Family Corner: Mealtime Blessings

Al Cole sent this prayer from “my Lutheran aunt and uncle. Said at most family gatherings.” Come Lord Jesus, be our guest. Let this food to us be blessed. Dreama Maxey sent “a mealtime blessing my family used. It was one that my dad, Davis T. Maxey, said.” Oh heavenly father, make us thankful for these…

St. John’s: A Part of Our Lives

A reflection on giving back, by Rand Garrett I never realized how much St John’s really meant to me until several years ago when I took a seven-week bike trip across the country. As I finished up my trip, I entered some of my feelings into the journal I was keeping. I wrote that, in…

Finding Friendships, Strengthening Faith

Jonah Vanke writes about finding inspiration and welcome at Kanuga’s youth events. This past year at Kanuga, one experience that stands out the most to me has been my decision, motivated by a strong reluctance to leave, to wake up at 5:30 on the last morning to spend as much conscious time at Kanuga as…

Summer in the Mountains, Faith Across Generations

When the Reverend David Olson picked up his children at Camp Lutherock this year, it brought back memories of his own summers there. Lutherock, in the mountains outside Boone, N.C., isn’t a traditional camp. It’s an outdoor adventure camp, which means it mostly just has a few rustic buildings and tents because most of the…

St. John’s Welcomes Deb Neff as Financial Controller

“I feel like I’m part of something that makes a difference.” Deb Neff comes to St. John’s most recently from working as an accountant in the for-profit world (at Source4 in Roanoke), but prior to that she was parish accountant for a Catholic church in Wisconsin for 11 years, and for United Cerebral Palsy earlier…

Seeking Vestry Nominees for 2020

Parish bylaws designate the immediate past senior warden to chair the next year’s nominating committee, which develops a slate for the vestry election and delegates to diocesan annual convention. The wisdom of this process is that coming fresh off vestry gives good insight about the skills and interests that the church needs. It is an…

Remembering Rachel Held Evans

A reflection by Jenny Fife Rachel Held Evans died on May 4, 2019 at age 37. You’re either grieving this “fearless seeker of truth and servant of Jesus,” according to Bishop Curry, or you’ve never heard of her. Google her. I “met” Rachel Held Evans in a journey group last fall, reading her Inspired: Slaying…

April Retreat: Two Reflections on Friendship

At the end of April, 29 of us gathered by Smith Mountain Lake to eat, drink, laugh, talk and simply be together. The first night, as we selected temporary tattoos to start off our time together, I looked at all of the options on the table and a small infinity sign caught my eye. Within…

Top Ten Reasons to Sing with the Summer Choir

10. It’s a better place to sing than in the shower. 9. No audition or long-term commitment. 8. You don’t have to worry about what you wear to church. We give you a robe! 7. Walking and singing simultaneously is good coordination training. 6. The view is even better from the chancel. 5. No kneeling…

Welcoming a Robotic Guest: Pepper

Michael Hibben, senior manager with Roanoke County Public Library, brought Pepper the robot to St. John’s on May 7. Pepper first met the kids from Community Youth Program (CYP) before doing a presentation for Episcopal Church Women’s monthly event. Michael writes this about his work with Pepper: When I entered the library profession nearly two…