The Presbyterian Church of Llanerch. DECEMBER 2016 News and Notes. 211 Lansdowne Road, Havertown, PA ;

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1 ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS The Presbyterian Church of Llanerch 211 Lansdowne Road, Havertown, PA ; DECEMBER 2016 News and Notes We now begin our new Liturgical Year with the Season of Advent the four weeks of spiritual preparation for the Nativity. Advent comes from the Latin adventus which means coming both Christ s first coming in the manger at Bethlehem and his second coming in glorious victory. Beginning in the 6 th century, Advent was a time of penitence and fasting similar to Lent, hence the color purple. The weekly themes are Hope, Peace, Joy and Love. The 3 rd, the Joy Sunday, or Gaudete, is the one on which the rose/pink candle, if there is one, is lit. The scriptures for are from Liturgical Year A based on the Gospel of Matthew, which emphasizes the Messianic Kingship of Jesus. This Advent, we will also focus on the beautiful prophetic Old Testament passages from Isaiah. The bible does not say when Jesus was born. The Church in the 4 th century chose to make the day December 25 to counter the pagan celebrations of the Solstice. At this darkest time of the year, great bonfires were lit in order to bring power for the Sun God to return. Our God has more power our God brings us light and wants us to walk in the Light always! In this increasingly commercialized and secularized time of year, it is so vitally important that we as Christians maintain our focus on the need for spiritual preparation of our minds and hearts for the most wonderful of gifts that God gives us at Christmas: The Incarnation Jesus fully divine yet fully human one of us Emmanuel: God with us this is ours to partake forever! I would like to share with you a personal story which I hope will help you maintain your spiritual priority this season as it does for me: What My Two-Year-Old Taught Me about Christmas It was a mid-december Thursday afternoon in I was at home with my two young children but very much preoccupied thinking about all that needed to be done to prepare for the Senior Choir rehearsal that night. Thinking that Gregory, almost 3, was in his room, I took Gabrielle, 18 months, to her room to put her down for her nap. When I came out of the room, I saw Gregory come up the stairs, go into his room, and put himself to bed. Not typical but helpful, I thought. When I went downstairs, I saw that his little chair was in front of the dining room buffet where the crèche was displayed. I picked up the chair to put it back in the kitchen and then Oh No! there was the Baby Jesus in pieces on the hard ceramic tile kitchen floor! How can we have a Nativity set without a Baby Jesus? My first instinct was to go upstairs and confront Gregory, suppressing my anger as best I could. Why did you do that? Your Grandmother gave you that Nativity Set! You know that s not a toy!, I said. He didn t say anything in his defense, gave me an I m sorry, Mom look and lay back down. Descending the stairs, I m thinking, He could have taken one of the sheep, there were several of those, or even one of the Wise Men, we could get by with two, but then I realized that of course he would want the Baby Jesus. He knew the Nativity story well and could sing some Christmas carols. When I got to the kitchen and looked down a second time at those pieces on the floor, it hit me like a sudden bolt of awareness This is my body broken for you. This do in remembrance for me. I fell to my knees and cried. Then I prayed, asking for forgiveness and offering my gratitude. God made me realize that Jesus, my Savior, was given for me. That s the reason for the season. I picked up those pieces and, lo and behold, it was possible to reshape them and glue them back together. I then went back upstairs and gave Gregory a big hug and asked for him, too, to forgive me. I am so glad to see that you love Jesus, I said. He gave me a knowing look and hugged me back. If you are ever at our house during this season, you will see we still display that same crèche, and you can see that same Baby Jesus with the glued cracks. I wouldn t want it any other way. May the Blessings of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love be yours this season and always. Soli Deo Gloria Georgia Marshall Schrom Minister of Music

