St. Andrew's Episcopal Church
Stewardship e-newsletter February 2019
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In deep gratitude for all you offer to our parish which allows us to live faithfully.
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This week I celebrated my 10th anniversary as a priest. I feel incredibly blessed that I have had the opportunity to first serve St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Port Washington, NY and now, for the past 7 years, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Shippensburg. I truly do not know how one person can be so blessed by God to be among such faithful people, dedicated and striving to learn about God, yearning for a deeper spirituality, open to the movement of the Spirit in their lives, and committed to living out their faith in their daily lives.
One of my greatest recent joys has been walking with the current vestry into an honest look at our financial reality and claiming a faithful path forward which will lead us toward financial stability, accountability, and transparency. This monthly stewardship e-newsletter will share with you our journey as well as highlight one of our faithful ministries that make a difference in our lives and in the world.
In Christ's love, Mother Barbara
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To view our Profit & Loss as of 2/14/19, please
click here.
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Finance and Stewardship Committee Structure Going Forward
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In order to be good stewards of your generous offerings, we are reinstating and reinvigorating our Finance Committee and our separate Stewardship Committee.
The broad purpose of the finance committee is
to lead the parish in being faithful stewards of the resources entrusted to us as we live into the mission of God here at St. Andrew’s
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The broad purpose of the Stewardship Committee is t
o engage parishioners in transformational theological education and activities about stewardship (one’s relationship with money as a pathway to their relationship with God).
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To read the Finance Committee Charter, please
click here.
To read the Stewardship Committee Charter, please
click here.
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We received a onetime gift from a parishioner of $5,000 for the purpose of balancing our budget in 2019.
We also received a onetime gift from a friend of our parish of approximately $22,000 to assist in balancing the budget this year and or subsequent years.
We are blessed beyond our imagination by the support of so many who are committed to God's mission here at St. Andrew's. Thank you everyone!
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You are totally awesome!
Can you imagine this pledge increase (35%) in ONE year?
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The total amount pledged for 2019 was $116, 590 representing a
35%
increase over 2018, a remarkable commitment of our members to give and help others through our ministries here at St. Andrew’s.
We received $32, 942.75 as non-pledged funds contributed by parishioners in 2018. Presuming this to remain constant our total contributions for 2019 will equal $149,532.75. Our plate offering is budgeted at $1800 annually.
To summarize, our total annual Sunday giving budgeted is
$151,332.75.
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Your vestry members embracing our financial reports & stewardship
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Each month the vestry will review the current financial statements and receive the Treasurer's Report.
Through the increased giving of our members and others who support the faithful ministry we engage in here at St. Andrew's, there is actually now a sense of hope and joy as we look forward to this year of ministry, without the worry of drawing into our savings for our operating expenses.
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Thank you to each one of you who is contributing financially to our ministry. You are making a huge difference to our budget bottom line and to our spirits!
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Jesus and the Hebrew Scripture writers teach us that money is a deeply spiritual issue of primary importance. We'll look at what the Bible says about money and how we can open that understanding up to everyone.
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Diocesan Stewardship Course - Changing the Congregation's Money Culture
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Here's a great course offered by our Diocese that will help us all understand how we can live into the graciousness and place of gratitude that giving back to God and into God's mission puts into our hearts.
If you would like to take this course, please let Mo. Barbara or Christina Luo know right away!
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The Episcopal Church defines stewardship as:
What I do, with all that I have, after I say, "I believe."
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We will offer this class again and again until all of you who are interested have been able to dedicate yourself to this life-changing experience.
If you would like some information about Financial Peace University, or about the upcoming class in August please reach out to Mike & Kelly Rhodes.
It's not just about balancing your own budget, but it's about having the money to give to those things that matter, like God and God's mission.
What could the people of God do for the Kingdom of God if they were debt-free?
-Dave Ramsey
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Financial Peace University Class- This changes everything!
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Mike Rhodes has been teaching a FPU class this winter and the results are amazing!
On January 11
th, 7 couples started a 9-week financial journey. Meeting weekly, they are going through the Financial Peace University course taught on video by Dave Ramsey. They are learning about the 7 baby steps of the FPU program.
The class members are working their budgets, giving every dollar a name. They are using the debt snowball method and paying off debt. We have had 21 plasectomies! That Dave Ramsey lingo for cutting up credit cards!! How great is that?
Please pray for the FPU class as they work to change their lives!
For the full update and description of what the class is covering, please
click here.
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Thank you to our Diocese of Central PA
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We applied for and were awarded a Diocesan Operating Grant in the amount of $10,000 so that we can balance our budget this year. We were told that we are the type of parish they like to award these grants to, since we asked with a plan in place, with our own giving increased, and while we still have funds and time to stabilize our resources- plus there's vitality and energy here that indicates the Spirit is alive and moving among us. Thanks be to our diocese and their generosity and commitment to our mission.!
