United. A Church for Everyone! DECEMBER 2018 NEWSLETTTER

Transcription

1 United A Church for Everyone! DECEMBER 2018 NEWSLETTTER

2 Matthew 24:36-44 No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him Hebrews 9:28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. These are just two of the hundreds of verses in both the Old and New Testaments that speak of the Second Advent (coming) of Christ. Where in his First Advent he provided our forgiveness, his Second Advent brings his rule and Glory forever. During this time of the year let us reflect on both his birth and his eternal glory. Twas The Night Before Jesus Came Twas the night before Jesus came and all through the house Not a creature was praying, not one in the house; Their Bibles were laid on the shelf without care In hopes that Jesus would not come there. The children were dressing to crawl into bed, Not once ever kneeling or bowing a head; And Mom in her rocker, with the baby on her lap. Was watching the Late Show while I took a nap. When out of the East there arose such a clatter. I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter, Away to the window I flew like a flash, Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash! When what to my wondering eyes should appear But angels proclaiming that Jesus was here, With a light like the sun sending forth a bright ray, I knew in a moment this must be THE DAY! The light of His face made me cover my head, It was Jesus returning, just like He had said. And though I possessed worldly wisdom and wealth, I cried when I saw Him in spite of myself. In the book of Life which He held in His hand Was written the name of every saved man; He spoke not a word as He searched for my name, When He said, It is not here, my head hung in shame. The people whose names He had written with love, He gathered to take to His Father above. With those who were ready He rose without sound, While all of the rest were standing around. I fell to my knees, but it was too late I had waited too long and thus sealed my fate. I stood and I cried as they rose out of sight, Oh, if only we had been ready tonight. In the words of this poem the meaning is clear, The coming of Jesus is coming near. There is only one life and when comes the last call, We ll find that the Bible was true after all! (Author unknown) Pastor Charlie

3 A Note from Terry Snyder It is so hard to believe that Christmas is so close (just over a month and a half as I type this), and the year is soon to close. The choir cantata (musical) I chose this year is called Good News From Home. Good cantatas can be difficult to find, but I think I found a winner. Wanda told me before a rehearsal that she likes all of the songs and really can t pick a favorite so far. The beginning song is Good News from Home Medley. The title song, Good News from Home is an upbeat song with a nice backbeat. This one makes me want to boogie. The medley part comes from it having parts of Angels from the Realms of Glory and Angels We Have Heard on High entwined into it. The next song is a song that some of you may have heard during the past few decades, Cherish that Name. It is a slower, more reverent song. Make Room for Jesus is a fun song in a style that is reminiscent of Rawhide on the verses, but picks up the tempo on the choruses. I feel like the track for the verses is missing a whip sound and horse sound effects, but the percussion on the second verse does emulate a horse gallop. It has a creative way of telling us to make room for Jesus by having the bass soloist (Jim Bozell in our case) singing from the perspective of the innkeeper who had no room for the Baby Jesus. A funny aside, Kathy Henry told me early on that she liked the solo and could sing it, but guessed that a man should sing it. I gave my sister a rehearsal CD later, and she independently, said she had fun singing it. She and Kathy (via texts between Kathy and me) teased each other as if they were going to fight each other for it. This song also adds a small portion of Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne into it as a bridge. Christ Is Born Medley offers yet another style. This one is a nice lilting feel in 6/8 time (think sort of a moderately fast waltz, but with a more modern rhythm section of acoustic guitar, bass guitar, percussion and additional instruments). Some of you might be familiar with the first song in this medley ( Unspeakable Joy ). This version is a bit faster than the one my sister and I had heard before, and it makes it much better. This medley also includes portions of What Child Is This. Manger Medley slows the tempo down again in another set of reverent songs ( Away In a Manger, Infant Holy, Infant Lowly, Silent Night! Holy Night! ). Oh, Holy Night! follows the preceding medley. That song (and perhaps Mary Did You Know ) are standards that more than one person seems to want to sing most years. This version starts with less instrument and builds to a majestic ending. O Night Divine is a beautiful ballad (with soloists Darla Bozell and Karen Parks). This is one of my favorites (if not the favorite of the cantata). My sister really loves this one as well. This song weaves in O, Come Let Us Adore Him which itself is a portion of O Come, All Ye Faithful ). Tell the Good News Medley is the final song (or songs since it is another medley). It starts fun with a faster tempo (with a nice backbeat as well) on the verses and then uses the chorus of Go, Tell It On the Mountain as its chorus before eventually reprising Good News From Home that we heard as the first song. It then goes into Angels We Have Heard On High and then back to Good News From Home again. It is a nice way to reinforce the message of sharing the good news, and ending with excitement. I am in the process of deciding who will be the narrators (or whether to use the prerecorded narration instead). My plan at the moment is to have this at our service on December 23 rd, but that is subject to change (if choir members have other commitments on that date). This cantata has a lot of familiar songs (but with different arrangements) as well as new songs and less familiar songs. I hope the church is full as we celebrate the Good News of Christ s birth and what it means to us.

