Whatever parable Jesus uses to teach about the kingdom of heaven, He always talks to us about growth and increase. The enemy does not want us to grow and increase and will go to all ends to keep us out of the kingdom. Our job is to be vigilant in our efforts to be Christians. We are surrounded by the weeds temptation and selfishness; however, we are called to grow beyond this to be better people.
Our annual Vacation Bible School wrapped up over a week ago and it was a huge success. We had a record number of 190 kids participants along with over 60 adult and teen volunteers helping our young people grow in their relationship with Christ and the Church. I want to say a special thanks to Mrs. Pamella Johnson our Co - Director of Faith Formation, for developing and executing an exciting program for our young people. I also want to say a special thank you to our Co-Directors of VBS this year, Deborah Sorge and Maria Mays, with the help of Debi Tribble and all our parents, teens and volunteers for making this event happen for the people of out parish. On behalf of STHY, I want to thank you all. I want to take the time to thank everyone who has participated in the 2017 DSF campaign. “Go Make Disciples” is the theme for this year and our goal this year at St. Hyacinth is $84,000 we always strive for 100 percent participation from all of our families. The DSF raises funds to support the more than 60 ministries of the Church that no one parish on its own could ever accomplish, but that collectively we can all do to bring God’s love to all people. Most of these ministries operate behind the scenes and we don’t think about them because we just assume that the Church does them, but it can only be done through your support.
If we have 100% participation from everyone, we would make our goal easily. The average pledge is usually around $250. For those who have not given anything to DSF, could you please consider giving that amount this year? Or maybe make a pledge of $365 — a dollar a day to support those great ministries. Any amount that exceeds our goal is returned to us 50 percent (the other 50 % goes to help inner-city parishes in need), so it’s a blessing for us and the archdiocese. Please prayerfully consider what you will pledge to make DSF a sucsess.
Church attendance during the summer months tends to drop off as vacations and weekend sporting events often conflict. On the other hand, the services STHY provide with the parish and for the larger community continue year round, as do their associated expenses. Thus, your consistent financial support of our parish is vital to achieving our stewardship mission. The easiest way to be sure that your gift of treasure reaches us, even when you can’t be here, is through enrollment in our electronic offertory program: Faith Direct. Enrollment forms are available in the Church office or you can visit Faith Direct’s secure website at www.faithdirect.net to enroll on line. Our parish code is TX526. As always, know that your generosity is truly a gift from God.
Mark your calendars for special day to learn and develop your relationship with God. On Saturday August 5th from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm we will have a special day of recollection called “LIVE CHRIST SHARE CHRIST”. I invite everyone of STHY for this special day of Prayer and presentations on how to grow in our relationship with Jesus in the everyday life. There will be a special Concert on August 4th to kink off the events for “LIVE CHRIST SHARE CHRIST”
I send out my sincere thanks to all who made a pledge for our Building Faith, Family and Future… Our Sanctuary, Our Home, Capital Campaign. I truly appreciate your generosity and support. We have reached a milestone of $1,000,000 pledge level for the new Church. There is still time for you to make your pledge. Envelopes are in the Narthex along with our collection box specifically designed for our Capital campaign or you can do so online through the parish website. We are asking every family of STHY to consider an equal sacrifice, not an equal size gift. We can all do our part, and every pledge, of every size, is most needed and welcomed. Thank you for doing your part to help us reach our goal.