WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – November 1st – Fr. Thomas.

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WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – November 1st – Fr. Thomas.

Congratulations to the Los Angeles Dodgers on winning this year’s World Series.  Maybe the “Angels” were praying for them, in opposition to what we used to call the “Devil Rays.”  Who knows, but more importantly, this Sunday, November 1st we celebrate All Saints Day, one of the major feasts in the liturgical calendar.  This week, we submitted our order for next year’s liturgical calendar.   We recognize those saints who have made it into the “hall of fame,” but might not have a particular feast day of their own in the calendar.   Saints are those who make it easier for us to believe in God.  The calendar of saints allows us to walk through the Christian year step by step, one day at a time.  Think of a large picture gallery full of the works of the masters; as we stroll through the gallery, we stop and pause to catch more of the color, the light, and the shadow of each work of art.  A review of the saints demands that we walk slowly through the album, respecting the rich variety of those devout followers of Our Lord.  Even though it may take God some time, we are in the saint making business:  essentially, to make new Christians, and make Christians new!

We are all partners in the Kingdom of God. People may doubt what you say, but they’ll believe what you do.  The saints were all different, but all had one thing in common:  their love of God.   Yet, we are not to worship saints or try to copy them; but to celebrate saints, because God is glorified through them.  Saints are sinners who keep on going.  We can’t become holy by ourselves; but, the Good news is that we’re not alone.  Holiness comes looking for us.  Isn’t that the whole story of the Bible?  Look at whom Jesus called friends:  Peter, Mary Magdalene, John the Baptist.  All throughout the Bible we find ordinary people who did extra – ordinary things.  They were sinners who kept on going, citizens of another Kingdom, who marched to the beat of a different drummer.

It’s easy to assume that they had some special grace which is not available to us.  But, there’s no “St.” on a birth certificate.  And how do we learn?  Did anyone become better simply by reading a handbook on ethics?  No, it‘s the examples of courage which inspire us to a higher path.   To live in such a way that one’s life would not make sense, if God did not exist.  So, why were the saints, saints? Because they were cheerful when it was difficult to be cheerful, patient when it was difficult to be patient; because they pushed on when they wanted to stand still, and kept silent when they wanted to talk, and were agreeable when they wanted to be disagreeable. That was all. It was quite simple and always will be.  As the popular hymn reminds us; “For the saints of God are just folks like me, and I mean to be one too.”

 

NOTICES:

Video Viewing Options for Sunday’s mass – there are three different ways to view our videos: 1) our church website; 2) our Facebook page; and 3) our YouTube channel.  See the links listed below.

 

Opportunities for Giving – there are several options that safely and efficiently expedite your generous donations: electronic bank transfers or automatic bank transfers via personal accounts or credit/debit cards; personal checks delivered by USPS; and our favorite through joining our giving family online through our website or at  www.myEoffering.com with our secure vendor Church Envelope Budget Company, who provides you with yearly offering envelopes. Please do NOT leave any envelopes with checks/cash unattended at church mailboxes.

 

Sandwiches for St. George’s Outreach Project – Please continue to prepare sandwiches for St. George’s and bring them to St. David’s parking lot each Wednesday morning from 8:30 to 9:30 am. Thank you for your continued support!

 

School Supply Drive Outreach Project – August usually finds our parishioners looking for bargains on backpacks and other school supplies. For obvious reasons, that did not happen in 2020. I have spoken with the principal of Wynnebrook Elementary School and she has requested any help we can provide.  In order to keep our parishioners safe and still help the students and teachers, we will be providing items in bulk to the school.  If you wish to help, please send a check to me and I will order requested items in bulk and have them shipped directly to the school.  Thank you for any donation you are able to make! 💖 Joyce

Make checks payable to:             St. David’s in the Pines

Write: School Supplies in the Memo area

Mail checks to:                             Joyce Parker

104 Locust Lane

Royal Palm Beach, FL 33411

Questions?                                   Call me at 561-312-2719

Deadline:                                      Friday, November 6, 2020

 

Daylight Savings– Remember to change your clocks & your smoke detectors!

