Mission Offering
The mission offering is collected at the church doors
at the end of worship.
 The Mission Offering for the month of March is designated to the Christian Community Service Center which provides a wide array of social services to the underprivileged members of our community. While we as an individual congregation cannot provide all the services our community needs, we can serve the poor, hungry, disabled and disadvantaged through collaboration with other area congregations. In 2008, CCSC provided food, clothing, financial assistance and referrals to 15,050 persons in crisis, and their JobNet program served 472 job seekers. Members of Christ the King Church have for years been deeply involved in CCSC’s leadership and work, including our on-going collection of non-perishable food items. Please give generously to this cornerstone ministry of Christ the King Lutheran Church.
For more details on the Christian Community Service Center, see the March King’s Banner.
Stewardship
Offering Envelopes
Numbered and named Offering Envelopes are available for church members for pick up. Please find your copy in the narthex on the welcome table. Friends who would like to begin using envelopes may request them from the church office. Other easy ways for church offerings are Simply Giving allowing for automatic bank withdrawal and the Easy Giving which can be set up online. Sign up forms for Simply Giving are available in the narthex.
In light of a lean budget Christ the King Church has stopped all print advertising. Our visitors when asked how they found out about the church often mention our website. While our website may not compare to the latest standards, it is very functional, has all of the events of the week on the front page and allows easy access to our publications and the calendar. Therefore we are asking members and friends to consider making www.ctkelc.org their homepage which will increase our web presence on the commonly used search engines.
Worship
Godly Play Lessons
 Pre K - Kindergarten: Faces of Easter - Part III
1st-2nd Grade: Faces of Easter - Part III
3rd Grade: Moses - Part I
Midweek Lenten Vespers and Soup Suppers on Wednesdays
5:30-7:00 p.m. Soup Supper
(served continuously)
6:45 p.m. Vespers Service
This year’s Lenten Vespers series focuses on the “Ten Commandments and the Promise of Life”. Each Vesper will meditate on two or three of the Ten Commandments exploring how the gospel of Jesus Christ is proclaimed to us in God’s gift of the Torah as the best way to live as God’s people.
March 25 Commandments 6 and 7 Exodus 20: 14-15
April 1 Commandments 8, 9, and 10 Exodus 20: 16-17
How Do They Make Those Palm Crosses?
You are invited to find the answer to that riveting question on Saturday, April 4. Join the Altar Guild at 10:00 a.m. to make 400 plus Palm Crosses used to mark Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week. Come and help with making crosses. The Altar Guild invites especially those who might be interested in joining thier group. It is an honor and a blessing to serve behind the scenes preparing the Lord’s Table. Call Bette Bowers for more information.
Ministry of Healing
at the Taizé Service
A new worship opportunity has been added to the Taizé service on each second Saturday of the month. It is called Prayer Around the Paschal Candle and offers the option to receive a Healing Blessing. The Prayer Around the Paschal Candle complements the Prayer Around the Cross which is held on the first Saturday of each month. Persons who wish may come forward for a prayer with laying on of hands and anointing with oil. The congregation accompanies and supports the individuals coming forward with songs of hope and resurrection faith. The Prayers of Intercession will deliver to God petitions on various aspects of healing. Gathered by the Holy Spirit around Jesus Christ, the Word of salvation, we pray for God’s healing in all its dimensions. See an expanded article.
Easter Lilies
The Altar Guild will decorate the chancel and narthex with lilies on Easter Sunday. Members and friends may purchase lilies for this purpose. Forms will be available in worship bulletins in the upcoming Sundays prior to Easter. Each lily costs $10.00 and may be dedicated in memory or in honor of loved ones. On Easter Sunday Lay Eucharistic Ministers will take lilies to members who are in the hospital or who are homebound. Those donating lilies may also take them home after services. If any lilies are left in the nave, they will be planted in the courtyard after the second Sunday of Easter.
Taking Faith Home, our weekly devotional, is available as hard copy in the narthex and can be viewed online.
Visit www.ctkelc.org and look for the icon.
Contemplative Prayer on Monday Evenings
Matthew 6:6 says "go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret". Contemplative prayer is a Christian spiritual formation practice in which one "goes into their room to pray." Exterior stillness helps to develop an interior silence and space where one can listen with the ear of the heart to hear the God who is always more willing to listen to us than we are to pray. Come on Monday evenings at 6:00 p.m. to room 206 and pray this ancient form of prayer.
