Return to flip book view

Message june 2025S t . M i c h a e l ’ s E p i s c o p a l C h u r c hThe Window

worship on successive Sundays in June. Eachfinalist will work with me to select music, willlead a choir rehearsal, and will lead music onSunday at the 10:30 am service. One will bewith us on Sunday, June 22 and another willjoin us on Sunday, June 29. After a time forprayer and to receive input from choir membersand parishioners, we hope to extend a call byJuly 6th.Between Brian's last Sunday with us, theSunday auditions, and the time when our neworganist/choir director arrives, we will beadapting musically at the 10:30 service. Areality is that summer is a challenge for findingsupply organists, with vacations and otherevents. So a reality is that Sunday Eucharists at10:30 will be a blend of usual music, no musicat all, and some instrumental music. So pleasestay tuned to information in St. Michael'sMatters each week about 10:30 am for thesummer. I am excited about the new season we are soonto begin with our music ministry. St. Michael'sis a vibrant, inclusive community, and our The First Sunday after Pentecost marks thebeginning of a time in the Church calledOrdinary Time. The color for this long season isgreen, a color of growth. Since Advent, we have learned about the lifeand ministry of Jesus. We have listened to histeachings, experienced events that revealed whoJesus was and is. Now it's time to put theselessons into practice.Ordinary time reminds us that being acommunity of faith is not just listening, not justreceiving, not just sitting. Quite honestly, it isdoing, experimenting, and acting. Jesus calls usnot to sit in the stasis of life, but to engage inthe changes, even when they are a bit uncertainand will lead us onto new paths.We are entering a new season of growth andchange at St. Michael's, and one area where thiswill be most present will be in our musicministry. For the past year, we have been fortunate tohave Brian Hunt as part of our St. Michael'steam. Brian joined us as our Interim ChoirDirector and Organist to lead us in a time oftransition. He helped create space for newnessand learned and shared insights about our musicministry that will serve the next choir directorand organist well as they begin their ministrywith us. I cannot express my thanks enough forthe work he did, much of it quiet andunassuming, but very valuable. Brian's lastSunday with us will be on Pentecost, June 8th.Please join us for a reception honoring him thatday. With Brian leaving, we will be preparing for anew arrival soon. After many months of prayerand work from the Search Committee, weannounce two finalists who will lead us in music ministry is animportant part of our life together. Please continue topray for the personwho will walk with usin this new season asour organist andchoir director.Updates on Music from Mother LaurieFrom the Rector

Summer art prompt from Lisa JanecekIf I had to pick, I think my favorite form ofexpression is visual art. I have always had adeep appreciation for colors and texturesand the emotions they evoke. I try to fosterthat same love in my daughter Katerina.Several times a week, we have dedicated arttime where we often paint or color. I thinkof this time as a way for her to work onskills where she can transfer what she isthinking or feeling into something otherscan see and perceive. I’d like to encourage the same in you. OnPentecost, you will find “coloring” sheets inthe lobby with the St. Michael’s logo: awindow. I invite you to fill these windowswith any visual that comes to mind whenyou think of St. Michael’s. Use words orcolors or pictures from magazines. Maybethe joy of St. Michael’s takes you to a placewhere you feel inspired to happy doodle, orits sureness in your life looks more like alined pattern or Zentangle. There aren’t anyrules! That’s the best thing about art. This exercise is two-fold. If you focus onfilling your window, you might find thatyour mind exclusively thought of goodthings even for just a small period of time.And second, think of it as an opportunity toshare. Share time and do this exercise as a family or with friends. Share yourcompleted window on your Instagram orFacebook feed (tag us @stmichaelslex!), orhang it on your refrigerator so guests canask what it’s about. If you’re feeling opento it, leave it in my box by the church officedoor and I will publish it. I’d love toshowcase some of your windows indifferent ways this summer and share thejoyful expressions of the members of St.Michael’s.

