Ascension Sunday + Sending the Larlees to their Sabbatical

This Sunday we will be celebrating the Feast of the Ascension. Jesus' ascension is significant because it means that there is one of us in heaven at the right hand of the Father, praying for us. Jesus taking our flesh into the Father's presence reminds us that we matter, that what we do matters.

This is also the Larlees' last Sunday with us before their Sabbatical, so we will set aside time in the service for the vestry and Dave to pray for Chris, and for the vestry and Chris to pray for Dave and Rachel as we send them out.

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Why Sabbath? Part 2

This past Sunday Chris interviewed Dave and Rachel Larlee about rest. Not only did we get to hear deeper about what God is doing to prepare their hearts and minds for sabbath but this also provided an opportunity for us to start thinking about how to apply sabbath to our own lives. This next Sunday Dave and Rachel are going to share more specifically about how they plan to spend the summer.

For help on how to give online please watch this short video.

Why Sabbath?

This past Sunday Bishop Philip was with us for the confirmations service. It was such a beautiful and powerful picture of community, showing how the church is both local and universal. This image invites us to contemplate the even deeper reality that the Church is Christ's body connected through time and space.

This coming Sunday we will be hearing from Dave and Rachel about how the biblical Sabbath lays the foundation for sabbatical. Learning how to enter into rest with God is a gift that was woven into creation, beginning with the creation story in Genesis.

Confirmations This Sunday!

This Sunday Bishop Philip will be with us for confirmations. This is to take the time to intentionally pray over the people who are committed to living and serving alongside the St. Barts community. It also gives us as the church body to pray over each person with the reminder, you are not on your own. He will also be preaching on John 10, the passage where Jesus says "I am the good shepherd."

A recommended book about Sabbatical and Sabbath is: Embracing Rhythms of Work and Rest by Ruth Haley Barton. She address how Sabbath applies to all the different stages of life, more specifically, a busy life. This book helps to guide, teach, and help you to lean into the value of taking Sabbath.

More About Dave's Sabbatical

A Sabbatical in the Anglican world is an essential part of how to plan for the future and for growth. It is a time for prayer, rejuvenation, study, rest and planning. One practical way of doing some of these things is by weaving in a rhythm of Sunday Sabbath. Observing a Sabbath helps us to remember that our limitations are a gift from God. Setting apart this day gives us the opportunity to trust God to get the things done that we can't do. This is one aspect of the heart behind Sabbatical—that it is also for the church.

This Sunday Chris will be preaching on Luke 24 where Jesus appears to the disciples on the road to Emmaus. They don't realize that Jesus is in front of them until they share a meal together.

Jesus Declares Peace! - Baptisms This Sunday

First we want to say a HUGE thanks to all of the people that made Holy Week happen. Everyone's hard work truly made the services go seamlessly and created space for everyone to engage with Jesus' story. The first Sunday after Easter we always celebrate baptisms as a sign of new life. (It's not too late to sign up below!) The passage we will be reading is from John 20 where we see that the disciples have locked their door in fear of any other violent reprisals. Jesus then comes in and declares peace over them, witnesses to them and sends them out with guidance.

Holy Week!

As we continue through Holy Week with Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday services, we again have the opportunity to engage with the story of Jesus: in the days before his death, at his crucifixion, and in his rising from the dead. By stopping to remember these key events, we allow Jesus' story to shape our own stories and lives. The Lenten season as a whole makes us aware of our own limitations and our need for intimacy with and dependence on God. All of the stories we have explored throughout these 40 days remind us of these truths and point us to remembering God's mission to love his people.

Maundy Thursday – 4/06 at 6pm Together we will commemorate the last supper and participate in a foot washing ceremony. Childcare | birth – 5yo, please register

Good Friday – 4/07 at 12pm At this service, we will meditate on the events surrounding the crucifixion of Jesus through the Stations of the Cross. Childcare | birth – 5th grade, please register

Easter Sunday – 4/09 at 9am He is risen! This service will include the children flowering the cross and will be followed by a time of fellowship with coffee and pastries as we celebrate this glorious day together! Childcare | birth – 3yo

Palm Sunday

This Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week with Palm Sunday! We will start the service with everyone outside the blue doors in front of the church followed by a triumphal entry into the sanctuary. As we wave the palm branches in the air, we will remember the triumphal entry of Jesus to Jerusalem.

This service will be slightly different including a dramatic reading of the Gospel passage, with some places for us as a congregation to engage with the story. This is a family service (childcare birth - 3yo), so we wanted to let you and your children know ahead of time that there will be some shouting during the reading to imitate the Jerusalem crowds before Pilate.