Christmas Eve Worship Services Riverside United Methodist Church Where the Spirit runs deep... 9:00 a.m. *4:00 p.m. *5:30 p.m. *9:00 p.m. *Candlelight Services P. O. Box 128 Park Rapids, MN 56470 Vol. 17, Issue 11 December 2017 / January 2018 The Pastor Shares... What s really important? It seems that the little nagging chores and tasks that call our name and often keep us putting out the little fires that pop up demanding our energy also keep us at an attention deficit as we turn away from the bigger things that really do matter. One of the great gifts of Jesus, particularly his Sermon on the Mount (beginning in Matthew 5), is that he does not mix words about priorities. He saves us from a life of insignificant busyness, and encourages us to participate in Kingdom building activities that give us a life of eternal consequence. In the process of reading and discerning, he offers a glimpse through a window to the eternal. The Christmas season is full of activities and opportunities to be, to do, and to celebrate! The life that really is LIFE is more than food, clothing, and football. As Christmas approaches, consider what makes for growth in faith, relationships with our families and with neighbors. What can you do that makes for peace, light, love, and compassion? Ask yourself, what is it that you have been doing that zaps your energy and leaves you feeling empty? My guess is that the answer will free you from something that really isn t as important as you may have thought. May you be blessed with Kingdom Joy!!! In Christ s Love - Pastor Chip In This Issue Casting the net of Christ s love to all through Faith, Action and Compassion. December/January Schedule 2018 Budget Report Youth & Education News United Methodist Women Emergency Assistance Fund In Our Prayers Alternative Gift Giving 2 3 4 5 6 7 7
What s Happening in December Sermon Series - Angels Among Us During this season of Advent, we will be looking at the angels who came bringing messages of God s hope, peace, joy and love to Zechariah, Mary, Joseph and the shepherds. In a world filled with pain and fear, how we long to hear these messages for our lives and our world! This sermon series will help us discover how we can live fearlessly in this uncertain world and how we can be God s messengers, bringing news of hope, peace, joy and love to our world. Come and worship with us! An All-Church Christmas Celebration! Sunday, December 17th, will be an all-church celebration of Christmas. Special music and a Nativity pageant with the congregation participating will all be on tap for our 8:30 a.m. service. Come and enjoy this Christmas celebration! Church-Wide Christmas Coloring Project You may have noticed the growing popularity of coloring books! Not just for children any more, many people are rediscovering the joy of creativity with coloring books. This year, we will have our own coloring project at Riverside! This will be on display in the fellowship hall along with markers or colored pencils and you are welcome to participate! Sunday School children, Release Time students, Youth Group as well as the rest of us are invited and encouraged to participate. We will create our own work of beauty and display it when finished - Join in the fun! WORSHIP SCHEDULE CHANGES There will be two combined worship services - one service only - on December 24th and 31st as we celebrate special events. Please mark these dates on your calendar: Christmas Eve, Sunday, December 24th Sunday Morning, 9:00 a.m. - Morning worship will be one service only. No Sunday school. Christmas Eve Candlelight Services - Christmas Eve candlelight services are at 4:00 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Bring your family and join us as we sing Christmas carols, light candles, and celebrate the birth of Christ! A staffed nursery will be available at the 4:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. services. New Year s Eve, Sunday, December 31st - One worship service only at 9:00 a.m. No Sunday school. What s Happening in January Annual Conference Meeting, January 21, 2018, between Services. Everyone welcome to attend. The annual Church Conference meeting will be January 21st at 9:45 a.m. in the Lounge. The purpose of this meeting is to pass the budget for 2018, elect ministry leaders, and accept the reports of various ministry teams. All are welcome and church members are able to vote! -2-
From Riverside Church Council and the Finance Committee Thank you to Riverside s ministry teams for their timely submissions of 2018 proposed budgets. I know how hard each team worked to keep costs down, yet have enough money to fulfill goals. All ministry areas at Riverside are important and need to be funded. Working together allows us to have ministries that serve our members and our community. Revenues for 2018 are budgeted at $312,235, compared to $308,696 for 2017. These are important numbers to have, yet they are hard to come by. It is important for each member of Riverside to turn in a pledge card so we can have accurate revenue accounts and fund our ministries, pay our staff, and maintain our worship space. Our budgeted expenses for 2018 are $337,577 compared to $340,085 for 2017. The 2018 budget leaves us with a deficit of $25,342. We budgeted for a deficit in 2017 as well, but our ministries have kept costs down, and through October of 2017, we are $6,817 in the positive. I m sure our ministries will stay