Your Week at St. Nick 15 - 21 August 2010

Sunday, 15 August

8:30am Holy Eucharist/Flag Dedication/Guest Preacher Eric Seldon

9:15am  Breakfast/Fellowship

9:30am  Christian Formation Classes

11:00am  Holy Eucharist/Guest Preacher Eric Seldon

 

Usher/Greeter

8:30am Bobo and Barbara Morgan

11:00am  John and Charlotte Winsness

Readers

8:30am Larry Nordin

11:00am  John Brent/Ivy Martin

LEM

8:30am Katherine Johnson

11:00am  Nick Simpson

Altar Guild

Linda Sawyer/Bert Tomlin

Flower Guild

Sharon Cheatham

Lemonade

Gina Durham

Acolytes

Cody Durham

Ivy Martin

Madison Martin

Sunday School Teacher

Graham Horne

Wednesday, 18 August

4:00om Finance Committee Meeting

6:30pm  Choir Rehearsal

Thursday, 19 August

6:30pm Episcopal 101

Saturday, 21August

9:30am Lobsterfest Committee Meeting

 

Happy Birthday!

August

8/6       Cory Butzon

8/14     Rev. Tom Jones

8/18     Tony Cox

8/31     Nancy Callaway

Happy Anniversary!

August

8/3       Chris & Andy Butzon

8/16     Kenny & Lynn Hall

8/18     Jeff & Molly Jackson

8/29     Gene & Pat Demonet

What Should I Draw?

Lobsterfest is looming large over me. I’m really excited about the event, I really am, but due to Sue Halmrast twisting my arm, I agreed to donate a couple of pieces of original artwork to the silent auction. What was I thinking?

For those of you who may not know, I am somewhat of a cartoonist, and a deep lover of sequential art, not just comic books, but any art that tells a sequential story. I think the marriage between words and pictures is fascinating, and I’ve been a fan of such art, particularly comics, since I was a boy. I can remember copying Garfield comic strips by Jim Davis when I was younger, and learning just how to get those eyes right.

My high school years were when I was at my artistic peak. I spent most of my time in the art room, with my teacher Ms. Haroldson, whom I loved to pester as much as learn from. In my senior year, I received the Art Award on Honors Night, which is my only claim to fame from high school. I still have a lot of that work.

When I went to Berry, I had every intention of being an art major. However, my advisor and professor was too…well…artsy for my taste, and I didn’t think that I was going to make it in that program. So I switched to my other love, religion, and studied that instead. But I did my fair share of drawing in college. For two years, I was the editorial cartoonist for the Campus Carrier, which taught me how to draw on a deadline. There were nights where I was burning major midnight oil trying to get one of those single-panelled terrors in on time. Luckily, my editor was also a dear friend and Episcopalian, so she cut me some slack. Read more

Flag Dedication

Our flags have arrived!

Thanks to many generous donations from St. Nicholas members, we now have an Episcopal flag and an American flag on display in the narthex of the church. They are 3 x 5 flags on some snazzy poles and in some beautiful stands. They look really nice and everyone who has seen them in the narthex thus far has said they are really glad we went with the nicest flags we could get.

This Sunday, August 15, at the 8:30 service, we will dedicate the two flags during the Prayers of the People. We can only dedicate them once, so we hope that those of you who made these flags possible will be able to come to the early service.

Pulpit Swap!

This Sunday, August 15, we will have a guest preacher, as the second part of our “pulpit swap” with Christian Valley Church in Cataula. Back in June, I was invited to preach at Christian Valley as a way to introduce St. Nicholas to their congregation and vice versa. On Sunday, we will have Pastor Eric Seldon with us preaching at both services.

Our relationship with Christian Valley began over a year ago when a member of their church, Garvin Gourie, wanted to explore teaming with a predominantly white congregation in order to show unity between our churches in this county. Sunday mornings are the most segregated hours of the week in the South, and Garvin’s vision led to our conversations. We are certainly not seeking to assimilate one another, but want to establish a relationship to learn about one another, experience our differing cultures, and worship together.

