November 30 is the minor festival of St. Andrew the Apostle. (It’s also my sister-in-law Abby’s birthday.) Our Andrew was very excited when it gave me the opportunity to remind him that there is an Andrew in the Bible. I guess that’s really the value of all the festival days on the Christian calendar. They give the opportunity to turn to Scripture, see those characters that played their role in the story of salvation, but more importantly, to see ourselves there, too.
Andrew doesn’t seem to play as large a role as his brother Peter, but it was Andrew who brought Peter to Jesus. And I love how automatic it seems for Andrew to do that. "The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus" (Jn 1:40-42). Perhaps we might also give thanks to God for those people who "brought us to Jesus" (perhaps they were named Andrew, too).
All praise, O Lord, for Andrew,
The first to welcome you,
Whose witness to his brother
Named you Messiah true.
May we with hearts kept open
To you throughout the year,
Confess to friend and neighbor
Your advent ever near.
A Shepherd's Story 
We were very fortunate to have an “Andrew” in our life!