Life at Unity. December 17, 2018

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1 Life at Unity December 17, 2018 Since 1788 United in Christ s love, we glorify God through worship, nurture, and service to all people. Celebrating 230 Years of Mission and Ministry PRAYER CONCERNS THURSDAY VIGIL On Thursday afternoon and evening, church members and neighbors and fire fighters and Unity staff gathered on the steps of the Historic Sanctuary to share fellowship and grief and hope and thanksgiving in response to the fire of Dec 9. The services included songs ( Our God, Our Help in Ages Past and Blest Be the Tie that Binds ) and scripture (from Psalm 46 and Isaiah 43 and Matthew 11:28-30) and prayers and reflections. Staff contributed to the contents of the service and it was led by Sally Herlong, the Rev. Lindsay White, and the Rev. Jeannie Bickett. Approximately 150 people attended these meaningful and comforting services. FUNDS FOR FIRE RECOVERY Many members have expressed a desire to make a financial contribution to help cover the costs that will be incurred as a result of the December 9th fire. We are still in the beginning stages of clean-up and assessment. Our losses have come in many forms and over the months ahead we will incur several types of expenses relating to buildings and items lost. Some will be reimbursed by insurance, some will not. Over the years the Stewardship ministry has designated funds in a General Operating Reserve Fund (GORF Account # ) for emergencies, which has avoided delays in getting the clean-up started. As we look ahead to restoration and replacement, amounts available in this fund can be used for any of the costs associated with our fire losses. Please designate GORF for fire-related donations. Patsy White Robert Priode Steve Gribble Beth Anderson Greyson Gload Betty Kimbrell Millie Williams Dickie Havnaer Vera Reid Mike Brown Bob Tuthill* Charlee Rae Gribble* Dot Hollis* Margaret Morgan* Libby Kern* Dee Rutter* Bob Lane* Billy Barron* Our Mission Coworkers Cindy Corell - Haiti Dori Hjalmarson - Honduras *Long Term Prayer Concern NO NEWSLETTER There will be no newsletter sent out for the next two weeks. Everyone have a safe and Merry Christmas, and a fantastic New Year!

2 CHRISTIAN EDUCATION STAFF Kathryn McGregor Director of Christian Education (children and adults) Rev. Lindsay White Assoc. Pastor for Youth Ministries (youth grades 6-12) Melissa Dye Children in Worship Coordinator Linda Bunge Director of Unity Preschool Lauren Lochel Nursery Coordinator WHAT WE VE BEEN UP TO CHRISTIAN EDUCATION YEAR OF THE BIBLE: TRIVIA TRIVIA QUESTIONS DEC. 11 But first, the answers to last week s questions: When the Lamb opens the seventh seal John sees seven angels with seven trumpets standing before God. (Rev 8: 1-2) Jonah explains that he fled to Tarshish because he knew that God was gracious, and therefore he feared that God would forgive the people of Nineveh if they repented. (Jonah 3:10-4:2) While you re reading this week, think about these questions: In Micah we read that what God considers good what the Lord requires of us is essentially three things. What are they? Which chapter of what prophet is the source of the quotation used by Paul, The righteous live by their faith? CHILDREN PASSPORT KIDS Register now for PASSPORTkids! Camp Unity will take a group to PASSPORT kids! Camp at Montreat Conference Center June 30 - July 3, This fun-filled four day, three night camp is for children and youth who are currently in 3rd-6th grade. Kathryn McGregor and other Unity adult chaperones will travel with the group to Montreat for camp. We will stay in hotel style lodging at the conference center, where all of our meals will be eaten, except lunch on the trip there and back. The cost is $335, which includes the cost of lunch on the way home on Wednesday. A non-refundable registration deposit of $100 is due by January 9. LAST SUNDAY S ATTENDANCE 8:45 am :00 am Livestream Register online at 2

3 SNOW TUBING All Middle School Youth are invited to a Snow Tubing trip on Saturday, January 26. We will travel together to Hawk s Nest Snow Tubing in Seven Devils, NC for two sessions of snow tubing, lunch, and lots of fun together. We will leave from the church at 9:00 am and return around 9:00 pm. The cost is $70 per person, and students should sign up using the link on the website. The deadline to sign up is January 13. ALL CHURCH READ KICK-OFF Save the date for our All-Church Read Kick-off on February 10. Lynne Baab, author of the book, Sabbath Keeping, will preach at both worship services that day and speak at the Kick-off Event to be held at 4:00 pm that afternoon. The Adult Discipleship Ministry Team is looking for Small Group Leaders to facilitate discussion groups as participants read the book during Lent. If you are interested in serving as a small group leader or finding out more about what is involved, please contact Kathryn McGregor at or KMcGregor@UnityFortMill.org. HOLY LAND INTEREST MEETING RESCHEDULED Interested in a trip to the Holy Land in March 2020? There will be a short meeting on January 20 immediately after the 11:00 service in Room M210 to discuss possible plans for a group trip to the Holy Land in March Anyone who may have an interest in joining others from Unity on this trip is welcome to attend this meeting. Optional trip itineraries and costs, etc. will be discussed. If you are unable to attend the meeting on January 20, please contact Dan Rogers at to learn more about this trip. BREAKFAST A congregational breakfast will be held in the Fellowship Hall on Sunday, December 30 th, at 10:00 a.m. Everyone is invited Coffee, juice and muffins will be available in the Fellowship Hall at 10:00. We hope everyone will stop by for a time of fellowship. There will be no Sunday school that morning CONTRIBUTIONS In order for your year-end contributions to be credited to 2018 giving, they must be delivered to the office or dropped in an offering plate by December 31, Online transactions must occur before January 1st, and any contribution we received via the US Postal Service must be postmarked before January 1st. 3

