St. Andrews by the Lake

St. Andrew’s by the Lake
Grains of Sand
Easter Season 2008

VICAR’S REFLECTION

When I arrived at church the Fourth Sunday of Easter, I did my usual run through of the building to make sure all was in place and ready for the community to arrive. When I walked into the sanctuary and looked toward the altar, I thought, “Oh, how sad they look.” The Easter lilies that had been just beautiful a few short weeks ago were drooping and turning brown. It was time to take them out. Just about this time in Easter it’s not unusual to feel a little droopy after the high of the Easter celebrations. Life has moved on for us, lots of stuff has happened – some good, some challenging, some difficult. Years ago I would have judged my faith as lacking for not being ‘more up and cheery’ after the Good News of Easter. What I have come to realize is that God’s presence in my life is not determined by my feelings at any given time. God is – whether I am aware of that presence, whether I feel that presence, whether I am joyous or droopy. And that is a wonderful thing to know deep in my heart. What I have found to be useful is to look for ‘Easter Moments’ – those times when I see the face of God’s love breaking through a painful situation, a dark time, a stressful situation.
I recently heard a story about a young woman who worked the desk in a motel. It was late at night, and for some reason, a number of people arrived in rapid succession. They were tired from their travels. At the same time, others who were already checked in were at the desk expecting help because something about their rooms wasn’t satisfying them. The young woman was just frazzled – all along and facing some people whose tempers were beginning to flare, along with a lot of grumbling from those who had to wait their turn. Suddenly, a young couple came in and elbowed their way toward the desk and plunked down a piece of banana cream pie. With smiles on their faces they said, “We just finished a lovely dinner thanks to your recommendation of a restaurant, and we wanted to show our appreciation for your help by bringing you this piece of pie.” A sense of relief and appreciation spread over the face of the desk clerk. As simple and ordinary as this seems, it was an Easter Moment. The face of love had appeared in that motel.
I hope during this Season of Easter (and really during all seasons), that you have time to consider what is important to you in your relationship with God. What kind of Easter Moments do you see happening around you? What kind of Easter Moments can you offer to others? Easter Blessings. Cindy

NEWS FLASH!!!

At Cindy P-W’s recommendation, the Bishop’s Committee has approved replacing Morning Prayer (4th Sunday of the month) with Holy Eucharist. Since Cindy is half-time, she will not be picking up an extra preaching week. We will use this as an opportunity to do some creative reflections at the time of the Homily. These reflections might include: testimonies, musical response to the Lessons, a dramatic reading that reflects one of the Lessons, a Homily from other sources read by a Lay Reader. There are many ways to respond to God’s Word that we can explore. On occasion we may begin the Liturgy with Morning Prayer, then move into Eucharist. We will try this for six months then evaluate how it is working for us.

LITURGY DESIGN TEAM – Help Wanted!!!
If you are interested in helping to design some of our liturgies, you are invited to join a task force that will meet on occasion to plan some special seasonal worship events. This would include looking at our worship space and seeing how we can enhance our liturgical environment to help us to enter more fully our worship experience. Please speak to Cindy P-W if you would like to participate.

*** IMPORTANT DATES for TEENS ***

May 16-17 Overnight for Senior High
June 1 Celebration of Senior High Grads
June 9,16,23,30 Summer Conversations: My Faith,
My Life (11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.)
June 13-14 Brat Sale
June 17,18,19 Camping Trip
June 28/29 Popcorn Sale at Art Fair
July 19 Dinner for Teens, Mentors and Parents
July 20 Confirmation
July 27-29 Junior High Camping Trip

*NOTE: A letter with details for all of the above will be sent to homes soon.*

“God strolls amidst the pots and pans.”

