November 29, 2012




Thursday MEMO for November 29th and Friday, November 30th, our patronal feast day!

There will be ONE service only at 9 o’clock this coming Sunday, the First Sunday of Advent. Contrary to the message we get in the media and in the stores, it’s time to SLOW DOWN. QUIET. IT’S ADVENT! We hope you will join us as we “change gears” into Advent. Be open to the change of pacing in the liturgy and allow the hymns of Advent to work in you, preparing you for what is to come. And after the service, in case there are goodies left from Boughs and Bonbons, perhaps you’ll want to pick some up to put under the tree!
     We will also be re-commissioning all Eucharistic Ministers, Eucharistic Visitors, and Worship Leaders, so, LEMs and LEVs, please try to be with us.

Saturday is our Boughs and Bonbons Christmas Fair, 9-1! Spread the word. Invite your friends. There will be tables from outside crafts’ people, as well as our own wonderful array of Christmas goodies. And the wreaths this year are splendid. Chose from among wonderfully decorated, simply bowed, or plain. And special thanks to the dozen or so folks who shared generously of their time and decorating creativity, as well as all the cookie bakers!
     If you’d like to lend a hand with setup, table staffing during the fair, or clean-up, please call Lynne (323-7046) or Patti (367-8223). Many hand make light and cheerful work!
Go paperless with “E-Advent Calendars” and treat yourself to simple daily meditations:
The SSJE (Society of Saint John the Evangelist) "Brother, Give Us a Word" Advent Calendar goes live on Sunday, December 2.  Each day in Advent open a new door to God with a beautiful image and thought for the day. Click here to visit the page. Click here: http://pinterest.com/iamepiscopalian/advent-calendar/
Or try “Following the Star,” a daily online advent devotional guide with scripture, prayer, and meditative music at www.d365.org
Mark your calendar for our Advent Quiet Day, which will be held on Saturday, December 8th from 9am to 1pm at Dale Appleton’s home (49 Logan Way, West Ossipee, 539-3761). The Rev. Susan Ackley will be our retreat leader. Susan is an experienced retreat leader, an old friend of the parish, and one of the priests who took services here during Heidi’s sabbatical. To register, please contact Lisa Thompson at 323-8245.

A “Quiet Day” is a time set aside as a gently directed retreat. This comes at a particularly appropriate time for us to pause as we enter into the Advent season and prepare our hearts for Christmas. It will involve several mediations (short, reflective talks) designed to support you in how you might use the several periods of quiet time during the time together, as well as equipping you to be more centered and spiritually engaged in the weeks that follow. It will close with a brief eucharist and a simple meal of bread and soup.

Welcome to Connor, Albert, and Melissa, whom we welcomed into the household of God through the sacrament of baptism last Sunday and formally into Kathy and Alan’s family household on Tuesday.




Children of the parish brought water from their wells, streams, and special places … and the altar Guild contributed some Jordon River water. It was truly baptism by immersion in joy!
  
Bishop Rob's Installation: This celebration will take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 5 at St. Paul’s Church in Concord.  All are welcome and invited to this event.  If you would like to offer a ride or need a ride, sign up on the bulletin board. This will be the formal occasion when Bishop Rob becomes the Diocesan Bishop.
Bishop Rob will be visiting Saint Andrew's on February 10th. If you think you might like to be confirmed or officially received on that occasion, please let me know soon so we can work on preparation.


 ALL ARE WELCOME! Join us for Morning Prayer, every Wednesday morning at 9, led by one of our three licensed worship leaders.


Food for thought and action…

Did you know that today, November 30th, is the Feast Day of Saint Andrew the Apostle? Once again the day falls amidst the pre-Advent, pre fair hubbub. One of the Twelve, Andrew often seems to fall in the shadow of his brother Simon Peter, but he holds a special place in John’s Gospel. That is where we hear that he had been a disciple of John the Baptist, until John pointed Jesus out to him with the words, “Behold the Lamb of God!” at which point Andrew turned and followed Jesus. His first “act” as a follower was to find his brother and bring him to Jesus. So Andrew might rightly be acknowledged as the first missionary disciple! I’m guessing that might have something to do with why our parish is dedicated to him, and perhaps that can serve as an encouragement for us to go out and do the same! Celebrate Saint Andrew’s Day by reaching out to someone and invited them to come and see!

