Heritage Presbyterian Church * 1400 East Second Street * Benicia, CA December A Life of Joy De la Oficina

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1 Heritage Presbyterian Church * 1400 East Second Street * Benicia, CA December 2018 A Life of Joy De la Oficina I had an interesting conversation with a church member following services one Sunday in November. It was the Sunday when some church folk (one or possibly more than one) set up Bearnabas with a Bible, a couple of pieces of candy, and a coffee cup next to the lectern. I had no idea that it was coming, and I was pleased and surprised - giddy, really - to see this bit of goofiness in the sanctuary. But I wasn t only pleased at what had happened. I was even more pleased because of what it says about the culture of the congregation. And that s what my conversation after services focused on. There is something different in the air, I was told, something. happy, joyous, comfortable about this church. Of course, that pleased me no end. I m not one of those pastors that is always stiff and formal, for whom the Christian faith is always supposed to be reverent and worshipful but is never supposed to be fun. Nor would the New Testament writers support such a view. The New Testament was mostly written in a time when the church was a marginalized religious offshoot of Judaism. Towards the end of the first century, the church became a persecuted religious group during the reign of the Roman Emperor Domitian (81-96 AD). So let s not pretend that the earliest Christians and the New Testament were written in a time of peace, prosperity, and tolerance. It was most certainly not. But despite this, we read verses like Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice (Philippians 4:4), or like Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls (1 Peter 1:8-9). This is not the kind of trivial joy that assumes that all is well and nothing is ever wrong. We all know that not to be true. No, the joy of the New Testament is that quiet confidence that we aren t alone in our struggles, that in the midst of our distress we are supported by our community and by the Holy Spirit; that quiet realization that our earthly trials are temporary, while our eternal salvation is forever; that confidence that comes with knowing that God will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more (Revelation 21:4). So during this Advent season, make sure you take time to just be joyful and joyous, even if only for a moment, in the midst of your stress and busyness. Even though we are all, in our own ways, suffering through something, let s all take time to realize that there is still joy in our souls, and let s all make that sense of joy the background of our advent preparations and celebrations. For this is the time where we focus our attention on the fact that God so loved the world - including us, our families, our friends, our coworkers, and even those with whom we are estranged. And this is the time when we sing with Mary, He has done great things for me, great things for me. Hallelujah! Amen!! Love always, Pastor Henry

2 DECEMBER 18 James & Janel Wright 23 Brook & Melody Seymour 8 Karen Kryger-Cohea 17 John Griffith 20 Win Kirkpatrick 23 Nancy Green If we are missing YOUR special date, let us know in the office! Birthday a nd Anniversary Blessings are given on the third Sunday of each month during Sunday morning wrship. You are invited to participate in these blessings during the month of your birthday or anniversary. The Women s Christmas Party is December 13 th 6:30-8:30pm at Melody Seymour s home. Once again, we will be having a cookie exchange and make up care packages of cookies to be delivered to those who cannot attend. This year we will be collecting NEW socks for children and women to be donated to SafeQuest. The First Week of Advent: Sunday, December 2 And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. - Luke 1:46-48 Open House at Kay Talbot s December 8 th 2-4pm (180 Wildflower Avenue, Vallejo (Glen Cove). Please come and find some new treasures you can take away-no CHARGE! Any donation will go to Heritage Church. You will find kitchen equipment, gardening tools, small appliances, and washer and dryer, a dolly, stuffed animals, jewelry, and miscellaneous household items. Everything must go! Rise Beckoning empty skies, a light comes breaking through burning ever so powerful. Painted star of early morn; its glow will find us peace. From the kingdom where love is new break of dawn, new life unfolding before our eyes. Glimpse up to the skies embraced in the light. - Andrew Weatherly This Advent season, how will you live into God s promise of a new dawn breaking? Help us fill the sanctuary with poinsettias for Christmas! If you wish to make this donation in memory or in honor of someone, please fill out the form available in the Narthex by Sunday, Dec 16 th. God of Advent, remind us to seek your light always even when darkness sets in. Amen Cheryl Toth and Leslie Perotti, Fellowship Elders

