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200 W Lang St, Alvin, TX 77511-2396 I 281-331-5657 I 281-331-1355 I www.gracechurchalvin.com
O ne Go d — O ne Fami ly — O ne T ab le July
2016
The Outpost
Catch us on Facebook Grace Episcopal Church Alvin
In this Edition
Birthdays & Anniversaries Page 2
Rector’s Article Page 3
Programs and Offerings Page 4
Calendar Page 6
Parish Prayer List Page 7
New Year, New Patch?
Square dancing, arts and crafts, photo booths, parades, pancakes and more. Plans are currently underway to kick this year’s fall festivities up a notch. The 2016 Pumpkin Patch’s mission is to create an exciting experience for visitors and volunteers alike. If you have a suggested event, and/or would like to join in and participate, please call Chris Patterson (713-419-6913). All ideas considered!
Fifth Sundays
Combined Service 9 AM.
Beginning Sunday, July 31, and continuing on each fifth Sunday, we will have one unified service at 9:00 AM. We will meet in the Parish Hall after the service for a pot luck brunch and fellowship. You are asked to drop off your pot luck lunch items before the service. Our youth will set-up and clean up after brunch.
Outpost Returns to Office The Outpost editorial duties have returned to the church office. The email address for submitting articles remains the same and is located at the bottom of page 2. We have had some very capable past editors: Most recently Donna Tate, Priscilla Clark, Marion Brown, and JR Denson. We greatly appreciated their many fine contributions.
Grace Church Outreach:
Learn To Be A Servant of All
The disciples had been arguing about who should be the greatest. Jesus sat down and called the twelve, and said to them, “If any man wants to be first, he must be last and servant of all.” -Mark 9:34,35 J.B. Phillips Translation
To serve is to put faith into action. To reach out to
others is to live out what you believe. The prayer called
the General Thanksgiving in the morning and evening
office says, “And, we pray, give us such an awareness
of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may
show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our
lives, by giving up ourselves to your service, and by
walking before you in holiness and righteousness
all our days.” The people of Grace Church through
the years have found many ways to put their faith into
action in service to others. Fran Van Winkle has helped
with others for years at the local Clothing Outlet, which
operates on the grounds of First Presbyterian Church.
Our local Meals on Wheels outfit has Grace Church
people help with deliveries one Wednesday per month,
among them are, Dorothy Campbell, Frances Lamb,
Mark Patterson, and Phyllis Wall. The Grace Guild runs
two outreach campaigns each year for the De George
Center for Veterans in Houston. In progress and
preparing for delivery in the first week of July is the food
drive, with Dorothy Campbell and Phyllis Wall as our
key contacts. The Gathering Place is a program
for respite relief for families caring for people with
moderate memory challenges. Our Grace Church
volunteers, Sandra Green, Barbara Adkison and Melodi
Turner help on the third Wednesday each month at
the First Christian Church. Grace also encourages the
year round food drive for Alvin Food Pantry receiving
Sunday donations of food in the baskets at Church.
Ministries
Altar Guild Director:
Janice Bell [email protected]
Fellowship & Pastoral Care Council Mary Smith, [email protected]
Liturgy & Worship Council Bryan Foulk, 281-827-5977
Janice Bell, [email protected]
Media & Communications Council Donna Tate, [email protected]
JR Denson 832-443-4575 Jo Nell Parker
Mission & Outreach Council
Spiritual Formation Council Sandra Green, [email protected]
Lay Ministry Scheduler: Vicki Ennis, 281-585-4660
Verger: Bryan Foulk
Vestry: Jim Callan, Senior Warden [email protected] Jo Nell Parker, Junior Warden [email protected] Janice Bell, [email protected] Brian Foulk, 281-827-5977 Sandra Green, [email protected] JR Denson, 832-443-4575, [email protected] Chris Patterson, [email protected] Glennie Hefner [email protected] Tommy Peebles, [email protected]
Income $66,004.34
Expenses 72,228.65
Gain (Loss) ($ 6,224.31)
Gary & Melodi Turner 4
Buster & Nancy Schapper 24
Bo & J.R. Denson 26
The Office:
112 W. Lang Hours: M-F 9:00-1:00
The Staff
Rector: The Reverend David W. Price [email protected] Youth Minister: Organist & Music Director: Paul Humphrey [email protected] Parish Administrator: Danny Hermann [email protected] Nursery Attendant: Claudia Pouncey 281-840-3547
Outpost Edi tor : : g r ac ec h u r c h o u t p o s t @g m ai l .c o m
4 Lynne Bruner
6 Cora Mitchell
8 Jay Fitch
9 Fran Van Winkle
11 James Bradford IV
12 Dilys Davis
13 Rodney Stansel
17 Anna Peebler
18 Ruby Adams
24 Frances Lamb
25 Kailey Bouse
25 Brandi Bradford
26 Allen Evans
27 Paul Bruner
28 Jim Callan
28 Tony Peebler
31 Trish Schlegel
Ha ppy Birthday
Grace Episcopal Church
One God One Family One Table
Vision
Grace Episcopal Church seeks to deepen relationships with God, bring individu-als together into a family that builds up one another in love and support, and
actively serve our neighbors and community.
