Robyn’s eflections...

by Pastor Robyn

Luke 22: 31-34Jesus said, “Peter, Peter, listen! Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat. But I have prayed for you, Peter, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, then strengthen your brothers.” Peter replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with You to prison and to death! But Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know Me.”

And then comes the heartbreak.If we listen closely, we can almost hear it. Peter is told that he will be sifted, tested and tried by Satan. He is also promised that he will endure, that Jesus has prayed for him so that his faith won’t fail. He is told that he will turn back and strengthen the others. Jesus is gentle in His descriptions of all the disciples knowing that whatever their faults and foibles, they will become the foundation of the His church. We see this with Peter, where Jesus starts first with a promise that Peter will not fail and that he will return to lead the company. Still, even mentioning a return implies that Peter will depart, will fall away and desert his friend, teacher, and Lord.Perhaps this is why his heart breaks at hearing these words …

VIEWSTHE SKYLINESkyline Presbyterian Church: Where we seek to connect our Sunday faith to our Monday world!

MARCH 2013Inside This Issue:Robyn’s Reflections 1

Holy Week Service Times 2

Birthdays and Anniversaries 3

Adult Sunday Morning Bible Study 3

Wednesday Night Bible Study 3

New Addresses 3

Abundance Sunday 4

One Great Hour of Sharing 4

Good Neighbor Café 5

Men’s Ministry 5

Women’s Ministries 5

Guess Who? 6

Skyline Readers 6

Preschool News 7

No Reservations Dinner 7

Skyline Easter Breakfast 8

SKYLINE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH6301 Westgate BoulavardTacoma, Washington 98406253•752•5757253•752•5816

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Spire atop St. Peter’s Church in Jerusalem

Skyline Easter Breakfast Sunday, March 31st ▬ 7:45 to 9:45 AM, prior to 10 AM WorshipBreakfast sponsored and served by the men of Skyline Presbyterian ChurchWell folks, it is that time again, Easter time and along with that besides the eggs and bunny rabbits we have the ANNUAL EASTER BREAKFAST. The men are planning what and how to get everything ready. Last year we had a great turnout and a lot of donations for disaster relief. The men work together with teamwork to put this on for everyone; likewise it takes the people in the congregation to work as a team and spread the word to their neighbors, friends, relatives, etc. Guests don’t have to attend our church, they can come and enjoy a breakfast of eggs, ham and hotcakes, ALL THEY CAN EAT and leave and go to their own church to worship.If we all work together we can have the best breakfast ever. Remember breakfast is served from 7:45 until 9:45 Easter SundayThere is no charge for this breakfast. It is a gift from Skyline. If you choose to make a donation, it will be gratefully accepted and 100% of funds received will support disaster relief projects to help the victims of Super Storm Sandy rebuild homes, communities and lives. See you there!

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and so he protests. He protests the implicit charge against his character. He denies even the possibility that he will fall away and professes his eagerness to follow Jesus to the vert end.And then Jesus tells him the truth. Perhaps Jesus would have spared Peter these hard words except for Peter’s own protest and idealistic profession of loyalty. We don’t know. But we do know, or at least can imagine, that these words were as hard for Jesus to say as for Peter to listen: “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you have denied three times that you know me.”Departure? No, worse: denial and desertion. Yes, Peter’s heart has now surely broken.Or perhaps … it’s not Peter’s heart we hear. Maybe he is so flush with devotion, so full of confidence in his love for his Lord, that he can’t imagine Jesus’ words being true. Maybe his heart won’t break, can’t break, until the moment this dark prophecy comes true.Maybe … it’s Jesus’ heart we hear breaking instead.

Lenten prayer: Dear God, we are often like Peter, confident of our faith and devotion and unprepared for the trials to come. And so we pray that You will strengthen us so that when we are tested we will hold fast to our faith in You and love for each other. But oh, dear God, when we fail and fall short – as we will – draw us back, renew our faith, direct us again to love You and others in Your name. Amen.

With you in our Lenten journey,

P r esc h o o l Ne wsfrom Debbie FortescueWow! We can’t believe Spring is just around the corner. Every day a preschooler is letting us know that another daffodil we planted is in bloom. It’s so fun to see and hear the excitement they have when they look out our windows and see the bright yellow flower. God is good.We will be busy making fun Spring and Easter art projects

to decorate our room. At the end of the month we will have an Easter Egg Hunt which the preschoolers always enjoy.

