Category Archives: Rev. Rebecca’s Reflections

This Sunday (March 1) at St. John’s

Posted on by

The poor shall eat and be satisfied Psalm 22:25

I just left a Grow Appalachia Meeting.  These meetings are full of dreams and hopes.  There are so many vegetables we all love, especially fresh from the garden.  So many varieties of tomatoes.  We are supposed to measure our harvest to report to Grow Appalachia, but what about the wonderful cherry tomatoes you really want to pop into your mouth right from the plant?

Tonight we laid out the garden – 10 beds arranged to look like a cross, with a circular herb bed in the middle.  We decided what to plant in the beds, with an eye towards color and beauty.  We looked at the dates to plant each vegetable and marked them on a calendar.  Then we planned a shopping trip for fertilizer, tools and seeds.

AND the plot is covered with inches of snow!  We cannot even begin to know when we will be able to plant!  Now, that is Hope and dreams.

We dream of a harvest that we share, especially with our neighbors who are poor…with people who are homeless and people who must come to the food pantry.  We are living into this Sunday’s Psalm about the poor eating and being satisfied.

Blessings as you finish your week!

Love, Rebecca+

Join us for pancakes and game night!  Friday, February 27, 6pm.

Rebecca’s Schedule
Rebecca will be at St. Agnes’ House this week, Monday through Thursday.  Her Sabbath Day will be Friday.  You can get a message to her by calling the church office at 606-528-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

This Sunday we welcome The Rev. Phillip Haug.  Rebecca will be at St. Patrick’s Somerset to talk about St. Agnes’ House and to celebrate the service.

Godly Play offered for children.  All children are invited to participate in this special program of spiritual development.

Adult Forum
During Lent, we are discussing various issues in Appalachia. This Sunday, Professor Jimmy Smith, will lead a discussion on Appalachia and the land.  Next week, we will have a discussion on the “Discovery” of Appalachia.

The Vestry proposes the following Mission Statement for St. John’s Church:  Proclaiming the Gospel, promoting justice, and preparing a diverse community of seekers to reflect the welcoming love of Christ.  Let us know what you think about this statement, which guides us to goals and actions that embody our Mission.

Wednesday Evenings During Lent through March 25, 6:30pm, series on Appalachia.  Plan to come on Wednesday evenings for a soup and bread supper, followed by a special series on Appalachia.  This Wednesday, Professor Joseph Pearson will lead a discussion on The 20th Century Discovery of Appalachia.

The Grow Appalachia Committee will meet  not meet Thursday, March 5, but will meet Saturday, March 7, 8:30am for a shopping trip.  If you’re interested in planting your own garden, either here in St. John’s Park or in your own backyard, or helping with a community plot here in the park, please plan to attend these meetings.

Donations are being accepted until March 29, for flowers to decorate the church for Easter.  Use the donation envelopes and write if the donation is “in honor of/in memory” of a loved one or a special occasion.  Donations in any amount will be accepted.

Daylight Savings Time begins next Sunday, March 8.  Remember to set your clocks forward 1 hour on Saturday night.  

The Altar Guild and Worship Committee will meet Friday, March 20, 4:30-6:00pm to plan for Holy Week and Easter.    If you are able to assist with altar and worship preparation for this busy week of the Church year, please try to attend or let Rev. Rebecca know.

A Confusion of the Spirit:  Holy or Distilled? Saturday, March 21, 10am – noon. The Rev. Dr. Stuart Hoke, a priest in North Carolina and one of Rebecca’s professors at General Seminary, is coming to Corbin to raise our community’s awareness about addiction and recovery. As a recovering individual himself, Stuart is very much involved in helping churches, congregations and individuals deal with the disease of alcoholism and addictive illness.  He will also preach at the Sunday service.

 

 

 

The Sign of the Rainbow (bulletin and sermon) February 22, 2015

Posted on by

NOTE:  Due to weather conditions, the bulletin is included with this sermon if you’d like to worship at home tomorrow.  We will have service at 11 for all who can make it.  Please be safe and warm….  Love, Rebecca+

Sermon – February 22, 2015
The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, CSW
St. John’s Episcopal Church, Corbin, KY
First Sunday in Lent Year B

Bulletin 2-22-2015

[God said]  When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” Genesis 9:16

Please be seated

It’s been quite a week, hasn’t it?  More snow than has been in these regions for nearly 2 decades, followed by some of the coldest temperatures we’ve seen, followed by ice, sleet and rain.  Most schools were closed for the week, including colleges.  Stores and restaurants closed early or never opened.

Many activities were canceled or postponed.  We canceled our Shrove Tuesday pancake supper and still can’t quite figure out when to have it.  Very few could make it to Ash Wednesday services.   A good week to stay inside, but then there’s the cabin fever that sets in.

And while weather forecasts have gotten so much better, the one thing we know for certain is that the weather is unpredictable!  The forecast has been pretty accurate this week.  But remember just last month when a HUGE snowstorm was predicted for the East Coast?  New York City shut down the subway system and New York declared a State of Emergency before even one snowflake fell, based upon the best weather models.  Then something happened and the storm shifted east about 50 miles, totally missing New York City and pounding Long Island and New England instead.

My friends in that region blew up my Facebook page with their rants about the storm that never happened.  There were the usual jokes about how can meterologists keep their jobs when they’re wrong 50% of the time?  There were very real concerns that the next time a storm was predicted, people would not heed the warning and then get caught in some difficult situations.

But, you see, the nature of the weather is to be unpredictable.  There are just too many variables at work and the best science we have today cannot account for all of them and make a certain prediction.

We must learn to live with the weather we get and with the unpredictability of it.  Yet, most of us don’t like that unpredictability.  We feel anxious or we want to totally ignore the forecasts.  A good practice is to have an emergency kit with water, food you can eat without warming it up, candles, space blankets…things you might need if you didn’t have electricity for many days and were stranded.  Ready.gov (http://www.ready.gov/build-a-kit) has suggestions and lists for what you need to be prepared.  I’ll copy the lists and have them available in the parlor.

