A THANKSGIVING PRAYER FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY

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1 The Newsletter of St. George s Episcopal Church The Banner A THANKSGIVING PRAYER FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY May God continue to richly bless you with His love. And may you be so thankful, you are led to share His love with others. Thanksgiving Prayer for the Gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12) With a prayerful spirit in praise and thanksgiving, let us thank the Lord for the talents, gifts, and abilities which have been given to each of us. Each of us is unique in the special way God made us with the special gifts that God gave us. We are different in our gifts, but we share a common belief in God s goodness and loving kindness. Help us to maximize our strengths and minimize our weaknesses. Help us to turn our focus from what we have been given to what we can do with what we have been given. Help us to accept ourselves just as we are just as God made us. Help us to see that what we are is God s gift to us. Help us to understand that if we are dissatisfied with what we are, if we deny our value, if we fail to recognize our gifts, we are refusing to accept God s gift to us - we are not accepting that God knows more about this than we do. May each of us be thankful for all the many blessings which we have and may we continue to turn to our Lord with those things for which we find it difficult to give thanks. Help us to see our failures not as a measure of our worth, but as a chance for a new beginning. Help us to see the coincidences in our lives and to thank God for them. (A coincidence is a small miracle in which God wishes to remain anonymous.) May we each find in our Lord the peace and joy that go far beyond our understanding. May we always feel the strength of God s arm around us; the warmth of God s hand on us; the love of God s heart in us; and the power of God s presence working through us. Amen. CONTENTS Treasurer s Report 2 Search Committee 2 Christian Formation 3 Properties Report 4 Prayers 5 Parish Life 5 Birthdays/Anniversaries 5 Readings 5 Upcoming Events 6 Calendar 7 Click here to hear past sermons from Rev. Kathie. The Reverend Dr. Kathleen Vermillion Price Published in The Royal Cross Magazine, Fall, 1991

2 I shared this prayer with you in June. However, perhaps it bears repeating. This month is when we are encouraged to be more intentional about giving thanks. Actually, we give thanks every Sunday in our Eucharist, which means giving thanks. Since I wrote the above, a lot of storms have blown up in my own life as I am sure that they have in yours! There are a lot of things I would like to leave out - fire, flood, broken relationships, death and destruction. But it is all a part of life. I invite you to give the prayer I wrote many years ago some serious thought. Think about the gifts for which you can be thankful. Think about the things that you would like to leave out. Turn them over to God and let them go! May this Thanksgiving find each of us truly grateful for all of God s gifts and better able to recognize the holy in the ordinary events in our lives reminding us that God is with us always in triumph and in tragedy, in good times and in challenging ones. I personally am grateful for the time I have with you. You are a welcoming and spirit filled congregation that it is a pleasure to work with and for! May God continue to richly bless you and your loved ones during this time of Thanksgiving! Faithfully, Reverend Kathie+ Treasurer Carlyle Gravely With the completion of the St. George s Bazaar / Craft Fair November 4 th, followed by the Fall Back to Standard Time the next day and the state and local elections on November 7 th, we know we re approaching the end of the calendar year. Hopefully all of you have been thinking about your pledge and prayerfully considering God s many gifts to you as you consider your response to our annual stewardship campaign. The response to the various other stewardship programs we have done this year has been encouraging and I hope that will carry over to your response when you complete your 2018 pledge. This year s pledge program will be one of the most important we have done in the past several years with the changes that we will be working through in the New Year. Shifting gears from planning for next year back to reporting on this year, you continued our strong trend of financial support of your parish. In September, we received $14,430 in our operating account and spent $10,229. For the yearto-date, we have net operating income of $ 36,673, which puts us close to what we expected as a surplus at the end of the year. The actual numbers: We have received 76.3% of what we expect for the year and have spent 69.8%. Pledge receipts through September were $110,607 and total operating receipts were $130,149. Operating expenses through September were $93,476. Remember, that these numbers do not include the designated gifts that have been made, primarily for St. George s response to the hurricanes in Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and other special offerings. They also do not include the expenditures for the repair work done on our parking lot, sealing and restriping the surface or for the new computers that we have purchased. Just as I do each month, I urge those of you who pledge to keep your pledge up to date. I also urge those of you who do not yet pledge to pray about your commitment to the ministry of St. George s both for the balance of 2017 and as we look ahead to We need your help to do the work our Lord is calling on us to do in Denbigh, in Southern Virginia, in the United States and in the world. If you want further information about the Church s finances, please contact Treasurer Carlyle Gravely. Search Committee Kathy Zinskie The Search Committee has received 19 candidate names for us to prayerfully consider as possible interviews for a priest. Some of these are located very far away and won t be considered due to moving expenses. However, there are several that are interesting. We will meet Wednesday, November 1 to pour over each candidate s resume together. Before this meeting, we will have considered each one individually to be well-prepared for discussion. Please keep the Search Committee in your prayers as we seek to do God s work for St. George s. 2

