…”He took along the child’s father and mother, and those who were with him, and entered the room where the child was. He took the child by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” The girl, a child of twelve, arose immediately and walked around.” Today’s Gospel is a powerful and beautiful story of the healing power and grace of Christ. Every day Jesus wants to raise each of us up to a fuller life, a deeper joy, a more abundant love in Christ. We pray for this grace to ‘rise up’ in Christ. Sometimes this happens physically. Christ always wants to raise us up to a fullness of life and joy in the Lord. Imagine Christ saying to you today, “ARISE” to a fuller life. He wants to be our help and our strength…our peace and our joy.
…Many, many thanks to all who ‘lifted up’ our parish community and our summer festival last week. So many of you…our members…working so hard to create some wonderful days of faith, family and fun for our community. You could feel the great energy and goodness of our parish community as you walked around the campus. You could see the goodness of Saint Ambrose in the warm greetings, friendly spirit, and great efforts to create a bright and fun festival. We battled through a few nights with some rain. Thanks be to God, and your goodness, we ended in a good place in every way. Lots of great people. Lots of family fun. Everyone safe. Praise be God. Watch for a wrap up in a few weeks after everything is put away and all the bills settled. God bless you a thousand-fold for your help, support and goodness.
…The raffle did very well, along with the Basket Auction booth. Many thanks to all who helped us have GREAT prizes for both the raffle and the baskets. They were truly wonderful. You can find a complete list of all the winners at: www.stambrose.us/raffle/.
…Many thanks to all who ‘lifted up’ our parish in prayer during the festival. A number of our members, who could not physically attend the festival, sent in wonderful emails praying for good weather, safety and the success of our community coming together for the festival. Praise be God.
…If you reflect on today’s Gospel, Jesus literally did a ‘home visit’ to someone infirmed/homebound. Our parish is blessed to have a wonderful group for people who continue this ministry in our community in the spirit of Jesus. Our “Good Sams” visit our homebound, hospitalized, infirmed, and those in senior care and skilled care facilities in our community. Every week hundreds of people receive a visit and have the opportunity to pray and received Holy Communion. It’s a blessing beyond words as we ‘raise up’ and care for our sisters and brothers. If you would like to learn more about being involved in the Good Sams, or know of someone who would appreciate a visit, please contact Fr. Rob at rramser@StAmbrose.us. It is a blessing beyond words to share in this ministry. It is a perfect continuation of the ministry of Jesus Christ that we are called to carry out and continue in His name.
…The Gospel is a story of a child being ‘lifted up’ by Christ. In the middle of July, we all have the opportunity to ‘lift up’ our youngest members and help them understand the promises and teachings of Christ at Vacation Bible School. Janet Majka and her team are working hard to create a wonderful, exciting, spirit-filled, and meaningful week for our children. See today’s bulletin for more details. VBS is a highlight of the summer and a great way for all of us to ‘pass on’ what matters most… our faith and love for the Lord. If you want to help or need additional information, please connect with Janet at jmajka@StAmbrose.us.
…Deb Houdek is hard at work in our PSR office getting PSR classes set up for another year. September will be here before you know it. Please help Deb by signing up for PSR today. Also, invite and encourage all your friends to help pass on the faith to their children. Registration forms can be found at www.stambrose.us/psr. It’s a GREAT week to sign up for PSR. BTW….there are three sessions to make it convenient for every family (Monday night, Wednesday late afternoon, Saturday morning).
…Can you believe this weekend brings to a close the month of June and opens the door to July? With it also comes the close of our parish fiscal year. It’s one more opportunity for me to express my deepest thanks to God for you and your support for our parish community. Your goodness and generosity fills this campus and allows the work of Jesus to continue every day at Saint Ambrose. Thank you so much. May God bless you for all your goodness.
…This past week our Vision 20/20 leadership team presented our Church repair/renovation plan to the Diocesan Building Commission. They were very complimentary of the design and the efforts that have gone into developing a complete plan for the Church. They were also supportive of the plan/proposal. This is great news for our community. They will formalize their recommendations for Bishop Perez’s review and approval in the next few weeks. Please continue to pray that the Spirit of God will guide our efforts.
…Thanks to your support, the proceeds from the Festival and Raffle will be used to repair and renovate the Chapel. Thank you so much!!!
…Someone asked, “can we still make a pledge?” The answer is “YES”. We continue to need everyone to support this effort as much as possible. Given the costs of materials (steel costs are up 20 percent and wood more than 30 percent). Your support will help make this possible for our community. For more information, or to make your pledge, please contact Jake Bihari at: jbihari@StAmbrose.us. God bless you.
…Over the past few weeks, we have all become more aware of the struggles and complexities of the Immigration debate taking place in our country. What is most important is that each of us take time to seriously and prayerfully understand and reflect on the issues at hand. Bishop Perez this past week issued a Pastoral Letter inviting all of us to learn more about the issue and prayerful reflect on your understanding and participation in the civic discourse. To read his letter and /or to learn more, go to: StAmbrose.us. Faithful Citizenship calls each of us to be informed and discerning as we engage in the conversations and debates.
…Again, many, many thanks for your help and support for the summer festival. It was a celebration of the goodness of our community. I pray that this week ahead, especially with the Fourth of July, will be a wonderful time for you and your loved ones to come together and enjoy these summer days. God bless you.