Midst all of the unpredictability of the weather which affects our lives, today we hear God’s words to Noah after a weather event that wiped out nearly all life on the earth.  We know the story.  In Genesis 6:11-13, God says:

Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw that the earth was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted its ways upon the earth. And God said to Noah, ‘I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence because of them; now I am going to destroy them along with the earth.’

And we know how God told Noah to build the ark and to take 2 of every creature plus Noah’s family and put them on the ark.  We know how it rained for 40 days and 40 nights and how eventually there was dry land.

In our passage today, we hear that after the flood, God decided to make a covenant with Noah and with all of Noah’s descendants.  Now, a covenant is a special kind of agreement.  It is a binding commitment between two or more parties.  It describes each party’s obligations and responsibilities.  It has the quality of constancy and durability.

And here’s the important piece…the covenant we hear about today is unconditional!  God says what God will do in regards to us with no consequences or action on our part – NONE!  Most of us cannot make a covenant like that, can we?

In verse 11, God tells Noah:  “I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

And so we’ll know and remember this promise and obligation of God, God gives us a sign.  A sign is the “visible evidence of the presence and purpose of God.” (Understanding the Old Testament 5th Edition; Anderson, Bishop & Newman; pg 68)  God’s sign to us is the rainbow!

 

Every time we see the beautiful rainbow, and you see lots of them at Cumberland Falls, we remember God’s promise to not destroy the earth and every creature on earth by water.  God’s promise to us is to save us…save us from ourselves.

 

This is God’s activity throughout the ages.  God comes to earth as Jesus to save us.  “…repent, and believe in the good news,” (Mark 1:15) we hear in today’s Gospel.  Repent – turn around and believe in the good news that God saves us…that living God’s way saves us.

 

In today’s Epistle we hear in I Peter 3:18, “Christ suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God.”  God made a covenant with Noah …a covenant with no conditions…a promise durable and lasting.  God will not destroy us by water and God always, always acts to save us.

 

During this season of Lent, remember, think on and meditate on God’s saving actions.  While we cannot predict the weather… we can predict God’s saving action!  We can trust in God’s saving actions.  Remember the covenant every time you see the beautiful rainbow.

 

Amen

Love is the Key (Sermon) February 18, 2015 – Ash Wednesday

Posted on by

Sermon – February 18, 2015
The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, CSW
St. John’s Episcopal Church, Corbin, KY
Ash Wednesday

Yet even now, says the LORD,
return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
rend your hearts and not your clothing. Joel 2:12-13

Please be seated.

On Monday night, I just happened to watch the Grammy Tribute to Stevie Wonder.  Different artists performed Mr. Wonder’s Works.  The concert was so wonderful, especially since much of the music of Mr. Wonder is familiar to me.  And the people in the audience were on their feet most of the time.  They were stars and celebrities, dancing and moving to the music.  I could feel the happy party in my living room.  It’s just one of the best things I’ve seen in a long time.

Yet, even more than the music, was Mr. Wonder’s closing remarks:

“I can’t leave this stage, this building, this planet without letting you know how much I thank you. I love you. I don’t have to know you. I may not have ever met you or ever meet you. But I want you to know that I love you. I love you first of all because the God that I serve says that we should love everyone. I also love you because it feels better to love than to hate and I believe that if we can just come together, because we must come together, because, I mean, we are at spiritual warfare and we must without question let the world know that love is king and queen. . . . I believe that if we come together, as it is said, when 2 or more believe, then almighty God is between it, Let us come together. Let us fool everyone who thinks it’s impossible. Let’s make the impossible so very possible by loving. Love is the key ….”  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxDrJ-tyHpE

Love is the key.

So what does that have to do with Ash Wednesday…. A day when we begin our season of penitence…of taking a good look at ourselves?

Because, during this time, we are asked to repent.  To repent means to turna round…to change our ways.  In our Lesson, Joel, the prophet says that God wants us to return with all of our heart…God wants us to acknowledge how our behavior has been so harmful to the world, so harmful, that our acknowledge makes us weep and mourn and fast.  Tearing our clothing as a sign of repentance will not be enough….we must feel the depth of turning away from God Deep within our heart…we must know how our turning away from God, tears our hearts apart.

Yes, there are many ways we turn away from God.  One way is our failure to love.  We’d rather hate than love.

We also believe that truly loving everyone is impossible.  We look at our world.  Even here in Corbin last week where a 16-year-old child killed most of his family and endangered the lives of others.  Or the many killings by ISIS/ISIL, most recently in Egypt.  There is so much evil out there, and we become cynical, skeptical and unbelieving about the power of love.

Yes, we know God wants us to love one another – to love our neighbors as ourselves.  But don’t we pay it lip service?  Don’t we think it’s a huge fantasy and not even possible?  Haven’t we turned away from God in this regard?  And in doing so, we have harmed the world and we have harmed each other.  We have given more power to hate than to love!

So, during this Holy Lent, return to God.  Don’t doubt, but believe.  Weep and mourn and fast because we have given in to the world and given in to the power of hatred rather than the power of love.

Think about what you can do to be more loving…what you can do to not let the hatred of the world overpower the love God calls us to.  Let’s strive to be like Stevie Wonder who told us the other night…. “I love you.  I don’t have to know you. I may not have ever met you or ever meet you. But I want you to know that I love you.”  Let’s believe deeply in our hearts that “Love is the key.”

