As we enter Advent, we will pick up on the theme of the coming Cantata by our Senior Choir, "Night of Wonder" and work with the context of our Advent devotional, A Grand Miracle. The devotional is a reflection on C.S. Lewis writings, as he investigates the wonder of our relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Join in this preparation by being attentive to the daily devotions and these

Sunday sermon passages, as well as worship events:

 

The first Sunday of Advent, November 29: The Wonder of the Incarnation,

from Philippians 2:5-11, in our service of worship with communion

 

The second Sunday of Advent, December 6: The Wonder of God’s Presence,

from Philippians 4:4-8, with our service offering the Giving Tree

 

The third Sunday of Advent, December 13: "Night of Wonder" with the

Senior Choir singing their Cantata

 

The fourth Sunday of Advent, December 20: The Wonder of Story, with the

children presenting their Christmas Program, the Deacon Lunch,

and a Christmas visitor for the children

Christmas Eve, December 24, 7:30 PM: The Wonder of the Journey, with the

full Christmas story told in our family service ending in candlelight

 

Christmas Eve, December 24, 10 PM: The Wonder of the Journey, with a

communion and candlelight service at Osceola Mills Presbyterian Church

Sunday, December 27: The Wonder of Transformation,

from Philippians 1:3-11 as the text for our worship service

 

Clearly, December is rich with opportunities to see God at work in ours and others’ lives!

We have every reason to be filled with wonder!

 

Grace and Peace in this Advent and Christmas,

Note: If this newsletter has been passed to you by one of our members as an introduction

to our church, we welcome the opportunity to get to know you better through coming

to worship with us. Our Sunday worship service begins every Sunday at 10:30 AM,

with Sunday School for all ages at 9:30 AM. Our church is located on Presqueisle

Street, between 5^th and 6^th Streets, with parking behind the building or on the street.

In a month of giving thanks, we give thanks for:

The many helping hands at the Presbyterian Homes Bazaar, who made items,

spread joy, and worked at the Bazaar… thanks! Darrell Hollis, for faithfully serving

as Presbytery commissioner… thanks! Jeff Eyet, for writing the Minutes for our

church that were approved without exception… thanks! Gary Barnett, for working above and beyond duty in keeping up with the leaves, the floors and the polishing… thanks! The quartet of Lisa Holden, Andrew Rothrock, Dan Nelson and Karen Wood, for singing in the Community Aid Concert … thanks! All those who prepare and set

up for communion so regularly and quietly… thanks! The Deacons, who arranged

the Christmas Shoeboxes and the 50+ Christmas Shoebox fillers … thanks! Jill Reed’s class who made our Giving Tree ornaments… thanks! Karen Wood, who took charge

of the Poinsettia purchases … thanks! The creativity of the Alternative Christmas Gift ministry team…thanks!

 

GIFT OF CHOIR TO WINDY HILL

Our Senior Choir works so hard on their Cantata that

they have decided to spread the Christmas joy to Windy

Hill Village with a performance there on Wednesday, December 9, at 7 PM. This is our church’s gift to the

home, made possible through the generosity of our choir. Thank you for sharing your gifts!

 

The opportunity to share our riches with those who have less

will be given again to the church community on Sunday, December 6,

when we offer the Giving Tree ornaments. Each ornament represents

a gift needed by a local resident in one of three local elderly ministries:

Philipsburg’s Windy Hill Village of the Presbyterian Homes, Decatur Village,

or the Philipsburg Towers. During the children’s story time, those in worship will be

invited to receive an ornament brought by a child from the Giving Tree, then go shopping for

the gift designated, wrap it with the ornament placed on it, and return it to the church for delivery. Please plan to select an ornament and return the gift to the church by Sunday, December 20.

CHRISTMAS FEAST

Our wonderful meal team is again cooking a free Christmas Feast to those in our

community who may be alone for the holiday or may not have the means to enjoy

a holiday feast. Please note that those who are lonely may be able to buy a meal

Through the generous gift of an anonymous donor, and the creative efforts of the

planning team of Holly Kithcart, Angie Dixon, and Barbara Little, the Christmas Feast

has been set for Sunday, December 6, at 5 PM. Children of the church will sing, and

there is a need for adult servers, set-up people, and clean-up people.

If you know of anyone who you’d like to see invited, please contact Pastor Tracie (342-0812). Invitations are being distributed with a requirement of a reservation. The meal will serve 100 people.

Night of Wonder is an Advent and Christmas cantata that is written and arranged by Jay Althouse

and Sally K. Albrecht. We will take a beautiful musical journey through the season beginning

with the Advent prophecy, continuing to the annunciation of Mary and the birth of Jesus,

then along with the heavenly angel host as they proclaim, "Glory to God in the highest."

The choruses include gorgeous new music along with beloved traditional hymns all masterfully crafted by Jay Althouse. The dramatic readings are drawn from the scriptural texts and the

lyrics of traditional hymn all movingly adapted by Sally K. Albrecht.

Our narrators will be Pastor Tracie and Dick Kithcart. Vocal soloists include Carol Moore,

Jill Reed, Holly Kithcart, and Darrell Hollis. Please plan to attend this wonderful gift of music on Sunday, December 13^th, during worship.

