Dear Servants,
A year ago during the season of Advent, the vestry leaders set a strategic goal to encourage daily Scripture reading among the membership of Servants. At the time, the vestry was reading and talking about a book called MOVE which found that the number one factor in spiritual growth among Christians was regular individual Bible reading. You may recall the Advent devotionals from members sharing their own interaction with Scripture. Shortly, you will receive a survey through email asking you to consider whether you are engaging with Scripture in your personal life more, less, or the same as a year ago? I look forward to your honest feedback.
Over the summer while on sabbatical, one of the books I was drawn to read was a newer book by Pastor Tim Keller Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God. In this book, Keller suggests that one of the most effective ways to pray as a believer is in conjunction with your Bible reading. The idea is that as God speaks to you through His Word, you respond by prayer back to the Lord. When I returned in July, the vestry felt lead to begin a new strategic goal of encouraging us to be a prayer-centered church. This seemed like a natural follow up to our focus on Scripture reading.
Several things will be happening in the month of October that I want to make you aware of. Starting October 8, I will begin a three week sermon series on prayer during our normal Sunday worship. We will examine three different aspects of prayer and its implication for our daily life. In addition, we will hear testimonies from three different members of Servants about their own journey of prayer. Then on October 29th, the fifth Sunday in October, we will have a joint 9:30am service focused on prayer. We will begin with the Anglican Morning Prayer service. Then you will be able choose among several lay-lead breakout sessions on a range of prayer topics. We will then reassemble for Eucharist before dismissal. I know this will seem a bit unusual for most, but the vestry is committed to finding ways to encourage us to be a prayer-centered church. I hope you will attend.
Before I finish this article, I must thank all of the Servants family that shared in food and preparation for the memorial service for our dear brother, Dale Haskell. The outpouring of love and support for Dale’s wife Karen, her family, and Dale’s colleagues demonstrated love in action.
Lastly, I am excited to announce a special All Saints’ Day service with Baptisms on Wednesday, November 1st at 6:30pm.
God bless you all as we journey into the fall seeking to be shaped by prayer.
Onward and Upward,