 

ECW meeting – Friday, November 13 at 11 am in the church to allow for social distancing.  Bring a sack lunch if you like and we will stay and have lunch together.  Linda will bring a dessert.  Help us plan our future and wrap up few loose ends.  Thanks. Linda

 

Holy Eucharist:

Sundays: 8 am & 10 am

Tuesdays: 8:30 am

Wednesday: Eucharistic Adoration: 6:00 pm

Wednesdays: 6:30 pm

 

Please Pray – For the sick: Ashlyn, Beth, Charlotte, Donna, Iliana, Jeanne, Jim, Joaquin, Kim.

For birthday celebrations: Zoe Chung, Julie Skinner, Jean-Rene Guillaume, Father Steven Thomas, Trevor Carter, Dennis South.

For anniversary celebrations: Jim & Sherry Richardson.

For our expectant mother: Mayoli.

Additional Links and Information

WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – October 25th – Fr. Thomas.

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WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – October 25th – Fr. Thomas.

Only one more week until the end of this year’s political campaign – thank goodness.  What happened to honesty and civility in our country?  Not just in political life, but in sports, entertainment, and our culture in general?  Several years ago the National Football League banned helmet to helmet tackling because of the long term consequential brain damage inflicted on the players.  Some defensive players complained, (maybe they should have saved the complaining for their neurologists!)   Professional football is not alone in excesses of abusive behavior – hockey and kick boxing immediately come to mind.

What happened to courtesy and manners in society?  I don’t mean the correct use of cutlery or proper wine pairings; I mean treating people, even those with whom we disagree, with respect and decency.  A recent survey revealed something that’s not news to anyone in South Florida:   among all the drivers in America, (yes, you guessed it) Southeast Florida leads the country in rudest drivers!  If political candidates want to invoke religion on the one hand, or diminish its influence in personal or public life, perhaps they should listen to Abraham Lincoln (Kentucky boy who made good) who said, “I’m not as concerned about God being on my side, as I am knowing that I am on His side.”

I encourage you to use this prayer from our Prayer Book, page 820, written by The Rev. Lyman Locke, one time Rector of St. Michael’s Church in Bristol, R.I. (where I served my first three years as a new priest.)

Almighty God, who hast given us this good land for our heritage: We humbly beseech thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of thy favor and glad to do thy will.  Bless our land with honorable industry, sound learning, and pure manners.  Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in thy Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that, through obedience to thy law, we may show forth thy praise among the nations of the earth. In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in thee to fail; all which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

 

NOTICES:

Video Viewing Options for Sunday’s mass – there are three different ways to view our videos: 1) our church website; 2) our Facebook page; and 3) our YouTube channel.  See the links listed below.

 

Opportunities for Giving – there are several options that safely and efficiently expedite your generous donations: electronic bank transfers or automatic bank transfers via personal accounts or credit/debit cards; personal checks delivered by USPS; and our favorite through joining our giving family online through our website or at  www.myEoffering.com with our secure vendor Church Envelope Budget Company, who provides you with yearly offering envelopes. Please do NOT leave any envelopes with checks/cash unattended at church mailboxes.

 

Sandwiches for St. George’s Outreach Project – Please continue to prepare sandwiches for St. George’s and bring them to St. David’s parking lot each Wednesday morning from 8:30 to 9:30 am. Thank you for your continued support!

 

School Supply Drive Outreach Project – August usually finds our parishioners looking for bargains on backpacks and other school supplies. For obvious reasons, that did not happen in 2020. I have spoken with the principal of Wynnebrook Elementary School and she has requested any help we can provide.  In order to keep our parishioners safe and still help the students and teachers, we will be providing items in bulk to the school.  If you wish to help, please send a check to me and I will order requested items in bulk and have them shipped directly to the school.  Thank you for any donation you are able to make! 💖 Joyce

Make checks payable to:             St. David’s in the Pines

Write: School Supplies in the Memo area

Mail checks to:                             Joyce Parker

104 Locust Lane

Royal Palm Beach, FL 33411

Questions?                                   Call me at 561-312-2719

Deadline:                                      Friday, November 6, 2020

 

Holy Eucharist:

Sundays: 8 am & 10 am

Tuesdays: 8:30 am

Wednesdays: 6:30 pm

 

Please Pray – For the sick: Ashlyn, Charlotte, Donna, Iliana, Jeanne, Jim, Joaquin, Kim.