St. Teresa of Avila

“Wisdom consists in doing the next thing you have to do, doing it with your whole heart, and finding delight in doing it.” Meister Eckhart

*** OTHER DATES ***

April 25 St. Andrew’s Stitchers, 5:30 p.m.
May 8 Anniversary Planning Committee,
7:00 p.m., Lakeside location
May 12 Bishop’s Committee, 5:30 p.m.
May 14 Peace and Justice, 3:15 at Dunn Bros.
May 17 Region 2 Meeting, Trinity, Hermantown
May 18 Godly Play presentation for parents,
Grandparents, and all interested
June 1 Godly Play Teachers Meeting (brief)
June 8 Faith Formation Grant Mtg (follow-up)
June 9 Bishop’s Committee, 5:30 p.m.
June 19 Third Thursday Group, 11:30 a.m.
NOTE: All Sunday meetings begin shortly after worship ends.

REFLECTION on GREG MORTENSON’S TALK
When Greg Mortenson, co-author of Three Cups of Tea, and spoke in Duluth on March 19th a number of St. Andrew’s parishioners were among the
2,300 people who went to hear him. His inspiring message of promoting peace by building schools showed how one individual can make a difference in improving the lives of those who would otherwise continue living in poverty and illiteracy.
Mortenson’s failed mountain climbing attempt in Pakistan’s Karakoram Mountains led to his rescue by friendly villagers and became a life-changing experience for him. When he saw that village children were writing in the dirt with sticks because they had neither a school building nor conventional supplies, he decided to build a school for them. How he achieved this goal with community involvement and support is an amazing story. Mortenson has since built over 60 schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan through his non-profit organization, the Central Asia Institute.
The Institute’s primary goal is educating girls who have few opportunities to attend school in most parts of these countries. Mortenson quotes an African proverb, “If you educate a boy you educate an individual but if you educate a girl you educate a community.” Education empowers girls, who tend to remain in their villages, to shape the health and welfare of their families, thus enhancing the life of the entire community.
In his commentary after Mortenson’s talk, Duluth’s Mayor Ness said, “We need to hold up leaders who promote peace and that’s what Greg Mortenson’s story does.” Frequent bursts of audience applause throughout the evening’s program showed support for Mortenson’s message of hope and peace.
Two children, representing their respective elementary schools, River Falls in Barnum and Congdon Park in Duluth, presented Mortenson with checks totaling $800 and contributed by students as part of the children reaching children “Pennies for Peace” program. This is an astounding 80,000 pennies collected by children who wanted to be part of a national mission effort for literacy and peace.
Submitted by Arlene Renken

PUT ON YOUR WALKING SHOES

On March 8th, eight people from St. Andrew’s met at the CHUM Food Shelf to go on a CHUM Immersion Walk. It was a very informative day. We went from the Food Shelf to the Damiano Center for breakfast. Along the way, we learned about the different types of landlords. At the Damiano Center we had breakfast and learned about the services at the Damiano Center. From there, we went one block down the hill to San Marco. What a nice building for people who were homeless. As we left there heading for the CHUM Drop In Center, we talked about the Native American community and how they are treated by our City Council. At the Drop In Center, we learned about the services offered there and who can get their services. Next, we went down to 1st Street to the Life House. This is a place where youth go to hang out, they cannot be 21 or over. From there we walked down to the Clayton, Jackson, McGhee Memorial. There we were told the story of the hanging of 3 young black men. We walked back to the CHUM Food Shelf talking about all we learned, and asking even more questions.
To really learn about the poor and homeless of our community, I recommend you put on your walking shoes and take this very informative walk. You will come away with a different feel for the homeless. Future CHUM Immersion Walk dates will be announced in church, in the newsletter, and on the website.
Fern Penick, Peach & Justice Comm. Member

“With God there is nothing that is purposeless, nothing that is without meaning.”
St. Irenaeus

ST. ANDREW’S STITCHERS
Those who enjoy stitching crafts of any kind
Are invited to meet on Friday, April 25th, at 5:30 p.m. at Liz Maeshima’s home for a light supper and time to work on stitching, knitting, or other handwork. Anyone interested is invited to sign up in the Undercroft. Speak to Liz Maeshima or Joan Hunn if you have questions. Their phone numbers and addresses are in the parish directory.

