First Sunday of Advent

Transcription

1 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * For the month of November 2017 the figures are: Monthly 2017 Budget $11, Month to Date $ 9, Amount Given Last Week $ 1, Attendance Last Week 65 First Sunday of Advent QUESTION...Is there an upcoming celebration in your family? As a tribute, think about providing altar flowers. Also, altar flowers can be dedicated in the remembrance of a special loved one. The flowers are delivered to the church at no cost. If interested, please call or Remember to bring nickels for St. Andrews and canned goods for Holly Haven, please and thank you! Mark 11:17 Jesus said, You must make my house a house of prayer. 6:00am - 8:00am each day. All are welcome. AL-ANON MEETS AT PROSPECT Beginning Wednesday, November 1 st at 7:00pm there will be an Al-Anon meeting for an hour. Al-Anon is a fellowship of relatives and friends of alcoholics who share their experience, strength, and hope, in order to solve their common problems. Meetings will be every Wednesday at 7:00pm. All are welcome and there are no dues or fees. Any inquiries please contact Kate Moreen BEREAVEMENT ANGELS We are asking again for angels to be used for the bereavement luncheons. Some members said they had angels packed away with Christmas decorations and would be glad to bring them in if they were reminded later in the year. They add such a special touch and we would like to thank all of you who have contributed. Thanks, Pat Prospect United Methodist Church 1974 Ebony Road P.O. Box 25 Ebony, Virginia Reverend Kenneth Thrasher Peggy Donochod, Lay Leader

2 1 st Sunday of Advent December 3, 2017 ORDER OF WORSHIP PRELUDE Mary Ann Johnson *INTROIT There's Something About That Name 171 (on screen) *WELCOME & PASSING THE PEACE Peggy Donochod *REPEAT INTROIT ANNOUNCEMENTS/VISITORS/FAMILIES OF THE WEEK/ BIRTHDAYS Many happy returns on the day of your birth. May sunshine and gladness be given, and may the dear Father prepare us on earth, for a beautiful birthday in heaven. *CALL TO WORSHIP Watch and wait, Christ is coming soon. Christ is with us now. Look and see, God s creative power is close at hand. God s power is with us here. Stop and notice, God has a plan to form our lives anew. God is re-creating us each and every day, re-forming us in the image of love. *OPENING PRAYER Creator God, thank you for forming us in your image at the day of our creation, and for re-forming us anew each and every day. Help us be attentive to your presence. Open our ears to hear you. Open our eyes to see you. Speak to our hearts and shine in our lives, that your presence may shimmer in our lives and that your love may emanate from us, now and forevermore. Amen. *HYMN OF PRAISE Come Thou Long Expected Jesus 196 *AFFIRMATION OF FAITH 881 I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ his only son, Our Lord: who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried, the third day he rose from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. FIRST SCRIPTURE READING Gary Ayers Psalm 80:1-7, Pew Bible page 419 ANTHEM Mary Gugler, choir director SHARING JOYS AND CONCERNS PASTORAL PRAYER GIVING OF OUR TITHES AND OFFERINGS *DOXOLOGY Praise God from Whom all Blessings Flow 95 *PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING CHILDREN S TIME *HYMN OF PREPARATION Soon and Very Soon 706 *SECOND SCRIPTURE READING WITNESS TO THE WORD HOLY COMMUNION Rev. Ken T hrasher LORD'S PRAYER 895 *HYMN OF RESPONSE Have Thine Own Way Lord 382 *BENEDICTION Where He Leads Me I Will Follow (Refrain) 338 (on the screen ) *RECESSIONAL *Congregation to Stand as Able The altar flowers lovingly remember Terry Broome and are given by the Broome Family.

