Readings from the Fifth Sunday of Easter
ST. PETE’S WEEKLY
Welcome! Whatever your religious background, and however you have come to be here, we’re glad to have you join in our praises of God today. We hope you will feel comfortable here and fulfilled and strengthened spiritually to meet the challenges of your daily life.
PLEASE PRAY FOR THE FOLLOWING:
- For Mark, our Bishop
- For Tom, our Rector
- In our Parish Cycle of Prayer, for our Staff
- In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer, The Episcopal Church in Jerusalem & The Middle East.
- In the Diocesan Cycle of prayer for St. Alban’s, Annandale, St. James’s, Richmond and St. Stephen’s, Richmond.
- For Persecuted Christians in Iran
- For our President, Donald, Congress, and Judges
- For our Governor, Glenn
- In our Community Cycle of Prayer, for our Town Managers and Administrators
- For U.S. troops throughout the world, our foreign service personnel and contractors
- For those who have served in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other conflicts and are suffering from posttraumatic stress
- For our Federal, State, & Local Police Officers and Loudoun Valley Fire and Rescue Departments
- For the special needs and concerns of this congregation, especially Stuart Auld; Jake Cathers; Jim Czaban; Nancy Dillon; Ken Foreman; Matthew Forys; Theo Hanzel; Gwen Hill; Jennifer House; Gail Hunt; Peggy Kiernen; Steve Koss; Bunny Lancaster; Becky Loker; Mike Muihlbauer; Marsha Price; Martha Ramirez; Don Sengpiehl; Chris Short; Randy Stoutenburgh; Karen Stunkel; Erica Wanis; Reid; Sean & Libby; and all those who suffer from any grief or trouble.
PRAYER NEEDS: Individuals and families may choose to have their names placed on the public and/or private prayer lists. The names on the public prayer list are included during the Prayers of the People during worship on Sunday and in the bulletin. St. Peter’s Prayer Quilt members spquilt@stpetes.net pray for the people on the private list. Names are listed for four weeks. If you would like someone to remain on our list, please send us an update every 4 weeks.
NEW WAYS TO PRAY! We have been doing a lot of praying in new ways this year. Consider joining us or making use of any, or all, of the opportunities below –
- Sweet Hour of Prayer every Wednesday at 10:30 with seven of us regularly gathering.
- Using our new Prayer Cards on the first Sunday during prayers of the people.
- Turning the altar in the Chapel into our Prayer Altar, covered with new prayer requests.
- The Vestry is incorporating praying together into our Strategic Plan and into Vestry meetings.
- And the latest: Gathering an intercessor team to pray for people in-person after church on Sundays. Once the crowd has left the Nave, they’d be happy to meet with you discreetly one-on-one to pray with you.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
BULLETIN DEADLINE – Please submit all announcements for the Sunday Bulletin by noon on Wednesday to ensure inclusion in the upcoming bulletin. Send announcements to office@stpetes.net.
DRIVERS – We are looking for two vans and drivers to take our Guatemala Team to Dulles Airport on Saturday leaving St. Peters at 1:00pm. We need to transport 16 people. If you are willing to volunteer, contact Paula Simpson in the office.
HOPE FOR HOME – For years St. Peter’s Mission Committee has collected items needed by Hope for Home (home for severely disabled children) located in a village in Guatemala. With our help Hope for Home has thrived and grown. It now includes 2 separate homes for severely disabled children: a third for the disabled who have aged out of Hope for Home but who cannot live on their own. In addition, they have established 2 Birthing Centers that also provide Pre and Post natal services. As much as the economy is affecting each of our budgets it is ravaging Third World nations, and more children are lacking the nutritional needs to be healthy. If you would like to keep our blessings of love flowing from the U.S.A. to these needy children just pick something from the list and drop off in the box in the Narthex. These will be taken down by our Mission group in June.
Items are as follows (*bold most important):
- Food thickener
- Waterproof pads and pillow covers
- Waterproof (zippered) mattress covers for twin and/or crib size
- Absorbent/waterproof bibs for droolers
- Boys’ underwear size 10 to adult small
- Girls’ underwear sizes 5T and up
- Girl’s training bras up to adult small
- Hair bands / Chapstick
- Big and small hairbrushes
- Waterproof pads (for chairs or beds)
- Oral sensory toys
MT. CALVARY WOMEN’S GUILD MEETING – Our next meeting is on Monday, May 19, 2025, at 10:00 AM, at St. Peter’s in McCray Hall. The readings that we will discuss are Leviticus 17-27; Numbers 1-15, Mark 8-14; Psalm 42-54; & Proverbs 14-15. Please join us.
BABY BOTTLE CAMPAIGN: Mother’s Day – Father’s Day. St. Peter’s is partnering with Mosaic Virginia Pregnancy Resource Center to help provide care and encouragement to mothers in crisis. Mosaic supports women by meeting their material and emotional needs so they can focus on giving life to their unborn baby. We kicked off the Baby Bottle Campaign on Mother’s Day to support Mosaic! It’s easy to get involved. Pick up your empty baby bottle in the entryway and fill it with change, check, or cash. Then, bring it back to church by the pickup date, Father’s Day, June 15, 2025. That’s it! Your donation funds the community of moms in Loudoun County who bravely choose life. Questions? See Maggie Heim for more information.