In our conversations over the last year, Pastor Eric, Garvin, Graham Horne, and I have discussed doing some outreach projects together, including promoting the Ferst Foundation’s Childhood Literacy Program. Katherine Johnson and Connie Blackmon, members of St. Nicholas who are greatly involved with the literacy program, have worked with us to think about some ways we can promote this program in our congregations and join together to get children signed up for it.

Christian Valley’s choir will also be with us on Sunday to share their gift of music. We will also show them how we celebrate Eucharist, and share our gifts of music as well!

It will be a fantastic Sunday, so please come and introduce yourself to our friends from Christian Valley!

Regular Sunday Morning Schedule Returns

This Sunday, August 8, we will return to our regular Sunday morning schedule!

8:30am Holy Eucharist: This service is for our early-risers. Unlike many other church’s early services, though, it is a service of Holy Eucharist with music, although we will occasionally omit a hymn or two based on time. We have almost identical services at St. Nicholas to ensure unity among the members of the church. Just because you get up early doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have the full worship experience!

9:15am Breakfast: Last year, we started a very successful breakfast in between the services. Under the leadership of Sheila Dixon, families can sign up to provide a continental breakfast once every few months. This gives an opportunity for people from both services to gather and catch up with one another. What better way to do so than over food? Jesus did that all the time! So either stay after the early service or come a little early before Christian Formation and the late service to get a light breakfast and some excellent fellowship.

9:45am Christian Formation classes/Choir Warm-Up: We used to call this just “Sunday School,” but then adults starting thinking it was just for kids! Christian formation is a life-long process, and we offer numerous opportunities for children, teenagers, and adults to grow in their faith and get to know one another better!

• Nursery: Infants to 3-year-olds can enjoy some play time in the nursery, tended by the wonderful Kim Stokes. There are toys, videos, and books for our youngest members, and Ms. Kim will also take children out to the playground if the weather cooperates. Kim is available to watch children from Breakfast until after the 11:00 service.

• Sunday School: 3-to-9-year-olds are invited for a fun-filled class with games, crafts, and biblical learning. They are met each week in the Sunday School room by one of many teachers who help kids know that God loves them and cares for them. The children have Sunday School until just before the 11:00 service, at which point parents can gather them to sit with them in church, or they may sit on the front row with a “Shepherd” for worship. Either way, we believe that having children in church is vitally important to their faith development, so be sure to teach your child how to worship. It’s OK to take them out if they get fussy and bring them back when they calm down. If you have questions or need some help, please contact Fr. Jeff. If you’re interested in becoming a Sunday School teacher, contact Michelle Moody. This Sunday will be our Sunday School kick-off, with special snacks for our kids!

• Teen Class: Youth who are 10-years-old and up are invited to join Terri and Kenny Townsend and Heather Roper for a class just for them. They’ll talk about issues and challenges that are pertinent to their lives as well as have fun. This semester, the Teen Class will be focusing on prayer, and why it’s important (or is it?), and what ways Christians can pray. Usually, this class meets in Fr. Jeff’s office, but this Sunday, the group will meet from 9:15 to 10:30 at the home of Fr. Jeff and Molly Jackson (323 Hill Street, Hamilton) for their own breakfast and catching-up time.

• Adult Class: Everyone else, young adults and up, are invited to meet in the left ante room (left of the altar) for biblical and theological reflection. This year, we will do a series of classes in “blocks.” The first block will be taught by Fr. Jeff and is called “Faith & Finances.” We’ll meet for 5 weeks on this topic, ranging from “What Happened to the Economy?” to “Unemployment” to “Helping Your Family Through Family Stress.” So grab a cup of coffee and come as we talk about issues that matter and how our faith can help guide us through.
• Choir Warm-Up: In the nave, our Music Director Sam Roney meets with the choir to warm up for the music at the 11:00 service. Regular choir rehearsal is on Wednesdays at 6:30pm, but even if you can’t make that rehearsal, Sam welcomes you to come and sing with the choir. This group is always laughing as well as singing because Sam keeps choir fun, and worshipful. If you’d like to learn more about singing in the choir, contact Sam.