2 Worship in DECEMBER! DATE: CELEBRATION: READINGS: GOSPEL: December 4 th 2 nd Sunday of Advent Isaiah 11: 1-10 Psalm 72: 1-7, Matthew 3: 1-12 Romans 15: 4-13 December 11 th 3 rd Sunday of Advent Christmas Tea & Carol Sing Isaiah 35: 1-10 Psalm 146: 5-10 James 5: 7-10 Matthew 11: 2-11 Isaiah 7: December 18 th 4 th Sunday of Advent Psalm 80: 1-, Matthew 1: Romans 1: 1-7 Isaiah 9: 2-7 December 24 th Christmas Eve Psalm 96 Luke 2: 1-14 (15-20) Titus 2: DfsIsaiah 52: 7-10 December 25 th Christmas Day Psalm 98 Hebrews 1: 1-4 John 1: 1-14 A Note on pastoral leadership and care while we take the next steps in transition at the Presbyterian Church of Llanerch: We welcome Rev. Bill Searight as supply pastor in December. Bill Searight first preached for us this summer and we are grateful for his willingness to serve at Llanerch on short notice. Rev. Searight most recently served as Interim Pastor for the First Presbyterian Church of Springfield in Flourtown. As we continue to plan for the transition at Llanerch, we want to assure you that if you have questions or concerns, or need pastoral care, you may get in touch with Kelly in the church office, or Clerk of Session Mary Kane.

3 UPCOMING EVENTS Annual Christmas Luncheon and Carol Sing Our Annual Christmas Luncheon and Carol Sing is happening on Sunday, December 11 th. We ll share a potluck luncheon in the Fellowship Room, following morning worship. Our Fellowship Team is coordinating set-up and clean-up stay tuned for details! We ll eat and then enjoy singing carols old and new and hearing our Handbell Choir perform. Bring a favorite dish to share (check the sign -up in the Fellowship Room). CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE AT THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF LLANERCH Candlelight. Carols and Music. Scripture. Holy Communion. STARTNG AT 7:00PM! SUNDAY SCHOOL NEWS Our Sunday School program is now underway. We will be following the Revised Common Lectionary, "Feasting on the Word." This year we are encouraging the children to bring an offering each week, along with their ENTHUSIASM!! CARE CLOSET CANS are collected in worship on the First Sunday of the Month Sunday, DECEMBER 4th! Bring your family s care closet can with you to worship!

4 ALTERNATE GIFT GIVING Are you tired of looking for the appropriate holiday gift? Consider a different kind of gift this year. Give something too big for a box! In the past our congregation has supported Heifer International in their continued effort to bring help, healing and hope to millions of impoverished families worldwide. Today they are working in more than 30 countries and in areas where hunger and despair once prevailed. Heifer programs have reinvigorated communities through livestock, training and Passing on The Gift while also caring for the earth. Heifer International works in the areas of livestock and agriculture to develop programs that alleviate hunger and poverty. Their field staff is comprised of livestock specialists and their programs are considered among the most successful in the world. Please look at our display in the Fellowship Room. It will remain all through December. This display will provide you with all the information that you need to make this gift giving opportunity to a husband, wife, daughter, son, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, grandparents, neighbors, teachers and coworkers. The list can go on and on. With a donation of $10 or more you will receive an Honor Card to send to that individual or family. We will have the cards here for you at church. For those of you unable to make it to church, but would still like to participate in this type of gift giving and its valuable outcome, please get in touch with Kelly at the church office or call Joanne Janos at Feel free to call Joanne any day of the week. It doesn t need to be on a Sunday. Joanne and Kelly will see that you get the necessary materials. Here is how it works: You decide to donate a sheep in honor of your mother, who has always loved these gentle animals. Your mother receives a holiday Honor Card from you describing the generous contribution you ve made in her honor. Thanks to your gift, one more family is on the road to self-reliance. Once the family has completed training and has prepared appropriate facilities, they then receive a healthy female sheep. Throughout the year, the sheep provides soft, warm wool that can be made into clothing or sold to pay for food, medicine and school all the ingredients for a brighter future. The family gives one or more of its sheep s offspring to another family in need. That s part of the Passing on the Gift tradition that participants agree to when they become partners with Heifer International. You can see that your kind gift is much more than one animal it s the gift of hope and opportunity for an entire community. That s why this is The Most Important Gift Catalog in the World.

