Breaking Bread. Our Mission is Growing Disciples of Jesus Christ. The Newsletter of the Episcopal Church of St. Peter & St.

Transcription

1 Breaking Bread Our Mission is Growing Disciples of Jesus Christ The Newsletter of the Episcopal Church of St. Peter & St. Paul ~ May 2016 Pentecost and the Church by The Rev. Tom Pumphrey May 15 is the Feast of Pentecost, celebrating the gift of the Holy Spirit and the birthday of the church. What does the Holy Spirit have to do with the church s birthday? Weren t Jesus disciples with him for a few years already? Yes, but things changed dramatically when they received the Holy Spirit. God had walked with them when Jesus was among them. But after he ascended to heaven, God poured himself into them dwelling with them through the Holy Spirit. God s presence and power were with them in a new and different way. They were empowered and emboldened to live as a unique community of love and support, and one that shared God s grace and power with the world. Living this way wasn t always easy, but it was an amazing blessing that continues to this day. great food, and live music. This will be a chance for us to celebrate as a whole community, and an important opportunity for us to know one another better and hear more from each other about what God is doing in our lives. Please join us for this picnic, and bring your friends and neighbors it will be a relaxed opportunity for those outside the church to learn to know us better too. The church, as our Vision Statement reads, is the Christian Community, empowered by the Holy Spirit, active in the worship of God, discipleship for all ages, serving Christ in the world. Come be part of that community! Yours in Christ, After worship on May 15, we will continue our feast with a Parish Picnic in and around the pavilion behind the church building. There will be fun and games for the kids, volleyball, New Members!. 2 Becky s Departure. 3 How I Find God in Worship. 4 Adult Worship Opportunities. 5 Cool Girls. 6 MUST Lunches. 7 Alpha. 7 On the Inside... Ribfest. 8 Spring Parish Picnic 9 Children s Ministries. 10 Pastoral Care Visitation. 10 Family Promise Golf Outing. 11 Caregiver Support Group.. 11 Stewardship & Spiritual Growth. 12

2 Breaking Bread 2 Welcome to new members who have officially joined the parish since January 1 Ed & Elizabeth Black (and Emme & Mary Scott Black and Andrew & Meredith Prillaman) Scott Williams & Susan Boyles (and Ella & Zelda) Sandra Bruns George Chesnut John & Sara Clark (and Miles & Georgia) Drew & Beth Ford (and Peter, Jack & Thomas) Jeff & Darla Layton Russell and Christine Smallwood (and Hannah, Dennis, Evan & Clara) Anthony Smith Sean & Christi Trombetti (and Sarah & Ross) And welcome back to the Scharffs: Eric, Mary, George and Sara Anglican Rosary Prayer Group Now Meets Weekly Anglican Rosary prayer group now meets after the 10:30 service each Sunday of the month. We meet in the north transept and have our prayer time at the side altar. All are warmly invited to participate and explore together the ancient Christian practice of praying using a string of beads as a guide. All are invited to join us for Sunday lunch afterward. Please come and join us! For more information, contact Pamela Robinson at or George Chesnut at The Episcopal Church of St. Peter & St. Paul The Vestry 1795 Johnson Ferry Road Marietta, GA Office Hours: Monday Thursday ~ 9 a.m. 5 p.m. Friday ~ 9 a.m p.m. Phone: (770) Fax: (770) Visit us on the web at After Hours Pastoral Concerns: x8 Rector The Rev. Thomas C. Pumphrey Associate Rector The Rev. Elisa P. Harres Parish Administrator Suzy Bristow Financial Administrator Amy Pillsworth Interim Youth Minister Ron Mixon, Forum Leader Director of Children s Ministries Becky Beal Director of Music George Chesnut Sexton Mitch Brown Vestry Senior Warden Susan Prout Junior Warden Justin Streeter Clerk Lisa Doss Treasurer Tom Martin Recorder Guy Creveling JoAnn Gotschall John Hooper Joey Mayes Mike Nancarrow Pamela Robinson Bryan Selby