For birthday celebrations: Henry Marshall, Callie Hawk, Fay Ishmael, Iann McCree.

For our expectant mother: Mayoli.

Additional Links and Information

Video Mass – Twentieth Sunday Mass after Pentecost

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WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – October 18th – Fr. Thomas.

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WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – October 18th – Fr. Thomas.

At a Super Bowl game, there was a vacant seat next to a woman sitting by herself.  After three quarters, the man behind her asked, “Why is that seat empty?”  She replied, “That was my late husband’s seat.”  The man asked, “Weren’t there any family or friends who could have taken his seat?”  The woman replied, “Yes, but they all chose to attend his funeral!”

The past month and a half have seen championship finals in a variety of sports which were postponed due to the pandemic. The Kentucky Derby, normally run on the first Saturday of May, was postponed to the first Saturday in September.  Likewise, the NBA playoffs, Stanley Cup Hockey playoffs, Tennis and Golf Championships, Baseball World Series all coinciding with the beginning of the fall Football season, on top of all that.  It’s a busy time for sports enthusiasts.

St. Paul writes, “We run the race that is set before us, persevering to win the prize of the upward call.”  In this competitive world of ours, the Church may be the only institution who puts out the welcome mat to “all sorts and conditions of men and women.”  Yes, we are winners, only in that we have been made righteous by the grace of God.  But if we never make it to the starting gate, or step up to the plate, we can’t expect great things to happen either.  God wants us to use His ministries of grace.  Even though during the pandemic, while opportunities of service and evangelism may seem to be limited, we are still called upon to be agents of love and mercy, whether it’s praying, supporting of our ministry here, or learning how to grow in grace in new and various ways.  So what’s stopping us from becoming “varsity players” on God’s team?  Remember, God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called.

 

NOTICES:

 

Video Viewing Options for Sunday’s mass – there are three different ways to view our videos: 1) our church website; 2) our Facebook page; and 3) our YouTube channel.  See the links listed below.

 

Opportunities for Giving – there are several options that safely and efficiently expedite your generous donations: electronic bank transfers or automatic bank transfers via personal accounts or credit/debit cards; personal checks delivered by USPS; and our favorite through joining our giving family online through our website or at  www.myEoffering.com with our secure vendor Church Envelope Budget Company, who provides you with yearly offering envelopes. Please do NOT leave any envelopes with checks/cash unattended at church mailboxes.

 

Sandwiches for St. George’s Outreach Project – Please continue to prepare sandwiches for St. George’s and bring them to St. David’s parking lot each Wednesday morning from 8:30 to 9:30 am. Thank you for your continued support!

 

School Supply Drive Outreach Project – August usually finds our parishioners looking for bargains on backpacks and other school supplies. For obvious reasons, that did not happen in 2020. I have spoken with the principal of Wynnebrook Elementary School and she has requested any help we can provide.  In order to keep our parishioners safe and still help the students and teachers, we will be providing items in bulk to the school.  If you wish to help, please send a check to me and I will order requested items in bulk and have them shipped directly to the school.  Thank you for any donation you are able to make! 💖 Joyce

Make checks payable to:             St. David’s in the Pines

Write: School Supplies in the Memo area

Mail checks to:                             Joyce Parker

104 Locust Lane

Royal Palm Beach, FL 33411

Questions?                                   Call me at 561-312-2719

Deadline:                                      Friday, November 6, 2020

 

Holy Eucharist:   Sundays: 8 am & 10 am

 

Please Pray – For the sick: Ashlyn, Charlotte, Donna, Iliana, Jeanne, Jim, Joaquin, Kim.

For birthday celebrations: Yvonne Wolliston, Aaron Harvey-Chung, Violet Henry.

For anniversary celebrations: Everald & Phyllis Thomas.

For our expectant mother: Mayoli.

Additional Links and Information

WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – October 11th – Fr. Thomas.

