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2 THE SHEPHERD • JULY 2023 • SAINT SPYRIDON GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF SAN DIEGO As you all know, we just finished putting on our annual Greek Festival which was again a tremendous success thanks to the hard work of so many. In the end, I am reminded every year of what can be accomplished when so many people come together to share their time, talent and treasures. It is truly a labor of love that shares our culture and love with the community. This month, I was also reminded that each day brings challenges to all of us. On the Sunday following the Festival, I spoke to a dear friend, the kindest man, who is usually upbeat. I asked him how he was, and he said, “I’m striving.” I felt his struggle and searched for something to say, but he said we would talk later. The next morning, I was reading the Daily Prayer Team message. Ironically, the message was about dealing with life’s struggles. In his Daily Pray Team email, Father Stavros spoke of how nothing separates us from the love of God, except us! He encouraged any- one who is at a low point and wonders if it will ever get any better than to read Romans 8:38-39: “For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” He also suggested going to a place by yourself where no one can hear you and screaming out — “NOTHING CAN SEPARATE ME FROM THE LOVE OF GOD!” My encounter reminded me that each new day/ week presents different things for each of us. For some, the new day/week is full of opportunity and for others, it is filled with challenges. In our strug- gle, I pray we can all find solace in the fact that when our cross becomes too heavy, there are people around us who are willing to lend a hand when we ask. I also pray to those of us who are fortunate will find it in our hearts to reach out to those in need. Ultimately, we are told to do two things, to love God with our whole heart and to love one another. I pray the summer will bring rest and sunshine to all your worlds. Many Blessings, Jim Gilpin Parish Council President ...our annual Greek Festival ... was again a tremendous success thanks to the hard work of so many. FROM THE PARISH COUNCIL PRESIDENT As we are still not meeting during the sum- mer months, we stay in touch with one an- other – even if only from afar keeping one another in our prayers, sharing parts of books we’re reading or prayers that we have discovered “mutually encouraged by each other’s faith,” as St. Paul writes in Romans 1:12. We also use this time to find a variety of places to expand our understanding and use of the Word in our daily lives. We find op- portunities for growth in a variety of places. One of these helpful places is an app called GOA Digital Chant Stand which covers all the daily services of the Church. Some of us find that reading these or listening to the weekly Sunday Orthros service gives us gems of understanding the Word in the daily kon- takion or hymn like this one referencing the Ascension of Our Lord and Savior: “O Christ our God, upon fulfilling Your dis- pensation for our sake, You ascended in Glo- ry, uniting the earthly with the heavenly. You were never separate but remained insepara- ble, and cried out to those who love You, “I am with you and no one is against you.” This is such a comforting thought that Christ is nev- er far from us; He is always with us. We only have to remember that and to call on Him in prayer. Another way that we find growth in theWord is by strengthening our habit of contemplat- ing the daily Epistle and Gospel readings. A recent one is where Luke describes in detail Paul’s ship journey to Rome in the Acts of the Apostles Ch.27. In the midst of a terrible storm and weeks adrift at sea not knowing exactly where they are, Paul encourages oth- ers and says that though there may be great loss no one will lose his life. This reminds us that when Christ’s disciples were threatened with death on the stormy Sea of Galilee, Jesus came to them and said, “Be of good courage, it is I” (Matthew 14:27). Also, in Matthew 8:23-26 when a storm arises while Christ is asleep in the boat with his disciples, they cry in a panic “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” and what does He answer? - “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith? Then he arose and rebuked the winds and the sea and there was a great calm.” Christ doesn’t ever tell us, “if you believe in Me, everything will be happiness and roses.” He doesn’t promise us that there never will be “storms” or scary events, but He does prom- ise us that He is always with us and nothing can be against us as long as we remember that, pray for that, and hold fast to it in faith. With All Faith, Peace, & Love in our Ev- er-Present Lord, +The Women of the Word Bible Study Group WOMEN WORD OF THE Welcome Summer! The bookstore has a wonderful selection of chapter books perfect for your child’s summer reading. Come take a look! A noteworthy book to search for is: Spyr- idon’s Shoes. It is encouraging, uplifting, and faith-strengthening. Written with sim- ple language and great for family out-loud reads. In the book, young Spyros spends his days shing in Corfu and dreams of attend- ing school like his best friend. When he en- counters an elderly man on the beach after an accident, his whole life begins to change. But who is this saintly man he interacts with? Take a short trip back in time to the Greek Island of Corfu and discover the real mystery of St. Spyridon’s shoes. Another chapter book to consider is: Shep- herding Sam. It is book one of the “Sam and Saucer” series. This book includes thought- ful undertones that can spark conversations with kids about God and feeling like one doesn’t quite t in. The author uses a lot of humor and animals to pull kids in to read- ing. In the book, Sam’s Aunt says he’s like a tornado- he causes a ruckus everywhere he goes. But his Aunt won’t give up on him and neither will Saucer, the puppy corgi that lives at the nearby monastery. Saucer dreams of herding sheep, but there are no sheep around, so he tries herding everyone else- farm animals, the nuns, and Sam. However, Sam doesn’t want to follow anyone! But Sau- cer will keep trying to bring this lonely boy back to the flock. These are a small sampling of books available for your children to choose from this summer. We hope to see you in the bookstore! Wishing our parishioners and friends a won- derful and safe summer! Stephanie Mourafetis, Mary Mastorakos, Pat Tsopanoglou, Collette Pepelis, and Fran- cesca Captain BOOKSTORE