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Rector's Message: Saturday, January 8, 2022
Sunday, 09 January
The First Sunday After the Feast of the Epiphany
A Scripture Verse for the Week:
A Message from the Rector
IN-PERSON CHURCH SERVICES “PAUSED” FOR MONTH OF JANUARY
Due to the latest surge in COVID infections and hospitalizations, in consultation with the diocese and Parish Warden, I have made the difficult decision to cancel Church of the Messiah’s Sunday morning in-person worship services for the month of January. This decision is not made quickly or lightly, but out of an abundance of caution, especially considering our older parishioners and children.
Weekly services will still be recorded and made available on the church website.
Bulletins for participating in the service and each week’s sermon will also be found on the website.
Click Here to Visit the Website.
In the meantime, get vaccinated and boosted, stay safe and healthy, and pray for all those adversely affected by this ongoing pandemic. Blessings!
O God, our times are in your hands: Look with favor, we pray, on these your servants as they begin another year. Grant that they may grow in wisdom and grace, and strengthen their trust in your goodness all the days of their life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
rd. Amen.
Ann Cook
Hannah Albrecht
Audrey Kriebel
Eileen Patram
Carol Bove
Shirley Powell-Cohen
Jay Butt
Fran Bruno
Deb Casey
Laura Biehl
Matt Boldt
Beverly Case
Jeanne Ludlow-Bergin
Ryleigh Lily
Drew Hautzinger
VISIT THE WEBSITE: Here you can find a video of the Sunday service as well as the bulletin and the sermon. https://www.messiahgwynedd.org/
VIEW THE CALENDAR
OFFICE HOURS
Monday through Friday 9:30 to 2:30
IN CASE OF A PASTORAL EMERGENCY AFTER HOURS
Should you have an urgent need to contact the Rector outside of Church Office hours, please use his cell phone: 215-692-2667.
Dine and Donate
Monday, January 31st
4:00pm-9:00pm
Harvest Seasonal Grill
1460 Bethlehem Pike, North Wales, PA 19454
RECTOR'S BIBLE STUDY
GENESIS – PART II
After taking a break for the month of December, the second half of the GENESIS Bible Study will resume on Wednesday, January 12th. We will meet each Wednesday evening via Zoom at 7:00pm for six weeks (1/12-2/16), covering the events of Noah and the Great Flood through the Tower of Babel. If you would like to join us, please contact the Rector to receive the weekly readings and Zoom invitations.
Life Line Screenings
Register now to get your Life Line screening at Messiah on Friday, January 14. Life Line screenings provide early detection for risks of stroke or cardiovascular disease. You can call toll free: 888-814-0416 or visit http://llsa.social/HSC to register for an appointment.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE TREES ALONG THE DRIVEWAY?
Driving between the church and Parish House, you may have noticed that the trees that used to line the windows outside the Guild Room have been reduced to stumps. What happened? And why?
Unfortunately, the trees had to be removed to protect and preserve the integrity of the Parish House building. This summer, the Guild Room windows sills had to be replaced due to severe wood rot. In the course of that project, it was found that the stucco on the exterior wall all along the Guild Room was loosening and molding. Further investigation uncovered the fact that during rainstorms, once the building became wet, the trees prevented the wall from receiving adequate sunlight and airflow to thoroughly dry. The result was damage to the wall, the stucco, the windows and sills. It was thus advised that the trees be removed, a task accomplished last week.
The stumps have been left to weather through the winter months, making it easier to pull them out in the spring. At that time, a new landscaping plan will be installed along the length of the driveway, both preserving the Parish House building and beautifying the grounds of our lovely campus. And as a bonus, the light into the Guild Room through the large windows has been dramatically increased.
Online Rummage Sale
Do you have items in your home that you no longer need or want? If so, please consider donating them to Messiah. We will post them online on Facebook marketplace and will arrange for the sale. All proceeds will go towards achieving our annual fundraising goal. Items that tend to sell online are furniture, clothing lots, shoes, accessories, books, seasonal products, home goods, sports and fitness equipment, electronic appliances, etc. If you have any of these items that you wish to donate, reach out to Jennifer Marsh at jhmarsh21@gmail.com with a detailed description of your item as well as photographs of the item from different angles. Jennifer will post the item on Facebook and will communicate with interested buyers to arrange for a sale at the best price. Once a sale is made we will coordinate with you to bring the item to the parish hall (either Jennifer will pick it up from your location or you may drop it off). If an item is too big (like a large piece of furniture) Jennifer will meet with the buyer at your location at a time that is convenient for you. The buyer is fully responsible for lifting and transporting large items from your location.