Morning Prayer
Each weekday morning at 8:15 a.m. Morning Prayer is said
in the narthex. All are welcome to participate.
Prayer Requests
To add a loved one to the prayer list please complete a
prayer request card, located in the pew fronts, or on the
mobile bulletin board, and give it to an usher, email
the church office or call 713-523-2864. ext 21.
The Gospel of John
 Professor Patten is the author of Charles Dickens and His Publishers and George Cruikshank’s Life, Times, and Art, which was recently chosen by the Guardian as the best biography of the decade. He has held fellowships from Fulbright, Guggenheim, and the National Endowment for the Humanities and serves as editor of Studies in English Literature 1500–1900 (SEL). He has been a fellow at the National Humanities Center and at the Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. He currently is president of the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing and is a Phi Beta Kappa Couper Scholar. Professor Patten teaches courses in 19th-century British literature and art, the European novel, and the history of the book
. 
Fellowship
Join Us After Worship
Snacks, coffee, and juice will be provided after the 8:30
and 10:50 service. Please join us in the courtyard. Donations
benefit world hunger.
Sunday Café
Sunday Café provides lunch in the parish hall at 12:15 p.m. An adult’s lunch is $5; a child’s lunch is $3. First time visitors receive a complimentary lunch; undergraduate and graduate student lunches are always complimentary.
 Soup Suppers on Wednesday Night are for EVERYONE!
If you haven’t had a homemade soup lovingly prepared by our food service ministry team, you’ve really missed out. Instead of cooking on Wednesday evenings, swing by the parish hall between 5:30 and 7:00 p.m. and either eat-in with friends and family, or take-out a delicious and inexpensive meal.
Yoga on Saturdays - 1:00 p.m.
The yoga class will meet on Saturdays at 1:00 p.m.
in the basement classroom. Bring a mat or foam for comfort.
The cost is $7 per person.
Parent's Night Out/Movies in the Hall
Interested in an evening out while your children are cared for in the church nursery? Christ the King has a baby sitting co-op that provides a monthly evening out while parents take turns working in the nursery. Want more information? Contact Mark Wolf.
 Luther League
The Luther League is for all 6th grade through 12th grade
youth Meetings are generally held in the youth
room. Food, games, discussions, and new friends can be found
during the 90 minute meetings. The meetings are led by youth
director Tim Lenz along with other young adults and parents.
Please contact Tim Lenz for more information. Click
here to view the Luther League website.
Lent Retreat at Lutherhill for Jr. and Sr. High
All 6th through 12th grade youth are invited to Camp Lutherhill Friday, April 3 – Saturday, April 4 for fellowship, campfires, worship, swimming, and games. The registration price of $50 includes housing, two meals, staff, and all program materials. Deadline to register is April 1. Please contact Tim Lenz for more information or to register.
Youth Needed for Easter Play!
All 6th thru 12th grade youth are encouraged to participate in the Easter play to be performed on April 12. The play requires no acting skills, and only two rehearsal times; March 29 at 6:00 p.m. during the Luther League Meeting and then again on April 10 during the annual Good Friday Lock-In at the church. For more information please contact Tim Lenz or Lucky Sahualla.
Participate in the 30 hour Famine!
March 27-28, the Luther League and youth of eight local churches in the synod will set aside the usual “stuff” that fills their daily lives and instead, “Will Starve for Food” – the theme for World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine this year. Without food for 30 hours the youth will get a taste of what the world’s poorest children and families face everyday. During this time they will engage in community service projects, fellowship and games, Bible study, and awareness events. Please help our youth raise funds. Every $30 they raise can help feed and care for a child for a month. To participate or to make a donation please contact Tim Lenz
Coupons, Anyone?
Bring your unwanted coupons to share with other “coupon clippers” of Christ the King Church. The coupons will be filed under a variety of categories and available for use by everyone. For more information contact Ann Chisholm or Peggy Johnson. Come join in the fun and the savings! The coupon box is located at the mailboxes on the second floor.
Education
Sunday - 9:45 a.m. in the basement classroom.
