FROM THE RECTOR “Blessed be the Lord, the God of our fathers, who put such a thing as this into the heart .., to beautify the house of the Lord” - Ezra 7:27

Alleluia! Christ is risen!

Eastertide greetings to one and all. Did you make it to worship at church on the three high holy days of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday? Weren’t you blessed?! Although I said it then, let me say it again: Thank you to Carol Todd, Polly Uselton, the Altar Guild, and all those who came to decorate the house of the Lord—God was glorified in the beauty of His sanctuary (and we were all up-lifted)!

At the end of this month, however, an era is coming to an end as Mrs. Todd has decided to step down as Altar Guild Directress after 20 years of dedicated service. Please join us at coffee hour today (4/28) following the 10:30 service to thank and honor this servant of God for her years of commitment and hard work. While we anticipate some challenges at this momentous transition, what a high note to leave on! Please also keep Carol in your prayers as she continues to discern God’s call for the future.

Speaking of God’s call on our lives, which of you are being called at this time to serve on the Altar Guild? Although nobody will be able to fill Mrs. Todd’s shoes, there is a need—particularly now in off-season. And since we have it on sure authority that God always provides what we need (Philippians 4:19 tells us, “And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Je-sus.”), He must have put into some of your hearts a desire “to beautify the house of the Lord” by serv-ing on the Altar Guild. If you have a vague sense (or any questions) about this honored service, please see Deacon Karen or me.

As we continue our Easter celebrations throughout May, it’s time to do one of those things we like best: renew acquaintances and strengthen the bonds of fellowship between our two services. And, so, the annual parish picnic has been set for May 19th. There will only be one (combined) worship service that day at 10 AM, followed by our luncheon on the grounds. There will be hamburgers/hotdogs pro-vided by the church; please sign up on the sheet in the back of the church to indicate the number at-tending and to bring a side dish/dessert.

Finally, in May we also celebrate one of the seven Principal Feasts of the Church (see p. 15 Book of Common Prayer for the other six): Ascension Day. There will be a Solemn Eucharist to celebrate the feast at 6 PM on Wednes-day, May 29th. In a further effort to strengthen the bonds of fellowship in our community, we’re looking forward to joining again with our brothers and sisters at FUMC to pray Thy Kingdom Come during the 10 days from Ascension to Pentecost. This is a plea from ++Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury; keep an eye out for the sign up!

May the God of peace who brought again from the dead Our Lord Jesus Christ, the great Shepherd of the sheep, make you perfect in every good work, to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight.

The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Scott+

The Agnes Dei - May 2019

St. Agnes Episcopal Church Fr. Walkers Email: FrScott@StAgnesSebring.org

3840 Lakeview Drive Church Email: StAgnes@StAgnesSebring.org

Sebring, FL 33870 Website: www.StAgnesSebring.org

FR. Scott Walker

Junior Warden Report Joe Wright May, 2019

This report will be a brief update on where we are on remaining Hurricane Irma repairs.

After paying the most recent repair invoice on April 18, 2019, we are showing a re-maining balance in the Hurricane Irma funds in the amount of $268,181.06. That number is inclusive of insurance proceeds and deductible funds given by parishioners.

We have quotes at the present time for six additional hurricane repair items totaling $183,511. Two of these repair items are for the church building itself: $37,340 for the “east” wall behind the altar; and $46,610 for the drive through-walkway ar-ea accessing the handicap parking area. My recommendation is to complete the work on the church building and then proceed to our additional needs including office roof, Par-ish Hall roof and signage. We will also have some remaining interior needs for the church such as Altar linens (included in above number) and kneeler cushions (not yet included).

One reason to proceed with one or two pro-ject components at a time is to be pre-pared for one or two unexpected surprises during the reconstruction. We do have some additional needs if we are fortunate enough to complete the “must dos” and have some funds on hand. For ex-ample, one of our four air conditioner units for the church needs re-placed.

We will continue to keep you apprised of our pro-gress.

Joe Wright Junior Warden

Senior Warden Report Steven Robertson

March 28, 2019

Unable to send in report due to illness. Please pray for Joyce and Steve. Senior Warden

Steven Robertson

Cantor A person who chants or sings; often a solo voice that begins a service. This position is generally associated with "high churches."

We have been keeping the facebook page up to date and we are beginning to work on the website.

We should have the calendar on the website work-ing within a few days.

All of the Servers are being included on the online server calendar .

