Staying Safe and Staying Connected
Good Morning Saint Stephen’s Church,
We continue our life of daily prayer. The Lord be with you.
Today is the Fourth Sunday of Lent
Today’s Prayer
Gracious Father, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ came down from heaven to be the true bread which giveth life to the world: Evermore give us this bread, that he may live in us, and we in him; who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
A Prayer in this time of our Eucharistic Fast
My Jesus, I believe that you are truly present in the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. I love you above all things, and long for you in my soul. Since I cannot now receive you sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. As though you have already come, I embrace you and unite myself entirely to you; never permit me to be separated from you. Amen.
St. Alphonsus de Liguori, 1696-1787
Our Prayers of the People
Today, let’s pray:
For the peace and unity of the Church of God; for all who proclaim the Gospel, and all who seek the truth.
For comfort and healing for all who are affected by the Coronavirus, and for physicians, nurses, and all others who minister to the sick and the suffering, may God grant them wisdom and skill, sympathy and patience, and may God keep them healthy and safe.
From the Parish Prayer list, let’s pray for Sue, Art, Jeanne, Chris, Walter, Theresa and Budd
For those who are homebound: Stephen, Pauline, Joan, Janet and Marilyn
Those who are imprisoned: especially the women in the Schenectady County Jail
For those in need of healing: Cindi, Peter, Mary Frances, Debbie, Glenn, Rick, Bruce & Jane and Joe
For all the blessings of this life.
For our dioceses in the Anglican Communion: Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui and Hong Kong Island
For Joanne – today is her birthday!
For all who have died, especially Virginia, Louise, Theodore, Irwin, and Eleanor
For one another.
Something to share
Lenten Meditation
We hear a lot these days about the need to shelter in place. I would like to offer a little variation on that theme by encouraging us all to shelter in faith. History has shown that the most powerful and effective tool any community has in confronting crisis is its spiritual resilience. I know this is true because I come from a culture that has only survived because of its depth of spirituality. Let our message to others be an invitation to join us in prayer, hope and determination. If you know of others who are alone or anxious, please welcome them to join us here where we shelter in faith. There is room for everyone beneath the wings of the Spirit.
Steven Charleston, Retired Bishop of Alaska
Make Facemasks for Staff/Patients at Ellis Hospital
Hi,
On behalf of Ellis and our community- thank you for offering to help make masks in this unprecedented time.
Below is the link to the information on how to make a mask.
https://www.deaconess.com/How-to-make-a-Face-Mask
Kathleen Morris will be reaching to you with additional information and mask making tips. She’s an expert quilter and a delight.
For Ellis- Packaging 20 in a bag would be ideal. Delivery to the attention of the Purchasing Office at McClellan Street. Please just let me know when you will be making a delivery and we will coordinate.
If you need any help at all or have any questions please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.
Be safe, be well.
Gratefully,
Marcy
Marcia (Marcy) M. Steiner
Vice President/Executive Director
The Foundation for Ellis Medicine
Office- (518) 243-4413
steinerm@ellismedicine.org
News and Updates
Schenectady Community Ministries Food Pantry, our county’s largest emergency food provider, remains fully operational and it’s volunteer base remains strong, a call has been put out to our respective faith communities to provide an additional three to five additional volunteers each day the food pantry is in operation. The food pantry is located at 839 Albany Street in Schenectady. Contact me james.ross.mcd@gmail.com if you are interested in helping.
Church Publishing offers Book of Common Prayer, other free resources for devotional use: https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/pressreleases/church-publishing-offers-book-of-common-prayer-other-free-resources-for-devotional-use/
Reminders
If you have an update/news, a prayer or poem or something inspirational you would like us to share with the congregation, please send it to us. Please also send us any prayer requests. We will incorporate these into the Daily Prayer as best we can.
Our church campus is closed. All parish meetings and gatherings are canceled and postponed until further notice.
Our goal is for all of us to stay in touch and connected in this time of isolation.
Share this news, and spread some love, not the virus!
Be of good courage. We are in this together, and we will be together again soon. God bless you and may God be with us in the days ahead.
Peace,
James+