I want to offer a huge thanks to those of us who could make the Stewardship Pot Luck yesterday afternoon. It was glorious to have a gathering of St. Markians coming together for food and fun. The different foods were too numerous to list but trust me, they were outstanding as always. Thanks to all who set up, served, cleaned up, cooked, and all who came.
Our Thanksgiving Service will be celebrated on Wednesday, November 24, 2010 at 6pm this year. I am moving our annual Thanksgiving Service from Thursday to Wednesday evening so that more of us can return thanks for our many blessings. It is my hope that with this move, we may have THE Thanksgiving in church before we eat the thanksgiving meal at home. For those who have friends in town, I am asking that you bring them with you to our parish worship service – we would love to see them.
Bylaws may be found on the half round table in the Parish Hall.
The Annual Meeting is set for Sunday, January 23, 2011. This is the meeting where we gather as a parish to celebrate our common life together, the things we have accomplished, and determine who will serve us as delegates to diocesan convention or/and sit on our Vestry. Please mark your calendars.
Nominations for Vestry and Delegate. I have asked all individuals of our parish to begin praying about serving St. Mark’s as a delegate to our diocesan convention and/or serving on our Vestry. This year the process is a bit different in that those who believed themselves called by God to serve in either capacity will be using a form for nomination. This form is Addendum I in our Bylaws and can be found on the half round table in the Parish Hall. This form will be used by our parish to determine who will lead our delegation and our parish. The forms for nomination are to be in the hands of the Nominating Committee (Vicki Redden, Kathy Whitgrove, Tootsie Morton) by Sunday, January 2, 2011 so the Committee may assure the qualifications for service are met. The Nominating Committee will then photocopy the approved forms for distribution to the parish.
The Revised Common Lectionary for Sundays is almost in use. A Sunday lectionary is a list of scripture readings by date. On the first Sunday of Advent, the Episcopal Diocese of Dallas will move to a new lectionary that allows us to hear more of the Old Testament than we do currently. If you would like more information on this important move, there is an introductory page on the half round table in the Parish Hall. If you have any questions after reading the introduction, give me a call. For our lectors, the shift will be transparent in that nothing will change in the way you serve as a reader.
Rev. Kesner Ajax will be visiting us on Sunday November 21. He will be giving us a report on what is happening in Haiti and how our Women’s Guild is helping that country by providing scholarships to Haitians for enrollment in the Bishop Tharp Institute. Please mark your calendars and set aside some time after the service on the 21st to hear the good work being done.
Email Updates from our website. Are you receiving updates from our fantastic website? If not, I urge you to go to www.stmarksirving.org look to the right of the pictures on the main page and put your email in the ENEWS AND UPDATES space. By doing so, you will receive the most up to date information about the goings on at your church.
Thank you again for a wonderful pot luck yesterday and may God bless you and St. Mark’s.
Fr. Greg+