St. Anthony on the Desert Episcopal Church
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#stanthonydesert

The Season of Lent

2/26/2020

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Dear Families,
It is the season of Lent. This  week you will receive in the mail a book titled Make Room: A Child's Guide To Lent and Easter by Laura Alary. I thought this would be a great book for you to share with your children during this most holy season.
I believe with my whole heart that you can have a beautiful SIMPLE Lent. I also believe that you need to give Lent some thought before it begins. I encourage you to not only come up with some resolutions, but also plan a beautiful and life-giving activity for the whole family. 
A lot of our Lenten Resolutions are a good start on this quest of making room, but on their own they don't quite get the job done.
  • We give up Netflix.
  • We sign off of Facebook.
  • We abstain from desserts.
Cutting these things will give us more time and space...but just cutting something can create a vacuum.
  • What will we do INSTEAD of watching Netflix at night?
  • What will we do INSTEAD of scrolling Facebook in our downtime?
  • How will we FILL OURSELVES if not with sugar and desserts?
These are the key questions we need to answer before Lent begins.
The simple answer, of course, is that when you clear away the junk, you need to let God fill that space.
  • If you resolve to stop scrolling your phone, then use that time to pray.
  • If you resolve to stop eating out as a family, then use that extra money to feed the hungry.
  • If you resolve to cut Netflix, then use that 45 minutes to spend time with your family or read a spiritual work.
  • And, if you resolve to limit your outside commitments as a family, consider adding time to volunteer .
Be bold in your resolution, but keep in mind that Lent reminds us that we have limitations.
We only have 24 hours each day. We are limited in our energy, resources and emotions.
Over the past year we have said "yes" to a million little things, and those little things have piled up. It's time to step back and start clearing away the clutter. With each thing we clear away, we are saying "yes" to God. We are giving Him the space He needs to heal us, love us, lead us. (I adapted some of these ideas from Catholic Sprouts.)
It's time to make room for what is important.
Be well, and happy Lenten planning!
Blessings,
Suzette

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Blessing of the Backpacks

8/7/2019

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Our annual Blessing of the Backpacks and commissioning of teachers and youth leaders
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Message from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry

7/31/2019

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Take a moment to watch this short video message and prayer from Presiding Bishop Curry to all students for the start of the school year.

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Welcome to our new Children's Ministry Team

8/19/2018

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Special thanks and blessings to our dedicated Sunday school team, a group of loving and talented storytellers who joyfully walk with our children on their spiritual journey.
Stephen Cihak
Marianne Clarke
Janelle Liffiton
Leanne Murrillo
Melody Taylor
Justin Hinch
Jamie Hinch
Scott Woods
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Christmas by the Book

12/17/2017

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Our annual Christmas Pageant Christmas by the Book, was beautifully performed by our youth and children, including some of our very youngest members. We thank all the actors and their families who made this pageant great and the adults who worked behind the scenes, Scott Woods, Mark Culbertson, Suzette Woods and Marianne Clarke.
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Feed My Starving Children Event

11/25/2017

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On the Saturday after Thanksgiving a group of St. Anthony children, youth, leaders and parents participated in a food packing event at Feed My Starving Children in Mesa. Joined by other groups throughout the valley, in two hours 172 cases of food were assembled and packaged for shipping to Cambodia. This equates to 37,152 meals, feeding 101 kids for one year at a cost of $8,173.44. Not bad at all for a morning's work. Thanks to all who participated.
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Pumpkin Decorating at Sunshine Acres Children's Home

10/14/2017

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One of the highlights of our fall season was being invited to Sunshine Acres in Mesa to host a pumpkin decorating party for some of the children who reside there. It was a great day with lots of kids coming. A group of children, youth, parents and leaders from St. Anthony brought the supplies, some special cupcakes and lots of enthusiasm. A huge shoutout goes to James Bruzzi of Bruzzi Vineyards in Young, AZ, for supplying the pumpkins.
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in the inspire labyrinth and garden

3/22/2017

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Our children and their leaders working in the garden and walking the labyrinth at St. Anthony
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Our Wonderful Acolytes

2/20/2017

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Picture
Thank you for serving your church community.
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Welcome to our New Godly Play Room

2/20/2017

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The children are listening to an old testament story told with the desert box.
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Saint Anthony on the Desert ~ 12990 E. Shea Boulevard ~ Scottsdale, AZ 85259
480.451.0860 ~ email: communications@st-anthony.net