CANCELLED!

SATURDAY'S CLEANING AT ST. PAUL'S SCHOOL
December 5th

SECOND SUNDAY
of ADVENT
December 5, 2020

Giuliano Vangi, John the Baptist (Florence, Italy: City of Florence, 20th century), bronze.
Photograph by Laura Funk.
COLLECT
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The readings may be found here.

Rector's Report
Greetings to the saints at St. Paul’s,

Happy Advent! This Sunday, the Second Sunday of Advent, highlights the ministry of John the Baptist, who prepared the way for the Messiah. We’re continuing our in-person church at 10:30 (as well as live stream online and TV broadcast) to guide the faithful through a holy Advent, and into the joy of Christmas. This year our Christmas services will be in-person for both services (7:00 pm and 11:00 pm). We’ll broadcast the 7:00 pm service as a live stream.

It was great to see the people who turned out for our Vestry sponsored Thursday night Advent program. We’ll have two more Thursday night sessions of “Jesus among other gods: the absolute claims of the Christian message” by Ravi Zacharias. It will follow the same format as previous years: dinner at 6:00 with the program and small group discussion from 6:30-7:30. This will be in-person only, with the standard COVID-19 protocols that we’re accustomed to following.

I found out recently that as of January 1, 2020 all service-connected disabled Veterans, Purple Heart recipients, former prisoners of war (POW), and individuals designated as the primary family caregivers of eligible Veterans under the VAs Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) can present their Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC) to gain entry to DoD and Coast Guard installations and some commissary stores; and at point of sale at commissaries, exchanges (AAFES, NEXCOM, MCX and CGX) and MWR retail activities to complete their transactions. Veteran Online Exchange Access: All honorably discharged veterans, including Reserves, are eligible to register online and shop at the online exchanges. For more information go to: https://militarybenefits.info/expanded-exchange-privileges/

A Morsel for Meditation
It is amusing to see souls who, while they are at prayer, fancy they are willing to be despised and publicly insulted for the love of God, yet afterwards do all they can to hide their small defects. If anyone unjustly accuses them of a fault, God deliver us from their outcries! Prayer does not consist of such fancies. No, our Lord expects works from us. Beg our Lord to grant you perfect love for your neighbor. If someone else is well spoken of, be more pleased than if it were yourself; this is easy enough, for if you were really humble, it would vex you to be praised.
Teresa of Ávila, The Interior Castle
Happenings This Week
Additional Advent Activities
Join Us at St. Paul’s Zoom Meeting:
https://zoom.us/j/9037772020. Our Meeting ID is: 903 777 2020.
To call in, use one tap mobile: +13462487799,,9037772020#
or to dial: +1 346 248 7799. 
Giving
Stewardship Today
Jennifer Faunce

From Paul in his first letter to the church at Corinth: “For we are God’s fellow workers… “ (1. Cor. 3:9). Elsewhere, Paul mentions that we are “working together with him… “ (2 Cor. 6:1). God is at work in your life and around the world, and you have the privilege of participating in his work. Stewardship is the time to think about what you can give back with thanksgiving; the many blessings God has given you.

You can make your checks payable to "St. Paul's Episcopal Church" and mail them to:

St. Paul's Episcopal Church
8320 Jack Finney Blvd. 
Greenville, TX 75402
You can also make your donations at http://stpaulstx.org/giving/ to make a donation using your credit or debit card via PayPal or Tithe.ly.
Pray for the Church, the Body of Christ
Please pray for those on our prayer list this week:
Hospitalized, Rehab, or Recovering at Home:
Bill Rolston, Ken Gunter

Please Pray for those on
our prayer list this week:
Rita Woods, Ken Gunter,
Bill Rolston, Dana Medford,
Marcy Walsh, Paula Reeves,
Judy Shaddox, Mike Lavigne,
Dolores & Father Gordon,

Contact our church office to
add a name to our prayer list: 903-455-5030. Names remain
for one month unless
renewed or canceled.
We also pray for our Daughters of the King Ministry as they bring their strength and service together by praying for friends and for the people.

You may also add people to the list by filling out a DOK confidential prayer card and putting them in the blue box located in the Narthex.
PRAYER REQUESTS & BOX

The Daughters of the King support your prayer needs and wishes. Each Sunday a prayer team will be available to pray with you after the Worship Service in the choir area after the 10:30 service. If you would like additional information, please see a DOK member.

They also have a intercessory prayer box on the table in the Narthex to deposit prayer requests. Prayer request cards may be found in the pews and beside the box in the Narthex. Daughters pray daily. All prayers are confidential. Each person is prayed for one month. If you wish for continued prayers, please complete another request card or contact a Daughter.

You may call the church office (903-455-5030) and specify it is for the DOK intercessory prayer list. You can hand the card to a Daughter (she is always wearing her cross).
Streaming:
Since we’re doing so much online our Google, YouTube, Facebook reviews are particularly important. Please take the time to give us a 5-star review! : https://g.page/r/CfEFxlXVrQvbEAg/review

  • Our Sunday services are available live at 10:25 am (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCmlrRFxbQF7CSAnFS8H9FA) and Facebook (https://facebook.com/stpaulsepiscopalgreenville). Our recorded Sunday service is broadcast on the GEUS community Channel (Channel 34) on Wednesdays at 8 am and 6 pm. Previously recorded services may be accessed anytime on our Facebook and YouTube pages. The recorded sermons may be found on our website as MP3s.
  • Remote Eucharist continues, and a few parishioners are helping me to distribute the Eucharist to parishioners’ homes on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Please let me know by email if you’d like to receive the Holy Sacrament remotely. The best way to contact me is fathernickfunk@gmail.com.
  • The Parish office remains closed; however we continue to check voicemails and emails regularly.
  • The St. Paul’s Zoom Meeting may be found at https://zoom.us/j/9037772020. Our Meeting ID is: 903 777 2020. To call in, use one tap mobile: +13462487799,,9037772020# or to dial: +1 346 248 7799.
  • Morning Prayer on Wednesdays at 10:30 via a Zoom meeting, and upload it live if Zoom and Facebook work together (about 75% success rate).


Masks worn by all at worship. Please bring your own!
 
Only one entrance. Sanitizers
will be located there.
 
Worshippers/households
separated by 6 feet.

No tactile passing of the Peace
Indoor services will not have congregational singing.
 
Collection plate placed at
entrance to the Nave
 
Bread only communion distributed within Diocesan protocols.
 
Join us for coffee hour
Explore the Diocese
GOD JUST IS MUSIC

In the divine alphabet, M is for Music. Music is one of those things where the noun and the verb are united. (click to continue reading)
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