Window

First Presbyterian

Church of Santa Monica

November 2019

The

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

Pastor’s Pen

Dear Friends Rudyard Kipling was the highest paid author in his day. When a newspaper reported that he had signed a book contract that would pay him the equivalent of one pound per word, several students at Cambridge University wrote Kipling a letter containing a one-pound note and asking him to send them one of his best words. To their surprise, Kipling responded with a one-word reply: “Thanks.” In 1 Thessalonians 5:18 we read: “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Giving thanks helps me to refocus my perspective. In giving thanks we remember what we treasure and realize how we have been blessed. Giving thanks also reminds me that I expect God’s loving creativity to be at work in my present circumstances. There is a monument in the town of Enterprise, Alabama dedicated to the Mexican boll weevil that devastated the cotton crop in 1895. As a consequence, the local farmers sought to diversify their crops and discovered the possibilities of peanuts. The inscription of the monument declares: “In profound appreciation of the boll weevil and what it has done as the herald of prosperity.” Giving thanks helps me reestablish my ties with others, recognizing how blessings have come from sources beyond what I could control or compel. Giving thanks is the wellspring that generates generosity. When we have felt blessed by others, we are willing to look for opportunities to be the author of blessings. So, giving thanks is more than a reminiscence about the past. It changes how I see my life now, how I relate with others and how I can be a person who is not only blessed, but a partner in God’s continuing work of blessing. Blessings,

Pastor Tim

November 2019 Calendar

Friday, November 1st 6:30 p.m. Vawters’ Daughters, Off-Site Sunday, November 3rd 10:00 a.m. Worship Service, Sanctuary 11:15 a.m. Congregational Election Meeting, Sanctuary 2:00 p.m. Youth Fall Outing, Off-Site Saturday, November 9th 8:00 p.m. Jacaranda Concert, Sanctuary Sunday, November 10th 10:00 a.m. Worship Service, Sanctuary 11:15 a.m. Deacons Team Meeting, Library 11:15 a.m. Spiritual Growth Team Meeting, Conference Room Sunday, November 17th 10:00 a.m. Worship Service, Sanctuary 11:15 a.m. Worship Team Meeting, Library Monday, November 18th 6:30 p.m. Finance Team meeting, Library 7:15 p.m. Session meeting, Library Thursday, November 21st 7:30 p.m. Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Concert, Sanctuary Saturday, November 23rd 5:00 p.m. Kids Night Out, Youth Lounge Thursday, November 28th Church Office Closed Friday, November 29th Church Office Closed WEEKLY AT FIRST PRES Wednesdays: 9:00 a.m. Wednesday Morning Gathering, Wictum Hall 12:30 – 2:00 p.m. Church Mice, Church Mice Room; C.E. Building 7:00 p.m. Yoga, Renaissance Room

Thursdays: 9:30 a.m. Bible Study, Library 7:00 p.m. Choir Rehearsal, Choir Room Sundays: 9:00 a.m. Choir Rehearsal, Choir Room 9:00 a.m. Christmas Pageant Rehearsal, Youth Lounge 10:00 a.m. Worship Service, Sanctuary

Spiritual Growth Ministry November 2019

SUNDAY FAITH GROUPS

Church Mice (Preschool – Kindergarten) Middle School Youth (6th–8th Grade) Faith Discovers (1st-2nd Grade) High School Youth (9th-12th Grade) Faith Explorers (3rd-5th Grade) November 3 – Ezekiel and the dry bones November 3 – In Worship November 10 – Returning to Jerusalem November 10 – Bible Ancestors November 17 – Rebuilding the temple November 17 – Bible Ancestors November 24 – Reading God’s word together November 24 – Bible Ancestors

WEDNESDAY FAITH GROUP

Church Mice (Preschool – Kindergarten) 12:30 – 2:00 p.m. November 6 – God is with me when I am afraid November 13 – God is with me when I go away November 20 – God is with me wherever I go November 27 – No Church Mice

Welcome Kristia Oney

Please welcome to First Pres our new Youth and Family Ministry Associate, Kristia Oney. She is originally from Oklahoma, where she served two Methodist churches as Director of Youth Ministries. In 2015, she and her husband Nathan moved to Claremont, CA so he could attend the Claremont School of Theology. They now live in Santa Monica and Nathan serves as Pastoral Associate at First United Methodist Church of Santa Monica. Kristia is also Director of Community Development and Engagement for Open Spaces Santa Monica, a ministry for young adults, and a certified Yoga instructor.

