Immanuel Church, Highlands - Highlands Voice for week of 01/20/08

Volume 5, Number 3 The Second Sunday After Epiphany January 20, 2008

In referring to the chain index of my Bible, I find not only did God recognize that all of his “created” need help, but also that He is available to BE our help. Our needs could be physical, mental, emotional, and/or spiritual. God is willing to hear our call for help regardless of the circumstances — and to answer.

When we reach out to God, our prayer can be the vehicle of our request for His help both for ourselves and for others. The resulting journey of help most often is not a single action or response, but is more of a continuing series of “mid-course” corrections. God’s healing takes us from the moment of today through to that time and place where in wholeness we are at one with Him.

A bishop wrote (more than fifty years ago) that we seek “someone with whom we can be at one, who can be at one with us, and through whom we can find at-one-ment with all.”

I was reminded of the fact that I sometimes ask for God’s help, but sometimes I block his helping me. A small plaque reads:

Where am I? Where are we? As the body of Christ, should we be sharing our needs for God’s help? As His created, do we or those we know have a need for help?

At the Christian Education Ministry meeting last Sunday, we decided to ask for feedback on the Christmas liturgy, since it was a cross-generational event. It is always useful to get what people thought about something, so we would like the answer to three questions:

Bayou Bingo Update: We have received over $1,200.00 in donated items for our Bayou Bingo event on Saturday, January 26 from 2:00-4:00 p.m. Included in this fundraiser will be a Pick-A-Prize Auction and we will be selling 50/50 raffle tickets. Some of the wonderful donations include: four rounds of golf at two local courses; massages; a personal training session; birdfeeders; restaurant certificates; clothing certificates; and cosmetic certificates. We are not done collecting items so come and join us to see what other goodies we have received. It will be a great event but only if you are there!!

Goal of 400 by January 27! If each person or family attending Immanuel brings in one (or more) multipack (any size pack of any brand) of toilet paper, we could almost meet the Friendship House's requirement for one month in their day centers. Those of you who could manage to bring two multipacks might push it up to the 400 they need. What would a mountain of 400 rolls of toilet paper look like? Can we build one and find out?

Candlemas: We’ll commemorate the Presentation of Jesus Christ in the Temple this year with our traditional Candlemas Procession and Festival Choral Evensong, led by our Girl and Boy Choristers on Sunday, February 3 at 4 pm. After the service you are invited to a candlelight reception in the Common Room. Don’t miss this dramatic and inspiring service, and invite a friend to share it with you.

Palms Wanted: Please bring to church before Sunday, February 3, any palms that you have from last Palm Sunday. We need them to be burned for ashes to be administered on Ash Wednesday, February 6. There will be boxes in the vestibule and at the back of the church for palm collection. Thank you.

Maybe 36 to go! At press time, we have a total of 21 confirmed volunteers for the March 2008 Katrina Mission Trip from eight different churches including Red Lion United Methodist Church; St. Thomas Episcopal Church; Church of the Nativity Episcopal Church; St. Barnabas Episcopal Church; St. Nicholas Episcopal Church; St. James Episcopal Church in Newport and Millcreek; St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Camden; and the Universalist Unitarian Church. Immanuelites going on the trip include: Vicki Anthos, Ryan Day, John Day, Darla Max, Sophie Day, Eve English, Phyllis Harvey, Byron Hobson, Maria Madera, Chris Shields, and Sue Welles. There could be as many as 36 people on our second trip to New Orleans!

Announcement for All Ministries: With Easter coming so early this year, our Annual Parish Meeting will also be coming much earlier than usual. That means that a report from each ministry will be required earlier than in the past – March 9. Please write about your membership, your 2007 accomplishments, your plans for 2008, and other news of your ministry that should be recorded in the Annual Parish Report.
I prefer to receive reports by e-mail attachment or on disk, if possible. If not, please place a paper copy in my mailbox, across from the parish office. Thank you.

Thank you to all who donated food during December for the Food Pantry at St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church in Wilmington. We collected 20 cans and 7 boxes of food – gratefully received by St. Stephen's Pantry.

Prayer Shawl Knit-a-thon! You are invited to pledge for each prayer shawl knitted between January 1 and March 1. The prayer shawls will be given to needy folks in our community and the proceeds will be donated toward the cost of the trip. A sign-up sheet is in the foyer!