3 3 Breaking Bread Dear Parishioners and Parents, A wonderful partnership and ministry began for me at Saint Peter and Saint Paul three years ago. I have gotten to know so many lovely people and amazing children. Watching the children grow in faith has been a delight. The teachers are talented and committed to the Sunday program. The volunteers for VBS and the Lenten programs give of their time and talent. The partnerships with the Flower Guild and Brotherhood of Saint Andrew have allowed many wonderful events. The clergy and staff are amazing, offering encouragement and support. I have been blessed by so many in this parish. Listening for God's direction has led me to accept the call to work at Saint Patrick's in Dunwoody. Working with my daughter and worshiping with my children and grandchildren will accomplish a goal I have had for many years. Know I will carry you in my heart and in my prayers. Your faithful servant, Becky Becky Beal, Director of Children's Ministry Dear Friends in Christ, Becky is such a wonderful blessing to us, and we are so sad to see her go. I know, however, that God's hand is in this calling, and that she will be a blessing to our brothers and sisters in Christ at St. Patrick's. She has done excellent work in this parish, helping to establish a solid foundation for the future. Now she leaves to do that same work at St. Patrick's. St. Peter & St. Paul will continue to build on what God has done through Becky and her team of leaders and Sunday School teachers. Becky and her teams have built a powerful legacy that will continue to help us growing disciples of Jesus Christ. I am impressed by the commitment of this parish to Children's Ministry--a dedication that will keep our children thriving and growing in the future. Susan Sherrard and the Children's Ministry Team will continue to sustain our Children's Ministry while we search for the person God has in store for us as the next Director of Children's Ministry. We will keep you posted about next steps in that process. Becky's last Sunday with us will be May 22, and we will honor her at a reception following the 10:30 service that day. Becky will continue in her position through mid-june to support the team of leaders for Vacation Bible School scheduled June Please join me in thanking Becky for her ministry among us, and in thanking God for his many blessings to us in this parish. Yours in Christ, -Tom The Rev. Tom Pumphrey, Rector

4 Breaking Bread 4 How I Find God in Worship By Mike Nancarrow I am a cradle Episcopalian, though I heard that term for the first time at St. Peter and St. Paul. We were weekly attenders when I was a child, and once I was old enough, I acolyted most weeks as well. The rhythm of our services has always been there for me. Though I went through a phase as a Christmas and Easter attendee during and after college, I returned to weekly attendance when we were expecting Charlie, who is now ten. On leaving and returning, I realized all that I had been missing, and all those things boil down, really, to one thing, feeling the presence of God. Of course He is present everywhere and all the time, but I feel Him most strongly Sunday mornings, as I suppose many of us do. When I reset my perspective into God s time when the verger and acolytes process by, I prepare myself to pay closer attention to God. When I look on the beautiful or joyful or somber flowers, I see a bit of the wonder of Creation, offered to honor the Creator. When I see the torches and candles and altar vessels, I glimpse the light and splendor of the throne room described in Revelation. As I listen to the readings of Scripture, in voices male or female, young or not as young, in accents from around the corner, or from across the globe, I hear the many voices of all of the company of Heaven. While my own attempts to make a joyful noise unto the Lord are quite modest, I hear an echo of the Cherubim and Seraphim as the choir leads the congregation in song. As we pass the Peace, do we not feel a small sliver of what the Kingdom of God must be like? All minds and hearts in one joyful accord, without the wariness and distraction and selfcenteredness of this life? Am I the only one to feel a lightness of spirit at the Absolution? To feel clarity of thought and purpose as I stand, eyes fixed on the image of our Lord in stained glass, and proclaim my faith during the Creed? I pray not. What greater gift can we receive than to share in the Body and Blood of Christ, sharing our spirit with our congregation, our loved ones far away or passed on, with kings and patriots, with princes and paupers, with Lincoln and Lee, with Handel and Shakespeare, with Saint Peter and Saint Paul. For a moment, if we allow it, we are at the longest Thanksgiving dinner table imaginable, with God our Father at the head, passing the Bread of Heaven and the Cup of Salvation. It takes the dedication and service of about 50 of our fellow parishioners for a 10:30 worship service, and I thank every one of them for their ministry. Including my own worship ministry, the ushers, and the church staff whom I couldn t work into the above. They bring us the opportunity to find God in our hearts and in our community. I hope that you do so as often as you can.