“Each step brings a fresh breeze. Each step makes a flower bloom. Kiss the earth with your feet.”

Thich Nhat Hanh

PARISH DIRECTORY

Thanks to the efforts of Helen Hanten (who cares for our data base) and Joan Hunn (who compiled an e-mail database), we now have published a new parish directory. It came out in February and was handed out in church over successive Sundays. Last week the final ones were sent out to those who had not received theirs at church. If you do not have a directory,
please let Helen Hanten know and she will get one for you. (hhanten@aol.com).

SOFTBALL TEAM
The St. Andrew’s Beachcombers are re-gathering for another summer of softball fun. This is a church family league sponsored by the YMCA. You must be at least ten years old to play (no upper age limit). Sign up in the Undercroft if you are interested. Cost per person is $20 or $50 per family (for 3 or more). Speak to Mark Berger if you have questions.

VACATION BIBLE CAMP
Our children have been invited by St. Paul’s Episcopal Church to join with them in a Vacation Bible Camp this summer. Dates are July 14-18, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon each day. We will receive a flyer soon, which we will post. There will also be a sign-up sheet in the Undercroft.

ROVING REPORTER
Traci Reynolds has volunteered to be a ‘roving reporter’ of special events people might like to share through the newsletter. She is looking for positive family events that happen in our lives outside of church. A couple of examples might be: a baby’s first steps, or, a friend coming out of the hospital and recovering. Below, you will see an article that Traci herself has offered to illustrate what she is looking for. If you would like to submit something, please write it down and give it to her, or e-mail her at: icart321@msn.com.

FROM TRACI…
“We have a new kitten at the Reynolds’ home. Its name is ‘Orangey’ because of its orange and white stripes. Orangey is 7 weeks old. It eats kitten food and a little warm milk. O.J. has green eyes and smiles when it sleeps. Orangey likes to climb chairs and lands on my shoulder to sleep, purring on my neck. The color of its hair is very similar to that of Darrel’s hair and it follows Darrel all around the house. My nephews, Josh and Jake, gave me Orangey for my birthday and they were very excited to do that because they had taken care of O.J. up until then. O.J. is always busy either playing or napping. We think this kitten will grow to be a big cat as its paws are big compared to the rest of his body. I am very happy to have my new kitten.” Traci Reynolds

BUILDING REPORT

At the last meeting with our contractor and architect, the cost of the building (after seeking sub-contracts), came in $200,000 over what our bottom line is. We are now working on seeing where adjustments can be made to reduce the cost. Tim White has been particularly helpful with this, as he works with the building trades all the time. We are fortunate to have his expertise. Our hopes are still to begin construction in early May. This has been a long process, but hopefully the end result will be well worth the time and effort put into getting there.
Attention building committee: The next meeting is Thursday, April 24th at 4:30 p.m. at Kraus-Anderson. Bring sharp minds and sharp pencils.

TRANSITIONS

Keep Jaina Thompson and John Brakke in your prayers as they complete their last few weeks in high school. This is an exciting time for them as they complete classes, participate in graduation, and plan toward their future.

Maxine Hanson died April 16th. Maxine was born and raised on Park Point, attended St. Andrew’s by the Lake as a child, and later as an adult. She was a veteran (WAC) and also very involved in the Twin Ports Dog Training Club. She is survived by her sister, Ardice.

J Laundergan will be retiring from UMD in late May. J has been a Professor of Sociology, and plans to stay involved in his field of expertise in various ways in the coming years. He is currently involved in the college student drinking study, both at the campus level and in the community.

EARTH DAY
As this newsletter goes to press, we are in the midst of observing ‘Earth Day’. We are all aware, I hope, that every day needs to be earth day. Our baptismal vows call us to the care, respect and good stewardship of this sacred earth. Are there other ways you can take the next step forward in your own stewardship efforts? Think, pray and do.