As an opportunity to relax and enjoy each other’s presence during the Advent season I have put together 4 lovely evenings for us to worship and to sing songs from the Taize Community.

I have not had the chance to enjoy these relaxing songs with others for quite some time, the more I am excited to share this wonderful experience with you!

For those unfamiliar with the Taize community here is a little bit of background information:

The Taize Community is an ecumenical monastic order in France. It is composed of about 100 Brothers from 30 countries who come from catholic and protestant traditions.

They have a strong devotion to peace and justice through prayer and meditation. One could say that this order that was founded 1937 is among the liveliest places of Christian Mysticism today.

The Community has become one of the world’s most important sites of Christian Pilgrimage as it attracts over 100,000 people annually for Bible study, worship, communal work and – of course, song.

Through the community’s ecumenical outlook, they are encouraged to live the Spirit of kindness, simplicity and reconciliation.

The Community, though Western European in origin, has sought to include people and traditions worldwide. This is demonstrated through the songs that are sung in many languages and have included chants and icons from the Eastern Orthodox tradition. The music features simple phrases, usually lines from Psalms and other pieces of Scripture that are being repeated several times – the simplicity of the songs also lends itself to harmonization and canon.

The music encourages introspection, meditation and worship. Its heart rate lowering, relaxing effect makes it perfect for a season when the holyday hustle and bustle makes it difficult to decompress after a long day.

If you feel like joining us, we will be meeting in the Sanctuary Wednesdays Nov. 30, Dec. 7,14 and 21. From 6-7pm.  Please call the office if interested.

Grace and Peace,
Sonja Wieland

Northminster Preschool, celebrating 40 years in the Clairemont community, will host its annual Wild West Carnival for preschool aged children on Saturday, November 12, 2011 from 10am to 2pm (Rain or Shine).  The Carnival features game booths, pony rides, face painting, jump houses, bake and craft sales, silent auction and raffle drawings.

Inclusive wristbands may be purchased in advance; individual tickets will also be available at the door.  Silent auction and raffle prizes have been generously donated by local businesses, student’s parents and faculty and include many gift certificates from restaurants, spas, arts organizations/shows, sport activities, museums and more.  The silent auction themed gift baskets are a great place to shop for holiday gifts.

The Carnival is Northminster Preschool’s main fundraiser; all monies collected go to child enrichment programs, playground toys and improvements, as well as classroom improvements and manipulatives.

Northminster Preschool’s Carnival is a community event.  School parents, staff and church families all work together to assure a fun, safe event for all.  The 2009-2010 school years’ Carnival netted over $10,500; hopes are to meet or exceed that amount this year.

Northminster Preschool provides a community Christian Preschool program with an enriched curriculum for children ages two through five years old.  The school is located at 4324 Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, San Diego, California, 92117, Phone 858-270-3760 or email: preschool@northminstersandiego.com

We now have a new area on this site for photo albums.  It may be accessed from the menu at the top of every page on this site.

Well, we’ve done it.  Another successful Worship SERVICE Sunday under our belts!  And how cool to have moved down a block to the next alley!  What I love most about doing our annual alley clean-up is that this is one of the ways that we participate with God in blessing the world.

I like to think of Northminster as being a church that strives to join Jesus in blessing our neighborhood, our city, and our world.

This past Sunday we blessed our neighborhood in a very practical and tangible way.  The quality of life for people living in this neighborhood of Clairemont has been improved, even if only in a small way.

But we also bless our neighborhood and our city in other ways.  Through Vacation Bible School, through Northminster Preschool, through Young Life and Wyldlife, through our Kids Life programs like Sunday School and Kids’ Night Out, and through our other work projects like the one we’ll be doing at Madison High School later in August.

At the same time, we strive to join Jesus in blessing the world beyond our neighborhood and city.  We heard about Ryan Irmer’s trip to Africa a few weeks ago.  Back in May, we sent a team to Mexico to build a home for a family in Rosarito.

In all of this, we’re not doing it alone.  God is already at work in our neighborhood, our city, and the world.  We’re simply joining God in what God is already doing.  God is already at work in the lives and hearts of people in our neighborhood, our city, and the world.  We’re simply joining God as we invite people to enter into life with God.

I’m really proud of all of you for the work you did last weekend.  God is at work in Clairemont … and so are we!

— Markus

“Youth is when you’re allowed to stay up late on New Year’s Eve.  Middle age is when you’re forced to.”  ~Bill Vaughn (columnist and author)

The question is, did you “get” to stay up late on New Year’s Eve or were you “forced” to?

Speaking of middle-age (how’s that for a transition?)…  It’s hard to believe that this is my fourth New Year’s with Northminster!  I was 34 when I started in 2007.  This year I’ll turn 39 and next year the big FOUR-O!

There’s no question that with age comes change.  And with change comes loss.  The loss of energy.  The loss of wrinkle-free skin.  The loss of hair.  That’s what makes change so hard.  It’s not the change.  It’s the loss.

Northminster has gone through a lot of changes over the last several years.  For some, these changes have involved loss.  Loss of certain traditions.  Loss of a particular style of worship.  Loss of some things that just meant a lot to you.

But with change, we gain something, as well.  With age, we gain wisdom.  We gain knowledge.  We gain experience and expertise.