5 5 Breaking Bread Adult Education in May 9:15-10:15am Sunday School Newcomer s Class: May 15 & 22 Garden Rm 9:15-10:15am. The Rev. Tom Pumphrey will lead this discussion about membership at St. Peter & St. Paul and how to get involved. Talking with your Neighbor about Christianity May 15 & 22 Parish Hall 9:15-10:15am. Following up on our series on other religions, The Rev. Elisa Harres leads a discussion on how we explain Christianity to others, especially to those who have no religion. Lectionary class invites all adults to join us each Sunday morning where we have a lively discussion of the lectionary readings with input from all attendees. Jim Woodruff is the facilitative leader for this class. Meets in Room 5 downstairs. The Letter of Paul to the Galatians using N.T. Wright s Galatians Study Guide". Tom Mimms, Stuart Wright, and Kurt Mueller will facilitate the class discussion. We will meet in Room 8 downstairs. Growing Christian Families: For Parents of Young Children. Mike and Kim Nancarrow will facilitate this class in Room 6. Continuing a unit based on the Dave Ramsey course Smart Money, Smart Kids. There will be no prep work required and drops in are welcome! Women s Study - Facilitated by Anne Wright in Room 7. Bible Studies Tuesday Women s Bible Study will be starting a new study called "Discover your spiritual gifts, personal style and God-given passion for serving in the Body of Christ" :30 in the Children s Ministries lobby with childcare available. Tuesday Night Bible Study, 7:00 8:00 PM: Over the course of the Spring, we will read through and discuss Paul s First Letter to the Corinthians. This letter is rich with theology and practical application for the church in how we live faithfully together. Led by The Rev. Tom Pumphrey. Wednesday Women s Bible Study currently studying Gospel of Mark, meet in the Garden Room from 10:00-11:15am. Thursday Men s Bible Study... a Bible Study group for men is meeting Thursday mornings from 7:00 8:00 AM in the Conference Room. Every other Saturday: Brotherhood of St. Andrew welcomes guests to attend their men s Breakfast, Study and Meeting from 7:00 8:30am in the Garden Room. Summer Bible Study begins June 8 Room 5 11:00-12:30pm Questions? Call Connie Kerdasha at or Caroline Woodruff at Remember to bring your Bibles! Bible

6 Breaking Bread 6 Cool Girls Cool Girls, Inc. is a nonprofit organization devoted to self-empowerment and nurturing girls in grades 2 8 that are living below the poverty level. Offering weekly programs that support their personal, social and academic needs, the organization emphasizes good morals and sound judgment and helps break the cycle of poverty, low self-esteem and teen pregnancy. Every summer for over 25 years The Episcopal Church of St. Peter & St. Paul has proudly hosted a Back to School Boutique where 200 girls come to East Cobb for a fun-filled day of eating, dancing, singing, crafts and shopping. The purpose is to get the girls excited about returning to school and ensure that they have some essentials necessary to succeed. Each girl is given a brand new backpack filled with school supplies and personal items, and then they are encouraged to "shop" in the Back to School Boutique. We are currently accepting the following items: NEW and VERY GENTLY USED. No clothes except pajamas please. PAJAMAS, PERSONAL CARE ITEMS, PURSES, JEWELRY HATS, GLOVES & SCARVES, SMALL DECORATIVE ITEMS, SCHOOL SUPPLIES, BOOKS, STUFFED ANIMALS: NEW Only Please leave your items in the COOL GIRLS bin in the outreach closet. In addition to your generous donations, we ask that parishioners "adopt" a Cool Girl. As in past years we will be handing out Pink tags with the information on how to fulfill the need for a brand new backpack for each Cool Girl to head back to school in the fall. We will be handing out tags on the following dates - be on the look out. June June June Last, but definitely not least, please consider helping on the day of the event. SATURDAY -JULY 23rd We need many helping hands to make the day a success. Contact Ingrid Williams at ingridwilliams6@gmail.com or Cheryl Leagan cd.leagan@att.net to volunteer. Melina Smith Cell Work

