This Sunday at both the 8 am and 10 am services we'll be blessing and dedicating the new pew Bibles that were given in memory of David Temple. These will be a wonderful addition to our parish, whether for anyone who wants to look up the Sunday lessons and read along in a Bible rather than the lectionary insert, or for someone who wants to read and meditate on Scripture at a quiet time in the Church. Please come and add your prayers on Sunday.
Here are the announcements for the coming week.
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Rummage Sale - We'll need all hands on deck on Saturday, September 22! This Sunday, the 16th is the last day for rummage drop-off. At the Sale we need people on the early-bird shift at 6 am to help set-up (carrying out tables and rummage), selling during the day, baking and staffing the bake sale table (see note below), and the "grave-yard shift" at 2 pm to help with clean-up - we can't leave that to 2 or 3 people. Please put time on your calendar, sign up on the big poster in the narthex, and help us out on the day. Thanks!!
Bake Sale at RUMMAGE 2012 - BAKERS and SELLERS NEEDED to help at the bake sale table and/or bake an item or two for sale. Both large items (cakes, pies, breads, etc.) and small buy-and- eat-on-the-spot items (cookies, brownies, cupcakes, muffins, etc.) are popular. Please mark items with any ingredients (eg. nuts) which may be problematic for people with allergies. Baked items should be wrapped and priced and can be delivered to the bake sale table any time after 8:00 am. Thank you for your help! Question-please speak to Carol Berry or call at 908-580-0642.
Worship and Study- Come Get a Mid-Week Faith Boost - Wednesday, September 19: Holy Eucharist and Healing Prayer at 9:30 am; Bible Study at 10:15 am - Book of Hebrews, Chapter 2. Thursday, September 20: Holy Eucharist and Healing Prayer at 7 am. Next Week: Wednesday, September 26: Holy Eucharist and Healing Prayer at 9:30 am; Bible Study at 10:15 am - Book of Hebrews, Chapter 3; Evening Prayer at 7:15 pm; Bible Study at 7:45 pm - Genesis, Chapter 2-3; Thursday, September 27: Holy Eucharist and Healing Prayer at 7 am.
Both Bible Study groups welcome Bible Study newbies and old-timers alike. Bring a Bible with you or we can provide you with one. Learn more about your faith in the company of others who are learning and growing.
Women's Book Group - is a relaxed group, open to all women of the parish. We have lively discussions of books that we read, and the group chooses the selection each month. We will meet on Wednesday, September 19 at 7:30 pm in the Rath House. The book for discussion is "Little Bee" by Chris Cleave. Hope to see you there!
Blessing of the Animals in Honor of St. Francis - Sunday, October 7 at 5 pm in the Memorial Garden. Bring your pet (on a leash or in a cage for their own comfort) and celebrate the goodness and companionship of our animal friends. Each animal will be blessed individually. Friends and neighbors are invited, too!
All Saints' Community Art Show - October 14th! Our parish and our community are full of talented, creative people - adults and children alike. We will be hosting our first annual Community Art Show at the Parish House. We'd love to display your art - photography, painting, sculpture, drawing, or whatever medium you work in. If you would like to be part of the show or have questions, contact Nancy Mink mink88@verizon.net .
Summer Pledges - often in the summer our pledge income lags a bit as people travel or are on vacation. This summer was no different; we are about $2500 behind as of August 31st. If you can get caught up in the next several weeks, it would be a big help. Thanks so much!
Margin Retreat with Richard Swenson, MD on October 13 at the Convent of St. John Baptist in Mendham. It is sponsored by the Episcopal Churches in Basking Ridge, Bernardsville, Gladstone, Millington and Morristown (who all support the St. Martin's House Board for Retreats). This one-day retreat is all about making room for relationships, for rest, for health and for God. There are also a few overnight spots with an additional Sunday morning session with Dr. Swenson. There are still some spots available. Registration details are on our website homepage, or you can pick up the flier in the Narthex. Dr. Swenson is the author of Margin, The Overload Syndrome, and More Than Meets the Eye.
All God's Children at All Saints' Starting in October - All God's Children is a non-denominational Christian worship service designed to appeal to children of any age, and especially appropriate for children with autism, PDD-NOS, ADHD, ADD, Down's Syndrome or any other developmental/physical challenges. It is 30 minutes long, with optional Communion. We'll be offering an All God's Children (AGC) service monthly on the third Sunday of every month, at 12 noon, starting on October 21. This will be not just for parish families, but for anyone in the wider community. If you know a family who might be interested in this time for worship and fellowship, please let them know about it. We'll be making the information available to some of the schools and support groups in the area. There will also be opportunities for high school students (and adults) to volunteer - we'll need some extra hands! If you want to know more or would like to get involved, speak to Kathy Hunt or Mother Vicki. And please keep this ministry in your prayers. Thanks!
Stewardship ~ We are not infinite. None of us has more than twenty-four hours in a day. We do not have an inexhaustible source of human energy. We cannot keep running on empty. Limits are real, and despite what some stoics might think, limits are not even an enemy. Overload is the enemy. As the author of limits, God put them within us for our protection. ~ Richard A. Swenson, M.D.
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"Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of - throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself."
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Blessings,
Vicki McGrath+