December 2016 N E W S L E T T E R

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1 December 2016 N E W S L E T T E R SERMON SERIES: SURPRISED BY HOPE Many times during the holiday season we get overwhelmed with the details of buying gifts and planning family get togethers. We come to expect the stress. This season is really about the announcement that Jesus is coming. Shouldn t we expect hope? Join us this month as we look at those in scripture who were surprised by hope. SUNDAY SCHOOL As you re growing and learning to love God, connect with others, and reach the world, Sunday school is a great next step. In these classes you ll learn alongside others as you dig into scripture together. Here is a list of the classes being offered: 9:00am Matthew:Wisdom of Jesus Room 205, Leader: Ethel Haisley Sr High Youth Family Life Center, Leader: Chris Buffington 10:30am Living the Christian Life 24/7 Room 205, Leader: John Stark Lives of Integrity, Words of Prophecy Fellowship Hall, Leader: Amy Luedtke Jr High Youth Family Life Center, Leader: Tyler Sanders GIVE THE GIFT OF CHRISTMAS If you took a card from the Christmas tree in the Welcome Center your donation needs to be turned in to the office in a bag with the notecard attached by Wednesday, December 7th. Please do not wrap the gifts. IWU PRESENTS JOY TO THE WORLD CHRISTMAS CONCERT On Saturday, December 10th, the Indiana Wesleyan School of Arts & Humanities presents Joy to the World, a collaborative Christmas concert. Beginning at 7:30pm in the Indiana Wesleyan University Chapel Auditorium; ticket costs are $10 General Admission, $5 student, and free for children 12 and under. Tickets can be purchased at the division offices of Art + Design, Communication and Theatre, Modern Language and Literature, and Music. HELPING HANDS COOKING OIL DRIVE We are partnering with Helping Hands who are delivering 58 food baskets this year. Please bring your donation of a 48oz cooking oil to the Welcome Center by Sunday, December 11th. CHILDRENS CHRISTMAS PROGRAM December 11th during both services our children will be leading us through Advent. Practices for the program are taking place each Sunday starting at 10:30am and Wednesday at starting at 6:30pm. Club 56 will be practicing with Kids Church on Sunday Mornings CAMPAIGN 3 dollars to Kickstarter, 3 hours per week for 3 months. It may not take nearly as much as you think to serve the community. We re asking everyone to get on Kickstarter and pledge just $3 before the campaign closes on December 15th. To help out this project by giving, go to: Please note the lack of a t at the end of the link is intentional. Currently we are 1/3 of the way to our goal of $3,000. Also, if you have 3 hours per week you can volunteer at The Branch, then grab an application from the Welcome Center and get it back to Pastor Jeffery. There s a list of possible jobs next to the applications if you re curious about what you could do.

2 HOLIDAY CANCELLATIONS Dismissed December 21st & 28th. Prayer Meeting Dismissed December 21st & December 28th. Club 56 & Youth Group Dismissed December 25th & January 1st. Small Groups Dismissed December 18th - January 1st. OFFICE CLOSED FOR CHRISTMAS The office will be closed December 23rd-January 2nd. CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE Join us Saturday, December 24th at 6:30pm for a special Christmas Eve service. CHRISTMAS DAY SERVICE Christmas is on a SUNDAY!! This provides us with a special opportunity to celebrate the coming of Jesus together as a church family. We also realize this may cause conflicts with your personal family traditions. Therefore we have decided to hold only one service at 10:30am. Nursery will be offered but there will be no Sunday school or Kids Church. END OF YEAR GIVING Although regular, consistent tithing is the core of our church budget, as a charitable organization the church also welcomes your year-end financial gifts to either the general church budget or our outreach projects. Please keep in mind that IRS regulations require that contributions be postmarked or delivered to the church no later than Dec. 31, 2016 to be receipted in the 2016 tax year. Also note that church office hours and online giving processing by Stewardship Technologies will be affected by the holidays. Thank you for your faithfulness in bringing in your tithes and offerings throughout the 2016 year. May you experience the richness of God s presence and blessing in NEW YEARS DAY SERVICE On New Years Day we will hold only one service at 10:30am. Nursery will be offered but there will be no Sunday school or Kids Church. WEATHER RELATED ANNOUNCEMENTS Service cancellations due to inclement weather will be broadcast on WBCL, WBAT/WCJC, and WTHR (Channel 13). We will also post this information on the church website and Facebook page. We also offer text notifications, if you would like to receive them let us know in the church office. If the Madison Grant school system cancels school on a Wednesday, Fairmount Wesleyan Church will not be having programming or any other midweek service that Wednesday night. UPDATE ON THE BRANCH Volunteer applications are available in the Welcome Center for those who are interested in donating their time as cooks, baristas, event hosts/organizers, and many other jobs. Crews continue to work hard to get ready for opening day. If you are interested in helping with the construction phase of the Branch join us Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday evenings at 5pm, and on Saturdays at 8:30am. PRAYER SERVICE You are invited to join together to pray for our church, our community, and each other. We will meet in room 205 each Wednesday evening from 6:30pm-7:30pm. KIDS HOPE MENTORING One hour, once a week is all it takes to change the life of one child. Please contact DeAnn at or kids@fairmountwesleyan.com you are interested in mentoring so she can begin the process of matching you with a student.