Amen

This Sunday (February 22, 2015) at St. John’s

Posted on by

Almighty God, whose blessed Son was led by the Spirit to be tempted by Satan: Come quickly to help us who are assaulted by many temptations; and, as you know the weaknesses of each of us, let each one find you mighty to save; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Collect, First Sunday in Lent, BCP, pg. 218

Our Gospel reading this week reminds us that Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness, tempted by Satan.  Our Collect for the day reminds us that we, too, are “assaulted by many temptations.”  The pray asks God to help us with these assaults.

Temptations take many forms.  Sometimes the temptations turn into addictions to substances (food, alcohol, drugs) or behaviors (co-dependency, gambling, hoarding, cynicism, despair).  I guess they share a common denominator — in the end, giving in to them causes great harm….harm to our community, harm to others, harm to ourselves.

Our Lenten readings from Living Compass Faith & Wellness Ministry, Living Well through Lent 2015, can help us discover our temptations, as well as where we are open to God’s guidance and wisdom in addressing them.

Blessings as you finish your week!

Love, Rebecca+

Rebecca will be at St. John’s Corbin, Thursday and Friday.  She will be on vacation Monday through Wednesday.  Deacon Amanda Musterman will be handling pastoral care needs during that time.  You can contact Deacon Amanda at 859-227-1791. You can get a message to her by calling the church office at 606-528-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.  

Godly Play offered for children.  All children are invited to participate in this special program of spiritual development.

Adult Forum
During Lent, we are discussing various issues in Appalachia.  This week, Professor Joseph Pearson, Union College will speak about the Race Riots in Corbin.  Here is the schedule for the following weeks:

March 1 Professor Jimmy Smith; How people interact with the land and its consequences.
March 8 Rebecca; 20th Century Progress and Why Appalachia was Left Behind, Part I
March 15 Rebecca, 20th Century Progress and Why Appalachia was Left Behind, Part II
March 22 The Rev. Stuart Hoke will lead a discussion on the church’s role in addiction recovery
March 29  Rebecca; Discussion of themes from the movie “Matewan.”

The Vestry proposes the following Mission Statement for St. John’s Church:  Proclaiming the Gospel, promoting justice, and preparing a diverse community of seekers to reflect the welcoming love of Christ.  Let us know what you think about this statement, which guides us to goals and actions that embody our Mission.

Family Game night is the 4th Friday of the month.  The next Family Game Night is February 27, 6:30 – 8:30pm.  Bring your favorite games, snacks, and drinks.  Pizza will be provided.

The Annual International Dinner will be held February 28, 7pm, London Community Center.  Sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of London and Corbin, the proceeds of the dinner support the eradication of polio.  Tickets are $25 each.  The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will provide of match of $100 for a purchase of 2 tickets.  Tables of 8 are also available for $250.  If you’d like to attend this fun event or if you’d like to provide food for it, please see Rebecca.

Wednesday Evenings During Lent, February 25 – March 25, 6:30pm, series on Appalachia.  Plan to come on Wednesday evenings for a soup and bread supper, followed by a special series on Appalachia.  Soup and bread will be provided.  If you are interested in contributing the soup and bread, please see Rebecca or Anne Day Davis.  

February 25 – Professor Joseph Pearson; 20th Century Progress and Why Appalachia was “left behind,” Part I
March 4 – Professor Joseph Pearson continues the discussion on 20th Century Progress and Why Appalachia was ‘left behind,” Part II
March 11 –How People Interact with the Land and its consequences
March 18 – Professor Jimmy Smith; on the first half of John Sayles’ movie, Matewan
March 25 – Professor Jimmy Smith; on the conclusion of John Sayles’ movie, Matewan

Reading Camp Meeting, February 26, 10:15am.  A group is forming in Corbin to support sending at least 5 children from Corbin to Reading Camp at Pine Mountain Settlement, July 12-18.  We are also exploring the possibility of starting a Reading Camp program in the area.  If you are interested in helping recruit children, mentor children, volunteering for Reading Camp, or raising funds, let Rebecca know. 

 Pot Luck Sunday:  This Sunday is our monthly pot luck. We will be eating pancakes, bacon and sausage since we didn’t have our pancake supper on Shrove Tuedsay.   Bring a dish or drink to share.  And all are welcome!  Plan to fellowship with each other.  Our pot luck schedule shifts in October and November, depending upon the Bishop’s visit and our Annual Meeting.

Property Committee will meet Tuesday, February 24, 6pm.  Please see Billy Hibbitts if you are interested in being part of this committee. 

The Grow Appalachia Committee will meet Thursdays, at 6pm through March 26.  If you’re interested in planting your own garden, either here in St. John’s Park or in your own backyard, or helping with a community plot here in the park, please plan to attend these meetings.

Join Rebecca and the Members of Corbin Presbyterian Church at 3:30pm, Sunday, February 22, as they install their new Pastor, The Rev. Lisa Eye.  

Donations are being accepted until March 29, for flowers to decorate the church for Easter.  Use the donation envelopes and write if the donation is “in honor of/in memory” of a loved one or a special occasion.  Donations in any amount will be accepted.

Sunday, March 1, we welcome The Rev. Phillip Haug.  Rebecca will be at St. Patrick’s Somerset to talk about St. Agnes’ House and to celebrate the service.

 

 

 

Powerful and Awe-Inspiring Moments (Sermon) February 15, 2015

Posted on by

Sermon – February 15, 2015

The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, CSW

St. John’s Episcopal Church, Corbin, KY

The Last Sunday After Epiphany, Year B

The Transfiguration

And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Mark 9:2-4

 Please be seated.

The church I grew up in had changed radically by the early 60s.  It was in a city, whose neighborhoods were changing, really disappearing from around the church.  The church was right downtown, close to the state capitol and office buildings for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.  The many neighborhoods, especially the predominantly African-American neighborhoods that had once been there, were being swallowed up by the needs of state government and urban renewal plans.  There was not much neighborhood around the church by the early 1960s.

