Life With Grace | August 14
- Grace Episcopal Church
- 2 minutes ago
- 7 min read
Dear Friends,
It is often difficult to know how best to help those in need. Sometimes all a person needs is a mechanical fix - help changing their tire to get back on the road, or a meal for recovering strength. If you have the skill and the resources and the will you can help those people.
At other times you realize that it's not a mechanical problem. They can't get where they want to go on the road they are travelling. They have to accept a change of destination. Perhaps they need to redefine their idea of success. It's heart and soul work.
In Sunday's gospel Jesus meets a person who is ready for the post resurrection kingdom in a pre-resurrection world. She wants her daughter healed. But because she is a gentile the timing is off.
Jesus tells her the truth - that road (the one that includes the Gentiles) isn't open yet, I'm still working on it. For now the Father's plan is proclaiming the kingdom only to the children of Israel. Her daughter will have to wait. It seems cruel. But we are all familiar with that sort of cruelty.
And yet she persisted. It's impossible to explain what happens next. Except to say Jesus breaks the rules of this phase of the mission. He affirms her faith in the freedom of God, and in God's will to save everyone and he, like, opens a hole in the space time continuum of salvation history and He heals that gentile woman's daughter.
Which gives hope to everyone who hates that the world as it is is so far from the world as it should be and who just wants things to work out for a person , even if it means opening a hole in the fabric of the universe.
With Gratitude,
Tuck Bowerfind (he/him)
Rector | Grace Episcopal Church
Worship Services | Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost | August 16
Holy Eucharist Rt I | 8 a.m. | Zoom and In-Person
Christianity and Culture | 9:15 a.m. | Zoom and In-Person
August 16: Renewing Grace - We will present the costs of the project to date, the budget and finance plan for the work ahead.
Upcoming Christianity and Culture Classes
August 23: We will welcome our newest VMI Keydets for a ‘get to know you’ session beginning at approximately 9:45 am. Please bring your cell phones to share so they can call home after their first week as Rats. We hope you will consider being a family that adopts students for their first semester. We will be sending out a request for food at the beginning of this week.
Holy Eucharist Rt II | 10:30 a.m. | YouTube and In-Person
The nursery is available during our services.
Adults and older youth trained in Safe Church are needed to assist in the nursery from 9 a.m.–noon. We can pay $15/hour. Volunteers are also welcome. Please contact James Keane for more information and to offer assistance.
Morning Prayer | Monday – Friday | 8:30 a.m.
Zoom and In-Person
The Mission and Outreach Committee of the Gadsden Trust
Third quarter grant requests must be received by noon on September 1, 2026. The online Gadsden Trust Grant Application can be completed by going to the Grace Episcopal Church website at www.gracelexva.org. Once on the Grace website, click on the “Grants” tab and then the Gadsden Grants tab. The completed application will automatically be sent to the Gadsden Committee.
Gadsden Committee meetings are open to members of the parish.
Last week Bishop Karin visited Phoebe Needles Camp and Conference Center to be with the diocesan Youth Ministry Team for part of their planning retreat. She joined them for lunch, conversation, and Holy Eucharist on Saturday afternoon. She said "What a wonderful group of young people we have in diocesan leadership! It was inspiring to hear about the joy and meaning they find in their ministry and their passion for expanding that ministry to reach youth who have never before participated in our diocesan youth events. I'm excited to work with them on how we can do that!"
Two of the youth leaders are Grace Episcopal Church's Sarah and Harrison Edgar.
Education for Ministry (EfM) Update
For the 2025-2026 academic year, Grace trialed a new one-year EfM program. It included study of the Old Testament, New Testament, church history and limited discussion of ethics and morality. It was a successful year with plans to offer an updated version beginning this September. Unfortunately, the updates needed to refresh the course were not available.
In place of offering the same content again, an alternate has been developed that will start on Tuesday, September 22nd from 1-3 PM. Content will include discussion of the Old Testament, New Testament, a comparison of theological beliefs of the Episcopal church/Anglican Communion to other Christian denominations, and ethics and morality. New books have been identified with discussion of assigned readings part of the program. Because registration with Sewanee will not be offered, the standard cost of $350 will not be charged. Participants will be responsible for purchasing the books needed. Breaks for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter will be made. The class will conclude in late April 2027.
If you're interested in participating or needed additional information, please contact James Keane (jrklexva@msn.com).
Trumpet Recital at Grace
Sammy Eastwood will be performing a trumpet recital on Wednesday, August 26 at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary of Grace Church. We hope that you will be able to join Sammy and his family and friends for this very special event.
Sammy is the son of Jon Eastwood and Maria Nava and is the trumpet student of Peter Del Vecchio, having studying privately with him for the past 3 1/2 years. Piano accompanist for the recital is Lisa Knudson of Buena Vista.
The pieces that Sammy will perform are the Haydn Trumpet Concerto (2nd movement), a fun and exhilarating arrangement of the William Tell Overture (featuring Sammy‘s band as accompanists), a beautiful and complex French étude, a fun selection by Sammy and his band, and two works by Del Vecchio (a duet for two trumpets, and a sonatina for trumpet and piano).