3 Christian Formation Lisa Adams By the time this newsletter is published, we have already enjoyed Movie Time after the service on Sunday, October 29 th. The movie, The Ultimate Gift, is the story of a young man who is given an unusual inheritance that leads him on a journey to learn the real meaning of wealth. Many thanks to those who contributed to the lunch, set up and enjoyment of the movie! My hope is that the engaging message of this movie will stir hearts to be generous with the many blessings that God has provided. For those who did not get to see the movie, you might be able to convince Rev. Price to let you borrow it but there could be a hefty fee for not returning it! Youth Events for remainder of the year: Sunday, November 26 th Wreath Making Party (following the service) Youth and adults welcome to participate Church will provide supplies (small fee for adults who want to make a wreath) Sunday, December 24 Happy Birthday Jesus! Following 6pm Christmas Eve Service Youth will participate in an interactive nativity sermon Birthday party following the service Opportunities for Christian Formation Adult Forum The Adult Forum meets in Gravely Hall (last room on left past the bathrooms) on Sunday mornings at 9AM. Barbara Shipes is the group facilitator, but others take this role when Barbara is unable to be present. Using the Episcopal curriculum Living the Good News, the class explores each week s lessons from the lectionary. As Barbara says, no one has the answers. We question, discuss and explore the readings. We are a safe group the discussion is open to everyone and everyone is free to speak their opinion. We don t always agree, and that is how we learn. All adults are invited to participate - no matter where they are in their spiritual formation or their level of Biblical knowledge. 3

4 Opportunities for Christian Formation Continued Weekly Bible Study Rev. Kathie facilitates weekly studies on Wednesdays at 2PM. So far, the group has studied the lives of the saints and are now focusing on the Minor Prophets. There is homework, so be prepared! Daughters of the King Daughters of the King is an order of women in the Episcopal Church (also Roman Catholic, Lutheran, and Anglican churches) who take vows by reaffirming their promises made at Baptism and Confirmation, pledging themselves to a life-long program of prayer, service and evangelism. Support in this commitment comes from a worldwide community of like-minded women. The St. Monica Chapter at St. George s was chartered in 1990, and currently has 7 members who meet on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month. They maintain a prayer list that is updated at meetings. At this time, Rev. Kathie is leading them in a discussion of the Book of Esther. They enjoy the fellowship of the group and welcome any woman who is interested in Daughters to attend a meeting. In November, they will meet on the 14 th and the 28 th at 10 AM in The Room. Cursillo Cursillo is a spiritual leadership development movement in the Roman Catholic and Episcopal Church. Called a short course in Christianity, Cursillo is intended to help Christians learn and live out what is fundamental about being a Christian. It starts with a 3-day weekend conducted by lay people with 2 or 3 members of the clergy to serve as spiritual advisors. Cursillo is intended to enrich and deepen faith. It is not a conversion experience. The 3-day weekend is not an end in itself. It is a starting point that lasts throughout a lifetime the 4 th Day. Episcopalians interested in making a Cursillo weekend should talk to their priest, or a member of their congregation who is a Cursillista (person who has attended the weekend). The list of St. George s Cursillistas is on the Cursillo bulletin board in Gravely Hall. Cursillo in the Diocese of Southern Virginia is held at Chanco on the James twice a year. The next weekend will be April 19-22, Properties Kathy Zinskie With the leaves beginning to fall, our Leaf Raking Team (everyone!) is invited to rake/blow leaves at the church on Saturday, December 9 with a rain date of Saturday, December 16. Please mark your calendars we have giant oak trees with lots of leaves!!! Coffee and donuts will be provided at 8:30 AM with leaf raking commencing at 9 AM. If you have them, please bring rakes, blowers and tarps. Looking forward to seeing everyone! 4

