Text Box: Shepherd of The Hills Episcopal Church

Our mission is to be a beacon of faith known for engaging all persons in the love and truth of Jesus Christ

The Reverend Ladd Harris

Priest In Charge

Directions

Shepherd of the Hills is an exciting mission station for the Diocese of Central Florida. The church carries out the ministry and mission of Jesus Christ. We are a church very strong in missions by serving those in need in our community as well as keeping our Parish objective "to be a healing church."

 

 

 
Text Box: Please Come Be Our Guest! If you are looking for a new church home, please do call or e-mail us with any questions. People from all walks of life are finding support and encouragement in their spiritual path at Shepherd of the Hills. We are a church that works, plays, celebrates and worships together as family. Please visit with us soon at one of our services. Text Box: Ministry of the Month Flower Ministry The Flower Ministry was started by Jo Hagen in 1994 when our church became a mission church in the Diocese of Central Florida. Jo is a retired “Master” florist with years of experience in the St Petersburg-Clearwater area. She has also been choir director since the beginning. In addition, she was the #1 care giver for her husband, Burt, who was confined to a wheelchair. Talk about having a full plate! Then in 2005, Jo needed to have surgery on her back. So I thought to myself, “This woman needs help.” Then I volunteered to assist her with the flower arranging. With her encouragement, I became a student of the art. I’ve always had a strong interest in butterflies, and of course, flowers and butterflies do go together. Jo brought out a talent in me I didn’t know existed. It has been a joy for me! We shared arranging duty several years and in 2006, she turned the ministry over to me. The process starts with determining the necessary color and season of the church calendar which begins with Advent then Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, and so on. Then the shape of the arrangement is considered. The next step is determining the amount of flowers to purchase and placing the order with the florist. We use “Flower Time” here in Lecanto, as they always have the freshest flowers available. Then the flowers must be picked up from the florist and conditioned before arranging. Ingrid Sewell has been assisting with the arrangement over a year, but is away at the present time. If anyone is interested in learning the art of flower arranging, I would be glad to pass on what I’ve learned through the years. We try to keep costs as low as possible. A Sign-up sheet to give flowers is in the Narthex. Flower arrangements still remain $15.00 each. Text Box: SOS Ministry In April SOS served 11,366 lbs of food to 654 people: 184 children, 383 adults and 87 seniors.  We are preparing for our move to Key Center in Lecanto. This will take place at the end of the May. We will start food service on June 4th at the Key Center.  Key Center will help with the wiring and installation of two small air conditioners. Volunteers from SOTH,  House of Power Church and Good Shepherd Lutheran will clean, paint and help move our food and equipment to the Key Center.  We have started integrating our churches into working teams for our new location. It is very exciting and the energy level, already high, is soaring. 
Text Box: Taste of Alpha July 18 Click Here for More Information Text Box: Season of Pentecost The Day of Pentecost is a day of Christian celebration observed on the seventh Sunday after Easter. On Pentecost we remember an event that occurred to the disciples 50 days after the Passover during which Jesus was crucified and 10 days after they watched Jesus literally ascend into the clouds. The disciples and followers—we are told there were 120 in all—had gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the Jewish feast of Shavuot. With Passover and Succoth, Shavuot was one of the three pilgrim holidays on which all Jewish adult males who were able to do so were required to come to Jerusalem to sacrifice the first loaves from the new grain on the altar in the temple. When Jesus’ disciples met for this holiday it must have been a difficult time, given the recent events they had experienced. While they were gathered there was a sound like a violent wind, then something that looked like tongues of flame came down and rested on each person’s head. The disciples all began to speak in such a way that people of many different languages could understand them, each in their own language. Hearing the noise, others came to investigate and were astonished to hear this group of mostly uneducated Galileans speaking the various languages of many countries. The people began to ask each other what all this could mean. Some thought the young men must be drunk, but Simon Peter pointed out that it was only 9 o’clock in the morning and offered another explanation: Peter equated the events of Jesus during his life and beyond with fulfillment of prophecy, reminded them of the miracles they had all witnessed, including their Rabbi’s resurrection. He equated the physical ascent of Jesus that they had witnessed to Jesus’ being exalted to the right hand of God and declared that it was the Spirit of God, which Jesus had promised, who had “poured out” what the crowd was seeing and hearing that day. His conclusion was that God had made Jesus both Lord and Messiah. The first Pentecost ended with Peter baptizing all 3,000 people in the crowd in the name of Jesus. Christians consider the Day of Pentecost the birthday of the church because, from that moment on, the disciples carried the message of Christ everywhere they went all over the world. A Pentecost tradition is to wear red to symbolize the tongues of flame and the Holy Spirit. The Season after Pentecost, in which Christians develop their relationship with the risen Christ, lasts from the Day of Pentecost to the day before Advent. Thus it begins on May 31 this year (2009) and ends on November 22. (In 2010 Pentecost will fall on May 23 and the Last Sunday of Pentecost will be on November 21.) Decorations on the Day of Pentecost are red to symbolize tongues of flame and the Holy Spirit; during the season of Pentecost they are green to symbolize the growth and life of the church. Adapted from St. George’s Episcopal Church Website

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