But the church called a new pastor in 1963 and he challenged those there to revitalize the church.  My father heard this Pastor on the radio one Sunday and soon after, started attending.  By 1966, my mother converted from Roman Catholicism and we all started attending.

As I neared Junior High School a couple of years later – 7th Grade – I became very excited, because I’d be able to participate in the church youth group activities.  The church had called an Assistant Pastor and he focused on youth and young married couples.  There were a number of other adults who also assisted with the youth group and they seemed fun to be around.

So I was glad when it came time for me to join this group of 7th – 12th graders.  Now for the first 3 years, I attended confirmation classes prior to the youth group meetings.  Our Youth Group addressed many of the issues of the day such as the Vietnam War, the War on Poverty and Civil Rights.  We formed a singing group which performed songs with many of the themes of our time interspersed with written words and poems… songs like Blowin’ in the Wind or If I Had a Hammer.

We explored our faith and how it led us to take action.  We explored our belief in God.  Those were the days when Time Magazine had a cover story, Is God Dead?  There was a lot of questioning about belief in God and the place of the church.  I had gone to church as long as I could remember.  I wanted to believe in God.  I loved the story of Jesus Christ.  But I didn’t feel my belief deep in my soul and heart.

My best friend at the time and I would often go into the sanctuary in the evenings when it was dark, except for the Sanctuary light, which burned to let us know God was in this place.  We’d talk and share the deepest concerns of our 12-year old lives, including how we understood God.  We’d talk to God there.

Our youth group also went on retreats about twice a year.  Weekends away where we’d have fun and deepen our faith.  In the fall of my 8th grade year, we went to a retreat house just outside a small Pennsylvania town.  On Sunday morning, we had our church service, which was very free-form.  I remember the day was cold and late fall and very sunny.  We started saying The Lord’s Prayer and I started crying…tears streaming down my face.  Because I knew…I finally knew that God was real…that God was with me and in me.  I knew it deep in my soul.  I had experienced transfiguration.

In today’s Gospel Reading, we hear about Jesus’ transfiguration or being changed into something beautiful.  Jesus and the Disciples had left the region around the Sea of Galilee.  Jesus took Peter, James and John with him up Mt. Tabor.

Mt. Tabor rises almost 1900 feet out of the Jezreel Valley.  It’s a steep climb up to the top. It’s understandable that not everyone made the climb.  But what happened on that mountain was crucial for the Disciples.  It was an experience both powerful and scary.  So powerful that Peter wanted to make monuments there.  And many paintings depict the disciples falling down part of the mountain in fear.  I mean, what would you do if you saw Moses and Elijah speaking to Jesus and then heard a voice from heaven confirming that Jesus was beloved and should be listened to?

But, you see, God knew what was coming when those disciples walked down that mountain.  They were setting off to Jerusalem and to another mount – Calvary.  God knew that the disciples would be very confused by the way salvation was going to come to them.  They were expecting a restoration of the Davidic Kingdom and being freed from the Romans.  But that wasn’t going to be how things worked out.  God knew it would be a hard road for all of them.  So, God gave them this powerful and awe-inspiring and unforgettable moment…a moment to hang on to when life got confusing and challenging.

What are those moments for you?  What are those times when you’ve felt peace or joy, especially in the community of God?  Or those times when amazing “coincidences” happened? Those times when you are filled with awe?  Those times when you experience a power beyond yourself?  I hope you’ve had them.  God gives them to us to hang on to when life is difficult and hard.

I’ve forgotten plenty of things in my life, but I’ve never forgotten that moment when I was 13, on that retreat, saying The Lord’s Prayer.  I can picture it just as clearly as if it happened yesterday.  Yes, since then, I’ve had tough and challenging times in my life…times when I didn’t feel so close to God, but that experience at 13 has kept me close to God at the same time…sometimes just by a thread, but nonetheless unshakeable in my belief in God.

Hold on…hold on to those moments of transfiguration – powerful and awe-inspiring.  They comfort you on the journeys through the valleys of difficult and challenging times.

Amen

This Sunday (February 15, 2015) at St. John’s

Posted on by

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.  Collect for the Last Sunday after the Epiphany, pg. 217, Book of Common Prayer

The season of celebration that the light has come into the world, also known as Epiphany, is fast coming to an end.  This Collect for the Day leads us into the next season of our Church year – Lent.  But first, there are a few more days of celebration.  Before the walk up calvary on Good Friday, the true glory of Christ was revealed to Peter, James and John, on the Mount Tabor, known as The Transfiguration.

Mt. Tabor, site of The Transfiguration.

Mt. Tabor, site of The Transfiguration.

In our region, winter is gray and especially in February, feels long, but our church year reminds us that Christ brought great light, great awareness to us.  Christ brought and brings great joy.  So, let’s enjoy the celebration..the revealing of Christ’s Glory.  Join us Tuesday evening at 6pm for our annual pancake supper.  Celebrate our life in Christ.  Then you will be ready for the long walk through Lent to Calvary.

 

Blessings as you finish your week!

Love, Rebecca+

The Flowers on the Altar this Sunday are given in memory of Ed VanGorder by June VanGorder. 

 Provide Flowers for the altar in honor or in memory of a loved one: Donations for flowers for the altar are accepted for any Sunday of the year. Please sign up on the Flower Donation Chart and let us know if you’d like the flowers to be “in memory of/in honor of” a loved one or special occasion.  We suggest a donation of $20.  Please place your donation in the envelopes provided.

 Rebecca’s Schedule Rebecca will be in Corbin this week,Tuesday and Wednesday, and attending Diocesan Convention in Morehead Thursday through Saturday.  Her Sabbath Day will be Monday, February 16.  You can get a message to her by calling the church office at 606-528-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

Godly Play offered for children.  All children are invited to participate in this special program of spiritual development.