5 HEIFER S 12 CORNERSTONES Per Capita Appeal Our church is a member of the Presbytery of Philadelphia, and our support of the Presbytery is the backbone of our connection to the larger church. Each year, we offer an amount to support the Presbytery based on our membership, known as the per capita apportionment. This money supports local and regional staff members and the operation of the General Assembly in Louisville, Kentucky. You have already received a letter and envelope for you to use to help us meet this obligation! The support we receive from Presbytery is real, so thank you for making this part of your giving.

6 MISSION NEWS Advent Wreaths this year were prepared by the Christian Education Committee as a fundraiser for the Heifer Project, an international ministry of economic development and self-determination. Animals, veterinary care, and training are provided to villages in rural areas around the world through the Heifer project, improving family and community health and encouraging school attendance. Donations are welcome for this project. See the decorated coffee cans In the Fellowship Room or speak to Joanne Janos. We have a continuing program of donations to the food bank and outreach program at Chester Eastside Ministries on 9 th Street in Chester. Our next donation will be dedicated in worship on December 18. Remember gifts to Chester when you are clipping coupons and shopping. Baskets are in the Narthex for your donations. There is never a wrong Sunday to donate, and it is always a party when the food is received. Thanks also to the volunteers in the church who help make this happen. CONNECT-BY-NIGHT The green sign-up calendar next to the donation station in the Fellowship room is the signal that the Church is preparing for January service at the Connect-by-Night shelter at Christ Community Church (Riverview Center) in Lansdowne. This project is a partnership with CCC where we will help homeless men and women in Delaware County by providing meals and fellowship and a warm, safe place to sleep. Our share of this program is providing a bag lunch and an evening snack every other night during the month. This is a big job and there are many ways to help. You may join the teams of volunteers who have started to sign up or form a team of your own. You may make donations of lunch supplies, support the purchase of serving supplies, help us collect socks and toiletries for guests, help cook and shop, help make sandwiches, or help deliver and serve. We are excited to have many other community organizations partner with us as we plan to serve those in need. We hope that everyone will be praying for those serving and those being served. You may see the calendar at church or check the online version on the mission tab on the Church website: See Kate Hiebert or Phyllis Gibson if you have questions. There is a donation table in the Fellowship room for supplies including paper goods, snacks, and the secret stash of Halloween Candy that we will be using in lunches. Feel free to donate, and feel free to take what you need to serve. Fellowship AND Mission for Connect-by-Night: We re joining in fellowship to support the Connect-by-Night program in an after-worship lunch packing program on January 8. Look for a sign-up sheet for participants (and also if you are a supporter who won't be able to participate) to donate some of the fresh supplies we ll need. We ll be ready to share our experiences of how the program works and how you can help participate at any level and at any point during our planned two months of service (January and March 2017). What are your questions about the programs: Can church members beat the speed record in sandwich-making established by Den 4 s Cub Scouts in 2014? What parts of the bag lunch are most appreciated by guests? How do churchbased programs fit together with the Mental Health Association programs run during the day at the Connect office? How do we decide that this program is a part of our mission in the community?

