Lantern. The. A Light in the City NEW BRAUNFELS PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. December 2016 October CHURCH ANNOUNCEMENTS PAGE 2 SESSION NEWS PAGE 3

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1 NEW BRAUNFELS PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH A Light in the City The Lantern December 2016 October CHURCH ANNOUNCEMENTS PAGE 2 SESSION NEWS PAGE 3 MISSION & OUTREACH PAGE 4-5 CON. CARE & ADVENT PAGE 6 SERMONS PAGE 7 KDO PAGE 8-11 CALENDAR & BIRTHDAYS INSERT Dear Friends, Growing up we began decorating for Christmas the Saturday after Thanksgiving. I was so excited to decorate the house for Christmas. My dad would start by lugging huge boxes from the basement filled with our ornaments and other decorations. Every year I would pick through all the boxes to find one specific item: our manger scene. We had the best manger scene. A wooden stable made of wooden sticks on a solid wood base. Hay and straw were glued to the roof and the floor of the stable. It was a good size measuring about eighteen inches from end to end and almost the same in height. Inside would be all the characters of the Christmas story: Mary, Joseph, sheep, a cow, shepherds, and the three wise men. When I would find the box, I would run with it into the living room and clear off the top of our upright piano. I would carefully pull the stable and the other parts out of its beat up, well-worn box. After taking out all the figurines, I placed the stable right in the middle of the piano. One by one, I unwrapped each character from their tissue paper tomb. Each figure was handmade, sculpted and painted with great detail. I placed each figure in or around the stable until all of them were unwrapped. Then the fun began. I began by placing the baby Jesus in his manger in the middle of the stable, but towards the front so everybody could see him. I would then place Mary and Joseph behind Jesus positioned in such a way that they would be looking at Jesus. Then on one side would be the shepherds with their sheep and on the other side would be the wise men admiring with great wonder the baby Jesus with their gifts of frankincense, gold, and myrrh. I would make sure that each figure could see Jesus. I also to made sure that everyone who came into our living room would know that Jesus was at the center with everybody else around him. In Matthew 1, the angel of the Lord came to Joseph and said to him that Mary, to whom he was engaged, would bear a son conceived by the Holy Spirit to fulfill what the prophet Isaiah had foretold, Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means, God is with us. The God of the universe whom we worship and serve came to earth as a child to live and dwell among us. He did this so that we would know him more fully and would place him at the center of our lives. He wants to be our primary focus. Through triumph and tragedy, the Good News of this Advent season is that God is with us in the person of Jesus Christ. Let us make Him our number one priority and place Him at the center of our lives. In Christ, Pastor Scott

2 Church Announcements Thank You from Em Riding for calls, visits, prayers and flowers during her recent illnessspecial thank you to Nancy Stewart, Flo Pacharzina, and Sue and Earl Dittman. The MOC Devotional Breakfast for December will be Friday, the 9th at 7:30 AM in the Church Activity Center. The cooks are Sam Stewart, Charlie Felts, and Doy Cole. Since we didn t get a chance to cover the devotional last time, we will try again. It comes from 1 Samuel Chapter 25, entitled Beauty and the Beast. It is a story about David before he became king. The sign-up sheet is posted in the credenza. We will not have a fellowship dinner in December. CE VOLUNTEERS: We are looking for volunteers to help with Children's Church. If you would like to volunteer, please contact Jennifer Gately at or jen_reineke@hotmail.com. Come join the Lunch Bunch on Tuesday, December 6th at McAdoo s. We will meet at 12:30 pm. Signup sheet is in the Narthex. CHURCH HISTORY: Our church history booklet, The First Fifty Years including the additional update of After Fifty Years Seeing the Way Forward, has been published. The booklets are available in the church office for a suggested donation of $5.00. ESTHER CIRCLE will meet Tuesday, December 13th at 10:00 am in the Conference Room. Margaret Wheeler will lead lesson 4, Who is Jesus? According to John.. Please join us for a continuation of this study as we approach the Christmas season and remember those in our church family who need your visits, calls, and prayers. POINSETTIAS are now available for $10/ plant. They will be provided from the Plant Haus this year, and the deadline for ordering is December 4th. Order forms are available in the narthex, church bulletins, or church office. 2

