Mile High Banjos to perform on Friday, January 11, 2019

You won’t want to miss our next Music with a Mission Concert when we welcome parishioner, John Mumford and Mile High Banjos as they present an evening of Ragtime & Dixieland Jazz. The concert begins at 7 pm on Friday, January 11, so get here early for best seating. The Mile High Banjos play the music associated with the 4-string and 5-string banjo, and the evening of music will put a smile on your face and a little rhythm in your step.  Songs will range from the traditional & Dixieland jazz era, ragtime, bluegrass as well as ballads in the style of the “Last of the Red Hot Mamma” -  Sophie Tucker. There will even be songs from the “Tin Pan Alley” days for you to sing along to.

Hope Grows Here Stewardship Campaign Update

We want to thank all the parishioners who have pledged for the 2019 Capital Campaign.  As of 12/26/2018 we have received 127 pledges for $344,110 for an average of $2709 per pledge.  As we mentioned previously, the Stewardship Committee has set a goal for 2019 for 175 pledges, with an average pledge of $2500 per family/ individual for a pledge amount of $437,500.    

Our Stewardship Campaign is very important because the Finance Committee and the Vestry build our 2019 budget based on our 2019 Stewardship Campaign pledges.  We will build the 2019 budget in December and early January and present the budget at our annual meeting on January 27.   

We are $93,000 short of our goal in pledge income, we really need your help to maintain the staff and programs that we have experienced in 2018.  Pledge cards are available on the newcomers table in the hallway and you can pledge through our website.  Pledges can be placed in the collection plate on Sunday, mailed in or made through our website – your confidentiality is maintained in each of these ways.

Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year’s season and thank you for your help.

Vestry Devotion: God calls us to create, not consume

This month’s Vestry devotion is submitted by Vestry member Griffin Bridgers.

During Christmas and the Advent season, it is easy to get swept up into our culture’s way of viewing this holiday.  It is no secret that we live in a consumer-based economy, and our human nature drives us to want as much “stuff” as we can possibly get our hands on.  It is also no secret that getting “stuff” often does not lead us to the happiness we expected.  Both of these outcomes are contrary to the life God has called us to lead, yet we keep doing them. 

When we dig deep into our consumerism and materialism, we often find a lack of faith, both in God and in ourselves.  We lack faith that God will be enough, so we search for the magic pill of joy and happiness.  We also lack faith that we can do hard work, so we search for the magic pill of motivation and discipline. 

While this may be an oversimplification of what drives us when writing our Christmas wish list, it also exposes what may be an even simpler theme:  Consumption. 

We all know that consumption is contrary to the life God has called us to lead.  Yet, that does not stop us from asking God for “stuff.”  As noted in chapter 4, verse 3 of the letter of James,

When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

So, in a world where we are bombarded with the message that we must consume, and given our human nature to consume, what wrong “motive” could James be referring to in his warning?  Could it be that we erroneously equate happiness with pleasure?  Could it be that this misguided pursuit of pleasure serves only to enhance our ego, and not our soul? 

If we look to what we are celebrating this season (the birth of Jesus), we find a theme of creation.  It is no coincidence that creation is the opposite of consumption.  Given this reality, perhaps the right “motive” that James referred to is a desire to create.  And, if we were to dig deeper, I think we would find that the act of creation is the magic pill we have been seeking all along. 

Creation is often at the core of many of our most cherished Christmas traditions.  Unfortunately, in our busy lifestyle, we often view this creation as tiring work, when in fact it can be life-giving.  I was reminded of this recently, when I finally got around to putting up the Christmas lights on our house after procrastinating for two weeks.  Once I got started, I found myself spending an entire afternoon outside completely engrossed in my task.  What I had imagined as hard work had instead become a fun and exhilarating task.  Now, every time I leave the house with my two girls, I get to hear their expressions of joy seeing our lights. 

If we were to simply tune out the Christmastime messages of consumerism which bombard us, we would find many opportunities to create.  Putting up a Christmas tree, decorating, baking, making gingerbread houses, making ornaments, and caroling are all creative activities which also carry fruits of the Holy Spirit.  We get to experience fellowship, joy, and true relationship with God when we partner with Him and glorify Him in our creative endeavors. 

