Sunday, November 22, 2009...This has been an extraordinary day for myself, my family and the parishioners of Grace Church...night has fallen, the Rectory is quiet and as I sit in my office I can reflect upon today's events.

Sunlight shined through the skylights, and music and voices in joyful song filled the air as I walked down the aisle of Grace Church, our Church, for the first time as your Rector.  As I turned and saw you, the members of our congregation before me, my heart was filled with great emotion knowing that God had worked yet another miracle by bringing us all together to serve a great purpose.

Together, we will share a future where we will welcome newcomers to our Parish, broaden and deepen our faith and reach out to a wider community in order to Grow the Church, Form the Faithful, and Change the World.

During our prayers, the voices of the faithful, your voices, filled Grace Church with devotion, hope and promise for the future.  We are fortunate to "live in exciting times" not only for Grace Church but the entire Diocese.  As I join you as your new Rector, we also are very fortunate to have a new Bishop...Rt. Rev. Lawrence C. Provenzano is the eighth Bishop of Long Island to serve since the Diocese was founded in 1868.  He is a dynamic and devoted spiritual leader who brings a vibrancy and enthusiam that will help keep the flame of faith and service strong throughout Long Island.

I was so pleased to be able to chat with so many of you during the welcome breakfast and hear about your wonderful experiences at Grace Church and your eagerness to be involved in Church activities as we go forward.  Having the name tags certainly helped me to put names with the faces I saw during our service.

Your warm welcome and generous gifts given to myself, my wife Emily and my children were deeply appreciated.  I wish to thank the Vestry and the members of the Search committee for hosting the welcoming event.  Their hard work is reflected in the activities and spirit I see throughout the Church.  The kitchen volunteers must be especially complimented for their efforts...and the bagels were excellent...something I developed a taste for while serving in Brooklyn.

Many thanks to you all for your wonderful welcome.  Let us go forward together to help one another and serve the Lord.

More to come in the Rector's blog.

 Faithfully yours in Christ,

(The Rev.) Josh Walters                                                                                Rector of Grace Church, Massapequa

This entry was posted on 11/23/09 and is filed under Rectors Blog. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.