As a church we’ve gained some things, too.  We’ve gained a lot of new and younger families.  We’ve gained renewed energy as a congregation.  We’ve begun to gain a reputation in the community as a church that cares.

No doubt, change is hard.  In 2011, you will experience change.  We all will.  We will lose some things.  But we will also gain some things.  Some wonderful things!  And that’s the hope we have as God’s people—that no matter how much we change or the world changes around us, we can trust God to get us through the losses and rejoice in the gains!

Happy New Year, Northminster!

The sermon for this week from the series “Kickin’ It Old School: Genesis” is titled “Struggling With God“.

START IT – Connecting with each other

• People like things that are new.  What was the last big new thing that you either bought or were given as a gift?
• What are one or two things that struck you as interesting in the sermon?  What did you find challenging?

STUDY IT – Genesis 32:22-32

• Read Genesis 32:22-32 out loud.  What stands out for you in this passage?  What questions do you have?
• What is the new name that Jacob is given, and what is the significance of the new name?
• What physically happened to Jacob while wrestling?  What did Markus say about how this reminds us of our own condition?

LIVE IT – Applying the truth of Scripture to life

• In the sermon we learned that struggling with God is a good thing.  How have you seen this being true in your own lives?
• The sermon ended with the great promise in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that those who are in Christ are a new creation.   In what way are those who are in Christ a new creation?
• Do you feel this way of your life, that you are a new creation?  What are some ways that we can remind ourselves of this?

PRAY IT

• Joys and Challenges:  What joys and challenges are you facing this week?
• Application:  Thank God that he has rescued us in Christ and that we are now a new creation awaiting our eternal home.
• Here at Northminster:  Pray for the Young Life and Wyldlife ministries here at Northminster.  Pray for the kids being reached, as well as the staff (Kevin Curtis and Stephen Wescott) and all the volunteers.
• Beyond Northminster: Pray for those in our neighborhood who are struggling financially during this recession.  Pray that God would provide for them.

Starting this weekend, the holiday season is officially upon us—Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years!

We call them holidays because historically these days were holy days. They were days that we committed specifically to God. They were days on which we reflected just a little more deeply on our faith. They were days that we tried to live a little more faithfully as followers of God.

Here’s the thing. I’ve got nothing against taking certain days and thinking more deeply about our faith on those particular days. But too often, focusing on our faith only on “holy days” means we end up focusing on our faith very little on the “regular” days.

But as God’s people, we’re called to treat every day as a holy day, aren’t we? Every day is a day to focus on our relationship with God. Every day is a day to reflect on who God is and how much he loves us. Every day is a day for us to live out our calling as God’s people.

And, believe it or not, that’s what it is to live missionally. It is to recognize that every day we are called to live out God’s love and compassion and justice in the world around us. It is to live out the ethics and holiness of Jesus among our neighbors. It is to invite our neighbors into the reality that every day has been made holy by God and every day is an opportunity for us to bless this world.

Let’s celebrate our holidays with passion. But let’s not forget to live every day with passion—passion for God and passion for the world we’ve been called to bless!

From The Bridge

The Northminster Dolphin Mariners held their traditional Pot Luck Stew and Silent Movie Night on Friday, October 15. The stew was superb as always, and it was particularly satisfying because we were privileged to share it with the downtown San Diego Rescue Mission.

The silent movie wasn’t silent. It was however a great Laurel and Hardy movie which was thoroughly enjoyed by all. It’s a pleasure to watch comedy masters at work. Just like the Mariners – Oldies but Goodies!

Our annual Pot Luck Thanksgiving Dinner and pie night will be held on November 19. All are welcome! Once again extra pies will be donated to the San Diego Rescue Mission.

The Mariners extend an invitation to all to our traditional Christmas Celebration Dinner. Dinner will be Friday December 3, 6:00 pm, at the Sizzler (just off I-15 & Aero Drive). Dinner entrees, including salad bar, are steak, chicken, and shrimp.

Total cost is $14.00 (including tax and tip).

The Friday, November 19, meeting, will once again have Thanksgiving Dinner and a special Thanksgiving program. This will be a planned pot luck dinner here in the Hall. Think about what you want to bring and sign-up with Alice Niderost or give the office a call.

Don’t forget that November is also PIE NIGHT!

Everyone should bring a pie (no cream pies, that includes pumpkin!) for the San Diego Rescue Mission.

Dutch and Gerre Papenbrook
Skippers

Help support Young Life.

Bring in your unwanted cell phones.  All brands, makes, and models of phones are being accepted.

There is a box for them out front before and after the worship service.  You can also bring them by the office any time during the week.

On Friday, August 17, the Northminster Dolphin Mariners held their monthly meeting and Pot Luck dinner.  We always believe that the pot luck dinners can’t get any better.  However, each one seems to be more enjoyable than the last.  Perhaps it’s the company.   We had a good turnout, and we were privileged to have several guests spend the evening with us.

Our next meeting is October 15.

We invite everyone to come and celebrate with us.  You don’t have to be a Mariner, just be with us.

All Mariners and friends are invited to join us on for a Pot Luck dinner in Congdon Hall at 6:30 PM, preceded by Fellowship at 6:15 PM.

The program will be Silent Movie Night.  Come and laugh at the antics of Laurel and Hardy while enjoying popcorn and soda.