March 22
Cosmic Theology, Emergence and the Evolution of the Universe
John McGee will take a historical look on the modern worldview as derived from philosophic and religious thinking up to the Enlightenment and scientific thought since, based on the work of Galileo and Newton. Latest scientific thought with relativity, quantum mechanics, chaos theory, and big-bang cosmology have changed the worldview with which contemporaries relate to religion.
John McGee graduated from the University of Toronto and St. Basil's Seminary, Toronto. He has taught and lectured at the University of St. Thomas and at a number of academic venues in Houston. He has been teaching for Continuing Studies since 1998.
March 29
The Three Days: Rediscovering the Old-New Ways of Holy Week
presented by Mark Mummert
Friday Morning Bible Study
New participants are always welcome and will find that entry into the group is easy. Snacks will be served at 10:00 a.m.; class will begin at 10:30 a.m.
Class for New Members and Inquirers
If you are interested in becoming a member of Christ the King Church, you are invited to attend the Adult Catechesis class.
We will offer a 2-day class on Friday, March 27, 7 until 9 p.m., and Saturday, March 28, 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.
These classes, based on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism, are open to inquirers, those seeking membership, and members wishing to refresh their memory on the basic tenets of our faith.
You may sign up on the bulletin board or contact the church office . Childcare is made available when requested the Monday prior to the class.
LARGE PRINT BOOK
Large print books are available on Sundays in the foyer. These books are for to anyone who wishes to borrow one. There is no need to “check out” a book. Just select any book from the cart and then return it to the cart when you have finished with it. During the week the books are in the library.
Nursery
Nursery Volunteers
Do you like babies? You may have noticed a marked increase in the number of these in our church lately, and it's not your imagination! On February 1, there were 20 young children in church at the time of communion at the 8:30 service, not counting the late service attendance! Our church's families are growing, and we need your help. We are looking for more volunteers to help out in the nursery a few times a year, for either the early service or the late service. Babies need to be held, and there are small children to be read to. If interested, please contact Diane Schoppe or sign up in the nursery. See you there!
Nurse Notes
Walk to Jerusalem Update
Using miles walked and Bonus miles earned by 20 individuals, we are more than halfway to Jerusalem. We’re still over the Atlantic so keep looking for land and keep walking!
Service & Care
Last Week to Contribute to CCSC's 13th Annual Azalea Dinner CTK Auction Basket
CCSC's Annual Azalea Dinner will be held on March 26 at the Westin Galleria Hotel. Every year, Christ the King Church donates a basket for the silent auction. This year our basket theme is Scents and Sensibilities. Please donate items, such as fragrant candles, bath salts, lotions, or anything that appeals to the sense of smell and sense of touch, etc. For more information about the auction and/or the basket, please contact Jenna Nassif
Be a Voice for Darfur
Christ the King Church has prayed for peace in Sudan for some time. Now, at the invitation of the ELCA, we can join the larger church in advocating for peace by mailing postcards, either via U.S. mail or e-mail, or signing a petition, to urge President Obama to achieve:
- Protection of civilians from violence, starvation and disease
- Sustainable peace for all Sudan
- Justice for victims and accountability for perpetrators
The ongoing conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan has resulted in 2.5 million people forced to flee their homes and 300,000 people killed. The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for the president of Sudan, on charges of crimes against humanity. The president has retaliated by ordering all humanitarian organizations aiding displaced Darfur residents to leave Sudan. The U.N. estimates that an additional 100,000 people will die as a result of this action each month.
Postcards and petitions are available in the narthex on Saturday evenings and in the narthex and courtyard on Sunday mornings. Or, if you prefer an e-postcard, send one any time during the month of March by going to www.addyourvoice.org.
Help Build Foundations, Create Peace and Foster Hope for Pakistani Artisans March 26-30
Visit Ten Thousand Villages Houston's Annual Oriental Rug Event, March 26-30, where high quality, handknotted rugs made by fairly paid adults will be available in many sizes. On March 26 there will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 5:30 p.m., an Oriental Rug Seminar at 6:00 p.m. (no charge but please call for reservations) and a Preview Party to follow. Hear the difference that fair trade makes in Pakistani artisans’ lives. Please call the store at 713-533-1000 with any questions.
