Happy Second Day of Christmas!

Today is the Feast Day of St. Stephen, Deacon.  In many quarters it is also known as Boxing Day and is a day to remember those less fortunate.

One song associated with this day is Good King Wenceslas!  Enjoy!

Christmas Eve, 2014

                                                        Nativity by Gerard von Honhorst

You and yours are most warmly invited

to the celebration of 

 Christmas Eve

6:30 pm

 

St. James Santee Episcopal Church

Oak and Church Streets

McClellanville, SC

 

Carols, Nativity, Eucharist, Hammered Dulcimer

 

Why Were the Saints Saints?

    All Saints Day is tomorrow - Nov. 1, 2014.  Here is a little saying my Grandfather kept on his dresser mirror.

 

Why Were The Saints Saints?

 

Because they were cheerful

when it was difficult to be cheerful;

Patient

when it was difficult to be patient;

and because they pushed on

when they wanted to stand still;

And kept silent

When they wanted to talk;

And were agreeable

When they wanted to be disagreeable.

That was all.

It was quite simple

and always will be.

Love Thy Neighbor

Almighty and most merciful God, who hast given us a new commandment that we should love one another: Give us also grace that we may fulfill it. Make us gentle, courteous, and forbearing. Direct our lives so that we may look to the good of others in word and deed. And hallow all our friendships by the blessing of thy Spirit; for his sake who loved us and gave himself for us, Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

B.F.Wescott- HT to Kendall   

Rock of Ages

      After the death of my father last year and my mother's move to a retirement community this year, our family have been sorting through my parents' library.  In some cases this has meant also sorting through books that belonged to their parents.  One such book, from my maternal grandfather, was a little book published in 1934 by General Mills no less. How he came by it is unknown to me.   Entitled The Story of Fifty Hymns, it has write-ups of many familiar hymns. 

     Amazon has this description of the book "The Story of Fifty Hymns published by the millers of Gold Medal "Kitchen-tested" Flour Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Copyrighted by General Mills, Inc. in 1934 and 1939.  This booklet was presented through the courtesy of General Mills in commemoration of the 6th Annual Marshall County Church of Bible School Day featuring "Hymns of All Churches Parade", June 26, 1940, Marshalltown, Iowa.  It has a Preface about a group of artists and musicians headed by Joe Emerson, a nationally known figure in radio in 1934, who started a program of morning hymns with every faith represented, and Gold Medal "Kitchen-tested" Flour was the sponsor of the radio show. "

Here is the text concerning Rock of Ages which we sing at Church tomorrow.

"In the 31st Psalm, we read these words:  'Be thou a strong rock...a house of defense to save me...' This is the thought of the hymn, 'Rock of Ages,' familiar to many churches,  It was written in 1776 by Augustus M. Toplady, priest of the Church of England.   An interesting sidelight on the steadfast faith expressed in the hymn is found in the words of the writer as he lay dying, "I cannot tell you the comforts I feel in my soul; they are past expression.  My prayers are all converted to praise..."  On the one hundredth anniversary of the writing of 'Rock of Ages', more than ten thousand people gathered at the place where it is supposed to have been written, to pay homage to this great symbol of faith expressed in song."

Of this hymn Wikipedia says "Traditionally, it is held that Toplady drew his inspiration from an incident in the gorge of  the Mendip Hills in England. Toplady, a preacher in the nearby village of Blagdon, was travelling along the gorge when he was caught in a storm. Finding shelter in a gap in the gorge, he was struck by the title and scribbled down the initial lyrics.

The fissure that is believed to have sheltered Toplady is now marked as the "Rock of Ages", both on the rock itself and on some maps, and is also reflected in the name of a nearby tea shop.

See below for a nice rendition of this hymn.  It is interesting to compare our hymnal version with The Rev. Toplady's text. 

           

The Feast Day of St. Teresa of Avila- 1582

Let nothing trouble you,

let nothing frighten you.

All things are passing;

God never changes.

Patience obtains all things.

He who possesses God lacks nothing:

God alone suffices.

Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)

Teresa of Ávila, also called Saint Teresa of Jesus, baptized as Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda y Ahumada (28 March 1515 – 4 October 1582), was a prominent Spanish mystic, Roman Catholic saint, Carmelite nun, an author of the Counter Reformation and theologian of contemplative life through mental prayer. She was a reformer of the Carmelite Order and is considered to be a founder of the Discalced Carmelites along with John of the Cross.

In 1622, forty years after her death, she was canonized by Pope Gregory XV and on 27 September 1970, was named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Paul VI. Her books, which include her autobiography (The Life of Teresa of Jesus) and her seminal work El Castillo Interior (trans.: The Interior Castle) are an integral part of Spanish Renaissance literature as well as Christian mysticism and Christian meditation practices as she entails in her other important work, Camino de Perfección (trans.: The Way of Perfection).  (Wikipedia)

The Ocean of His Goodness

Should we fall into a sin, let us humble ourselves sorrowfully in his presence, and then, with an act of unbounded confidence, let us throw ourselves into the ocean of his goodness, where every failing will be cancelled and anxiety turned into love.

St. Paul of the Cross

A Prayer for Today

O God, whose love we cannot measure, nor even number thy blessings: We bless and praise thee for all thy goodness, who in our weakness art our strength, in our darkness, light, in our sorrows, comfort and peace, and from everlasting to everlasting art our God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, world without end. Amen.

Blessing of the Animals - THIS Sunday - Oct. 5,2014

Everyone is warmly invited

4:00 pm - Church Steps.

Pop Nihilism and the Allure of ISIS

A thoughtful article from John Stonestreet

What’s with all these stories of Western defections to Islamic radicalism? Well, the answer may be more over here than over there.

News broke recently of two beautiful teenage girls from Austria, aged 15 and 16, who became burka-wearing recruiters for the terror group known as ISIS, or the Islamic State. And their journey to radicalism is not an isolated case.  In my own state of Colorado, a 19-year-old female just pled guilty to trying to join ISIS, too. And then there are the two young American men who died in Syria fighting for ISIS.

Why are young 21st-century Westerners converting to a brutal form of Islam? Why would young people, with seemingly so much to live for, leave the West for terrorism?

This question came up last month in a panel discussion with radio hosts Hugh Hewitt and Dennis Prager, as well as Stephen Meyer of the Discovery Institute and myself. We all agreed that the answer was not the radicalism of Islam, but the current emptiness of Western materialism.

The idea that matter is all that matters pervades everything young people see and hear these days. They hear it in science class, from the new Cosmos television series, and even, and as I added especially, in advertising and other media messages. Nearly every commercial message tells us that we’re born to be consumers, that stuff will make us happy and save us from our misery, and that there’s nothing beyond the immediate gratification of this world to live for.

As Dennis Prager said that night, “Secular society produces a lot of bored people . . . Secular society is a curse because ultimately life is meaningless if there’s no God.” The materialistic salvation sold to us promises to fill what Pascal called the God-shaped hole in our hearts … with stuff. But many see the meaningless of secular salvation, and they become bored; others become angry, even murderous.

Remember Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, who killed 13 people at Columbine High School? They weren’t Muslims. Then there’s T.J. Lane, a 19-year-old serving three life sentences for shooting to death three high school students in 2012. At his sentencing, in which he taunted his victims’ families with expletives, Lane opened his blue dress shirt to reveal a T-shirt on which he had scrawled the word “killer.”

We’ve always had young murderers, but the nihilism of today is different. Writing in Time several years ago, Harvard’s student body president called it the “Rude Boy” culture. The tough guy of the ‘60s and ‘70s, he observed, would say, “I’m better than you, I can beat you up”—but the tough guy today says, “I flip you off; you don’t matter and neither do I.”

And that’s a whole new level of brokenness. That’s the cultural shift toward nihilism. A few years ago, the rock band Switchfoot hit the nail on the head when they sang, “We were meant to live for so much more. But we lost ourselves.”

This sort of empty pop-nihilism, to borrow a term from Baylor’s Thomas Hibbs, makes even the evil radicalism of extremist Islam look attractive to some. And parasitic ideologies like these find folks in despair easy prey.

