Dear Church of the Apostles,

Pastor and author Eugene Peterson went home to be with the Lord on Monday. Christians will miss his faithful, non-anxious presence and joyful voice. 

I was reminded on Monday of this quote from Peterson’s book, A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, 

"I will not pretend to invent the meaning of the universe; I will accept what God has shown its meaning to be; I will not strut about demanding that I be treated as the center of my family or my neighborhood or my work, but seek to discover where I fit and do what I am good at. The soul, clamoring for attention and arrogantly parading its importance, is calmed and quieted so that it can be itself, truly."

This Sunday we will begin considering God’s idea of vocation and calling in the life of his people. 

Our vocation as Christians is to follow Christ in every area of our lives by living as he demonstrated and taught. This is what Peterson means by accepting the meaning of the universe as God has shown it. 

Our callings are the specific ways that God asks us to live out our vocations through our work, responsibilities, roles, and relationships. This is what Peterson means by seeking to “discover where I fit in and doing what I am good at.” 

The Sunday sermon will be about the biblical ideas of vocation and calling. At Family Table following the service (details here), we will have a relaxed conversation together in small groups about how God is calling us. 

I hope that you will join us for both. 

Peace and Hope,
Brian+

Dear Church of the Apostles,

A group of us at Apostles have been thinking and talking about calling and work for the past few months and have been praying and brainstorming how we can make this conversation an ordinary part of our life together as a parish. 

We have a lot more praying and brainstorming to do, but one thing is for certain. The conversation will be energized by sharing our work stories with one another. 

This week I would like you to hear the work story of Amy Willers, one of our friends at Apostles and our Children’s Ministry Director. Amy wrote a blog post as part of a series at A Sacramental Life. 

What is God calling me to do to serve Him?
“I don’t think we should ever stop asking that question, whether we are in a natural transition of life or not. So I try to consider His will for me for the future, even as my days are full of the various callings in which God has placed me now.” 

Read more from Amy here.

Plan to join us for our Family Table (see details on HOME page) on Sunday, October 28 where we will begin sharing our stories of calling and work together.  

Peace and Hope,
Brian+

Dear Church of the Apostles,

Church of the Apostles will be partnering with Bridges: Friends of Internationals to host the Friendship Dinner at the University of Bridgeport on Friday, November 2. 

Along with our Missions Team, I am so excited about this opportunity!

Did you know that in any given year 40-50% of the student body at UB is comprised of international students? Of those students well over half come from two of the hardest places on earth to reach with the Gospel - China and India. Friendship Dinners are a great way to show Gospel hospitality to these students who have left their homes and families to attend school right here in Fairfield County. 

We will be talking about this opportunity during the weeks leading up to the dinner, and will provide specific details for how we can all get involved. 

Here are a few ways you may begin to prepare.

• Watch this short video clip about Bridges.

• Attend a cross cultural ministry training hosted by the Bridges staff on October 19-20 at Calvary Church (498 White Plains Road, Trumbull). This will be attended by people from around southwest Connecticut and serves as a larger conversation about reaching out and welcoming in international friends.

• Join others from Apostles for a meet-and-greet information session with Bridges staff on Thursday, October 25. This is designed to give us information and details specific to the November Friendship Dinner.

• Participate in a prayer-walk around the UB campus on Saturday, October 27 from 10:30 - 11:30am. Park in the UB lot located on the corner of Lafayette St. and Atlantic Ave. (across from the soccer filed)

• Sign-up (coming soon) to join us for the Friendship Dinner on Friday, November 2.

We are not ready to begin signing-up just yet, but if you have any questions about the above activities, please ask Fran Snow (fransnow@gmail.com). 

Peace and Hope,
Brian+

PS Please plan to join us for a Concert of Prayer on Thursday, October 18 (details here) as we gather to seek God and ask for favor in our search for a permanent place for Church of the Apostles. 

Dear Church of the Apostles,

We are pleased to announce that Bishop Breedlove was able to reschedule his visit to Church of the Apostles for this weekend. He will be preaching at our 10:00 worship service this Sunday, September 30. 

Plan on joining us Sunday to hear Bishop Steve bring an encouraging word and news from around the Diocese of Christ Our Hope.

Also, this Sunday is the start of our two Fall service projects. For the next several Sundays we will be collecting pairs of new socks (all sizes) for the local homeless community, as well as gathering canned and non-perishable food items for Bridgeport Rescue Mission's Thanksgiving Dinner. Please join us in these efforts by generously giving to those in need. For more information on either project, please contact the church office.

We continue to pray for all those communities affected by Hurricane Florence. If you are looking for a way to give to those in need, please visit the Diocesan website: https://www.adhope.org/single-post/2018/09/24/Hurricane-Florence-Disaster-Relief.

Blessings,
Jan+

Dear Church of the Apostles,

Our Bishop visit for this weekend has been cancelled.

As you may be following, Hurricane Florence is making her way toward the Carolinas. Bishop Steve and Sally Breedlove live in the Raleigh Durham area of North Carolina; therefore, they need to remain home both due to travel delays and the need to take care of their home.

Please be in prayer for everyone who lives in this area of the country, for emergency first responders, and for government officials to be safe and act with wisdom and hospitality towards one another.

We will still have our Family Table following church on Sunday. I can’t wait! See the HOMEpage for what to bring and please plan to join us.

The 4th-6th graders will be staying in the auditorium for the entire service. Activity sheets will be provided. All other children will be dismissed for Sunday School as planned.

Speaking of Children’s ministry; we are still in need of a teacher and a couple of helpers for the upcoming school year. Contact Amy Willers (awillers@apostlesct.org) if you can help us out.

