Faithful Witnesses – St. Nick’s News Nov. 22, 2024

Full St. Nick’s News for November 22, 2024

Dear Friends,

Earlier today, I checked in on our 5K4JESUS initiative. If you are unaware or new to our community, you can learn about it here. The concise version is this – we have been tracking our hours of giving to our church and community, as a way to be intentional in living out our faith and loving our neighbors as Jesus commands. I was completely humbled and in awe as I looked at the number of hours shared in love with our community. Our community of faith has logged 2,570 hours given to our community.

Wow! Wow! Wow!

I couldn’t help but think about how fitting it is for a church named after a generous and compassionate saint to have made such an impact in people’s lives. Saint Nicholas is well known as the Patron saint of children. He is also saint to sailors, merchants, archers, repentant thieves, brewers, pawnbrokers, unmarried people, and students. Saint Nicholas is a Patron saint to many, many ordinary people…

Nicholas was born during the third century in the village of Patara in Asia Minor. At the time the area was Greek and is now on the southern coast of Turkey. When Nicholas was young, his parents, who raised him to be a devout Christian, died in an epidemic. Nicholas took the call to discipleship seriously, and obeying Jesus’ words to “sell what you own and give the money to the poor,” he used his inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, and the suffering. He dedicated his life to serving God and was made Bishop of Myra when he was a young man. Bishop Nicholas became known throughout the land for his philanthropy and generosity to any in need.

Thank you for helping and serving those in our community, at our church, and in your life who are in need. Through your acts of love and service, you are sharing your love of Jesus. You are also, by your faithfulness, helping to form us – the church of St. Nicholas – into loving and generous people of faith. We are building a life together where we help one another and love one another and the world around us. And life is not perfect for any of us… yet still we give with generous and thankful hearts.

You are an inspiration.
You are an inspiration just as Saint Nicholas was an inspiration.

Saint Nicholas was and continues to be an inspiration to many. His generosity has been so inspirational that even to this day his anonymous gift giving is still celebrated and emulated. I love that we are living into his faithful witness and living into Jesus’ call to love and serve our neighbors.

Thank you.
Thank you for your faithful witness.
Thank you for your love of one another and love of your neighbors.

I want to invite you to come to church on Sunday to see our Marathon 5k4JESUS runner make it’s way through the mile markers. I want to invite you to come to church on Sunday to celebrate the last day in the season after Pentecost – Christ the King Sunday. We will have a baptism workshop after the 9:30am worship and you can come and decorate your tree after church too. I will also see some of you on Saturday at the Confirmation Workshop that begins at 9am. We have a full, joyous, and generous life together! Thank God, thank Jesus, thank Saint Nicholas, and thank you!

God’s Peace, Love, and Blessings,
Beth+