CHURCH FAMILY CHRISTMAS GREETINGS

Instead of mailing out a number of cards to individual families, you are invited to send or bring one card to the church to hang on the Bulletin Board at the Fifth Street Entrance. We can all gather around and read the letters and well wishes, enjoying the news of God’s work in one another’s lives. And the generosity and joy doesn’t stop there. With the money you save from reducing the numbers of cards you send out, consider making a gift to the Christmas Eve Offering, which will be designated this year to the Deacons to distribute to a variety of local needs. Of course, you can send out cards to whomever you choose. But putting a card up at church

assures that everyone receives your warm greetings. If you can put it up by December 20, many will see the board as we go to the Westminster Hall for our Soup and Sandwich lunch.

 

On Sunday, December 20, our children will present their Christmas

program as part of our worship service. Come to enjoy Signs of Christmas,

by Cathy Skogen-Soldener. The play is organized by Karen Wood, Paul Springer,

Jen Starner, Jill Blake, Casey Blake, and Christy Johnson with Sally Laux providing the music.

In the evening of December 24, the church will worship jointly with our sister Church in

Osceola Mills. The family service, with the candle ceremony and many musical presentations,

will be held at 7:30 PM at our church. The communion and candlelight service will be held at

10 PM at the Osceola Mills Presbyterian Church. The meditation at both services will be the

same, so each family can select the worship service most meaningful to them. So all families

can sit and enjoy the services together, nursery care will not be offered.

The tradition of inviting people to give to the Deacon’s Fund will continue at our Christmas Eve service offering time. The funds collected on Christmas Eve are used by our Deacons to fund the many community services we support, such as Habitat for Humanity, Red Cross, Relay for Life, Shoe Bank, Special Olympics, service projects, Homebound gifts, emergency needs, and ministries to our children. Please consider a gift to their efforts beyond your regular giving this Christmas.

The following officers were elected to serve at the Congregational Meeting on

Sunday, October 25, after worship:

For Session - Lisa Holden, Ilo Warg, and Karen Wood will join the Board.

For Deacons - Angie Dixon, Dottie Isaacson, Christy Johnson, and Melissa Millward will all be

coming onto the board for the first time in service as a deacon.

For Trustees - Paul Springer, Jennifer Starner, and Lora Storck will be serving.

In electing the new officers, we give our thanks to those who have faithfully served in the last term.

For Session - we thank Darrell Hollis, Julie Jo Johnston, and Susan Millward.

For Deacons - we thank Dave Dixon, Jill Reed, Amy Rodgers, and Karen Wood.

For Trustees - we thank Gary Barnett, Julie Milsom, and Ed Storck.

What a gift to have so many people who are equipped to be called to leadership in our congregation!

I just finished reading the novel, The Pattern in the Carpet, an eccentric hybrid of a book, mixing a personal memoir with a history of the jigsaw puzzle. And once again, I am faced with the realization that probably no one I know has read the book so there’s no one available to discuss it with me.

That’s why I am so excited about the plans to encourage the congregation to join together in reading a selected Bible passage each day in 2010. Each passage will require about 10 minutes of reading.

We will be putting the reading list in the narthex in early December. Please pick up a copy and tuck it in your Bible. If there is sufficient interest, Pastor Tracie has agreed to lead discussions on the readings from time to time over the next year.

Make a New Year’s resolution to spend a few minutes each day in reading and contemplation. It’s a great opportunity to come together for fellowship and study.

Oh! If anyone has read The Pattern in the Carpet, give me a call.

Yours in faith, Laura Bordas

Total Offering and Income to General Fund $ 8,275.91

Total Expenses from General Fund $11,212.20

Deficit for October $ (2,936.29)

NOTES FROM THE TRUSTEES MEETING

1. Reviewed financial report and 2010 budget
2. Reviewed utility statements and changed several servers to cut costs.
3. New dishes will be purchased this week for the kitchen from the Kitchen Fund.
4. At the end of December 2009, we will change the base for the Bragonier account.

We will reset the base starting in January 2010.
5. The Leadership Retreat is scheduled for February 20, 2010 from 9 a.m. – Noon.
6. Approved the table and chair lending policy.
7. Todd Dixon will do the snow removal for the church.

CHURCH OFFICER MEETINGS FOR DECEMBER

Deacons: Tuesday, December 1^st @ 7:00 p.m.

Session: Monday, December 14^th @ 7:00 p.m.

Trustees: Tuesday, December 15^th @ 7:00 p.m.

 

 

 

 

DECEMBER BIRTHDAYS

2^nd – Dave Laux 12^th – Helen Gill

3^rd – Dave Dixon 19^th – Gertie Clyde

3^rd – Angie Dixon 19^th – Tom Sayers

5^th – Amy Butler 25^th – Joe Turner

5^th – Ben Jeffries 27^th – Lora Storck

9^th – Dottie Fenton 28^th – Babs Herman

9^th – Jennifer Jones 28^th – Julie Jo Johnston

10^th – Susan Test 29^th – Perry Richmond

11^th – Larry Ammerman 30^th – Dede Coleman

 

 

 

 

19^th – Paul and JoAnn Springer – 11 years

27^th – Darrell and Helen Hollis – 51 years

28^th – Joyce and Allen Kitko – 8 years

29^th – Adam and Bethany Coursen – 8 years