We still need volunteers to help with communica-tions, if interested call Marco at 305-987-8385.

Thank you for serving God in his Church!

Joyce & Steve Robertson

Suzanne & Joe Wright

ALLELUIA: THE LORD IS RISEN

Lent is over!!!! The crosses are no long veiled, flowers have re-turned to the church and the once stripped altar is now adorned, and adorned it is. When the lights came on during the Easter Vigil, we were greeted by the beauty of the Paschal Candle, the floral arrange-ments and a new addition to our church, the altar frontal or antependi-um! I believe it is fitting for Easter to be the first time a frontal is used in our church. The frontal is more than just a covering for the altar, it adorns the altar. It immediately draws your eye to the cen-trality of the altar. The joy of the resurrected Christ is seen in the coronation design of the frontal.

Historically, the early linen coverings of the altar reminded people of the Lord’s burial shroud. As times progressed, the coverings became far more ornate and some included precious jewels to remind people of the Lord’s royalty. Writings indicate that the altar, adorned with the changing colors of the church year, is symbolic of the Mystical Body, the whole Christ. Additionally, the changing colors and decoration leads to a new beauty of the altar and helps to mark the festivities of the church year such as Easter, Pentecost, Ordinary time, Advent and Christmas.

St. Agnes is indeed fortunate. An anonymous donor, provided and designated the funds to be used to purchase an altar frontal. God is good all the time!!! Let us glory in the Lord’s resurrection!!

THE LORD IS RISEN INDEED! ALLELUIA

Deacon Karen

Deacon Karen Davenport

Participants in the latest study series “The Crucified Life” finished the seventh lesson on Wednesday of Holy Week. The seven lessons were based on the last words of Christ, an appropriate topic for the season. Along with the book, the series offered a book of daily devotionals. From those 45 topics related to the Lenten series, Rev. Charlie Holt ends with these words:

In the last book of the Bible, there are seven letters to seven churches and in those letters, Jesus make a final point to every one of those churches.

Over and over, He says:

“To him who overcomes… to him who overcomes… to him who overcomes… and to every one of those who overcome… To Him who overcomes…: ”It is finished!” Triumph.

To everyone who is still overcoming the obstacles in life on the path to fulfilling God’s will, rest assured that when you finish, you will triumph.

Vestry Liason: Kris Lewis

We live in a realm where people are often mistreated by institutions. And that’s really the story of the man who was born blind (John 9:1-12).

We prayed at the beginning of the service, “Gracious Father, whose blessed Son, Jesus Christ, came down from heaven to be the true bread that gives life to the world. Give us this bread, we pray.”

False Bread in Tradition

There is such a thing as false bread.

It can come via religious institutions that care more about keeping rules and keeping up appearances than actually having a relationship with this one, Jesus Christ, who is so full of life and love and vitality, who cares for everyone equally regardless of their status. And this is certainly shown in today’s passage.

If Jesus had only been interested in hanging out with the influential to try to make a difference in the institution, he would not have hung out with this man. When they meet him, the disciples ask a provocative but important question, “Rabbi, who sinned? This man or his parents that he was born blind? (John 9:2).

The folk-knowledge of this era was that if you were born with some kind of congenital birth defect, that was obviously because of a curse pattern operating in your family. Because the parents had done evil things, judgment was visited on the children.

I know it’s ridiculous. But that’s what they believed. And it wasn’t new. Way back at the time of Jeremiah the prophet, several hundred years earlier, Jeremiah, trying to correct the same thinking, says, “I know it is said (and this is their parabolic language), ‘The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge” (Jer. 31:29), adding “But [now] all shall die for their own sins.”

A very provocative thing for Jeremiah to have said in his era. We’re still wrestling, even to this day, with the relationship between corporate and individual responsibility. But in this case, the one who bore the brunt of these false judgments and superstitious folklore was this man born blind, whom people assumed to have been cursed by God for what had happened in the life of his family.

And Jesus says, “You’re asking the wrong question.” And he goes to the man, and he does something any Jew watching would have understood. He took dirt, put a little spittle in it to create, in essence, mud, and put it on the man’s eyes. What would echo in the head of the Jews was Genesis, where the Lord forms man out of the dust of the ground.

In other words, what we’re seeing are the actions of Jesus as Creator God incarnate, again, through the medium of dust, through which comes his great power, that in fact changes the congenital birth defect, so that the man can visibly see, in a way that shocks everyone.