Five Core Family Faith Practices For Home

Excerpted and edited from the article Best Practices in Family Faith Formation by John Roberto

David Anderson and Paul Hill in Frogs Without Legs Can’t Hear: Nurturing Disciples in Home and Congregation summarize much of the research on family faith practices in Four Keys: caring conversation, rituals and traditions, devotions, and service. To these Four Keys we will add one more family faith practice: the family meal. As you read and utilize these insights, be sure to recognize that there is one overriding theme that is woven through all of the research: the integration of faith and daily family life.

Core Practice 1: Family Faith Conversations Christian values and faith are passed on to the next generation through supportive conversation. Listening and responding to the daily concerns of family members make it easier to have meaningful conversations regarding the love of God, and are ways to express God’s love to others. “At the heart of the communication recommended here is the sharing of faith, values, and the care of others. This can range from supportive listening, sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with another, and simple praise and thanksgiving to challenging admonition, ethical discussions, and call to action on behalf of God’s creatures and creation.” (Anderson and Hill, 112-113)

Core Practice 2: Family Devotions and Prayer The Christian faith shapes the whole of our lives and involves a lifetime of study, reflection, and prayer. Family devotions and learning provide a way to learn more about the Bible and Christian tradition as a family, and apply the teachings to daily life as a follower of Jesus Christ. This understanding of a devotional life includes, but is not limited to, public worship, bedtime prayers, Bible reading and study, table grace, evening and morning prayers, and praying alone at any time of the day or night. (Anderson and Hill, 134)

Core Practice 3: Family Service Engaging in service with one’s family can be a powerful opportunity for growing in faith. Both children and adults are more likely to have a growing, strong faith when their family serves others together. “When parent and child/teen together perform service activities, the child/teen sees the parent’s capability, faith, and values in action. The cross-generational bond takes place not only in the service event, but also in the retelling of the event through the years. . . . Most significantly, service is not merely a once a month outing... Service is the day-in and day-out lifestyle we lead that manifests the faith in us and involves our children in the faith. (Anderson and Hill, 151-152)

Core Practice 4: Family Rituals and Traditions Families identify themselves and tell their family stories through daily routines, celebrations, and rituals. Rituals and traditions communicate meaning, values, and relationships that exist between people and with God (including God’s created universe). Family rituals can take many forms from daily rituals such as mealtime, bedtime, leaving and returning; celebrations such as birthdays, anniversaries, and special achievements; church year rituals at home such as Advent and Lent; milestones such as births and deaths, first day of school and graduations, etc. Family rituals and traditions speak volumes about what the family values, believes and promotes, and how much the family values its faith.

Core Practice 5: Family Meal Research has been accumulating demonstrating how eating together as a family five or more times a week is strongly linked to lower incidence of bad outcomes, such as teenage drug and alcohol use, and to good qualities like emotional stability, low levels of family stress, and good parent-child/teen relationships. Regularly eating together supports family members in staying more connected to their extended family, ethnic heritage, and community of faith. Just as a meal was central to the ministry of Jesus, the family meal can be a central faith experience for family members, and the family as whole. It is a daily opportunity to discover Jesus’ presence in the midst of family life.

May you and your family be richly blessed as you participate in these family faith practices in your home. Blessings, Peter

Faith and Family

The Rev. Tim Vance, our Pastoral Candidate

The Pastor Nominating Committee is pleased to announce that it has reached a unanimous decision in its choice of the Rev. Tim Vance as pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Santa Monica. Currently serving as associate pastor of the American Church in Paris, Rev. Vance was one of 130 candidates the committee considered for the solo-pastor position at First Pres. Rev. Vance will preach at First Pres next Sunday, Nov. 3, followed by a congregational meeting in which members will be asked to vote on his call. Brief bio of Tim: Tim Vance was born and raised in Hornell, NY, with an older sister and two younger brothers. He attended Houghton College in Western New York, where he played college basketball on scholarship and graduated with a liberal arts degree in Biblical Studies and Educational Ministries. While at Houghton, he studied abroad in London, Paris and Madrid. After graduation in 1999, Tim moved across the country to Bellevue, WA, to work with high school students at Bellevue Presbyterian Church. It was here that Tim met his future in-laws, who eventually introduced him to their daughter, Maija. After many years of pretending not be interested in each other, Tim and Maija started dating. They married Dec. 30, 2004. In 2006, Tim graduated from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena with a Master of Divinity. A year later, their first child, Noah, was born, followed by Sophia in 2010 and their second son, Ezra, in 2014. Ordained in July of 2009, Tim took his first call as associate pastor at Gateway Presbyterian Church in The Dalles, OR. For the past 4 years, Rev. Vance has had the pleasure of serving as associate pastor of the beautiful American Church in Paris along the Seine river. He also frequently moderates the renowned Thurber lecture series interviewing experts from all over the world about various global issues. His hobbies include basketball and cycling. His favorite Bible verses are Micah 6:8 and Acts 17:28. Tim, Maija and the kids are very excited for the opportunity to become a part of Santa Monica’s wonderfully diverse and thriving community. The PNC is equally excited for the entire First Pres congregation to meet Tim.