Might it be that ISIS finds this shallow ground as fertile soil from which to harvest young souls for its deadly agenda?

Decades ago, even before the Internet and social media took over so much of our lives, Aldous Huxley warned of the capacity of the media to exploit “man's almost infinite appetite for distraction.” Could it be that even ISIS looks attractive to those who, after having their fill, still feel empty inside?

Wait a minute, you say, that’s just a small minority. Not every kid flees to ISIS or thinks of murder as a way to meaning. Well, true, but how many others are living shriveled up lives of perpetual boredom? What addictions and distractions are they fleeing to in pursuit of meaning and purpose? How can Christians point our culture to the One we were made for?

Well, the panel discussion I mentioned earlier can start that discussion. Come to BreakPoint.org to find out how to watch or listen to my conversation with Dennis Prager, Hugh Hewitt, and Steve Meyer on this and other topics relating to God and culture.

For more from Breakpoint on this topic , click HERE

Some Great News from TWO of our Mission Partners

LAMB in Honduras and Water Missions International...

From Susan Keller, LAMB Board Chair

Dear LAMB family,

I am so very happy to tell you that this week we signed the Water Missions International (WMI) project agreement for the water project and sent our first check.  WMI has ordered supplies and their team has arrived at San Buenaventura to begin mobilizing for Phase 1 of the project! WMI engineer, Selvin is pictured here with Amanda Scott, LAMB volunteer coordinator.

 

WMI anticipates that Phases 1, 2 and half of 3 will be completed by the end of December.
See the Water for LAMB page for the description of phases.  http://www.lambinstitute.org/water

There has been some good tweaking of the original plan and the final numbers are coming in at approximately $233,000.   We have sent the requested amount for this part of the work which was $147,543.  We have raised to date $179,546.   So we lack around $53,000.

This is another day closer to the day we will have water flowing from our own well.   Thank you, Lord, for all the work that has been done by many, many people…beginning with Wheeler Conkling and David Gradiz back in 2007, continuing on with John McKinnon and David over the next many years studying, praying, planning…on to today with many months of work done by our great friends at WMI.

Please pray with us that God continue to lead and guide the work, protect the workers, bring complete success for this part of the project and provide for the remainder of the total cost.

With joy overflowing in the Lord,


Susan C. Keller
LAMB Board Chair
PO Box 20488
Charleston, SC  29413

July 2, 2014 Newsletter - VBS 2014 and More!

Village VBS 2014 !

Registration- This Coming Monday Morning

8:30 am!

At McClellanville Methodist Church

July 7-11, 9-12 noon - and Celebration Cookout -Friday Evening

Please sign up  your kids, grand-kids, neighbor children 

and anyone K-5th grade.

You may register by phone at 843-887-3814

Sponsored by McClellanville Methodist, New Wappetaw 

Presbyterian, St. James-Santee Episcopal Church,  Seacoast 

Church-McClellanville; and Five Fathom Baptist Church.

Check out the rest of the news by clicking below:

July 2 Newsletter

Prayer for Memorial Day

ALMIGHTY God, our heavenly Father, in whose hands are the

living and the dead; We give thee thanks for all thy servants

who have laid down their lives in the service of our country.

Grant to them thy mercy and the light of thy presence, that

the good work which thou hast begun in them may be perfected;

through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord. Amen.

A Call to Discernment

Do you think  that Public Education in South Carolina  is in need of improvement?  So do the LARCUM bishops of SC (of which Bishop vonRosenberg is a member) .  Read on...


To the People of South Carolina,

“You are the light of the world” (Matt. 5:13-16). Jesus of Nazareth used this simple image to inspire his followers to make a difference in the world. We are bishops of the Lutheran, Episcopal, Roman Catholic, and United Methodist Churches in the state of South Carolina. As shepherds of our churches, we are charged to lead the faithful in ways that direct our energies to the building up of the Kingdom of God and to make a difference around us. We believe that Jesus’ desire for the unity of his followers (John 17: 20-23) calls us to work together, and we are conscious as well that “no one should seek his own advantage, but that of his neighbor.” (1 Corinthians 10: 24).

