Faith United Methodist Church 522 East 6th Street Cheyenne, WY 82007 Phone: (307) 638-3184 www.faithcheyenne.org E-Mail: info@faithcheyenne.org Sent with a prayer to: DECEMBER 2016 B=Birthday A=Anniversary Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 5:30 pm Bible Study 8 9 10 11 12 13 B=Ken Merklin 14 5:30 pm Bible Study 15 6 pm LIONS CLUB Xmas Dinner 16 17 18 Christmas Party for Jesus (after church service) 19 B= Bonnie Merklin 20 21 5:30 pm Bible Study 22 23 B= Gene Lamb 6 pm Baby Shower 24 6 pm CHRISTMAS EVE Service 25 B= LuAnn Wall 26 27 28 29 30 31 CHRISTMAS
Seeds of Faith Faith United Methodist Church December 2016 The Vision of Faith United Methodist Church is to empower all people to seek the fullness and assurance of God s Love. The Mission of Faith United Methodist Church is to invite everyone into a loving community, explore the Good News of God s Love, and serve God and our neighbor throughout the world. Dear Friends and Members of Faith UMC: Advent means coming and is the name given to the four-week period before Christmas. Advent also marks the beginning of the church calendar and is part of the cycle of seasons that includes Advent, Christmas and Epiphany (celebration of the arrival of the wise men). Advent is a season rich in tradition, symbolism, scripture, art and music. It is also the season to prepare our hearts and minds for the coming Christ. Matt Rawle highlights that Christmas is a time of change. The days leading to Christmas are darker and shorter. Rawle contends that everything changed when God put on flesh and was born in Bethlehem. Advent offers us an opportunity to retell the story of Christ coming into our lives. As our lives change, we experience the story of Jesus birth in new and exciting ways. Advent is an invitation for each of us to enter the story, experience how God is interacting in our world today, and allow our faith to grow in unexpected ways. Our faith is growing as we remember our current ministries and how, as a Body of Christ, we are transforming lives. Through Operation Christmas Child, a child will be shown God s love through the surprises and toys found in a shoe box. Through our Mitten Tree Ministry, strangers will be shown the grace of God through warmth on a cold winter day. Through your donations of food and household items to Needs, Inc., a family will experience God s peace as one less worry is lifted from their lives. This Advent season, we are inspired to be transformed as our dependence on the love of Christ deepens. We may think of Saint Nicholas as being a mythical person but he was a real 4 th Century Greek Saint who was admired for being kind and helping those in need. He was renowned for secretly giving gifts and placing coins in the shoes of the needy. During this Advent Season, let us be the spirit of Saint Nicholas and fill shoes with gifts and coins for those in Cheyenne who are in need. This year, we are supporting two organizations in town that assist those who do not have permanent homes. If it is called upon your heart, we ask you to fill a shoe with donations for one or both of these organizations. You can help Family Promise of Cheyenne (http://www.familypromiseofcheyenne.org/) by filling a shoe with bus tokens and gas cards (gift cards from King Soopers that can be used at participating fueling stations). You can also choose to fill a shoe for the Saint Joseph Catholic Church Food Pantry with money or loose change that you may have in your pocket at the end of each day. We ask that you return the shoe and gifts on Christmas Eve or any time before the first of the year. Let us experience God becoming flesh, let us be transformed and let our acts of compassion shine God s love into the world. May it be so! Grace and Peace, Pastor Leah