Adult Forum: This Sunday we conclude our series on the Blessing of Same Gender Relationships.  Mary Swinford will lead the session.  Next Sunday, we begin a series on Appalachia.  Professor Joseph Pearson, who teaches history at Union College, will speak about the race riots in Corbin.

Grow Appalachia!  We’ve received a grant for $4,530 for our community garden through Grow Appalachia.  The Grow Appalachia website is http://www.berea.edu/grow-appalachia/  The Grow Appalachia Committee will meet Sunday, February 15, after church. 

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper, Tuesday, February 17, 6:00 – 7:30pm.  Come for this truly Episcopal tradition to end Epiphany and prepare for the start of Lent.  Free Will donation.

Ash Wednesday Services will be held on February 18, at 9am and 7pm.  Eucharist and imposition of ashes will occur at both services.

The Annual International Dinner will be held February 28, 7pm, London Community Center. Sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of London and Corbin, the proceeds of the dinner support the eradication of polio.  Tickets are $25 each.  The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will provide of match of $100 for a purchase of 2 tickets.  Tables of 8 are also available for $250.  If you’d like to attend this fun event or if you’d like to provide food for it, please see Rebecca.

Interested in becoming a member of St. John’s?  Please let Rebecca know.  Receptions and confirmations will be held on Saturday, April 18, at the Cathedral Domain during St. George’s Day weekend.

Reading Camp Meeting, February 26, 10:15am.  A group is forming in Corbin to support sending at least 5 children from Corbin to Reading Camp at Pine Mountain Settlement, July 12-18.  We are also exploring the possibility of starting a Reading Camp program in the area.  If you are interested in helping recruit children, mentor children, volunteering for Reading Camp, or raising funds, let Rebecca know.

 Pot Luck Sunday:  Next Sunday February 22, is our monthly pot luck.  Bring a dish or drink to share.  And all are welcome!  Plan to fellowship with each other.  Our pot luck schedule shifts in October and November, depending upon the Bishop’s visit and our Annual Meeting.

Join Rebecca and the Members of Corbin Presbyterian Church at 3:00pm, Sunday, February 22, as they install their new Pastor, The Rev. Lisa Eye. 

Family Game night is the 4th Friday of the month.  The next Family Game Night is Friday, February 27, 6:30 – 8:30pm.  Bring your favorite games, snacks, and drinks.  Pizza will be provided.

The Vestry is considering how best to use the space that is now our Parlor.  Various ideas have included using the space as a welcome and information place, where information is available about St. John’s, our various ministries, and our members.  Another idea is to have a prayer space with candles that can be lit for specific prayer intentions.  If you have comments or other ideas, please see a member of Vestry or Rebecca.

Two furnaces replaced, 1 more to go!  The furnaces located in the sacristy and the parish hall have been replaced. Thanks so much to all who donated!  Now we need to replace the furnace in the rectory. Cost is just under $1,700 for a furnace that will also be more energy efficient. Donations for the furnace can be put in the box on the table in the parlor.  

The Vestry has voted to donate $25 each month to Everlasting Arm Homeless Shelter. If you’d like to contribute, put your donations in the collection box by the guest register or mark your donation and put it in the collection plate.

Serving Our Neighbors – See baskets in the parlor.

  • Everlasting Arms, Corbin’s shelter for people who are homeless, is in need of men’s and women’s razors, gloves, deodorant and socks.
  • The Food Pantry at Corbin Presbyterian Church is always in need of nonperishable food items. Vegetables are especially appreciated.

Provide Flowers for the altar in honor or in memory of a loved one: Donations for flowers for the altar are accepted for any Sunday of the year. Please place your donation in the envelope, marking whether they are in honor of or in memory of someone.

Hymn Selection Group If you’d like to choose hymns for services, join this group.  You will choose hymns for an upcoming service and then meet with the entire group to confirm the final selections.  See Billy Hibbitts if you are interested.

Would you like to write Prayers of the People?  If you are interested in writing these prayers (there are resources that can help with this task), please let Rebecca know by phone or email priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

United Thank Offering.  Remember to get your box for your thank offerings for this ministry of The Episcopal Church.  The next collection will be in the spring.

Are you interested in assisting with the Sunday service?  Readers, Eucharistic Ministers, Crucifers, Altar Guild Members and choir members are all important for each Sunday service.  If you’re interested in serving, please let Rebecca know by phone 859-429-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Subscribe to our Website Feed!

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/StJohnsCorbin

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/StJohnsCorbin

Website:  http://stjohnscorbin.org/?subscribe=success#blog_subscription-2

Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/stjohnscorbin/

 

 

Find the Current of God (sermon) February 8, 2015

Posted on by

Sermon – February 8, 2015
The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, CSW
St. John’s Episcopal Church, Corbin, KY
The Fifth Sunday After Epiphany, Year B
Observance of African-American History Month

but those who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

 Please be seated

I love the prairie.  I saw the tall grass prairie for the first time in 1994, in late April, after my husband had accepted a job in Topeka, KS.  I had visited Chicago as a teenager and I decided then that I did not really like flat ground, so I wasn’t all that excited about the prospect of living in a place so flat.

But even on that first trip, I loved the expanse of the sky.  The view was overwhelming.  You could see so far into the distance.  It’s not that trees cannot grow in Kansas, it’s that you have tall grasses, which easily catch on fire, especially during a thunder and lightening storm, creating new tender grass shoots, which attract large hoofed animals that massage the earth.  It’s just not conducive to trees.

So the grasses grow up to 8 feet tall during the summer.  And the wind NEVER stops blowing.  NEVER!  There is always wind.  So the earth warms up and the heat rises and the wind blows, creating the most wonderful air currents.

Raptors like hawks and eagles LOVE the Kansas prairie.  And because the vista is so expansive, you can watch the hawks and eagles catch the breeze and ride the currents.  They save themselves plenty of energy by doing that.

