Preparing for Pentecost

Dear Friends in Christ -

So where are we in Jesus' story? . . . . Let's see, we made it through Lent, walking with Jesus to the Cross. Then we made it through His crucifixion and resurrection in Holy Week and Easter. Now we've walked with him through his appearances to His disciples (and have seen some of His appearances in our own lives over the past 45 days of Easter season!). Now, we wait . . . in anticipation of receiving His Spirit afresh on Pentecost. Are you ready?? Are WE ready??

In these days of preparation and anticipation for our celebration (and a baptism!!) this Sunday, this is my prayer for us:

"Living God, eternal Holy Spirit,
let your bright intoxicating energy
which fired those first disciples
fall on us
to turn the world again. Amen."
- The New Zealand Prayer Book

Faithfully,
Janet+

A little lesson . . .

. . . that brings a chuckle and, perhaps, reflection . . .
Blessings,
Janet+

A young couple moves into a new neighborhood.
The next morning while they are eating breakfast, the young
woman sees her neighbor hanging the wash outside.
"That laundry is not very clean", she said.
"She doesn't know how to wash correctly.
Perhaps she needs better laundry soap"

Her husband looked on, but remained silent.

Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, the
young woman would make the same comments.

About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a
nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband:

"Look, she has learned how to wash correctly.
I wonder who taught her this?"

The husband said, "I got up early this morning and
cleaned our windows."

And so it is with life. What we see when watching others
depends on the purity of the window through which we look.

Just in case you're waiting . . .

. . . for an invitation, here it is!!!
Please come join me and many other keen members of our parish in a discussion of Parker Palmer's little (and I mean small in size!) book, "Let Your Life Speak." Palmer's book is a powerful exploration of vocation (discovering what we're called to be/do).

And just in case you don't have the book - NO PROBLEM. Copies of the two core chapters we'll be discussing are available in the parish office.

I look forward to seeing you at the Rectory at 7:00 p.m. on Friday night. Dessert will be served!

Blessings,
Janet+

102 and counting

Dear Friends in Christ -

A phenomenal thing happened yesterday at the 10:00 a.m. worship service: we recognized 102 people who help with worship services throughout the year. These folks serve as choir members, acolytes, lectors, layreaders, ushers, members of the flower committee, members of the prayer team and members of the altar guild. WOW!!

And would you believe that we could use more help?! If you feel called to one of these ministries, please let me know!!!! Serving on Sundays helps you experience worship in a whole new way.

Faithfully - and gratefully!!! -
Janet+

THANK YOU

Dear Friends in Christ -
Thank you so much for allowing me time last week to be away caring for my ailing, aging grandmother. Being with her and with my extended family made me keenly aware of the importance of community. You can't live a joyful life without being connected to a faith community - and you certainly can't die a peaceful death without being surrounded by a faith community. I so appreciate you being a community of rest and hope for me as I help to form a community of love and care for her.
Faithfully,
Janet+

An Overflowing Heart

Dear Friends in Christ -

I was blown away by the enthusiasm and talent of our youth (and adults!) at last night's 4th Annual Talent Show. There were too many unforgettable moments to list here . . . Lou's BOLD singing and zebra tights . . . Will's LIME GREEN polyester pants . . . the beauty of Sophie's dance and Kristin's singing . . . the eardrum splitting glory of a nasty rock song rewritten (resurrected!) by Joey . . . the look of sheer joy on some of the kids' faces when they overcame stage fright and successfully made it through their skit or song.

And all this for Jesus - for the glory of His name and to help those in need through the mission trip the youth will make this summer to help the homeless and hungry in Washington D.C.

My heart overflows with joy - joyful thanksgiving for all who worked to help make this possible and for all who came (and paid!) to support the event.

Blessings - and thank you!
Janet+

PS - In the midst of all the happenings at St. Paul's over the past week, people are still managing to find time to read the blog. One of the people who gave TONS of time to make the Talent Show a success also wanted to pass on a job opening she heard about: Fairfield Public Schools is looking for a headmaster at Fairfield Ludlowe High School. If you or anyone you know is interested, the application's available at www.fairfield.k12.ct.us

7th Inning Stretch

Dear Friends in Christ -

I was over in the parish hall this evening, and the place was teeming with activity. People doing everything from washing dishes to steaming the new curtain to setting up a sound system to folding napkins to making signs.

There was quite a lot of positive energy - and a little grumpiness as well. It's understandable. It's now less than 48 hours before show time and everyone wants their contribution to be good and their efforts to pay off in the form of (1) fun and (2) successful fundraising.

In the midst of all this, I want to call us to a "seventh inning stretch." As you know, in baseball the 7th inning stretch is the time when people rise in the stands and - at least in many parks - sing "Take me out to the ball game", a hymn to the joy of the game. The song is sung by everyone, whether or not their team is winning, to recall the joy of the game itself.

For our 7th inning stretch, here's a good word from the apostle Paul, who knew a lot about keepin' on keepin' on: "So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith."

Hang in there - and continue serving the One who called you. Your reward will be great!
Blessings,
Janet+

HELP WANTED

Dear Friends in Christ -

Help is needed with food preparation for the Talent Show. If you have an hour or two to spare on SATURDAY morning at 10:30 a.m., food preparation will be happening in the parish kitchen. If you've ever wanted to see what a pile of 400 meatballs looks like, this is your chance!! Good fellowship and fun are a FREE part of the deal!