7 7 Breaking Bread MUST Summer Lunch Program Returns "They answered, 'We have only five loaves of bread and two fish - unless we go and buy food for all this crowd.' (About five thousand men were there)... This summer, the more than ten thousand Cobb County children who eat a federally funded free lunch during the school year might go hungry without our help. Feeding a county full of hungry children can seem like a daunting task, but the MUST Summer Lunch program does just that. This year, members and friends of St. Peter and St. Paul will make as many as 4,000 sack lunches for Cobb County children whose families cannot afford to feed them. Join us on Sunday afternoons June 5, 12, 19, & 26 at 3 pm to assemble 1000 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches together with chips, cookies, and a juice box. What an excellent opportunity to involve your children (ages 10 and older) in helping others. Come join us in the Parish Hall 3 pm! Also, we are currently seeking new/additional leadership for this ministry. This is a great opportunity for couples and/families to take on since there are multiple areas and degrees of responsibilities involved. To further entice you, we offer the finest, highest quality on the job training available each and every Sunday during the month of June! Questions? Contact Amy Stillwell at amystillwell55@gmail.com or Alpha Course Returning this Fall St. Peter & St. Paul will be hosting the Alpha Course again in the Fall of We want to put together a large team of people to help put this course together and run it, so that it will be a fun, rewarding and very manageable task for all of us. If you have ever been on the course before, we need you. Please prayerfully consider what role you would like to have in the Fall and contact Sam Tuttle via to let him know. sjtuttle0611@gmail.com.

8 Breaking Bread 8 Brotherhood of St. Andrew 9th Annual Ribfest Let s help send some kids to Camp! The Brotherhood of St. Andrew will host its annual RIBFEST on SATURDAY, JUNE 4, It will take place at St. Peter & St. Paul Episcopal in the north parking lot from 11AM until 6 PM. The menu includes ribs, baked beans and coleslaw along with iced tea or lemonade. There will also be whole Boston Butts or slabs of ribs available for purchase on a pre-order basis. Take Out or Eat In Individual plates include succulent slow-cooked ribs, baked beans, coleslaw and beverage for $15. A book of 10 tickets may be purchased for $120. A Whole Boston Butt or a Slab of Ribs may be pre-ordered for pickup and are $45 (or 3 tickets) each. Proceeds go to a worthy cause Episcopal Community Center Emmaus House, to help send inner city children to the Emmaus House summer camp program.

9 9 Breaking Bread The Spring Parish Picnic is Sunday, May 15 from 12:00-3:00pm! Give yourself and your spouse a day out of the kitchen! Enjoy grilled entrees, side dishes, desserts, sweet tea and more while listening to musical entertainment provided by the one and only Back of the Bus band, performing 60 s, 70 s, 80 s soft rock and country around Atlanta and Cobb County for 10 years. Let us do the cooking for your family this Sunday! For more information, please contact the church office