community! We were all strangers at St.Michael’s once, having come through thedoors for the first time. This is the idealtime to lean over the pews and meetsomeone you may have nodded to but neverformally been introduced. Share your goodnews with someone - we all want to hearabout lovely things, the new flower in youryard, your kid who passed their swim test,your new sundress that was on sale. If youare ready, we want to share your scarythings, too, and help carry the burden.Never underestimate the power of love thatcan come from a conversation with someonewho was a stranger at the start of the day.Live in the light of God’s instruction to loveeach other, and reach out to someone thissummer. Keep an eye out for FellowshipFeasts - a time to gather and break breadwith one another. You need only sign up!Check the bulletin board in the lobby andthe weekly newsletter, Growing up in Auburn, Alabama, as thechild of a university professor and a publicschool librarian, the calendar I visualizedin my head always had a big blank spot forJune, July, and August, the summerholidays. I could see the school terms asmarked off, the Christmas break as a fuzzycouple or three weeks, a week for SpringBreak, and then Bowl Season, since it wasAuburn, after all. Even though I’ve beenworking for the government for half of myadult life, that big blank spot for summerin the calendar has remained imprinted.Maybe those summer months are a lazyblank spot in your mind calendar, also. It’sa time to visit far-off locales, to spend timewith family, maybe to attend camps, or todo projects that require good weatheroutdoors. At church, we drift into Ordinarytime, the choir takes a well-deserved break,and the folks we normally see every Sundaymay be in and out as their schedules allow.The summer is a time for new experiencesand making memories to take back to thatinevitable ‘How I Spent My Summer’ reportat school.It may be the furthest thing from yourmind, but you could spend your summergetting to know those members of ourThoughts on Summer from Meredith WatsonSt. Michael’s Mattersfor other opportunitiesfor community. Andeven I, a confirmedIntrovert, look forwardto meeting you all!

Have you ever experienced a time in yourlife when it was difficult to make it tochurch on Sunday? Many religious peoplehave. These days we often attribute a lackof in- person church attendance tochildren’s athletic events scheduled forSunday morning or travelling on vacation,but there are several reasons peoplecannot physically attend church. Here aresome additional reasons people aren’tphysically present in church:Welcoming a new baby whose immunesystem isn’t ready for public exposureA family member has travelled forwork all week and needs time to restand reconnect with their family overthe weekendChronic illness that depletes energyand/or requires limited exposure toothersAcute illnessGrieving a recent divorce or a deathwhere memories of attending churchwith the loved one who is now gone arejust too painfulParents tending to sick childrenAdult children attending to agingparentsRecovering from church abuse orrejection where a person isn’t ready torisk their spiritual or emotional wellbeing on a new church yetBeing in between churches andphysically attending a new church eachweek in a church search is exhaustingFor all these reasons and more, we livestream our 10:30am Sunday service at St.Michael’s every Sunday, along withadditional holy day services throughout theyear. Our parish wants people to be able tojoin us wherever they are, whenever worksfor them, as we gather to remember God’slove for all of us in prayer and praise.Live streaming a service takes a smallamount of technical knowledge, awillingness to show up, and a comicalpatience with sometimes glitchy internet orcomputer issues. What does live streaming entail, you mightask? It involves turning on somemicrophones and speakers, logging into acomputer and launching some streamingsoftware, remotely positioning cameras,and switching between two camera shots tocapture what’s happening in service.Sound interesting? Join our team! We havea wonderful team of live streamers:Meredith Watson, Johnathan Watson,Kevin Bartell, and me (Tracy). We’d lovefor you to sit with us one Sunday to watchus live stream service to see if you mightenjoy serving others in this hidden butmeaningful way. Next time you’re at St. Ministry SpotlightDigital Ministry with Tracy EdwardsMichael’s forservices, pull one ofus aside to chat.We’d love to meetyou!