So, during this Christmas season, I would encourage you to add a new spiritual discipline of simply creating something every day.  While it takes some work to break your habits and dedicate time to creative endeavors, you will quickly find each creative activity speaking to your soul.  This is not an accident, as God has called us to create and not consume. 

From Fr. Gary: Oh my, not another one!

As I write this, plumbers are in the lower level of Good Shepherd repairing a leak in some pipes. The blue in the photo gives evidence of water’s insidious nature; coming from above, it can flow in all directions! What an interruption in the day for us! Dealing with this emergency was not what any of us expected when we entered the building this morning. Fortunately, there is a whole group of wonderful people called “plumbers” who can be summoned to take care of these kinds of incidents. Just like there were wonderful HVAC folks who could come and make sure we had heat in the sanctuary a few weeks ago. The fact that there are wonderful folks who can help us does not, however, mean that we like our routines disrupted.

Interruption is a good description of the season into which we are moving: Advent. “Advent”, after all means the “arrival of a notable person, thing or event, such as ‘the advent of television.’” Even if that “notable person, thing or event” is desired and anticipated, there is an interruption. We need to set time aside to prepare, clean the kitchen, do some special shopping, have the dog groomed, as well as expect to be changed a bit.

Advent at Good Shepherd also means some interruption, a change in the “normal” things. The “long green season” of Pentecost, for example, is known in some traditions as “Ordinary Time” (and it includes the season of Epiphany). “Ordinary Time” are those weeks in the church year that aren’t devoted to “special times,” like Advent, Christmas, Lent or Easter. Those times are marked visually, or interrupted, by specially-colored vestments (violet/blue for Advent, white for Christmas and Easter, purple for Lent).  We will shift to blue vestments for the four Sundays of Advent.

Liturgically, too, we will be making some changes. Our Book of Common Prayer provides four different Eucharistic Prayers for use with Rite 2. What we’ve been using for the last several months, however, is none of those, but rather an alternative prayer from a set of liturgies known as “Enriching Our Worship.” Beginning December 2nd, many will recognize a return to the Prayer Book, and the use of Eucharistic Prayer “B” (pp. 367-9). Prayer B emphasizes the incarnation of Christ — an appropriate focus for Advent, as we anticipate Immanuel, God with us.

We will also change the service music —the Kyrie eleison (“Lord, have mercy upon us”), the Sanctus (“Holy, holy, holy”), and the Agnus Dei (“Lamb of God”). We will learn (or return to) one of the earliest settings of the service music for the first Book of Common Prayer, composed by John Merbecke in the mid-16th century. The reason for this change is to introduce some simpler music during a more subdued season.

There will be other changes in the liturgy as well, some more apparent than others. For example, we will be changing the ringing of the bells a bit, to be more “in sync” with the liturgical action. Additional alterations will address unnecessary pauses in the flow of the liturgy. While I recognize that these run the risk of being “unwelcome interruptions,” it is my hope that the changes will help us in our corporate worship of God. As always, if you have any concerns, comments, or suggestions, I’m all ears!

Being “all ears” might be a good metaphor for our attitude towards Advent in general:  What might we hear as we wait in expectation, even through the changes?

Blessings!

Put it on the calendar now: Fr. Gary’s Commissioning!

On Sunday, December 9th, Ann Fleming, the diocesan Missioner for Transition Ministry & Congregational Development, will join us at 9 am to Commission Fr. Gary as Good Shepherd’s Priest-in-Charge.

This will be a wonderful day for the whole congregation! We are charting our way into the future, and we want “all hands on deck”! So there will only be ONE COMBINED SERVICE on the 9th — at 9:00 am!  (Get it? Just 9 on the 9th!).

AND, there will be a fabulous reception following! So, take the rare opportunity to worship with folks from the all of the services, and lend your support to our common future!

Fr. Gary comes clean on his infamous hat

WHAT IS THAT HAT . . .

  . . . that Fr. Gary is wearing when he’s greeting folks at the door these (chilly) days?

