…”Jesse sent and had the young man brought to them. He was ruddy, a youth handsome to behold and making a splendid appearance. The LORD said, “There—anoint him, for this is the one!” Then Samuel, with the horn of oil in hand, anointed David in the presence of his brothers; and from that day on, the spirit of the LORD rushed upon David.” This weekend’s first reading from the first book of Samuel is a great family story. Not unlike families and siblings in our time, the family had a hard time recognizing that the youngest could be the ‘one’ called by God to lead. How easy it is for us to overlook the talents and abilities of our family members. It’s often easier to look to friends better than our own. During this fourth week of Lent, let’s return to take a deeper look at our families. What makes each brother and sister (of any age) unique, wonderful, gifted and talented? Find a way to share with them what makes them special and wonderful in your eyes – and in the eyes of God. Let’s celebrate what is good and best in each brother and sister.
…God has given each of us unique gifts and talents. Our parish is blessed to offer a special program called Living Your Strengths. Over the past nine years, more than 700 of our members have participated in this three session opportunity to learn more and to do a better job of naming our gifts and talents – our strengths. Imagine if you were able to name and do what you naturally do best. Marian Badaczewski and Carol Maline will lead you through the Clifton StrengthFinder and a deeper understanding of how God made you wonderful and unique. The next series starts on May 3. Contact Carol today to reserve you place (CMaline@StAmbrose.us).
…So many of you have commented about how much you ‘love’ the doors that are in our sanctuary this Lent. Special thanks to Darren Cheresko for this beautiful gift to our community. Darren, Christie and their one year old daughter, Skylar, are active members of our parish community. It’s pretty clear that he used his gifts and talents in a wonderful way to serve God and inspire our parish community. Thank you, Darren.
…This is spring break for our school students (LAPS, SAS and BCS). Our building and grounds team has a long and full list of repairs and fixes that need to take place this week while our buildings are empty. If you have some ‘handy-man’ skills and want to join an amazing group of people who help our parish do so many things, please contact Ken Kukarola at kukarolapa@aol.com. We need you. A few hours from many hands will help keep our parish home in good repair.
…Speaking of spring break and the work of one’s hands….our Women’s Guild is an amazing group. They are spirited and energetic. They have an amazing bond of friendship and a deep desire to serve the Lord. As we prepare for Easter, they are going to use the HH kitchen this week to again make Nutroll and Poppyseed rolls for your Easter dinner table. They are homemade. They taste amazing… and they are only $12 each. All proceeds support the great work of the Guild. To place an order, stop at the Parish Office or call Ella Smith at 440.236.5930.
…Speaking of the HH kitchen….it’s been hard at work this Fish Fry Season cooking up and serving up amazing meals. God bless our FF crew. The carry out team has been amazing. They’ve broken all their records this year!!! This year’s proceeds will be used to continue to upgrade the cooking equipment in the HH kitchen. Join us on Friday!!
…BTW….last Sunday’s community meal served 375 people. God bless you and your support from the Souper Bowl of Caring. God bless our Community Outreach team.
…Speaking of spring and serving others, Community Service Day is coming soon….April 29. Watch for details. We need hundreds of us for a few hours. Together we can do great work for the Lord and those in need along with our community. Save the date. Make plans to join us.
…This past week we received a $200 gift for the Endowment Fund. One of our members had the ability to direct some funds from his company and they chose the Saint Ambrose Endowment Fund. These funds help secure a strong future for our community. For more information about the Endowment Fund, please contact Kathy Plavecski at kathyplavecski@yahoo.com.
…We had a great Lent mission last week with Fr. J.T. Lane, SSS. All who joined for his nightly presentations found them insightful, reflective and prayerful. Praise be God. The Lent Faith Sharing Groups are also going GREAT. I am reading the leaders summaries/E-mails and you can tell that the spirit of God is working in our community. BTW….are you one of the 1500 people who took a Little Black Book for Lent? Are you reading it??
…Many thanks to the Saint Ambrose School, Littlest Angels Preschool and PTU leaders for a GREAT Auction and Annual Fundraising event last Saturday. Thanks to the hard work of so many, they raised about $56,000 for the good of the school AND students in need scholarship funds.
…Our mission team is hard at it planning for the upcoming June trips. We have 65 people going to serve those in need. You can view the most recent newsletter for Mission Possible online at www.missionpossible.us. All your sacrifices in the Lent Rice Bowl will go to build homes for those in need in June. If all of us do something….small change….will make a big difference for those in need. We had one of our senior couples come to me the other day realizing that they cannot actually go on the mission trip, but they are working to provide funds to help furnish a home for a family. What a blessing. All of us together for the glory of God.
…I shared this with our Parish Team earlier this week. Father Lane, who led our Lent mission, is also the pastor at a large parish on the east side. He shared these impressions about our parish: “Of all the places I visit and go, I have never found such a warm sense of welcome and hospitality as Saint Ambrose. The members here are so friendly.” God bless you. Every member of the family making each person feel welcome!!!
…The first reading this weekend is a good reflection on family life. How can we celebrate and affirm the gifts, talents and uniqueness of each brother and sister? All of us are created and chosen by the Lord. Have a blessed week. Prayers for you as we each use these Lent days to make our return to the Lord our God.
