Stewardship Video Series: Below you will find the first installment of our stewardship video series. Many of us are not in church, which makes it harder to share what we have been doing. Therefore, we have decided to once again bring the work of the church to you. For the next three weeks, we will feature a ministry of the church in the COVID era. This week will include some of the outreach that we have been doing in the last seven months. One outreach effort that is not highlighted is our bagged lunch ministry spearheaded by our Outreach Chair, Doug Perry. Twice a week, members of St. John’s made bagged lunches that were donated to HELP. Twenty parishioners participated and made 1320 bagged lunches! Here’s a link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phlq1-9nZeI
Flower Deliverers Needed: Did you know that every Sunday we bring our lovely flowers from the altar to parishioners who are either celebrating an event or just need a little sunshine in their life? It’s true! But it is harder and harder to do that, as most of our flower deliverers are unable due to COVID. Please consider volunteering to deliver flowers once a month. It’s a great way to connect with other people from the parish and remind people that we care.
Home Communion: We are delighted to be celebrating communion again on Sundays. However, we know that some will not feel comfortable attending. If you would like a clergy person to bring you communion, please contact Samantha (gro.notpmahsnhojts@rotcerjs), Mark (gro.notpmahsnhojts@kram), or the church office (722-2567). Our preference will be to share communion with you on a porch, deck, or front stoop if possible. We know that will not work for some and we can come inside if that is the only option. We are just trying to keep everyone as safe as possible!
Prayers for our Nation: A St. John’s parishioner suggested that we pray for our nation every day at noon. You can do this anywhere with any words that you choose. The idea is that we know somewhere, other members of St. John’s are praying for our country. While you can pray in any way that you would like, the Book of Common Prayer is a treasure trove of prayers. Therefore, we will be providing a different one every week. Here is this week’s: Almighty God our heavenly Father, guide the nations of the world into the way of justice and truth, and establish among them that peace which is the fruit of righteousness, that they may become the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Calling all Humans of St. John’s! Given that we haven’t seen much of each other in person, we are launching a social media campaign called “Humans of St. John’s” (based on the popular “Humans of NY” series). The premise is simple: every week, we will feature a few parishioners’ stories of how quarantined life is treating them. If you have a unique story and would like to be featured in a post, please reach out to gro.notpmahsnhojts@snoitacinummoc with a short story (100 words or fewer) and a photo. It can be about anything that’s happened in your life in the last six months, no matter how mundane or exciting. We will also be randomly contacting people! But your participation is by no means required. Thanks!