At our Annual Congregational Meeting on Sunday, I encouraged everyone to seek out time with God. It is time with God that should be our starting point for everything else that we do in our lives so that our decisions, commitments, and priorities flow out of a discerning heart.

What do I mean by that? When we spend time with God and when we make it a priority, the rest of our lives are grounded in a greater purpose. We center our days on who God wants us to be and we strive to live as God wants us to live.

However, our tendency is to rush through our days, checking off our to-do lists, making plans, and setting goals. But I wonder how many times we come up depleted, overworked, and frustrated at the messages around us to do more, be more, and succeed more.

God's message is different. When we slow down and center our days on God, our goals become simpler. They aren't about doing more. Instead, they are about loving more and caring more. God's agenda for us is a different kind of to-do list. You might say when we slow down enough to love God more, we can love one another more.

How might that look for you this Lenten season?

If you are able, join us for our Lenten luncheons this year and together we will discover how we can all move closer to loving God and one another. We will let go of our busyness and set a new priority of being still with God. You will find more information about our Lenten Luncheons in this newsletter. I hope you can join us!

May you all have a blessed Lenten journey.

- Emily

Lent is just around the corner and we want to invite you to our Lenten Luncheon Series beginning on Thursday, February 15th at 11:30 am in the Parish Hall.

If you would like, you may purchase the book, A Different Kind of Fast, to help guide you through the season.

Please RSVP no later than February 26th to emilydunevant@gmail.com if you would like to attend. We will provide you with the book Episcopal Questions, Episcopal Answers to help guide our time together.

The Grace Church Men's Group will host Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper on February 13th at 5:30 pm. Shrove Tuesday occurs the night before Lent starts on Ash Wednesday.

Please plan to join us on Saturday, March 16^th for our Open Mic Night. This is a fun evening where we share music, poems, stories, and fellowship. You can share something or just enjoy being in the audience. Please bring some finger food to share. Bring a friend or two as well. All are welcome. Wine and non-alcoholic beverages are provided. There is no cover charge.

If you have questions, contact me directly at deevmom@comcast.net.

We look forward to singing with you! Dee

Hold the date! We will host an Easter Brunch and Egg Hunt on Sunday, March 24th at 11:00 am.

If you are looking for a fun way to explain the Resurrection story to your younger kids, you might want to consider the Easter Cookie activity. Click the link here and get the recipe of how to make the cookies and tell the story of Jesus as you prepare them.