And in today’s Old Testament reading, the prophet Isaiah reminds us that when we are doing God’s work, we’ll find those air currents and be lifted high like the eagle… the eagle representing St. John.  We won’t get weary nor be faint when we catch that current that God provides.

Later this week, on Friday, we’ll remember Absalom Jones, the first African-American ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Church.  Absalom Jones knew what it meant to find those currents from God that raise the eagles in flight.  Listen to the biography of Jones available on the website of African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas in Philadelphia, the church Jones founded:

 The life and legacy of The Reverend Absalom Jones is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, his faith, and his commitment to the causes of freedom, justice and self-determination.

 Absalom Jones was born into slavery in Sussex County, Delaware on November 6, 1746. During the 72 years of his life, he grew to become one of the foremost leaders among persons of African descent during the post-revolutionary period. In his younger years in Delaware, Absalom sought help to learn to read. When he was 16, his owner Benjamin Wynkoop brought him to Philadelphia where he served as a clerk and handyman in a retail store. He was able to work for himself in the evenings and keep his earnings. He also briefly attended a school run by the Quakers where he learned mathematics and handwriting. In 1770, he married Mary Thomas and purchased her freedom. It was until 1784 that he obtained his own freedom through manumission. He also owned several properties.

 During this period, he met Richard Allen, who became a life-long friend. In 1787 they organized the Free African Society as a social, political and humanitarian organization helping widows and orphans and assisting in sick relief and burial expenses. Jones and Allen were also lay preachers at St. George’s Methodist Episcopal Church, Philadelphia, PA where their evangelistic efforts met with great success and their congregation multiplied ten-fold. As a result, racial tensions flared and ultimately they led an historic walk out from St. George’s.

 In 1792, under the dual leadership of Absalom Jones and Richard Allen, “The African Church” was organized as a direct outgrowth of the Free African Society. Both Jones and Allen wished to affiliate with the Methodists, but the majority of the congregation favored the Episcopal Church. Richard Allen withdrew with a part of the congregation to found Bethel Church (later, Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church). The African Church became The African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas with Absalom Jones as its Lay Reader and Deacon. In 1802, Jones was ordained by Bishop William White as the first African American Episcopal Priest.

 During the severe yellow fever epidemic of 1793, Absalom Jones and Richard Allen mobilized the Black community to care for the afflicted. In 1797 and 1799 Absalom Jones, with other free Africans, presented tenable petitions to Congress and to the President of the United States opposing slavery. Two schools and supportive services for the Black community developed under his leadership.

 Absalom Jones died on February 13, 1818 at his residence, 32 Powell Street, Philadelphia, PA. Tributes and accounts of his funeral appeared in several periodicals. The Episcopal Bishop, William White, spoke of Jones’ devotion and care of his congregation and of his many contributions to the life of the city. The February 13th Absalom Jones Feast Day was added to the Episcopal Church Calendar in 1973. His ashes are enshrined in the altar of the Reverend Absalom Jones Chapel of the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, and a memorial stained glass window commemorates his life and work.

http://www.aecst.org/ajones.htm

 What this biography fails to mention is the trials Absalom Jones went through to get his church recognized by The Episcopal Church.  He was denied admission to General Theological Seminary, for instance.  There was also some opposition to the church being fully recognized by the Diocese.

Can you imagine…here were many people drawn to The Episcopal Church and its understanding of faith in Jesus Christ, rejected only because of the color of their skin.

But Absalom and the members of St. Thomas under his cure, persevered.  He and they read St. Paul’s letters, including the portion we read today from the first letter to the Corinthians, “If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me, and woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel!” 1 Cor. 9:16

They only wanted to proclaim the Gospel, just like Jesus did and we heard in our Gospel lesson today:  “And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.” Mark 1:39

Even though The Episcopal Church of their day segregated them, they caught the winds and flew like eagles even into the current day.  Many Dioceses in the country celebrate Absalom Jones Day with special services and special offerings for the Historically Black College of The Episcopal Church, St. Augustine’s in Raleigh, NC.

When we become weary and tired as we usually do, let us remember the perseverance of Absalom Jones…let us remember how the eagles find the current and rise, saving their energy.  Let us rest, find the current of God, and rise like the eagles.

Amen

This Sunday (February 8) at St. John’s

Posted on by

Set us free, O God, from the bondage of our sins, and give us the liberty of that abundant life which you have made known to us in your Son our Savior Jesus Christ…. Collect for the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany, Pg. 216, Book of Common Prayer

We have a couple of weeks hearing about Jesus healing people and setting people free of their demons.  We may not talk in terms of demons these days, but our Collect of the Day for Sunday gives us a different different definition — demons are things which keep us in bondage.  Our Collect asks that we be freed from the bondage of our sins — that we be freed from the demons that manifest themselves in our sins.

What are your demons?  What sins hold you in bondage today?  Together we’ll pray that God sets us free!

Blessings and peace as you finish your week!

Love, Rebecca+

This Sunday we will observe African-American History month.  Our observance reminds us of the many ways the church worships each Sunday all around the world.

Adult Forum Currently, we are discussing the blessing of same gender relationships. This week, Rebecca will lead a discussion on the elements of the liturgy.  We will also go through the liturgy.

On February 22, we begin a series on Appalachia.  Professor Joseph Pearson, who teaches history at Union College, will speak about the race riots in Corbin.

Grow Appalachia!  We’ve received a grant for $4,530 for our community garden through Grow Appalachia.  The Grow Appalachia website is http://www.berea.edu/grow-appalachia/  The Grow Appalachia Committee will meet Sunday, February 15, after church. 

The Annual International Dinner will be held February 28, 7pm, London Community Center. Sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of London and Corbin, the proceeds of the dinner support the eradication of polio.  Tickets are $25 each.  The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will provide of match of $100 for a purchase of 2 tickets.  Tables of 8 are also available for $250.  If you’d like to attend this fun event or if you’d like to provide food for it, please see Rebecca.

