• The Lectio Divina prayer group has begun meeting for the Fall season.
• A new Women’s Bible Study will begin on October 10.
• A new Young Adult Bible Study has begun at the Parsonage.
• Andrew Potsko is leading a new teen class on Sunday morning.
• Claire Engelbrecht has resumed Sunday School for the fall.
• Pastor’s Sunday morning class is reading Selected Psalms, then moving on to Proverbs.
• As of last month’s Primary Election, Trinity is now the voting place for this precinct.
• The ‘arts’ are back! Puget Sound Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Girl’s Choir and the Anchora Women’s Choir are again in the building for their fall schedules.
• Choir is back! Jenn Nehr has joined Trinity’s worship staff as our new Choir Director.
• Several facilities projects are underway or completed:
  • The new projection system is completely installed and ready for use in the Sanctuary.
  • The stained glass window repair is underway.
  • Glass block will soon replace the windows in Pastor’s study.
  • The kitchen sports new wiring and outlets as well as a new stove and refrigerator.
• The New Board of Directors has begun to meet. To help guide its formation, the Board is meeting in retreat and reading two books: Unlearning Church; and Shaped By God’s Heart. The latter book is also being read by the Board of Deacons.
• Trinity/Chapel on the Ave, Good Shepherd and Beacon will gather at Beacon on November 1 for our annual dinner and All Saints’ Day Celebration.
• Works continues on the Thrivent/Habitat for Humanity house in Judson Park. Volunteer a day to help make sure the family can move in by December 1!
• We will go out on a limb and celebrate Christmas on December 25 this year. Just want to see if you are still awake!
• Heart for the City ministry is considering some new proposals for cooperative ministry between Trinity/The Chapel, Good Shepherd and Beacon. Chief among them is starting some joint Alpha studies. Stay tuned for more information about Alpha.
• You will likely have things to add. What a wonderful season to be sharing in life and ministry here at Trinity and the Chapel.

October Blessings,
Pastor Don

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Property Update
The fall work party is set for October 7th. We usually start around 9 am and have some indoor and many outdoor "to do" things on the list...pruning, planting, transplanting, clean up.

A HUGE thank you to Marv Nelson and Nelson Electric for getting the ascender screen frame built and the screen working as well as doing additional electrical work. The new refrigerator and stove now reside in the kitchen and function along with additional outlets. Hooray! Many thanks from the kitchen crew who used it all for the first time for the spaghetti dinner.

Seattle Stained Glass has been contracted to fix the stained glass windows, and they are starting to work on the north window.

Emergency Run at Central Lutheran
Because of the solo effort from Robert Heckel, who was quickly able to round up on an emergency basis the following Trinity Lutheran church members: Karl Brunner, Pat Brunner, Joan Hamada, Gordon Meeske and Lena Meeske, Central Lutheran Church was able to accomplish their food mission. On Tuesday, September 12, 2006, Central Lutheran Church was short on volunteer helpers to get the job done. Because of this extra help, about 150 needy people were served with a tasty meal!

Lutheran World Relief Collection
We are collecting items for the Nov. 3-4 Ingathering for Lutheran World Relief. Please bring:New or used clothing for infants, children, and men; Sweaters and sweatshirts for all; Fabric: Individually folded pieces of cotton or cotton blend fabric (no knits), 3 yard pieces if 45" wide, or 4 yard pieces if 36" wide; New soap in original wrappers; Quilts, 60" x 80"; and Blankets.

Operation Nightwatch
Let’s “Sock It to the Homeless” on Sunday, October 29, 2006, 1:30—3:30 pm at Operation Nightwatch, 302 14th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98144.

Let’s see how many new men’s white socks we can collect between now and the 29th and then bring everyone down for a party as Operation Nightwatch receives the socks. Last year they collected over 7,000 pairs of socks for distribution through the winter. The goal this year: 10,000 pairs!

Socks are an item that they cannot have in too great a quantity. Homeless feet are sore from all the walking, and often socks are wet and falling apart. A clean pair of new socks can bring real joy and comfort in the dead of winter.

Operation Nightwatch is an inter-denominational Christian ministry serving the poor and homeless, providing: street ministry, emergency shelter, shelter dispatch, family vouchers, senior housing and food programs.

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Dead Sea Scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls tour is on October 14th. Mary Hansen has the tickets and will hand them out in mail boxes. If you signed up to attend, check your mail box and then leave your payment in Mary’s mailbox.

Lectio Divina Group
The Lectio Divina group reconvened for the Fall on Tuesday, September 26. We meet in the Fellowship Hall at Trinity, 7:00 pm until 8:15 pm. All are welcome. For any who would like to bring a meal, Pastor Don will be present to dine with you. Or, if you’d prefer to dine alone, he’ll stay in his study! Please consider this opportunity to engage with others in a wonderful prayer form. Our plan is to meet weekly through November 14, then break for the Advent/Christmas season, resuming in January.