In support of the American experiment in democracy, our nation has realized that education is an essential component to equipping members of society who can in turn help lead the United States of America into a better future. The family remains the foundation of our society’s ability to nurture and develop people of character. Our congregational leaders and people work constantly to empower and lift up families, and we believe this contribution to the good of society — together with the efforts of all religious communities — is one of our most important contributions to our state.

Public education is also an essential component of ensuring that the people of our state are formed to be good citizens, prepared to be contributors to our economy, and given passion for the common good of society. Individual school districts in partnership with the State of South Carolina are primarily responsible for ensuring that the opportunity for a complete and empowering education is available to every child in our state. Unfortunately, our state is marked by disparities in the delivery of education. Many school districts are hampered by a scarcity of resources because they are located in economically challenged, often rural, counties in our state. We believe there is indeed a “Corridor of Shame” in our state. Crumbling buildings, inadequate funding, and low expectations mark too many districts at a time when a 21st Century economy demands more of our people. How can the next generation rise to the challenge of this day and age when they are not given the superior education they deserve? Even in the most successful of school districts, too many students underachieve, or worse, fall through the cracks and do not achieve success. All too easily they can become caught in the grip of poverty.

We, as pastoral leaders, pledge our commitment to support the full flourishing of public education in South Carolina. We ask our congregations — as well as all people of good will— to offer what we can to lift up our schools and those students who face hurdles to reach the best they can achieve in their education. Congregations and members of our churches already offer tutoring, mentoring, supplies, and expressions of appreciation to our schools. We pledge ourselves and the resources we are able to engage through our congregations to address concrete ways to support public education in an intentional way over the next five years and beyond. In this effort, we welcome partnerships with all religious communities and people who share our concerns. Over time, we also pledge to engage in a dialogue with our state legislators to craft and support initiatives to improve public education, especially where these issues are related to the areas of our state with schools that are not equipped to provide a superior education.

Finally, we commit ourselves to pray for our state’s leaders, educators, and students. We are convinced prayer that trusts God and longs for insight helps bring clarity regarding what is important and strength to make a difference for what is good. We invite our congregants and all people of good will to join us in prayerfully discerning how God calls us to make a difference—to be light for our world—in educating students of our state so that they will not only be good members of society, but empowered for their journey to a fuller life.

Faithfully yours,

The Rev. Dr. Herman R. Yoos, III, Bishop
South Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

The Rt. Rev. W. Andrew Waldo, Bishop
The Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina

The Rt. Rev. Charles Glenn vonRosenberg, Provisional Bishop
The Episcopal Church in South Carolina

The Most Rev. Robert E. Guglielmone, Bishop
The Catholic Diocese of Charleston

The Rev. L. Jonathan Holston, Resident Bishop
South Carolina United Methodist Conference

IMPORTANT: For those coming the Brick Church service on April 27

Please use Rutledge Road to Old Georgetown  (#2. option in directions the right hand column)  rather than Hwy. 45.  The road (Old Georgetown Hwy  is impassable due to rain)

DIRECTIONS TO BRICK CHURCH HERE

Happy Easter - Thanks be to God!

A wonderful Easter thought....

"  Adam, along with his bride, walked out a garden into a grave.  The Second [Adam, that is Jesus], along with his bride [the Church], out of a grave into a garden."   RC Sproul

Here are two images..the first is a portion (the left side of the canvas) of the Annunciation by Fra Angelica and the second is a depiction of Jesus Christ welcoming his bride, the Church, into the Garden.

"...Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. 15:57)

Holy Saturday

In the darkness of Holy Saturday, whether the day or a life event,  the words of Job stand true.

