the ECHO DECEMBER 2011

First Congregational Church of Eliot United Church of Christ 1361 State Road Eliot, Maine 03903 the ECHO DECEMBER 2011 Blue Christmas Worship Service For those who find rejoicing hard work... Red and green decorations flourish at this time of year and merry greetings fill the air. But for many, it is difficult to feel the full joy of Christmas. The death of a loved one, the loss of a job or one's health, loneliness these challenges and many others can make the holidays a difficult time. Join us for a special community gathering on Thursday, December 15 at 7:00 PM. It will be a time of quiet worship, remembrance and reflection, to help us acknowledge the losses we experience and make room for the arrival of Christ's healing in our lives. Come discover that a light shines in the darkness. Come and be with those who need support this season. "Comfort, comfort my people Our God, the everlasting God, the creator of the farthest parts of the earth, never grows tired or weary. No one can fathom the depths of God's understanding. God gives power to the faint and strength to the powerless. They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength." ~ Isaiah 40 Rev. Beth Hoffman, Pastor 207 439 1105 http://www.congchurcheliot.org EVENT CALENDAR December 4- Advent II 10AM Holy Communion and Sunday school December 11 Advent III 10AM Worship and Sunday school 4PM All Church Christmas Caroling December 15 7PM Blue Christmas Service December 18- Advent IV 10AM Christmas Pageant 2PM Christmas Pageant reprise 7PM Christmas Lights Caravan December 24 Christmas Eve 7PM Family Worship December 25 No Sunday Service. Rejoice in your home. Celebrate the birth of our Savior with family and friends

A Page from the Pastor For as long as I can remember, somewhere between the turkey and the squash pie of Thanksgiving (yes we have squash and not just pumpkin in my family), my parents would give my sister and me, each an Advent calendar. Just as sweet as the pie and just as nourishing as the turkey, we cherished those calendars and waited expectantly for them to appear that evening. Often it was a sacred picture involving a stable and some sheep. Sometimes it was a comical picture and yet sometimes it was a sparkly winter scene. One year it was even made of chocolate candy! But always, there were 24 windows waiting to be discovered and uncovered and faithfully counted one day at a time. One day at a time, until we reached the night we knew was the most special and off we would go to church, excited to hold our own candles during Silent Night. As I became a bit older, the shared secret between my mother and me was that my calendar must always have words and pictures. Not just words and definitely not just pictures, but both. I wanted to see the story but I wanted to read it too. And every year she picked one out that seemed to be made just for me. The drummer boy being my all time favorite character in the story, I was always thrilled to find him a part of the scene. These days the Advent Calendar is still carried faithfully to the Thanksgiving table by my parents, but now my daughter and son are the recipients of the joy, the waiting, the expectant treasure of each patient window. The tradition continues and the story is told anew: in words and pictures of course. AS WE WAIT We need to teach the story to the children and again to ourselves. I hope that you will join us in worship these Sundays in Advent as each is a window full of joy, waiting and expectant treasure. I would like to personally invite you to join us for our candlelight worship service on Christmas Eve. I promise that along with our singing of carols there will indeed be both Word and picture as together we kneel and witness the arrival of the baby Jesus. But not yet. For now we prepare the manger with the straw of prayer, deed and a longing for comfort. Come and help. Each week in worship the congregation is actually invited to add a piece of straw to the manger in our sanctuary so the baby might snuggle in warm and welcomed on a bed of hay. Come and be the story! In the meantime, I have included an Advent calendar on the next page just for you. It has the words. You be the picture. Beth See you in Church! You can even have your own candle on Christmas Eve.

CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE December 24th 7:00pm First Congregational Church of Eliot United Church of Christ 1361 State Road A candlelight service filled with carols, wonder, and a committed faith community that truly wishes for you to come and celebrate the birth of the Christ Child. This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.