Thanks to the wonders of modern technology and the hard work of several parishioners, we are able to offer a variety of ways to participate in Sunday services:
IN-PERSON – In-Person Services are temporarily paused for the month of January due to the rising number of Covid cases
LIVE-STREAMED - the service will be broadcast on YouTube – follow the link posted on the church website (messiahgwynedd.org)
WEBSITE – at the close of the service, a video will be posted to the parish website (messiahgwynedd.org) for viewing at a time convenient for you
Ministry Opportunity:
We are in need of intercessors for our prayer chain ministry.
When someone has a need or concern, they can be placed on our prayer chain. That person is prayed for daily and the concern lifted before the Lord. If you want to join this crucial ministry, please contact Ciara Prezuhy at 215-353-1343 or cprezuhy@gmail.com.
Thank you!
SUPPORT FOR MANNA ON MAIN STREET
We Continue to Collect & Deliver Non-Perishable Items
As you do your weekly shopping, please pick up some non-perishable food items, toiletries and cleaning supplies. These donations can be left on the back pew of the church or left outside the Rector’s office door. These will then be delivered to Manna to stock their shelves for distribution to meet clients’ needs.
RECTOR'S BIBLE STUDY
GENESIS – PART II
After taking a break for the month of December, the second half of the GENESIS Bible Study will resume on Wednesday, January 12th. We will meet each Wednesday evening via Zoom at 7:00pm for six weeks (1/12-2/16), covering the events of Noah and the Great Flood through the Tower of Babel. If you would like to join us, please contact the Rector to receive the weekly readings and Zoom invitations.
Church School will be meeting virtually at 10:30 Sunday mornings for the month of January. A meeting link will be sent out on Saturday evening.
Due to the rising numer of Covid cases, YOM meetings and events are temporarily suspended for the month of January.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THIS YEAR'S CALENDAR OF MEETINGS AND EVENTS
NOTE: Barbara Stevenson continues to need recipes and craft ideas to pass along to the parish through the weekly email messages. You can send your submissions to Barbara at bebstevenson@yahoo.com.
Winter is here! We can all feel the chill in the air. When this weather arrives, I find myself looking for tasks that I can get done while cuddled in warm, soft and very comfortable clothes! I also look for meals I can prepare that are comforting. I have prepared these two that fit the bill!
Enjoy,
Barbara
Pot Roast
2 Tablespoons canola oil
Salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic salt (generous)
3 - 4 lb beef chuck roast
2 large onions, sliced
3 - 4 large carrots, peeled, chunked
4 cups beef broth
1 cup red wine
(For slurry)
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup cold water
Place oil in bottom of Dutch oven. Turn heat to medium-high. Season beef well with salt and pepper, onion salt and garlic salt to taste. Place roast in pan and let cook for 4 - 5 minutes or until the bottom is well browned. Carefully flip the roast over to the other side and brown that side well for another 4 - 5 minutes. Place sliced onions and carrots, beef broth and red wine in the pan with the roast. Cook at 275 degrees I oven for 2 - 3 hrs. Then increase heat to 325 degrees until roast reaches 200 degrees internal temperature and is fork tender. Cook to temperature, not time. When roast is done, remove from heat. Carefully remove roast and vegetables from pan and set aside, covered tightly. Strain out or spoon most of the grease from the drippings and then bring the rest of the drippings to a simmer. You need 3 cups of liquid, so you may need to add more broth. Mix together cold water and cornstarch. Whisk into the gravy mix and reduce heat to low on stove and stir until thickened. Serve with mashed potatoes or egg noodles. (8 servings)
Slow Cooker Pork Chops and Gravy
4 large, thick pork chops
1 10.5 ounce can cream of chicken soup
1 1 ounce packet onion dip mix
1 .87 ounce packet pork gravy mix
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 Tablespoons corn starch
2 Tablespoons water
Add the soup, onion mix, gravy mix, pepper and chicken broth to slow cooker and mix together. Add pork chops to slow cooker. Pour gravy mix over pork chops. Cover slow cooker and set on 8 hours. In 7 1/2 hours mix cornstarch and water. Add to slow cooker. Replace cover and cook for 30 minutes more. Remove lid and use fork to pull apart pork chops. Remove bones, discard. Add pork to mashed pittance cover with gravy.
(8 servings)
