1 Volume 9 Issue 2 February 2018 St. Mary s News Go therefore and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:18-19). That is Jesus charge to the faithful, this is his call, this is Jesus priority for the people of God. So just what are we doing about this call at St. Mary s? Contents 1 Rector s Message 3 Love One Another 4 Music 5 Birthdays/ Anniversaries Having just wrapped up my ninth Annual Meeting at St. Mary s, I am grateful to all of you for your faith, fellowship, and work in the name of God in the past year. Each year at this time we compile a series of reports and produce a booklet of them for your review and post those reports on St. Mary s website. The reports are filled with numbers and results from the prior year. While these reports are informative, they can often lead us, this local body of Christ in Dade City, to want to evaluate the numbers to see how successful we were. On the one hand, this is a necessary exercise. But stop and think about what we are really doing here at St. Mary s. Think about what Jesus told us to do in Matthew 28:18-19 Go therefore and make disciples... Jesus never told us to create numerically successful churches. Jesus told us to make disciples. And when we follow Jesus and become disciple-makers, we fashion the kind of church Jesus calls us to create. When we run the church not by looking at numbers and statistics, but by looking at our mission as disciple makers, we can shift our focus away from competitive corporate thinking toward following Jesus by creating a healthy church that feeds our souls and brings new people into the body of Christ. No church can stay healthy without defining what health looks like. So I am suggesting we adopt a new plan for maintaining and increasing the health of St. Mary s in 2018. We need a
plan. It s not that I think there s one right model for all churches. But whatever the plan, it needs to be based on the fundamentals Jesus gave us namely The Great Commission and The Great Commandment. 2 So for 2018 I would like to invite all members of St. Mary s to prayerfully consider these two fundamentals in all we do in our life together. To ask ourselves in all we do: Are we going out and making disciples and teaching them to obey everything Jesus taught us? Are we loving the Lord our God with all our hearts, and with all our souls, and with all our minds as we seek to love our neighbors as ourselves? We are a wonderful church, healthy in many ways, so let s share the Good News with others as this church has for over 126 years. I am asking each of you to keep up the good work we have begun, but to also take on a new challenge for 2018. Let s really work at being disciple makers, by inviting new people into the body of Christ. Now I am not talking about equipping each of you with a floppy bible and a street corner to preach on, but rather I am asking each of you to faithfully invite at least one person or family to attend worship or an event each month at St. Mary s. No arm twisting please, just a sincere offer of come and see Jesus at St. Mary s Episcopal Church. As I have said many times before, we have been called for just such a time as this. You and I have been called to invite others into the knowledge and love of Jesus as our mission. So let us all go in peace to loving and serving the Lord in 2018 by inviting others to come be disciples with us. Fr. Dewey+ The Reverend Dewey E. Brown, Jr. Rector St. Mary s Episcopal Church 37637 Magnolia Ave. Dade City, Fl 33525 www.stmdc.com Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20, 21
3 The Daughters of the King is a spiritual group for women in the Episcopal church. We have had eight active members this year. One of the main projects we have been working on is making bags of love. We included such items as toothpaste, toothbrushes, coffee cups, food items, brushes, combs, shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, and several other items used in daily care and needs. We meet the second Sunday of the month in Tanno Hall. We encourage any interested women in the church to visit our group and join. As this February Newsletter is being put together we are in the process of getting ready for the February 11, 2018 Love One Another meal. As in the past we are blessed to have volunteers who are coming forward to serve bake brownies boil and peel eggs get ice for drinks donate money to cover the costs and much more. These ministries work best when we have many hands to lighten the load, so please prayerfully consider joining in. You can make a difference by donating a box, can, or bottle food for Food to Share each week. And you can also help by one Sunday every other month by baking a pan of brownies, making a dozen hard boiled eggs, by spending a few hours spent serving