7 GENEROSITY & STEWARDSHIP Stewardship is the part of our church lives where we pledge our financial support for the ministry and mission of the church. This support is critical to offering worship and maintaining the church and its programs. This year our Stewardship program will take place in January, as we get ready for the New Year in the calendar and take the next steps in our life as a congregation with new pastoral leadership. The traditional image of Epiphany, with the Magi bringing gifts to the newborn Christ, may be inspiration for our own gift-giving, full of faith, joy, and anticipation for the action of that faith and joy in the community. Look for the materials that will be coming your way! SCOUTING NEWS Troop 434 dove into fall activities in November: in and around the church, in the community, and in the woods. Life Scout Max Wilson almost completed his project making and extending a trail at Merry Place in Glendale Park. Max s new trail is a link in the trail system that numerous Llanerch scouts have worked on over the years. Around the church, the scouts have installed their attractive blue equipment bin behind the church and have taken on the leaf-raking duties as a Troop task. Thanks to all the Scouts and the adult leaders for this service. November is also the month of the Scouting for Food Holiday food drive. Over two weekends, the Troop and the Cub Scouts from Pack 462 joined forces to deliver bags and then pick up food in the Llanerch, Chatham Park, and Chatham village neighborhoods. It s like a treasure hunt to pick up the food donations on hundreds of doorsteps, but putting together our Troop s collection with other Troops in our Scouting District, more than 14,000 food items were distributed to ten different food centers and pantries. The Scouts got a boost when they found a note tucked into one bag of food, SCOUTS-THANK YOU FOR HELPING THE POOR, GOOD JOB. THANKS The annual Father-and-Son campout took place in the woods at the Delmont Scout reservation later in the month. Campers on this trip experienced both balmy and blustery weather, an exciting mix that accompanied a map-and-compass scavenger hunt and rocket launchers and a campfire with fabulous food. The Cub Scouts, who meet mostly at Chatham Park School, have also had a fun month, and built a huge creature (a Wolf ) out of scrap materials to demonstrate the cycle of reducereuse-recycle. Den 4, which meets in the Church, had a fitness oriented meeting in November.

8 Christmas at thevillage. Christmas White gifts have been a tradition at Christmas time for our church for many years. These gifts go to thevillage (formerly the Presbyterian Childrens Village) a residential support program for children and their families who may be experiencing trauma, stress, and difficulty with housing. The residential center in Rosemont is one part of the program; the Village also has a program site in Southwest Philadelphia. This program serves a group of extremely needy young people, and has programs to help children get on track in school, gain life skills, and learn to deal with negative emotions and experiences in a positive way. Therapeutic activities include keeping journals, listening to music, doing arts and crafts including crochet, and practicing sports. This summer the VIllage sponsored a community garden on their grounds in Rosemont, where residents learned gardening and grew produce for their own healthy meals and to sell as shares to their neighbors. Our Christmas offering to the Village takes the form of White Gifts for children and families that will be distributed at their annual party on December 18. We will be collecting gifts (new toys, clothing, sports equipment, etc.) during the month and dedicate those gifts in worship on December 11. The Village has provided a list of helpful suggested gifts: Christmas 2016 Wish List While our Christmas festivities emphasize the children, as you can imagine, the Village serves many families in need families whose children are in our programs and foster families who help us to care for them. If you would like to help with gifts for the family, such as pots and pans, microwaves, blenders, toasters, kitchen-in-a-box, small appliances, bed-in-bag sets, winter blankets, and other household items, please contact us for specific needs, purchase gift cards that can be shared with these families, or see the list below for Basic Family Items. Please know that every gift received is appreciated and put to good use. Any items that remain after the Christmas season are distributed to needy families during the year. Gift Ideas for Children and Teens * Alarm clock radio* Arts and craft supplies * Dolls (especially African American) * Games* (electronic, hand-held, board) and an unopened package of batteries if required * Journals (without locks) * LEGO or K NEX sets * Playing cards * ipods * Puzzles * Sports equipment (basketballs, footballs, etc.) * Toiletries/personal care items * Wallet (both children and teens) * Watch (both children and teens) Clothing, especially larger sizes, for our Rosemont teen residents, including: T- shirts, sweatshirts, sweatpants, flannel pajamas (Adult L, XL, XXL, XXXL) Footwear, such as socks, slippers and flip-flops including larger sizes (9-12) Winter Gear (infants to late teens) including coats, hats, gloves Everyday wear (infants to late teens) such as tops, pants, underwear, sleepwear etc. Gift Cards are appreciated immensely. $25 gift cards are the most useful denomination as they can be given singly or in combination to help children and families. Some of the most useful multi-purpose certificates include those from these merchants. (Please note dollar amount, but not a child s name. Our social workers will gladly complete them.) * Visa * MasterCard * American Express Food * Aldi Food Markets * Fresh Grocer * Save-A-Lot Food markets * Shop-N-Bag Food Markets * ShopRite * Pathmark Department/clothing stores * 5 Below * Burlington Coat Factory * Kmart * Kohl s * Marshall s * Old Navy * Ross * Target * T.J. Maxx * Wal-Mart Sporting goods * Modell s * Dick s Sporting Goods Electronics * FYE * Best Buy No time to shop? A check to the Village will help us fill in the gap of needed gifts.