It’s true. There’s no record in the Old Testament of anyone being supernaturally healed of blindness from birth. No wonder when people would run into him and say, “Isn’t that the beggar who was born blind?” they’d have to say, “No, it just looks like him,” because they’d never seen anything like that before. It was a small town, they knew each other, and they knew who his parents were. But this did not fit what they had known in the past. What they had known was false bread.

False Bread in the Church

I have extraordinary sympathy with this story because I meet people all the time who have an interest in Jesus but have not been treated well by the church. It resonates with me, because in some ways, that’s my story. I grew up in a church system that said appearance and rule-keeping were more important than anything else.

That kind of thinking fosters a mistrust in relationships, because maybe you’re not as good as you say you are. And it also en-genders a kind of inner competitiveness and a desire to bring in the influential, because that helps us get ahead. Those are the kinds of scenarios—the gossip that goes along with it, the superficial level of relationships even if families have known each oth-er all of their lives—that’s what the lack of security that being in a rule-keeping system produces.

And inevitably, there are losers: People who don’t live up. People who for some reason can’t live up. People who don’t fit the profile of whom that local church actually wants and is looking for. So that by the time I graduated from high school, I said, “Ugh. Thank God I don’t have to go to church anymore.”

I know God was laughing, too. Come back next week for the hope—and the rest of the story.

Have you had a time in your life where the church did not treat you well? Share this blog and your response on Twitter. Please include my username, @revgregbrewer.

(This post is an adaption of Bishop Brewer’s sermon on March 26, 2017, at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Cocoa Beach, Flori-da.)

Unless otherwise noted, scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright

© 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United

States of America. Used by permission. All rights rese

PHOTO CREDIT: © Photowitch http://www.cfdiocese.org/bishopsblog/

Bishops Blog

There is a need for people to drive members to church or church func-tions.

We Also can drive them to the doctor or to the gro-cery store.

If you can help, or need help, please call Marcia Al-len at (863) 464-1632.

Maybe its time to reassess our understanding of stewardship. All of us at St. Agnes need to be involved with Stewardship in some way. This is a part of our obligation in the service of Christ. It is our duty to use the gifts which God has given us to do the work which God is calling us to do. Stewardship is not just about money. It encompasses everything: our God given talents, our time, energy, and labor. All of these are needed to contribute to the wellbeing of St. Agnes. St. Agnes does not flourish or even survive without abun-dant Stewardship in all forms.

The following is an excerpt from “On The Road Again” section “ managing evangelism and stewardship” p. 108. This focuses on a number of key issues facing Church Stewardship. Other Stewardship concerns will be discussed in the future.

“Biblical principals of stewardship are timeless; our contemporary understanding and appli-cation of them to address contemporary needs and situations are not! However much we have tried to develop good techniques for campaigns, most giving remains budget and ex-pense driven. It does not go beyond the amount necessary to balance a maintenance level, status quo budget, or beyond what is a needed to complete a specific phase of a building program. The year to year experience of a majority of our churches is compelling proof that this is so. If we struggle to meet a budget and just barely pay the bills, then our teaching and our campaigns have only limited effectiveness. Biblical principals such as tithe, spiritual discipline, and the joy of giving have not been taught effectively. If the only vision is a de facto desire to maintain the status quo, people respond accordingly and restrict their giving.

Limited vision engenders limited giving. When people do give more it is almost always true that there is a clearly articulated vision for the congregation, whether it is a building pro-gram or a bold and visionary plan for growth, and a shared un-derstanding of the need to fulfill it. When people do give more it is also because they believe that the church leadership is ca-pable of exercising stewardship over money entrusted to it. Stewardship is about managing as well as giving. Therefore, there is a profound and urgent need to challenge and revise the way that the church understands and evaluates the way that it does stewardship. This includes the management of what is given and not only how we ask for it.”

Where does St. Agnes go from here? What are the roles for each and everyone of us? We as a congregation need to PRAY for guidance.

Please remember that the Bridge the Gap campaign is still ongo-ing. Consider how stewardship, in all aspects, fits into your spiritual life and commitment to God.

TRANSPORTATION TEAM NEWS Vestry Liason: Marcia Allen

Do you know

who the picture to the right

depicts?