December Scriptures: Advent Study Join us for our Advent Bible Study on Wednesdays at 5:30 pm as we explore the teachings of Jesus in the words of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol. Is redemption possible for Ebenezer Scrooge? Come find out! December 4th Bethlehem Candle (Hope) Micah 5:2, and 4-5 December 11th Shepherds Candle (Joy) Luke 2: 8-10 December 18th Angels Candle (Love) Matthew 1:18-25 Please join us for our traditional Christmas Party for Jesus on Sunday, December 18th during fellowship time after church. Donations will be accepted to support LifeChoice Pregnancy Care Center For The Babies! Our sincere sympathies to Russ Howe in the loss of his father, Les. Please keep the Howe family in your prayers. Davis Hospice appreciates our cookie outreach project. Please let Shari know if you would like to supply 3-4 dozen cookies for a week. She will take names and deliver them each Monday morning. For your convenience, bring the cookies to church on Sunday or call her and she will pick them up. If you don t feel like baking, a small monetary donation will also be appreciated. Thank you so much for your help in this worthwhile mission. Every Monday the staff and patients are waiting for me to deliver the cookies and I am so pleased to be part of this project. Shari McWilliams Please keep these in prayer for health, safety, and wellness: Ministry of Faith UMC Places facing War and Unrest Bishop Oliveto and Conference Leaders Our Government Leaders Sharon Cloyd Norma Wilkins & family Cheryl Cates & family Ilene Windom Donna Cool Thelma Harrell Delbert Hansen Jan Baber Gene Lamb Please keep these families in prayer who grieve: Damon & Mary Hart & family Russ Howe & family The family of Tony Sofia The Fournier family Designated Giving for December: Please note the Pastor s letter about these two important organizations that Faith Church is supporting this holiday season. Shoes were distributed during the Hanging of the Greens service for the congregation to take and fill to support these organizations. Family Promise of Cheyenne by filling a shoe with bus tokens and gas cards (gift cards from King Soopers that can be used at participating fueling stations.) Saint Joseph Catholic Church Food Pantry, fill shoe with money or loose change. Mitten Tree: Remember to bring hats, gloves, mittens, scarves and socks to decorate the Mitten Tree during December. These items will help people in need stay warm this winter. Your donations are very much appreciated.
FROM THE UNITED METHODIST WOMEN MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR from the UMW! Thanks to all who participated in the Samaritan s Purse Operation Christmas Child project. Thanks to you, 32 boxes were donated to this worthy cause! The UMW will be serving dinner for the Lions Club Christmas party on Thursday, December 15th at 6 pm. Volunteers will be rewarded with a delicious dinner. If you would like to help, please contact Donna Newland. Looking Ahead: Designated giving for January will be Safehouse -Providing Safehouse Services to Victims of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Stalking. They would appreciate donations of disposable diapers and unopened cosmetic and personal hygiene supplies. Our next meeting in January will be Thursday, January 26th at 6:30 pm in the fireplace room. All ladies of the church are welcome and encouraged to attend! Join us for our Christmas Eve Service on Saturday, December 24 th at 6:00 pm as we gather to celebrate the coming of Christ through song and music. Then join us Christmas Day at 10:30 am as we retell the greatest story that has ever been told; the story of the birth of Christ! Kayleigh and I would like to Thank everyone for your kind birthday wishes. We also hope that you and your family have a blessed Christmas and may you receive the greatest gift of all LOVE! Pastor Leah Coleman & Kayleigh From the PPR: After Christmas, Pastor Leah will be taking a few days off and we wish her safe travels. We thank her for all that she has done and she is a wonderful addition to Faith Church. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! This year, the Coleman Family will be celebrating Christmas together as a family. After Christmas Day, our travels will take us out of the State of Wyoming as we gather together as a family. Pastor Darrell Dennis, who was a member of this church, will be our guest speaker on January 1, 2017. Pastor Dennis is currently residing in Lingle, Wyoming but still keeps Faith UMC in his heart. Please welcome him to the pulpit and into our hearts as we celebrate the New Year!