Almighty God, who gave such grace to your apostle Andrew that he readily obeyed the call of your son Jesus Christ, and brought his brother with him: give us, who are called by your Holy word, grace to follow him without delay, and to bring those near to us into his gracious presence; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Have a blessed Saint Andrew’s Day.

See you in church as we begin the new season (and the new church year) together on Sunday!
Pax, Heidi+
From the office at St. Andrew’s:

UPCOMING WEEK’S CALENDAR:

Fri  11/30:
                10a-noon  Food Center

Sat 12/01:            
 9am-1pm Boughs and Bonbons Fair
                8pm AA & Al-Anon(PH,PR)

Sun 12/02:
9 AM Holy Eucharist Rite II
                5 PM Dinner Bell (Cook Team: Tamworth Cong.)

Mon 12/03:         
               Church office closed

Tue 12/04:  
                10am – noon  Food Center
                8pm -AA

 Wed 12/05:
                9 AM Service of Morning Prayer

Thu  12/06:

               

                 

November 22, 2012


A blessed Thanksgiving to all!

The Collect for Thanksgiving Day
Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the
fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those
who harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of
your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and
the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

 There will be two services this coming Sunday, November 25, the Sunday of Christ the King and the Last Sunday after Pentecost, one at 8:00 and one at 10:00. At the later service we will celebrate the adoption and baptism of Connor, Albert, and Melissa Bunker. All children are invited to bring a small jar of water to contribute to the baptismal water. Please join us for this long awaited family and parish celebration as we proclaim our support for the children in their life in Christ, welcome them fully “into the household of God,” and rejoice that the five Bunkers are now a permanent family. The service will be followed by a welcome reception.

Our Boughs and Bonbons Christmas Fair will be a week from Saturday

December 1st, 9 AM – 1PM!!! So now’s the time for cookie baking and signing up for helping:
We need your help with this last fundraising event of the year
Flyers are available in the Parish hall detailing ways you can help

·        Make bows

·        Decorate wreaths:  Join Elaine South on Thursday, Nov. 29th beginning at 8:30 am to help decorating wreaths. Please help!

·        Bake cookies

·        Make candy

·        Bake bread or make preserves or relishes

·        Deliver posters

·        Set up and clean up

·        Work at the fair

Please contact co-chairs Lynne Clough (323-7046) or Patti Rau (367-8223) with questions or offers of help.  Let’s make this Boughs & Bonbons the best ever!

 And mark your calendar for our Advent Quiet Day, which will be held on Saturday, December 8 from 9 to 1 at Dale Appleton’s home (49 Logan Way, West Ossipee, 539-3761). The Rev. Susan Ackley will be our retreat leader. Susan is an experienced retreat leader, an old friend of the parish, and one of the priests who took services here during Heidi’s sabbatical. To register, please contact Lisa Thompson at 323-8245.

      A “Quiet Day” is a time set aside as a gently directed retreat. This comes at a particularly appropriate time for us to pause as we enter into the Advent season and prepare our hearts for Christmas. It will involve several mediations (short, reflective talks) designed to support you in how you might use the several periods of quiet time during the time together, as well as equipping you to be more centered and spiritually engaged in the weeks that follow. It will close with a brief eucharist and a simple meal of bread and soup.

 ALL ARE WELCOME! Join us for Morning Prayer, every Wednesday morning at 9, led by one of our three licensed worship leaders.

 Blessings, Heidi+

 From the office at St. Andrew’s:
Debra will be taking some time off next week to spend the holiday in Maine. She will be out of the office from Thursday Nov. 22nd through Tuesday Nov. 27th.