For Answer See

LESLIE MASCHUE Vestry Liaison

Sunrise Service w/ Fr. Scott

Stainded Glass Window

at St. Agnes

Another Sunrise Service Picture Deacon Karen and Ken Steel Reading

the Gospel at the Sunrise Service

Outside Photo of St. Agnes After Tenebrae

New Frontal for the Altar Easter Flower arrangement Photo of Newly Cleaned Church

Getting Ready For

Agape Feast

St. Agnes Booth at the Sebring Soda Festival

May Altar Guild Schedule Altar Guild Directress: Carol Todd

May Schedule by Bill Todd May Coffee Hour Hosts

Date May 5th

May 12th May 19th May 26th

7:30 AM ——- Open Open Open

10:30 AM Pot Luck

Tina Smith Open Open

(sign up located in the back of church and in the parish hall)

The Welcome Team would like to extend a warm welcome to the Rev. Arnold and Sharon Hoffman to Sebring and St. Agnes. We’ll enjoy worshipping together.

Kudos to the Altar Guild ! The church looks so beautiful and gives wonderful Glory to God in His house.

Six children came to hunt candy filled Easter eggs and had a great time! Many thanks to Melvin and Dorothy’s two granddaughters Olivia and Josslyn Payne and Tina Reddick who hid the many eggs, with help from Gavin.

Our Welcome Team met on April 10 and decided on some updates. Greeters and ushers are to be at church 30 minutes before service begins; the bell will be rung 15 minutes before service begins as a reminder parishioners are to maintain silence and prepare their hearts for worship. Since our altar does not have a handicap ramp, wheelchairs are to remain on the main floor and communion will be brought to parishioners.

Scheduling for greeters and ushers at ALL services is to be sent to Marco Espinosa, Communications leader at st.agnes.sebring.calendar@gmail.com. It will be made available to all at stagnes.view-events.com.

A reminder to wear your name tags and ask parishion-ers to wear theirs.

Respectfully submitted,

Wanda Bennett, Vestry Liason

April 27 – May 10 Sandi Eidenberger /Marcia Allen & Carol Todd (4/27-4/30th)

May 11 – May 24 Sandi Eidenberger /Barbara Espinosa (11-17th) & Marcia Allen (18 -24th)

May 25 – June 7 Leslie Maschue / Barbara Espinosa

Remember your 2 week period covers ALL SERVICES for a FULL 14 days.

If you cannot serve on a particular day, please notify the office after arranging for your

own substitute (or trade with someone else).

Upcoming Holy Date: Thursday, May 30 Ascension Day

7:30am 5/5 Marc & Kirk Rodrigue 5/12 Kathy & Ira Smith 5/19 Kathy & Ira Smith 5/26 Kathy & Ira Smith

10:30am Steve Waitkus*

Morris Burnham* Arthur Stifel III*

Bill Todd*

Serves Entire Month *

CLICK FOR SERVER ONLINE CALENDAR

CLICK FOR SERVER ONLINE CALENDAR

Easter 2019 Message

The Rt. Reverend Barbara Harris was the first woman ordained and consecrated a bishop in The Epis-copal Church and in the Anglican Communion. In her memoir, entitled Hallelujah, Anyhow! [she] quotes an old Gospel hymn that says it this way: Hallelujah anyhow Never let your troubles get you down When your troubles come your way Hold your hands up high and say Hallelujah anyhow! When I get to Heaven, I want to meet one person, and her name is Mary Magdalene. Because if ever there was another Hallelujah, Anyhow sister, it was Mary Magdalene. And her life, and her example, tells us what it means to follow in the way of Jesus, in the Way of Love. Mary Magdalene showed up when others would not. Mary Magdalene spoke up when others remained si-lent. Mary Magdalene stood up when others sat down. John’s Gospel tells us that when many of the disciples fled and abandoned Jesus, Mary Magdalene stood by him at the cross. Hallelujah, Anyhow. Against the odds, swimming against the current, Mary Magdalene was there. John’s Gospel says in the 20th chapter, early in the morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene and some of the other women went to the tomb. Hallelujah, Anyhow. They went to the tomb when it didn’t make any sense. They went to the tomb when the evidence was against them. Jesus was dead. They knew that. The power of the Empire had crushed the hope of love. They knew that. And they got up in the morning and went to the tomb anyhow. Hallelujah, Any-how. But more than that, John’s Gospel says it was dark. It was dark. That’s not just the time of day in John’s Gospel. The darkness in John is the domain of evil. In John’s Gospel when Judas leaves the Last Supper to betray Jesus, John inserts a parenthetical remark. When Judas leaves to betray him, John says, “And it was night.” The darkness is the domain of wrong, of hatred, of bigotry, of violence, the domain of sin and death and horror. And early in the morning while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb, Hallelujah, Anyhow. The truth is, she didn’t know that Jesus was alive. She was just doing what love does. Caring for her beloved, her Savior, her friend, in his time of death, to give him the last rites of burial. And when she got to the tomb, and the other women with them, they eventually discovered that Jesus was alive, and in the silence of the night, in the moments of despair, in the moments of the worst darkness, God had done something incredible. God had raised Jesus from the dead The truth is, nobody saw Jesus rise from the dead, because God had done it secretly and quietly, when nobody was looking. When I was in high school, I learned a poem composed by James Russell Lowell. He wrote it in the 19th century, in one of the darkest periods in American history, when this country was torn asunder by the existence of chattel slavery in our midst. In this great land of freedom, there were slaves being held in bondage. And this nation literally went to war, tearing itself apart, trying to find the way to do what was right. And James Russell Lowell wrote, in the midst of this darkness, in this dark hour: Though the cause of evil prosper, yet ‘tis truth alone and strong . . . Though her portion be a scaffold, and upon the throne be wrong Yet that scaffold sways the future, and behind the dim unknown Standeth God within the shadow, keeping watch above his own Hallelujah, Anyhow. Christ is risen The Lord is risen, indeed. God love you, God bless you, and may God hold us all in those almighty hands of love.

