Into the shadows of darkness and the fog of hopelessness, God came Jesus was born. God is with us! And life will never be the same.

Transcription

1 The Gathering PASTOR S PEN The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned And he will be called Prince of Peace. Into the shadows of darkness and the fog of hopelessness, God came Jesus was born. God is with us! And life will never be the same. Sometimes where we live, life can seem to be flooded with darkness and despair, and we can feel desperately alone. Grief can consume us, hopelessness can suffocate our futures, anxiety and fear can rob us of our energy for living. Real life for us can sometimes appear to be daily experiences of unending trials and troubles to endure. Fear of the present and worries or fear of the future struggles that we may have to navigate, can darken our hearts. But fear not, for behold we have good news. God is here and He will be with us in all of our coming days and adventurous roads we must travel. The Light of the World has come to shine His presence with us in our world He is closer to us, in every moment of life, more than we can imagine even when we can't sense His presence He is there. God is always with us! Be at peace for the Prince of Peace is here, He is with you, He s got this, and He is still in control! This truth applies to all the obstacles that we must pass through and all the struggles we must endure, that come our way during this journey of life. In John 14:27, Jesus says, Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. Christmas reminds us that The Prince of Peace came into a dark world, not a perfect world, but a world of suffering and His Light has overcome it. During the Christmas season the lights we hang on our Christmas trees, attach to our homes, and cover our shrubbery with, makes everything look better, prettier, peaceful and life sparkles, even in the surrounding darkness. In these moments hear God s voice, You are not alone, I am with you, I am right by your side, keep your focus on My Presence and Nearness. For almost three months now, our family has experienced the Peace of God and the Assurance of His presence in our little grandson, Mason s, health issues. One of the things we have come to notice about our little Mason is how much he focuses and loves to look at lights. Wherever he is at if there is a light in the room, he will find it and he will not take his eyes off of it. All of us come unto Jesus as little children, each of us whether we know it or not are being held in the arms of Jesus, and nothing can take us out of His loving embrace. Like little Mason keep your eyes on His Light and may His Peace be always yours this Christmas and every day beyond. Merry Christmas Peace God s Peace in Jesus Christ be yours! Pastors Ed & Brenda December 2017

2 COMING EVENTS PRIMETIMERS The Goshen High School Crimsonaires will entertain us after our carryin lunch at noon at the Life Center on Friday, December 8. Ham and potatoes will be provided; please bring a generous dish or dessert to share. The bus will pick up at Waterford Crossing at 11:00 a.m., Greencroft at 11:15 a.m. Others may come directly to the Life Center. If you have questions please call Bob Shirk at CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICES We will be holding our annual Christmas Eve Services on Sunday, December 24. We will have three services. The services will be at 7:00 p.m. at the Life Center, and 9:00 and 11:00 p.m. at the Downtown campus. Child care will be available at the 7:00 and 9:00 p.m. services. CHRISTMAS GIFT MINISTRY Come and see our Tree!! It is full with ornaments with requests for $25 food or gas gift card and requests for either: (1) shoes & socks; (2) pants, shirt & underwear, or (3) gifts/toys wishes that the child has chosen. It is estimated that the cost of each ornament is about $50. All wrapped gifts and gift cards are due back before Sunday, December 17. Please bring to the downtown church office or place under the Life Center Tree. Deliveries to the family will be from December If you have any questions, please contact Loraine Troyer, , or Harriet at the office. POINSETTIAS This year we will again be ordering Christmas poinsettias for our Christmas church services. If you would like to order a red or white poinsettia in honor of or in memory of a loved one, please fill out the information listed in the bulletin. The price is $15 for a red or white poinsettia. You may take it home with you after the evening Christmas Eve service. The last day to order is December 10, 2017.