3 DID YOU KNOW... Prospect collects used cell phones and glasses that get distributed to the Lions Club and Social Services respectively. There is a collection box on the bulletin board table in the Fellowship Hall. FOOD PANTRY VOLUNTEERS: Monthly volunteer schedules will be posted on the bulletin board SPECIAL - Lucas Restaurant in South Hill is offering a Sunday special to Prospect. Bring in the bulletin with your meal and the restaurant will pay a 25% of monthly total to the church! QUILTERS GROUP...Wednesday s are all about quilting and sewing. All are welcomed! Contact Gerry Cluett at or Kate Moreen at for more information. Sounds like a fun group! That you could find us on Facebook??? Check us out... Prospect Methodist Church in Ebony VA Please like us to see regular updates and share to pass the word along. Coffee is served in the Fellowship Hall after Worship for all. The last Sunday of the month we have a pot luck luncheon following worship with birthday cake. Everyone is welcome. Restrooms, water fountain & nursery are located in the back of the Fellowship Hall. A changing area for babies is located in the restroom in the nursery. Devices for the hearing impaired are available in the box located in the Narthex. Please ask one of the ushers for assistance if needed. Sign-up sheets for name tags or to give altar flowers in memory of in honor of someone are located in the fellowship hall. Upper Room devotionals are available for your personal reading. They are located at the information table going into the Fellowship Hall. Donations accepted but not expected. Thursdays are Rev. Ken s official day off; only notify him in a true emergency on a Thursday. Thank you. ++ BULLETIN DEADLINE is 11:00 am on Tuesday++ Contact Rev. Ann Adams at RevAnnAdams@msn.com or TODAY S THEME Pay attention! Christ may appear at any time. God s silence will end, bringing dramatic signs of God s presence in our midst. Watching, waiting, waiting, staying alert, and paying attention are the themes of this Sunday and of Advent in general. In Advent, we are reminded that Christ is coming, but also that God is already with us, having appeared in the birth of the Christ-child. Paul reminds the Corinthians that they have already been made rich through Christ. They have every gift they need and are simply to wait for the Lord. Pay attention! God is working to form us in God s image, and to form this world into Christ s kingdom. Today s scriptures invite us to take the time to see the signs and accept the grace that is already transforming our lives. Lectionary for next Sunday Isaiah 40:1-11 Psalm 85:1-2, Peter 3:8-15a Mark 1:1-8 Lay Reader/Greeter/Volunteer Schedule 2017 Names are posted about a month in advance for your information in the bulletin, which should give you plenty of time to find a substitute if need be. Please remember to let Peggy Donochod know if you ve switched your week with someone. We are always looking for volunteers, so if you feel moved to help, let us know or sign up below in a VOLUNTEER spot. If you have we will contact you with your reading info. Questions contact Peggy Donochod or if you cannot reach Peggy contact Rev. Ann Adams at or RevAnnAdams@msn.com Thank you. Greeters need to be at church at 8:45! Again, thanking all of you for volunteering, it is a truly a blessing READER/GREETERFELLOWSHIP SNACKS DEC. 10 th Sharon Nold Covered dish, Santa & Special music 17 th Barbara Knox Annette Jones 24 th Charlie French Susan Cunningham 31 st Christine Ferguson

4 OUR MINISTRY IN PRAYER Prayers for OUR country, state & local leadership, areas of war, disasters, famine, unrest, the un-redeemed and un-churched. Prayers for our active duty, their families & friends. James Bartran II, USAF Timothy Keen USA Michael McClenon USMC Scott Moore, USCG Aerick Paxton, USAF David Plessinger, USA Andrew Manning, USMC Prayers for our PROSPECT families and their friends: Steve Austin, Michael Bishop, Lisa Conner, Bill Connor, John & Nancy Cox, Pat DeJesu, Jed Dickerson, Betsy Ford, Jim Ford, Bill & Ann Hoofnagle, Ethel Jones, Jason May, Herb Rector, John Schell, Dede Snead, Roy Taylor, Jan Tomlinson, Joyce Trask, Jean Wagner, Bob & Jean Wilson, Judy and Gary Wise Pray for all of our Prospect travelers and all unspoken prayers. Pray for all those who volunteer and our first responders. Prayers for our families of the week... Ernest & Mary Bantos Bruce & Lorraine Beaulieu Amanda Moore Lew & Jane Stringer Roy Taylor Jim & Judy Bartran Nicholas Moerls Herb & Judy Moore Franklin Taylor This WEEK at PUMC Dec 3-10, 2017 Today Worship 9:15am Adult Sunday School 11:00am Monday Golf 9:30am MOVIE MONDAY 1:30pm Tuesday Bell Choir 5:00pm Guitar Lessons Choir practice Wednesday Bible Study At Charlie s Thursday Al-Anon meeting 6:00pm 7:00pm 7:00pm 7:00pm Friday Bible study at the golf shop 8:00am Saturday Sunday Worship 9:15am CHRISTMAS PROGRAM LUNCH WITH SANTA Adult Sunday School LOOKING AHEAD... 11:00am NEED YOUR HELP - Our church is looking for any donation for purchasing 2 more electric lift chairs. These chairs cost $ each. All donations may be made to the church in check or cash. Please memo these funds for the chairs. Our treasurer will hold these funds until we have enough to purchase a chair. Thank you for all the prayers, the Lord has Blessed our church richly.if you have questions please contact Gary at If you are giving a check, make the check payable to Prospect UMC and in the For line at the bottom of your check please say Chair.

