The story goes that while Robert Smith was taking his afternoon walk – part of his therapy in recovering from a massive heart attack – the phone rang and his wife, Delores, answered. The call was from the Reader’s Digest Association Sweepstakes in New York. They were calling to inform the Smith Family that Robert had just won $1,500,000 and that in a few days the certified check would be arriving. Well, as you can imagine, Delores was absolutely ecstatic – now all those dreams would come true!

But then, she remembered that her husband’s doctor had encouraged her to be careful of anything too exciting which would give him another heart attack. What would she do? After some thought, she decided to call their local pastor for advice. He agreed and came to visit Robert and Delores. After a few minutes of chatting, the pastor leaned toward Bob and said, “Bob, I’ve got a problem and need your advice.” “Sure,” said, Bob, “I’d be glad to help.” The pastor took a deep breath and said, “What would a person, like yourself, do if all of a sudden you found out you had won a million and a half dollars? What would you do with the money?” “That’s easy,” Bob replied, “I’d give half of it to the church.” Whereupon, the pastor had a heart attack!

OK; I think I could handle this sort of news with a little more caution; but no less excitement and gratitude. On behalf of the Vestry, I’d like to thank in advance those who are willing and able to support the life and witness of our parish. Fund Raisers are useful, but are no substitute for diligent and consistent giving to insure the continuation of the ministries of grace we’ve been entrusted with here at St. David’s. “Without God, we cannot, and without us He will not.”

—-

Sunday’s Worship – We are open for live worship on Sundays at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. We also “live-stream” our 10 a.m. service.

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 https://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: Beginning this week, please note we will be collecting sandwiches on Wednesdays instead of Thursdays. Please bring your sandwiches to St. David’s west side parking lot each Wednesday morning from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. We will also be collecting soup and other nonperishable items for St. Georges with our annual “Souper Bowl” through February 13th. Once we know the teams we will label the boxes but for now we just want to collect as much as we can.

Hospitality Hour is scheduled after the 10:00 a.m. service – Hosted by Congregation. Please bring your favorite dish or beverage.

Plant Trimming: We will have a trimming session on Saturday, February 5th starting at 9:00 a.m. We need many hands to trim the shrubs and plants on the property. Please join us and bring tools that you have so we can get the property spruced up before Lent. Thank you. Linda McKeown.

Bunco continues on Saturday, February 12th, at 6:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall.  Loads of fun and super easy for newcomers!  The more the merrier, so please bring a friend, a bite to share, and your favorite beverage!  Cash prizes awarded – even if you lose!  $10 per person.

Altar Flowers and Candles: We will have a bag on the credenza to collect all flower and candle donations for upcoming Sundays. If you would like to donate for altar flowers for memorials and celebrations, please put your check for $40 with a request showing the date you want altar flowers and the reason for your donation into the bag. If you want to donate candles, please put your check for $20 and request showing date and reason for donation. Do not put flower and candle requests in offering plates.

Sunday School is back in operation with the necessary protocols in place.

Forward Day by Day brochures are now available in the narthex. Donation $3.00

Tuesdays: Holy Eucharist 8:30 a.m.
Wednesdays: Holy Eucharist and Rosary 6:30 p.m.

PLEASE PRAY: For the sick: Alice, Baldwin, Barbara, Beth, Carol, Carolyn, Donna, Doris, Doug, Edna, Grace, Jacob, James, Jayden, Jeanne, Jill, Joaquin, Kenzie, Manuel, Michael, Miguel, Mike, Parker, Patricia, Sharon, Susan, Violet, William. For birthday celebrations: Maeve Blodgett, Kevan Bennett, Yvonne Wright, James McKeown, Rohan Wolliston. For anniversary celebration: Desmond and Ann Chambers. For our expectant mothers: Ana and Ryan.

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzWRA9VxChBQd5l6rf3kF3A

Father Smith complemented Farmer Jones on keeping such a beautiful garden and tried to give God praise for being so good to Farmer Jones, who replied, “Ha! You should have seen this place when God had it all to Himself!”