Mission
In this family of faith God brings togeth-er individuals in all stages of their spir-itual life to form an inclusive family. As a family, we encourage growth in
relationships with God, others, ourselves, and the creation, in that we
Practice invitation to God’s table,
Welcome and incorporate those who come,
Work together to worship the Lord in powerful liturgy,
Challenge, encourage and teach one another, and
Build one another up for ministry in and beyond the church.
Our Numbers:
As of May 31st.
Page 2
Vestry Volitions
The Vestry met on June 20th. Topics of discussion were parish councils, the budget, our next stewardship drive, and fundraising. The next meeting is scheduled for July 18th.
A Few Moments with Father David…
Inspire One Another: A Stewardship Possibility Jesus instructs his disciples, as he anticipated that his time with them was short, in this way, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 15:12) The Evangelist, St. John reiterates this message repeatedly in his letter to Christians, “Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” (1 John 4:7) These thoughts and these words are beautiful, but the challenge comes in how to apply them. In what ways can we fulfil Jesus’ command to love one another? There are bound to be more ways than we can number. Love comes to us as a gift from God, and what we have freely received, we must freely give. Think of this as the most basic principle of stewardship. Begin to see Jesus’ imperative, “love one another” as the root of what it is to be a steward of God’s gifts. You are a vessel into which God pours out his love, and you are to pour out the love of God to others. By giving, you stay receptive to receiving from God. A sponge near your kitchen sink can receive water, but only so much. It must be used and rung out. That is its purpose. So with the love of God in all the ways it comes to us. There is no saturation problem, so long as we are generous at manifesting love to others. Okay, now back to the choice of how to manifest. Have you considered “inspiration” as a form of love that you can receive from God and give away? If you open your heart to it, and open the eyes of your awareness, you will realize that God is lovingly pouring inspiration your way all of the time. I say, all the time: all through the week, and even at church. Your own insights, conversations with others, things you read, see and hear, these are sources of inspiration. Go through your week willing to be inspired and to inspire others. Come to church willing to be inspired and to inspire others. Quite apart from the sermon, which, let’s face it, may hit the mark or not, inspiration might rush in through the words of the rite, a hymn, the choir’s anthem, Paul Humphrey’s chanting or playing. Divine inspiration might immerse you through the Bible lesson, the comment of a child. People, what I am telling you is that you will be a source of inspiration to people, if you let yourself be. If such blessing is coming to you, it can also come from you. It is always important for us to fulfill the principles of Christian discipleship by giving our time, talent and treasure. Now, how about this? Fulfill your calling as a disciple and steward by loving one another; specifically, fulfill it by inspiring one another.
David +
Page 3
Page 4
Worship and Lighting
In the Church The Vestry is addressing the need for more light inside the church to help us see everything better. A church is no ordinary building, and the lighting we have in the worship area is an important aspect of our community’s experience within the sacred space. The spiritual connection between light and faith begins with images called to mind by the creation account in Genesis: Let there be light. Light is used in many passages in the Bible to express the Spirit of God manifest in the world. Good lighting in churches is important for reasons, functional and aesthetic. One of the scriptural sentences opening morning prayer is “Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.” The beauty of the space is part of what enhances worship. Even more basic is our need to see the words of the rite in the prayer book or the notes of music in the hymnal. At their last meeting, Wardens and Vestry devoted themselves to bring solutions to our need for better light within the church. There are new kinds of bulbs available now that can improve visibility for us. If you would like to make a special donation toward the project of better lighting in the sanctuary, chancel, nave and narthex of the church, it would be gratefully received as a wonderful benefit to the Grace Church community.
QR Code for Grace Events
If you have a QR code reader app on your smart phone, you can use it here to check out our Art Class Event! Use the QR code pictured here to learn more about the class and other events and get info for signing up!
Summer Sunday School:
Teachers Needed: Our Summer Sunday School Program is
in full swing, but we’re still looking for
volunteer teachers for the following dates:
August 14 & 21. The lesson plans have
already been prepared and printed, so all we
need is you! The class begins at 9:15 AM. A
sign-up sheet is located on the parish hall
bulletin board. Your help is greatly needed
and much appreciated. See Jennifer Price
for info.