"I know that my redeemer liveth" - Handel - Messiah, Pt. III

Lynn Dawson, Soprano 

Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

A Good Friday Visual Meditation

‘Christ of Saint John of the Cross’ (1951), by Salvador Dalí 

      
     The Rev. Patrick Comerford, Church of Ireland priest,  writes....my choice of a work of Art for Lent this Good Friday morning is ‘Christ of Saint John of the Cross,’ painted by Salvador Dali in 1951. This painting is in oil on canvas, measures 205 cm × 116 cm and can be seen in the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow.
This painting by Salvador Dalí depicts Christ on the cross in a darkened sky floating over a body of water complete with a boat and fishermen. Although Dalí depicts the crucifixion, this painting shows no nails, no blood, and no crown of thorns. Dalí once said he was convinced in a dream that these features would mar his depiction of Christ, and in that dream he was shown the importance of depicting Christ in the extreme angle we see in this painting.  The painting is known as the ‘Christ of Saint John of the Cross’ because Dalí based his design on a drawing by the 16th century Spanish Carmelite friar and mystic Saint John of the Cross.
The composition of Christ is also based on a triangle and circle: the triangle is formed by Christ’s arms; the circle is formed by his head. The triangle refers to the Trinity. While the circle represents, in Dalí’s own words, “the very unity of the universe, the Christ!”  It is different from any other image of the crucifixion. The angle of the view describes the hanging pain of this method of execution, but hides the ordinarily clichéd facial expressions normally seen on representations of the Crucifixion.
In 2009, the Guardian art critic, Jonathan Jones, described it as “kitsch and lurid,” but said this painting is “for better or worse, probably the most enduring vision of the crucifixion painted in the 20th century.”  The painting was bought for Glasgow Corporation in the early 1950s for £8,200, and went on display at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in 1952. In 1961, a visitor attacked the painting with a stone and tore the canvas with his hands. It was successfully restored over several months. In 2006, it was selected in a poll as Scotland’s favourite painting.
Patrick Comerford's Blog is HERE

Maundy Thursday

     The events of Maundy Thursday include foot washing and what has become known as the Institution of the Holy Eucharist or Holy Communion.
    Somewhere between 1494-1498, Leonardo Da Vinci painted his masterpiece "The Last Supper" in the refectory (dining hall) of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan, Italy. Almost immediately it began to deteriorate so that by, as early as 1517, the paint began to flake.  One copy of that painting is by Giampietrino around 1520. This painting is thought to accurately reflect much of the detail now lost in the original.   It is reproduced below.  Below that is a remarkable poem by  Ranier Maria Rilke inspired by the daVinci original.  May these bless you this Holy Week.

Click to enlarge

The Last Supper, by Ranier Maria Rilke

They are assembled, astonished and disturbed

round him, who like a sage resolved his fate,

and now leaves those to whom he most belonged,

leaving and passing by them like a stranger.

The loneliness of old comes over him

which helped mature him for his deepest acts;

now will he once again walk through the olive grove,

and those who love him still will flee before his sight.

To this last supper he has summoned them,

and (like a shot that scatters birds from trees)

their hands draw back from reaching for the loaves

upon his word: they fly across to him;

they flutter, frightened, round the supper table

searching for an escape. But he is present

everywhere like an all-pervading twilight-hour.

Here they are gathered, wondering and deranged,

Round Him, who wisely doth Himself inclose,

And who now takes Himself away, estranged,

 From those who owned Him once, and past them

flows.

He feels the ancient loneliness to-day

That taught Him all His deepest acts of love;

Now in the olive groves He soon will rove,

And these who love Him all will flee away.

To the last supper table He hath led.

As birds are frightened from a garden-bed

By shots, so He their hands forth from the bread

Doth frighten by His word: to Him they flee;

Then flutter round the table in their fright

And seek a passage from the hall. But He

Is everywhere, like dusk at fall of night.

More Resources for Walking the Week

Dear Friends, Lent and Beyond is a website/blog kept by Jill Woodliff who lists many excellent and prayerful resources for Walking the Week.  Please check it out by clicking on the link below ....   

 Lent and Beyond

Holy Monday-anointing, indignation, cleansing and joy

...reposted from the wonderful blog of Archbishop Cranmer...the link to which is HERE

   ...and  being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she brake the box, and poured it on his head. And there were some that had indignation within themselves, and said, Why was this waste of the ointment made? For it might have been sold for more than three hundred pence, and have been given to the poor. And they murmured against her. And Jesus said, Let her alone; why trouble ye her? she hath wrought a good work on me. For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always. She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying. Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her (Mk 14:3-9).

