Join us for the final discussion of Brian McLaren's book,  "Why Did Jesus, Moses, the Buddha and Mohammed Cross the Road?", Thursday, February 18th at 6:30 pm in the Fireside Room. 

 

 

 

We are inviting everyone who worships at St. Mark's to enjoy a time of growth and renewal with others in a small group that will meet four times in Lent and four times again in Easter. We are calling these Growth Groups because they will give us a way to grow in faith, grow in friendship, and grow as stewards of all God's gifts. The groups will meet weekly, starting in mid-February, with a two-week break around Holy Week and Easter. Like the Faith Journey groups that many of you remember, Growth Groups will provide a similar opportunity to hear each other's stories, explore questions of faith, build relationships, hear scripture together, and listen for God's call.

 

To sign up for a Growth Group, please click on this link and choose the day and time that works for you:   www.SignUpGenius.com/go/30E0E48ADAC22A5FC1-stmarks 

One way to think about the basic budget of St. Mark's is to imagine a three-piece pie.  The pieces are not all the same size but they are the essential components of our mission.

The basic budget is funded by what we call "regular offerings."  Our contributions make up nearly 100% of the income required to fund this budget.  For 2016-2017, fully funding this mission will require roughly $1 million.  As you discern your Plan for Giving for the next fiscal year that begins July 1, you may want to know something about how important each of these pieces are to the overall St. Mark's "pie." 

The simplest to explain is the piece for mortgage payments.  Several years ago, the Church Council decided to blend mortgage payments into the basic budget for the same reasons that those of us with mortgages on homes must make payments out of our household budgets.  Mortgage payments total nearly $195,000 annually.  Over time we have built up a $64,000 reserve for mortgage payments to smooth out cash flow, but we are obligated to service the mortgage monthly.  If you were at the semi-annual meeting in January, you heard about a plan to reduce the mortgage principle in the Fall.  That is separate from the Plan for Giving and regular offerings.

The "staff & ministries" piece is about $670,000.  This part of the budget pays for salaries, benefits and wages for all employees who help deliver the ministries we have come to know as central to our identity at St. Mark's.  In January, the congregation voted to increase the salaries of two of the three rostered employees who were not yet at the salary guidelines of the Southwestern Synod of the ELCA.  This is the third year of a three-year plan to fund these increases.  All other staff will receive cost-of-living increases by action of the congregation.  The program support for the various ministries is included in this piece and ministry team budgets.

The third piece "operations and outreach" is about $135,000.  It includes the dollars we call "benevolences," that is the dollars we send to the Synod, the ELCA and various other outreach ministries we support.  The actual amount of benevolence is calculated as ten percent of all of our income exclusive of mortgage payments.  In other words, we tithe on all our offerings for God's work beyond our walls.  Operations includes what we pay to heat, light, and cool our building, to water the plants, to service the elevator, and to purchase supplies and office equipment.

Although the budget for 2016-2017 will not be finalized until the semi-annual meeting at the end of May, a $1 million funding goal is very realistic to sustain the basics.  We are one of the largest congregations in the Synod with a diverse array of programs and services.  When all three pieces of our "mission pie" are fully funded, we are able to be the church God is calling us to be.

 

Watch for your Plan for Giving packets in the mail the first week of March.

St. Mark's Preschool will be accepting registration packets for the 2016-2017 school year beginning February 15th. Classes are available for children ages 2.5-6 years old.  To get more information and/or a registration packet, visit the preschool's website, www.smlutheran.org/preschool or contact Anne Zimmerman (253) 752-4929 M-F 8:30-2:00.

Lutheran World Relief is looking for both soap and baby socks for their layette kits.  For more information please contact Randi Holland at [email protected] or by calling (253) 905-5693.