LMS Auction
The LMS Auction will be held on November 4th. Please contact Dick Lootens for information on exciting volunteer opportunities!

Women’s Bible Study
Women of Trinity and Chapel on the Ave, a new Bible study is beginning with just you in mind. It will meet in Trinity's basement on Tuesday evenings from 7:00-8:30. The first meeting will be October 10th. The study we'll use is LifeLight: Matthew, Part 1 from CPH. It's an in-depth personal and group study of the first 15 chapters of Matthew. Hope you will be able to attend. Leader will be Lois Schatz.

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“Moses said to God, ‘Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?" God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.'" -Exodus 3:13-14

“Which god is God?” The God of the Jews? Hassidic or Secular? The Christians? Bible Thumpers or Liberals? The Muslims? Militant or Moderate? The Hindus? Vaishnavism or Shaktism? The “Pagans”? Wiccans or Druids? The Agnostics? What about the God of the teenager in Beirut or the Laotian senior citizen of New Hampshire? Or any in between? Everyone seems to have their own view of which God they worship. So, who has the monopoly on the true God? I’m reluctant to suggest it’s the God of the Christians because, in my opinion, there are some really twisted views of God in Christianity. I’m more inclined to say the God of the Bible, but even that can be misleading because one must ask who is the one interpreting it? To broaden the argument, I suppose there are many, especially in the US, that would say the one true God is the God that you as an individual worship. And nowadays, it’s nearly a heresy to say otherwise.

I think this whole argument has a fundamental flaw: the question itself. The moment we begin to ask ourselves who is God, we begin the process of putting God in a box. This, of course, can make it very challenging even to talk about God. Even the very word “God” assumes God is a male deity when God cannot be captured by any gender or sex (save Christ). But, not to talk about God would be ridiculous because God is very much apart of the human existence if not only in reality, certainly in rhetoric. I think the fundamental key to discussing the attributes of God, especially within our post-modern world, is to begin with the understanding that God is “I AM WHO I AM” not “I AM WHO YOU THINK I AM.”

Which god is God?

Even with the Bible, this question will remain shrouded in misinterpretation and greed. It is only by the work of the Spirit that we will come to know that I AM WHO I AM is God. So, if you want an answer to this question, pray: come Holy Spirit, come.

National Lutheran Leadership Conference

The Lutheran Church of Ghana has invited Andrew Potsko, the Director of Student Ministries at Trinity Lutheran Church in Seattle, to be the guest speaker at the National Lutheran Leadership Conference. Andrew was extended this invitation by Elvis Doe, the National Lutheran Youth Director of Ghana, whom he met while serving with Lutheran Youth Encounter in 2001. Andrew considers Elvis a dear brother in the faith and looks forward to serving Christ and the Church with him again. The conference will be held at the end of November, and, in order to defray the cost of the trip and relieve the financial burden from the Lutheran Church of Ghana, Trinity Lutheran Church will be sponsoring a benefit dinner and concert on Saturday, November 18th. The dinner will begin at 5:30 pm, and the concert, featuring Andrew Potsko, will follow at 7:00 pm. The concert will feature original music from Ghana, a brief presentation of Andrew’s trip, and an interactive Bible story for people of all ages to enjoy.

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Thinking outside the box is a creative process. It’s approaching the impossible with unconventional methods. And sometimes God’s ways are unconventional, yet we find it difficult to take that risk.

A Personal Story...
I attended a church that taught all are called to be laborers for Christ. For forty years, I did not listen to such a calling. I conformed to the conventional methods of sharing God’s love. But, I struggled with legalistic roadblocks and cultural taboos. I found that conventional methods to promote community were sketchy. One afternoon, I spent time with a woman who found Jesus. She lived at one of the seedy federal housing buildings. She ministered out of her home… wow! A preacher got food donations for her to distribute, and I was able to help. At the time, I was seeking to get off federal funding and look for a career. I also decided to have neuro-surgery so that I would be accepted by those around me, including those at my church. I never thought to consider what God would want to do with me. After surgery, I still struggled with being accepted. And, a pastor in the 80’s told me to seek medical attention when “healing lines” were big. I was still seeking conventional means to find deliverance and acceptance, especially now within the Church, but I realized that neuro-surgery did not offer complete healing.

