Collect
2 Advent
Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Next Sunday  

  3rd Advent

 

Zephaniah 3:14-20
Canticle 9
Philippians 4:4-7
Luke 3:7-18

 

     

 

Upcoming Events

   
Wednesday, December 12 Taize Service 6:30 pm in the Chapel

Sunday, December 16 
Pageant narrators' rehearsal - Church
Silent Nativity rehearsal - Church
Children's Choir rehearsal - Choir Rm

Wednesday, December 19 
Taize Service 6:30 pm in the Chapel

Saturday, December 22 - 
10:00 am
Pageant Dress Rehearsal - Church
Childrens Choir Rehearsal - Church

Sunday, December 23 
Greening of the Church and Chapel
after the 10:30 am service

Monday, December 24 
Christmas Eve Family Service with Pageant and Childrens Choir 5:00 pm in the Church

Feast of the Holy Nativity - with carols and incense in the Church
10:30 pm Musical Medley
11:00 pm Midnight Mass

Tuesday, December 25 
Christmas Day Feast of the Holy Nativity - Holy Eucharist, Rite 1 in the Chapel at 9:30 am  
DIOCESAN NEWS
   
 

Regularly Scheduled

Worship Services

 & Programs 
 
Weekdays

Monday thru Friday

Food Bank
open
10:00 am - noon

Wednesdays 
Tabitha's Treasures
10:30 am
in Roberta's Hall
Prayer Shawl Ministry

Noonday Prayer
at noon in Roberta's Hall on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Wednesdays of the month
Holy Eucharist
at noon in Roberta's Hall on the 1st Wednesdays

Thursdays
Choir Practice 7:00 pm in the Choir Room 
      
Weekends

Saturdays

Holy Eucharist 

5:00 p.m.

(Chapel)

 

Sundays

Holy Eucharist  

8:00 a.m.

(Chapel)

 

Breakfast 

9:00 a.m.

(Parish Hall)

 

Christian Formation  

9:30 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.

Adult program
in Roberta's Hall

 

Holy Eucharist 

10:30 a.m.

(Church)

  

Order of St Luke
1st and 3rd Sundays at 12:00 noon in the Prayer Ministry Room

 

Junior Warden's Suggestion Box


 

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Church of the Good Shepherd

Revealing Christ's Love

331 Lake Avenue, Maitland, Florida, 32751
407-644-5350
          www.goodshepherdmaitland.com
 
"Put on the robe of righteousness that comes from God; put on your head the diadem of the glory everlasting."
Baruch 5:1,2
Dearly Beloved in Christ,

When I became a Christian thirty years ago I can remember thinking that I wasn't too sure about all this "sin" business that people were talking about.  I didn't think I was a bad person, actually I considered myself a pretty decent person.  I tried to do what I could for those who were less fortunate, I tried to be honest in my business dealings, I tried to treat everyone equally and well, I didn't steal, and I wasn't a violent person.  Of course I was comparing my character, my moral and ethical compass, to the culture around me.  With my plumbline as the culture around me I was a pretty decent person.

But I came to realize that I was not using the correct plumbline.  A plumbline is used in construction to ensure that the walls are true and straight.  If the plumbline is off the building will be crooked.  I was using an incorrect plumbline to assess my character, and I was off true center.  For the only true plumbline for moral and ethical character is God.  God alone is perfectly good, perfectly just, perfectly holy, perfectly merciful, and in comparison to this plumbline "all fall short." 

And that falling short is sin - pretty decent is not enough.  There is no way that we can pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps to come close to the perfect goodness of God.  And he knows that.  John the Baptist's father, Zechariah, also knew it, proclaiming that his son would reveal the way out of the dilemma "you will go before the Lord to prepare his way, to give people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins.  In the tender compassion of our God the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace."  Luke 1:76-79

Christ gives us his own righteousness.  We are given a robe of his righteousness, and a diadem of his glory. Righteousness and glory are gifts that are given in the tender compassion of our God, we quite simply have to receive them and put them on, the choice is ours.  This is the Christmas gift that the Christ child brings.

In the Peace, Grace, and Love of our Lord,
Rev'd Sarah+ 

 
 ADVENT TAIZE SERVICES
Taize Join us for these beautifully contemplative 30 minute services at 6:30 pm on Wednesday evenings in Advent (December 5, December 12, December 19) as we quiet our hearts in the peace-filled, candlelit Chapel in preparation for the celebration of the birth of the Prince of Peace.
 
CHRISTMAS FLOWERS
 Poinsettia If you would like to remember a loved one and contribute to the "greening/decorating" of the Church please either fill out one of the forms in the church or chapel narthex or call Terri in the Parish Office. Deadline, December 17.
 
CHILDREN'S PAGEANT & CHOIR REHEARSALS
Rehearsals will take place on Sundays after the 10:30 am service as follows:
Dec 9: Narrators (Church), Children's Choir (Choir Room)
Dec 16: Narrators, Silent Nativity participants, Children's Choir (Church)
DRESS REHEARSAL - ALL
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 22 at 10:00 am in the Church

Rennie Ashcraft and Dari van Hissenhoven are the Coordinators for this year's Pageant.
 