WOMEN’S FELLOWSHIP – Our next get together will be Friday, June 20, 2025. We are meeting at 6:30pm at Bluemont Station. Contact Deana Czaban if you have any questions.
THE 2025 BEACON DINNER – at St. Peter’s, Saturday, June 14, 2025, at 6:00pm = Let’s get together as God’s Pentecostal people to break bread, have fun, and celebrate. We’d also like to show our appreciation for all the people who helped make the past year successful. This includes awarding one extra-special person the St. Peter’s Beacon Award. Dinner will be Potluck. There is a signup sheet in McCray Hall or RSVP to Paula at bookkeeper@stpetes.net so we know how many to expect. We are also looking for a couple of volunteers to coordinate setup and cleanup.
BOOK TALK: CALLED TO FREEDOM, BY BRAD LITTLE JOHN, Sunday, May 18, 2025, at 4:00pm – “For you were called to freedom, brothers,” writes St. Paul. “Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” Today, we live in a time and place where “freedom” is constantly invoked as an opportunity for the flesh, where autonomy is prized above all, and any exercise of moral judgment is dismissed even among Christians as “legalism.” And yet freedom is central to our heritage not only as Americans, but as Christians, as a people freed from slavery to sin to follow Christ.
What does it mean to be “free” and how can we use our freedom well? Does “Christian liberty” have anything to do with political freedom? How do we distinguish “freedom of conscience” from mere relativism? Is the “free market” a Christian ideal or an American idol? And what about technology, which promises to free us from the constraints of nature but often shackles us in new forms of slavery?
In his new book, Called to Freedom: Retrieving Christian Liberty in an Age of License, scholar and writer Brad Littlejohn explores all these questions and more, distilling insights from a career at the intersection of the church, academy, and public policy. Join us to explore the true meaning of freedom.
LEARNING
SUNDAY SCHOOL – The program year runs from Sunday September 8, 2024, through June 1, 2025. We will continue to use a variety of curriculums, including Weaving God’s Promises, Kids Sunday School and the Children’s Chapel Workshop during the program year. The elementary Sunday School group will meet from 9:30 -10 AM on Sunday mornings. The Middle & High School kids will be meeting from 9 AM – 9:30 AM on Sunday mornings in room #202.
Nursery: If needed, Nursery care is available during our 9:30 am service. The Nursery is located on the lower level. We are always looking for a few more volunteers to help staff the nursery from 9:30 – 10:45 am. If you have any questions, you can contact Kathleen Voss at (703) 409-2314 or katvoss1970@gmail.com
SAVE THE DATE! VBS 2025 WILL BE THE WEEK OF JUNE 16-20, 2025, FROM 9 AM – NOON. The theme is Wonder Junction, where kids travel to the Old West and learn about the greatest wonder of all… Jesus Christ. WE NEED VOLUNTEERS in the following spaces for VBS to happen. Please reach out to Kathleen Voss if you have the capacity or questions. katvoss1970@gmail.com or 703-409-2314
- Decorations Team: Meet on Sunday afternoon to decorate for VBS. Typically it takes about 1 – 2 hours.
- Kitchen Helpers: 2 or 3 volunteers to help distribute morning breakfast to volunteers and snacks to campers. All food is prepared. Kitchen helpers also clean up the kitchen after use and add an extra set of eyes on the children in McCray Hall. Commitment 8:30 a.m. – Noon M- F
- Bible Teachers: 2 or 3 to lead the bible lesson (prepared for you) for our elementary kids. This session is usually about 35 minutes long M – F. Commitment 9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m., M- F
- Craft Leader: A volunteer (could be a responsible teen) to lead the craft area. The VBS packet provides ideas for crafts, or we can create our own. Craft leaders pull the materials together, organize the themed crafts in the morning, and assist the children with the crafts. Commitment 10:00 a.m.-noon, M-F
- Science Leader: Each VBS has a science component that relates to nature. This volunteer could be a responsible teen. The science experiments are already detailed in the VBS packet we need an individual to lead. Commitment 10:00 a.m. – noon, M-F
- Game Leader: A volunteer to lead the games outside, could be a responsible teen. Commitment 10:00 a.m. – noon, M-F
- Music Leader: A volunteer who can carry a tune! We would love to incorporate the music provided by the VBS into our morning session. Commitment 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m., M- F
- FOOD DONATIONS: A sign-up genius will be available later this month.
FIIGHT FOR SOULS: SHARING THE WORD “And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended.” Mark 4:16-17
“So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised. For, ‘In just a little while, He who is coming will come and will not delay.’ And, ‘But My righteous one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.’ But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.” Heb. 10:35-39
“So rend your heart, and not your garments; return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm.” Joel 2:13
“Run to and fro everywhere, holy fires, beautiful fires; for you are the light of the world, nor are you put under a bushel. He whom you cleave unto is exalted and has exalted you. Run to and fro and be known unto all nations.” -Augustine
The next meeting will be held at 5:00 p.m. on June 8, 2025, at the Novak House.