3 The following are highlights from the November 15 Session meeting: The Treasurer s Report reflected total offerings in October of $59,668 and expenses of $42,702. At this point, we are in the black at almost $48,000. Pastor s Report (Rev. Scott Nowack): Session discussed an article by David P. King, Does Religion Still Matter in Public Life? Congregational Care Committee (Jody Cosson): The committee is seeking new members who can visit ill and shut-in church members on a regular basis. Next meeting is Dec. 6 at 11:30 am in the Church Parlor. Facilities Committee (Joyce Taylor): A wifi booster has been installed in the facility. Work on the fire alarm system (new electrical board) is almost complete. The trees at the rear of the property will be trimmed in January. Fellowship Committee (Austin Talley): The Christmas potluck party will be Dec. 4, beginning at 5:30 pm in the Activity Center. Activities and caroling will begin about 6:15 pm. Kids Day Out (Laura Smith): KDO delivered more than 1,200 lbs. of food to the SOS Food Bank in October. Mission & Outreach Committee (Jerri Petmecky): See detailed highlights in this newsletter. Stewardship Committee (Charlie Felts): The proposed 2017 budget reflects a $57,037 decrease from the 2016 budget. It was unanimously approved by Session and will be presented to church members during the Harvest Sunday luncheon. The budget breaks down this way Personnel (61%); Buildings/Grounds (13%); Missions (12%); Administration (6%); Christian Education (4%); and General Assembly, Synod & Presbytery (4%). Worship Committee (Dave Wright): Reminder that a combined church service will be held at 10 am on Dec. 25 (Christmas) and Jan. 1 (New Year s). The Christmas Joy offering will be received on Dec. 18. Christmas Eve services will be at 5 and 7 pm. The choir will be handling the lighting of the candles and the readings at the 11 am services during Advent. 3

4 UNITED NATION SEMINAR Gretchen Weicker will be attending the United Nation seminar at the UN Religion Center after Thanksgiving through December 2. The UN Seminar topic is: Children in the Middle-East, Crisis and Opportunity. Ecumenical partners from the United Methodist Church and the Mennonite Central Committee will lead; they are currently deeply engaged in work in Syria and with Palestinian refugee families. Other ecumenical partners and representatives from the UN refugee agencies will bring updates. If you have specific questions or concerns, please speak to her so that she may raise those in committee. SALVATION ARMY BELL RINGERS Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells----do you hear the bells of Christmas? Church bells, Bell Choirs, and the Salvation Army Red Kettlebells. Come help the Salvation Army raise money to benefit your neighbors in Comal County. Our church will man the kettles on Sunday, December 11th at Walmart and on Sunday, December 18th at Arlan s. Sunday shifts are from 1-4 (3 hours) and from 4-6 (2hours). Signup sheet will be in the Narthex on Sundays, November 20th and 27th and December, 4th. DORCAS CIRCLE was able to give Thanksgiving cards to 172 recipients of Meals on Wheels! THANKS to all of you who helped with this service project!! Next up January 24th meeting plans are to make Huggs blankets & also to bring items for Connections & the families they serve. Plan now to come & be a part of these projects & fellowship!! 4

5 Mission & Outreach News Briefs The Mission & Outreach Committee recently approved the allocation of $3,000 of its discretionary funds to the following agencies in need: $500 each to St. Jude s Ranch for Children, Crisis Center of Comal County, the New Braunfels Community Thanksgiving Dinner, and to the Pan American-Schreiner University Agreement scholarship fund. The Salvation Army will receive $1,000 to help with its Thanksgiving donations. Get your running shoes on for a great cause. St. Jude s Ranch for Children s annual Jingle Bell Run (and walk) is Saturday, Dec. 10 beginning at 8 am in Gruene. Dress up in Christmas attire! To register go to Thank you to everyone who took an angel from our Presbyterian Children s Homes and Services Angel Tree. This year we are providing four gifts each for two adults and 14 children. If you are buying gifts please wrap the presents, attach the angel to the front of the package, and return the gifts to the church no later than Sunday, Dec. 11. Santa will be loading up his sleigh and delivering all the presents to San Antonio on Monday, Dec. 12 to be sure the families receive them in time for Christmas. The Crisis Center of Comal County provides services for women, children, and men who have experienced domestic violence. It provides emergency shelter, clothing, counseling, victim advocacy, case management, community outreach and education, and information and referral services. There is no deadline on how long a client may receive shelter, which distinguishes the CCCC from some of the other agencies providing services to families in crisis. The CCCC is always in need of canned goods/pantry items, men s, women s and children s clothing including shoes, and especially twin linens, blankets and towels. Monetary donations can be made online and walk-in donations can be made at 1547 Common Street. Stacy Hill, executive director, expressed her appreciation to NBPC for its annual monetary support, as well as the recent discretionary donation recommended by the Mission & Outreach Committee. NBPC is hosting Family Promise families the week of January and we are always looking for volunteers. To learn more about how you can serve, contact John or Charlotte Sutton, our FP coordinators, at charlotte@flash.net or Check out FP s new promotional video to learn more about the organization by visiting Speaking of Family Promise, you can support the organization by attending a FPFlix at the Alamo Drafthouse on January 26 beginning at 6:30 pm. The movie is Pursuit of Happyness and stars Will Smith as a homeless single parent. Purchase a ticket in advance by visiting the FP website at fpgnb.org. The American Cancer Society needs to recruit 10 additional volunteers to drive cancer patients from Comal County to San Antonio area treatment centers. For some patients this program is their only means of getting to treatment. To become a volunteer you must: own a safe and reliable air conditioned vehicle, have proof of adequate automobile insurance, have a good driving record, pass a background check, and attend a Road To Recovery volunteer training session. Visit volunteerdriver.org or call to sign up or to learn more. Charlotte Sutton can help you as well at Reminder: Joe and Pat Turner, longtime members of our church, are being honored in a special way for all of their years of support and service as trustees at the Presbyterian Pan American School in Kingsville. To support the Joe and Pat Turner Scholarship to help future PPAS students attend the school, send a check in care of PPAS before Dec. 31. Indicate it s for the scholarship and mail it to P.O. Box 1578, Kingsville, TX Thank you! Connections Individual and Family Services is a local organization that NBPC supports. In November, Ky Londa Glaze, Connections Safe Place Coordinator, visited the Mission & Outreach Committee meeting to tell members more about the organization. Services targeted to its primary audience, children and young people, ages 0 to 21, include a Transitional Living Program, Kids Exchange Program, Substance Abuse Prevention Program, Outpatient Treatment Program, Services to At-Risk Youth (STAR), and a Shelter Services & Assessment Center. The agency appreciates donations throughout the year to help the children and youth in need. Those items include socks, shoes, underwear, coats, sweatshirts with hoodies, and toiletries. In addition, Connections counselors can always use crayons, play dough, watercolor paints, glue, and drawing paper. Donations can be dropped off at Connections offices at 1414 W. San Antonio. 5

