Be Bold!

In today’s Epistle, we hear from the First Letter of John:

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

And this is the boldness we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of him. If you see your brother or sister committing what is not a mortal sin, you will ask, and God will give life to such a one—to those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin that is mortal; I do not say that you should pray about that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not mortal.

We know that those who are born of God do not sin, but the one who was born of God protects them, and the evil one does not touch them. We know that we are God’s children, and that the whole world lies under the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols. (1 Jn. 5: 13-21).

John tells us to be bold. Be bold in asking God anything. Be bold in asking God anything according to God’s will! John does not tell us to be bold asking for whatever our little old heart desires. N or does John tell us to be bold in asking God for what others may desire. Rather, John tells us to be bold in asking God what God desires. Now that requires some boldness because we are submitting to God’s will for us thereby relinquishing our selfish desires. When we submit to God’s will for us, we are following in Christ’s footsteps.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, whose blessed Son came not to be served but to serve: Bless all who, following in his steps, give themselves to the service of others; that with wisdom, patience, and courage, they may minister in his Name to the suffering, the friendless, and the needy; for the love of him who laid down his life for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

CALENDAR REMINDERS:

The Children’s Choir from Memorial Baptist Church in Spring, Texas is returning to St. Augustine on 15 May, Sunday, for the 9 a.m. service. There will be about 35 people. We will have 18 dozen eggs donated (by the Choir Director) for breakfast---we need cooks! Volunteers?

Saturday Art Class on 21 May 2011: Lee Runion will teach us about “origami” the traditional Japanese art of paper folding. It started in the 17th century and was popularized outside Japan in the mid-1900s. The goal of this art is to transform a flat sheet of material into a finished sculpture through folding and sculpting techniques. We will use our art work for the service on Pentecost.

Celebration Honoring the Graduates from St. Augustine on Sunday, 22 May at the 9 a.m. Service.

S.A.S.S. every Thursday at 6 p.m. in Sutton Hall starting with a pot luck dinner.

In conjunction with the St. Augustine History Project, Mrs. Liz Mack is working on the history of St. Augustine’s outreach program, St. Vincent’s House. She will be interviewing Charles Lemons. If you have anything that may help in this, please pass it along to Mrs. Mack.

Nets For Life: If you still haven’t made your contribution, don’t worry, there’s still time. Each net is just $12.50. Help save a life!

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List, especially Pat Tate.

Your servant in Christ,

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+
St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church
Galveston, Texas 77550