Nativity 
Christmas Eve (Monday, December 24)
5:00 pm Candlelight Family Service with Children's Pageant and Choir (Church)

10:30 pm Christmas Musical Prelude
11:00 pm Feast of the Holy Nativity - Candlelight Midnight Mass with Incense (Church)

Christmas Day (Tuesday, December 25)
9:30 am Feast of the Holy Nativity - Holy Eucharist, Rite 1
(Historic Chapel)
 
Our Gold and Silver Exchange netted $520 in fundraising income!  Thanks so much to all who participated!
 
Good Shepherd on TV - You can't pull the wool over our eyes!
Get the word out to any churches you know so that they are not taken in by this scam.  Reported on Channel 6 - see the video here
 
MAGNIFY THE LIVING LORD - VOLUME III

 

Magnify the Living Lord has now been published for two years. Both have been well received so we will be putting together another one this year. In fact, Rev. Sarah has heard from people who were disappointed when both volumes stopped appearing on the website.

 

The focus for Volume 3 will be on experiences that have increased, in other words, magnified your faith in the living Lord. Have you ever looked at something that was very hard to see with the naked eye and have been amazed at how it appears when magnified? Isn't it astounding how little things can appear when our eyes are better opened to them.

 

Would you please give some thought about something that may have happened in your life so that your eyes can see them better -- resulting in your faith becoming greater than it had been. Sharing our experiences with others may, in turn, open even more eyes to how the Lord helps each of us on our life's journey. It's wonderful how He can use "little things" in "big ways" to reach us.

 

In Volume 3 I will be telling how the Lord took my fondness for garage sales to reach out to me. How has He done it for you?

 

Please let me know in a short writing of no more than two, double-spaced pages. You may e-mail it to me HERE or hand it to me at church. If you don't care to write, I will be glad to write it for you. Call and tell me about it. (407-830-5258)

 

The deadline will be Feb. 1 (after the holidays) so you will have plenty of time to get it turned in to me.

 

I would, however, appreciate a call or an e-mail soon to let me know of your intent to participate. That will give me an idea of how many to expect.

 

Thank you.

Joy Sutton

 
Pledge cards and Pledge envelopes
Many thanks to those who have completed and handed in their pledge cards.  Pledge envelopes for those who have completed a pledge card are available in the chapel and church narthex.
Just a reminder that in order to be assigned a pledge envelope a pledge card needs to be completed each year so that the Parish Administrator can enter the required information into the parish database.
You can download a pledge card here: Pledge Card
 
 

prayer requestPARISHIONER PRAYER NEEDS 

Leo, Nell, Joyce, Mary Jo, Deacon Mary Ellen, Deacon Judith, Katiana and Family, The Edmund Family, Danny 

LONG TERM PARISHIONER PRAYER NEEDS

Walter, Rufus, Marion, Stan, Suzee, George, Brenda, Mary Jo, Elizabeth, Roy, Millie, Pete, Sue, Marnay, Abbei, Gloria, Althea, Trena, Terri, Sallie, Donna, Lillian, Keisha, Jeanie, Frances, Meg, Joan, Sandy, Ramona, Becky, Ron, Brian, Jakob, Gabe, Kaitlyn, Jim, and Irene 

FRIENDS AND FAMILY PRAYER NEEDS

Phyllis, Steve, Nicole, Debbie, Sharon, Jim, Jennifer, Dot, Skip, Irving and Family, Diane, Kristine, Leah, Michael, Lauretta, John, TJ, Jane, Dan, Horace, Brett, Jeffrey, Lacey, Clarissa, Jay    

LONG TERM FRIENDS AND FAMILY PRAYER NEEDS

John, Kathy, George, Melina, Billy, Lowell, Charla, Wendy, Shari, Richie, Sonia, Brian, Adam, Deborah, Jennean, Barbara, Daniel, Robert, Tasos, Jason, Kyle, Lew, Paul, Duncan, Alan, Debra, Eden  

MILITARY PERSONNEL AND THEIR FAMLIES

Kevin Waters, Geoffrey Noplis, Zachary Adam Copes, Christopher and Brigitt Kincaid, Justin Moye, Danny Graham, Ronnie Robison, Chuck Gitschlag, Rory Patrick Coleman, Dennis Glasgow, Duncan Hanton, William Underhill, and Taylor Lee

COLLEGE STUDENTS AND SEMINARIAN

Isaac John Copes, Michael and Ryan Guerdan, Lindsey Nicolle, Robert Borr, Matthew and Sarah Pierce, David Bumsted

THOSE CELEBRATING BIRTHDAYS   

Kenneth Edmund, Irene Burgess, Tina Guerdan

THOSE CELEBRATING ANNIVERSARIES   

SAFE TRAVEL

Rev'd Sarah, Betty and Betsy Campbell, Barbara Masters, Michael and Donna Passarella, Rev'd Lee and Janet Ecola. 

THANKSGIVINGS 

For Charla's successful surgery.  Continued prayers for her complete healing, and strength and peace during the ongoing therapy.

 

For the improvement in Leo's back pain.  Continued prayers for a complete healing.

 

 

Online Prayer Request Form