5 SPECIAL HOLIDAY SERVICES Sunday, December 10, 2017, during the regular worship service, our music department will present RING THE BELLS, a delightfully different Christmas Cantata. The theme comes from the moving gospel song Ring the Bells. It tells the story of the first Christmas in a warm and personal way. The miracle that God became man in the person of Jesus Christ is the greatest concept any human being can understand. The blessing of this miracle will be presented in vocal and instrumental music by the musicians (choir, Bell choir, soloists, and accompanists) of our church and community. December s fellowship lunch will be after the worship service on December 10. Please bring a dish to share and enjoy visiting with your friends and neighbors of Prospect. Santa will stop by to see the children of all ages. This is an exciting time of year when we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Birthday cake will still be on the last Sunday of December with no luncheon. MARK YOUR CALENDARS - DECEMBER 18, 2017 A group will be going to the Chester United Methodist Church is Chester, VA for an outstanding Christmas Cantata. Two of our "weekend members" Cheryl and Charles Green are members of this choir and for the past several years we have taken a group up for the performance. It is a trip you will thoroughly enjoy. We will leave church at 4:00 pm. (by bus and by individual cars if more transportation is needed) and will have dinner before going to the church. We normally get back to the church about 10:00-10:30 p.m. There is a sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in the Fellowship Hall. If you plan to go, please sign up so we will have an idea of how many are going as we will need to make dinner and travel arrangements. The Christmas Eve Candlelight Service will begin at 8:00 p.m. There will be singing of Christmas hymns, scripture readings, a message, Communion and lighting of the candles. This is a busy season so take time to come to worship our Savior who came as a little baby to save us from our sins. HE always has time for us. Merry Christmas. SPECIAL HOLIDAY SERVICES Sunday, December 10, 2017, during the regular worship service, our music department will present RING THE BELLS, a delightfully different Christmas Cantata. The theme comes from the moving gospel song Ring the Bells. It tells the story of the first Christmas in a warm and personal way. The miracle that God became man in the person of Jesus Christ is the greatest concept any human being can understand. The blessing of this miracle will be presented in vocal and instrumental music by the musicians (choir, Bell choir, soloists, and accompanists) of our church and community. December s fellowship lunch will be after the worship service on December 10. Please bring a dish to share and enjoy visiting with your friends and neighbors of Prospect. Santa will stop by to see the children of all ages. This is an exciting time of year when we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Birthday cake will still be on the last Sunday of December with no luncheon. MARK YOUR CALENDARS - DECEMBER 18, 2017 A group will be going to the Chester United Methodist Church is Chester, VA for an outstanding Christmas Cantata. Two of our "weekend members" Cheryl and Charles Green are members of this choir and for the past several years we have taken a group up for the performance. It is a trip you will thoroughly enjoy. We will leave church at 4:00 pm. (by bus and by individual cars if more transportation is needed) and will have dinner before going to the church. We normally get back to the church about 10:00-10:30 p.m. There is a sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in the Fellowship Hall. If you plan to go, please sign up so we will have an idea of how many are going as we will need to make dinner and travel arrangements. The Christmas Eve Candlelight Service will begin at 8:00 p.m. There will be singing of Christmas hymns, scripture readings, a message, Communion and lighting of the candles. This is a busy season so take time to come to worship our Savior who came as a little baby to save us from our sins. HE always has time for us. Merry Christmas.

6 CHRISTMAS AT PROSPECT CHRISTMAS AT PROSPECT To order a poinsettia plant for church display, please complete this form and place it in the offering plate along with your payment check. Your Name: To order a poinsettia plant for church display, please complete this form and place it in the offering plate along with your payment check. Your Name: The poinsettia plant is given in MEMORY or HONOR (circle one) of: (Name) The poinsettia plant is given in MEMORY or HONOR (circle one) of: (Name) The fee is $8.00. Please make your check payable to Prospect U. M. Church. December 4th is the cut-off date for orders. Following the December 24th Christmas Eve service poinsettia plants may be taken home. The fee is $8.00. Please make your check payable to Prospect U. M. Church. December 4th is the cut-off date for orders. Following the December 24th Christmas Eve service poinsettia plants may be taken home.