5 We lift in prayer Judith, Vivian, Winston, Lacy, Linell, Vincent, Henrietta, Adolfo, Gloria, Allen, Sandy, Ruth, Ashby, Connie, Brenda, Leif, Holly, Yvonne, Cathy, Imani, Joe, Megan, Marsha, Rick, Brian, Steve, Michael, Carlyle, Delia, Antonio, Marcela, Jean, Lynne, Verdi, Kelly, Mary Ann, Sarah, Jackie, Deania, Vickie, Ross IV, Cookie, Nina Our Military: Eduardo, Juan, Lisa, Joe, Jayson, Jason, Joshua, Zack, Ashley If you would like a name added to our Prayer List, phone or the church office. Parish Life Wally Johnson *Invitation to serve as Coffee Hour Host/Hostess* is always open and our budget shows that we have only spent percent of our allowable funds for the year so far as of August. Reason is, gracious hosts like yourself have used out of pocket money to be the host/hostess almost every Sunday. However, this is not restricted to just a select few people. If you have the time, talent and treasure, please join in with us. A Big Thank You to all who continue to make our Coffee Hour a success each and every Sunday. November 2 November 3 November 7 November 7 November 9 November 9 November 13 November 17 November 21 November 26 November Birthdays David Adams Jean Hartert Cornell Phillips Sarah Thurmond Carlyle Gravely Rachel Brunt Loren Fitzpatrick Joan Bonnett Bill Englert Heather Winall November Anniversaries November 30 Larry & Sharon Minter 5

6 upcoming EVENTS and reminders October Stewardship Collection We need shoes, coats, and underwear please. Daylight Savings Time November 5 Food Basket Sunday November 12 Don t forget to bring nonperishable items for our food drive. All items will be donated to THRIVE. Pledge Sunday November 12 Vestry Meeting and Dinner November 15 The vestry will meet at 6:30 p.m. for dinner followed by a meeting at 7 p.m. Weekly Word: 9 AM Wednesdays (stgeorgenn@gmail.com) A Note from Oneita Thank you to all of the folks who filled in while I was in VA Beach and a special thanks to Cathie Klute who kept everything going both while I was out and assisting me every day in the office while my arm was in a sling. I'm so blessed to work in a place with such loving caring people. Everyone should love their job as much as I do. God's love and peace to each of you. ----Your Peninsula Ultreya November 18 sister in Christ, Oneita. November 1 November 5 November 12 6 PM potluck All Saints followed Dayby Pentecost 22 Pentecost 23 Ultreya at 6:45 PM at P.S. There will be more Emmanuel Revelation Church in 7: Hampton. Joshua volunteer 3:7-17 Joshua 24:1-3a, opportunities...i go on Healing Prayer 9-17 Psalm 107: jury duty, Black November Psalm 19 34: 1-7,33-37 Psalm 78: , 22 1 Thessalonians Friday...Here's hoping I 1 John 3:1-3 don't 2:9-13 get a case. Matthew DEADLINES 5:1-12 Matthew Thessalonians 4:13-18 Matthew 25: 1-13 November 19 Pentecost 24 Judges 4:1-7 Psalm Thessalonians 5:1-11 Matthew 25: November 26 Christ the King Ezekiel 24:11-16, Psalm 100 Ephesians 1: Matthew 25: Bulletin: 12 PM Thursdays (parishadmin@stgeorgesnn.org) The Banner: 12 PM, 20 th monthly (cathy.parker@wjccschools.org) November Readings 6

7 The Banner Calendar 7

8 The mission of St. George s church is: Committed Christians providing hope, help, and hospitality in northern Newport News. Christ Jesus is the head of the church, which is his body. (1 Colossians: 18) The Rt. Rev. Herman (Holly) Hollerith IV, Bishop The Rev. Dr. Kathleen (Kathie) Price, Interim Rector Vestry Senior Warden, David Montrose Pastoral Care, Cathie Klute Junior Warden, Jim Bradberry Christian Formation, Lisa Adams Stewardship, Jim Bradberry Parish Life, Wally Johnson Properties, Kathy Zinskie Outreach, Jim Thurmond Staff and Others who Serve Treasurer, Carlyle Gravely Parish Administrator, Oneita Ericson Assistant Treasurer, David Montrose Organist & Choir Dir, Joan Bonnett Register, Kathy Zinskie Director of Christian Ed, Diane Reed Communications, Kathy Zinskie Newsletter, Cathy Parker Webmaster, John Zinskie Office Hours: Tuesday Friday, 9 a.m. 2 p.m. ST. GEORGE S EPISCOPAL CHURCH Warwick Blvd Newport News, VA (757) Recipient Name 8