 Well, it’s called a “Canterbury Cap”!  Here’s a bit more about it:

The Canterbury cap is so called because it was a revival of the prototype worn by Archbishops of Canterbury in the Tudor period. It is admirably illustrated in contem­porary portraits of several Primates, when the black velvet cap was typical of a medieval scholar. Outstanding examples include the oil canvas portrait of Thomas Cranmer, painted in 1545 by Gerlach Flicke, now in the National Portrait Gallery (shown above).

When it was restored as outdoor clerical head dress, the cap was in no way confined to clergy in the diocese of Canterbury. Instead of the biretta, it was strongly advocated as “correct dress” for Anglican clergy . . . .

And Fr. Gary wants the “correct dress”!  (And it keeps his head warm!)

2018 Pumpkin Patch Update

The 2018 Pumpkin Patch provided Good Shepherd the opportunity to give $1800 to each of our five charities that support the hungry and homeless populations in our community. These organizations include Covenant Cupboard Food Pantry, HAAT Force: South Metro, House of Hope, St Clare’s Ministries and the St. Francis Center. Our ongoing relationship with these groups strengthens our outreach into our community.

It takes many volunteers to make the Pumpkin Patch a success. There were approximately 80 volunteers who worked 256 sales shifts over the 26 days that the patch was open. There were seven Day Captains who spent a total of 208 hours supervising the patch, regardless of the weather challenges we faced. Ten counters shared 52 hours after the patch closed counting the receipts, reporting our sales to Pumpkins USA and depositing the cash. We are not even able to count the number of people who helped with the offload, the lunch, the setup of the patch and the cleanup. Then there is the fabulous office staff that went above and beyond their normal duties to see that things ran smoothly. THANK YOU, EVERYONE for you generosity of time and talent.

As noted earlier this year, we are stepping down as coordinators of this worthwhile project. We have appreciated all of your hard work and support over the last two years.

Results of how “Hope Grows” at Good Shepherd

Hope CAN Grow Here!

As many of you know, during the stewardship campaign, Hope Grows Here, I asked folks to complete (on big poster boards) the following four statements about how “Hope Grows” for them at good Shepherd! I just want you ALL to see the ways that Hope can Grow at Good Shepherd over the next year(s)!

Hope Grows Here for me!

• A home for Prayer, worship & building relationships

• A place with lots of music

• A place where our arms are open to welcome, pray for, and love all the people of God. To welcome strangers.

• A community of caring committed people.

• Presume Positive Intentions; Joy & Fellowship

Hope Grows Here for my family!

• A place we can worship together!

• To feel welcomed

• Provide a sense of community and shared mission

• A place where my church family is so very important to me; they truly do care.

• A plan where all of God’s people are welcome and loved!!

• Adult formation/education Bible & Common Prayer study

• A place to share love

• It is important for us to work together in getting a new organ

• . . . to embrace difference

• For volunteers in ministry to share the fellowship and opportunities to serve . . .

Hope Grows Here for my church!

• The opportunity to grow, spiritually and in numbers

• That we can develop a multigenerational community that allows young and old to learn from each other and supports those at every stage of life

• Racial Reconciliation work

• Building up our membership

• To build upon our love and knowledge of God and His people

• That all of you will become acolytes

• That everyone is included and loved

• That the welcome mat stays out!

• That we learn to become the less-fortunate and others in our community that may not look like most of us or speak the same language

Hope Grows Here for my community!

• A place I can invite our community to join us

• Our worship community is a place where genuine conversation and connectedness can be round in a disconnected world

• Social Justice work

• Peace and social justice work with deep spiritual meaning

• To spread Jesus’ example to the world beyond our boundaries

• For Good Shepherd to be an “oasis” for musical expression in the south metro area

We can make it happen! We can make it grow!

Hope Grows Here Stewardship Campaign Update

As of 11/28/2018 we have received 114 pledges for $308,674 for an average of $2,708 per pledge.  As we mentioned previously, the Stewardship Committee has set a financial goal for 2019 of 175 pledges, with an average pledge of $2500 per family/ individual for a total pledge amount of $437,500.    

If you could not make Commitment Sunday, please consider mailing in your pledge, placing your pledge in the Sunday collection plate, or simply click the button below to submit your pledge card electronically. As always, your pledge remains confidential.