So many thanks to all of our Sunday School youth who, through pictures and personal accounts have shared some of themselves and their lives with the students at You Ai (‘Have love” or “Have affection”) Primary School. It’s a marvelous connection, an introduction to real friends on the other side of the earth.

On the building front, the news is exciting. With the most generous help of parishioners, – thanks again to each of you – friends and family, Phase II of the construction, the kitchen and dormitory has actually begun! Please contact me if you would like to see more pictures, have question or are thinking of a trip. To date, six people have visited and enjoyed the experience greatly.

Fr. Thom may be reached at his church phone, 302-658-7326 Ext. 14, during his normal office hours Tuesday-Thursday, 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. He works from home on Fridays. Please feel free to call him on his cell phone 302-229-8449 or write to thomjensen@gmail.com at any time other than church office hours, if a need arises.

It's a tradition! In the midst of January weather, we gather to hear about the best in Vacation Bible School curriculum. VBS 2008 Workshops will be held at St. Albans Church, home of the Interfaith Resource Center, on Saturday January 19 from 9:30 a.m. to noon; at Wesley UMC on Wednesday evening, January 23 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and at the Presbyterian Church of Easton on Thursday evening, January 24 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Madeline Beall will be there ready to accept orders at discount for Cokesbury Value Days. The fee for the workshop is $5 per person or $10 for three persons. To register, contact the Interfaith Resource Center.

Choral Evensong Commemorating Martin Luther King, Jr – Sunday, January 20^th

Sunday, January 20 at 4 p.m. at Cathedral Church of Saint John, Ten Concord Avenue, Wilmington. Spirit of Life Lutheran Church Pastor Clarence Petit will preach. Mayor James Baker will participate. Music by the Choirs of the Cathedral Church of Saint John and Spirit of Life.

Representatives of the Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, Presbyterian and Methodist traditions will come together for an Ecumenical Celebration of the Word of God on Sunday, January 20. The theme for the 2008 observance is “Pray without ceasing.” (I Thessalonians 12a, 13b-18) The theme and text for each year’s observance of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity are chosen and prepared by representatives of the Pontifical Council for promoting Christian Unity and representatives of the World Council of Churches. The public is cordially invited to attend. For more information contact Rev. Robert P. Hall, 302-225-1040 or deccf@aol.com

Only ten are available at $15.95. The 5 x 7 spiral bound collection features historic vignettes and photos of churches across the country. Diocese of Delaware is featured with pictures of St. Marks Millsboro, which was established in 1848. The oldest congregation dates back to 1618 and is in Burrowsville, VA. Contact MaryAnn Brillhart at 302-656-5443 X103 or mabrillhart@dioceseofdelaware.net to place your order.

February 1st is the deadline for all EYE applications. The Episcopal Youth Event (EYE) is for youth who have completed 9th-12th grades and it will be this summer in San Antonio--7/8-7/13. Application is available on the diocesan web site and for more information about EYE go to www.eye2008.org. For information about registering, please contact Jeff Ross at 302-645-8479.

Youth Media Summit at the Sheraton Hotel in Dover, Delaware. Youth, parents and teachers are invited to this FREE day of workshops, forums and special media presentations. Learn how to better understand and safely harness the power of digital media, including websites, instant messaging, and on-line movies. For details, see the News Page of the diocesan website. If one or more youth in your parish are active on the Internet or have produced digital movies, they may want to exhibit their work at the event's Delaware Youth Media Showcase. If so, please contact the Diocesan Web Editor, Danny Schweers, at 302 475-0998 or dodweb@comcast.net.

Tuesdays at Noon, February 12 through March 11, Saints Andrew and Matthew, Wilmington, offers half-hour recitals in the church followed by Lenten Lunches, at 12:30 p.m. Delicious soups, sandwiches and desserts are served in the auditorium at reasonable prices.

Celtic Spirituality, an ancient form of faith expression, has sparked renewed interest in the past few decades. On February 17^thfrom 1-4pm St. Peter’s Episcopal Church and Seekers, Spiritual Treasures at St. Peter’s square will jointly sponsor a free workshop on this spiritual tradition. Sr. Barbara Jean Brown from the Anamchara Fellowship will lead the workshop. Visit www.seekerslewes.com or call 302-645-9916 for more information.

Starting at 5:00 p.m. with a visiting choir from Immanuel-on-the-Green Episcopal Church, New Castle.