In The Parlor on May 6th

The Chicks with Sticks had a great time in The Parlor on the 6th. I hope the weather didn’t scare you away if you weren’t there because you missed a fun, action packed meeting.

Prayers and Prayerful Thoughts: The scene was set starting out with a word of prayerful thought from page 6 of The Upper Room which seemed to fit the Prayer Shawl Ministry so well. Beginning with the sentence that says “The wind of God is always blowing, but we must hoist our sails.” and ending with the last paragraph saying “Receive the presence of Christ, practice the presence of Christ, and be the presence of Christ to someone today.” From those thoughts, we went to prayer over completed shawls, afghans, scarves, and chemo caps. The completed items were taken to the cabinet in the pastor’s offices to be ready for distribution to those in need of comfort and healing.

Leadership Updates: There are a few changes in the Prayer Shawl Ministry leadership beginning in May. Lisa asked me to assume her duties as leader of the Prayer Shawl Ministry so she can emphasize her other duties which, I’ve discovered, are numerous. I’ve accepted her offer after much prayer and encouragement. Ellen has graciously agreed to be the co-leader. In addition, Martha and Robin have agreed to be on a Steering Committee with Ellen and me. Between the four of us (two knitters and two crocheters), the objectives are to find ways:

· To share God’s love, healing, and strength with as many individuals in need as possible through the items we make
· To be open to making new types of items if they will help us reach more individuals (like the chemo caps)
· To grow through the addition of new members so that we can reach the first two objectives
· To work through other ministries and groups at church like Stephen Ministers, Respite Groups, etc. who know people who may find God’s love through our works
· To find ways to make the Prayer Shawl Ministry’s work known to our church and our community so that we aren’t the best kept secret in the church any longer

This is going to take a lot of work and a lot of teamwork. I hope I can count on each and every one of you to join in, because one person can make a difference! The little things you do each day have the power to affect a great many people. We can make a world of difference to someone.

Project Tip: We talked about how to keep a pattern, the right needles or hook, and all of the yarn together when you weren’t working on a project, and I came across this tip on the Lion Brand Yarn website which I thought would work. Hopefully it will help several of you out.

"When knitting or crocheting a large item, such as a baby blanket or afghan, once I have completed several inches, I put the item inside a pillow case, leaving only the last few rows outside. On each side of the case opening, I then clamp a small hair "claw" to secure the project inside. (You could use clothes pins or binder clips instead to secure your work inside the pillow case.) This then goes in my knitting/crochet bag, along with the needles, directions, etc. I simply release the clamps whenever I have worked several more inches, dropping more of the item into the pillow case, then replace the clamps. This keeps the project clean as I work!"

Happy Mother’s Day!

Love and Blessings,

Beverly