4 December Memory Verse Glory to God in the Highest, and on earth Peace to men on who His favor rests. Mark your Calendars for Sunday, December 2. The children will be serving during the Church Service. They will serve in many ways. We are so excited to light the Altar Candles, Pass Out Bulletins, Collect the Offering, Read Bible Verses and even give the Grown-Up Moment (instead of the Children s Moment). I hope everyone can come! Children need to arrive by 9:10 a.m. December 7-9-Campout at January 13 Snow tubing Camp Louis Ernest Two Eagle Court of Honors were completed for Cole Witchurch and Nicolas Chevlier in the month of November. Beginning next year we should have one more new Eagle Scout. In November there was a 5K run at Ceraland, proceeds to help our council office. Our troop came in 4th in points. As always if any member of the church that is interested in Scouting be it a boy or adult we will be glad for your visit and interest. Stop by and visit. Boys age need to be 11 years old and less than 18 to join. Meeting time is Thursday at 6:30-8:00 in the Youth Center. Troop is in need of more adult leaders. If interested contact me. Roger Schaefer, Scoutmaster H C HOOSIER TRAILS COUNCIL TROOP 549

5 DECEMBER Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 2 Communion 1st Sun Advent Regular Service 6pm-Chapel Service 3 9am-UMW Service Group 4 1pm- Bible Study 7pm-Miriam Circle Christmas Party 5 NO J.A.M. 6pm-Choir Reh. 7pm-Bible Study 6 6:30pm-Boy Scouts am-12pm- Kids Christmas Workshop 9 2nd Sun Advent Regular Service 6pm-Chapel Service 10 9am-UMW Service Group 11 1pm-Bible Study 12 NO J.A.M. 6pm-Choir Reh. 7pm-Bible Study 13 6:30pm-Boy Scouts Regular Service 4pm-Caroling NO Eve. Serv. 17 9am-UMW Service Group 18 1pm-Bible Study 19 NO-J.A.M. 6pm-Choir Reh. NO-Bible Study pm-Boy Scouts th Sun Advent Cantata NO Eve. Serv. 24 OFFICE Christmas Eve 6pm Candlelight Service CLOSED NO J.A.M. NO Choir Reh. NO Bible Study Regular Service NO Eve. Serv. 2. Kenny Krebbs 5. Kiersten Voils Bryan Reed 10. Max Bettner 13. Sara Wilson Meara Lewellen 14.Tom Schuyler Larry Cox 31 New Year Eve OFFICE CLOSED 15. Avagail Aigner Charles Sites DECEMBER BIRTHDAYS DECEMBER BIRTHDAYS 20 Patsy Cox 24. Gus Lanham 25. Christy Fear 27. Raeanna Cox Chris Hunt 28. Kathy Warner Mary Gorman 30. Katie Niespodziani 31. David Stuckey