Additional fun facts about Tim

1) How tall are you really? 6’ 6” 2) What positions did you play on the basketball court? In college I played everything from center to shooting guard, but my favorite position was the 3 (small forward). 3) Do you have a favorite disciple of Jesus? If I were on the playground choosing teams, my first pick would be John. He really wanted to win. Of course, like most human qualities, his competitive spirit was at times a strength and at other times a weakness. It’s fun to read through the gospel of John seeing hints of his competitive spirit alive and well. 4) Is there a section of the bible you enjoy teaching the most? Obscure stories or passages that everyone usually avoids. 5) What is the most rewarding part of being a minister? The people and the stories we tell. 6) What is the most fulfilling mission you have served since you entered the ministry? Several years ago, I travelled to India with an organization that works to rescue men, women and children from slavery. 7) Is there anything you look forward to (other than this calling) in your move to Southern California? Cycling through the winter with friends. 8) Are your three kids excited to return to the US? Oh my goodness, our kids are so excited to move to Santa Monica! It wasn’t a hard sell once we told them that we would be close to the beach. 9) Your wife is a singer. Do you remember the first time you heard her sing in public? Maija sang a solo at her brother’s wedding, which happened to be the day after we started dating. 10) What is it you are most thankful for? My family

Harvest Festival Follow-Up

The Spiritual Growth Ministry Team would like to say “Thank You” to all of the volunteers who helped to make our Fall Harvest Festival a great success. In addition, we would like to say a special “Thank You” to our Activity Sponsors whose financial generosity helped us to raise money for the Rebecca Hall Children’s Ministry fund. Volunteers Sponsors Karen Carrey Beal Family Kenyatta Conway Berkmeier Family Luke Coulter Robert Bracken & George Applegate James DiGaetano Chiang Family Thomas DiGaetano Dunlap Family Bevin Earhart Edstrom Family Laurel Earhart Ireland Family Tanyon Harber Phyllis Kai-Kee Janine Hayes Lowe & Fitzgerald Families Shelly Hyde-White Mallen Family Amy Iorio Matkovic Family Kathy Stickel Rosenberg Family Martha White Whiteman Family Presley Whiteman Williamson Family Amy Wiwuga

SAVE THESE DATES!

Sunday, December 8th and Sunday, December 15th after church. Save your money so you can do some Christmas shopping! As you can see from the picture, we are also selling umbrellas, Christmas stockings and decorations, origami items, needlework kits. Last month we had a picture of crocheted purses, books and a baby blanket with a matching hat. These are just a few of the items we will have for sale. Hope to see you on the patio after church.

SOLEMATES does it AGAIN

The Mission Team welcomed a dozen families with a total of 20 students to receive shoes in September. We had the event earlier than in the past to help with school shoes for older students. The shoes were selected by the students and then ordered by the church. We shared pizza, salad, and drinks and learned more about each other while offering the gifts. We appreciate all the donations made to the church especially from those who honored Jim Jenkin's memory. This was his treasured activity. I hope everyone will continue their support in the years ahead as shoes have become an increasingly expensive purchase for families. One Voice helped to identify and manage the process with us.