HYMN NOTES The inspiring true stories behind our favorite hymns O Come, All Ye Faithful by John F. Wade And when they had come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshipped him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Matthew 2:11 O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant, O come ye, O come ye, to Bethlehem. Come and behold him, born the King of angels. CHORUS O come, let us adore him, O come, let us adore him, O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord. True God of true God, Light from Light Eternal, lo, he shuns not the Virgin's womb; Son of the Father, begotten, not created; CHORUS Sing, choir of angels, sing in exultation; O sing, all ye citizens of heaven above! Glory to God, all glory in the highest; CHORUS See how the shepherds, summoned to his cradle, leaving their flocks, draw nigh to gaze; we too will thither bend our joyful footsteps; CHORUS Child, for us sinners poor and in the manager; we would embrace thee with love and awe. Who would not love thee, loving us so dearly? CHORUS Yea, Lord, we greet thee, born this happy morning, Jesus, to thee be all glory given. Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing; CHORUS From Then Sings My Soul by Robert J. Morgan John Francis Wade, author of this hymn, was hounded out of England in 1745. He was a Roman Catholic layman in Lancashire; but because of persecution arising from the Jacobite rebellion, streams of Catholics fled to France and Portugal, where communities of English-speaking Catholics appeared. But how could he, a refugee, support himself? In those days, the printing of musical scores was cumbersome, and copying them by hand was an art. In the famous Roman Catholic College and Ministry Center in Douay, France, Wade taught music and became renowned as a copyist of musical scores. His work was exquisite. In 1743, Wade, 32, had produced a copy of a Latin Christmas carol beginning with the phrase Adeste Fidelis, Laeti triumphantes. At one time historians believed he had simply discovered an ancient hymn by an unknown author, but most scholars now believe Wade himself composed the lyrics. Seven original hand-copied manuscripts of this Latin hymn have been found, all of them bearing Wade's signature. John Wade passed away on August 16, 1786, at age 75. His obituary honored him for his "beautiful manuscripts" that adorned chapels and homes. As time passed, English Catholics began returning to Britain, and they carried Wade's Christmas carol with them. More time passed, and one day an Anglican minister named Rev. Frederick Oakeley, who preached at Margaret Street Chapel in London, came across Wade's Latin Christmas carol. Being deeply moved, he translated it into English for Margaret Street Chapel. The first line of Oakeley's translation said: "Ye Faithful, Approach Ye." Somehow, "Ye Faithful, Approach Ye," didn't catch on, and several years later Oakeley tried again. By this time, Oakeley, too, was a Roman Catholic priest, having converted to Catholicism in 1845. Perhaps his grasp of Latin had improved, because as he repeated over and over the Latin phrase Adeste Fidelis, Laeti triumphantes he finally came up with the simpler more vigorous O Come, All Ye Faithful, Joyful and Triumphant! So two brave Englishmen, Catholics, lovers of Christmas and lovers of hymns, living a hundred years apart, writing in two different nations, combined their talents to bid us come, joyful and triumphant, and adore Him born the King of angels. O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord
At the November 13th Church Conference, a new slate of officers was selected for church leadership for 2017. Faith UMC has a bounty of people willing to accept the calling of leadership and their work and sacrifices are very much appreciated. Special thanks to Pastor Leah and Rev. Mark Marston in presiding over the meeting and making it an enjoyable and interesting Church Conference for everyone. Thanks to everyone who helped with the Hanging of the Greens. The service was inspirational with participation from the congregation. A delicious meal of chili and sandwiches was served and volunteers stayed to decorate the church. A date in January will be announced later for the undecorating of the church and all volunteers will be appreciated. Congregational Care Committee (CCC): The church has formed a Congregational Care Committee (CCC) consisting of the members listed below. The CCC will continue to send birthday, anniversary, get well and sympathy cards to our members and friends. They will also be making phone calls to those who need our help and support. Please continue to call the Prayer Chain and the CCC will follow up with your requests. However, we cannot be successful in our endeavors without your assistance, so please let us know when you hear of someone in need. Thanks for your help! Cards: Vicky Hildreth 286-1763 Phone Calls: Joan Allen 637-0655 Prayer Chain: Ilene Windom 634-1431 Pastor Leah Coleman 214-0871 Chairman: Mary Hart 286-4457 You are Invited to a BABY SHOWER! Friday, December 23rd 6 pm For Cheryl Cates daughter, Cassie. Cassie s husband is in the military and they are stationed in Texas. He has recently been sent overseas on assignment. Pastor Leah Coleman contact info: Office Hours: Wednesdays 2 to 4 pm Cell Phone: (307) 214-0871 Email: pastorleahcoleman@gmail.com Church phone: (307) 638-3184