SUNDAY SERVICE INFORMATION 



Our current worship schedule is as follows:

8:00 AM Rite I Holy Eucharist Service

10:30 AM Rite II Holy Eucharist Service. This service will also be live streamed. 

Live Stream links can be found on our CEC Facebook Page and our CEC YouTube Page.

If you receive an email and/or text message from Fr. Richard or the Christ Episcopal Staff requesting money or gift cards please DO NOT RESPOND, instead, contact Fr. Richard or the staff directly. Thank you.

Senior Shepherds January Gathering – You’re Invited!

All Senior Shepherds are warmly invited to our monthly covered dish luncheon on Wednesday, January 21st at 12:00 noon in the church library. We’ll kick off the new year with food, fellowship, and a stroll down memory lane! Please bring along a few treasured photo memories from your younger days—those adorable, funny, or oh-so-sweet pictures we all love to see. In the spirit of love and service, we’ll also spend time preparing special Valentine treat bags for our children and neighbors, sharing joy beyond our own gathering.

Come hungry, come ready to laugh, and come prepared for a fun and meaningful afternoon together. We look forward to seeing you there!

I would very much like this ministry to continue but I haven’t had much participation in the past 6 months. I know life gets busy and interests change. We might consider continuing this ministry virtually meaning you can complete your prayer shawls and cancer caps at home. The completed prayer shawls can be brought to church to be blessed and provided to those in need of comfort in our church community. The cancer caps will be donated when we have completed a larger supply. We also could plan to meet in person less, such as quarterly, if that works better. Our next monthly face-to-face meeting will be on Sunday, January 18 from 4:00 – 6:00 in the library. If you are interested in this ministry, please plan to attend or provide me your thoughts before our meeting. At present we have 8 completed prayer shawls and 3 cancer caps to donate to Dell Children’s. If you are currently working on shawls or caps, let me know. I hope to hear from you soon.

Mary Wybenga (303) 587-2373

CHRIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH ANNUAL MEETING AND CHILI COOK-OFF!

The annual meeting of Christ Episcopal Church will take place on Sunday, January 25th, at 9:00 am. The annual meeting will be in the midst of the single, combined service that day. During the annual meeting we will elect Vestry members, hear reports from the Treasurer, Sr. Warden, and Rector, and celebrate our accomplishments during 2025. Written ministry reports will be available and we look forward to the return of the Chili Cook-off and Golden Ladle. More details below.

The Annual Chili Cook-Off returns!

All are invited to cook up their best chili in search of the "Golden Ladle." Not interested in cooking chili? We'll have a potluck of sides and desserts as well. Sign-up sheets will be in the narthex for the next couple of weeks. The Chili Cook-Off will occur in the Family Life Center/Back Patio (weather permitting) following the Annual Meeting on Sunday, January 25th. (Remember, we have one service that day at 9:00 a.m. The Annual Meeting will be during the service.) We want all to come and enjoy some good food and fellowship as we celebrate the good things God has done and continues to do in our parish.

PROJECT LINUS

Volunteer Opportunity

Project Linus is a nationwide non-profit that creates and distributes handmade blankets to children in crisis, through hospitals and first responders. CEC is a meeting place for the Austin chapter of PL and we need a volunteer to serve as the CEC liaison with the group. Responsibilities include being the contact for the group and being present at the monthly meetings, to unlock and secure the building and to be available for any assistance needed during the meetings. Meetings take place on the fourth Sunday of January through October, from 10:00 a.m. to noon. If you are interested in becoming the Linus contact for CEC, please contact Mary Wybenga at ejayw@msn.com.

I have defrosted the freezer in the Outreach room. It is empty and ready to be refilled. There is a cupboard in the Outreach room where I placed all the containers you might need. There are containers for soups and chilis; aluminum and heavy cardboard containers for casseroles to go from freezer to oven; and plastic containers for fully cooked items to be heated in the microwave. All containers have lids. Please consider how you might contribute to this ministry. Homemade and store-bought items are both appreciated. Questions please contact Mary Wybenga at ejayw@msn.com.

Intercessors will be at the back of the church in the narthex to pray with anyone who would like special prayers during communion on Sundays. Often people will ask for prayers for healing for themselves or others, but any prayer request is welcomed. If you would like to pray with one of our prayer partners, you are encouraged to come forward for communion and then make your way to the narthex for additional prayers. If you have any questions about this ministry or are interested in becoming a prayer partner to pray with others, please contact Cindy Gravis or Fr. Richard.

If you would like to learn about other ways to financially contribute to the life and work of our parish, please contact our Treasurer.

And Mary Said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior..."

Luke 1:46-47 NRSV

CEC VESTRY MEETINGS

The Vestry usually meets on the third Monday of each month, at 7:00 p.m. Any congregant can attend a Vestry meeting and observe. Only Vestry members have voice and vote. Vestry meetings do become "closed" when discussing personnel issues or staff salaries. Vestry meets via Zoom. If you wish to attend, please notify Fr. Richard, and he will send you the Zoom link.

CEC Finances – Available in the Library

Quarterly financial statements are available on the bulletin board in the library following the vestry meeting.

