My reflection this week is my report for Vestry as we celebrate the year that has passed and the amazing work that was done, the worship that was experienced, the celebrations we shared and the times of fellowship.
This has not always been an easy year but there is a growing sense of life returning to normal, of people gathering again to worship, celebrate, work and have fun and that is so wonderful to see happening.
This has been a year of restarting and recovery, as we have emerged from the isolated world of Covid shut downs we have been slowly resuming the activities and relationships which have been closed off to us for the last many months. After 2 months of on-line worship this year we were back to in person worship on Ash Wednesday. It was wonderful to begin the trip to Easter morning together again. Everyone has wisely been taking their time in returning ensuring that they felt physically ready and as we continue to offer our services live-streamed each Sunday for those who were not able to attend that option was still available.
Along with a wonderful Easter celebration we had a Blessing of the Backpack/book bags in September coinciding with a Sunday Sundae treat after the service, we also had our Blessing of the Pets service which Donald always celebrates and it was wonderful not only to see the people but also our beloved furry friends in church! We honoured the survivors of the Residential School with a moving Orange Shirt Day service and we finally had a chance to worship together on Christmas Eve!! This was such a joy filled service, our hopes and prayers lifted to God in the beautiful Christmas hymns, our hearts filled with love hearing the familiar Christmas story and our eyes drawn to the light of the flickering candles as together we worshipped the Christ child. For all of this we say, thanks be to God!
We have Yoga and Zumba classes once again taking place at the church and Church of Christ Abundant has also started up in person worship and I am sure is glad to be able to gather together again as well. Our coffee hour finally resumed in September and we held a games night and a 2 Messy Church events, both well attended! Other events have also resumed such as our Yard Sale, Silent Auction (which couldn’t even be sidelined by a major snow storm!!!) and Christmas Vendor Sale. The Roadshow was also able to perform their fabulous Christmas Concert raising funds for Hospice Niagara!
There have been a number of things to celebrate as well, I was appointed Regional Archdeacon by the Bishop, a position which I am finding is helping me to push myself into new areas of growth which while challenging are also very affirming and have helped to deepen my faith life and strengthen my walk with God. Ray Elder was given the Order of Niagara for the amazing amount of work he does for our church building and parish family but also for his work in the community and his faith living out of his baptismal vows. Congratulations Ray!! We finally received out Photo Directories and they turned out beautifully, they will be a great help especially to new people who join our parish family.
For 3 Sundays this year we met after service to discuss the Mission in Action (MAP) plan for our parish. Very exciting and fruitful conversations took place and we looked at where God might be calling us as we move forward. We are looking at ways to feed people spiritually through continuing Christian Education classes including book studies, by working with Brock University to meet the needs of students and to continue to look for ways to invite our neighbours into the life of the church. Included is a summery of the initiatives we discussed and are looking to implement.
We celebrated 2 baptisms this year Chizaram Godson and Lincoln Doan, it’s always a beautiful thing when we welcome 2 new people into the family of the church! We also celebrated the life of Kathleen Harmon, Kathleen Langlois, Harold Leece and Rev Donald and Mrs. Virginia Powell. May they rest in peace and rise in glory.
We have fed hundreds of people through our Community Meals Program, through our teams serving breakfast at St. George’s Church downtown and through the fresh vegetables which have been planted, watered, weeded and harvested by many members of our congregation. We are a blessed people and we share our blessings with those in need.
This has not always been an easy year but there is a growing sense of life returning to normal, of people gathering again to worship, celebrate, work and have fun and that is so wonderful to see happening.
As we continue to hear the gospel and work to live that gospel message out in our lives both within our church family and the wider world may God continue to bless and watch over us.