Serve Lunch to the Students Monday, March 30
Volunteers are needed to assist Bette Bowers and Jerry and Jan Bouquot with the Monday Free Hot Lunch provided in the A.D. Bruce Religion Center of the University of Houston. The Houston Lutheran Campus Ministry has committed to cover six Mondays throughout the year. Lunch is prepared for up to 200 students including a vegetarian option. There is no oven, but heating pans can be provided.
Lunch is served from 11:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. All who enjoy working with diverse students and staff please contact Pr. Brad Fuerst.
Visit Our Companion Synod
in Peru
Join Lutherans from all over our synod in this year’s trip to visit our companion synod in Peru. The dates will be July 27-August 2. For more information or to register, please contact Beverly Davis
Make a Difference Today
Even in tough economic times, we want to make sure the commitment to fighting global poverty remains on the agenda of the government.
The total spent on all poverty-fighting programs make up less than one percent of the entire U.S. budget, yet with partners around the world, we are saving millions of lives and helping the world's poorest people break free from crippling poverty. These efforts will be even more critical as the effects of any global economic slowdown are magnified in already struggling countries. Many Christ the King Church members have joined the ONE Lutheran Campaign. You can join with ONE to remind our leaders to keep their promises to the world's poor. - www.one.org/keepourcommitments.
Feed the Homeless
 The Feed the Homeless Ministry meets on Monday, March 23 at 5:45 p.m. in the kitchen at Christ
the King Church.
Join us on the 2nd and 4th Monday evenings of
each month at Christ the King Lutheran Church to make sandwiches
and prepare meals, and then deliver them to downtown homeless
individuals. Our schedule is as follows:
5:45 p.m. - Meet in the kitchen and parish
hall to set up and prepare the meals
7:00 p.m. - Leave CTK for downtown to deliver the meals
All are invited to help out with meal preparation,
downtown delivery, or both! All are welcome.Contact
Wendy Wiker for more information.
Serving Lunch at SEARCH
Join members of the congregations of Christ the King Church and Brith Shalom, along with friends from W.R. Grace & Company, on Wednesday, April 15 , 7:30 - 11:30 a.m. to assist with the preparation and service of the noon meal for clients of SEARCH Homeless Services. Anyone interested in helping with this new project, contact Beverly Davis
Houston Food Bank
Join the volunteers going to THE HOUSTON FOOD BANK on the second Saturdays of odd numbered months. You can perform a wonderful service, burn calories, build muscles, and make new friends all at the same time. Please mark your calendars now for the next 2009 dates: May 9, July 11, September 12, and November 14. We leave the church at 8:00 and return about noon. You will be glad you did. For more information, contact Anna Stock
Check your Blood Pressure?
Monthly blood pressure screenings are held on the last Sunday of each month.
Can Openers Needed At CCSC
Can openers are “hot commodities” at the Christian Community Services Center’s Emergency Services. As soon as they come in, they go out. They are requested frequently by our clients, whether homeless or in apartments. When asked how they open the cans, the clients respond that they use a knife. Next time you see cans at grocery stores, please think of can openers! Your donations can be dropped at the food basket in the narthex.
Caring for One Another
Check out the Congregational Care Team display board in the narthex. Please consider joining our team in one or more capacities:
- Meals: Provide an occasional meal to a member or family in need or for a memorial reception
- Transportation: Provide occasional transportation for a doctor’s appointment, worship, shopping, or an emergency (as you are available, of course)
- Visiting/Phoning: Visit or phone a member who is temporarily or permanently indisposed, providing a listening ear and a compassionate presence
- Prayer Notes: Write a note to members expressing our support during times of need and to acknowledge life changes (scheduled for one month a year)
- Emergency Phone Tree: Inform a few of our members (call list) of a member’s death of other extraordinary emergencies
- Bereavement: Provide a faithful, appropriate presence to those experiencing a loss, such as death, property, divorce, or employment
- Community of Hope: become a lay chaplain through this training program and on-going support system.
For more information, contact Beverly Davis
Help SEARCH Help Others
Now that summer is upon us, the Service of the Emergency Aid Resource Center of Houston (SEARCH) has a constant need for insect repellant and sunscreen. Our congregation has been asked to donate insect repellant and sunscreen. There is a collection box in the narthex for these items.