11:00am Holy Eucharist: This service is for our late-risers (although we hope that you’ll come for breakfast and Christian formation)! This is a full worship service, at which the Choir processes and leads the singing, our acolytes process in with crosses, torches, and other implements, children are invited to sit on the front row, and youth and adult readers read the lessons. Quite often, Fr. Jeff will gather the children together for a brief children’s sermon. After the 11:00 service, there are refreshments served for more fellowship.

So it’s a full morning of worship, education, and fellowship at St. Nicholas! Now’s a good time to jump back in if you’ve been gone, or if you haven’t visited with us before! It’s a new beginning!

Your Week at St. Nick 8 - 14 August 2010

Sunday, 8 August  Sunday School Roundup Sunday

8:30am Holy Eucharist

9:15am  Continental Breakfast

9:30am  Christian Formation Classes

11:00am  Holy Eucharist and Blessing of the Backpacks

11:45am  Roundup Sunday Refreshments

 

Usher/Greeter

8:30am Tom and Sharon Cheatham

11:00am  Graham Horne and Jan Pylant

Readers

8:30am Connie Blackmon

11:00am  Michelle Moody/Samantha Dixon

LEM

8:30am Connie Blackmon

11:00am  Michelle Mooday

Altar Guild

Liz Dixon

Flower Guild

Linda Sawyer

Lemonade

Sheila Dixon

Acolytes

Ansley Butzon

Samantha Dixon

Wednesday, 11 August

6:30pm  Choir Rehearsal

Saturday, 14 August

9:30am - 12:00pm

Lobsterfest Painting Workshop

Happy Birthday!

August

8/6       Cory Butzon

8/14     Rev. Tom Jones

8/18     Tony Cox

8/31     Nancy Callaway

Happy Anniversary!

August

8/3       Chris & Andy Butzon

8/16     Kenny & Lynn Hall

8/16     Jeff & Molly Jackson

8/29     Gene & Pat Demonet

When We Remembered Zion

Today in my prayers, Psalm 137 popped up:

By the rivers of Babylon—
there we sat down and there we wept
when we remembered Zion. 
On the willows there
we hung up our harps. 
For there our captors
asked us for songs,
and our tormentors asked for mirth, saying,
‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion!’

Of course, this Psalm was written during the Babylonian captivity, when things were not looking so good for the Israelites. But this week, the name “Zion” has a special meaning for me. Read more

Hot & Cold at Blue Springs

This past Sunday, St. Nicholas members experienced both extremes of the thermometer.

We gathered for our annual Worship and Parish Picnic at the Blue Springs home of Cason and Nancy Callaway, and BOY it was a scorcher! With temperatures reaching about 100 degrees, even though we tried to dodge the sun under the shade, everyone was melting in their lawn chairs. Read more

Choir Rehearsal Starts Wednesday

Don’t forget! Choir starts up again this Wednesday at 6:30pm, under the direction of St. Nicholas’ Director of Music, Sam Roney. Now’s a great time to jump on board to this wonderful ministry! Come sing a new song to the Lord! For more information, contact Sam at samroney@stnicholashamilton.org.

VBS Was Spicy Hot!

Most of the time, a weekday at St. Nicholas is pretty quiet. Dorothy may be there a few times a week tending to the books. I’m in and out depending on what I’ve got going on. Every once in a while, if I’m sitting in my office someone will pop in and sit down and chat. I’m an extrovert (you didn’t notice?), and find that many of my days at St. Nicholas are pretty introverted, so I love having visitors. Read more

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