6 MISSION OUTREACH TRIP TO CUBA: Thank you for generously supporting my recent trip to Cuba. I went with a team sponsored by Mission Outreach and the Justice Committee of Mission Presbytery. It was definitely a learning experience, and I so appreciate all of your support. Madge Bayston PCHAS ANGEL TREE: The Presbyterian children s Home Angel Tree is in the Narthex today! This year we are providing 60 gifts for children and Mothers at our home in San Antonio. Please sign up today! Select an Angel, wrap the gift, attach the Angel to the front of the package, and return it to the church no later than Sunday, December 11. Thank you so much for helping to provide a very Merry Christmas for children in our care. 6

7 SERMONS FOR DECEMBER all by Pastor Scott December 4 2nd Sunday in Advent "A Stump of Hope" Isaiah 11:1-10 Romans 15:4-13 December 11 3rd Sunday of Advent "A Blooming Desert" Isaiah 35:1-10 James 5:7-10 December 18 4th Sunday in Advent "Somewhere In Between" Isaiah 7:10-16 Romans 1:1-7 December 24 Christmas Eve "A Light in the City" Isaiah 9:2-7 Luke 2:1-20 December 25 Christmas Day "Right Here, Right Now" Isaiah 63:7-9 Matthew 2:13-23 CHRISTMAS JOY OFFERING: The Christmas Joy Offering will be taken on Sunday, December 18th, at both the 9 and 11 o clock services. Each year during the Advent and Christmas season, we turn our eyes to Bethlehem and celebrate the wondrous gift of Jesus Christ, our Savior. By giving to the Christmas Joy Offering the congregation honors this gift by providing assistance to current and retired church workers in their time of need and developing our future leaders at Presbyterian related racial-ethnic school and colleges. CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICES: The Advent Season will begin November 27th and will continue through Christmas Eve. NBPC will have 2 Christmas Eve Services. The Family Service starting at 5 PM and the Candlelight Service at 7 PM. Child care will be provided for both services. CHRISTMAS DAY AND NEW YEAR S DAY SERVICES: NBPC will have a combined Praise and Traditional Service starting at 10 AM on both Christmas Day (Sunday, December 25th) and New Year s Day (Sunday, January 1st). The Sacrament of Communion will not be celebrated on January 1st, but on January 8th instead. 7

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12 373 Howard Street New Braunfels, TX MINISTRIES AT WORK Want to BE INVOLVED in the Life of the Church? Contact one of the committees of your choice and make a DIFFERENCE! Julia George Clerk of Session fnjg@gvtc.com CHRISTIAN EDUCATION/YOUTH MINISTRY Sharon Jebens sharonjebens969@gmail.com COMMUNICATIONS MINISTRY Kari Hutchison kari.hutchison@gmail.com CONGREGATIONAL CARE Jody Cosson jcosson1111@gmail.com FACILITIES MINISTRY Joyce Taylor joycetaylor.nb@gmail.com FELLOWSHIP MINISTRY Austin Talley austin@talleyweb.com KIDS DAY OUT MINISTRY Laura Smith aurora52@satx.rr.com PERSONNEL Michael Meek meek@nbcham.org MEMBERSHIP MINISTRY Ann Brunn onefineann@hotmail.com MISSIONS/OUTREACH MINISTRY Jerri Petmecky jernel707@yahoo.com STEWARDSHIP Charlie Felts vonfelts@aol.com WORSHIP MINISTRY Bob Nolen nolen.bob423@gmail.com Dave Wright dwright@gvtc.com Please submit all materials for The Lantern to the church office, or by to nbpctx@sanantonio.twcbc.com by Thursday, December 15th for the January 2017 Newsletter. Worship Information * 9:00 Worship Service * 10:00 Christian Education (all ages) * 11:00 Worship Service New Braunfels Presbyterian Church 373 Howard Street New Braunfels, Texas Phone: FAX: nbpctx@sanantonio.twcbc.com Web site: Church Office Hours: Monday Thursday 8:30am-3:00pm; Friday 8:30am-12:00pm 12