Saint Andrews by The Lake Episcopal Church

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BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS Sunday, October 3rd
Bring your pets, a picture of a pet, or a favorite stuffed animal for a short service of blessing. Dont have a pet? Bring something from creation a worm, an insect be creative. All creatures have purpose in Gods creation and all bring blessing to us in some way. There will be a blessing for each animal, music, and TREATS (for humans and pets). Even if you dont have a pet, please feel welcome to come and enjoy the fun and festivities. Hopefully, St. Francis will make an appearance.
We begin at 3:30 p.m. (in the Mission Hall)

This past week was a good one for me. I felt like I was coming up for air. Let me explain. When I am to preach on a given Sunday, my mind is often wrapped around that upcoming homily. Lots of time during the week preparing - for as you know I never wing it. Ive always felt that is a disrespectful way to approach preaching and those who come to worship. Preaching is important to me but also time consuming. So when I get a week when someone else is the preacher I get to turn my attention to something else like people!! This past week I got to have coffee or lunch with fourteen different folks from our community obviously at different times. Mostly I met with people singly once in a group. So it was a good week. I like to be with people, to listen to whats going on in their life, to talk about how God is moving in their life, to hear about their families, concerns, hurts, joy the conversations are rich. For me thats coming up for air! Its refreshing. For me, that is evangelism (only one way, to be sure).
Life in a Christian community is interesting. Yes we have classes to deepen our understanding of the faith but more importantly we have opportunity for relationship. Behind all the Christian formation offerings and the outreach opportunities we have the opportunity to build deeper Christian relationship with each other. That doesnt mean everyone at church is going to be your buddy or close friend. But it does mean that we take the risk to be connected with one another as we reach out in Gods love to try to mend some of the brokenness around us. There is brokenness in our city and nation (and to be sure, the world). There is brokenness right in our own church community many who are wounded by life in such a variety of ways. How can we be evangelists to each other continue reading » »

PAPER MAKING Saturday, October 2nd
Led by Sandy Carlson, learn the art of paper making. Session begins at 9 a.m. and ends by 12 p.m. If you dont want to make paper, but would just like to watch the process, come during any of those three hours. Call Sandy if youd like to participate (723-1181). Shell fill you in on supplies you need to bring. continue reading » »

Yesterday (August 8), we had one of those worship times when I am blown away by the depth of faith so many of you have. We had just baptized Olivia Louise West (daughter of Stephanie and Chris West), welcomed her into the household of faith and offered the Peace. Then I asked for announcements. I knew that Liz and Dave Johnson had organized the sandwich event for CHUM (where we make and deliver 80 bag lunches) and would be asking for volunteers. When Dave stood up, he asked people to remember one of the baptismal vows that had just been said, Will you seek and serve Christ in all person, loving your neighbor as yourself? And then he asked for help framing the sandwich making in light of our baptismal vows. Sandwich making for others is a ministry. The kitchen had a goodly number of people in it after worship making lunches for others.
Friends this is what we are about. At every baptism we renew our own baptismal vows. Every morning when we get up and face the rising sun, our task for that day as followers of Jesus is to find ways we can live those vows out in small, simple and even large ways. Some days it might be making sandwiches for others. Another day it might be picking up trash on the beach or on the street where we have our homes. On another day it might be going to visit someone in a nursing home and giving our time to someone who could be very lonely. Maybe at work, you might have lunch with a colleague that is going through a hard time and give them a listening ear. There are SO MANY ways to do the ministry of Jesus. Do you consider your work a ministry? Maybe, as Barbara Brown Taylor says, continue reading » »

Soon afterwards Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mothers only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town. When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, Do not weep. Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, Young man, I say to you, rise! The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, A great prophet has risen among us! and God has looked favorably on his people! This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country.

This is the Gospel for June 6th. Well be having our celebration of seniors who graduate from high school, and they will offer the majority of reflections that morning, so I thought Id offer a short one now.
Some of the strangest things happen at funerals. continue reading » »

VICAR’S MESSAGE
On the liturgical calendar, this coming Sunday is Trinity Sunday. On the secular calendar, we will celebrate Memorial Day. Here is a prayer for Trinity:

by Steven Shakespeare
I encourage you, sometime over the weekend, to read Proverbs 8: 1-4, 22-31, which is the first lesson that will be heard on Sunday. It is a wonderful call to life from Lady Wisdom. In any case, wherever you find yourself, or plan to be, over the weekend, I pray that you have an ongoing, clear, honest connection with God. May you remain in the heart of God by noticing God in your prayer and noticing God in the everyday activities of life.
This is a short Grains of Sand to just tag a few items. A more complete version will come out in a week or so. Blessings on your Way, Cindy

Neighbors have asked that we be attentive to parking 5 to 7 feet away from driveway entrances. I know that this cuts down on very valuable parking space, but I hope we can be responsive to their concerns.