If you have any questions, please contact Jayne Bolton at jayne_bolton@att.net.

Blessings,
Janet+

National Day of Prayer

Dear Friends in Christ -

Millions of people around the country and throughout the world are lifting up their voices in prayer today on this 58th National Day of Prayer. What are we praying for? We're praying for our country and for our world. We're praying for peace and guidance. We're praying for grace and truth.

Tonight, people from throughout Shelton will gather in our Old Church at 7:30 p.m. for a Community Candle-light Vigil of Prayer. No preaching; just living our voices in prayer, in song and in Scripture, in petition and in thanksgiving.

I wanted to share with you the key verse from Scripture and the official prayer for the day:

Psalm 33:22 - "May Your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you."

Father in Heaven, we lift our eyes toward Your Throne, where You reign in righteousness. Your Word assures us that when Your people cry out in sincerity and humility, you will never turn a deaf ear to us. We call upon You now, seeking your forgiveness and favor. Look over this fevered landscape and heal us, Lord. [We bow our hearts before you], for we know where our help comes from. Unite these States again in devotion to You, and blur every dividing line. Do not give us over to our sins. Give us, instead, over to passionate prayer that moves Your heart. ‘May Your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in You.’ In the Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Amen.
(Prayer by Beth Moore, 2009 NDoP Honorary Chairman, adapted)

Faithfully,
Janet+

An answer to prayer, perhaps?

Dear Friends in Christ -

I was praying at my desk this afternoon, finishing up preparation for tonight's Bible study ("Living Victoriously in Difficult Times"), when the phone rang. It was someone from our parish who wanted to pass on news that there are some job openings available.

My heart sang because of this caller's kindness and thoughtfulness to reach out with that news. I felt like this might be a direct answer to prayer for at least one of you - or for one of your friends, so I'm passing this along . . .

HealthNet has 25 phone center jobs available through Kelly Services. The contact person at Kelly is Deanna Nemec - 225-8990.

Whether or not this sort of job is meant for you or someone you know, may this be a sign to you that God is always working to provide for our needs - even when we can't see it.
Faithfully,
Janet+

Leaning Forward by Looking Back

Dear Friends in Christ -

Today is Cinco de Mayo. People think of Cinco de Mayo as "Mexico's Independence Day," but actually, that's not true. The celebration of Mexico's independence from Spain is held on September 16th. So what's Cinco de Mayo all about? Cinco de Mayo is the celebration of an unlikely victory - when a small band of Mexicans took on and defeated a French army that had not suffered a defeat in 50 years.

Especially in a time of crisis - like the current Swine Flu epidemic - it's important to remember that Our Lord is the King of unlikely successes, and made joyful living possible through the victory of his resurrection from the grave. Remembering victories of the past can help draw us into the future in a positive way, with HOPE, a resource so valuable that you can't buy it with money.

As we look into the future of the coming week here at St. Paul's, it's a time of gathering as a community for three IMPORTANT events:
1. THURSDAY - Community Candlelight Vigil for the National Day of Prayer - 7:30 p.m. - Old Church (PLEASE COME PRAY!)
2. SUNDAY - Mother's Day Breakfast - 9:00 a.m. - Parish Hall (MEN EMAIL BYRON IF YOU CAN WORK THE EVENT - byron.peterson@emerson.com) (SIGN UP IN THE PARISH OFFICE IF YOU'RE COMING TO THE EVENT - 929-1722 or stpauls@stpaulsct.org)
3. SUNDAY - 4th Annual Youth Talent Show - 4:00 p.m. - Parish Hall (IF YOU NEED TICKETS, THERE'S A WAITING LIST - CONTACT KAREN NASH - 386-9432)

Our HOPE is that God will use all of these events to draw us together as one and to show us more of the power of His VICTORY over everything that might oppress us or draw us away from Him.

Faithfully,
Janet+

Something Special at - where else? - Church

Dear Friends in Christ -

If you're looking for opportunities to connect more deeply with your children/grandchildren, church today will be an answer to your prayers.

Linda Snyder (Missioner for Adults and Children) and Emily Perow (Missioner for Youth) will be at St. Paul's today - to worship and pray with us, and to share their wisdom about how to help our kids grow in knowledge and power and love.

After church, grab some good stuff at coffee hour and come down to the double classroom to hear more about how to help your kids - of all ages - from toddlers to teens - know God.

Blessings,
Janet+

The Gift

Dear Friends in Christ -

Today, a whole bunch of folks from St. Paul's joined a bunch of folks from other churches and worked down in Bridgeport at Sister Theresa's daycare. The gift of time and energy that folks gave completely renewed the daycare, making the space larger, brighter and all-around better for the kids. But if you ask the folks who worked down there - from the guy who came down to cook egg sandwiches for morning coffee break to the guy who has worked for weeks to organize the whole thing - they would talk about RECEIVING a gift, not giving one.

That's the power of love - and the privilege it is to work for God.

Faithfully,
Janet+

PS - If you weren't able to help out today, there may still be an opportunity to help out tomorrow. Come to church to hear more details!