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Updated
Friday, May 25, 2007 12:43 PM
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Therefore God exalted Him to the highest
place and gave Him the name that is above every name, so that at
the name of Jesus, every knee shall bend, in heaven and on earth
and under the earth. (Philippians 2:9-10)
Services for Sunday, December 31st, are at
8:00 and 10:30 a.m. Lessons & Carols with Communion will be
offered at the 10:30 service. Bring a friend! The Church Office
is closed Monday, January 1st. The Annual Meeting will be held
January 14th after the 10:30 a.m. service.
Why cant it be Christmas everyday?
~ ~ ~
At this time of the year, while Jean and I are
working in the kitchen or preparing for Christmas, we generally
have a CD of Christmas music playing in the background to
provide mood music. One song began playing with the title of the
words above. It really got me to pondering. As I listened to
the lyrics, I realized that the focus was not on the things of
the Christmas season but rather on the mood of goodwill that is
found this time of the year.
The mood of the song did not focus on Santa
Claus or even on the Nativity but rather on how we treat one
another this time of the year. It has always amazed me that more
good will occur now than at any other time of the year. We see
people reach deep within their pockets to see that needy
children have a nice Christmas, hungry people are fed and lonely
individuals are remembered. Why is this so? It really got me to
pondering!
In the midst of this thinking (Im surprised
that you all didnt see the smoke)
I remembered a story told by Jesus in the
Gospel of Matthew entitled The Sheep and the Goats. In the
story, after the separating of mankind into two groups, Jesus
says that God will say to those on his right these words: For I
was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and
you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited
me in. I needed clothes and you clothed me. I was sick and you
looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.
THIS IS CHRISTMAS! And the shame is that we
often only do it once a year. I finally realized the song I was
hearing on the CD really was calling us to be more aware of
those around us 365 days of the year and not just during the
month of December. We should be distributing food to the hungry
continuously. We should be aware of children in need daily. We
need to be assisting the ill and visiting the lonely every day.
We need to have an attitude adjustment so that we can celebrate
Christmas everyday. What a better way to show thanksgiving for
the most precious gift that you and I ever have or will
receiveJesus Christthan being aware of those in need everyday
and not just at Christmas time.
This may be a good News Years resolution.
Something to think about, something to pray about and something
to ponder.
~ ~ ~
May your Christmas be a blessed one and your
New Year full of opportunities of love, peace and service to
your fellow human being!
Fr. Larry |
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River Ministry Outreach How many members of Trinity
Church realize that this church is involved in an outreach
activity called The River Ministry? For the longest time it has
been a subtle type of ministry, but now it is time to bring it
out in the open so we call can celebrate the good works being
done.
The River Ministry is a national ministry organization that
offers ministry to the men and women who labor on the tug boats
that travel up and down the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. The
Rev. Jim Wilkerson is the Episcopal priest who is our contact
person and stops by regularly to check in and pick up any items
we have for the Ministry.
The two major activities that Trinity Church is involved in
with the River Ministry is the Seaman's Scarves and the Reader's
Digest Condensed Books. There are some knitters in the
congregation that knit a special pattern called the Seaman's
Scarf. The major contributor to this activity is Elsie Reed.
Elsie is continuously knitting these scarves and we send dozens
each year to be distributed to the workers on the boats to keep
their necks and chests warm in the chilling weather.
The folks who work diligently with the Annual Book Sale
realized that the Reader's Digest Condensed Books did not sell
and generally were just given away. The idea arose to box them
up and send them with Fr. Wilkerson to be distributed to the
boats for the crew to have lots of reading material. We have
sent a multitude of books each time he comes to visit.
This year a new addition was added to the River Ministry and
that was participating in the Christmas on the River program. We
had seven boats to prepare a special box for the crews of these
boats for their Christmas. In the boxes were packed a special
knitted scarf for each member of the crew, a pastry box of hard
candy, gum, throat lozenges, hand cream, chap sticks, slim jims
and other goodies to give them a special treat for the holidays.
So when you see a tug boat chugging up or down the Ohio,
realize that those crew members have been touched by Trinity
Episcopal Church in some way.
