"A good person produces good things from the good stored up in [the] heart..." (Luke 6:45, Phillips)
Sunday, June 12 is designated Practice the Tithe Sunday at St. John's. This annual event is an opportunity to accomplish several important goals in one single activity. First, it permits us as a community to provide a much needed "bump" in our giving. By carefully considering (and calculating) what we earn in a week and then giving 10% of that amount we contribute significantly to helping the church through the lean summer months. Second, this exercise permits all of us - especially those of us who are not currently tithing - to experience directly what it's like to routinely tithe. For at least one week a year, I can ponder the question, "Can I really make it on 90% of my income?"
On a deeper level, Practice the Tithe is essentially about stewardship. All too often stewardship gets relegated to a few weeks in the fall, an awkward campaign, and uncomfortable conversations about money. This year as we go through
this exercise I invite us to consider stewardship as something more than an appeal for money.
For instance, how does stewardship relate to our vision and mission as a church? What does stewardship have to do with being "a vibrant and dynamic Christ-centered community"? Am I being a good steward if I participate in calling "...people to wholeness..."? Does stewardship have something to do with "education, word, and action"?
Practice the Tithe permits each of us to personally bring forth a little bit of the good we have stored up in our hearts. And maybe ultimately that's what it means to practice stewardship. In gratitude for what we have been given, we give back out of the goodness overflowing in our lives and hearts.
One last thing --- This year we are starting a Stewardship Committee. This will be an opportunity for a group of dedicated individuals to explore the meaning of and to change the conversation about stewardship. If this sounds interesting to you, I invite you to join in the conversation by contacting me, Randall, directly.
- Randall Walker -
Barefoot Sunday Bring new or gently used shoes to the Altar this Sunday. We will bless them and send them on their way via Sole4Souls, an international relief effort to provide shoes for those in need. Some of our shoes will stay in the neighborhood. Some will end up in Haiti, or Japan, or Africa, or South America. Where there are barefeet in need of protection and cover, our shoes will go. "Then the King will say, 'I am telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me---you did it to me." Matt 25:44 
This Friday and Saturday is the ECW's Spring Rummage Sale 8:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. The women would appreciate those who are able to come at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday to help with the clean up. Any clothing and small items not sold will go into the Salvation Army Donation Bin that is now housed on Saint John's Parking Lot. The total clean up should be done by 3:00 p.m. Thank you, thank you to any and all who can come give an hour here or there to make this a successful outreach project.
Children's Program will be Power Lab: Discovering Jesus' Miraculous Power! And will feature crafts, science experiments, songs and Bible stories that explore the miracle of life and creation and the power to make a difference in God's world. Preschool-Sixth Grade will be lead by the Youth Group through various activities and explorations. We will once again host the Spirit Journey Youth from Arizona under the leadership of the blessed Kaze Gadway. We start with dinner at 5:00 p.m. and end with Evening Prayer at 8:00 p.m. A great time for the children of Saint John's to invite friends, for grandparents and godparents to spend the week with their precious grand/god children and for neighbors and friends to experience the riches of religious community.