Yes, we had some struggles. Our Average Sunday Attendance (ASA) declined by 21 last year. Much of that can be attributed to our not having the Omega service, but not all of it. And even with a very faithful stewardship drive and even more faithful response, pledge income dropped slightly. But there is much more good news than bad news. You just heard about our financial situation, which is as good as it has been in several years. And we made even more progress in other areas as well.

When I stood before you last year, I outlined four goals that I had hoped we would achieve in 2009. One was to conduct a Faith Alive weekend, which we did. Led by Don & Mary Sonom, many people were mobilized to help and the weekend ran smoothly. While we hoped for more from the follow up, many people had their faith deepened because of the weekend.

A second goal was to bring a new Curate onto the staff. Mission accomplished! We have been very blessed to have Betsy, Gardner, Ben and Jonathan Randall with us. Betsy has brought new energy, new ideas and a new commitment to reaching out to our parish.
It will be a joy to serve with her as a priest following her ordination on February 2nd—I hope you will plan to be there.

A third goal a year ago was to, in light of the end of the Omega service, to ‘incorporate a contemporary service into our Sunday morning Schedule’. Thanks to the leadership of Greg Chard, this is occurring on the 3rd Sundays at the 11:00 service. We had one today—and they sounded great. That may change next month when I am able to return!

A fourth, more nebulous goal was to deepen our ministries. I need to thank the Vestry and especially our Sr. Warden, John Macaulay, for taking this on. The Vestry focused on three things last year—Stewardship, communicating more effectively, and making people more aware of opportunities to participate.

Without going into each of these, let me simply say that the Vestry’s work last year improved all three of these areas. You have a strong Vestry who serves you faithfully and well. They are a blessing to me and to the parish.

I also want to say a word about the staff. I am blessed to serve alongside an outstanding, talented, hard working, gifted staff. David Stinson continues to not only provide us with great music Sunday by Sunday, he also provides one of the best ways to get involved at Epiphany. We haven’t counted recently, but at least 80 persons are involved in some way in the music ministry of the parish, David being the prime pastor for many of them. Thank you, David. Toni Luc’s final day before becoming a mother was today. Typically, it was spent leading our young people in Christian service—the cleaner halls are the result of their hard work this afternoon. Over 30 young people and adults worked to make the parish more attractive and inviting. While she was not able to go, Toni helped put together this past summer’s mission trip to Uganda. It was Epiphany’s second trip, and it is a transforming experience for all who have gone. Toni is a gifted teacher and discipler who is making a real difference in the lives of many youth here at Epiphany. Sarah Jo Skinner continues to be a gift to the parish. (You may not know this, but our entire ministry staff all have master’s degrees—one of the most educated staffs around!) Working part time, Sarah Jo oversees the Sunday School program as well as our full to the brim Vacation Bible School and other family activities.  Our Support Staff all keep things going. Sue McDanel oversees a million details that no one notices (until we miss one!). Fely Eichenberger provides our Treasurer and Vestry with accurate financial information, and Becky Thayer oversees a Nursery that has been growing both in numbers and in times when it is open.

To all of these people, we owe a great debt of gratitude—you and I are able to serve and be nurtured here at Epiphany because of the efforts of these fine people.

While not on the staff, they are certainly here a lot—my family. I am blessed with two great sons and a wonderful wife, Melissa. Their love and support enable be to be a good priest. Thank you, and I love you!

So now to look ahead. In 2010 I have three goals that I hope we accomplish.

One is to develop a strategy for growth. It is said that if an organization is not growing, it is dying. I don’t want us to die. So I hope to appoint a Task Force to evaluate our strengths and even more importantly, to suggest strategies and things we can do that will enable us to grow as a parish. We have a good thing here—God continues to bless us—and my hope is that more people will find Epiphany and find it a place where they can know Christ and serve him.

Second, I want for us to begin to work to become a more ethnically diverse parish. The reality is clear—Richardson is becoming an incredibly diverse place, and if we are to be faithful where we are, we need to become more diverse as well. To that end, I plan to go to Latin America to study in a Spanish Immersion program hopefully to transform this gringo into someone able to lead worship in another language. Already, there are people here who are energized and ready to help make this a reality also. We need to do it carefully, prayerfully and well, but we need to do it.

Third and lastly, we live in a world where Christian and biblical values and worldviews are either not known or mocked. All of us need to, as St. Peter writes, ‘always be ready to make a defense for the hope that is within us’. (1 Peter 3:15)

Together with Betsy and other staff and parishioners, I hope that we make Epiphany more of a teaching and learning parish. We have many programs in place already doing this, but I hope we can have more opportunities for learning about the Christian faith and how it can make a difference in our lives and in our world.
And so, even in these challenging times, Epiphany is a good place in a good place. We can move ahead with expectancy and boldness, knowing that we serve and great and powerful God.

I look forward to standing before you a year from now with Epiphany even stronger and living ever more deeply into our mission to be “Servants for God, our Parish and the Community”.

Thank you.