within their budget for 2018, and may even reduce their spending for the year so we can keep our spending in line with our revenues. RUMC ministry team reports, including the 2018 Budget, will be presented at the annual Church Conference scheduled for Sunday, January 21, 2018. The entire congregation from both services are encouraged to attend to review the budget, and to learn about all the activities your church leadership is working on. Thank you to all our ministry teams for making our church a place where people can grow and love Christ and each other. Thank you for being caretakers of our gifts to God by using our members donations wisely. - Michael Monsrud, Finance Committee Chair Year-End Giving If you plan to make an end-of-the-year financial gift to the church and want to mail in your donation, please make sure it is postmarked no later than December 31st; or be sure your donation is at the church office before that date. Be aware that office hours vary the week between Christmas and New Year s, and December 31st falls on a Sunday, so please plan accordingly. Thank you for your financial support of your church! Your gifts are appreciated! Holiday Office Schedule Between December 25th and January 1st, the church staff will have an abbreviated work schedule, which means the office will not be open during regular hours. There will be someone in the office each day, but hours will vary so please call ahead (732-5205) if you need to drop something off or need to reschedule a meeting. Pastors Chip and Lori will be available if you need pastoral care. The building will be closed Christmas Day & New Year s Day! - 3 -
An All-Church Christmas Celebration! Sunday, December 17th, will be an all-church celebration of Christmas. Special music and a Nativity pageant with the congregation participating will all be on tap for our 8:30 a.m. service. Come and enjoy this Christmas celebration! Another Great Year of Programming! Riverside s Middle School and High School students are invited to be a part of fun and fellowship Wednesday evenings from 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Dinner will be served in the Fellowship Hall at 6:00 p.m., followed by Bible study, activities, fellowship and prayer. We have some great things planned this year, so join us, and bring your friends! DECEMBER SCHEDULE December 6 December 13 December 20 December 25-January1 High School Youth Group Meets Middle School Youth Group Meets High School Youth Group Meets CHRISTMAS BREAK! JANUARY SCHEDULE January 3 January 10 January 17 January 24 January 31 High School Youth Group Meets Middle School Youth Group Meets High School Youth Group Meets Middle School Group Meets High School & Middle School Youth Group Release Time! Release Time fun continues Wednesday mornings! If your child is in elementary or middle school (1st - 8th grade), they are eligible to participate in this Wednesday morning program. A school bus will bring your child to Riverside Wednesday mornings for religious education and activities, but you must sign them up through the school. If you d like your child to participate, call the elementary office (237-6200), or middle school office (237-6300) to sign your child up. - 4 -
4th 6th Executive Board Meets Friendship Circle Potluck Become Part of UMW All women are invited to become part of the United Methodist Women. Join a Circle (meet the third Wednesday of each month), focus group, or be part of activities of the United Methodist Women as a whole. Men are also invited to special study programs. Call the church office (732-5205) for more information. UMW Co-Presidents: Vicki Manners & Gail Gruis Active Circle Groups: Current Issue, Friendship Circle, Charity Circle 8th 17th UMW Executive Board Meets Circles Meet BOOK NEWS By: Gail Gruis Falling into Place: A Memoir of Overcoming, by Hattie Kauffman Hattie made history as the first Native American journalist to ever file a report on a national network evening news broadcast. You may have seen her as a news anchor for ABC and CBS. She is a member of the Nez Perce tribe of Idaho. Hattie tells her story of growing up with six siblings and alcoholic parents. It made me think of the book The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. Aunt Teddy teaches Hattie Psalm 23: The Lord is my Shepherd, but it doesn't mean much until years later when she realizes God has been by her side her whole life. This is a fine read and can be found with the 2017 UMW books in the Fellowship Hall. Monthly Book Club and Bible Study Groups Monthly Book Club Our book group will be discussing My Ántonia, by Willa Cather on Monday, December 18th at 2:00 p.m. in Riverside s Lounge. Books are available in the office. Check with Pastor Lori if you have questions or suggestions for future book club picks! Thursday Bible Study 8:45 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Study meets year-round in the Lounge. New members always welcome. - 5 -
