stewards.

Social Action Update
by Shirley W.
As we approach the season of Lent let us consider what kind of meaningful projects we can do as a congregation or as individuals to make a difference in our community and in the world. One of our plans is to take part in the CROP Walk on April 3. The CROP walk helps fight hunger and poverty locally and globally. This year 25% of the money donated will go to Second Harvest Food Bank and Sacred Heart Community Center. The remainder goes to Church World Services which works globally combating hunger and poverty. You will be hearing more about this project.

One of our plans is to take part in the CROP Walk on April 3. The CROP walk helps fight hunger and poverty locally and globally. This year 25% of the money donated will go to Second Harvest Food Bank and Sacred Heart Community Center. The remainder goes to Church World Services which works globally combating hunger and poverty. You will be hearing more about this project.

We are also looking into making Fair Trade Chocolate available. The Global Witness’ report tells how cocoa fuelled the conflict in Cote d’Ivoire and shows how over US $118 million from the cocoa trade has funded both sides of the recent armed conflict in Cote d’Ivoire. The Fair Trade Chocolate has no part in these conflicts.

ELCA World Hunger recognizes health and hunger are closely related and states: “Those who are hungry are more susceptible to disease and those who are sick need more nutrients to get well. For this reason ELCA World Hunger has an intentional focus on health care. We take our cue from Jesus, who also was about healing.” According to ELCA World Hunger 925 million people will suffer from chronic hunger this year and the United States has a poverty rate of 14%. One way we can help them in their commitment to fight hunger and poverty is to give a gift. Consider one of these options:

• A $10 gift could buy 10 downy chicks to help a family in Mexico start and egg business.
• A $20 gift could buy a duck to help a family in Cambodia escape hunger.
• A $100 gift could plant an entire acre of cocoa plants to start a small business in Ghana.

Bread for the World offers a collective Christian voice urging our nation’s decision makers to end hunger at home and abroad. By changing policies, programs and conditions that allow hunger and poverty to persist, we provide help and opportunity far beyond the communities where we live. Another thing we can do as individuals is to write personal letters to our elected leaders to advocate for stronger U.S. government focus on reducing poverty, clearer accountability for how aid dollars are spent, a transformed U.S. development agency and U.S. aid that meets the needs and wants of local people We plan to have some materials to organize a letter writing offering available during Lent. For more information on Bread for the world visit their web site: www.bread.org.

Gatherings in Lent

Soup Song and Sacrament—Wednesdays in Lent We will be gathering Wednesday evenings in Lent from 6:30-8. We will be sharing a meal, songs and the Word. Various groups will be slated to prepare the soup; you can sign up to bring a salad or bread.

Fridays in Lent Join us Fridays at noon in Lent for a special time, a time of prayer and observing the Stations of the Cross. The first Friday will be March 11.

Wrestling with the Word

The "Wrestling with the Word" Bible studies will continue in the church library each Sunday morning from 9:00 to 9:20. We will:

• chose our texts from the lectionary readings the coming Sunday
• carefully "unpack" the texts, trying to see through fresh eyes
• read the texts aloud, hearing them in different and through different voices
• emphasize finding the resonances between the and our own experience
• read them aloud again, allowing our personal connection to bleed through

W.E.L.C.A.
by Suzanne B.
The WELCA February meeting was a success with ten women learning about the WELCA mission, purpose, advocacy activities, and upcoming July triennial convention in Spokane. After a soup and cornbread lunch, there was an ice breaker “Finding Your Bold” during which members identified themselves, learned about others, then shared their knowledge with the group.

The next meeting at on Sunday March 20 at noon will celebrate the first day of Spring. Bring a sandwich cut into quarters to contribute to the group. To open our Women in Business program, Chelsea Mathis will tell us about working with hospice.

Fat Sunday--March 6

Since it would be difficult for many of us to get together on Fat Tuesday for pancakes, we are moving it up by 2 days and having a “Fat Sunday” pancake breakfast afterwards. Ideally, we would then abstain from rich food during the period of Lent. Dare I suggest we forgo donuts during Lent? Children (and any daring adults) are encouraged to come in their finest Mardi Gras costumes.

New Book Discussion Group

How to have Compassion, an Informal Book Discussion on Compassion in Our Lives Today–Bible Study and Discussion Group, Sundays after worship. Co-Leaders will be Linda S. and Hope R. After church service on Sundays in the CGS Library for an hour we will discuss the text, "Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life" by Karen Armstrong. Participants are encouraged to buy the book and attend reading/discussion groups when they can.

First Month's Schedule:

• March 6—The purpose of the Group revealed—Listen and follow the book's "Preface" on CD
• March 13—Discuss the "Preface"
• March 20— Listen and follow "The First Step" on CD
• March 27—Discuss "The First Step"

Picture Directory

Many of you (and myself as well) have been anxious to have a pictorial directory. With all the new members and friends of the church, it will great to put a face to the name. I will print up several copies of a draft of the directory and put them in the narthex. You will notice that the pictures in it are about 3 years old. Some of you may enjoy having a classic picture in the directory, some may not. So, in this draft directory, please mark one of three options:

1. Use this picture
2. I will send the office a picture or
3. I will grab Ester Rechenmacher to take my picture.

New Books added to the Library

Check out all the new books we have added to the Library in March click here for a list of books

March Good News

In this issue:

Pastor's article-Spring Fever
Express Yourself
Pr. Jim-A Great Vision
New Member Forum
CGS Finance Ministry
Social Action Update
Gatherings in Lent
Wrestling at 9
WELCA
Fat Sunday Activities
New Book Discussion Group
Picture Directory Update
New Books!