One day I went to a coffee shop and noticed a person looking rather fearful of me. She told me I reminded her of her scary Catholic grandmother. But, as we continued to talk, we realized we had a connection: we were both addicted to coffee. I told her my personal story: neuro-surgery, drug withdraw, government assistance, etc. She said she could relate. I realized God was using my differences. I heard the call, but I avoided it. I was unnerved and had jetted off to Europe. I did not want to be different. But, I began to wonder, “Who would sit down with an junky or an ex-junkie at a corporate coffee house?” I took some time to consider what was happening. I visited Trinity Lutheran College, and, in a little prayer chapel, I heard the call again. But, I wondered where I would be able to live out my calling. Conforming to a “conventional” church did not appeal to me. But, unexpectedly, God opened up a door for me at Trinity.

Now, I’ve realized that this is not just MY calling, but OUR calling at Trinity. Not just MY journey, but OUR journey. Can we take the risk to do the unconventional, to reach out to our community? Can we open ourselves up to God’s ways rather than our own? Can we even take the small steps to say a simple hello or offer a smile that translates in any language? Take the risk.

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Seattle Lutheran High

Seattle Lutheran High School will hold its annual fall Open House on Thursday, October 26, from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Our theme is “One” because our mission is to empower each student to make and implement choices which reflect his/her highest calling. We concentrate on the traits of Confidence, Hope, Integrity and Passion during the students’ four years here. Because Seattle Lutheran is committed to remaining a small, quality school, class sizes are limited. The Open House will feature a tour of the facility as well as interaction with Seattle Lutheran’s faculty and administration. Please enter through our gymnasium which is located on Genesee Street between 41st and 42nd Avenue S.W. Call Rachel at (206) 937-7722, ext. 18, for info.

Concordia Lutheran School

Meyer Minutes
This summer has been a terrific time to reflect on and respond to our ministry here at Concordia. Recently, I spent an afternoon with one of our pastors, and he shared his thoughts on the 3 C’s of ministry: Cause, Community, and Corporation. This conversation got me thinking about the cause we have here at Concordia. I believe it is important for all of us to identify our cause here at this place. Not only the individual cause for each family, but also the cause we have as a ministry in the place. I believe that we are brought here to share knowledge, grow in grace and mature in Christ. I believe we are all here for this purpose. As God leads us through this year, let us all remember that Concordia’s ministry focuses our leadership, strengthens our relationships, and, most importantly, helps us build God’s kingdom here in Seattle.Enrichment Activities (sort of like the electives high school students have) for Concordia students this quarter:

• Art lessons from Monart Art School for the White Team (5–6 year olds)
• Etiquette lesson from Lyn Siep for the Red Team (7–10 year olds)
• Music lessons from Lee Galstad for the Cardinal Team (9–14 year olds)

Upcoming Events
Concordia would like to welcome Trinity to join us in the new school year. We have several events, both service opportunities and fellowship activities coming up, which we would like to invite congregation members to.

On October 10th, Concordia hosts its annual Cross Country Meet at 3:45 at Northacres Park. We need volunteers to help mark the course and cheer on the competitors. No running required!

October 12th will be Concordia’s first Celebration Theme Night of the Year. This is a quarterly event where students present projects they have been working on to their families and Concordia community members. All are welcome to attend!

Concordia will have its annual Fall Carnival on Saturday, October 28th. We would like to invite Trinity members to stop by Concordia to enjoy a few hours of carnival games and prizes.

This is VERY advance notice, but Concordia will be having an event in December which we want to give Trinity members plenty of notice for so you can save the date: Concordia’s Christmas Program will be December 14th at 6:30—all Trinity members are invited to see our students in action.

Notices
It’s time for Concordia’s annual Sally Foster fundraiser! Gift wrap, bath & body products, and gourmet chocolates are just a few of the program’s fine offerings. You can support Concordia in 3 different ways:

• See a Concordia student in your congregation and place an order.
• Stop by the school office and pick up a catalogue.
• Log on to www.sallyfoster.com and place an order. When you check out, enter Concordia’s group number (0063676) and school name (Concordia) and we will benefit from your purchase!

The sale continues through September 29th.

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Concordia would like to offer free business advertising to association church members on the back of the Concordia directory. If you are interested in displaying free, business-card-sized ads on the back of the Concordia directory, please contact Julia in the school office ASAP @ 206-525-7407.

Lutheran Community Services

2006 Thrivent Financial Kickoff Classic, PLU Vs Cal Lutheran
Thrivent Financial is proud to sponsor the Pacific Lutheran Lutes and the California Lutheran Kingsman as they face each other on the gridiron.  The action takes place Saturday, September 9 at 1:30 pm at Sparks Stadium in Puyallup.  Thrivent will have information booths, giveaways, and news on local Thrivent Builds with Habitat for Humanity projects.  Join us as we support Lutheran Higher Education and enjoy some outstanding small college football!  Tickets are available at the gate.

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