3 Poverty: Can I be reduced or even alleviated? Our next Better World event will take place Wed. Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. and will explore what causes, minimizes and ends poverty in our country and area. We will have a panel of authorities on the subject to learn from including our own Melody Seymour representing Benicia's Families in Transition. As long as poverty, injustice and gross inequality persist in our world, none of us can truly rest. - Nelson Mandela Pastor Henry's office hours for October are: 3-6pm: Wednesday, December 19 th All other hours are by appointment, only. You may also reach him at: pastorhenry.hpc@gmail.com Martin Luther King Day Celebration We are hosting a community even on Monday, Jan. 21 at 7 p.m. intoner of the late, great Martin Luther King Jr. We'll hear his words that speak as powerfully today as they did in hs time, share what his life and words mean to us, and celebrate his legacy with poetry and song. A reception will follow in Heritage Hall. Thank you for contributing so generously to the Holiday Food Baskets + grocery gift cards for the Thanksgiving holiday. We provided food, including turkeys, for three families (total of 13 people) from Benicia CAC and 3 seniors from Vallejo. A big thank you to the Madigan family who divided up into two cars and delivered to all three Benicia families. Dear Heritage Family, Through these stressful times we sincerely appreciate the cards and cookies. Your thoughtfulness was very up lifting. Love, Nancy and Roger Green

4 December 21 st is the longest night of the year. Ministry leaders of Benicia are offering a time of sacred space for people who are living through difficult times. It is the good news even in the midst of darkness that we offer peace, hope, and healing to those experiencing sadness. Please join us for a time of special music, scripture, silence, reflection, and healing prayer. Friday, December 21 st at 7pm St Paul s Episcopal Church 120 East J Street, Benicia Please join us for worship on December 23 for our annual Make a Joyful Christmas Pageant Noise Sunday! If you play any musical instruments please bring them at 9:00 for a brief practice. Contact Laura Fentress for more details and a song list. Christmas Eve Worship is Monday, December 24 th at 6:30 pm. The Christmas Joy Special Offering During Sunday worship on December 16 and 23 and on Christmas Eve, we will have the opportunity to share our gifts of Christmas Joy with our church leaders past, present, and future! Fifty percent of your gifts provides assistance for current and retired church workers and their families with critical financial need. The other half of your gift makes it possible for students to learn and grow in faith at Presbyterian related schools and colleges equipping communities of color. Our Christmas joy offering thanks those who have helped us on our faith journey and helps students with theirs as well. Handel's Messiah and the Magnificat will be presented by the Vallejo Choral Society and Chamber Orchestra Saturday, December 8 at 7 p.m. at Community Congregational Church here in Benicia, and Sunday, December 9 at 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church in Vallejo. Tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for seniors. More information and tickets at: Advent Devotional booklets are here for you to use daily during the season - pray, think, contemplate daily on the life and concerns of Mary as she waits for the birth of Jesus. Enhance your Advent experience. The devotionals are yours to pick up under our name tag display in the entry to the Sanctuary. A donation of $2.50 is suggested.

5 Thank you for your continued support of our St. Paul's Community Meal mission. Our next service dates are December 12, January 9 and February 13. There are several opportunities to serve. Many hands make light work. Please contact Ed Won or Nora Bergman if you are interested in helping. You can donate electronically through: The North Valley Community Foundation's Camp Fire fund: The US Wildfire fund at the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA): donate/dr000165/. OR The Presbytery of Sacramento has established a Camp Fire Relief Fund to assist Bidwell Presbyterian Church in responding to families affected by this disaster. Individuals and churches interested in donating can send checks (made payable to Presbytery of Sacramento) to: Presbytery of Sacramento CAMP FIRE RELIEF FUND 9983 Folsom Blvd. Sacramento, CA Funds collected will be sent to Bidwell Presbyterian Church in Chico, CA to provide resources for fire victims. For more information, please visit their website at: Christmas Adopt-a-Family. We will be providing Christmas food/grocery baskets to the same three families from Benicia CAC and three seniors from Vallejo who we donate to every year. In addition, we will be providing Christmas gifts for the nine children (ages 1-15) from said families. Food tags are now available for food and gifts, which will be different types of gift cards ($50 per child). If you prefer to donate money to go towards the food/ gifts, please write your check to HPC and put 'CAC Adopt-a-family donation' in the memo section. Susan Watkins will then be notified of the donation so that she can purchase the needed items. All food and gift items will need to be in by December 16 th. Deliveries will be on Sunday December 16 th. Please contact Susan Watkins if you have any questions or if you will be available to do deliveries (lifting required). Dear P4P Supporters and Friends, Exciting news! Together we raised $50, for the 2018 ride. The 5th annual Pedal for Protein s 50 riders, supporting congregations and many friends, made this possible. Pedal for Protein will be feeding necessary protein food to thousands of hungry neighbors in our Presbytery and one Presbytery Hunger Program mission project, because of our efforts! Full report will be available in December with breakdown of the disbursement of grants. Pedaling Blessings, Patty Sanders Pedal for Protein Ride Director Hunger Action Advocate Presbytery of the Redwoods