The recital is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served after. For more information about the recital, please contact Peter Del Vecchio at 540-460-2440, or at PHDelVecchio@aol.com
ESOL Snack Request
The English as a Second Language (ESOL) program at Rockbridge County High School needs individually wrapped snacks for ESOL students such as granola bars, protein bars, cheese crackers, peanut butter crackers, beef jerky. Any donations would be greatly appreciated. You may leave them in the Parish Office. Thank you!
Rockbridge NAACP Event
Rockbridge NAACP Members welcome Kentucky Poet Laureate & 2014 NAACP Image Award Recipient, Frank X. Walker to the Freedom Fund 2026 Fundraiser "A Peaceful Struggle for Justice" (Medgar Evers, 1963) - Honoring Tammy Dunn. Saturday, August 22, 1:30 p.m. at the Virginia Horse Center, 487 Maury River Road, Lexington. Donations can be made by check and mailed to: Rockbridge NAACP, P.O. Box 1065, Lexington, VA 24450. For more information email Susan Mead at susanvirginiamead@gmail.com. To donate online go to RockbridgeNAACP.com
Music in the Garden at Boxerwood
Join us in the Boxerwood field on select Fridays from May through September for this family-friendly concert series. For more than ten years, neighbors have gathered at Boxerwood on warm summer evenings to enjoy great local music in a relaxing atmosphere. The concerts are kid- and pet-friendly, affordable, easily accessible, and welcoming to all.
The gate opens at 5:30 p.m. so that early arrivers can meet up with friends to picnic, socialize, or get a bite to eat. Musicians take the stage at 6:30 p.m. and conclude at 8:00 p.m. as the sun goes down. A food truck is on site at each show. Admission to Music in the Garden is free for kids and current Boxerwood members and $5 per adult for non-members. There's no charge for parking. We have handicapped parking and the terrain is suitable for wheelchairs.
To view the bands and plan your visit, check out our Calendar.
Food for Pets of RARA Clients
We are collecting 8- or 10-pound bags of dry food or packages of wet dog, puppy, cat, and kitten food for pets of RARA clients.
Any brand is welcome, but please choose regular diets.
Donations may be delivered inside the RARA Neighborhood Market at 350 Spotswood Drive, Lexington, during the following drop-off times:
Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Wednesday: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
If these times are not convenient, donations may also be dropped off at the parish office.
For questions, please email Susan Cross.
Clothes Closet at Christ Episcopal
The Clothes Closet at Christ Church, Buena Vista, needs new men's briefs and boxer shorts and women's underwear - all sizes, men's collarless tee shirts in all sizes, men's shorts, jeans, pants sizes 30 to 36, and new or gently used men's socks. They are not accepting any other items at this time as they are chock full! The Clothes Closet is open every first and third Saturday of the month from 9 a.m. until noon. You may drop your items off then. Alternately, you can bring your items to the Grace Episcopal Church office and Lisa will ensure your items are conveyed to the Clothes Closet. Thank you for your support of this valuable asset to our community.
Prayer List
Please pray for the wider Church and intercessions requested by our Congregants: Pray for Presiding Bishop The Most Rev. Sean Rowe. Pray today for the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia and our Bishop The Rt. Rev. Karin McPhail. Pray today for the residents of Boys Home, their Executive Director, Chris Doyle and their chaplain, the Very Rev. Katherine Doyle. Pray for God’s blessing on the peacemaking labor of Anthony Poggo, former bishop of the South Sudanese diocese of Kajo-Kejil and now serving as Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, and Ezekiel Kondo, Archbishop of the Episcopal Church of Sudan, and Justin Badi Arama, Archbishop of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan. Pray for Brendon, Timmy, Laura Stearns, Lynda deMaria, Jeff Mason, Kent Wilson, Jerry & Ann Nay, Paula Cooper, Sharon Humphreys, Elizabeth Klein, Dot Fogo, Buddy Atkins, Dennis Coughlin, Gerry Locher, Mo Littlefield, Tena Clark, Shay Peters, Meg Moss, Steve Lawrence, Patricia Williams, Peggy Matheson, Sid, Allison Williams, Biddy & Chuck Watson, Sue Denson, Michelle Mackie, Gary Steinmiller (cousin of Darlene Keane), Virginia Cooke, Melissa Cox, Melanie Griffis, Mike and Sue Ellen Jent, Kathleen Egan, Lizzie Scott, and those we name aloud or in our hearts. Pray for the people living in war, pray for cessation of violence, and for reconciliation, and peace. Pray for those who have died, especially Bettie Cadden and Dave Egan (friend of the McGuires), Mark Kenneth Monthie (brother of Phyllis Hugg).
In Thanksgiving for August Birthdays
8/14 Gerry Locher, Kathy Kozak, David O'Connor
8/15 Uncas McThenia
8/17 Kent Wilson
8/18 Luke Camp
8/20 Marjorie Connolly
8/21 Lena Simcoe
8/26 Elaine Nelson
8/28 David Howison
8/29 Pierson Hotchkiss
8/31 Pat Gibson
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