UPCOMING WEEK’S CALENDAR:

Fri  11/23: office closed

                10a-noon  Food Center

Sat 11/24:            

                8pm AA & Al-Anon(PH,PR)

Sun 11/25:

8 AM Holy Eucharist Rite I

10 AM Holy Eucharist Rite II

                5 PM Dinner Bell (Cook Team: Friends)

Mon 11/26:         

               Church office closed

Tue 11/27: office closed   

                10am – noon  Food Center

                8pm -AA

 

Wed 11/28:

                9 AM Service of Morning Prayer

Thu  11/29:

               

                 

 

November 15, 2012


Services for this coming Sunday, the 18th of November, the Sunday before Thanksgiving and our pledge ingathering will be at 8 and 10 AM.  You are invited to bring in a fruit or vegetable to be offered on the altar during the 10:00 liturgy, as a visible symbol of your pledge of support to the church and a sign of the abundance of grace in our lives.  Then plan to join us for coffee hour following the service as we wish each other a Happy Thanksgiving. 

To date 48 pledges have been received.  Thank you to those of you who have made your pledge for 2013.  If you have not turned in your pledge card, please do so and help us celebrate.

Readings for this Sunday: Joel 2:21-27; Psalm 16, Hebrews 10:11-25; Matthew 6:25-33.

ALL ARE WELCOME! Join us for Morning Prayer, every Wednesday morning at 9, led by one of our three licensed worship leaders.

JOIN US TOMORROW for Saint Andrew's Harvest Supper and Pie Auction. Tickets will be available at the door. Plan to come and invite your friends! It is hoped that many of you will bake delicious pies (pies that can be frozen for Thanksgiving feasts are especially welcome) to be auctioned following the meal, beginning at about 7:30pm. 
Note: If you are contributing Pies please deliver them on the day of the dinner/auction by 3 p.m.

The ChIPs project shoppers!
Tim, Jim, and Ted, assisted by their mom, Jen, and a friend, did an impressive job at selecting gifts of books and toys, purchased with your generous ($550!) ChIPs project contributions. Michelle, the store owner at Bayswater Books in Center Harbor, could not have been more kind, welcoming, helpful and awesome, AND she gave us a 20% discount!!!            Consider doing your book shopping there; tell her you’re from Saint Andrew’s and be sure to thank her for her generosity in support of this project. The purchases were all transported to Concord on Wednesday and will be made available to incarcerated parents so that they can provide gifts (free of charge) to their children at Christmas. Many lives will be touched by your generosity! 




 Looking ahead: It is with great joy that you are invited to the Baptism of Connor, Albert, and Melissa, the Bunker children, on Sunday, November 25th, the Sunday following Thanksgiving. Their baptism will also be the celebration of their formal adoption by Kathy and Alan. We want to let you know, so that you might plan accordingly. Please be present to part of the congregation as we pledge our support to these three remarkable children (and their parents) and welcome them "into the household of God!"

Get Ready!  St. Andrew’s Boughs & Bonbons Holiday Fair

Saturday, December 1st – 9 AM – 1PM
We need your help with this last fundraising event of the year.
Flyers are available in the Parish hall detailing ways you can help

·        Make bows

·        Decorate wreaths:  Join Elaine South on Thursday, Nov. 29th beginning at 8:30 am to help decorating wreaths. Please help!

·        Bake cookies

·        Make candy

·        Bake bread or make preserves or relishes

·        Deliver posters

·        Set up and clean up

·        Work at the fair

Please contact co-chairs Lynne Clough (323-7046) or Patti Rau (367-8223) with questions or offers of help.  Let’s make this Boughs & Bonbons the best ever!

Food for thought from Br. Kevin Hackett SSJE…

“The prayer of thanksgiving frees us from the bondage of our own too-small worlds. It lifts us beyond ourselves and our petty preoccupations. And it does not come always come easily. Rather, paradoxically, like all prayer, thanksgiving is a gift, from God for us, waiting to be received.”
 
I hope you will join with us in person or in Spirit on Sunday as we offer our thanksgivings together.

Blessings, Heidi+

 
From the office at St. Andrew’s:
 
Debra will be taking some time off next week to spend the holiday in Maine. She will be out of the office from Thursday Nov. 22nd through Tuesday Nov. 27th.
 