Our Stewardship Campaign is very important because we will build our 2019 budget based on our 2019 Stewardship Campaign pledges.  We will build the 2019 budget in December and early January, and we will present the budget at our annual meeting on January 27.  Therefore, in order to build the budget, we need to know the 2019 pledges as soon as possible.  We plan to announce the results of the 2019 Stewardship Campaign on December 9, when we will have one service at 9 am to celebrate the commissioning of our Priest-in-Charge, Fr. Gary.  The Stewardship Committee will have a nice surprise for everyone that morning.

Your Stewardship Team, our Ambassadors and our Prayer Team will be wearing ribbons identifying them on their name tags.  Feel free to ask them any questions, and if they cannot answer your question, the Stewardship team will get back with you.  Thank you for your consideration and your support.

Altar Guild offers opportunities to serve while sharing your time and talents

Are you looking for a new way to share your time and talents? The altar guild presents a wonderful opportunity to join a group that appreciates the beauty of our altar, and at the same, enjoys sharing fellowship with a wonderful group of people.

The altar guild cares for and prepares the altar for Sunday Services, weddings, funerals and baptisms. It is also responsible for decorating and preparing the church for all of the extra services of Advent, Holy Week and Easter.

We operate with four teams, which are each assigned one weekend a month for set up, and take down of the worship spaces for all three services. Responsibilities also include care of vestments, robes, altar linens and baking of the communion bread.

Different members take on different roles depending on their interests.

Perhaps you have a special skill that you could share but do not want to commit one weekend a month to this ministry. We can always use extra bread bakers, seamstresses, flower arrangers and people who are willing to help with the laundering of vestments and robes.

If you would like more information or would like to “shadow” a team some weekend please contact:

Sally VanWelden

Susan Hall

Volunteering at St. Clare’s Ministries leads to genuine friendships

Susan Jones is the St. Clare’s Ministries coordinator for Good Shepherd.

I would like to share some stories from St. Clare’s Ministries where I volunteer most Tuesday evenings, as I am chair of the Board of Directors. I have made genuine friends in the St. Clare’s community, and I want to share some of their stories with you.

I met “J” two years ago, and he is a tall man with a great smile. “J” is about 35 years old and he has had his up days and down days just like all of us. I saw him a few months ago, and he was very despondent. I asked Deacon Joe to speak with “J”, and Joe found out that “J”’s cousin passed away recently, so he was very sad. Also, “J”’s glasses had been broken, and he was able to get some new frames via St. Francis. I saw “J” a few weeks later, and he had a big grin on his face AND some new, stylish frames. “J” is now in a massage therapist training program as well as working a few part-time jobs. Tonight, “J” told me that he is working with his case manager to find a home so that he can offer his teenage daughter another option to that of living with her mother, and he asked for my prayers.

“S” is another friend, an artist and a lovely woman. We shared our divorce stories with each other earlier this year, and I feel a kinship with her. She told me last week that she is working to get permanent housing, but for the rest of November, she has a bed at a women’s shelter. “S” is smiling and proud, and I am so happy for her.

“C” will be interviewing for a housekeeper position at a large hotel tomorrow. He is very confidant and aware of how to interview and dress for the job. I was able to find him two pairs of black pants for this opportunity, and I look forward to hearing from him next week to hear that he “got the job.”

I met “Ja” two weeks ago, and we got to talking. “Ja” is a construction worker who grew up in the south. He told me that he recently lost his Bible – King James edition. So, I found a beautiful leather King James’ Bible at ARC, and I gave it to “Ja” this evening. He was in tears as he looked through his new Bible as well as the “Ragamuffin Gospel” by Brennan Manning. “Ja” found an opportunity to work on a house that will be flipped, and the owner will let him live there as long as he is making contributions.

These are a few of my stories that I will remember fondly. I invite you to volunteer at St. Clare’s Ministries on the third Tuesday evening so that you can meet the guests and make your own connections and memories.

Please take a few minutes to watch our promotional video that was created this year by our intern, Anthony Suggs.

"The Meaning of Dignity"

I invite you to assist in this wonderful ministry in one of three ways.

1) Each month on the third Tuesday evening, Good Shepherd parishioners are invited to staff SCM and serve meals and drinks, wash the dishes, and distribute clean clothing, blankets and toiletries. If you would like to be added to this email list, please send me an email.