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper, Tuesday, February 17, 6:00 – 7:30pm.  Come for this truly Episcopal tradition to end Epiphany and prepare for the start of Lent.  Free Will donation.

Ash Wednesday Services will be held on February 18, at 9am and 7pm.  Eucharist and imposition of ashes will occur at both services.

Family Game night is the 4th Friday of the month.  The next Family Game Night is Friday, February 27, 6:30 – 8:30pm.  Bring your favorite games, snacks, and drinks.  Pizza will be provided. 

The Vestry is considering how best to use the space that is now our Parlor.  Various ideas have included using the space as a welcome and information place, where information is available about St. John’s, our various ministries, and our members.  Another idea is to have a prayer space with candles that can be lit for specific prayer intentions.  If you have comments or other ideas, please see a member of Vestry or Rebecca.

Two furnaces replaced, 1 more to go!  The furnaces located in the sacristy and the parish hall have been replaced. Thanks so much to all who donated!  Now we need to replace the furnace in the rectory. Cost is just under $1,700 for a furnace that will also be more energy efficient. Donations for the furnace can be put in the box on the table in the parlor.  

The Vestry has voted to donate $25 each month to Everlasting Arm Homeless Shelter. If you’d like to contribute, put your donations in the collection box by the guest register or mark your donation and put it in the collection plate.

Serving Our Neighbors – See baskets in the parlor.

  • Everlasting Arms, Corbin’s shelter for people who are homeless, is in need of men’s and women’s razors, gloves, deodorant and socks.
  • The Food Pantry at Corbin Presbyterian Church is always in need of nonperishable food items. Vegetables are especially appreciated.

Provide Flowers for the altar in honor or in memory of a loved one: Donations for flowers for the altar are accepted for any Sunday of the year. Please place your donation in the envelope, marking whether they are in honor of or in memory of someone.

Hymn Selection Group If you’d like to choose hymns for services, join this group.  You will choose hymns for an upcoming service and then meet with the entire group to confirm the final selections.  See Billy Hibbitts if you are interested.

Would you like to write Prayers of the People?  If you are interested in writing these prayers (there are resources that can help with this task), please let Rebecca know by phone or email priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

United Thank Offering.  Remember to get your box for your thank offerings for this ministry of The Episcopal Church.  The next collection will be in the spring.

Are you interested in assisting with the Sunday service?  Readers, Eucharistic Ministers, Crucifers, Altar Guild Members and choir members are all important for each Sunday service.  If you’re interested in serving, please let Rebecca know by phone 859-429-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Subscribe to our Website Feed!

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/StJohnsCorbin

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/StJohnsCorbin

Website:  http://stjohnscorbin.org/?subscribe=success#blog_subscription-2

Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/stjohnscorbin/

 

Amazed! (Sermon) February 1, 2015

Posted on by

Sermon – February 1, 2015

The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, CSW

St. John’s Episcopal Church, Corbin, KY

The Fourth Sunday After Epiphany, Year B

They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, “What is this? A new teaching– with authority! Mark 1:27

Please be seated.

This week, I’ve been remembering and thinking about my experiences in addressing hunger.  How was it that I came to believe that following Jesus meant addressing issues like hunger?

My earliest memory is of being in Junior High School in the late 60s and waking my parents up early on Friday mornings.  The church I grew up in had partnered with the church down the street to make sure the children in the public housing complex in our neighborhood got breakfast each morning before they went to school.  Obviously, this was before school breakfast programs.

The mothers in the housing complex knew that a good breakfast was essential to their children getting a good education.  A number of the mothers attended the neighboring church and said they wanted to start this program.  They needed additional help, and members of my church helped on Fridays.  I remember there were plenty of wonderful stories about my parents going to help the mothers with this breakfast.  Sometimes the children didn’t like the food, but the mothers made it clear they’d better eat it.

In 1972, there was a huge flood in Harrisburg.  Only a small part of the center city did not get flooded, which included my church.  So many people were devastated by this flood and having enough food was a major issue.  Some people got together and started a food pantry in the basement of the church.  Suddenly, the little stage and much of the storage space in the church was filled with cans and cans of food and brown paper bags.  Lots of volunteers came to help.  My church regularly collected food.  If you visited the church during a weekday, you’d often find people waiting to get their bag of food.  When my father retired and as long as he was able, he was a volunteer at this Food Pantry.

Early on, I learned that following Jesus meant finding a way for people that were hungry to get food.  I guess that’s why when I found out Corbin Presbyterian needed help unloading 9,000 pounds of food and packing 312 boxes for senior citizens, I was happy to go help.  I guess that’s why I’m so excited about the Grow Appalachia program that makes it possible for people to learn how to grow their own fresh food and to sell some or give it away to others.  I guess that’s why I was so happy for Knox County Community Economic Council to use our park last summer as a lunch site for children.

In our Gospel today, Jesus astounds and amazes the people in Galilee.  He teaches with authority.  He rebukes the unclean spirits and makes them come out of people.  In essence, he challenges people to think differently.  I hear this amazement as excitement, but I’m sure some were thinking, “who does he think he is?”

Most of us don’t like to be challenged to think differently.  Yet, that’s what Jesus does throughout his entire ministry…challenges the status quo.  He asks us to love our neighbors.  He asks us to love ourselves.  He asks us to serve our neighbors.  He challenges all of the hierarchies we build between who’s rich and who’s poor, between who’s superior and who’s inferior, between genders, between people of different ages.

Love is at the heart of the message of Jesus…love for all of humanity…love for all of creation.   Making sure people have the basic needs for a good life:  food, clothing, shelter, meaningful work at a living wage, and a healthy environment, for no other reason than that they are beloved of God.

