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By Fr. Christopher P. Leighton, April 4, 2010 7:00 am

“I Will Sing Unto the Lord for He

Has Triumphed Gloriously!”

We sing praises to God for He has triumphed gloriously.  Defeated is death;  overcome is evil;  sin is forgiven and illness is healed.  Jesus is risen, Alleluia!

St. Paul’s, you have kept the season of Lent and put off the old in order to put on the new.  New we are challenged by the risen Lord Jesus to live in the power of His resurrection.  The Lord offers us power to live for Him and for others.  Miracles follow as we know Christ and make Him known.

The Easter season, which lasts this year until May 23, is the time to emphasize the victorious life.  As you sing the Lord’s praises today be conscious of His great love for you.  Let’s celebrate the new life we have in Christ!

“Sing to the Lord a new song;  sing to the Lord, all the earth.  Sing to the Lord, praise His name;  proclaim His salvation day after day.  Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous deeds among all the peoples!”  [Psalm 96:1-3]

May your Feast of the Resurrection be blessed by the One who is Himself the Resurrection and the Life.

Your brother in Christ

Christopher

The Rev. Christopher P. Leighton

Rector

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By Fr. Daniel Morgan, March 28, 2010 7:00 am

Grace and Peace!

“Grace and Peace to you from God our father and from the Lord Jesus Christ” [Phil 1:2, 1 Cor. 1:2]  Paul addresses the churches’ greatest need in his opening sentences of his epistles (and again in closing others).  We need to be handlers of Grace and Peace.  That’s not an easy task when all the stresses and strains of life are designed to pull us away from acting, thinking, hearing, feeling or speaking from the root of Grace and Peace.

There is a sacrifice that is necessary in order to have Grace and Peace be the center of who you are and how you function.  God has to have a point of entry to each of your days so that He has the chance to fill you and drive you and encourage you so that what spills out of your mind and mouth are words and actions that are grace filled and peaceful.

Paul says in Philippians 3:20-21: “ But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” If we are to be transformed into His likeness then we must do everything in our power to be immersed in His grace and peace.  Therefore, I implore you to consider a disciplined Holy Week.  Consider the Cross and all that leads up to it from the Triumphal entry today on Palm Sunday through the resurrection.  We are to enter into His Victory, His final teachings, His last supper, His feet washing, His torture, His separation from the Father and then we can revel in His Resurrection Power.  It is here we will find Grace and Peace.

Blessings

Fr. Dan

Rev. Daniel C Morgan

Associate Rector

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By Fr. Daniel Morgan, March 21, 2010 12:24 pm

Holy Week

Holy Week is a time to spend with the Body of Christ, remembering and celebrating Jesus’ glorious passion, death and resurrection.  This year at St. Paul’s, the following events have been planned with you in mind:

Saturday, March 27

9:30 a.m. Preparing the palms.  Come help prepare the church for Palm Sunday.  We will “strip” palm fronds for waving, and make palm crosses (an ancient craft which many of us have to relearn each year!).  This is fun for all, and may be a fulfilling experience for everyone, especially children.

Palm Sunday, March 28

8:45 & 10:30 a.m.  Litany of the Palms, worship, Holy Eucharist, dramatic reading of the Passion from Luke.

5:30 pm. Confessions:  The clergy are available for “walk-ins” for confession, in the prayer room.

6:30 p.m. “First” Sunday:  worship, prayer, Holy Eucharist.  Members of the prophetic teams will offer words of up-building for members and guests.  Bring a friend!

Monday, March 29

6:30 pm.  Confessions:  The clergy are available for “walk-ins” for confession, in the prayer room.

7:30 p.m.   The Way of the Cross.  This meditative and prayerful experience adapts the traditional “stations of the Cross” with Biblical support and prayers from the Book of Common Prayer.

Tuesday, March 30

10:00 a.m.  Worship, Holy Eucharist, Healing Prayer

12:15 p.m.  Agape Luncheon

6:30 pm.   Confessions:  The clergy are available for “walk-ins” for confession, in the prayer room.

7:30 p.m.  Holy Eucharist, Healing Prayer, Tunnel of Love.  This day adds to our regularly scheduled Tuesday Healing Service an opportunity in the evening for “a repeat service” for those unable to get away from school or work in the daytime.  In addition, we will experience “the tunnel of love” which is an opportunity for each congregant to receive prayer and encouragement by the entire prayer team.  This experience is one to which friends and guests should be invited as they will be particularly blessed.

Wednesday, March 31

6:30 pm.   Confessions:  The clergy are available for “walk-ins” for confession, in the prayer room.