2) A hot, three course meal is served every Tuesday evening at St. Clare’s Ministries which serves from The Episcopal Church of St. Peter and St. Mary at 126 W. 2nd Avenue, Denver, CO 80223. You could sponsor one of the weekly meals for 150 guests for $200. You can make a donation in any amount to St. Clare’s Ministries with a check payable to: St. Clare’s Ministries, 126 West 2nd Avenue, Denver, CO 80223

3) Your tax deductible donations defray costs for SCM. Over 95% of our guests are men, so at this time, we ask only for men’s clean, gently-used clothing and items. Place your donations in the bin in the parish hall and be sure to complete a donation form including your full name and address so that we can send you a receipt and a thank you note.

a. Men’s jeans (size 28 – 34 waist)

b. Men’s boxer briefs (M – L)

c. Men’s v-neck or crew-neck undershirt (S-XL)

d. Men’s white or black socks

e. Rain gear, jackets, coats

f. Hats, ball caps

g. Shoes, boots – especially steel-toe boots

h. Backpacks, blankets, sleeping bags

i. Personal size toiletries – sunscreen, deodorant, toothbrushes/toothpaste

Thank you for your past donations, prayers, and assistance for the St. Clare’s guests. And let me know if you want to help with our efforts to offer a respite, clothing, meal, and worship service for the homeless or marginalized in the Baker neighborhood.

A new organ for Good Shepherd

Why do we need a new organ at our church?

Here are a few of the reasons that we would like to invest in a new Rodgers organ for our parish. The organ at Good Shepherd is 35 years old. (Imagine using a computer that is that age!!!) The organ has served us well but, several of the notes on the keyboards now do not work consistently. The sound palette is VERY limited, basically one sound. None of the pistons which are built to change settings will "capture and hold" a setting.

A new instrument will complement our growing music program. New digital organs can make a multitude of sounds, imitating an entire orchestra and more. The new organ will also have several speakers instead of just two. As was communicated to me by one of our congregation, Stephen is not fully able to use all of his talents because of the limitations of our present instrument.

We are looking to buy the organ in the next few months. The cost is about $65,000. We hope to raise this from parishioners who appreciate our music program and want the program to succeed even more with great organ music.

There is a poster in the church displaying a facsimile of the new organ. Several items that we would like you to consider helping with are sponsoring a drawknob on the organ for $500 each. Or you can buy a key or a sound in the digital library. We are suggesting a donation of $100 per key or sound. Of course, any size donation is gratefully accepted.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Connie Branton or Stephen Fiess.

From Pastor Gary: Keeping secrets is not hopeful!

A number of years ago, when I was the Episcopal Campus Minister at UC-Berkeley, I ran a couple of programs for my students called “Near Neighbors.” The premise behind the program was that it was pretty easy for Episcopalians to have good conversations with Buddhists or Jews or Muslims. They didn’t pose a “threat!” Those that DID pose a threat were our “near neighbors” — Christians of other stripes with whom there might be some significant points of disagreement.

The first group of students we invited were friends of one of the Episcopalian kids; they were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—the Mormons. We began the evening as we usually did . . . eating (always a success!). Then we broke into small groups for discussion. I gave everyone the same three questions to answer (i.e., no-one was exempted from answering the questions):

1. How is your faith a help in your life as a student?

2. How is your faith a problem in your life as a student?

3. How do you practice your faith on a regular (daily, weekly, etc.) basis?

All of the conversations were rich. I could hear laughter at each of the groups. When it came time to close down the evening, they all said, “We’re not done! Can we do this again next week?” I had to say “No. Next week is already planned. But we CAN do it the following week.” And they all came back and the conversation continued. And, at the end, both groups invited the others to join them in church; the leader of the Latter-day Saints contingent even said “Please come, and we won’t tell the missionaries.”

