2010 to be fulfilling and blessed at St. Elizabeth's

Psalm 34:1-9 I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. 2 My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the humble hear and be glad. 3 Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together!

As looked back over the past year I could not think of a better Psalm to express our gratitude and thanksgiving to God what He has and is doing at St. Elizabeth’s. Last year at the annual meeting we celebrated what God had and this year brings forth another year of great blessing. Over the past year I cannot recall a month that we did not have something happening. So I want to take a moment to briefly reflect on what has happened and prayerfully look ahead to the up-coming year at St. Elizabeth’s.

First it is not hard to see that we are growing in numbers. Over the past two and half years since I arrived in July 2007, the average Sunday attendance (ASA) has grown from 116 to 163 this year.

But numbers are not everything. It is what we have done over the past year that has amazed me and it is evident that God’s hand is upon us. Over the past year we have: added a much needed new roof, increased awareness in our community through social events held at the parish i.e. fashion show, Shrove Tuesday, Light up your Grill Night, parish picnic, and the pet blessing just to name a few. In November and December there were two great events that capped off the year. In November we celebrated our 25th Anniversary with a big gala which included dinner and dancing. And in December our own Lori Hoey was ordained to the Diaconate. This too was a benchmark event as Lori is the first person who started the ordination process at St. Elizabeth’s to be ordained.

I believe this is just the beginning of what God is doing at St. Elizabeth’s and I believe this next year will be as fulfilling and blessed as this past year has been. With the foundation we currently have the future is promising. We will continue to have our social outreaches. We will continue to improve our facility and we continue grow in our relationship with the Lord and others. We will continue our Praise, Prayer and Healing and we will begin to explore the possibility of doing a mission trip to Honduras to support our companion Diocese.

The question is how! The answer can be found in three little words… Worship, Grow, and Serve. Through our worship we express our thanksgiving, love and gratitude to our Lord Jesus. And it is a time of refreshing. Grow is not about numerical growth but growing in our knowledge and understanding of who God is and deepening our relationship with Him. This happens through Bible Studies, home groups and teachings. And finally, Serve – to serve God through the gifts He has given each one of us. It is to be active in church touching lives around just as He has touched you.

2009 was an exciting year… who knows what 2010 will bring when we step out in faith and trust God… Ps. 34 2 My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the humble hear and be glad.