Well, we know that it’s a “team effort,” and the Good News is that we’re not in this walk of life alone. So, I’ll share some encouraging words from St. Paul in his letter to the Philippians (4:13) “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Moreover, we learn over time that the road to success is not straight. There is a curve called Failure, a loop called Confusion, speed bumps called Friends, red lights called Enemies, caution lights called Family. You will have flats called Jobs, however, if you have a spare called Determination, an engine called Perseverance, insurance called Faith, and a driver called Jesus, you will make it to a place called Success – which we know as Heaven!

—-

Sunday’s Worship – We are open for live worship on Sundays at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. We also “live-stream” our 10 a.m. service.

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 https://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: No collection of sandwiches this week.

Hospitality Hour is scheduled after the 10:00 a.m. service – Hosted by Daughters of the King.

Bunco continues on Saturday, January 29th, at 6:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall. Loads of fun and super easy for newcomers! The more the merrier, so please bring a friend, a bite to share, and your favorite beverage! Cash prizes awarded – even if you lose! $10 per person.

Tree Trimming: We will have a trimming session on Saturday, February 5th starting at 9:00 a.m. We need many hands to trim the shrubs and plants on the property. Please join us and bring tools that you have so we can get the property spruced up before Lent. Thank you. Linda McKeown.

Altar Flowers and Candles: We will have a bag on the credenza to collect all flower and candle donations for upcoming Sundays. If you would like to donate for altar flowers for memorials and celebrations, please put your check for $40 with a request showing the date you want altar flowers and the reason for your donation into the bag. If you want to donate candles, please put your check for $20 and request showing date and reason for donation. Do not put flower and candle requests in offering plates.

Sunday School is back in operation with the necessary protocols in place.

Forward Day by Day brochures are now available in the narthex. Donation $3.00

Tuesdays: Holy Eucharist 8:30 a.m.
Wednesdays: Holy Eucharist and Rosary 6:30 p.m.

PLEASE PRAY: For the sick: Alice, Baldwin, Barbara, Beth, Carol, Carolyn, Donna, Doug, Edna, Grace, Jacob, James, Jayden, Jeanne, Jill, Joaquin, Kenzie, Manuel, Michael, Miguel, Mike, Parker, Patricia, Sharon, Susan, Violet, William. For birthday celebrations: Carly LaBorde, Dennis Amiel, Diana Firestone, Tanya Low, Millicent Thompson. For anniversary celebrations: Tom and Joyce Parker. For our expectant mothers: Ana and Ryan.

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzWRA9VxChBQd5l6rf3kF3A

So, another year is upon us. For most folks, 2021 is a year we won’t forget. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could simply hit the “pause” or “re-wind” button in our life? Start off with a clean slate. The Good News is that God has provided a way to start over. St. Paul writes to the Corinthians that “Those who are in Christ are a new creation.” He goes on to say, “I haven’t already achieved perfection but I keep working toward that day and strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which Jesus calls us to heaven.”

January 6th was the Feast of the Epiphany. The Wise Men who visited Bethlehem must have been surprised to find the new-born king not in a palace but in a stable! Following stars and finding stables are common occurrences in life. Who hasn’t at some time fixed his or her gaze on some lofty star that leads us in a totally unexpected direction? A college graduate leaves school full of dreams and expectations only to wake up one day and discover a life of drudgery which they promised to avoid. A recent retiree discovers that life without work isn’t what it’s “cracked up” to be. What enables people of every age to turn their “stables” into sanctuaries? All share one thing in common; they looked for God in the stable. Who would have faulted the Wise Men if they’d turned around in disappointment and went back to their comfortable lives in Persia? And yet, their lives were transformed forever. Nothing would ever be the same, as their faith made them return by “another road.”

2022 will probably provide its share of joys and disappointments. If we look for God’s purpose in life and give our best efforts to God, we might find that we too are led in a new direction. As we journey forth on a daily basis, let us go by another way, because the saints in every age found the faith to turn the world upside down when they followed a star and found a stable.

