We often refer to St. David’s as a ‘covenant community’. What is a covenant community? Covenants are found throughout the scripture, binding the people and God together with promises - ‘I will be your God, and you will be my people.’ Our covenants shape our identity and purpose even today - consider the covenants of marriage, baptism and confirmation.

At St. David’s, we take our commitments to one another, and to our community, seriously. We don’t just worship together on Sundays. We are one body in Christ. We support one another, and listen deeply to one another. We pray, weep and rejoice with each other. We know and are known by Christ and one another. Through our commitment to one another and our ‘covenant community’, we witness Christ’s love to the world.

Blessings,

Mary Kay+

Pray for those who suffer in body, mind or spirit: Colgate, Mary, John, Jeanne, Abby, Ken, Annie, Janet, Ginny, Jack and all those being prayed for by our prayer teams.

We pray for those who have died: Daniel, Jon, Richard, Pat, Gene, Jerry, David and Comfort; and those who have lost a loved one through death: the Bidwell family, the Hill family, the White family, the Heiny family, the Arnold family, the Samson family, the Nathan family, the Obaji family, the Luby family, the Catron family, the Johnson family, the Ogunti family, the Gibson family and the Mellish family.

We pray for our clergy, vestry, ministries, church staff, school staff, parents, and children.

Loving God, we pray for all those who are affected by the coronavirus pandemic. We pray for those who are ill and those who are anxious. We especially pray for all health care workers and first responders who are putting their lives on the line to care for us: Ed Puccio, Anne Brown, Kondeh Greaves, Kelly Hayes, Sarah, Haley, David, Dave, Ted W., Jackie Hindi, Mark Mangilit, Crystal Garnett, Latonya Daniels, Monica Preval, Michelle Rowe, Robert Gore, Marie Normil, Mashawn Parker, Hantz Joseph, Rhonda Grant, Lupe Guerrero-Nabavi, Janice Chapman Smith, Arlene Blackett-James, Tinea Savage, Annette Crossan, Paula Williams, Nicole Mansfield, Matt Blair, Jason Shelton, Susan Norman. Keep them in your loving embrace. Keep them safe and strong. Be our strong rock, oh Lord, our shelter in the storm, our firm foundation. Draw us closer to one another and to you. Help us to trust your promises and live as people of hope.

We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Prayer is powerful. The St. David's Prayer Tree consists of teams of parishioners committed to a ministry of prayer. This has always been a ministry from home via email requests and communications, where teams pray for specific requests and individuals. If you are called to sharing the power of prayer and leading this team please contact mcarey@sdlife.org.

The Alleluia Ministry served 52 families this week. Thank you for your continued financial, food and diaper donations. This week fresh produce, especially onions, is needed along with 1 to 3 pound bags of beans and diapers size 3, 5, and 6 along with wipes. Your continued concern and thoughtfulness for our neighbors in need is very much appreciated. If LCPS is closed, drop off and packing are cancelled for that day. Attached is the sign-up genius to volunteer on Mondays if you are interested, https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0548a9a822a1fa7-alleluia.

Join us on Sundays after worship: 11:00 - 11:30 on Zoom, Feb. 21 through March 21 for a new 30 Good Minutes series exploring sacred covenants. We at St. David’s call ourselves a ‘covenant community’. What is a covenant? How were covenants important in scripture, and how are they important to us today? What binds us together in ‘covenant community’ even through this pandemic which has disrupted our usual ways of ‘doing church’?  This five week series will explore Old and New Testament covenants from Noah to Moses and the new covenant Jesus brings, as well as those we make to God and one another at St. David’s.

At Sunday’s service you heard about the Becoming Beloved Community (BBC) program which starts on March 4th. St. David’s BBC is our own expression of the national BBC initiative of the Episcopal Church, designed to guide Episcopalians in addressing racial injustice and grow as a community of reconcilers, justice-makers, and healers. Want to learn even more about Becoming Beloved Community before signing up?  On Saturday, February 27th, The Racial Reconciliation Committee of the St. David Men’s Fellowship has arranged an informative special event. BBC instructors and alumni from the program will answer your questions and help you to understand what BBC is all about and why you should attend.

This event will take place on Zoom, and all Parishioners are invited and encouraged to attend. Click on the link below to join the meeting:

For additional information, please send an e-mail to Mike Gibson or the Fellowship Leadership Team.

Please join our seminarian. Trish Taylor. for an upcoming Book Study!

Have you ever wondered which one is the easiest with whom to identify and relate?’ There is a , Peter is that disciple for me. Peter is the one who surprises us with some of the strangest statements in the Bible and then some of the most profound statements. He is courageous and a coward. I have learned so much about myself from Peter. Together let us explore Peter the disciple of Jesus. The story is called, Simon Peter Flawed but Faithful Disciple, written by Adam Hamilton.

We will gather on ZOOM on Wednesday evenings form 7-8 pm beginning 3/24. All those interested please send me an email at Seminarian@sdlife.org. Available on Amazon, Cokesbury Books and probably from your favorite book store. ISBN -13; 978-1-5018-4598-7

We are looking for leadership and a team to develop and lead VBS this summer, following the pandemic guidelines that in place at that time. We look forward to being creative , sharing the love of Jesus and engaging in outreach. Contact mcarey@sdlife.org

Lent, a time to take stock, examine our lives, pray, fast, share, make amends. Perhaps it’s a time for those of us who struggle with the shame, anger, grief, isolation and other effects of substance use disorder, our own or that of a family member, to resolve to seek help. We suffer silently, reluctant to ask for help, not knowing where to turn, feeling responsible for our loved one’s problems, especially if you’re a mom and it’s your son or daughter you worry most about. You live with the fear, the stigma, the embarrassment, the internalized blame.

Substance use disorder is not a moral failing; it’s a medical disease that occurs in lots of families regardless of their circumstances but it can be treated. Don’t let the stigma get in the way of finding competent help. Reach out to you doctor, to Loudoun County Substance Abuse Services (703-771-5155), to the Kellar Center of INOVA Hospital (571-665-6710) or get to an AA or NA meeting. Help is here; treatment is available; knowledgeable people are ready to help you. There is no need to suffer in silence and shame and isolation.  Lent can be a starting point for hope and healing for you and your family.

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