9 CONVENIENT PLEDGING. GIVE IT A TRY! WE RE GLAD TO MAKE ONLINE GIVING AVAILABLE FOR FINANCIAL GIVING TO OUR CONGREGATION. You can make secure, online gifts to our congregation by using our web portal provided by the Presbyterian Foundation. It takes less than a minute, and your pledged giving can go directly from your checking/savings account to our Church account. You can schedule your gifts for the whole year, make contributions monthly, or give weekly. If you haven t tried it, you might like it! Access the Give Now Button on the Donate tab on our website, or use your smartphone or tablet to scan the QR code on the right! The Church Left the Building! On November 6, our congregation participated in a one-sunday long program of change and outreach called The Church has Left the Building. For one day, we skipped morning worship and headed out to practice taking the message of Christ s promise into the community. We have been participating in the planning process since May, taking the lead from resources provided by our friends at Woodland Presbyterian Church. The team led by Kate Hiebert took on a simple task of cleaning up three local parks and playgrounds, and met with the families playing there. A second team led by Phyllis Gibson met in the church kitchen, preparing 12 quarts of soup to freeze for service to guests at Connect-by-Night starting in January. The team led by Peter Hiebert went to two shopping centers, offering snacks and Free Prayer to shoppers and passers-by (more people wanted prayer than cinnamon buns.) After participants returned to the church, we were joined by a group of friends from Beverly Hills Presbyterian for a fellowship meal. The Beverly Hills team had been out serving in their neighborhood in Drexel Hill. To conclude our day, Pastor Kurt Pleim led worship with the Lord s Supper in the chancel. Reflecting on the satisfactions of the day, we valued both the wonderful fellowship we experienced in our teams and the chance to go beyond our walls and bring our church spirits and hopes to people who we had never met. Several agreed that we had felt more Christian in the days that followed, emboldened by the intentional experience of concentrating on others for the morning. We are praying for the concerns of the people we met, who shared their situations with us only because a team of church members was standing where they were shopping, waiting to hear them. With tubs of soup in the freezer, we are confident that we can meet the needs of our Connect guests. As we make continuing moves to our New Beginning we have learned a lot about what we re capable of as a community of believers. Thanks to all who bravely participated, and please let us know if you have other ideas and concerns.

10 POINSETTIA FOR CHRISTMAS 2016 In keeping with our Christmas tradition, we will again use donated poinsettia to decorate the church. This year the price of each poinsettia will be $7.00. If you would like to order a plant, please complete the form below and return it with your payment by DECEMBER 11th, by placing it in the offering plate. Checks should be made payable to the Presbyterian Church of Llanerch with a notation Poinsettia. If you have any questions please call Kelly in the church office at Thank you. POINSETTIA ORDER - $7.00 each Order due DECEMBER 11th Donor Date of order Number of poinsettias: red white Amount enclosed $ In Memory of / In Honor of I will take my poinsettia after the Christmas Eve service December 24th I will take my poinsettia after the 11:00 AM service on December 25th My poinsettia may be delivered to someone unable to attend worship services ALL ORDERS MUST BE RECEIVED BY DECEMBER 11 th