The Most Rev. Micheal Bruce Curry

SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT

1

St. Phillip & St. James

10:00am Holy Eucharist

2

9:15am Morning Prayer

3

9:15am Morning Prayer

4

5

3rd Sunday of Easter

7:30am Holy Eucharist

9:45am Choir Practice

10:30am Holy Eucharist

6

9:00am Morning Prayer

7

9:15am Morning Prayer

8

10:00am Holy Eucharist

9

9:15am Morning Prayer

10

9:15am Morning Prayer

11

12

4th Sunday of Easter

7:30am Holy Eucharist

9:45am Choir Practice

10:30am Holy Eucharist

13

9:00am Morning Prayer

14

9:15am Morning Prayer

15

10:00am Holy Eucharist

16

10:00am Holy Eucharist

17

9:15am Morning Prayer

18

19

5th Sunday of Easter

9:30am Choir Practice

10:00am Holy Eucharist

12:00pm Church Picnic

20

9:00am Morning Prayer

21

9:15am Morning Prayer

22

10:00am Holy Eucharist

23

9:15am Morning Prayer

24

9:15am Morning Prayer

25

26

6th Sunday of Easter

7:30am Holy Eucharist

9:45am Choir Practice

10:30am Holy Eucharist

27

9:00am Morning Prayer

28

9:15am Morning Prayer

29

Thy Kingdom Come:

10 Days of Prayer

6:00 pm Holy Eucharist

30

Ascension Day

Thy Kingdom Come:

10 Days of Prayer

9:15am Morning Prayer

31

The Visitation

Thy Kingdom Come:

10 Days of Prayer

9:15am Morning Prayer

May 2019 St. Agnes Episcopal Church

Sebring, Florida

MAY BIRTHDAYS

5/1 Robert Mosier 5/1 Gladys Onsted 5/11 George McDuffee 5/11 Joyce Robertson 5/15 Carol Wisener 5/27 Randy Kephart 5/31 Cynthia Jobe

5/3 Cynthia & John Jobe 5/25 Nancy & Stephen Waitkus

CLICK FOR ONLINE SERVER CALENDAR

St. Aidan Died: Aug 31, 651 AD,

Bamburgh, UK Feast day August 31

MAY ANNIVERSARIES

ST. AGNES EPISCOPAL CHURCH

3840 LAKEVIEW DRIVE

SEBRING, FLORIDA 33870

TO:

MAY 2018

SUNDAY HOLY EUCHARIST

7:30AM Said 10:30AM Sung

Coffee Hour follows each Service

Mid-week Holy Eucharist Wednesday at 10:00 AM*

Morning Prayer Monday at 9 AM; Tuesday, Thursday, Friday at 9:15 AM*

*Some service times may be slightly different . Refer to calendar or

Other Services Check the “This Week at St. Agnes” email or

our FaceBook page

Christian Education Wednesday at 6:00 PM

St. Cecilia Choir Practice Sunday at 9:45

Office hours: 8:30AM to 1:30PM Wed—Friday

“United in the Faith, bound together by Love, Spreading God’s Hope”