This week a rose-breasted grosbeak has been happily enjoying the hospitality of our memorial garden and the sunflower seeds in our feeder. Look for him on Sunday.



Thursday, June 24th,
The Nativity of Saint John the Baptist

Services for Sunday, June 27th, will be at 8 and 10 AM and both will be followed by coffee hour.

Dinner Bell this Sunday needs some helping hands due to a cook team cancellation! The menu is simple: tacos, three-bean salad, Spanish rice, and ice cream. Patti Rau will do the shopping. I (Heidi) have agreed to coordinate the meal, and so far we have one volunteer. If a couple of people would be willing to stick around after the later service for half an hour, we could easily get the ground meat filling cooked up and the lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese prepared. An additional set of hands during the meal and assistance with clean-up would also be very much appreciated. If you're available to lend a hand, please let me know (frantzdale@gamil.com).

Reminder for NEXT Sunday, July 4th: Since it will be the first Sunday of the month, we will have ONE service only at 9:00. We will end promptly by 10:00 to facilitate participation in whatever Independence Day festivities you might have planned with family and friends. If you do have guests, live your faith and encourage them to join you for church, giving thanks for our freedom and independence.

As July approaches it's time to mark your calendar for our Third Annual Lobster Bake/Steak Grill, to be held on Friday, July 23rd. Fliers and tickets will be available next Sunday. Proceeds will go to the support of three Tamworth organizations: the Bearcamp Valley School, the Tamworth Nurses, and the Tamworth Caregivers.

A word about the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist which we recognize today:
According to the evangelist Luke, John the Baptist, prophet and forerunner of Jesus, was the son of elderly parents (Elizabeth and Zechariah) and was related to Jesus on his mother's side. You may recall that it was Elizabeth whom Mary visited early on in her pregnancy. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting "the child [John] leaped in his mother's womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit exclaimed with a loud voice to Mary, 'Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.' " [Luke 1:39-45] Since Elizabeth was in her sixth month when the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, John's birth (his "nativity") is celebrated exactly six months before Christmas Eve, on June 24th.
John's adult ministry was marked by his call to repentance, his baptizing of people to signify their repentance and new life, and his calling of people to prepare for the coming of the Kingdom and the Messiah. It is John who said of Jesus, "He must increase, but I must decrease."

Almighty God, by whose providence your servant John the Baptist was wonderfully born , and sent to prepare the way of your Son our Savior by preaching repentance: Make us so to follow his teaching and holy life, that we may truly repent according to his preaching; and, following his example, constantly speak the truth, boldly rebuke vice, and patiently suffer for truth's sake; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

See you in church!
Blessings, Heidi+