E-Blast for Friday, November 17th, 2023

The Seventh Sunday of Creation

Honoring Deserts

7:45 & 10 a.m. services

Celebrant:

The Rev. Steve Keplinger

Sermon: Discovering the Heart of Christianity in the Great American Desert

Important Pledge Update

Budgeted Pledge Revenue: $431,244

Actual Pledge Revenue: $353,631

Shortfall through 9/30: $77,613

While we understand that some parishioners make their pledged contributions close to the end of the year, the lag in expected revenue has become a concern. It has affected our cash flow, curtailing some of our ministries, especially social services. Further, it has caused us to draw down our limited reserves. If folks can make some of their pledged contributions soon, that would help us to more adequately fulfill our mission, for which we would all be most grateful.

On the other hand, plate contributions from services have been running above budget, and we thank our parishioners and guests for their generosity in this regard.

Thank you for all you do,

Paul Hetland, Treasurer

Youth Group will also be selling T-shirts from previous Summer Trips during the Fall Fundraiser!

Calling all volunteers:

GSP is in need of volunteers to usher on Sundays at the 10AM service. If enough people volunteer, you would only need to usher one Sunday in about six weeks. With Advent coming up next month, we will need additional volunteers to usher during Christmas Eve services. There are two, and it is also a Sunday so there will be three services that day.

If you are interested, please contact Steve Streeter (steve.streeter176@gmail.com). If you are concerned about what to do, I am happy to work with you and show you the ropes.

Young Adult Group Meet Up!.

Thursday, December 14th at 6pm

Join us for beers, birthday cake, and games at Tucson Hop Shop.

Email with questions:

Elizabeth.j.pullen@gmail.com

Honeybees are a part of creation in which we find great joy and appreciation. We enJOY the honey they produce and the many crops they enable to grow. We can draw at least two lessons from the honeybee as we approach the last week of the Giving and Receiving campaign to provide honey money for ministry in 2024.

First, they work as a community. Community is also central to the ministries we

perform. It’s central to our own ongoing practice of faith and spiritual formation. We experience community as we gather for worship and in small groups where

relationships form and active ministry occurs.

Second, bees communicate to get best results.

The point of the communication you’re reading right now is to encourage you to help in our community effort to prepare for ministry in 2024. GSP’s leadership team needs to know how much money to plan on for the next year. Your Estimate of Giving, no matter its size, is important in making those plans.

This year there is a sweet reward for each of us who turns in an Estimate of Giving by Sunday, November 26. A handmade ornament (see photo) will be given for each Estimate received by the 26th or in the worship service that day. Estimates can be provided online (gsptucson.org/giving/ ) or by completing the form in today’s bulletin.

All personal pictures that were placed on the Ofrenda are safe in the Sacristy and will be in the narthex after services on Sunday.

-Deacon Nancy Meister

Grace St. Paul’s “Nurturing the Grieving Heart”

A Soul Support Group

Fridays, January 5 - February 9, 4 - 5:30pm

Loss comes to all of us at different times in our lives. The loss of a beloved partner, family member, friend, animal companion, job, health, or housing can feel overwhelming and isolating. While others might be eager for us to “get over and on with it,” grief doesn’t adhere to any timetable. We know now that grief is not only a feeling, but it also manifests in body, mind, and spirit, and in our relationships with self, others, and Divine Presence. Living with grief can feel like trudging through mud, every day unrelenting and sapping our energy and jealously claiming our attention. We can feel hopeless and exhausted, short on sleep and long on weeping. Grief is both individual and collective, and when the larger community suffers, individual grief can be awakened or aggravated.

The Nurturing the Grieving Heart Soul Support Group will be a safe place to explore our grief experience and its potential for spiritual transformation. This group is experiential with guided meditations, prayer, short readings, and opportunities to share our experience, strength, and hope, within a supportive environment. Those with all kinds of grief experiences are welcome.

This group will meet for eight weeks on FRIDAY afternoons from 4 to 5:30 pm starting January 5, 2024. It will be co-facilitated by the Rev. Delle McCormick, and Aileen Loranger. Your sharing will be confidential, and materials will be provided. Please call the Church Office at 520-327-6857 to preregister. If you have attended before, please come again. This will be offered on Zoom. And if you feel intimidated by, or unfamiliar with the technology, Delle or Aileen can help you navigate that, so you can join us.

Monday, November 27th, at 4:00 in McBride Hall the snack packers will be at it again. We fill bags for 600 migrating immigrants’ onward journeys. This is only a fraction of the bags necessary for the thousands of families who pass through Casa Alitas, but to those hungry people our bags make a difference. JOIN US.

Christmas cards for migrants detained in Eloy, AZ— The Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project tries to hand out a personalized individual card to each of the several thousand incarcerated migrants in Eloy. It’s time to bring in your extra holiday cards to the GSP office. During an upcoming Sunday we will sign the cards and write hopeful messages!

Grace St. Paul’s has an Instagram and a Facebook page relating to all things children and youth in the church! The Instagram page is called “gspkidsandyouth” and the Facebook page is called “Grace Saint Paul’s Youth and Children”

Tucson migrant activists are helping two families who came to the US legally through the new Biden Administration program. We know them through their remarkable embroidered mantas that were the highlight of the exhibit last year.

A trailer opened up this week and the family has decided to move in this weekend. They need home donations: All kitchen supplies: Pots, pans, plates etc. Couch Chairs Microwave Towels Sheets Blankets.

Please contact Margie King at 310-903-0280 or bring your donations to the GSP office. Many thanks!

In his newest Virtual Adult Education presentation, Dr. Chuck Dickson moves from Hell to Heaven, sharing numerous historical perspectives on the blissful afterlife. Enjoy it and all the other presentations available on the GSP website (https://bit.ly/vaegsp).

About one year ago, Father Steve requested some Parish-provided meals for Allison Latham-Jones. Two small CorningWare casserole dishes have recently been returned to the office. If you are the owner of these two casserole dishes, please visit the office to pick those up. Thank you for your generosity!

Centering Prayer group meets every Friday at 12:30pm in the Bloom Room!

URGENT: HELP US RESPOND QUICKLY

On the morning of October 7, Hamas militants launched a coordinated attack on Israel; Israel declared war in response. The citizen death toll in both Israel and Gaza is catastrophic. Thousands have been injured and displaced. Alongside local partners, we’re stepping in with emergency support for people affected by this war. Make an urgent tax-deductible donation to Episcopal Relief & Development’s Middle East Fund today.

Since the start of the current Israel-Hamas war, Episcopal Relief &

Development has been supporting long-time partners in the Holy Land including Al Ahli Hospital, a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, to provide emergency medical support in Gaza. Despite being hit by two explosions that damaged buildings and claimed hundreds of lives, the hospital is still serving those who are in need of care. Episcopal Relief & Development stands with the brave staff of Al Ahli Hospital as they risk their lives to help others.

Please pray for peace in the Holy Land and consider making a contribution to the Episcopal Relief & Development Middle East Fund to help meet the growing needs of all people in the region.

Stay informed about the Episcopal Relief & Development response at

episcopalrelief.org.

Scan this QR code to make a contribution: