DECEMBER 2015 THE PASTOR S PRESS. Wait for the Lord, whose day is near. Wait for the Lord, keep watch, take heart ~ELW 262

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1 THE PASTOR S PRESS DECEMBER 2015 Wait for the Lord, whose day is near. Wait for the Lord, keep watch, take heart ~ELW 262 As we enter the month of December, our culture continues to become more and more busy as we count down the days in anticipation of Christmas. Our anticipation of Christmas also builds in worship as we move through the season of Advent. The word, advent, is Latin for coming towards. While our culture often speaks of us coming towards something, in the church God is the one coming towards us as he makes himself known in human form. One way we can prepare for God s coming in Christ is by recognizing the presence of God within and all around us. We are led to this recognition when we practice contemplative, or centering prayer. Thomas Merton once described contemplative prayer as prayer that is centered entirely on the presence of God. We will join together in learning this spiritual practice in our Wednesday Advent worship services. As we praise God through the songs of Holden Evening Prayer, we will engage in a time of silence to Be still and know that I am God (Psalm 46:10). While this may be difficult at first, we will remember that the fruits of centering prayer are experienced in daily life and not during the prayer. We may think of prayer as thoughts or feelings expressed in words. But this is only one expression. In the Christian tradition contemplative prayer is considered to be the pure gift of God. It is the opening of mind and heart our whole being to God, the ultimate mystery, beyond thoughts, words, and emotions. Through grace we open our awareness to God whom we know by faith is within us, closer than breathing, closer than thinking, closer than choosing closer than consciousness itself. Join us as we journey together into recognition of another gift from God. Blessings, Pastor Deanna

2 PARISH ANNOUNCEMENTS Parish Christmas Program will be held Sunday, December 20 th, at 6:30pm at St. Matthew. Practices will be held Sundays, December 6 th, 13 th, and 20 th at 1pm at St. Matthew. If you or your child are interested in participating, please come to the first practice or let Pastor Deanna know. Advent Mid-Week Worship. Join us for worship using the Holden Evening Prayer service each Wednesday evening in December leading up to Christmas Eve. December 2 nd, at St. Peter, December 9 th, at St. Stephen, December 16 th, at St. Matthew. We will gather for a covered dish meal at 6pm and begin worship at 6:45pm.

3 COMMUNITY NURSE CORNER As I sit here, wondering what can be helpful as the Christmas season begins, It comes to mind many different memories. Some are good and peaceful, others fill me with anxiety as I anticipate certain tasks. So perhaps the first thing you need to do as the holiday season approaches is make a list of the important parts of the holiday. Are there things that you do that are nice but not necessary? If so perhaps it is time to let it go. But for all of us here are tips for getting rid of excess stress. 1. Get enough sleep and relaxation. 2. Spend time with friends. 3. Laugh a lot. 4. Believe in yourself! You can do it! 5. Show love freely. 6. Know that sometimes it is okay to let things go. 7. Take time for exercise/hobbies/creativity. 8. Understand that everyone is scared sometime. 9. Don t overeat. 10. Accept help graciously when needed.( adapted from Learn N Go Wellness Promotion Tips from the Northwestern Virginia Faith Community Nurse Coalitiion, Winchester, VA) But most of all Remember the reason we celebrate Thank you Jesus for coming into the world and dying so that we may live. And take time to share this with all. Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. Isaiah 41:10

4 SS December Birthdays 3 Jean Bauserman 7 Joe Franklin Elbon Joshua Whittington 27 Andrea Doehler Pastor Deanna Boynton SS December Anniversaries 14 Tracey & Ray Heishman St Matthews December Birthdays St Peters Decmeber Birthdays 21 Jeffrey Ellis Keene 27 Pastor Deanna Boynton 28 Alex Turrill St Matthews December Anniversaries 15 Josie Reynolds 16 Charles Thomas Whittington 20 Ashton Nelson 27 Pastor Deanna Boynton 29 Scott & Amelia Mowery

5 Candlelight Service at St Stephen December 24 th at 9 pm Everyone welcome St Stephen Church Council Special thanks to Kathy Beydler, Patsy Himelright & Harold Whittington for giving their time, dedication and service as St Stephen council members the past two years. Take the time to let them know that their service was appreciated. New council members elected at St Stephen s annual meeting on Nov 8 th and will take office on January 1, 2016 are Granville Dellinger, Dale Ryman, & Deryl Tucker. They will be installed on Sunday, Jan 3 rd. All Lutheran Women s Retreat On Oct 9-10 the All Lutheran Women s Retreat was held in Williamsburg, and included women from North Carolina, Maryland, Washington DC & Virginia. The theme was First Things First and was led by The Rev Dr Phyllis Milton, Synodical Minister for Christian Formation for the Virginia Synod. On Friday evening there was a banquet followed by a Communion Service. There were three sessions on Saturday JOY, BUSY, & REFRESH. After each session there was quiet time to reflect on a Bible passage, followed by a hymn. The purpose of the retreat was to help us to think about our priorities and remember that God should come first. Sometimes when a situation arises where someone is needed to take charge, we should hold off on volunteering and wait to let someone else have the chance to be a blessing. We were impressed by this hymn: Be strong and courageous Do not be terrified Do not be discouraged For the Lord thy God is with you Wherever you go. Imogene Ryman, Linda Racey, Margie Clevenger & Margaret Tucker (Yes, we did go a day early to make sure we had shopping time)

6 A TALE OF FOUR SISTERS Trip to Vermont On Oct. 11, 2015, four sisters and their husbands left to visit Vermont. Imogene & Floyd Ryman, Polly & Lonnie Moran, Brenda & Delbert Pangle and Margaret & Deryl Tucker left Strasburg, Va. traveling in two cars making their way to Vermont. The first night we stayed in Mystic, Connecticut. We visited Old Towne Mystic which was a small shopping area with unique shops. After an hour shopping we decided to go to the aquarium. We saw the signs but could not find the entrance. It seems that we turned around in the entrance but did not know it at the time. The aquarium was quite an experience. We even saw penquins. We left on Monday morning for Vermont. We made it to the bottom of Vermont that day. On Tues. we were eating breakfast at the hotel when we starting a conversation with another couple there. They told us about a place close to where we were going to be staying in Vermont, which they thought we would enjoy. After they left, a gentleman that was sitting by himself started telling Deryl and Brenda which would be the better route to go. When we got up to go, he asked if he could show us something. When he came back, he had a medium size smooth rock in his hand. He stated that he found it in Bar Harbor when he was there. He proceeded to tell us that he took it to the bar that evening with his friends. He had put his glasses on the rock and named it Rocky. While at the bar a lady came in and was showing her granddaughter s picture around. When she came to them, they introduced her to Rocky. She immediately proceeded to show Rocky her granddaughter. Before we left the hotel, we had to take a picture of Rocky with the whole group. If you want to see the picture just ask Margaret. We went to Shelborne Mill which is similar to Old Town Williamsburg. There was a round barn with lots of buggies from the past. We women went to a quilt building. We saw a postage stamp quilt that was made back in the 1870 s. It had over 16,000 squares. We saw a one room school house, an iron statute of a man with a cigarette in his mouth. The statute was used to get people into the store to buy cigarettes. After we finished the Mill, we headed toward Snugglers Notch where we would be staying for 3 nights. Delbert decided to let Brenda drive. We put the address into the GPS and it asked if we wanted to take the dirt road. Deryl said yes. The route took us onto a narrow dirt road that two cars could not pass one another. We lost the signal quite a few times but we managed to get to Smugglers Notch in time to check in. Brenda told Deryl the next time he wanted to go onto a dirt road to make sure Delbert was driving. All in all we had a great time and came back still speaking as sisters & brothers in law! Margaret Tucker

7 DECEMBER 2015 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 6 SM - Communion SM 1PM Christmas Program Practice 13 SP Council Meeting following Service SM 1PM Christmas Program Practice 20 SM - Communion SM 1PM Christmas Program Practice SM-6:30PM Parish Christmas Program 7 8 SM 7:30PM Council Meeting SS 10 AM Bible Study SS 11:30AM Katie s Ladies Luncheon SP 6PM Advent Meal and worship 9 SS 10 AM Bible Study SS 7:30PM Council Meeting SS 6PM Advent Meal and worship 16 SS 10 AM Bible Study SM 6PM Advent Meal and worship SS-9PM Worship SS= St. Stephen SP=St. Peter SM=St. Matthew SUNDAY SCHEDULES SS-1PM All Girls Christmas Party SP-11PM Worship St. Stephen: 9am Worship St. Peter: 9:45am Sunday School 11am Worship St. Matthew: 10am Sunday School 11am Worship (Children s Sunday School during church)

8 January 2016 Newsletter Deadline January Newsletter deadline is December 21st. Please send all articles and information to Connie Baker at North Mountain Lutheran Parish