 Did You Hear About the Hunger Crisis?
The world hunger crisis was all over the news this past week. In just three years, the price of staple foods like wheat, corn and rice has almost doubled. If we don’t do something soon, hundreds of thousands of people face starvation and a hundred million more could fall into extreme poverty.
Christ the King Church is a ONE Lutheran congregation. Please consider taking action with the ONE Campaign
 Paper Recycling Steps Up
Our recycling container has arrived! It is located by the mechanical yard on the south end of our parking lot. Please collect and drop off ALL your paper items. The church will be reimbursed per ton of paper picked up. We need to collect at least 1.5 tons per month.
Accepted items include: newspaper, magazines, shopping catalogs, junk mail, office and school papers, envelopes with and without windows, phone books, paper bags (paper clips and staples do not have to be removed)
Items not accepted include:
cardboard, cereal/soda cartons, food wrap/containers, paper cups, tissue products, metal, trash, cans, plastics and glass.
Cancare has Urgent Need for Hospital Volunteers
Who: Cancer survivors and caregivers of survivors
* Use your cancer survivorship to encourage others facing cancer in 12 area hospitals and cancer treatment facilities.
* Short, flexible schedules
* Free parking at hospitals
Call CanCare at 713-461-0028 for additional information
St. Luke’s Needs Volunteers
The gift of blood is truly the gift of life. The St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital Auxiliary needs volunteers to assist the St. Luke’s Blood Center on community blood drives. Volunteers are needed seven days a week from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Volunteers assist prospective donors with donor registration cards and distribution of snacks post donation. Transportation to the drives is provided. For more information about volunteer activities at St. Luke’s, call the hospital’s Auxiliary office at 832-355-2102 or visit St. Luke’s Web site.
 Fair Trade Coffee Sales Continue
Fair Trade coffee from Equal Exchange is on sale after services
and through the church office.
Equal Exchange, founded in 1986, is the oldest and largest
for-profit Fair Trade company in the US. They offer organic,
gourmet coffee, tea, sugar, cocoa, and chocolate bars produced
by democratically run farmer co-ops in Latin America, Africa,
and Asia. Order these items online
Printer/Ink Cartridges Needed!
Luther League needs your ink cartridges! The youth of Christ the King urge you not to throw away that printer cartridge when it’s empty – recycle it! The youth group is starting a recycle drive in cooperation with Cartridge World in West University. Cartridge World will make a donation to CTK for the benefit of Luther League for each cartridge we recycle. That can add up to big bucks for programming, youth gatherings and mission trips. If you are already refilling your cartridges, please consider taking them to Cartridge World (located at 4036 Bellaire Blvd, next to Whole Foods) and telling them “Christ the King sent me!”
Contributions
 Electronic Giving Now includes Credit/Debit Card Donations
Members and friends now have the option of choosing how to make donations: checking account, savings account or credit/debit cards. Electronic Giving allows to choose the donation frequency, one-time, weekly or monthly, and the donation amount for different funds. Contributions will be transferred electronically from designated accounts or credit/debit cards to the church account. These giving options will work in the same manner as other automatic withdrawals. The charge for using a Visa, MasterCard, Diners Club and Discover is 2.75% per transaction. American Express charges of 3.5% per transaction. For example, a $100.00 gift using a Visa card is reduced to $97.25 for the church. There is no charge for donations made through checking or savings accounts. This option gives peace of mind knowing that one’s pledge will be received and is contributing to the work of the church, especially during the low cash flow months of the year! Just click on the Easy button.Just click on the Easy button.
Do you Forget to Bring your Offering Envelopes to Sunday Service?
How often do you arrive to church on Sunday with your check book but forget your offering envelope?
Here are 2 ways you can simplify your life:
forget the envelopes, just bring the check book.
subscribe to Simply Giving, the automatic withdrawal program.
Both ways eliminate the expense of mail-order envelopes and help the church to spend your contributions more effectively.
To unsubscribe to the mail-order offering envelopes, contact the church office or 713-523-2864
Save Time and Money by Switching from Paper to Online
Would you rather receive the Banner electronically and eliminate mailing? Contact the chuch office or 713-523-2864.
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The Week of March 22 , 2009