6 The Men s Breakfast will meet on December 8 th at 8am at the Benicia Grill (4760 East 2 nd Street). For more information, please call Bob Fentress. The Women s Zebra Group will meet on December 15 th at 9:30am Checking: Beginning Balance 101/18 $ 29, Receipts $ 7, Funds Available 36, Disbursements ($10,003.35) Cash Balance 10/31/18 $26, Savings Accounts: Building Fund $ 16, st Internet Bank of Indiana 78, Reserve Fund $ 25, Total 10/31/18 $147, The Thursday morning class meets on Thursdays, 10:30-12pm and a few of us go out to lunch after. Come and join us! Don t forget to send in your pledge! We need your financial commitment in order to plan for the 2019 budget. It s never too late to send it in. Thank you. Westminster Woods Retreats 2019 The women s retreat: January 11-13, 2019 This year s speaker is Rev. Linda Lane-Bortell. The men s retreat: February 15-17, 2019 Rev. Dr. Garrett Andrew is the guest speaker. More information is on the bulletin board in the Narthex or visit their website at Thank you for giving your input through completing the HPC Mission /Service Survey this past month. A total of 20 surveys were completed! Susan Watkins compiled the results and we will be discussing them at our upcoming session meetings to plan our service / mission activities for 2019!

7 December 2018 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 2 1st Sunday Of Advent Communion Hanging of the Greens 9 2nd Sunday Of Advent Communion Two Cents A Meal 16 3rd Sunday Of Advent Communion Birthday/Anniversary Blessings 23 4th Sunday Of Advent Communion Christmas Pageant 30 1st Sunday After Christmas Christmas Eve Worship 6:30pm Office Closed 31 Office Closed Referral Zone 7-9am Village Project 3-5pm Referral Zone 7-9am Referral Zone 7-9am 25 Christmas Day Referral Zone 7-9am Office Closed pm Sustainable Solano 2-6pm 9-2pm Feeding At St. Paul s Sustainable Solano 2-6pm pm Sustainable Solano 2-6pm Pastor Henry Sun s Office Hours 3-6pm pm Sustainable Solano 2-6pm 6 Bible Study 10:30-12pm 13 Bible Stud 10:30 Heritage Hall Rented 10-1pm Women s Christmas Party 6:30-8:30pm Bible Study 10:30-12pm Bible Study 10:30-12pm pm 10-3pm 10-3pm 1 8 Men s Breakfast 8am 15 Women s Zebra Group 9:30am Couples in Recovery 5:30-7:

8 Blessed Tidings is published by Heritage Presbyterian Church 1400 East Second Street Benicia, CA Dated Material! Worship 10:00am Fellowship 11:00am The Staff, Officers, and Ministers of Heritage Presbyterian Church Pastor: Rev. Henry Sun Ministers: The Whole Congregation Joan Burnett: Church Administrator Andrea McFarland: Pianist & Choir Director Kimberly Taugher: Clerk of Session Brook Seymour & Cheryl Toth: Treasurer Joan Burnett: Newsletter Editor Save the Dates! December 2 nd Hanging of the Greens December 9 th Retirement Party for Joan Burnett 11am December 23 rd Christmas Pageant December 24 th Christmas Eve Service 6:30 pm December 14 th Women s Christmas Party 6:30-8:30pm