Loading...Dear Friends in Christ,
Spring is here and flowers are starting to peek through the ground, trees are budding, and lawn mowers are buzzing in the air. We have had a busy month in April. Not only Easter, but Cluster Council, Convocations, and the Spring Tour of Italy fund raiser for the Union Mission are just a few of the church happening last month.
Another happening that not too many parishioners were aware of was the visit by Maile Armstrong, the Diocesan Safety Manager. Her visit was part of the Episcopal Safety Program created by the Church Insurance Company which is a non-profit, wholly owned subsidiary of the Church Pension Fund. This program is a proactive approach to helping congregations maintain a safer environment for worship and mission while being good stewards of property and people. Having safe church property saves the insurance company and the churches money. The Safety Manager, Maile, performs specialized safety reviews of the congregations in our dioceses every 5 years at no cost to the congregations.
Maile’s inspection of our three parishes showed no major problems. What does need our attention are things that are obvious. We know we need these things, but we really don’t think about them. Things like smoke detectors, fire extinguishers that are regularly inspected by professionals, and making sure all exits are clear.
I am thankful that the Episcopal Church and our diocese sees the importance of these reviews. It reminds us of our duties to protect our people and our property. That is part of serving our sheep and our fold.
Coming up in May are a couple of important events. On May 17, Donnie Wheatley, director of Boy’s Home and some of the boys will be visiting Stras Memorial for the Sunday morning service. It has been several years since they were our guests, and we always look forward to their visits.
On May 28, our Canon Missioner, the Rev. Kathy Dunagan will lead a meeting of our three parishes in a discussion of our future. This is an important meeting, so I hope all of our parishioners will make every effort to attend.
There are other dates we need to pencil in on our calendars. We will be taking part once again in a work day at Boys Home sponsored by the Abingdon Convocation on June 27. We were part of five parishes from our convocation last year. We look forward to returning, helping them improve their campus, and enjoying a meal and fellowship with the boys. On July 12 we will return to Grace House to prepare a meal for the visiting group doing missionary work in the area.
You are always in my prayers. I came across the following in a Church of England prayer book I truly love it. It goes:
Most Merciful Heavenly Father,
Forgive what we have been,
Help us amend what we are,
And direct what we shall be,
So that we make do justly,
Love mercy,
And walk humbly with you our God.
And then we add the benediction,
And may the blessings of God Almighty,
The Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
Be among us now and always. Amen.
May the Lord continue to bless you.
In Christ’s Love,
Father Russ