those who need a good meal. If you are bringing eggs or brownies look for the egg cooler and brownie boxes near the Outreach display. The wheelbarrows will be in place at the Church entrances for any donations you wish to bring. Remember we are looking for gently used clothing, shoes, bed linens, toys, small household items, toiletries, and pet food. This ministry touches not just the folks who receive the meal but those who prepare portions of it; serve, give money or participate in any way to make it happen. Love One Another welcomes your participation whether it is large or small. If you ve never been involved in this ministry, consider joining in. As always if you are planning to help serve, join us at the Pasco County Social Services building, 13853 15th St. Dade City by 1 P.M. If you have any questions, please call Lee Brenn 352-467-0914 or Margie Burns 352-668-4909
MUSIC MINISTRY NOTES FEBRUARY 2018 4 We have had an action packed beginning to 2018, and are sincerely thankful to you, the congregation, for your support in these endeavors. The donations you gave for our big Kumquat Yard Sale turned into three full music camp scholarships! Those of you who baked or purchased goodies from our Bake Sale, or who helped to park cars, or parked on our church property, also will enable about six more musicians to attend the FUMMWA camp, as well as allow us to give a generous love offering to a local family in need. Just in time for Valentine s Day, I am sure this family is going to be surprised and blessed! Then, for our Super Bowl day, we were able to make 89 nutritious subs, and many commented that they were delicious and filling! All of these adventures have taken a great team effort, and we truly give thanks to God for providing our every need and for answering our every prayer. All of our groups are in full swing, and we are rehearsing for upcoming worship services, our 7 PM Ash Wednesday service, Lenten Music, and even Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and yes, Easter, too! I am bringing my nephew, Konnor Soderberg, to entertain you at the Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper, so it will be a pleasure to fellowship with you that night. We will be sharing in a community worship concert at Holy Name Monastery (12138 Wichers Road, St. Leo) at 2 PM on March 11th. This year, we will be featuring our instrumentalists, including our House Band and The Bells of St. Mary s. This is a free concert, and we hope that you will come out that afternoon as we take our Music Ministry group outside of our church walls. As I mentioned in this year s annual report, we have been fortunate to have several new additions to our groups: Colin Brown and Abi Hedgecock are the newest members in our Youth Choristers. Dot Brenn has joined our bell ringers, Jill McClelland has returned after having suffered a broken wrist, and most recently, Virginia Michalek, is also ringing bells. Our snowbird, Connie Burden, is back in Adult Choir singing soprano, and she brought along Bev Martin, from Canada. Welcome, ladies! And, occasionally, you will see Tom Donahue, as he has added the beautiful sound of an oboe to the mix. Each week I continue to be amazed at how God is bringing people together to honor and glorify His Name through our Music Ministry Group. It is my hope and wish that we continue to offer selections that will help you to draw closer to Jesus, as we worship together each week. As Epiphany comes to an end, and we celebrate The Transfiguration, I pray that all of lives be transformed into the purpose-filled life that God wants us to lead. And, Happy Valentine s Day! Hoping you can feel how much I appreciate and love each of you, Sharon
5 BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES February Birthdays 4 6 7 8 11 12 14 17 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 Christine Stevens Kathi Boyle, Kathy Phillips, Diane Tsacrios Amberley Bozone Judy Walls Sharon Phillips Harry Edwards Brennan Allen, Kaeleigh Hicks, Anne Gonzalez, Mary Teschner Jim Burnsed, Audrey Phillips Everett Rigsby Jill Wiemer Dot Brenn, Sharon Brant Amanda Jordan Elizabeth Beltz Elaine Moorman Tony Carbone, Debi Brown Ray Battle, Sandee Sayre Rev. Gordon Thompson Dennis Celentano Carol O Connell February Anniversaries 6 Clay and Amanda Jordan 7 Leon and Betty Milton 13 Glen and Margaret Thompson William and Donna Kusky 14 Tim and Donna Tumelty 21 Jon Sidney and Lori Larkin 23 Dennis and Nancy Alfonso 26 Bob and Carrie Luckey
6 St. Mary s Episcopal Church 37637 Magnolia Avenue Dade City, Florida 33523 352-567-3888 Check out our Website www.stmdc.com Upcoming Events February 11 Love One Another February 13 Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper February 14 Ash Wednesday services noon and 7 pm