3 ONLINE GIVING For your convenience, we offer online giving through our website fairmountwesleyan.com If you have any questions please contact the church office. Mobile apps are available in the itunes and Android store. (Stewardship Technology egiving) WELCOME CENTER If you are looking for information on small groups, Bible studies, Sunday school classes, sign ups, or specific ministries, we invite you to visit the Welcome Center. If you don t see the information you are looking for, please ask at the Welcome Desk and we ll get the information you need. SUNDAY MORNING HOSPITALITY Thank you to those who have provided snacks for Sunday mornings. If you want to be a part of this ministry a signup sheet is available at the Welcome Desk for you to select a day that you d be willing to provide the goodies. If you have any questions, please contact the church office. STAY INFORMED Our newsletter is a great way to get an overview of the upcoming months activities. For updates throughout the week check out our Facebook page at facebook.com/fairmountwesleyan or the church website at fairmountwesleyan.com. WELCOMING GUESTS When we talk about Fairmount Wesleyan we often think of the building or the institution, but really each person here makes up Fairmount Wesleyan. As a staff we want to do better at welcoming our guests and are asking you to join us. If you see someone near you that you don't recognize, introduce yourself. If they are new, let them know they can take a Connect Card to the Welcome Desk to receive a welcome booklet with a free gift inside. If they aren't new, but you haven t had a chance to talk with them, please do. Will you help us help others LOVE God, CONNECT with others, and REACH the world? MISSING As you look around on Sunday mornings, do you notice people missing? If so, would you be willing to reach out to them and let them know they are missed as well as invite them to join you for service, classes, or small group? In order for us to stay connected with each other, we all have to be involved! FINDING A PLACE TO SERVE Have you found your place to serve at Fairmount Wesleyan? If not, please take time to talk with one of the pastors and allow us to help you use your giftedness and skills for the building of the Kingdom! To help you in fulfilling what God is calling you to, we have Ministry Position Descriptions so you can know which positions best fit with your gifts. These booklets clarify the commitment we are asking you to make when you sign up and are available in the Church office.

4 December 16 Illuminate News Sunday 6:30 to 8:00 Matthew 5:14-16 You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on it s stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. world. A town built on a hill Upcoming Events Dec 18th Christmas Party Dec. 24th- Christmas Eve Service Dec. 25th Christmas/No Youth Group/No Sunday School It s a new day This semester is almost over and it s nearly Christmas time! I personally want to invite each and every teen in the church that is in 7th-12th grade to join us Sunday nights 6:30-8:00pm. We are currently in the third and final part of the Back to Basics series: Who is He? So please come out and join us for the exciting things God is going to do at Illuminate Youth Group.- Tyler Sanders, Resident Pastor Recent Youth Events Upcoming Youth Events Youth Lock-in - We had a Lock-in on November 18th. We had worship from Christian Kelley, who is a worship leader at Eastview Wesleyan Church and a message on having a Laser Like Focus on Jesus. Following the message one student spoke to Tyler and received Jesus for the first time. Between New Life and laser tag, it was an amazing night. In Case of Cancellations With the snowy winter fast approaching, there may be times that youth group may get cancelled. Be on the look out on the Illuminate Facebook page and the Fairmount Wesleyan Church Facebook page. Be sure Tyler has your updated contact information. Invite your Friends Don t forget to invite your friends to see what amazing things God is doing in the youth group. New Name During the Month of January Illuminate Youth will be changing its name. Begin to brainstorm new name possibilities for the Youth Group and talk to Tyler with your ideas. Christmas Party We will be having a Christmas Party on December 18th during regular youth group time. We will be having a white elephant gift exchange, so please bring a gift. This gift can be anything that is appropriate and under $5 in value. If money is an issue, simply bring something you already have. Please wrap all of your gifts so no one knows what you brought. It will be a night of fun and excitement as we celebrate Christmas together. No Youth Group/Sunday School on Christmas Since Christmas is going to be on a Sunday this year, we will not be having youth group that night. This allows you and your family to have a nice and enjoyable time together celebrating the fact that Jesus came and will come again! There will also be NO Sunday School on Christmas Day because their will only be one worship service that morning at 10:30am. Don t forget the Prayer Meeting - Pre-Youth group Prayer time, 30 mins before service each Sunday evening.

5 KIDS LIFE December 2016 MISSION STATEMENT: Our mission is to provide a fun and safe environment for each child and family to learn Biblical truth, accept Jesus and be equipped to love others. What s coming up? December 11 th - Children s Christmas Program is happening on Wednesdays from 6:30pm-8:00pm! o 1 st -4 th Grade: Family Life Center o Toddler-K: Church Basement There will be a Christmas Party December 14 th from 6:30-8:00pm. All kids will be at the Family Life Center and all parents are invited to join! There will be a dinner served at 6:30pm. o No December 21 st and 28 th. o Kids Hope!! One hour for one week for one school year! Consider mentoring a child and changing their life!! We need more volunteers! The school social worker has more kids than mentors! Please let DeAnn Biddle know if you are interested. o A huge thanks to Tony Painter, Cindy Robbins, Danny and Lois Patton for serving currently as mentors. o The Children s Christmas Program is December 11 th during both services. Our focus will be on Advent. o There will be practices Sunday starting at 10:30am and Wednesday at starting at 6:30pm. All Kids Life kids including Club 56 will be practicing together on Sunday Mornings. December 14 th - Christmas Party and Dinner December 21 st - No December 25 th One Worship Service at 10:30am Only Nursery Provided December 28 th - No o Thank you for your donation to the 5&2 Challenge to World Hope! The Children did bring home the win with over $100 raised. A child s life will now be transformed because of the generosity of Kids Life kids! o As the winter season is approaching, check out the Church Facebook page to get the notifications on cancellations for. Just a reminder that if Madison-Grant Schools cancel on a Wednesday for snow, we will as well. DeAnn Biddle, Children s Ministry Director deannbiddle@gmail.com or