One of the things that made the conversations so valuable was that the questions had nothing to do with differences. Nor did the questions focus on trying to find some theological “common ground.” No expertise was needed, or assumed. On the contrary, the questions all had to do with personal experience, personal experiences based in a shared culture:  college student life.  Both groups could commiserate in how difficult it was to be “religious” on the very secular Cal campus. Both very much appreciated the support from their home congregations. On the other hand, the Episcopalian kids were blown away (perhaps, shamed) by how “faithfully” the Latter-day Saints practiced their religion.* The Latter-day Saints were surprised by how hospitable were the Episcopalians.

I was reminded of this experience a few weeks ago when I was invited to be part of a panel at Metro State. There were four of us who were asked to talk about how our faith was lived out (both individually and corporately); we were a charismatic Christian, a Reform rabbi, a member of the Rocky Mountain Islamic Center (in Lakewood), and me, an Episcopal priest. We were told ahead of time by the teacher (a former student of mine at DU) that this wasn’t about theological differences, but about “lived religion”. Once again, I was struck by contrasts in practices, and, as in the past, I experienced “holy envy” (“Golly, I wish WE did that!”).

I was also made aware, too, of how often we take for granted how much everyone else’s “religious practice” might be like ours . . . and I mean within our own group. And, so, I have to wonder what we might learn from one another if we took some time to get into small groups and ask the same questions as did the students, just changing the last word in Questions 1 & 2 to something more pertinent:  “as a parent?”, “as an employee?” “as a manager?” “as a citizen?” I imagine we’d be surprised, and occasionally struck by “holy envy”.

I will also admit that the conversations we had with our near (and not-so-near) neighbors gave me hope. Hope that perceived differences can be overcome through a generous curiosity and openness with others. “Hope Grows Here”, as you know, is the theme of our stewardship campaign. Amid the many other ways we may seek to nurture that hope—through our treasure, time and talent, may we be generous stewards of our experiences, our curiosity and our attention to one another . . . and to those beyond the church walls. Hope may catch on, and catch fire!

Blessings,

Gary+

* You can imagine their amazement when we moved, later, beyond the “near neighbors” to talk with Muslim students!  “Prayer five times a day, starting at what time?” “No bacon?” “Women sit where in the mosque, and don’t mind?”

The Reverend Kym Lucas Elected 11th Bishop of Colorado

The Rev. Kimberly (Kym) Lucas was chosen as the 11th Bishop of the Episcopal Church in Colorado during its 131st Annual Convention held at Saint John’s Cathedral in Denver on Saturday, October 27.

One of two candidates, Lucas was elected on the fourth ballot, receiving 124 of 173 clergy votes and 237 of 306 lay votes. In order to be elected, a candidate needed to receive 2/3 votes from both the clergy and the lay delegates, voting separately as orders in the same balloting round. The second ballot was invalid due to a reporting error after the announcement of the first ballot. The other candidate was The Rev. Canon Ruth Woodliff-Stanley, Canon to the Ordinary of The Episcopal Church in Colorado.

Lucas has served as Rector of St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. since January 2012. Previously, she was the Rector of St. Ambrose Episcopal Church in Raleigh, NC from 2005 to 2011.

Notified of the election results, Lucas said, “I am both amazed and thrilled that the Holy Spirit has called us to minister together! The Episcopal Church in Colorado is an extraordinary and unique branch of the Jesus Movement. I enjoyed the short time I was able to spend in each region, and I look forward to spending more time with you, getting to know one another, and discerning how God will use our gifts to proclaim Christ’s kingdom. The next few months will be full for me as my family and I plan our transition, but know that I am eager to be with you. Your confidence and love humble me, and I pray that I will be a faithful steward of both as your bishop.”

Woodliff-Stanley, in response to the election, extended a message of gratitude to the diocese and prayers for Bishop-Elect Lucas: “I give thanks to God for the election of The Reverend Kym Lucas to serve as the 11th Bishop of the great Diocese of Colorado. I offer my heartfelt congratulations to you and to your new Bishop-elect. My prayers are with you and with Mother Kym and her family as you prepare for a new season of ministry together across this vast and beautiful state. Dios es bueno. Todo el rato. Dios los bendiga, todos y cada uno. God is good. All the time. God bless you, each and every one.”

Lucas grew up in Spring Lake, North Carolina and received her Bachelor of Science in Biology from Wake Forest University. She received her Master of Divinity, New Testament, at Union Theological Seminary in New York. Lucas and her husband, Mark Retherford, have four children.