ADVENT CALENDAR: You be the Picture! 1 Decorate for the season. Create a sacred space especially for your Advent spiritual practices. 2 Sign up to join in a seasonal service project 3 Go for a walk in a new neighborhood or new park. 4 Reflect on the Advent readings today with a friend. Go to worship at FCCE! 5 Call or write a letter to someone you have hurt recently. 6 Do something spontaneous to-day. When the opportunity presents itself, jump in and go 7 Write a thank- you letter to a politician who has recently voted on a piece of legislation you support. 8 Pray for someone living with a long-term illness. Call or send a card telling them you are thinking about them. 9 Plan to host a dinner party on the 16th (see below) 10 Rejoice in a special meal today- prepare a favorite recipe, bring food to those with less, or treat a friend having a hard time. 11 Wear some- thing pink and stop to smell the roses (or whatever strikes you as beautiful today) Go to Worship! 12 Say no to some- thing that does not fill your heart with utter joy. 13 Let go of control and do something playful today blow bubbles, color, crazy dance alone in your room 14 Collect clothes and toys you do not use anymore. Buy something new and donate it all to a local charity. 15 Call/reach out to someone who has lost a loved one in the past year. Just let them know you are thinking about them. Attend the Blue Christmas service. 16 Host a dinner party and invite some unusual suspects someone you don t normally talk to, some one new to town, someone from church you wish to know better. 17 Do something nourishing and invigorating for your body dance, yoga, jog, or some stretches at home. 18 Learn a new song you can sing to God. Enjoy the Christmas Pageant at FCCE! 19 Ask God how you can better love your family in a healthy and fulfilling way. 20 Take ten minutes to do your favorite hobby today 21 Hanukhah Begins. Wish a friend or colleague who is Jewish, a Happy Hanukhah 22 Practice deep breathing while waiting in lines 23 Sign an online petition. Clear out your email of petitions and junk 24 Christmas Eve! Worship with family at First Congregational UCC in Eliot! Adapted from Joy and Justice by Kelly Forbush.

OUR DECEMBER SUNDAY SERVANTS FELLOWSHIP HOUR HOSTS DEACONS OF THE MONTH Linda Gove Walter Gove SANCTUARY STEWARDS Linda Gove Mike Wayburn DECEMBER 4 Ruth Vetter and Jan McMullen 11 Jane Spinney and Vicki Koch 18 Children's Program/Christian Educ. 25 No Service. Celebrate at home! JANUARY 1 Dot Edson and Mary Seibert 8 Sony Quinn and Donna Tobey 15Annual meeting Potluck 22 Joan Wade and Liz Futterrer 29 Jeanne Morin and Carole Shirk USHERS 4 Jan and Russ McMullen 11 Mary Seibert and Carole Shirk 15 7PM (Blue Christmas) Gary Berg and Dick Bough 18 Betty Grogan and Karen Davis 24 Rob and Sonya Quinn Gary Berg and Jeanne Morin ACOLYTES 4 Isabel Fajardo 11 Nate Orr 18 Pageant Players 24 Ella Quinn and Sophia Pike LITURGISTS 4 11 Ruth Vetter 18 Donna Tobey

ARE YOU A CHURCH MOUSE? You could be! If you have a wish to grant a wish, perhaps you would like to be a church mouse. The church mouse wish list Stamps for church correspondence A two line answering machine for private messages Relocation of the old sound system or a new system! Welcome banner for the fellowship hallway longer acolyte candle lighters 25 more Worship and Rejoice Hymnals A free standing baptismal font A spiffing up of the children s choir robes, including dyeing of the old fabric and making sashes or stoles for them. BIRTHDAYS DECEMBER 1 Dot Manson 10 Bob Hundley 19 Lena Remick 20 Marcia Goss 21 Justin Pelkey 22 Dick Bogh 23 Joan Wade 28 Karl Koch Jacob Theriault Gabe Hoffman 30 Tyler Spinney ANNIVERSARY 31 Tyler and Jane Spinney C E L E B R A T I O N S

Ladies Circle News Ladies Circle met at 11:30 for lunch of sandwiches provided by the Circle. The day started at 9 a.m. with the ladies starting to set up for the fair. Friday morning we would also come to set up the dining room and finalize everything ready for Saturday morning. news CHRISTIAN EDUCATION We finished our unit on Moses by reviewing the Ten Commandments. We discussed how they are a road map for living our lives and had fun looking at road signs telling us to watch for pedestrians, share the road with bicyclists, slow down for curves or come to a stop. Now we are learning about advent & the nativity story, and practicing for our Christmas pageant. Please come and support the children on December 18 th at 10AM and invite your friends, family & neighbors to come back for the 2PM show with refreshments to follow. Thank you to everyone who helped decorate the wreaths and to those who purchased a wreath to support Christian Ed. A special thank you to Laurie Hair for her leadership! Thank you to Donna Tobey for leading pageant rehearsals and to Dana Tobey for sharing his musical talent. We all wish you a Merry Christmas! Many thanks to all those who helped in various ways. Leftovers are packed away for another year. We will have a table at the High School Fair on December 3 rd. Our next meeting will be December 7 th at 11:30 with a luncheon provided by Sally Hartford and Paula Caswell. As usual this will be a surprise, they have asked us to wear mittens, scarf, and hat as it will be cold!! Be sure to bring a gift for your secret pal and a gift for the Maine Youth Center. Also bring a gift of about $5 for the Yankee Swap. A BIG THANK YOU HAS COME from the Pease Greeters for the continued support of their program which means so much to our troops overseas that lets them know they are not forgotten. LET S GO SEE THE LIGHTS! Dec. 18th, a caravan of cars will leave the church parking lot to drive around enjoying the Christmas lights. We are asking people to put names on Sign Up Central to let us know if you will join us and whether you will be able to take others in your car or wish to be a passenger in one of the cars. If you do not get to church for the sign up, please call the Boghs at 439-2404 to let us know if you wish to participate. If you will need to be picked up, give us your phone number and address--we don't want to have anyone miss this fun evening. We will return to McPherson Hall for refreshments.