BRAT SALE/RUMMAGE SALE
This is a clarification of “who is in charge of what.” If you have questions about the Rummage Sale, ask Kathy Jacobs. If you have questions about the Brat Sale, ask Brian Lundberg. Brian does not have answers about the Rummage Sale. Kathy does not have answers about the Brat Sale. Thank you!

FRAGRANCES in CHURCH
A number of people in our congregation have allergies and are sensitive to perfumes and other strong fragrances. To offer a kindness and mercy to our brothers and sisters who suffer from allergies, we are asking people to refrain from wearing perfumes and strong lotions on Sunday morning. Thank you for your consideration.

While I was away for several weeks in April, a visioning meeting happened with Bishop Prior and regional Episcopal Churches. I was disappointed to miss this particular meeting but not disappointed enough to cancel my trip. So instead, I read the book our Bishop recommended: The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church by Reggie McNeal. First, it is an outstanding book. Secondly, I recommend it to your reading if you care about what the Church will be like in the remainder of our lifetimes, and in the future for your children and grandchildren. It wont be the same. Here is the opening paragraph of the book:
The current church culture in North America is on life support. It is living off the work, money, and energy of previous generations from a previous world order. The plug will be pulled either when the money runs out (80 percent of money given to congregations comes from people aged fifty-five and older) or when the remaining three-fourths of a generation who are institutional loyalists die off or both. Please dont hear what I am not saying. The death of the church culture as we know it will not be the death of the church.
The author goes on to suggest that we (as the church) have been asking the wrong questions. For example, the first contrast question he offers is: continue reading » »

Ask people around the world what they think is the biggest day of theyear for Christians. Most will say “Christmas”. That’s what our society has achieved: a romantic mid-winter festival (though we don’t actually know what time of the year Jesus was born) from which most of the things that really matter (the danger, the politics) are carefully excluded. The true answer is Easter. This is the moment of new creation. If it hadn’t been for Easter, nobody would ever have dreamed of celebrating Christmas. This is the first day of God’s new week. The darkness has gone, and the sun is shining. Easter is so important that’s it’s not just a day (and neither is Christmas) - but it’s a whole season, eight weeks long!
We know the story of Jesus - about his life, death and resurrection. Just the same, each year it’s important to participate in Lent and Holy Week so we can prepare ourselves to truly celebrate the resurrection of Christ - in our lives and in the world. Life is not a matter of moving from triumph to triumph. Rather - the Cross always stands between us and Resurrection. You can’t get to Easter without going through the continue reading » »

Here is a question to ponder: Am I in relationship with my leper and wolf? In his book, Radical Grace, Franciscan monk Richard Rohr, writes about how deep within each of us live both a leper and a wolf. There is a story of St. Francis how he embraced the leper on the road and this was his conversion experience. Then years later, he tamed a wolf. The stories apparently happened historically, but first of all they operated in his soul.
It is on the inside that lepers and wolves first must be found. If we havent been able to kiss many lepers, if we havent been able to tame many wolves, its probably because we havent first of all made friends with our own leprosy and the ferocious wolf within ourselves. Name and forgive your inner leper today. Nurse and tend her wounds. Name your inner wolf. Tame him by gentle patience and forgiveness.
St. Paul says that God both initiates and cooperates in all human growth: God cooperates with those who love by turning everything to their own good. (Romans 8:28)
What we can offer is the good will of love. God works together with us, which means both our workings are crucial. We are real partners. Every moment. God is trying to expand our freedom to love. Can you imagine continue reading » »

February 17th is Ash Wednesday. There will be a Holy Eucharist and Imposition of Ashes - 7 pm at the church. The Gospel for this day (Matthew 6: 1-6, 16-18) warns us not to practice our piety before others, so as to be rewarded for what we do. Instead, we are to give, pray and fast in secret God will know and that is enough.
How is it, then, that a text that suggests we do acts of righteousness in private be read on the same day one receives the imposition of ashes a very visible and public act of piety. More than a few have struggled with this paradox.
The emphasis on private piety can be overstated. Perhaps its more honest to focus on the more implicit, underlying theme present in the calls to give, pray and fast namely authenticity.
Authenticity blurs the rigid lines of public and private. Private acts are not authentic, and public ones inauthentic. Rather, the authenticity of an act of faith (or an act of piety) is determined by the desire and motivation of the one engaged in the act. Those desires and motivations cannot be judged externally.
Let me share a story of an act that is authentic, in large part because the act is done secretly. It comes from a continue reading » »