UPCOMING WEEK’S CALENDAR:

Fri  11/16:
                  6PM Harvest Supper & Pie Auction
                10a-noon  Food Center

Sat 11/17:            
                8pm AA & Al-Anon(PH,PR)

Sun 11/18:
8 AM Holy Eucharist Rite I
           10 AM Holy Eucharist Rite II
                5 PM Dinner Bell (Cook Team: Wakefield)

Mon 11/19:         
               Church office closed

Tue 11/20:           
                10am – noon  Food Center
                8pm -AA
 
Wed 11/21:
                9 AM Service of Morning Prayer

Thu  11/22:
                HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

November 8, 2012

Come join the fun! Harvest Supper and Pie Auction November 16th.

Services for this coming Sunday, the 11th of November, the Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost will be at 8 and 10 AM.  Please join us for coffee hour following the service. 

 To date 44 pledges have been received.  Thank you to those of you who have made your pledge for 2013.  If you have not turned in your pledge card, please do so and help us celebrate.

Readings for this Sunday: Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17, Psalm 127, Hebrews 9:24-28, Mark 12:38-44.

ALL ARE WELCOME! Join us for Morning Prayer, every Wednesday morning  at 9, led by one of our three licensed worship leaders.

Sunday, November 11th the Boy Scouts will be here selling popcorn following both services. Please plan on supporting their annual fundraiser.

Ladies Lunch Bunch: Wednesday, Nov. 14th Mountain View Station Restaurant at noon.



We hope you will join us for a Saint Andrew's Harvest Supper and Pie Auction, to be held on Friday evening, November 16th. Tickets will be available at the door. Plan to come and invite your friends.! It is hoped that many of you will bake delicious pies (pies that can be frozen for Thanksgiving feasts are especially welcome) to be auctioned following the meal, beginning at about 7:30pm. 

Note: Pies should be delivered on the day of the dinner/auction by 3 p.m.

Looking ahead: It is with great joy that you are invited to the Baptism of Connor, Albert, and Melissa, the Bunker children, on Sunday, November 25th, the Sunday following Thanksgiving. Their baptism will also be the celebration of their formal adoption by Kathy and Alan. We want to let you know, so that you might plan accordingly. Please be present to part of the congregation as we pledge our support to these three remarkable children (and their parents) and welcome them "into the household of God!"

Get Ready!  St. Andrew’s Boughs & Bonbons Holiday Fair

Saturday, December 1st – 9 AM – 1PM


We need your help with this last fundraising event of the year

Flyers are available in the Parish hall detailing ways you can help

·        Make bows

·        Decorate wreaths:  Join Elaine South on Thursday, Nov. 29th beginning at 8:30 am to help decorating wreaths.

·        Bake cookies

·        Make candy

·        Bake bread or make preserves or relishes

·        Deliver posters

·        Set up and clean up

·        Work at the fair

Please contact co-chairs Lynne Clough (323-7046) or Patti Rau (367-8223) with questions or offers of help.  Let’s make this Boughs & Bonbons the best ever!

 

Celebrating and thanking Bishop Gene Robinson:

           *Grapone Center, Concord: Saturday, November 10 from 1 to 4

 

Food for thought from Kate Braestrup in her memoir, Here I You Need Me.
"If I could only speak one prayer for you, my children, it would be that your hearts would not only beat but grow ever greater in gratitude, that your lives, however long they prove to be and no matter how they end, continue to bring you miracles in abundance."
See you in church!

 

Blessings, Heidi+

 

From the office at St. Andrew’s: Office Hours:  Tuesday-Friday 9am-Noon

If you have anything that you would like to have put in the Thurs. Memo, please email to the office by the previous Wednesday. Your submissions are welcome.

 

UPCOMING WEEK’S CALENDAR:

Fri  11/9:

                10a-noon  Food Center

Sat 11/10:            

                8pm AA & Al-Anon(PH,PR)

Sun 11/11:

8 AM Holy Eucharist Rite I

10 AM Holy Eucharist Rite II

                5 PM Dinner Bell (Cook Team: Wakefield)

Mon 11/12:          Church office closed

Tue 11/13:           

                10am – noon  Food Center

                8pm -AA

 

Wed 11/14:

                9 AM Service of Morning Prayer

Thu  11/15:

                6 PM Eucharist

                6:30 PM Brown bag supper

                7 PM Vestry Meeting