Pending consent of a majority of the bishops with jurisdiction, Lucas will be ordained and consecrated on May 18, 2019, in Colorado. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry will preside.

(Courtesy of St. John’s Cathedral)

Central City Opera performs “Love Notes” November 2 at 7 pm

Don’t miss our second Music with a Mission concert of the season when we welcome Central City Opera’s performance of “Love Notes” to our stage on Friday, November 2 at 7 pm. Proceeds for this concert will benefit St. Francis Center for the homeless. The concert will feature a romantic duo and dynamic pianist from the Central City Opera Touring Artists: Judeth Shay Comstock, soprano; Jason Baldwin, tenor and Deborah Schmit-Lobis, pianist.  Relive the rollercoaster of love through this eclectic program of songs and duets from opera and musical theatre, including selections from Show Boat, La Bohème, The Last Five Years, and Manon.

Thanks to all who volunteered and attended our first concert of the season with Mark Kroos. We raised $1,800 for The Rose Andom Center serving victims of domestic violence!

Commitment Sunday to feature celebrations after all three services on Sunday, November 4

Our 2019 Stewardship Campaign, “Hope Grows Here,” will officially kick off on Sunday, November 4, with a special celebration we call “Commitment Sunday.” On this day we will celebrate the future of Good Shepherd by submitting our pledges for 2019 and uniting in fellowship after all three services.  We plan to have a breakfast after the 7:45 am service, a light lunch after the 10 am service, and surprise treats after the 6 pm service.

If you cannot make Commitment Sunday please consider mailing in your pledge, bring it in a week early, or bring it a week late and place it in the collection plate.

As we mentioned previously, the Stewardship Committee has set a financial goal for 2019 for 175 pledges, with an average pledge of $2,500 per family/individual for a pledge amount of $437,500.  This compares with 164 pledges in 2018 for a total amount of $404,000.   

Our 20 ambassadors should have already contacted you to answer any questions and to make sure all our parishioners have received our mailed packet of information with a pledge card.  Our Ambassadors will also contact parishioners about 10 days after Commitment Sunday to answer any questions and follow up.

Our 12-member Prayer Team will continue to hold up our Stewardship Campaign in prayer.

Your Stewardship Team will be wearing ribbons identifying them on their name tags, as well our Ambassadors and our Prayer Team.  Feel free to ask them any questions, and if they can’t answer your question, the Stewardship team will get back with you.  Thank you for your consideration and your support.

2018 Pumpkin Patch Update

In spite of some challenging weather, Good Shepherd’s Pumpkin Patch outreach fundraiser ended on a successful note. Although proceeds are still in the process of being tallied, as of Tuesday October 30, the patch had grossed just over $25,000.

Net proceeds for the patch are a percentage of the gross sales. This number, plus the amount of additional donations, will be announced the first week of November.

We would like to thank the hundreds of volunteers who pitched in to offload the pumpkins, prepare the hot dog lunch, and set up the palettes, fence and hay bales. In addition there were those who helped decorate the patch, sell pumpkins, shovel snow, cover pumpkins when necessary, wave the signs, update Facebook, count and deposit the money every night, take photos, and organize a family fun event. When it is over more volunteers stepped up to tear down and clean up the patch. It has been a privilege to work with such great parishioners and friends. The patch would not be a success without you.

Tina Hubbard

Sally VanWelden

A new organ for Good Shepherd

Why do we need a new organ at our church? 

Here are a few of the reasons that we would like to invest in a new Rodgers organ for our parish.  The organ at Good Shepherd is 35 years old.  (Imagine using a computer that is that age!!!)   The organ has served us well but, several of the notes on the keyboards now do not work consistently.  The sound palette is VERY limited, basically one sound.  None of the pistons which are built to change settings will "capture and hold" a setting. 

A new instrument will complement our growing music program.  New digital organs can make a multitude of sounds, imitating an entire orchestra and more.  The new organ will also have several speakers instead of just two.   As was communicated to me by one of our congregation, Stephen is not fully able to use all of his talents because of the limitations of our present instrument.