7:30 p.m.  Creative Fellowship and Prayer

Because of the success of the Shrove Tuesday Talent Show, we are offering an opportunity for the sharing of creative gifts in a fellowship atmosphere.  We will meet in the Nave and members are encouraged to bring an offering of Scripture, a hymn or song to be shared.  In addition, we are encouraging those who have been painting, sculpting, writing, dancing, etc. to come and share their creativity.  You can also come and simply receive!

Maundy Thursday, April 1

6:30 pm.   Confessions:  The clergy are available for “walk-ins” for confession, in the prayer room.

7:30 p.m.  Holy Eucharist, foot-washing, stripping of the altar.  Jan Nel will minister the Word to us and we will Respond on this day in which we remember Jesus’ command that we love one another.

Good Friday, April 2

7:30 a.m.  “C” Project Prayer Breakfast at the Continental Manor in Norwalk.  Come and celebrate as Clarice Flagg is recipient of the Craig Mengel Leadership Award! 

10:30 a.m. Walking the Cross:  A prayer-filled procession from First Congregational Church along the

through Darien to St. Luke’s Church.

12:00-3:00 p.m.  Community Good Friday service at St. Luke’s.  Father Christopher will preach the 7^th Word (sometime after 2:00)

6:30 p.m. Confessions:  The clergy are available for “walk-ins” for confession, in the prayer room.

7:30 p.m.  Faces at the Cross.  This prayer service was introduced last year, with meditations led by St. Paul’s members portraying those who were contemporary to Jesus and were witnesses of his death.  It was well received last year and promises to be inspiring.

Holy Saturday, April 3

5:30 p.m.  Confessions:  The clergy are available for “walk-ins” for confession, in the prayer room.

6:30 p.m. Prayer of Blessings by the clergy on individuals and families, in the Parish Hall.

Easter Sunday, April 4

8:45 a.m. & 10:30 a.m.  Festival Eucharist

with the Pivot men singing at both services.

An Easter Egg Hunt follows the 10:30 service.

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By Fr. Christopher P. Leighton, March 14, 2010 10:16 am

“The Garbage!”

A cartoon that was a favorite of my family of origin was of a woman with curlers in her hair, dressed in a bathrobe, holding a full trash can.  She was standing over a man wearing a powdered wig.  He was sitting, composing music at a keyboard.  The caption read, “Johann, the garbage!”

Even musical geniuses have to do the mundane, everyday chores of life.  You may think from time to time that it becomes routine or boring to confess our sins.  Is it possible that it is meaningless and an intrusion in what we would otherwise rather be doing?  Such thinking shows us how far we can stray from our Maker who loves us.  The Lord God doesn’t want anything to come between Himself and His children.  Sin separates us from God, and confession from a sincere heart restores us.

Think about it and you figure out that confession is good for the soul.

Christopher

The Rev. Christopher P. Leighton

Rector

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By Fr. Christopher P. Leighton, March 7, 2010 8:00 am

Waste Removal

As a boy I was responsible for removing solid waste from the home.  I am still the “trash guy” in our home.  Nearly every day I “kick it to the curb”.  There is something liberating about taking out the rubbish.

Janet and I were once shopping for a home to buy.  One house we looked at had a terrible odor about it.  When I opened the door to the cellar I was confronted by a large pile of trash nearly one story high.  Someone had simply dumped the trash down the stairs.  Over time, a disgusting and unhealthy condition arose.

Confessing your sins to God is like taking out the trash.  It is for your own good.  King David did some bad things and he held back his sins from God.  He writes in Psalm 32:3, “When I kept silent my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.”  It was as though David was rotting on the inside.  He says he got relief as he turned to God:  “Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity.  I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord’ and you forgave the guilt of my sin.”  [Psalm 32:5]

Don’t forget to take out the trash!

Christopher

The Rev. Christopher P. Leighton

Rector

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By Fr. Christopher P. Leighton, February 28, 2010 8:00 am

Scrubbing

Although my mother was domestically challenged, she was very clean and saw to it that things were always in order and well-kept.  I must have been about eleven or twelve years old when I was thoroughly instructed in the way to scrub and clean a bathroom and then I was turned loose.  I received 50 cents for a full bath and 25 cents for a half-bath.  It was a good wage and I earned it by doing good work.

There is something cathartic about cleaning a bathroom.  The same can be said about the way God gives us His Spirit to scrub and clean our lives.  He does His part and we do ours by confessing our sins to God and, at times, to one another.

The Scriptures say. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”  [I John 1:9]

Be sure to take advantage of God’s offer to become clean!

Christopher

The Rev. Christopher P. Leighton

Rector

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By Fr. Christopher P. Leighton, February 21, 2010 8:49 am

St. Paul’s!