6 Merry Christmas!! Please excuse me but this little mouse needs to vent so indulge my rant, just this once. I m so tired of hearing Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas and Christmas trees being called holiday trees. The Christmas tree contains so many symbolisms that represent the birth and life of Jesus how could it be called anything but a Christmas tree? Whether your tree is topped by a star or an angel it represents the announcement of the Savior s birth. It was an angel who brought the good news to the Shepherds that night and the star shone brightly to guide the wise men to the place where they found the child. The lights on the tree represent how we need to share the light of Christ to everyone. The lights shine brightly to light the way to salvation. The tree, straight and tall, reaching toward the heavens would one day hold this tiny baby as He became our sacrifice finishing the work which began when He was born that Christmas night so long ago. But praise God, the tree was not the end because He arose 3 days later. Even the tree skirt that wraps the trunk of the tree is symbolic of the swaddling clothes that also wrapped the precious baby. The tree stand which holds the tree is representative of the manager in which Mary laid the newborn King. The presents under the tree are the modern day version of gifts presented to baby Jesus by the Wise Men. The gold, frankincense and myrrh presents carefully selected not only for their value but gifts worthy of royalty. Whew! Thank you for your indulgence I do feel a bit better. Hopefully, as you view the decorated Christmas trees, you ll remember just how much symbolism and how many links to our Savior s birth you can find in that one tree. I wish you a joyous Christmas as you celebrate the birth of our Savior! Rejoice in the birth, embrace the love He showed to all of us as He willingly gave up His place in heaven to come to be our sacrifice dying in our place so that we might live one day. As we look forward to Timothy

7 Thanks to everyone who helped to make our Thanksgiving meal a hugh success. Thanks to everyone who helped with the Hanging of the Greens to decorate our church for the celebration of the birth of our Savior. As we prepare our hearts for Christmas, it is also time to order Christmas Poinsettias to grace the sanctuary in celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Poinsettias are $7.00 each. Please contact the church office if you wish to purchase one. They will be available to take home after service on Christmas Eve. BIRTHDAY FOR JESUS - Birthday for Jesus is a new way you can honor the Savior s birth during the Christmas season. This opportunity is for families and individuals to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in over 200 countries. To participate in this opportunity please take one of the special marked donation envelopes (located in the Information Area), fill it out, and include the amount you wish to donate to the Gideons International in honor of Jesus birth. See Tom Hadley for more information. MORNING FELLOWSHIP TIME HELP NEEDED Ms. Paula does an outstanding job of always having snacks, coffee, and other beverages available during Morning Fellowship Time. Occasionally she needs to be away and is in need of someone to help keep things going in her absence. If you are willing to help with setup and/or clean up of the Fellowship Counter Area please contact Paula. If you like to donate some fresh baked cookies, coffee cakes, etc. please contact Ms Paula. Miriam Circle will meet for a Christmas Party on Tuesday, December 4. Details TBA. Kids Christmas Workshop will be held Saturday, December 8 10am-12noon. Volunteers are needed to supply a craft idea and/ or craft supplies. Volunteers are needed to help children at each craft station. Please sign up in the Information Area to help or see Don Wilson for more information. Come and help The Hadley s celebrate their 50th Wedding Anniversary on Sunday, December 23 from 12-2 p.m. in the Youth Center. DECEMBER 23, :30 a.m. Christmas Cantata 10:40 a.m. Sunday School DECEMBER 24, p.m. Christmas Eve Candlelight Service The Office will be closed December 24 ant 25, and Dec. 31 and Jan 1 in observance of the holidays. In Memory of Georgia Dix who went home to her Heavenly Father November 13, 2018 In Memory of Jim Line who went home to his Heavenly Father November 13, 2018 New Member Helena Gommel Joined our congregation on October 25, Address: Franklin Otterbein Senior Community W. Jefferson Street Franklin, IN *Our sympathy to the Dix family at the loss of loved one, Georgia Dix *Our sympathy to the Line family at the passing of Jim. Several items (pans etc) are missing in the kitchen. If you have borrowed any of them from the kitchen please return them as soon as possible.

8 East Columbus United Methodist Church 2439 Indiana Avenue, Columbus IN Return Service Requested SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICE TIMES 9-9:30 a.m. Fellowship Time 9:30 a.m. Worship Service 10:40 a.m. Sunday School 6 p.m. Chapel Service Charles Aigner, Senior Minister Angie Sherfick, Adm. Assistant Terry Snyder, Music Director Paula Turnbow, Children s Ministry Director Bob Fear, Facility Manager Phone: Office office@eastcolumbusumc.org pastor@eastcolumbusumc.org music@eastcolumbusumc.org Web site: Indiana Avenue Columbus, IN OUR CHURCH MISSION Growing the Family of God by Making Loving Disciples of Jesus Christ.