Grace Episcopal Church
Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Grace Notes
6 February 2014
“Seven whole days, not one in
seven, I will praise thee ...” These
words, taken from George Herbert’s 1633 poem “Praise” (The Temple) form part of our hymn no. 382, and they remind us that
our spiritual life is defined, in part, by the regularity with which we turn to
God—the same God who always reaches out to us that we may turn to Him.
We are blessed in having a prayer
book which is structured to allow us to pray to God in ways that also take us
through all of His holy Word. In the
adult education classes which are underway, participants are learning the
ins-and-outs of using The Book of Common
Prayer—which prayers, when, and which lessons, etc. If you do not follow the Daily Office in the
prayer book, you can still meditate on God’s Word and offer your own prayers
using tools like the Forward: Day-by-Day devotional series, in how you
prayer through the psalter, or use another devotional. Most importantly, however, you can engage in
daily prayer with others. This parish is
one of very few in which you can participate in public prayer every day of the
week.
There are fellow parishioners of
yours who are very faithful in being at Morning Prayer, or Evening Prayer, or
daily Mass, on an ongoing basis. The
number has never been large, but it has recently become smaller. This is due, in part, to the severity of the
winter, but the trend remains real, and it reflects the reality that when we
don’t pray every day we lose the habit, and it becomes easier to just skip prayer
for another “priority”.
Don’t skip prayer. Pray on your own. Pray with others. Cultivate the spiritual discipline of coming
to the church and praying one of the daily services, even just one a week. When we lift our praises to God every day,
the God who is faithful hears our prayers and answers them.
Grace Abounds: Please thank:
§
Danie Wilson, Bobbi Kraft, and Renée Stauffacher for the
coffee hours this past Sunday.
§ All
those parishioners who provided pot luck luncheon for the Being the Body program this past Saturday.
Rosaries needed: Within the past week all of the rosaries in
the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham have disappeared. We can only pray that whoever has taken them
has a real need for them, and will use them in prayer. If you have an extra rosary necklace to
donate, please bring it to the church, knowing that it is possible that it too
may “aquire legs”.
Episcopal Youth Community: Random
Act of Kindness
This
past Sunday for youth group we made chocolate chip cookies. Not just because
they are delicious, and we like desserts (especially if there's chocolate
involved), but because we thought that we could do a little something to show
kindness to someone who might not have anyone to be kind to them.
We
mixed, baked, and bagged the cookies with love and care, and we delivered them
to the Sheboygan Senior Center (across the street from church). We hope that we
made someone's day.
Who
needs someone to be kind to them today? Who can you be kind to? What kinds of
things can we do as a parish to show God's love in the community through acts
of kindness, generosity, and love?
I would
love to hear your stories. ―Nick
Call for
Contributions: If you have a spiritual reflection to share,
or want to point your fellow worshippers toward a resource, submit your
contributions to Fr. Karl (by email) by Wednesday in the week of publication.
Music this week:
Prelude Chorale Prelude on Deck thyself, my soul, with gladness J. S. Bach
Entrance “O Zion, tune thy voice” alt.:
Darwall’s 148th
Offertory 419, “Lord of all being, throned
afar” Mendon
Communion Motet, Lord
God, you now have set your servant free Orlando
Gibbons
Communion 339, “Deck thyself, my soul, with gladness” Schmuecke dich
Closing 7, “Christ, whose glory fills the
skies” Ratisbon
Postlude Prelude
& Fugue in D Major Dietrich
Buxtehude
Parish Notices
§ Metropolitan
Opera: Parish opera lovers can gather at the Marcus
Cinema this Saturday, for an 11:55 a.m. live broadcast of Dvoŗak’s Rusalka,
with Renée Fleming in the title
role. This is a broadcast of almost 4
hours, and the group will repair for light refreshment afterward.
§ Second
Sunday Small Groups: Next Sunday,
February 9th Small groups will meet between services at 9:00am and
after the 10:15 service today. Questions will be provided to reflect on the
lessons for the Day. Please meet in St. Nicholas Hall and the groups will
be divided up and rooms will be assigned.