—-

Sunday’s Worship – We are open for live worship on Sundays at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. We also “live-stream” our 10 a.m. service.

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 https://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: Please bring your sandwiches to St. David’s west side parking lot each Thursday morning from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Hospitality Hour is scheduled after the 10:00 a.m. service – Hosted by the Congregation. Please bring a dish or dessert to share.

The Annual Parish Meeting is postponed until Sunday, January 16th at 9 a.m. in the parish hall. New Vestry members will be elected, financial information for this past year will be presented and reports from various ministries will be presented.

Shop with Scrip: Gift card fundraising is the best way to raise money. Start giving back to St. David’s the moment you buy a gift card with the RaiseRight mobile app today! You can join the program by downloading the app on your phone or go to www.ShopWithScrip.com on your computer. The enrollment code to set up your free family account is BB6656B177722. For more information, please pick up a flyer in the narthex, or email Kimberly Joy Castellotti-Ward at choiceplusrealestate@gmail.com

Altar Flowers and Candles: We will have a bag on the credenza to collect all flower and candle donations for upcoming Sundays. If you would like to donate for altar flowers for memorials and celebrations, please put your check for $40 with a request showing the date you want altar flowers and the reason for your donation into the bag. If you want to donate candles, please put your check for $20 and request showing date and reason for donation. Do not put flower and candle requests in offering plates.

Sunday School – no Sunday School this week.

No weekday mass next week.

PLEASE PRAY: For the sick: Alice, Baldwin, Barbara, Beth, Carol, Carolyn, Donna, Doug, Edna, Grace, Jacob, James, Jayden, Jeanne, Jill, Joaquin, Julian, Kenzie, Manuel, Michael, Miguel, Mike, Parker, Patricia, Sharon, Susan, Violet, William. For birthday celebrations: Tracy Jackowski, Marie Hogan, David Whiting, Glenn Bresnahan, Linda McKeown, Franklin Montross IV, Tiffany Owen, Theodore L’Abbe, Alexandria Philistin, Margie Sandell. For our expectant mothers: Ana, Priya and Ryan.

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzWRA9VxChBQd5l6rf3kF3A

During the Pandemic, I suspect that people are staying at home more than before, and watching more television to pass the time away. Having said that, I’ll share a paraphrase borrowed from an anonymous writer.

The TV is my shepherd, I shall not want.
It makes me lie down on the sofa. It ravishes my soul.
It leads me away from the Scriptures, for the sponsor’s sake.
Yea, though I walk in the shadow of my responsibilities, there will be no interruptions; for the TV is with me.
It’s cable and it’s remote control they comfort me,
It prepares a commercial before me in the presence of my worldliness.
It plants lies within my mind. It anoints my head with materialism.
My coveting runneth over.
Surely laziness and ignorance shall follow me all the days of my life.
And I shall dwell in the house of TV forever.

—-

Sunday’s Worship – We are open for live worship on Sundays at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. We also “live-stream” our 10 a.m. service.

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 https://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: Please bring your sandwiches to St. David’s west side parking lot each Thursday morning from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Hospitality Hour is scheduled after the 10:00 a.m. service – Hosted by the Daughters of the King.

The Live Nativity, one of our oldest traditions at St. David’s, will be held tonight, Dec 17th at 6 p.m., 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. Everyone is invited to come and see the display this evening.

Church cleaning and decorating. We need volunteers from the men of the church to help set up the Christmas trees and get decorations out of the attic starting at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 18th. We also need volunteers from the women to clean and decorate for Christmas from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 18th. Please contact Linda McKeown at 561-254-3902

Sunday School is back in operation with the necessary protocols in place.

Tuesdays: Holy Eucharist 8:30 a.m.
Wednesdays: Holy Eucharist and Rosary 6:30 p.m.
Friday, December 24: Christmas Eve 7:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m.
Saturday, December 25: Christmas Day 10:00 a.m.

