It is December 6th the day which in my house means that the Christmas Tree can come down (not that it will). Today we mark the end of the Christmas Season with Epiphany. Epiphany is the day when we commemorate the coming of the wisemen, it is the celebration of revelation of God incarnate in Jesus to the world.
Epiphany in Greek literally means “appearance” or “manifestation”. There are many ways that this has been celebrated around the world, a quick google search can show you more. This year there was one tradition I want to invite you to try, it was that of marking the doorway to the house with chalk. You are asked to write the following pattern on the door or doorframe, 20 + C + M + B + 22. So what does this mean? The numbers represent the calendar year 2022 the crosses standing for Christ. The C, M, B have a dual meaning. They are the initials traditionally given to the wisemen: Casper, Melchior and Balthazar and they are also an abbreviation of a Latin blessing Christus mansionem benedicat which translates into May Christ bless this house. To help us all engage in this simple practice, you can pick up a piece of chalk after worship on Sunday or stop by the office next week to get yours.
This process of blessing our homes, inviting the presence of God in, can be a powerful support as we spend increased time indoors both because of winter weather and Covid spread. It is my prayer that your house be a refuge in which you can find peace.
As we pray move towards Sunday let us pray
Sometimes God we seek for you and you are easy to find
Other times it is more difficult to see you.
In this season of epiphany
Give us eyes to see you at work today
Give us hearts that celebrate your presence
Give us lives that shine with your life into the world for others to see.
Amen.
1) Sunday January 9th – Worship
2) Office Hours
3) Brown Bag Lunch
4) 2022 Budget
5) Annual Committee Reports
6) FundScrip
7) Upper Room Daily Devotional
8) Faith in Action
1) Worship January 9, 2022
This week we will have Jordon Pond sharing his gift of song with us during the service. Please have a read through the below information
As we live into what it means to live into level 2 of the provinces Covid plan please note that there are a few added levels of protection/restrictions in place.
– The biggest shift will be only a soloist can sing
– Wearing a mask (that fits over your mouth and nose) will be required. Medical grade or double masking recommended
– While you can enter the Charlotte Street door if you are able it is preferable to enter the main sanctuary doors.
– Sanitize your hands when entering the church and have proof of vaccination ready
– Continue to maintain 2 meters distance from people not in your steady 10
– Know we are fortunate to have a capacity limit of 150, which means everyone who wants to attend from the congregation can.
As always, if you are not ready to join us in person, are traveling or feeling like you need to pull back, we hope to see you on Zoom https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86854718551 Passcode: 165090
2) Office Hours: Just a friendly reminder that the office hours are from 8am – 3pm Monday through Friday. Please note that Thursday is a big day in the office, if you could shift your business to another day, it would be appreciated. Thanks!
3) Brown Bag Lunch Program: Drink boxes are a priority in the New Year, as well as Proteins including canned meats (with flip tops), desserts (pudding, fruit cups), and granola bars for our brown bag lunch program. Drop off anytime during the week or on Sunday before worship. Thank you in advance for your generosity.
4) 2022 Budget: We are starting to prepare our new budget! We are looking to you for suggestions as to increasing our revenue! This will be crucial so we can budget our expenses when we have estimated budget revenue! Please contact me at 454-4628 or by email at rnaugler@bellaliant.net so we may receive YOUR VALUABLE INPUT!
5) Annual Committee Reports: If you are a committee chair, please forward your year-end reports to Meghan in the church office at stpaulsoffice@gmail.com
6) FundScrip: The next deadline will be February 6, 2022. Remember, shopping is fundraising for St. Paul’s. Since the start of the program about a year ago we raised over $1000.00. Think of the impact if more people participated in the program!
7) Upper Room Daily Devotional Start off the New Year right, spending a few moments with God every day. The January-February 2022 Upper Room Daily Devotional has arrived. The Upper Room is a short inspirational reading, with a suggested bible reading. It can be purchased for $2 in the Church office today!
8) Faith in Action – Would you be willing to bake a meal for someone? How about pick up some supplies? As we head into the winter and look at ways to support our faith community, these simple and profound acts of faith in action especially if someone is ill or find themselves in isolation because of COVID. If you would be willing to participate in these simple acts of service please give Meghan a call at 458-1183 so we can start developing a list of those willing to serve. If you would benefit from receiving some help please contact Rev. Michelle 259-7602 and we will see what we can do about matching you.