4 ANGEL TREE We were thrilled that all Angel Tree gifts that were received before the fire were recovered with no damage. Gifts were organized and given to all the families that were clients of the Fort Mill Care Center that we had on the trees. Bikes, tricycles, gift cards and clothing items were included in the gifts. In addition, our two RAIN team partner families and Family Promise received gifts. Sincere thank yous, Christmas cards, and hugs were given and tears shed on distribution day. A very big thank you to everyone who participated in the angel tree this year. YEAR-END GIVING CONSIDERATIONS Gifts of Appreciated Assets such as stocks and mutual funds When appreciated assets are donated to a non-profit charity like Unity, two benefits are realized. First, Unity gains the full value of the donated stock. Secondly, the owner likely would not owe any tax on the increased value of the asset. Charitable IRA Rollover aka Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) For individuals with Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA), there are requirements once you turn 70½ to begin taking Required Minimum Distributions (RMD). Under current rules, individuals age 70½ or older may transfer up to $100,000 annually from their IRA accounts directly to a charity like Unity without recognizing the distribution as income. Such a distribution counts toward the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD), the mandatory, minimum yearly withdrawals that generally must be taken starting the in the year after you turn 70½ and avoid any penalty tax that occurs by not meeting the RMD. This is a tax benefit to the individual and also provides a benefit to Unity. Donor Advised Funds (DAF s) DAF s provide a simplified way to manage charitable giving. Transfer cash or securities to an IRS approved donor fund. The donor retains flexibility to decide the amounts and timing of distributions from the fund to charitable organizations such as Unity. It is important that you seek the advice of your tax or financial professional in any of these cases. 4

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8 Unity Presbyterian Church 303 Tom Hall Street PO Box 1267 Fort Mill, SC JOIN US SUNDAY 8:45 a.m. Worship service 10:00 a.m. Sunday School 11:00 a.m. Worship service FROM THE COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE Newsletter Info Deadline: Wednesday by 5:00 pm Return Service Requested UnityFortMill.org FROM THE PASTOR Friends, My prayer for you in these days before Christmas is a joyous and meaningful celebration of the birth of Christ as the season reminds us of God s amazing and transformative presence in the midst of what appears ordinary and unremarkable, and even chaotic and disruptive. May the travels of you and your loved ones be safe, and your gatherings with friends and family be happy! The fire of Dec 9 requires changes of events, and and you will find most of those listed in this newsletter and on Unity s website and FB pages. Please check with the church office or online calendar to determine the status of previously scheduled meetings. The following events for the immediate future remain the same: Sunday worship services on Dec 23 and 30 Christmas Eve services (2, 4, 6, 8). A family oriented service for Christmas Eve will be at 4 p.m. Candlelight communion services are offered at 2, 6, and 8. Classes for newly elected elders and deacons, as well as their examination before Session and the installation service, are being rescheduled and those dates will be announced in the future. As a community of faith, we are deeply indebted to a heavenly host of people who responded, and continue to respond, to our situation: fire fighters and first responders, concerned citizens of Fort Mill and York County, a variety of Presbyterian churches and other churches, along with their pastors and leaders, people with historic ties to Unity, and complete strangers touched with compassion. In addition, it is important to thank the staff of Unity, leaders of our church, and church members who have stepped forward in selfless acts of leadership and actions. I do want to inform you of plans for 2019 which will remain the same. A new twelve-week sermon series on the Ten Commandments (from Exodus 20:1-17) begins January 6. I encourage you to read Exodus chapters 1 through 19 in order to set the scene and understand the context in which the Ten Commandments were given to the Children of Israel. The Ten Commandments (also known as the Decalogue) historically played an essential role to the Church for determining its life together, its relationship with God, and its role in the world. Too often the Ten Commandments have been misunderstood and misused by both the Church and by those societies influenced by the Bible s authority. With a proper understanding, I believe the Decalogue shapes today s church in its mission and its priorities in ways that that are revolutionary in our world today. I hope you will join us for this series! I look forward to seeing you in the weeks ahead and in the New Year! Grace and peace, Mark Mark E. Diehl Church Office Emergency Pastoral Line Senior Interim Pastor Mark E. Diehl Senior Associate Pastor Jeannie Bickett Associate Pastor for Youth Ministry Lindsay White