How do you pray for St. Paul’s?

A great way to reflect on the answer to this question is to read the prayers of St. Paul in his epistles.  These prayers are ancient, yet they are so alive and applicable to the church of the 21^st century.

You could even say that Paul is praying them today in the communion of saints.  We will be embarking today on a series of sermons Sunday mornings through Easter. 

Here are the texts:

·         February 21          Ephesians 1:15-23

·         February 28          I Thessalonians 1:2-3; 2:13; 5:23

·         March 7                 Ephesians 3:14-21

·         March 14               Romans 15:5-6, 13

·         March 21               Philippians 1:3-11

·         March 28               Philemon 4-6

·         April 4                   Colossians 1:3-14

Look up these passages.  Study them and join in.  Let’s pray these prayers with St. Paul for St. Paul’s.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.  With this in mind be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. [Ephesians 6:18]”

I pray that your Lenten season is blessed,

Christopher

The Rev. Christopher P. Leighton

Rector

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By Fr. Christopher P. Leighton, February 14, 2010 8:44 am

The Days are Lengthening

The days are lengthening – that is what Lent literally means.  As daylight increases, we not only anticipate the coming of Spring, but the season of the church year when we prepare for Holy Week and Earth.

What will you be doing to prepare yourself this year?  What will you give, and what will you take on, as part of the self-denial long associated with the season of Lent and with the Christian life?

I am asking that we all join together as a parish community to pray for our neighbors as we use daily the format in the booklet “Seek God for the City”.  It is vital that we pray for and go into the world to share Jesus.  Our days are not only lengthening they are being filled fuller!

With love in Christ,  

Christopher

The Rev. Christopher P. Leighton

Rector

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By Fr. Daniel Morgan, February 7, 2010 8:00 am

Super Bowl Sunday

Don’t you just love a good contest? Football is a great example of the challenges, agony and effort it takes to win in battle. You never see a team show up on game day and say…“You know what?…. I think we’ve done enough…. We’ve made it through the playoffs, we’ve proven that we are a top ranking team and that’s good enough…Let’s just throw the game because we don’t have anything to prove.” That’s just crazy. No one in their right mind would think that it’s okay to give up even if the outcome is a loss. The Colts and the Saints will not be denied the chance to show the world what they are made of. We will cheer with the team of our choice in their advances… we will cringe at the flying tackles and ‘clothes-line’ plays… we will marvel at the half time show…. And as we watch this sport, we honor the effort and trial of the competition.

Just like any good athlete we have the pursuit of victory as the core of our being. God’s call to us is not to “kill em’ with kindness” and let the world use us as their doormat, but to love, to encourage others so that they may find the same transformation in Jesus Christ that you have. WE DON’T GIVE UP because we have nothing to lose. Paul says: ‘to live is Christ and to die is gain’ (Philipians 1:21). So in Christ, for us ‘Life is Good’ and ‘Death is Better’ because we are free.

Hebrews 12:1 says: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” This is our call to join in the life that God has called us. With him nothing can ‘hinder’ or ‘entangle’ us. Because of His sacrifice we can laugh, love, work, play, dance, sing, serve and sacrifice all to His honor and glory.

So let’s keep pressing on, pressing in and using the gifts we have been given, following the course that God has ‘marked out’ for us, and doing it with everything we’ve got! Find out what’s been marked out for you and GO FOR IT!!!

Blessings,

Dan

Fr. Dan Morgan

Associate Rector

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By Fr. Christopher P. Leighton, January 31, 2010 8:00 am

The Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul

Oh God, by the preaching of your apostle Paul you have caused the light of the Gospel to shine throughout the world:  Grant, we pray, that we, having his wonderful conversion in remembrance, may show ourselves thankful to you by following his holy teaching;  through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

It is striking to think that this prayer has been prayed in Anglican churches throughout the world this week.  I am especially delighted with the request “Grant we pray that we, having his wonderful conversion in remembrance, may show ourselves thankful to you by following his holy teaching.”

The whole Anglican Communion – 70+ million strong – prays with appreciation for St. Paul’s conversion and seeks to obey his teaching.  Well…

Let’s make it a point to do so here.  We are St. Paul’s Church.  We were named after the Blessed Apostle.  Whatever anybody else says or does is what they say and do.  They and we are accountable to God.

I just know we are seeking to obey St. Paul’s teaching and all the teaching of the Bible.  We love God and we believe those who love God are called to obey Him.  Jesus said, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.”  John 14:23

Your brother in Christ

Christopher

The Rev. Christopher P. Leighton

Rector