3 Christmas Caroling What: Christmas caroling in our community When: December 17 th at 4:00pm Where: First United Methodist Church We will be going Christmas caroling together as a church family this year and we d love to have you join! Especially our children!! We will meet at 4:00 on December 17 th to go together into our community. When we re finished singing, we d love to have you join in fellowship while sipping hot chocolate and enjoying refreshments. Of course we ll have Christmas music playing as well! Invite your friends and family to join, too. Christmas is the time to celebrate our Savior s birth and spread joy to those around us! PRESCHOOL CHRISTMAS PROGRAM Our FUMC Preschool will be having a Christmas program on Thursday, December 21, at 7:00 p.m., at the downtown campus. The program is entitled, Jesus, Me, and the Christmas Tree. Everyone is invited to attend. HOLY LAND TRIP Little Lion, Little Lamb The Lion of Judah, The Lamb of God. Jesus came to be our Savior and our Defender. That is the focus of this year s Cantata. This presentation will be on Sunday, December 17 at 9:00am at our Downtown Campus. It features our chancel choir, orchestra, narrators and children. Everyone is welcome. We are continuing to make plans for a trip to the Holy Land, July 9-19, We are travelling with Educational Opportunities Tours on this unforgettable pilgrimage to Israel visiting many Biblical sites including Jericho, Bethlehem, Galilee and Jerusalem. Extensions are available including Egypt or Petra. The package includes all airfare, hotels, guided bus tours and two daily buffet meals. We already have a good group going from our church and would love to have anyone interested join us. For more information, contact Ben Whirledge at

4 YOUTH THANK YOU

5 First United Methodist Church 214 S. Fifth Street Goshen, IN Phone: Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit No.136 Goshen, IN Address Service Requested I want to thank all of my friends that helped me celebrate my 90th birthday. I will be reminded forever by the many cards and the wonderful open house. A special thanks to Lois Fidler for the beautiful carnation. Another thanks to the congregation for the giant card. A large thanks goes to my wife for all the planning and effort to make the open house a great success. -John Allyn Dear Brothers and Sister, we want to thank you for your faithfulness in tithing to our Lord and to the ministry of His Church here at First Church. Because of your faithfulness the Finance and Trustees Committees of the church leadership were able to pay off the Line of Credit and other indebtedness that we incurred when we had several major building repairs this past year. You are all such a dear blessing and Godly witness to us. In your tithing and giving we have seen the Glory of God at work in you and through you to make a huge difference in our community. If we remain faithful in our tithing throughout the rest of the year, we will be able meet all of our expected expenses to finish the year well and to carry on in the coming year. Good job well done thy good and faithful servants! -Pastor Ed Thank you for helping celebrate my 91st birthday. I enjoyed it very much! -Marion Ketcham

6 HAPPY DECEMBER BIRTHDAYS! December 1 Logan Sponseller December 12 Sierrah Colbourne December 2 Sandy Jacobs Travis Thaxton December 3 Marie Whirledge Moses Hart December 4 Tom Nowak Kelley Leeper Velda Fulford December 5 Kris Groves Amber Krebs Pat Huber December 6 Bob Wilson Phyllis Hall December 7 Wesley Middaugh December 8 Gladys Bickel Steve Kuiper Linda Russell December 9 Betty Jo Morris December 10 Judy Woldruff Steve Schwinn Wally Reynolds December 11 Dan Becker December 13 Mary Ann eash Cami Brandau December 14 Dick Snyder Sawyer Yoder Stevie Plank Darren Griffith Patty Krebs Nancy Eggers December 15 Cathy Staton December 16 Harrison McCrory December 17 Betty Lambright Sienna Cale December 18 Sheri Bushong Kelly Sorg December 19 Pam Lichty Jeff Weddle December 20 Tom Smith Andrew Bishop December 21 Paul Webb Donna Cripe Scott Chrispyn December 22 Austin Elliott Colin Huff December 23 Gerald Humerickhouse Caleb Layne Sherri Snider Wava Hamblin Jan Appenzeller December 24 Jan Whitehead Loretta Reynolds Cheryl Callan Ashley Brandau December 25 Carol Simmons Carol McCallister December 27 Earl Taylor Kyle Priem December 29 Mark Colglazier Jeffrey Herschberger December 30 Randy Cripe Ryan Spencer December 31 Thomas Peffley