PLEASE PRAY: For the sick: Alice, Baldwin, Barbara, Beth, Carol, Carolyn, Donna, Doug, Edna, Ginny, Grace, Jacob, James, Jayden, Jeanne, Jill, Joaquin, Kenzie, Manuel, Max, Michael, Miguel, Mike, Parker, Patricia, Sharon, Susan, William. For the departed: Michael Simpson, Angel Diaz. For birthday celebrations: Elyssa Beresford, Eli Carter, Neville Tinglin, Marilyn Perakos, Sherry Richardson, William Jackowski III, Allison Owen, Megan Jacques. For our expectant mothers: Ana, Meghan, Priya and Ryan.

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzWRA9VxChBQd5l6rf3kF3A

We learn something new every day! A Canadian scientist explains why geese flying South for the winter fly in a “V” formation. As each bird flaps his or her wings, it creates uplift for the bird immediately following it. By flying in a “V” formation, the whole flock can fly at least 71% farther than if on its own. Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it feels the resistance of trying to go it alone and quickly gets back into formation.

When the goose gets tired, it rotates back in the wing and another goose flies on the point. It pays to take turns doing hard jobs for the group. The geese honk from behind to encourage those up front. Finally, (get this!) when a goose weakens or is wounded and falls out of the formation, two geese fall out and follow him down to help and protect him. They stay with him until he is able to fly no longer, at which point the two geese set out on their own and join another formation.

If we have as much sense as a goose, we will work with others who are going the same way as we are. Encouraging, standing by, and taking our turn at the difficult jobs are all part of what it takes to make a winning team. Even though we have fewer activities and group meetings during the Pandemic, as we approach this Christmas season, we are encouraged to show our gratitude and $upport of St. David’s ministries. God only expects us to do what we can: “For without Him we cannot, and without us, He will not.”

—-

Sunday’s Worship – We are open for live worship on Sundays at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. We also “live-stream” our 10 a.m. service.

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 https://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: Please bring your sandwiches to St. David’s west side parking lot each Thursday morning from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Hospitality Hour is scheduled after the 10:00 a.m. service – Hosted by the Vestry.

Stockings for Stars Christmas Project: We are collecting cash and checks for the Stockings for Stars gift cards each Sunday. For more information, please contact Joyce Parker at 561-312-2719.

Christmas Flowers: We are collecting donations of $25.00 for Christmas flowers starting this week. Please fill in a form, and leave it in the plate. The deadline is December 15th.

Bunco continues on Saturday, December 11th, at 6:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall. Loads of fun and super easy for newcomers! The more the merrier, so please bring a friend, a bite to share, and your favorite beverage! Cash prizes awarded – even if you lose! $10 per person.

Church cleaning and decorating. We need volunteers from the men of the church to help set up the Christmas trees and get decorations out of the attic starting at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 11th. We also need volunteers from the women to clean and decorate for Christmas from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 18th. Please contact Linda McKeown at 561-254-3902

The Live Nativity, one of our oldest traditions at St. David’s, will be held on Sunday, December 19th, at 6 p.m., 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. Everyone is invited to come and see the display that evening, but we also need volunteers of all ages to be in the display. To volunteer or get more information, call or text Jenifer Elmore at 561-601-3346 at your earliest opportunity.

Sunday School is back in operation with the necessary protocols in place.

Tuesdays: Holy Eucharist 8:30 a.m.
Wednesdays: Holy Eucharist and Rosary 6:30 p.m.

PLEASE PRAY: For the sick: Alice, Assad, Baldwin, Barbara, Beth, Carol, Carolyn, Donna, Doug, Ginny, Grace, Jacob, Jayden, Jeanne, Norma Jo-Jo, Joaquin, Kenzie, Manuel, Max, Michael, Miguel, Mike, Parker, Patricia, Susan, Violet, William. For birthday celebrations: Hanna Gardner, Nicholas Webber. For our expectant mothers: Ana, Meghan, Priya and Ryan.

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzWRA9VxChBQd5l6rf3kF3A