Thank You for Supporting Our Emergency Assistance Fund! On Sunday, November 19 th, the Missions Ministry Team sponsored a pie sale to benefit our Emergency Assistance Fund, raising $490 for this cause while pie buyers were able to enjoy a tasty treat! Our Emergency Fund occasionally helps people with gas or grocery vouchers. We more frequently partner with Calvary Lutheran Church and Hubbard United Methodist Church to help with more substantial needs such as rent or a utility bill. Last year, we helped a teacher who was dealing with a serious health issue. Her salary wasn t enough to cover her medical bills and her rent, so we helped pay her rent, giving her the gift of a roof over her head. We helped a single mom who had just gotten a new job pay for groceries while she waited for her first paycheck. We helped an older person pay her utility bill during a colder month when her bill was higher than her fixed income could handle. Jesus said, I assure you that when you have done it for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you have done it for me. Thank you for sharing Christ s love! Tuesday Mornings - Coffee and Games in the Lounge Tuesday mornings from 10:00 a.m. to Noon, enjoy coffee in the Lounge. Meet a friend, check your Wi-Fi, read a magazine, or bring a favorite board game. Several tables play Scrabble, Cribbage or cards. Fresh bean-ground coffee! The Perfect Gift Do you stress about finding just the right gift for everyone on your Christmas list? Does it make the season more a hassle than a joy? Pastor Mike Slaughter reminds us that Christmas isn t about perfect presents for people, as if it were their birthday or ours. Christmas is about the perfect presence of Immanuel, God with us, through the birth of Jesus; it s his birthday, after all! In Christmas Is Not Your Birthday (Abingdon), Slaughter writes, How funny that it can be so hard to find gifts that will please certain family members or friends the people who seem to have everything and yet it is so clear what the Lord of lords and King of kings wants for his birthday. God wants you your time, your talent and your treasure - used in service to others. (Reprinted from NewsletterNewsletter.com) - 6 -
In Our Prayers Pray for those who are ill or recovering: Don & Janis Eckhoff, Gannon Wilkins, Al VanRoekel, Linda Meyer Pray for those grieving: The family of John Everson. John passed away November 1st The family of Helen Stigman. Helen passed away November 8th The family of Norris Hokeness. Norris passed away November 8th The family of Leland Jokela. Lee passed away November 25th Prayers for our church & its ministries including: Missions in Laos; McCurdy School in New Mexico; Ministries at Red Bird Mission; Rev. Earl & June Harrison and the ministries in Jamaica; UMCOR. The Intercessory Prayer Team and Prayer Chains are available to help support you. Call the church office (732-5205) for more information, or if you are in need of pastoral support. Let the Missions Team Help You With Your Christmas List! The Missions team has always put together some great gift options for you to consider when doing your Christmas shopping. This year is no different. They will have a display set up in the Fellowship Hall Sunday mornings in December where you can purchase an animal through Heifer International, help prevent malaria through Imagine No Malaria, or keep someone warm with a blanket from Church World Services. Gift enclosures are available for you to give to your family and friends. Poinsettias for Christmas Orders are being taken for poinsettias until Monday, December 11 th to be displayed in the sanctuary for Christmas. Poinsettias are $10 each and you can choose red, white or pink! Order forms can be found in your Sunday morning worship folders. Plants may be picked up beginning Tuesday, December 26th during regular building hours. Call ahead for schedule! Keep Our Children Warm! The Friendship Circle of Riverside s United Methodist Women is collecting new mittens, hats, socks, face warmers (appropriate for cold weather) and fleece-tied blankets to be given to Helping Hands at Century School in Park Rapids, and through CHI St. Joseph s Hospital. A collection basket will be located across from the office. Help a child stay a little warmer this winter all colors and sizes welcome! - 7 -
Enjoy The Messenger - your way! Riverside s newsletter, The Messenger, is available in a format that fits your lifestyle. You may receive it on your e-mail, regular mail delivery or on our website at www.riversideumcchurch.com. Articles must be submitted for publication by the 15th day of each month. Space is limited, and we reserve the right to review for content and appropriateness. OFFICE HOURS Monday thru Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. December Schedule 3 1st Sunday in Advent / Communion 17 Christmas Program, 8:30 a.m. Service 21 First Day of Winter 24 Christmas Eve Services 9AM, 4PM, 5:30PM, 9PM 25 Christmas Day - Building Closed 31 New Years Eve - One service at 9AM January Schedule 1 New Years Day - Building Closed 7 Epiphany Sunday 21 Annual Church Conference Meeting CONTACT US: Riverside UMC P. O. Box 128 1005 Park Avenue N. Park Rapids, MN 56470 (218) 732-5205 e-mail: rumc@unitelc.com Visit us on the web at www.riversideumcchurch.com WEEKLY SCHEDULE Office Hours: Mon. -Thurs: 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Sunday Worship 8:30 a.m. Traditional Service 9:30 a.m. Fellowship/Education 10:30 a.m. Contemporary Service Minnesota Annual Conference: www.minnesotaumc.org United Methodist Websites: www.rethinkchurch.org www.umc.org Casting the net of Christ s love to all through Faith, Action and Compassion. Nonprofit Org. U. S. Postage PAID Park Rapids, MN Permit #5 Riverside United Methodist Church P. O. Box 128 1005 Park Avenue North Park Rapids, MN 56470 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED