We welcome as friends everyone, of any race, gender, creed, denomination,
political affiliation, or
sexual orientation, 
for all of  us
"are one in Christ Jesus" 
(Galatians 3:28) 

All Are Welcome! ¡Todos están Bienvenidos!

St. Paul's Episcopal Church of Bakersfield welcomes you to worship.  We invite you to join our inclusive community as we deepen our awareness of the presence of Jesus Christ in us through the Episcopal tradition of inclusivity, worship, and service.  We welcome all to share His joy and love with us, rejoicing in the transforming power of the Spirit.​


This Week
by Patty Wiesner,
Bishop's Committee Member
​

                                          The Voice of God 

        You know when someone says God speaks to them? I'm talking an actual, booming voice spoke directly to them telling them what to do, or what their congregation needs to do. That never made sense to me. I've never actually heard The Voice of God but somehow I know that God is listening, God is answering, and God is speaking directly to me. It's quite a profound feeling knowing that the Almighty, the Creator of all has time for little speck-of-dust-me in the endless expanse of time.

        I have quite a few friends who are non believers, many who consider themselves "spiritual but not religious", others who can't commit themselves to a church; some don't think church has any of the answers and others can't understand how church doesn't have 𝘢𝘭𝘭 of the answers. What is incredible about each and every one is that I see God in each and every one. That's the beauty of a relationship with God is that you don't have to define it with labels, it just is. I have some of the greatest discussions about faith, God, prayer, and church with these friends. 

        I hear, "but how do you KNOW there's a God?" quite often when sharing about my relationship with others who may not feel close to God. How do I know there is a God? The truth is I'm lucky. I've always believed and always had some sort of relationship with God. I always wanted to go to church and attended even when my family didn't. The church always felt like home. Since God has always been a part of my life I don't know when I started to notice God speaking, it was just little things here and there. Little prayers were being answered, little things falling into place when they seemed out of place and unlikely to happen. I do remember praying for years to give me guidance on how to hold things together with someone in my life. When I finally broke down in tears and said to God, "just let Your will be done. If things are meant to be, please show me the way to make this work but if they're not, let it be over." Not long after, I was able to walk away from a situation that had been miserable for years. I learned a valuable lesson, I learned to let go and let God guide me. My prayers had been answered for years, but I had been praying for the wrong thing! Up until that point in my young life I had never considered that God might answer the "wrong" prayers to teach us about what is best for us. What a revelation that was! After realizing that prayer is more than asking for what we think is right, I allowed myself to be open to what God has in mind for me and changed how I pray. Now I pray with deference for guidance, clarity of thought, and to interpret the difference between what I want and what I should want.

        Once I made that distinction I started to pray and meditate more thoughtfully. I pray all day, much of it like a conversation in my head with God, sometimes thanking sometimes asking for favor in a situation. I'll stop in the middle of a walk to just soak in and enjoy the beauty that was created on this planet-in these moments I'm thankful. When dealing with tremendous loss I pray to God for guidance through the grief-in these moments I'm hopeful. When I have sinned (or thought about all of the delicious ways I could sin, or when I'm really angry with somebody) I pray for forgiveness and to be guided away from sinful thought-in these moments I am strong. 

        I get a feeling, almost like a tingling, when I pray. I notice it when I'm around others, too. Sometimes I'll feel it during a sermon, other times when I'm around others doing God's work. It feels like God saying "yes it's Me." 

        This concept can be difficult for people to understand. It seems like some crazy cosmic mumbo jumbo to a lot of people; answered prayers are pawned off as mere coincidence or the power of positive thought. I wonder if God speaks to others like God speaks to me, in whispers and nudges. I truly believe so. I think this is what is meant by free will. There will always be a gentle nudge in the right direction. They're small sometimes, almost imperceptible. You can choose to follow it or ignore, whether willingly or unwittingly. Be still, wait in silence and open yourself to the possibility that right now, God might be speaking to you.

                     Are you listening when God whispers?
Click to set custom
HTML
Updated 07/12/2019
Join us for
Holy Eucharist Services
Sundays 10 am
(Child care & Sunday School available)
followed by Coffee Hour in Grace Hall

​St. Paul's Episcopal Church
2216 17th Street
Bakersfield, CA 93301
(661) 869-1630
Email St. Paul's
Church Office Hours:
​Monday-Friday from 9am to 1pm.
Check out our
Facebook Pages ​below
St. Paul's Youth Group
St. Paul's LGBTQ & Allies Discussion Group
The Millenials at St. Paul's

Upcoming Events

Monday, July 15
          6.30pm BC Meeting

Tuesday, July 16
          Nicholas, Alexandria, Alexis, Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia,  
          Passion-bearers, 1918
          8.30am Morning Prayer (Chapel)

Wednesday, July 17
          William White, Bishop, 1836
8.30am Morning Prayer (Chapel)
9.00am Eucharist (Chapel)
6.30pm Episcopal Youth Fellowship

Thursday, July 18
          Bartolomé de las Casas, Priest and Missionary, 1566
          8.30am Morning Prayer (Chapel)

 Sunday, July 14, 2019
           The Fifth Sunday after Pentecost
           8am Eucharist
           10am Eucharist
​           12pm-2pm Food Co-op