We are looking to buy the organ in the next few months.  The cost is about $65,000.  We hope to raise this from parishioners who appreciate our music program and want the program to succeed even more with great organ music. 

There is a poster in the church displaying a facsimile of the new organ.  Several items that we would like you to consider helping with are sponsoring a drawknob on the organ for $500 each.  Or you can buy a key or a sound in the digital library.  We are suggesting a donation of $100 per key or sound.   Of course, any size donation is gratefully accepted.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Connie Branton or Stephen Fiess.

A message from Dr. Stephen Fiess, Good Shepherd’s Director of Music

You may have noticed that the Black Sheep choir has new choir folders, with the new Black Sheep logo (a black sheep with a red tie) displayed on the front cover.

Many thanks to Black Sheep choir members Marge Pegula, Kees Corssmit, Ken White, and Reed Osborne, as well as Ken White's daughter and granddaughter, for all of their work in researching available folder designs and logo designs for the choir's new folders.

Special thanks, as well, to Kees and Linda Corssmit, for hosting our Black Sheep summer rehearsals at their home.

Good Shepherd is indeed blessed to have such a fine and dedicated choir, which is comprised entirely of tenors and basses! (New tenors and basses are always welcome!)

Vestry Devotion: Overcoming fear with faith

This month’s Vestry devotion is submitted by Vestry member Bob Rae.

God of all, may our congregation be aware of our part in your larger church.  Draw us all together into one great company of disciples, together following our Lord Jesus Christ into every walk of life, together serving Him in His mission to the world, and together witnessing to His love in our city and particularly in our local community.  AMEN

Overcoming fear with faith

Faith is not exclusive to Christians…. after all everyone who crosses the street exercises faith. What matters is who you place your faith in.

Faith is one of the great principals of the word of God. Faith is a powerful weapon for the believer. The Christian life was not meant to be lived in isolation, if you want to be protected, you have to stick to a group and live like a family. A healthy people are a community of church goers who live in harmony with each other, so they can help each other, so they can challenge each other, hold each other accountable. And God honors that. Sometimes God strengthens us when we are all alone, but most often he strengthens us through the words and patience of other people. Faith grows better in a community; we grow better together.

To grow our faith we need purpose. Daniel Ritchie was born without arms, and it was challenging for him to function without hands. He had to learn to dress and groom himself by using his feet, and to open doors and to drive. His greater challenge was dealing with people who stared and hurled insults at him. As a result, Daniel came to believe that he was not worth anything and he developed hatred for the people around him. He was not a Christian and had almost no friends.

One night a classmate took him to church. That evening the preacher gave a simple devotional on Psalm 139 – 14: I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

That message penetrated Daniel’s heart and he understood that God created him for a purpose. That he was a marvelous work of God. That night he gave his life to Christ. He now preaches and speaks at conferences and churches and youth events in the US and all over the world.  As he put it, he uses his empty sleeves to point people to God.

Can we envision what God has planned for our church? Is it to fill this building with believers? If we only trust God for what we have, we cannot grow our faith. To grow our faith we need problems, and we need people. And, to grow our faith we need purpose. Jesus teaches his disciples about faith; he demonstrates it not by the size of your faith, but the size of the God you have faith in. Attempt great things for God and expect great things from God. The Bible says, we have not because we ask not. When was the last time we, as a congregation, we asked God for something which required a little faith on our part?

God is waiting for Good Shepherd to ask him for his help in enlarging our perspective, so he can enlarge our faith. If we shift our focus on great things for his Name’s sake, He will provide. He is simply waiting for us to ask.

St. Peter meets this guy who goes to heaven and St. Peter takes him to this vestibule full of file cabinets…. he asks what are all these file cabinets? St Peter says these are the drawers full of all the things God wanted to give you, but you never asked for. When we get to heaven, make sure your drawer is empty.

God of our coming and going, God of our past, our present, and our future, we have met, we have celebrated, we have remembered.  We have visioned, shared hopes, and dreamed dreams, and now we go out into the world in which we do most of our living and our ministering.  As we go out, remind us that we do not go alone.  As we go out, remind us that we go with a mission.  As we go out, fill us with love, hope, and peace to share with the world.  May our lives and our ministry be signs of your love and promises and possibility for the world.  AMEN