HAM & BEAN SUPPER The next Ham and Bean Supper will be January 28 th. A huge thank you to everyone who prepares, serves, cooks and attends this tasty hospitality event each month. A MOMENT FOR MISSION WE THANK EVERYONE THAT PURCHASED A PIE FOR OUR PIE SALE, AND WE RAISED ENOUGH TO PURCHASE 10 DOZEN DIAPERS. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH. A BIG THANK YOU TO MARION, JANICE PAULA, JEANNETTE, BETTY, AND NANCY FOR THEIR HELP IN MAKING THE PIES AND TO RUTH WHO WAS ON THE "SIDE-LINES" CALLING FOLKS. AT THE PRESENT TIME WE ARE COLLECTING HAND TOWELS, TOOTHBRUSHES AND LARGE PINS FOR THE DIAPERS. BLUNT SCISSORS ARE ALSO IN NEED. OUR NEXT MISSION IS FOR VALENTINES DAY TO SEND BAGS DOWN TO FOOTPRINTS FOR MOTHERS. SMALL TOILETRY ARTICLES ARE NEEDED. WE HAVE DONE THIS FOR A FEW YEARS AND IT IS ALWAYS A WELCOME FROM THEM. MOTHERS SOMETIMES GET "LEFT OUT" AND THIS IS A WAY TO "MAKE THEIR DAY" OUR NEXT MEETING WILL BE AFTER THE ANNUAL MEETING, AND WE HOPE THAT NEW FOLKS WILL JOIN US. BOOK STUDY in the NEW YEAR evenon.a We will be offering a book study in the New Year. Pastor Beth is inviting those who are interested in this possibility to please be in touch with her. The time of the gatherings will be determined by the people who are interested. The first book will be Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore. A morning group as well as an evening group will both be possibilities if you are considering joining in. We would love to have you reading along. Friends are more than welcome. ANNUAL REPORTS We really appreciate all the ministry work the Boards and Teams have done this year. On January 15 th we will hold our All Church Annual Meeting and will need to have reports into the church office by the 5th of January. As we review 2011 we will dare to reach towards 2012 and continue the work of God. THANK YOU ministries of the church MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU HERE AT FIRST CHURCH, AND A HEALTHY, HAPPY NEW YEAR. FROM YOUR BOARD OF MISSIONS..

THANK YOU To the Stewardship Team and to Richard Donhauser who serves as the team captain. To all who helped in some way with the CE wreath fundraiser. To all who have made pledges in the faith of the new church year and to all who give as they are able in time, talent and treasure. To the two church mice who donated two beautiful music stands for our worship services. To all the members and friends of the Ladies Fellowship who worked tirelessly and with great creativity to lead the church to a wonderfully successful church fair season. What an impressive labor of love! To the members and directors of the Cherub choir. We are all still talking about the wonderful choreography from the last song. To Rick, John, Duane, Sydney, Elaine and all the guest musicians who enhance our worship experiences. To Doris Grover and her efforts of an extra bake sale for additional hymnals. To all the generous people who gave a new hymnal to our church and to all those people who are still hoping to give as we Sing a new song unto the Lord. To all the acolytes, liturgists, ushers and fellowship hosts who give of their time and talent so generously. To the Personnel Team for their diligence and grace in accomplishing their ministry. To Donna Tobey and Dana Tobey for their energetic direction of the Christmas Pageant practicing. To everyone who helped so far with PROJECT SHARE and who have hopes to help soon. To Tyler Spinney and Linda Gove for their continuous weekly commitment to counting the collection. To the Fellowship team for their wonderful spark and spirit and their wealth of ideas and energy come to life here at FCCE. To the wonderful people who gave of their heart to decorate the sanctuary for Advent. A special thanks to our youngest people who hung the tree ornaments with special enthusiasm. To the Deacons who did a wonderful job with the fellowship hour for the Thanksgiving service and the Senior Choir who gave their all on that night. To the daring people who have come out to be MATERIAL WITNESSES and create liturgical art for our places and spaces. To all who hope to all who give to all who love to all who receive here at FCCE SUNDAY EVENING VESPERS Our Sunday night Vespers Service 6:30 PM Sunday nights as we gather for prayer, hymns and scripture reflection