Do you have an animal companion who is patiently waiting for his blessing?

This is the Sunday!!!








Saint Andrew's-in-the-Valley
Thursday MEMO
September 30, 2010

This coming Sunday, October 3rd, we will have ONE service only at 9:00. This will be our annual Blessing of the Animals service. Yes, it is a service of Holy Eucharist. Dogs must be leashed and other animals in appropriate cages or containers. If you have an animal companion who would not be happy traveling, you are welcome to bring a "proxy," such as a picture, a symbol, or stuffed animal. We will reserve the transept (the area where our grand piano sits) as a HUMANS ONLY territory. The Altar Guild will serve as Coffee Hour hosts and Val May will provide biscuits for the dogs. Consider it as an ocassion to invite your friends to church! Have them bring their animal as well.

Our Pledge Season continues: This Sunday Cathie Lewis will speak briefly on the blessings she has experienced in this place.
New addition: If you have missed any of the past three Sundays, or if you would like a "second pass" as highlights of homilies and discussions, a special "Pledge Season Blog" is now on line. Check the information in the left hand column and click there. The Stewardship Committee hopes that you will take the time to reflect on the material and to think prayerfully about it as you prepare to make your pledge.

Saint Andrew's Presence at the Sandwich Fair, October 9th through 11th. Thanks to Gretchen Behr-Svendsen's efforts, we will be having a table in the "Farmers' Market" section of the the Sandwich Fair. There has been a wonderful response from many of you who have volunteered to staff our table. (Thank you, Kathy, Claudia, Bruce, Ed, Marie, Lynne, Becky, David, Joe, Tom, Peg, Carol, Chris, Ginger, Bob, Phil, Joan, Grete, and George!) And... we still need full coverage for the Monday morning, as well as some additional workers at other times. Please give Gretchen a call as 323-7459. This event, with Indian corn, gourd, pumpkins, shallots, jams and jellies, pickles and relish, promises to be a great success and a good fundraiser for the church.

A reminder to Fair Workers: Be sure to bring flexible, appropriate clothing. Temperature can range from sunny and hot (real summer weather), to glorious, crisp (breezy) fall air, to damp, cold, and even driving wind -- even all in one day!. Whatever the weather, the FAIR GOES ON! (i.e. No crumping out if you don't like the weather!) So come prepared, including your food and beverage needs.

Many of you are aware that Duane and I will be leaving after church this coming Sunday for a week in Catalonia, Spain. We have an opportunity to be part of an "inaugural tour," led by our niece and her partner, who are working to establish a guided tour business there. We will return late on October 12th. If you have pastoral concerns during my absence, please call Debra in the office, and she will connect you with appropriate help. Patti and George Rau (323-8223) have agreed to receive calls as well. The Rev. Tobias Nyatsambo will be returning to St. Andrew's to provide coverage for the services next Sunday. He is a dynamic preacher and, as one who has served for many years as a priest in Zimbabwe, brings a refreshing perspective to faith, live...and, yes, stewardship. I know you will warmly welcome him and his wife, Rose.

It's Gifts for ChIPs time again! ChIPs -- Children of Incarcerated Parents -- is a program of the Prisons Concerns Committee of our diocese, which provides incarcerated parents with a Christmas gifts for their children. the need is great. The good news is that that the diocese set a record last year in providing over 700 gifts and books for children whose parents are in prison.

Parents give the gifts to their children at the annual Christmas parties. The parties are the one event of the year that the parents can provide for their children. Won’t you help up make a difference in the lives of these children? Drop off gifts or monetary donations at your church. Our delegates to the Diocesan Convention will take them to the Convention on November 6.

Your contribution can be in the form of a check, or actual gifts and books (all of which must be brand new). Further details on gifts will be listed on the Sunday bulletin insert.

Readings for Sunday: Lamentations 1:1-6, 2 Timothy 1:1-14, Luke 17:5-10

Food for thought on the grace of giving from Richard Foster's, The Challenge of a Disciplined Life:

"The grace of giving is often a tremendous stimulant to the life of faith. This is why the offering is correctly placed as part of the worship experience. In Isaiah 58:5-8, we read of a very religious people whose pious devotion counted for nothing because it was not matched with active caring for the poor and the oppressed. "Is not this the fast that I choose," proclaims God, "to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?" Religious piety is bankrupt without justice. If you want your fasting to have true spiritual content, then you are to "share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house" (Isa. 58:7).

If our spiritual vitality seems low, if Bible study produces only dusty words, if prayer seems hollow and empty, then perhaps a prescription of lavish and joyful giving is just what we need. Giving brings authenticity and vitality to our devotional experience."

See you in church!

Blessings, Heidi+