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O God, who before the passion of your only ­begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Sunday’s Collect)

God sustains us with an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus wants us to walk none other than the way of the cross. The way of the cross often begins in Lent. Lent is the time when we ponder the work that God has called us to do. We realize that the distractions of the world have kept us from God’s purpose in our lives. If we want to be an authentic expression of Christ’s light, we need to pray, study, listen, and make God the center of our world again. For this season of Lent, please consider listening to God. We come together to give thanks and pray that we might recognize God in our midst and follow this path of healing and wholeness. God is working in the life of our congregation in ways that we cannot ask for or imagine.

Join us for Shrove Tuesday on Tuesday March 4^th at 5:30 pm. Dave Lasek will cooking all your favorite pancakes! Ash Wednesday services will be held at 8 am, 12 pm, and 7 pm on March 5th. Please join us on Tuesdays at 5:30 pm for Stations of the Cross starting on March 11th. We begin our Alpha program on Tuesdays in Lent at 6:00 pm with dinner, a video at 6:30 pm, and an interesting discussion at 7 pm. You are asked to bring guests. Join us for an Alpha retreat on March 14^th and 15^th. There will be a Celtic Mass at 5:00 pm on March 16^th with Leslie Valentine as our soloist, Alex on the piano, and Deborah on the flute.

Our children and their parents will be planting seeds for the Garden of Grace on Sunday March 16th during Sunday School. We will watch these seeds sprout up, and we will transplant them to our three organic gardens. The vegetables will be given to local food pantries all summer.

Our Thrift Shop is doing great things in the community, but we need more help. Please volunteer to sort the donations or work on the sales floor. The Thrift Shop is open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 12-3 pm. Please look through your closets and bring down some clothing or jewelry that you do not need. You can help our community and our church.

HIHI will be feeding the homeless on March 7^th and 21^st. Join us at 3:00 pm in the kitchen. Children and Youth are always welcome.

The point of this week'spassage is that although we cannot see God, God is always nearby. When we love God with all our heart, mind and soul, we begin to see the edge of God’s robe. When we truly listen to the Word of God, we are slowly transformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Although many churches are decreasing or even closing, St. John’s remains strong because you see Jesus Christ as someone that can lead us to a better place. We can love our neighbor despite all the crazy things going on in the world.

Our prayerbook invites you to the observance of a Holy Lent by participating in the activities and services at St. John’s. We will be preparing children for First Communion and Young Adults for confirmation during this Lenten Season. I ask you to rededicate yourself to the mission of the God’s church and to make a special effort to attend services and give of yourself for the sake of those in need.

In Christ’s love,
Fr. Duncan