When I was transferred from Miami to DC,we went by way of San Francisco, and Icalled it my National Parks 101 trip as westopped by many National Parks and drovethrough many national forests. I realizedthat if we did not have these nationaltreasures, we would be all asphalt andconcrete. This focused my environmentalthoughts. When I lived in New Orleans, right beforemoving here I saw the damage oil did to thestate both because of the product and stateinactivity. I came to Lexington to find littlein the way of environmental work in partthat we are not being impacted by thechanges in climate.We will be hit though. We will see moreheavy rain. More people will move here asthe water rises along the East Coast. Wewill see more temperature changes.This is why we need a Green Ministry! Ifwe work together, we can achieve morethan as individuals. The City of Lexingtonhas programs we can join in, largelyfocused on the parks. There is ourwatershed that may need cleaning out.There are efforts by other churches we canjoin. We do not have a stream near us nordo we have a lot of land to “develop”. So,we must work withothers on their projects.Go outside. Walk around. Look at nature,both natural and created by homeowners.This is what we are protecting! Join mein doing this work.Ministry SpotlightGreen Ministry with George Bond

On Tuesday, May 5, twenty-three tiredtravelers boarded a bus and headed forWindsor Castle to start a tour acrosssouthern England focused on poetry andsaints. When we arrived at WindsorCastle, something magical, somethingalong the lines of fairy tales and HarryPotter, happened. While we were walkingthe streets of the modern-day residence ofthe King of England, we were also walkingthe streets of an 11th century fortress, thesame streets that soldiers and pilgrims,commoners and royalty had walked forroughly a millennium. And so our tour went. We rode in a buswith air conditioning and charging portsand we moved in a land rich with ourchurch history.We walked through cathedrals with rootsdating to the 600s, monasteries andconvents from the middle ages, bombedout remains from the Second World War.And all the while, we walked where somany of that “great cloud of witnesses” thebook of Hebrews speaks of had walked. Wetouched stone altars where the Eucharisthad been celebrated 1400 years ago. Westood in silence at memorial markers,commemorating acts of heroic faith. Wewalked in silence through the Americancemetery at Mattingly where too manyyoung air force crew from WWII areburied. We were pilgrims, walking on stones thatcenturies of pilgrims have walked. Wewalked with the multitudes. We felt thepresence of God, of our spiritual siblings,of hope, and of renewal. The poetry, for meanyway, was less the words on the printedpage and more the blue sky over a greenfield full of grave stones, the feel of wallstouched by hundreds of years of hands, theslant of stairs worn by the feet of priestsand parishioners, the work of artists andmasons, the prayers of countless unknownworshippers, the soot from a thousandyears of candles. A Pilgrim’s TaleTravel stories from Jerri Dyer

Have you ever wondered about what it takes to plan all of the moving parts on Sunday?Each month, Mtr. Laurie creates a Rota. In the Episcopal Church, a rota is a rotatingschedule of service duties, identifying which individuals will serve in specific ministryroles. It's essentially a roster or list outlining who is responsible for what duties onwhat days. Willing volunteers sign up to be on a list and are placed in roles on specificSundays. What are the roles? Glad you asked!Ushers greet people who join us for worship and guide people to receive communion.Lectors read the lessons for the day.Intercessors lead the Prayers of the People.Crucifers carry the cross, leading us in and out of worship, as well as carry the Gospelbook in the Gospel procession. Lay Eucharistic Ministers assist people in receiving the wine. If you’re willing to help in any of these roles, send an email to Mtr. Laurie atrector@saint-michaels.org. Thorough training will be provided. Any amount of timeyou can give is helpful and meaningful! The rota for June and July can be seen here. Is there something you’re wondering about St. Michael’s or the Episcopal Church? Letus know! We’re always glad you asked. Glad You Asked!