July Art Class
Our next art class presented by Heather Roy
will be held in two sessions, July 9th & 16th,
from 9 AM until 12:30 PM in the Parish Hall.
In this class, the artist will have a choice of
one of two paintings offered. The paintings,
Broken Pots or Tuscany, and a sign-up
sheet are located on the Parish Hall bulletin
board. Or, you can call the church office
(281-331-5657) Monday through Friday
between 9 AM and 1 PM to sign up. The cost
of the class is $75 and is payable at the
door.
Grace Church Sunday School
Children’s Classes All Ages of Children Welcome Sundays 9:15-10:15am
Adult Classes Sundays 9:15 –10:15am Lectionary Class– A discussion of the weekly lessons Coffee Discussions—A kind of “Sharing Class” Sundays 9:15am Ladies Bible Study—Discussing material from the Bible, in engaging creative modes. Tuesday-Rector’s Bible Study 11:00am to 12:30pm Breaking for Summer, July 27 through August 31. Current discussion: Romans
Page 5
Birthday Cake
The first Sunday of each month is Birthday Cake Sunday sponsored by the Rossanos. Join us between the services on July 3rd. for cake, fun, and fellowship.
Thoughts on Buildings and
Grounds from Jr. Warden We often rent out the parish hall and/or pavilion especially on weekends. This means these areas must be kept neat and clean. Our cleaning crew comes on Friday nights, but they do not put away items in the kitchen. This means we must always hand wash the dishes, dry them, and put them away or put them in the dishwasher and run it. We also do not have a lot of storage area. So, if you have something that you want to donate for the kitchen, there may not be room for it. Please contact me before you bring it so we can evaluate the need for it and the place to put it. For example, we have many more towels than our drawer will hold. Grace does provide paper plates, plastic utensils, paper towels, paper hand towels, toilet paper, cups, coffee, sugar, and creamer. There are usually extras of these in the kitchen closet or in the cabinet under the coffee maker. If you do not find any, they could be in the large closet in the entry area to the parish hall. Our items are on the right side and the Boy Scout Troop has the left side. Please do not pile items in the center of the closet. Also, please do not put water in the hand soap containers. There is more in large containers under the sink in the kitchen. Please also pickup any trash you see on the grounds and put it in the trash cans. In the church, please remember to put the books back in the racks the way you found them. Otherwise, someone else has to do it to keep our place of worship neat. Also, the bulletins, etc. need to be carried to the foyer and given to an usher or put in the recycle receptacle provided. Thank you.
Jo Nell Parker
Bible Study Focus: Romans Paul’s Letter to the Romans is a special book of the Bible. It is the longest of Paul’s letters preserved for us in the New Testament, and it probably has had the most influence. One teacher put it this way. The book of Romans is the Himalayas of all the letters of the New Testament. It was later added, that chapter eight was the Mount Everest of that Himalayan range. Romans provides the most thorough teaching from Paul about how Christ brought us salvation, because he was so worried he would not make it to Rome like he wanted to do, and he wanted them to have all his thinking on this saving message. The eighth chapter is especially poignant because it covers the Spirit’s special work in us, and the absolute assurance of Christ’s irrevocable presence with us. The Rector’s Bible study on Tuesday mornings at
11:00 is tackling the second half of Romans in July.
The final session for this summer is July 20.
Page 6
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1
2
3 Holy Eucharist (I) 8:00am Christian Education Programs Holy Eucharist (II) 10:30am
4 INDEPENDENCE DAY
OFFICE CLOSED
5 Rector’s Bible Study 11:00am BSA Troop 400—7:00pm ALANON—7:30pm
6
7
8
9 Art Class 9:00am—12:30pm
10 Holy Eucharist (I) 8:00am Christian Education Programs Holy Eucharist (II) 10:30am
11
12 Rector’s Bible Study 11:00am BSA Troop 400—7:00pm ALANON—7:30pm
13
14
15
16 Art Class 9:00am—12:30pm
17 Holy Eucharist (I) 8:00am Christian Education Programs Holy Eucharist (II) 10:30am
18
Media & Communications Council, 6:15pm Vestry Meeting, 7:00pm
19 Rector’s Bible Study 11:00am BSA Troop 400—7:00pm ALANON—7:30pm
20
OUTPOST DEADLINE
21 Grace Guild, 10:00am
22
23
24 Holy Eucharist (I) 8:00am Christian Education Programs Holy Eucharist (II) 10:30am
25
26 Rector’s Bible Study 11:00am BSA Troop 400—7:00pm ALANON—7:30pm
27 28 29 30
31 Holy Eucharist 9:00am Pot Luck Brunch
Let us pray
for the Church
and for the world.