It’s a lot to ask and when we follow Jesus, Jesus never stops turning our world upside down and challenging us.

In the early 1980s, I was a new single mom.  My children were 4 and 5.  I had lots of family support and I was working really hard to be self-sufficient.  I’d gotten a new job with better benefits, although not much more money, but I wouldn’t get a paycheck for four weeks – your first bi-weekly check was held.  My apartment was pretty good, but there were railroad tracks close by and when the trains went by, the rattling of the apartment would make the dining room light come on.  But it had been hard as a single mom with two kids to even find a landlord willing to rent to us.

One Saturday, there was a knock on my door and I opened it to find my pastor.  He was carrying a brown bag of food from the Food Pantry.  I was overwhelmed to be the recipient of one of these bags of food and so grateful to be able to stretch my dollars for the month.  After he left and as I was unpacking the food, I found a check for $25 in the bag.  I was amazed.

That’s what following Jesus does…encourages us to come together and care for others in ways that may go against our inclinations.  In the process Jesus teaches us new things with authority and we are amazed.

Amen

 

This Sunday (February 1, 2015) at St. John’s

Posted on by

Hallelujah!
I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, *
in the assembly of the upright, in the congregation. Psalm 111:1

At St. John’s, we LOVE our Hallelujahs.  Yes, we do stop saying them during Lent, but we love saying them at the end of the service as we go out into the world.

Psalm 111, reminds us to praise God at all times and everywhere we go.  Yes, our Sunday worship must have times where we joyfully and heartily praise God.  What a blessing to be together with each other and to catch up.  What a blessing to be worshiping God together and getting our “fuel” for the coming week.  One of you has told me time and time again that when you don’t get to church, your week just doesn’t go right.  So we praise God together.

And then we take that joy and praise out into the world.  This doesn’t mean that everything will be a “bed of roses” and go smoothly,  It just means that whatever we face, we know there’s a community of people loving us and sustaining us.  It means that we are never alone and that we can help others through their joys and challenges.

Blessings as you finish your week!

Love, Rebecca+

Rebecca will be in Lexington this week, Monday through Thursday.  Her Sabbath Day will be Friday, February 6.  You can get a message to her by calling the church office at 606-528-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

Adult Forum

Currently, we are discussing the blessing of same gender relationships. This week, Rebecca will present some history and information on theology. Next week, Mary Swinford will lead a discussion on Civil and Canon Law.

On February 22, we begin a series on Appalachia.  Professor Joseph Pearson, who teaches history at Union College, will speak about the race riots in Corbin.

We will observe African-American History month on Sunday, February 8.  Our observance reminds us of the many ways the church worships each Sunday all around the world.

Grow Appalachia!  We’ve received a grant for $4,530 for our community garden through Grow Appalachia.  The Grow Appalachia website is http://www.berea.edu/grow-appalachia/  The Grow Appalachia Committee will meet Sunday, February 15, after church. 

The Annual International Dinner will be held February 28, 7pm, London Community Center.  Sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of London and Corbin, the proceeds of the dinner support the eradication of polio.  Tickets are $25 each.  The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will provide of match of $100 for a purchase of 2 tickets.  Tables of 8 are also available for $250.  If you’d like to attend this fun event or if you’d like to provide food for it, please see Rebecca.

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper, Tuesday, February 17, 6:00 – 7:30pm.  Come for this truly Episcopal tradition to end Epiphany and prepare for the start of Lent.  Free Will donation.

Ash Wednesday Services will be held on February 18, at 9am and 7pm.  Eucharist and imposition of ashes will occur at both services.

The Vestry is considering how best to use the space that is now our Parlor.  Various ideas have included using the space as a welcome and information place, where information is available about St. John’s, our various ministries, and our members.  Another idea is to have a prayer space with candles that can be lit for specific prayer intentions.  If you have comments or other ideas, please see a member of Vestry or Rebecca.

Two furnaces replaced, 1 more to go!  The furnaces located in the sacristy and the parish hall have been replaced. Thanks so much to all who donated!  Now we need to replace the furnace in the rectory. Cost is just under $1,700 for a furnace that will also be more energy efficient. Donations for the furnace can be put in the box on the table in the parlor.  

The Vestry has voted to donate $25 each month to Everlasting Arm Homeless Shelter. If you’d like to contribute, put your donations in the collection box by the guest register or mark your donation and put it in the collection plate.

Serving Our Neighbors – See baskets in the parlor.

  • Everlasting Arms, Corbin’s shelter for people who are homeless, is in need of men’s and women’s razors, gloves, deodorant and socks.
  • The Food Pantry at Corbin Presbyterian Church is always in need of nonperishable food items. Vegetables are especially appreciated.

Provide Flowers for the altar in honor or in memory of a loved one: Donations for flowers for the altar are accepted for any Sunday of the year. Please place your donation in the envelope, marking whether they are in honor of or in memory of someone.

Hymn Selection Group If you’d like to choose hymns for services, join this group.  You will choose hymns for an upcoming service and then meet with the entire group to confirm the final selections.  See Billy Hibbitts if you are interested.

Would you like to write Prayers of the People?  If you are interested in writing these prayers (there are resources that can help with this task), please let Rebecca know by phone or email priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

United Thank Offering.  Remember to get your box for your thank offerings for this ministry of The Episcopal Church.  The next collection will be in the spring.

Are you interested in assisting with the Sunday service?  Readers, Eucharistic Ministers, Crucifers, Altar Guild Members and choir members are all important for each Sunday service.  If you’re interested in serving, please let Rebecca know by phone 859-429-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Subscribe to our Website Feed!

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/StJohnsCorbin

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/StJohnsCorbin

Website:  http://stjohnscorbin.org/?subscribe=success#blog_subscription-2

Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/stjohnscorbin/