10 Breaking Bread 10 Summertime When the living is easy Children s Ministries by Becky Beal, Director of Children s Ministries Summer has always been my favorite time of the year. The weather is hot but there are many ways to cool off! The vegetables in Georgia can be bought at the Farmers Markets and eaten at an outdoor cookout! Summer is also a time for our children to spend precious time at Saint Peter and Saint Paul, having fun and learning a bit more about the Bible. This year we are adding the story of Moses to our Old Testament knowledge. (Last year we loved the stories of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.) Please put the dates of June from 1:00-4:00 on your calendar. Children entering Pre K through 5 th grade can come to enjoy our storytellers, music, art, play and of course snacks! It is a memorable week and will be so much better with your participation adults, youth, and children! Contact bbeal@peterandpaul.org to volunteer and support these children in their life in Christ, with God s help. OPEN INVITATION: Please join the St. Peter and St. Paul Visitation Team. We are a group of people who are assigned each month to visit one person one time. A small commitment with huge benefits! The friendships you make are such a blessing to you! In fact, most of our visitors make more than one visit a month because of the joy they receive in their visits. Please consider this way of being the hands and feet of Christ in this world. Call Mary Williams at Sunday Transportation Group Needs Your Help We are looking for drivers to bring a couple of parishioners to the 10:30 service. Please prayerfully consider giving one Sunday of your time for this important ministry. It s a win-win for both you and the parishioner! Contact Susan Hadley at susanhhadley@gmail.com or

11 11 Breaking Bread FAMILY PROMISE of COBB COUNTY GOLF OUTING JUNE 20, 2016 at Indian Hills Golf Club Family Promise is a nonprofit organization that is helping homeless families and their children in Cobb county to find and keep housing. To help fund these efforts Family Promise is holding a charity golf event at Indian Hills, June 20, Our Parish is a supporting congregation and we can help in this ministry in several ways by participating as a volunteer or playing, providing an individual or company sponsorship, donating, or with gift cards. Golf registration forms are available in the church office. The fee is $125 per person or $500 for a foursome, golf cart and lunch is included. Sponsor levels range from $250 to $5,000. Contact Roger Sherrard, , or via rwsherrard@comcast.net to sign up to provide volunteer or financial support or for more information. The Caregiver Support Group meets on the Second Thursday of each month from 12:00-1:00pm downstairs in Room 1. We hope you will join us!

12 Breaking Bread Breaking Bread May 2016 Breaking Bread 12 Stewardship and Spiritual Growth Connecting the Dots This is first of a four part series regarding Stewardship and Spiritual Growth. From the outset Stewardship has been defined as the wise use of your time, talent and treasure which are used for the glory of God. Spiritual Growth is the process of becoming more and more like Jesus. The two are not mutually exclusive but work together as you grow as a Christian. It is not a short-term process but a life -long effort. The first step is Awareness, and we broadly define awareness as the ability to perceive, to feel, or to be conscious of events, objects, thoughts, or emotions without necessarily implying understanding. For example, you may know the Hubble telescope is in space but that s about it. Having awareness is important because there are many who do not know the Hubble even exists but wouldn t you like to know more? Then ask yourself the question, how often are you aware of God? If you say when you are at church that would mean you would only be aware of God.6% of the time. Imagine driving a car and only spending.6% of your time paying attention to the road and 99.4% of the time doing something else. The result would be disastrous. So how can you increase your awareness of God s presence? Here are five steps that might help. Find a quiet place where you most likely will not be interrupted. Close your eyes in order to remove any visual stimuli that could be distracting. Turn your attention away from your daily activities and towards God s presence. Sit quietly and enjoy His presence. If possible try to perform these steps around the same time each day. There is no timetable to building your relationship with God and you have to allow this to grow at its own pace. After all, this isn t a checklist that you tell yourself, OK, I got that done - what s next. You are building a relationship and not following an agenda. As you become comfortable devoting time towards God these five points will become natural and you will look forward to being in His presence. As you build your awareness with God you can move on to the next step - Understanding. Ask for God s help through prayer if you have questions on where you are in your Spiritual Growth. The Holy Spirit can guide the willing listener, and the willing listener guided by the Holy Spirit will grow as a disciple of Christ.