Which service do you go to?I attend the 10:30 am service.What made you want to join theVestry? I joined the Vestry becauseCharles Baker asked me to join, and Iwanted to make a difference at St.Michael's. My favorite thing about St. Michael'sis... the people. The people at St.Michael's are authentic, reliable andtrustworthy. Fun facts: I could never go a day without... myiPhone - it has my calendar and I am notsure how I would function without it.Standard coffee order: I don't drinkcoffee very often, but when I do it is aMocha Latte with whipped cream.Dream vacation destination: The UnitedKingdom. I am so excited that Graham andI are making this dream come true thissummer. We are celebrating our 30thwedding anniversary and Graham's 60thBirthday. BarbaraPriestVestry SpotlightWhich service do you go to? My wife,Barb, and I attend the 8:30 service.What made you want to join theVestry? I knew very little about thechurch, and I figured the best way to learnwould be to join the Vestry.My favorite thing about St. Michael'sis... the reason I became a member: ourcommitment to embracing everyone whocomes in the door!Fun facts: We have two beagles, Maddie & Sissy.Both are rescues - Maddie was abandoned,and Sissy was abused. We can't imagine lifewithout them.I could never go a day without...cheese. Favorite books: The Caine Mutiny andTime and AgainHow long haveyou been amember of St.Michael's? Ihave been amember sinceOctober 15,2023. We wereconfirmed by thebishop.Charlie NewquistHow long haveyou been amember of St.Michael's?Graham and Istarted attendingSt. Michael's inJuly 2021. Weofficially joinedin 2022.Get to know some members of St. Michael’s Vestry

Transition UpdateOur thanks to Tippert’s Teas and Coffee for joining us on Sundaymornings in May! Tippert’s is owned and operated by member andfriend of St. Michael’s, Pete Eclov. Follow Tippert’s on Instagram here. The search for a new Bishop for the Dioceseof Lexington continues. You can read aboutthe progress on the DioLex website. We arecurrently in Phase 3 of the timeline. The Diocese is now in search of membersfor the Transition Committee and theStanding Committee. You can read aboutthose roles here. If you believe that membership on one ofthese committees aligns with your gifts oftime, expertise, and talents, considerapplying by June 8 . th

You can support the mission and ministry of St. Michael's by giving a financial gift in any of the following ways:TEXT TO GIVE Text the amount youwant to give in themessage part to 833-917-0602 and follow the steps.You can then text"repeat" to make thedonation recurring. BY MAILMail your check to:St. Michael's2025 Bellefonte Drive,Lexington, Kentucky40503ONLINEwww.saint-michaels.org allowsyou to make a one-time or recurring giftfrom your bankaccount or your creditcard. GIVEPLUS+ APP search the App Storeon your phone, fill inthe requiredinformation, and giveeasily.Join UsSundaysin-person at 8:30 am (Rite I)and 10:30 am (Rite II)OnlineOn YouTube and Facebook Sundays at 10:30 am Wednesdays 1:00 pmSupport OurMinistryOur ministry is ongoing, and we continue to use financial gifts to help those in need in ourcommunity and to provide a welcoming, loving, and safe place for all who seek God's love.

Clergy and StaffThe Ven. Laurie M. Brock, Rector The Rev. W. Jessee Neat, Assisting Priest The Rev. Margaret Shanks, Assisting Priest Mr. Brian Hunt, Interim Organist-Choirmaster Ms. Lisa Janecek, Digital/Administrative Minister 2025 Bellefonte Drive + Lexington, Kentucky 40503 859-277-7511 + www.saint-michaels.orgrector@saint-michaels.orgFatherJessee@aol.com margaret.shanks28@gmail.combbhuntky@gmail.comdigital@saint-michaels.org2025 vestry membersSharon HogueAlexis HollandTaylor MilburnCharlie NewquistTom PetersBarbara PriestRick SmootKaty Leigh TrotterMeredith WatsonCharles BakerKen DisponettLynne EvansThe Window is a publication of St. Michael’s Episcopal Church in Lexington, Kentucky.