“And now I am no more in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to thee. Holy Father, keep them in thy name, which thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.”  St. John 17:11

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

The headmaster at Saint James has very kindly invited me to preach the sermon at the Baccalaureate Eucharist at school next Saturday evening.  I was delighted to be asked and I have been thinking hard over the last few weeks about what I should say to the outgoing class at Saint James School. Continued

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide; so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

The summer after my freshman year of college, I went to India to teach English in a mission school.  It was located in a pretty remote village called Moolaikaraipatti in Southern India that didn’t see too many Americans on a regular basis, and I soon became a bit of a local celebrity.  To say that people treated me kindly in the village would be a clear understatement. Continued

In our Church calendar, the three days prior to the annual observance of the Lord’s Ascension into Heaven we recognize the minor Rogation Days.  Rogation comes from the Latin word “rogare” which means “ask.  During Rogation season we ask God through ours prayers for a bountiful harvest, a good growing season, a blessing over our planted fields, etc. But there is more to rogation than this Continued

“….Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.”

In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

  The rain that we have been receiving these past several weeks has been very good for my lawn as I am sure all of you have benefited from it as well.  My lawn is greener than ever, and it appears later a month or so down the road, my Black Eyed Susans that I have planted in front of my house will be beautiful as well. Continued

“I am the Good Shepherd.  I know my own and my own know me…and I lay down my life for the sheep.”  St. John 10:15-16

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

When I was a 4-Her, I took the public speaking project, and every year they asked everyone enrolled in that project to help out by announcing the classes and the prizes at the livestock shows at the Ag Expo.  This was my first year announcing at the fair, and before we all went in to meet with the 4-H agent I decided I was going to pick something easy, a small show, without that many different classes: I’d announce for the rabbit show, or the dairy goats, or maybe the sheep.  Continued