Grant, Almighty God, that all who confess your name may be united in your truth, live together in your love and reveal your glory to the world.
Archbishop of Canterbury, The Most Reverend Justin Welby Presiding Bishop, The Most Reverend Michael B. Curry Diocesan Bishop, The Right Reverend C. Andrew Doyle Bishop Suffragan, The Right Reverend Dena Harrison Bishop Suffragan, The Right Reverend Jeff Fisher Grace Rector, The Reverend David W. Price Grace Music Director and Organist, Paul Humphrey
Guide the people of this land, and all of the nations, in the ways of justice and peace; that we may honor one another and serve the common good.
Bless all whose lives are closely linked with ours and grant that we may serve Christ in them and love one another a he loves us.
Our Administrators, Altar Guild, Bible Studies, Children’s Ministries, Christian Education, Cursillo, Community Outreach, Daughters of the King, Family Promise, Grace Guild, KAIROS Prison Ministry, Lay Ministers, Music Ministry, Senior Saints, Youth Ministry, Vestry, and all others serving you.
Comfort and heal all those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit; give them courage and hope in their troubles, and bring them the joy of your salvation…
Isabelle Acker, Barbara Adkison, Bob Armstrong, Windy Arnold, Kimber Ballard, Herb Barrier, Derrick Beaver, Patricia Bell, Louis Bell, Jean Bilderback, Shirley Braw, Lynne Bruner, Brenda Buelow, Velma Bumstead, Nathan Buzbee, Beverly Capeheart, Becky Carbone, Mary Cobb, Ed Crook, Charles & Lucille Dixon, Ted Doerr, Paula Ellis, Joanne Fisher, Jay Fitch, Elizabeth Gass, John Gass, Aaron Gideon, Jerrie Grantham, Bill Harris, Kenneth Lee, Ben Lockett, Kenneth Marvel, Mildred Morris, Ann Oliver, Bob Peebles, Tommy Peebles, Chad Rogers, Kevin Ross, Joe Rossano, Nicole Rowden, Josh Sager, A.O. Smith, Shirley Stockton, Rennard Sweet, Myra Thomas, Scarlet Tucker, Fran Van Winkle, Mary Frances Wissner.
Our college students in their journey.
Elizabeth Russell, Texas Tech University John Evans, Texas A & M University Allen Evans, Texas A & M University Calli Fauver, Baylor University Carson Fauver, Texas Tech University Linda Thurmond, Alvin Community College
Protect and guide all who serve in the military.
Mickey Alcantara (USMC), Scott Barrier (USAF), Scott Bean, Robert Berger (USN), Christian Blevins, Jason Bryan, Chase Capehart, Taylor Cameron (USN), Robert Carnie (USN), Ryan Cross, Clayton Crouch, David Dezso, Glen Dockal (USA), Raymond Dugan (USN), Thomas Economidis (USN), Mitchell Goodnight, Matt (USN) & David Hefner (USA), Lance Henderson, Keith (USN) & Kurt (USMC), Adam Miller, Ben Meyer (USCG), Shon O’Connor, Tara Parker, Chad Perry (USAF), Daniel Popham, Ryan Popham, Jonathan Prater, Manuel Rodriguez, Josh Sager (USAF), A. J. Soto (USA), Russell Stewart (USAF), John Swanson, William Thompson, Ray Turner.
Our expectant mothers:
Our newborns:
Faithful Departed:
We commend to your mercy O Lord, your servant
Mary Englehardt Cobb that your will for her may be fulfilled; and we pray that she may rest with all your saints in your eternal kingdom.
Guide and protect our First Responders.
Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive.
Matthew 21:22
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200 W. Lang St. Office @ 112 W. Lang St. Alvin, TX 77511-2396
Services
Sunday Worship 8a.m. Rite I
9:15 a.m. Sunday School 10:30 a.m. Rite II
Morning Prayer
7a.m. Sunday 8:30 a.m. Mon-Sat.
Evening Prayer*
6pm Daily *Healing prayer Wednesdays
Upcoming Features of Parish Life
Astros Baseball, July 1, 7:00PM
Birthday Cake Sunday, July 3, 9:00AM
Run with the Rector, July 4, 7:00AM
Independence Day, July 4, OFFICE CLOSED
Art Classes, July 9 & 16, 9:00AM
Vestry Meeting, July 18, 7:00PM
Combined Eucharist, July 31, 9:00AM
Member of
Episcopal Diocese of Texas, epicenter.org
National Episcopal Church, episcopalchurch.org
Worldwide Anglican Communion, anglicancommunion.org
Alvin-Manvel Ministerial Alliance, ministerialalliance.net
One God - One Family - One Table