Although I am disappointed that we will not see Bishop Steve and Sally this weekend, I look forward to coming together in Eucharistic Worship and fellowship as we celebrate all that God is and has done for us.

Peace and Hope,
Brian+

Dear Church of the Apostles,

Bishop Steve will be with us on Sunday, September 16. He will be preaching and celebrating confirmations in the morning service and will join us for our family table following. Our times with Bishop Steve are always meaningful. I hope you can join us.

Recently, Bishop Steve was interviewed on why engaging our neighbors with questions is important. He says, “One of the biggest questions people are asking us is, ‘How do I get free of myself?’ They want to know how to keep from defaulting to it being ‘all about me.’ People want to know how to address the dark side, the fears within them.

It’s a great interview and helps us continue thinking about the radically ordinary hospitality that Paul envisions in 1 Corinthians. 

Read the entire interview here.

As you’re thinking about engaging your neighbors, reach out to someone and invite them to join us at the Bonfire on the Beach coming up in a few weeks. The details are below.

Peace,
Brian+

Dear Church of the Apostles,

A couple of weeks ago Apostles Reads discussed a book by Amy Sherman entitled Kingdom Calling; Vocational Stewardship for the Common Good. It would be hard to sum up the book in a few sentences; however, this excerpt is a good start.

God the Father continues his creative, sustaining and redeeming work through our human labor. This gives our work great dignity and purpose. Vocational stewardship starts with celebrating the work itself and recognizing that God cares about it and is accomplishing his purposes through it.

How may this view of labor give new hope, energy, and purpose to your job?

In preparation for our upcoming collective pause from work, we will be celebrating our labor this Sunday during Prayers of the People by recognizing each one in their efforts at home and in the workplace. 

I’m looking forward to it! See you there.

Peace,
Brian+

Dear Church of the Apostles,

It has been a full summer for Church of the Apostles. Many of us have been away. Some have had guests come to visit. For the staff, it has been a season of rest and refreshment as well as dreaming and planning. In these last few weeks of summer, we have plans to spend time together as a church family. It is time to gather as a community for worship, fellowship, food, and fun. 

• Compline – our monthly prayer service is tomorrow, 7:15pm. Come pray with us.

• Annual Church Picnic - immediately following our worship service this Sunday, August 26. Dress casually for church and meet us at Owen Fish Park, 1443 Stratfield Rd, Fairfield for the afternoon.

• Mr. Barker Visits Sunday School – all grades will be released from the service this Sunday. Audrey & David’s grandfather will tell us about his recent trip to Rwanda.

• A Special Art Lesson - Adiel Dominguez will lead our children in a special art lesson on Sunday, September 2!

• Youth Group – every other Saturday night at the church office.

• Bishop Breedlove’s Annual Visit – plan to be at church early to spend time with the Bishop before the service on Sunday, September 16. More details to come.

• Bonfire on the Beach – Friday, September 21. Save the date!

Look for the details for each event on our Home page. 

Plan on attending, expect to be blessed, encourage others to join in. May the Lord be lifted up and glorified as His people gather in His Name!

Blessings,
Jan+

Dear Church of the Apostles,

Tamara and I would like to extend an invitation to the mothers with adult children in our congregation to join us for 6 Wednesday evenings of prayer and listening this fall. 

Transitional seasons of life are often a mixed bag of celebration and disorientation; both tend to open us to opportunities for both reflection and growth. One transitional life stage represented broadly at Church of the Apostles is the season of releasing children into adulthood, sometimes known as the season of "empty nest".

How might we be able to encourage each other in this season of motherhood if we listened to God together for the ways He wants to lead, guide, and orient us to His call on our lives as mothers of adult children?

This fall, we're going to explore that question together with six gatherings of sharing and listening prayer. Our goal will not be to pray for our children (necessarily) but to pray for ourselves to be encouraged in what can sometimes be a season of unspoken concerns and burdens.

Join us September 5 & 19, October 3, 17 & 31, and November 14 from 6:30p – 8:00p at Karen Hutton’s in Trumbull, CT. Please rsvp to Jan Buchanan.

We are greatly looking forward to this time with each other and with the Lord.

Blessings.
Jan+

Dear Church of the Apostles,

Over the last several weeks during our Sunday Eucharistic celebrations we have been considering Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. I am very grateful for men and women who have done the godly work of thinking and praying through Scripture.

Last week I mentioned a book by Richard B. Hays entitled The Moral Vision of the New Testament. Hays suggests three “focal images as guidelines for reflection about the New Testament canon.” I have found these images to be very helpful. Each is rich with theological thought, so boiling them down to a few sentences is tricky. However, I pray that they will encourage you nonetheless.

1. Community (1 Corinthians 1:2-3, Romans 12:1-2):
“The church is a countercultural community of discipleship, and this community is the primary addressee of God’s imperatives. The biblical story focuses on God’s design for forming a covenant people. Thus, the primary sphere of moral concern is not the character of the individual but the corporate obedience of the church.”

2. Cross (1 Corinthians 2:2, Philippians 3:10, 2 Corinthians 4:11):
“Jesus’ death on the cross is the paradigm for faithfulness to God in this world… Jesus’ death is consistently interpreted in the New Testament as an act of self-giving love, and the community is consistently called to take up the cross and follow the way that his death defines.”

3. New Creation (1 Corinthians 15, Romans 8:22-23)
“The church embodies the power of the resurrection in the midst of a not-yet-redeemed world. In the present time, new creation already appears, but only proleptically [in a state of anticipation]; consequently, we hang in suspense between Jesus’ resurrection and parousia [second coming].”

I look forward to continuing our sermon series through 1 Corinthians this Sunday. See you there!

Peace,
Brian+