      The Jewish commemoration of the Passover begins this evening, recalling the time the Israelites escaped slavery in Egypt by marking their doorposts with the blood of a pure lamb so that the spirit of the Lord might pass over their homes in the slaughter of the first-born. The Gospels record that six days before the Passover, Mary lavishly anointed her Lord in anticipation of His burial. Christ commends her for the deed, saying: “Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her” (Mk 14:9).

      As Jews come together around the Seder, Christians gather to watch Eastenders [A British Television Show] : Holy Monday is indistinguishable from last Monday, or the Monday before that. But today is day for reflecting on the greatest anointing of all - that of the Holy Spirit. Mary's worship at the feet of Jesus was audacious and extravagant, but it was an act of faith and love: all she wanted to do was worship in her own way, which the disciples met with protestation and indignation. It's a woman, you see. And not just a woman, but a mightily-sinning one.

     And yet this woman's actions and expressions teach the men a thing or two. She understands and apprehends on a different spiritual plane. They see the perfume and immediately think about the cost and absurd waste; she gently caresses her Lord's ankles and toes, anoints them with a spiced aroma, and smells the scent of salvation. They want action; their mission is to feed the poor. She wants reflection; her heart's desire is to worship.

     And so the Christ, the Messiah, is anointed not by prophets or priests, but by but by a prostitute. And that is fitting in this revolutionary kingdom of God. But we easily forget this woman. Jesus said: "Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her." But she invariably gets lost somewhere between the palm leaves and Eastenders.

      Holy Monday is also frequently linked to the Lord’s cleansing of the Temple which had become a den of thieves. The House of God, supposedly a place set aside for meditation and prayer, had become a place of hypocrisy, insincerity, greed and lust. Nothing really changes.

     Christians are called to be living sacrifice; to worship God daily in their actions and their words. This is becoming increasingly difficult in a context of increasing secularisation confronted by a compromised church. But the witness of our extravagant devotion to the Lord is wholly dependent upon the purity and honesty of our lives: and that must be marked by humility and love, not by aggressive demands for rights or assertions of pride.

      Let Caesar collect his taxes and make his laws: it is for Christians to cleanse our temple and devote ourselves lavishly to the Lord, that we may find peace, joy and happiness.

Palm-Passion Sunday

      The Sunday, known as Palm-Passion Sunday, has twin emphases. The first is  Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem with Hosannas and palms during which he is hailed as the long awaited one, the King - clearly a zenith moment.  Over the course of Holy Week, the emphasis shifts dramatically and we hear notes of  fear, anger, and betrayal - all culminating in the nadir of crucifixion.

       It is tempting to focus on just one or the other, but we do need, for our own soul's health, to hold to both because this reflects our human experience in the fullness of longing, pain and joy.   James W. Farwell writes "  We both desire and resist God’s movement toward us – a movement that brings us blessing and life, but costs not less than everything, and we remain ambivalent about this. Yet it is to us – these ambivalent creatures longing for union with the One by whom we are united with our Creator, yet fiercely determined to make our way with the very freedom the Creator grants us – it is to us that God in Christ comes with a fierce love as king, as servant, as reconciler, as a robber of the tombs into which we fall, and as bread."

       It is this same Jesus Christ we celebrate on Sunday next.  Be sure to join us as we  sing "Hosanna" and then shout, "Crucify." It can be a heart rending experience and one that readies us for Easter Day like nothing else.         JTCO

(The marvelous painting above is the Entry into Jerusalem by P. Lorenzetti - 1320.  The buildings depicted are in Assisi, Italy.)

Our First Responsibility

This morning I was  taken by these comments from A.W. Tozer (1897-1963).  He writes:

....the way to escape religion as a front is to make it a fount. See to it that we pray more than we preach and we will never preach ourselves out. Stay with God in the secret place longer than we are with men in the public place and the fountain of our wisdom will never dry up. Keep our hearts open to the inflowing Spirit and we will not become exhausted by the outflow. Cultivate the acquaintance of God more than the friendship of men and we will always have abundance of bread to give to the hungry. 