2013 - 2014 Preschool Registration TimeSkyline Christian Preschool’s registration for the next school year is open to all!Classes: Two and Three Year Old Class Held on Tuesday and Thursday from 9 to 11 a.m. Three and Four Year Old Class Held on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9 to 11:15 a.m. Four and Five Year Old Class Held on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 12 to 2:30 p.m.If you are interested in enrolling your child or know someone who is, please contact Debbie Fortescue at the preschool, 752-5757 ext. 104 or email preschool@skylinepres.org Thank you!

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Start now inviting friends, neighbors, co-workers and family to join you for Holy Week services...

Palm Sunday Worship on Sunday, March 24th at 10:00 AMThis service remembers Christ’s triumphant entrance to Jerusalem.

Maundy Thursday Worship on Thursday, March 28th at 7:00 PMAt this meaningful service we remember the last days of Christ beginning with the Last Supper.

Good Friday Worship on Friday, March 29th at 7:00 PMThis reflective service remembers Christ death on the cross and leads us to Easter Sunday.

Easter Worship on Sunday, March 31st at 10:00 AMCome celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Experience a morning of music and celebration and let the risen Savior fill your life with joy, peace, and hope.Enhance your Easter worship experience by enjoying an ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT BREAKFAST (details on back page)Also, following the service your children can have fun finding eggs and surprises at Skyline’s EASTER EGG HUNT.

April 1st No Reservations DinnerNo fooling! The Fellowship Committee announces the No Reservations Dinner for April 1st 2013.

We will meet at 6:30 p.m. at the My Greek and Italian Restaurant (Westgate Shopping Center on 26th and Pearl Street in Tacoma) for an evening of food, fellowship and fun. And remember no reservations are required but please arrive promptly at 6:30 for dinner seating.

We hope to see your there!

Guess Who? A big thank you to all of those who have turned in photos over the past few years. Your submissions have given our Views’ readers lots of fun trying to guess who the picture belonged to. This month’s submission will be our final Guess Who photo. Can you guess March’s Photo?

Can you guess who this little cutie is?

Did you guess our February photo?

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Birthdays(Brackets indicate children’s ages.)

7 BettyKarr7 JanLassen7 DorisPruett9 TerrySimmons13 DorothyLusby(102)16 KenBobko20 BrendaSmith21 DorisRyan29 JohnJames29 KathyJohnson29 DaleLatham31 LornaHenricksen

It is embarrassing to stand in front of an audience and find yourself not knowing what to say! I have that feeling as I sit down to write about the Skyline Readers’ March selection, TheChildrenofHúrin, a novel compiled by Christopher Tolkien from earlier writings and unpublished manuscripts of his father, JRR Tolkien. As a child, my reading repertoire included very little fantasy. As a “senior” adult, fantasy is like another language. The characters’ names, alone, are mindboggling for someone who occasionally forgets even a family member’s name and often doesn’t know what day of the week it is! Swashbuckling adventures of human/animal creatures out to slay the dragon and save the world are beyond my limited imagination. Unable to get my hands on a copy of the novel, I resorted to the wide-ranging internet, and there, more interesting than the plot of the novel, I learned a great deal about the life and times of Tolkien. I’d rather read about him than his fantastical writings. Unfamiliar with the genre and limited in space, I am suggesting that you could entertain yourself for an evening just googling Tolkien! If you have read TheHobbit, it ’s likely you will have the skill to interpret TheChildrenofHúrin. Please don’t expect any lofty literary discussion coming from my lips on March 20th, but I’ll surely be interested to hear your comments when we meet. My apologies to Tolkien fans.

Skyline Readers meets on the third Wednesday of each month at 10 a.m. in the church Parlor. Please mark the dates on your calendar and come join us!

Skyline Readersby Janet Thorpe

March Sweeps SkylineReaders into Fantasyland

Bill Baker

Adult Sunday Morning Bible Studyby Pat Nelson

On March 3rd, the Adult Sunday Bible Study will begin a six week study on Kindness. In Hebrew the word kindness can also be translated as “goodness’. We will meet each Sunday in March, excluding Easter. We hope that you will join our team teachers Kathy Johnson and Pat Nelson. We would like you to join our study and discussion on The Fruits of the Holy Spirit.We will be studying Kindness, Reaching Out to Others. The titles of our discussions and studies in March will be:

• God’s Kindness to Us• Showing Kindness to Others• Kindness Illustrated: Boaz and Ruth• Fulfilling the Law of Christ

We have a handout with questions for each week. If you would like to receive an email with the copy of this handout, please email Pat Nelson at phnelson2@msn.com and she will send you the handout.

Wednesday Night Bible Studyby David Teeter

On Wednesday March 6th we will conclude our study of Revelation. The study group will take the rest of March off and will begin a new series in April. Please watch for information on the new study and start date.This study group is welcomes everyone! Class meets from 7 to 8 p.m. on most Wednesday evenings. Class is taught by Rev. David Teeter.

