January 22, 2015


  
Services for this coming Sunday, January 25th, the Third Sunday after the Epiphany, will be at 8 and 10 a.m. with coffee hour following both services.

Readings for this Sunday: Jonah 3:1-5, 10, Psalm 62:6-14, 1 Corinthians 7:29-31, Mark 1:14- 20

All are Welcome! Every Wednesday at 9 AM a small congregation gathers for a service of Morning Prayer. This is a Prayer Book service of scripture readings, reflection, and prayer – a wonderful way to begin your day and anchor the middle of your week. All are welcome.
Robert Burns night is being celebrated this coming Sunday evening at the Corner House in Sandwich. Last year a group of us from St. Andrew's went together. If you're interested, let Gabriele know (476-5685). Noteworthy "Sandwich ( and St. Andrew's) Minstrels Carolyn and Chris Boldt are on the program.

Our Annual Parish Meeting is coming up next Sunday,  February 1st! Mark your calendar and plan to attend and bring something for our food table. We will have an All-Parish Brunch immediately following the single 9:00 a.m. morning service, with the Annual Meeting beginning at approximately 11 a.m. Expect a phone-tree call mid-week with specifics about food.

Annual Reports will be in Parish Hall mailboxes this Sunday. Please pick up your copy and read it in advance of next Sunday’s meeting. Please remember to bring your report with you.
A note from Lynne Clough: 

And a thank you from Joan Marshall, who expresses her gratitude for the parish’s involvement in the blessing and reception honoring her parents, June and George Donovan, on the 70th wedding anniversary the Sunday after Christmas.

Offering Envelopes:  There are now permanent numbers for everyone that have been assigned. If you have old envelopes that you are using up, please check with Debra (in the office) for your new number to write on them OR dispose of them and ask Debra to print new ones for you.  She can print them for you even if you only submit your contribution monthly, quarterly, etc–as well as weekly. If you checked off  “I need envelopes” on your pledge, they have been printed and are in your Parish Hall mailbox.

Food for thought…

Yesterday at Saint Andrew’s we celebrated the life of Gregory Palmer, a local young man whose life was tragically cut short at the age of 22. There were at least 240 people present for the service, many deeply grief-struck and in need of community. Gregory was not a member of the parish. In fact, I doubt that he was a churchgoer, but his father grew up at Saint Andrew’s, served as an acolyte and active in the church. When the heartbreaking need arose for him to arrange for his son’s funeral, there was no question in his mind that Saint Andrew’s would be the place. “This is my church. It has always been!”
I write about this today in part as a reminder to all of us that “This is my church” is something that is felt by dozens (possibly hundreds) of people who may not be Sunday worshippers, but who know God in their own, often very powerful though perhaps private ways, and recognize this place – our church – as their own. We may stand quietly on a side road, but our witness to God’s abiding and enduring love and the hope that provides is a gift that we offer beyond measure.
“…love is from God: everyone who loves is born of God and knows God …No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us. [1 John 3: 7, 12]
And, from a recent daily offering from the Br. Curtis at SSJE… “Where love is, there is God. Where there is any love at all, there we see the life and witness of God, which we see revealed most supremely and uniquely through the person of Jesus Christ.”

My special thanks to Duane, George, Gretchen, Cathie, Lisa, Debra, and Judy for their generosity of heart and time for providing the necessary and much-appreciated “home-team” presence and hospitality – a visible witness to our 240 guests – that death is not the last word and that God’s love is abundantly real. (The reception per se was completely arranged by the family and their friends, from the setting up of tables to tidying up and putting the facility back to rights.)
Please keep Gregory and his family in your prayers.

Blessings in this season of light.
See you in church!
Heidi+