Our first responsibility is not to the public but to God and our own souls.

                                                               God Tells the Man Who Cares, 115-116 – AW Tozer

I rise before the dawning of the morning, and cry for help; I hope in Your word. My eyes are awake through the night watches, that I may meditate on Your word. -Psalm 119:147-148

A Wonderful Hymn for Lent - Come, Ye Sinners Poor and Needy

The text is by Joseph Hart , from Hymns Com­posed on Var­i­ous Sub­jects, 1759.   The tune is named  Rest­or­a­tion and is from The South­ern Har­mo­ny and Mu­sic­al Com­pan­ion, by William Walker.

The version below is by Fernando Ortega with help from Amy Grant.  Here are the words:

1. Come, ye sinners, poor and needy,
   Weak and wounded, sick and sore;
   Jesus ready stands to save you,
   Full of pity, love and pow’r.
• Refrain:
  I will arise and go to Jesus,
  He will embrace me in His arms;
  In the arms of my dear Savior,
  Oh, there are ten thousand charms.
2. Come, ye thirsty, come, and welcome,
   God’s free bounty glorify;
   True belief and true repentance,
   Every grace that brings you nigh.
3. Come, ye weary, heavy-laden,
   Lost and ruined by the fall;
   If you tarry till you’re better,
   You will never come at all.
4. View Him prostrate in the garden;
   On the ground your Maker lies;
   On the bloody tree behold Him;
   Sinner, will this not suffice?
5. Lo! th’ incarnate God ascended,
   Pleads the merit of His blood:
   Venture on Him, venture wholly,
   Let no other trust intrude.
6. Let not conscience make you linger,
   Not of fitness fondly dream;
   All the fitness He requireth
   Is to feel your need of Him.

 

March 2014 Dates for Your Calendar

This Sunday, March 2- 10:00 AM - The Last Sunday after the Epiphany

Tuesday, March 4 - Annual Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper - 5:30-7:30 PM.

Wednesday, March 5-  Ash Wednesday - Service at 6:30 - Imposition of Ashes - Lent begins.

Sunday, March 9,  10:00 AM - First Sunday in Lent

The Call

                            Below is a very lovely meditation by Suzanne Guthrie



The Calling of Peter and Andrew by Duccio_di_Buoninsegna - 1255-1319

The Byzantine influence upon Duccio is unmistakable. I love Duccio and I love this painting. Jesus stands against an iconic mountain on the land, calling to the two disciples in the boat upon the water against a blank, golden sky. The fish alone seem animated - the viewer sees time suspended, a moment encoded with portents and possibility.

Reality is not like the painting. Seagulls swarm the boat, women and vendors wait impatiently on the shore. Old men watch, assessing everything from the fishermen's' bodily strength, to the weave of the nets, to the condition of the boat, to the catch. Children run around. Feral cats and stray dogs wait stealthily for scraps.

Duccio's scene, pared down like an icon, lacks only one thing; the viewer accepting the invitation to step in. The painting draws me into the scene, placing me in the boat between Jesus and Peter. I feel Andrew turning around. I'm caught between Peter's hard gaze and Jesus' outstretched hand.

Situated in this way, I hear the words of Jesus addressed not only to Andrew and Peter but to me. "Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of people."

From here The Edge of Enclosure

Annual Meeting and Meet our New Deacon

This Sunday, January 12th
immediately following Church (approx. 11:00 noon)

Elections and Reports
What could be more fun?

We will also welcome the Rev. Melissa Timmerman

as our new Deacon
Please join us! 
 

Happy New Year!

 

A  Prayer for the Ending of an Old Year and

 the Beginning of a New Year...

 

Lord, give me I pray:
A remembering heart for the things that have happened...
An attentive heart to what I have learned
A forgiving heart for what has hurt
A grateful heart for what has blessed
A brave heart for what may be required
An open heart to all that may come
A trusting heart to go forth with You
A loving heart for You and all your creation
A longing heart for the reconciliation of all things.
A willing heart to say “Yes” to what You will. 

 

Leighton Ford (Hat Tip - Janet Echols)