§ Simple
Potluck Supper and Compline:
Sunday, February 9th we will have our Simple Potluck Supper at
6:30pm. Come and enjoy the fellowship then stay for Compline at 8:00pm. The
Schola Cantorum will be singing Compline which is the night time prayers said
or sung just before retiring. It is a wonderful and peaceful way to end the
day.
§ Lenten
Booklet: Grace Church will prepare
our own parish book of Lenten meditations, written by parishioners. For each of
the forty days of Lent season, a Gospel lesson taken from the Eucharistic
lectionary for the weekdays in Lent, plus the Sunday Eucharistic lectionary,
are provided on a clip board on the Narthex table. Following each Gospel lesson
will be the Collect prayer for the celebration of Eucharist on each day. The
Collect “collects” our prayers as founded in the Scripture appointed for each
day. The method envisaged for use of this booklet is that parishioners will
read the Gospel lesson– perhaps more than once, perhaps underlining the words
or phrases that resonate with them on that day–then reflect on the
Collect, and then write down their own reflections on the page appointed for
the day. These reflections will be gathered by February 21st to
allow for production lead-time. The publication of a parish devotional
will be published to the whole parish, in print and on our website. Please
submit your meditations anonymously or for attribution to Tasha Crouse at gpvehicle@yahoo.com.
§ English
as a Second Language teaching group: This ESL group helps immigrants learn the English language to better
their lives and job prospects. The group will meet Wednesday evenings at 6:00pm
on the lower level in the youth room. Contact Scott Lubbers at 698-2002.
§ Flower
Schedule for 2014: Giving the gift
of flowers is a wonderful way to remember a loved one or to offer thanksgiving
for your blessings. If you wish to sign up for a specific Sunday, the Flower
Schedule is available on the table in the narthex. More than one person can
sign up for each Sunday.
§ Coffee
Hour Schedule: There is a new
sign-up sheet for hosting coffee hour in 2014. If you would like to host please
sign up for either 8:00am or 10:15am. We are in need of someone to oversee the
schedule and be the point person for questions. If you would be able to spend a
few minutes a week double checking the sign-up sheet and giving reminders or if
you have questions please see Deacon Michele or Bobbi Kraft. Thank you so much.
§ All Saints' Chapel Ownership - Sunday services
at All Saints' Chapel will continue to be a shared ministry this year which
means volunteers will be needed to have ownership of opening and closing the
chapel. A sign-up sheet is located in the Narthex. If you have questions
regarding responsibilities, please ask any member of the Vestry.
§ Love
Bowls: an annual fundraiser to
benefit Meals On Wheels will be held on Sunday, February 9th from 10:00 am -
3:00 pm at Sheboygan South High School. Purchase a beautiful Talavera pottery
bowl or plate for $20 and enjoy unlimited soup from nearly 70 local restaurants.
Live entertainment provides a great environment for family and friends. Pewter,
glassware and other Talavera pieces are available at our silent auction!
§ Lakeshore
Chorale's Valentine Visions: This
Valentine's Day, February 14th, we invite you to Lakeshore Chorale's
very special Valentine Gala, "Valentine Visions." The first half of
the evening will feature the Lakeshore Chorale Adult Choir performing a variety
of love songs in the excellent acoustic environment of Grace Episcopal Church.
The second portion of the concert will be held in Grace Church's St. Nicholas
Hall, beautifully decorated for the holiday by Bernie Markevitch. While you are
enjoying scrumptious desserts made by The Cookie Jar Girls, you will be treated
to a cabaret performance by members of the Lakeshore Chorale - vocal solos,
duets, small ensembles, and instrumental interludes. Please be our Valentine
and join us for this very special evening! Tickets are $20 and are selling
quickly. Please reserve or purchase your tickets today by calling 920-451-1863,
or purchase on line at: http://www.lakeshorechorale.org/Tickets.html
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