Wednesday Morning Gathering Christmas Bazaar

Saturday, November 9, 2019 at 8:00 p.m. THE WAYWARD Harry Partch – The Wayward; Dark Brother; Castor and Pollux Sanctuary Series – John Malpede & John Schneider, 7:00 (click for more) PARTCH Ensemble with guests: Derek Stein, adapted viola; Dan Rosenboom, trumpet; Ulrich Krieger, saxophone After a decade, PARTCH Ensemble returns to Jacaranda for the first ever complete performance of Harry Partch’s The Wayward, a chronicle of hobo life from 1935-41. Dark Brother, new to their repertoire, and the ever-popular Castor and Pollux complete the program. T.J. Troy intones the Dark Brother text excerpted from God’s Lonely Man by Thomas Wolfe. Three guest artists – Derek Stein, adapted viola, Dan Rosenboom, trumpet, and Ulrich Krieger, saxophone – join the core eight-member ensemble founded by Artistic Director John Schneider. The ensemble plays 14 custom instruments reproduced from Partch’s originals. For more information about Jacaranda, visit www.jacarandamusic.org

Thursday, November 21, 2019 at 7:30 p.m. 2019/20 Baroque Conversations Handel’s Water Music Jaime Martín – conductor Joshua Ranz – clarinet Kenneth Munday – bassoon Join Los Angles Chamber Orchestra and music director Jaime Martín for music by Handel, Telemann, & R. Strauss

Program Telemann – Slections from Overture in F Major R. Strauss – Duet-Concertino for Clarinet and Bassoon Handel – Water Music For more information about LACO, visit www.laco.org

Concerts at First Pres

FIRST PRES COMMUNITY

Wednesday Morning Gathering The Wednesday morning ladies gathering will have our Christmas Bazaar again this year. We will be on the patio on Sunday, December 8th and Sunday, December 15th! Just in time for you to do some Christmas shopping! So mark your calendars for our bazaar. We meet every Wednesday morning at 9:30. We are always looking for new members.

Bible Study Join Pastor Tim as we study the gospel of Luke. Come and join in the conversation as we look for how God is speaking to us through these words. We meet at 9:30 a.m. on Thursdays, in the library.

Greeters Welcome You! We are happy you are here. Please join us in fellowship and worship. All are invited to be a part of the Greeter ministry.

Vawters’ Daughters Join the women of the congregation the first Friday of every month. In honor of those spunky sisters who played such a vital role in the history of the church, we are the Vawters’ Daughters. Contact the church for more details.

Flowers What better way to honor or remember someone special in your life by dedicating the chancel flowers in his or her name – to the glory of God. Your gift also brings joy to First Pres members confined to their home or hospital due to illness, injury or frailty. Each Sunday, the deacons deliver bouquets of the colorful arrangement to those unable to attend the service. The cost of the weekly flowers is $65. Upcoming opportunities for special dedications: December 1st and 8th. Please let Pat Alston know which date you’d like to reserve. You can reach her by phone at 310-390-5206, or by email: pat@patalston.com. Or you can call the church office at 310-451-1303, between 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. We also welcome donations, in any amount, to the flower fund. Thank you for your support.

Westside Food Bank The Westside Food Bank provides immediate hunger relief to the people of our community. Bring your donations of cash and checks payable to First Presbyterian Church with Westside Food Bank in the “memo” line to church the first Sunday of every month. Canned food and durable goods are also welcome, but donations of cash or check are preferred, as the Westside Food Bank multiplies these donations tenfold through its bulk buying power. A list of needed food items is available. Call the church office for more information. Need a Ride to Church? If you are in need of a ride to church, our van driver, Tyrone DuBose has been providing transportation to First Pres members and friends for thirty-four years. He will make sure you get to church on time and in style in the First Pres van, and take you back home after the service. To schedule a ride call Tyrone directly at 310.920.0410. Hatha Yoga Join us for yoga in a supportive relaxing atmosphere! Knowledgeable, trained, innovative teacher. Bring water and a mat to the Renaissance Room, Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. The suggested donation is $25 per month. Questions? Call the church office 310.451.1303.

Concerts at First Pres

PUBLISHER: First Presbyterian Church of Santa Monica 1220 Second Street Santa Monica, CA 90401 SUBMISSIONS: Send newsworthy information about church activities for consideration in the Window to info@fpcsantamonica.org.

November Birthdays

November 1 Ralph Barton November 19 Sheila Forsander November 1 Jayson Warsuma November 19 Tayt Scheflen November 4 Christopher Rhee November 21 Robert Bracken November 5 Alex Sebastian November 22 Dakota Lee November 6 Fran George November 29 Sasha Yansen November 7 Mariel Howsepian-Rodriguez November 30 Catherine Chun November 14 Elisa Rose November 30 Harper Hassen November 15 Kevin Berkemeier November 30 Madeline Luteman November 15 Joe Micallef November 30 Matt Peterson November 18 Merritt Levin November 30 Richard Williamson