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Our Ministry Highlight -
Music Ministry & Search Update
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Music, as an integral part of worship, carries the same function as worship – to engage people in the praise of God and to invite people into a deeper engagement with God. This happens as ritual, scripture, the sacrament, visual beauty (use of all senses), music, prayer, and community draw people into the holy, so their hearts can be transformed by the living presence of Christ, and then sent out into the world to make a difference and bear witness to the “new thing” they have become. ~
per Mother Barbara
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The Mission Statement of our Music Program, as created by our Musician Search Committee and concurred by our Vestry.
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St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church is a diverse and inclusive congregation that strives to feed and nourish the soul through a variety of musical experiences. Our mission is the loving support of our parish community, through prayerful collaboration and gentle encouragement, in order to glorify God and inspire the worshipper through our liturgy and community events.
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Our Search Committee for new Musical Director(s) and what they have to say.
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We are blessed by the following parishioners who are prayerfully dedicating their time, talent, and energy to the search process for our new musician(s).
The committee members are: Anne Herman, John Richardson, Milan Shepherd, Susan Tyler, Kathy Varner, Laurel White, and Mary Beth Williams.
"You can really feel the Holy Spirit moving among us. We are a large group, but so much on the same page! I love how we discuss and then easily come to a happy consensus." ~ John
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In our search committee meetings you can really tell the Spirit is moving. Each time we are working on a level, we each fill out post it notes with our ideas. Each time there is a common thread, a commonality of thought that just couldn’t be there otherwise."
~ Laurel
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We have allocated $500.00 to this search process in our 2019 budget, expecting there to be some costs associated with the interview stage.
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Everything the committee does from here on out will refer to: a) Mo. Barbara's vision and b) Music Summary Statement to achieve a successful match of our next church musician(s) to our goals for the music experiences at our parish.
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Search Process Update & Money Allocated
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The committee began meeting in mid-January. Here's some of the progress they have made in the past 5 weeks:
- Formed as a group, developed Committee Agreements, including norms, decision making methods, consensus forming process, and commitment to confidentiality.
- Began discernment stage of process, by establishing current state of music, including resources, such as instruments and music.
- Developed a Music Mission Statement and goals for the music in our church.
- Asked Mother Barbara to develop her vision for the music program.
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Offering our time, talents, and treasure to our Music Program
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Thank you to everyone who embodied what it means to be a part of the Body of Christ!
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So, the glory of our parish is that we come forward to offer ourselves in heart, mind, body, and soul with free and willing spirits for the glory of our worship, which is at the heart of all we are and do.
One of the finest moments in our recent parish life was when Lisa Turchi gathered a Christmas Eve Choir, members of all ages, who sang their hearts out in praise of Jesus' birth -- and who sounded AMAZING! The movement of the Holy Spirit was seen in the joy of those who sang and those who received their music with lifted hearts.
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Meet Brian Helman
Our Interim Musician
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We are deeply blessed by Brian’s presence and musical offerings to us during this interim time as we search for our next Musical and Choral Director(s).
Brian, conservatory-trained, teaches at Cumberland Valley School of Music and plays the piano professionally. We are grateful for his expertise and his soulful playing of our music.
Thank you, Brian, for your faithfulness and for the joy your playing brings us!
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How much does this all cost?
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In our 2019 Budget, we have allocated the following resources to support our music ministry, which supports our worship life
and touches your souls:
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Projected Sunday Musician Cost = $7,250
Projected Choir Director Cost (beginning in September) = $1,375
Special Services Choir Director (Easter, Pentecost) = $450
Youth Music Director (Instrumentalist) = $600
Cantor for Healing Services = $1100
Cantor for Special Services (baptisms, Pentecost) = $200
Instrumentalist and/or Vocalists = $400
Organ & Piano Maintenance = $200
Music License = $186
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Did you know that we have a Music Planning Team?
A small group gathers regularly to choose the hymns and musical offerings for Sunday services. We prayerfully read the scriptures, consult sources for recommendations of hymns, test out the pieces with some wonderful piano playing and spontaneous singing, and then make our choices of music that we hope will support and enhance our worship and touch our souls.
All the music we choose is from approved Episcopal Music Sources (1982 Hymnal, Lift Every Voice and Sing, and Wonder, Love & Praise).
We search for a balance of styles of music, favoring the traditional Anglican music mostly for the Processional and Closing hymns and then try to include one piece from LEVAS II or WLP for the Gradual or Communion Hymn for a different offering from our Episcopal tradition.
The group consists of Mother Barbara, John Richardson, Lisa Turchi, and Milan Shepherd.
We always welcome your input so we can tell how well we are matching the music to our people's spiritual needs.
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for who you are and all you offer as we grow together in faith.
Many blessings, Mother Barbara
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