Discipleship Group - This group meets the first and third Sunday of the month at 6:00 pm in the library. It includes study of the Sunday service gospel readings and is open to anyone wishing to participate. Please contact Bill Sterling at silverbillwes@gmail.com for more information.

The Senior Shepherds is a Service/Social organization at CEC. Anyone over the age of 50 in the church is welcome. We meet on the 3rd Wednesday of every month at 11:45 am in the Library for a delicious Potluck meal and lively conversation. A short program normally follows the meal. We do various interesting and creative service projects for the church children and the local community; host exciting outside speakers; visit unusual local places and have occasional seminars for better living. Contact: Fr. Richard at rector@cectx.org for more information. 

The Prayer Shawl Ministry meets on the 3rd Sunday of every month from 4-6pm in the library. We knit, crochet and do various other needlework and sewing crafts to meet a known need in the community such as providing pretty and comfortable caps for cancer patients, providing crocheted and knitted prayer shawls for those in need of comfort in our church community. These items are made with prayer and much interesting conversation. They are blessed by Father Richard before being distributed. Learn to knit or crochet at our meetings. Teens are welcome. Contact Mary Wybenga.

The Tuesday Book Club will begin a new book in February. Stay tuned for the title and the date we will start.

The Tuesday Book Club is reading The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. They survived more than 50 years of exile and the soul-crushing violence of oppression. Despite their hardships or, as they would say, because of them, they are two of the most joyful people on the planet. Currently, we will be meeting from 10:30-12:00 in the Outreach Room. We have about 12 regulars that come and go as their schedules permit. All are welcome: men and women, younger and older adults, introverts and extroverts and everyone in between. We enjoy seeing new faces and hearing differing thoughts.

Questions, please contact Mary Wybenga at EJayW@msn.com or at 303-587-2373.

Choir Practice is held every Thursday at 2:30 PM in the sanctuary. Anyone who is interested in joining, or getting more information on our choir, is invited to attend a practice. Questions? Contact Dave Gravis.

Ministry to and with Infants/Toddlers and their Families.

We have three spaces available to minister to our youngest members and their families on Sunday mornings.



1. Our church nursery is open from 9:00 am to noon. The nursery is located in the Family Life Center. The nursery serves children through the age of 4 and is open every Sunday morning.
2. A “soft” play space is located in the back of the sanctuary where children will find a small selection of toys and parents will find rocking chairs.
3. A “cry room” is located above the sanctuary and accessed by the stairs in the narthex/lobby of the church. The cry room contains comfortable seats, toys, and a changing table.

Children who are attending the 10:30 service participate in the service with their parents until after the Collect (the Prayer of the Day). After the Collect, the officiant calls all the children to the altar. The Children’s minister will select one of the children to come forward to be the children’s crucifer, who will lead, and the others will follow the cross out of the church to the Family Life Center. Children return at approximately The Peace in time for the Communion Service. Lessons will focus on learning about either the Gospel or Epistle or one of the Prophets or Kings.

Volunteers assist with the crafts, songs, prayers, or playing Bible games. Once a month or quarter, the children will ‘perform’ a song, recite a prayer or Bible verse, or act out a Bible story for the congregation at the end of the announcements.

If you are one of the volunteers for this ministry, you will be asked to help once a month or once every other month on the same Sunday of the month so that it is easier to remember when your commitment is. Swapping is, of course, allowed. Please join us in our fun way of learning about our belief, our faith practices, and Bible stories that we all remember from our youth!

If you can volunteer, please contact Sarah Martinez.

During youth group meetings, Roots teens discuss Christian educational topics. Teens have input into the selection of topics. Teens also participate in Service Projects such as Trunk or Treat and the Easter Egg Hunt in Spring. Teens also vote on Social activities/outings. Events in the past have included visiting a hay maze, meeting at movie theaters, ice skating, touring Main Street Bethlehem, having parties, swimming, hiking, etc. Join us!

Contacts: Ruth Sobieralski and Fr. Richard

Let us know if you're having a birthday or anniversary this month so we can celebrate with you. Be sure to come to church and get your birthday or anniversary blessing!

Birthdays: Deborah Cartwright, Christina Knox, Lea Melvin, Lu McCann, Laura Lerma, Erwin Wybenga, Shawn Ballard, David Dellisi, Pam Thomas, Lauren Sandy, Cullen Senger, Tony Alvarez, Carl Jahnke, Maria Miller, Mackenzie Cartwright, Jerry Halstead, Bob McAdams, Allen Sandy, Jason Warner

Anniversaries: Ben and Beth Sterling, Jenny and Jason Warner

All third party events held at the church are listed here. For parents, if at the church campus while the event(s) is taking place, children should be supervised by a trusted individual, as Safeguarded personnel / volunteers will not be present.

Upcoming Third Party Events:

AA Meeting - Wednesdays at 6:30 PM in the Library, Stone Building

ROCK Enrichment Academy - Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM, FLC and Grounds; Tuesdays and Thursdays, 8:00-12:30 PM, Stone Building

PEACE Homeschool Village - Fridays, 8:00 AM - 4:30, PM, FLC and Grounds