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WEEKLY MESSAGE – October 11th
The Church is open for “live” worships on Sundays at 8 & 10 am. Please note the guidelines below, which the Diocese is requiring to be followed for all in-person worship.
  • If you feel sick in any way or have any of the symptoms for COVID-19, please do not come to church.
  • All attendees must sign the register book – one family member can list all the members.
  • Those who live in the same household will be permitted to sit together in the same pew; but social distance from other attendees in alternate pews which will be set apart in advance.
  • Hand sanitizers will be available in the Narthex, and we ask that you use them, or your own, when you arrive at Church.
  • Facemasks must always be worn while in church.
  • There will be no physical sign of peace exchanged, at this time – except amongst family members.
  • The line for the reception of Holy Communion will follow appropriate distancing, as marked on the floor.
  • The Eucharist will be given in one kind in the hand only. We ask that you kindly keep your mask on as you receive Communion. Then step to the side, lift your mask, and consume the wafer before putting your mask back on and returning to your seat
  • Collection plates will be placed in the back of the church for your convenience – the plates will not be passed during Mass.
  • The Church building will be appropriately sanitized before and between Masses, as well as the restrooms.
RECTOR’S MESSAGE – Fr. Thomas.
A man was sleeping one night in his cabin when suddenly his room filled with light and God appeared.  The Lord told the man he had work for him to do, and showed him a large rock out in front of his cabin.  The Lord explained that the man was to push against the rock with all his might. So, this he did, day after day.  For many years he toiled from sun up to sundown, his shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing with all his might! Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain. Seeing that the man was showing discouragement, the Adversary decided to enter the picture by placing thoughts into his weary mind. “You have been pushing against that rock for a long time and it hasn’t moved.”  Thus, he gave the man the impression that the task was impossible and that he was a failure.  These thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man. Satan said, “Why kill yourself over this?  You tried.  Quit wasting your time and move on.” That’s what the weary man planned to do, but decided to make it a matter of prayer and to take the troubled thoughts to the Lord.
“Lord,” he said, “I have labored long and hard in Your service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked.  Yet, after all this time, I have not even budged that rock by a millimeter.  What is wrong?  What am I failing?” The Lord responded compassionately, “My child, when I asked you to serve Me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all of your strength, which you have done.  Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it.  Your task was to push.  And now you come to Me with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. But is that really so?  Look at yourself.  Your arms are strong and muscled, your back shiny and brown, your hands are callused from constant pressure, your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition you have grown much, and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have.  True, you haven’t moved the rock.  But your calling was to be obedient, to push and to exercise your faith and trust in My wisdom.  That you have done.  Now I, my child, will move the rock.”
OK, so maybe we can’t move mountains, especially when life doesn’t always “go our way,” but we can with an obedient faith move “mountains” with God’s help.  Who knows what we can accomplish as long as we continue to PUSH.  (Pray Until Something Happens!!)  Because “He who fails is not the one who tries and falls, but the one who doesn’t try at all.”
NOTICES:
Video Viewing Options – there are three different ways to view our videos: 1) our church website; 2) our Facebook page; and 3) our YouTube channel.  See the links listed below.
Opportunities for Giving – there are several options that safely and efficiently expedite your generous donations: electronic bank transfers or automatic bank transfers via personal accounts or credit/debit cards; personal checks delivered by USPS; and our favorite through joining our giving family online through our website or at  www.myEoffering.com with our secure vendor Church Envelope Budget Company, who provides you with yearly offering envelopes. Please do NOT leave any envelopes with checks/cash unattended at church mailboxes.
Sandwiches for St. George’s Outreach Project – Please continue to prepare sandwiches for St. George’s and bring them to St. David’s parking lot each Wednesday morning from 8:30 to 9:30 am. Thank you for your continued support!
Holy Eucharist: Tuesdays 8:30 am
                           Wednesdays: 6:30 pm
Please Pray – For the sick: Ashlyn, Charlotte, Donna, Eddie, Kim, Jeanne, Jim, Joaquin, Marie, Natalie.
For birthday celebrations:  Ampy Calatayud, Jean DeLeon, Joanna Morlu, Judy Bennett, Laurie Cohen, Theo Falco.
For anniversary celebrations: Robert & Theresa Falotico.
For our expectant mother: Mayoli.
Additional Links and Information