Update on the Special
Fall Collections
Church Periodical Sunday
collection netted $182.00 for the use of purchasing printed
material for seminarians, hospitals, jails and other
institutions.
The Fall United Thank Offering
collection netted $219.00 and this will be forwarded to the
Diocesan coordinator to be sent with all the Diocesan funds
to provide Grants for special projects throughout the church.
Thank you to all that
contributed!
The Altar Guild
would like any linens anyone may have taken to be cleaned
returned as soon as possible. Thanks! |
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Special Notes:
Thank you for all the help given
in arranging for the Parkersburg Choral Society Concert held
recently. Your church is beautiful and the concert was a highly
successful event.
Sincerely,
Grace Arrowood
Concert Chairman
Dear Trinity Episcopal Church,
I'd like to thank you for your
contribution to the Children's Home Society and the Makeover
Madness Program. Last Saturday, we were able to pamper 17 women
and girls from Wood County. The excitement in their eyes was
priceless and their beauty was astounding. Thank you so much for
participating it is greatly appreciated. Thank you and God
bless.
Sincerely,
Breanne Huber
Children's Home Society
Homeless Student Liaison
Note: A donation was made from
the Rector's Discretionary Fund for this event so that homeless
women and girls could receive hair and beauty pampering to give
them a feeling of worth in their lives. Fr. Larry
Update on the Special
Fall Collections
Church Periodical Sunday
collection netted $182.00 for the use of purchasing printed
material for seminarians, hospitals, jails and other
institutions.
The Fall United Thank Offering
collection netted $219.00 and this will be forwarded to the
Diocesan coordinator to be sent with all the Diocesan funds
to provide Grants for special projects throughout the church.
Thank you to all that
contributed!
The Altar Guild
would like any linens anyone may have taken to be cleaned
returned as soon as possible. Thanks! |
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Christmas
Greetings from the Masons Greetings of the Season and Best
Wishes for the New Year. Greetings at New Years for everyone and
we miss you.
Joan & Dick Mason
The Voices of Triumph Gospel Community Choir is
sponsoring a Black History
Month production entitled: "Unity, Where Art Thou Unity?" It
will be presented at Trinity Episcopal Church on Saturday,
February 10, 2007 at 4:00 p.m. The production is in two acts
and was written by a member of the Choir, Rose Coleman. It is
about the evolution of gospel music and how it has bridged the
racial gap from slavery to present day America. Admission is
free, however, a free will offering will be collected. Mark your
calendars and save the date to attend this glorious, spirit
filled
presentation.
Supper Club News:
Thank you, LaVerne, for a wonderful time on December
8th. It is always so much fun to socialize with other church
members. Yes, we will have Supper Club in January. More details
to come. In the meantime, a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
to all of you. You might consider coming to Supper Club as one
of your resolutions for 2007! You wont regret it!
If you have altar flowers please send check to
Linda Brantner, Rt. #2 Box 221, Washington, WV 26181, or
call her at 863-5833 if you have any questions or would like to
set a date for flowers.
Note for calendar:
The ECW Winter Luncheon will be held Saturday, January 13th,
beginning at 11:30 a.m. at the Parkersburg Country Club. More
information will be available in the next issue of the Times.
But please mark your calendars now.
From the Education Desk
Quiet My Heart, Lord
Quiet my heart, Lord,
and show me a Christmas
as peaceful and calm as
an old cattle shed
Slow down my pace, Lord,
and help me seek Jesus,
the Son of Your Love,
in a humble straw bed...
Steady my spirit, Lord,
call me from chaos
in simple surrender
to pray and rejoice
Break through the busy,
too-bright celebration,
and whisper your message,
Be stillhear my voice
Be still, and know that I am God
Psalm 46:10
[Author unknown]
May Jesus always be your joy, your hope, your song. And may
this Christmas and each day of the new year be directed by His
guiding hand of love.
Peace,
Julie Button, DRE
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"The miracle is not that we do this work, but
that we are happy to do it."
Mother
Teresa of Calcutta
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