New Address:Karen Lease-Smith has a new address. She is getting to know the people and the facility is a good fit for her. She enjoys getting mail, so your cards and letters would be greatly appreciated (no visits at this time.) Here’s the address:Karen Lease-SmithC/O Pioneer Place Memory Haven11519 24th Avenue EastTacoma, WA 98445

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Men’s & Women’s MinistriesMen’s Monthly MeetingThe Skyline Men’s Fellowship next monthly meeting will be on Tuesday, March 26th at 6:30 p.m. This is a fun potluck and Bible Study meeting. All men are invited to come.Men, this is a great time to share a meal, build friendships with other men, engage in a practical application Bible study and hear about ways we can serve together. I’m looking forward to growing and serving with you.If you have any questions concerning our Men’s Ministries, please contact Ray Wuco, Men’s Ministry Lead. (565-8664) Women’s Cancer Support Groupby Rosemary Wallace

This informal group is for women dealing with the impact of cancer in their lives, whether it be personal, or family, or friends. It’s a time to share in friendship, fellowship and support in what can be difficult times. The group meets in the Parlor on the first Monday of each month (except holidays) from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m.If anyone feels a need to share, or just talk, please call Rosemary Wallace at 752-7049.

Skyline Knitters & HandcraftersWe invite all of you who knit, or do any other kind of handcrafting, to join us on Saturdays at 10 a.m. in the church Parlor. Our fun loving and creative group of ladies has a great time together and they look forward to newcomers. For more details, contact Lorna Henricksen at 759-6132.

Abundance Sundayby Joan Benner

This month Abundance Sunday falls on March 31st which happens to be Easter Sunday. We are asking for you to bring in donations of Energy Bars.Since Spring vacation comes shortly after the end of March, it will be a great time to provide these treats for the children who might not otherwise have a healthy snack during the day.So, while you are out shopping, please turn into the cereal aisle and you will find a wide choice of nutritious bars. These donations will go to the Tacoma Rescue Mission Adam’s House campus.

Please help us fill UP our

BIG BLUE TUB!One Great Hour of Sharingby Larry Hogue, Skyline’s OGHS 2013 Coordinator

This year as we continue into Lent and prepare for One Great Hour of Sharing, I remain grateful for the transformation made possible through this Special Offering. In places like Detroit, Michigan; Smithville, Texas;

Niger; and Aurora, Colorado, those most in need are finding hope and help through the work of Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the Presbyterian Hunger Program, the Self-Development of People program, and their partners in ministry. In this media-driven environment of “the next big story”, it becomes incredibly easy to forget the pain of our brothers and sisters around the world where poverty, disaster, and war cause displacement and suffering.I say all this to remind you that this is why we continue to give to One Great Hour of Sharing. When we give this year, we give in faith—knowing that staff in the three One Great Hour of Sharing programs will be responding, in Christ’s name, to the cries of our sisters and brothers throughout the next year. We trust that they will respond as they did in Aurora, Colorado and in the wake of Hurricane Sandy—immediately, directly, and through our partners wherever the emergency occurs. But equally important, we know that they will remain in areas of devastation long after the news cameras have moved elsewhere as they continue rebuilding both lives and communities.

Feeding the hungry, helping people build up their own livelihoods, responding to disasters—these are all ways that your gifts to One Great Hour of Sharing are changing lives, changing communities, and changing the world. We’ll read about examples of this in bulletin inserts leading up to the Offering, but also I invite you to visit our church website, www.skylinepres.org, to view this year’s video and participate in small-group conversations based on the accompanying discussion questions. This brings me to the challenge, which also relates to our support of One Great Hour of Sharing. Just as we trust our OGHS programs to respond to the needs of our poorest and hungriest neighbors, those programs can only do so to the extent of our generosity. Like last year, I challenge each of you to prayerfully consider increasing your gift to the offering and to see how giving opens your heart to God’s work in your own life. I hope you will bring your offering on Sunday, March 24 and that you will join Christians all across the country in opening their hearts to witness tangibly to the abundant love of God through One Great Hour of Sharing.

Good Neighbor Café!Do you want to get out of the house and have fun helping your neighbors? On the 1st Tuesday of each month 12 lucky volunteers will help prepare and serve lunch at the Tacoma Rescue Mission’s “GoodNeighborCafé.” This month’s trip will be on Tuesday, March 5th.► We meet at the church at 10:30 and vanpool.► We work to 1 p.m. preparing and serving lunch. ► Please wear long pants and closed toe shoes.► Each volunteer needs an application on file.Davey Smith heads up this team of volunteers. To sign up, contact Davey at 853-7857.