Randy's Ramblings
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Logos Update West Heights website: www.westheightsumc.org Vol. 38, No. 12 For month of December, 2017 Our Purpose: Changing lives by connecting hearts to Jesus Christ. Randy’s Ramblings …. Somewhere in the midst of planning for, or taking part in, our Trunk or Treat, I found myself remembering the first time I participated in a “trunk or treat” event. I realized that someone, somewhere came up with the idea and others blatantly copied the idea because they liked the idea. A similar thing happened nearly 800 years ago when a pastor created a live, outdoor Nativity as a part of his church’s Christmas celebration. Other people liked the idea and copied it. Then artists found ways to capture the idea in miniature form. I don’t know what you call those artistic portrayals of the Christmas story. Some people refer to it as a Crèche, a French word; others call it a Krippe (German), or even Nacimiento (Spanish.) I call it a Nativity Set. I do know that St. Francis of Assisi is credited with the origin of the crib scene, or Presepio as he called it in Italian, in 1223 or 1224. I also know that Ronda and I began to collect them several years ago. It started by accident when we mentioned to my parents that we’d like to have one. I finally found one; it’s a clay Nacimiento made in Peru. While it only has six pieces and the baby Jesus looks too large – almost as if he were an adolescent in a crib – we liked it. When my folks came to visit again, I was delighted to show them our “find;” but the look on their faces told me we’d made a mistake. Unbeknownst to us, they made one for us as a Christmas gift. It was a large set, complete with a teak wood stable. That began an annual tradition of finding a new one (or two or three). We now have so many that we cannot display them all at once. We will not set them all out, but many of them will be included in our church’s “At Home in Bethlehem” display during the first week of December! Among them will be one that I think is our favorite. It was hand painted by Judy Taylor of Bellingham, Washington. The characters she painted remind us of a church Sunday School program with all of the characters, including Joseph who didn’t want to dress up like a Shepherd. But if you look closely, there is a special surprise – one of the magi is in a wheel chair. Judy didn’t want to sell it to us, though. It had become a part of her life as she gave of herself in this piece of art. But our daughter’s wheel chair finally convinced her to let go of it. Her re- luctance to part with it reminds me of how hard it must have been for God to part with Jesus; but God did so, out of love for us. What a wonderful gift we have received! I hope you cherish it as much as I do. And I hope the thought of that gift will add joy to this season in which we find our way home for Christmas! At Home in Bethlehem-Dec. 1 - 10 For the first week of December, there will be a display of nativity sets set up in Gallery West. The display will include crèches from the collections of several members of our church and remind us of those who have no home as well as those who find room for Christ in their hearts. Come and walk through the display during any of the hours the church is open from December 1 through December 10. If you have a crèche you are willing to include in the display, please bring it to the church for set up on November 30 or December 1. Christmas Brochure Included with this Logos edition there is a Christmas 2017 brochure with the upcoming activities, classes, services, etc. Please share with friends, family and neighbors. If you would like extra brochures we will have them available in the church office. Angelic Messengers Are All Around Us We know Gabriel who comes to visit Mary in her Galilee home. We know the angels who bring good tidings of great joy to shepherds on a hillside. One of the more surprising stories of the Bible is that of an angel who can be seen by a talking donkey, but not by Balaam, the person riding the donkey. Angels come and go in the Bible, and Hebrews 13:2 reminds us that, in showing hospitality to strangers, we may be “entertaining angels unawares.” A fact I like to remember as I think about how I want to live in the world is that the Greek meaning of angel is “messenger”. If that’s so, being an angel in the New Testament sense of the word means being a messenger of God. What an awesome thought! Strangers can be angels. People who bring news can be angels. People who come to the youth office to mend holes in bean bags (I’m looking at you, Sharlene Reichenberger) can be angels. Grandparents can be angels. Teenagers can be angels. Four-year-olds can be angels. Forty-nine-year-olds can be angels. Trauma survivors can be angels. People who’ve done cruel things can be angels. People who are dying can be angels. Drug abusers can be angels. Customer support providers, friends, teachers, doctors, police officers, parents, clerks, wait staff, neighbors, all people of all ages can be angels. On December 2, from noon to 3, West Heights youth will be staffing the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree at Towne West. Come be angels with us! Take an angel from the tree and provide some holiday hope and cheer to a local child. Be a messenger of God’s love to someone who is already a sign of God’s love and presence in the world--one angel to another! December Opportunities to Serve Since December is the month we celebrate the gift of Jesus to us, the Missions Planning Team invites all of you to give the gift of your time, talents and/or resources to one of the following local organizations (or others of your choice) providing help to those in need in our community. Youth Horizons - Breaking the Cycle of Fatherlessness. There are several donation opportunities available. Call Youth Horizons at (316) 262-8293. Wichita Children's Home - Offering the only emergency, temporary residential shelter for children in our community. There are several opportunities to serve available. Contact Barbara Butler at 684-6581 x208. United Methodist Open Door – Providing food, clothing and shelter to those in need. There are opportunities to serve during the week (M-F) and also on Saturday. Contact Tim Stead at (316) 267-4201. Operation Holiday - Distributes nonperishable food, fresh food vouchers, winter wear and blankets to low-income families and individuals. Contact Linda Wren at (316) 264-9303. UMOD December Food Challenge The food challenge for December is macaroni & cheese and peanut butter. United Methodist Open Door can also use size 2+ diapers, paper grocery bags and feminine hygiene items. White Cotton Socks for the Homeless The New Journeys class is collecting white cotton socks to include in our Christmas bags for homeless men and women staying at the Inter-Faith shelters. We need the socks by Dec. 10th. Thank you for your generosity! Getting Involved With Missions On Sunday October 29th, a number of tables were positioned around the sanctuary presenting a wide range of opportunities for you to put your talents and gifts to work. One of those was Missions. Thank you to those that signed-up and expressed an interest in helping make Mis- sions sustainable at West Heights! In case you were unable to attend that service, we wanted to provide you another opportunity to consider Missions as a way of serving. Below are three general areas where we could use your help. If any of them are of interest to you, please let Dave Glover know (316-207-2190; [email protected]). If you are reading this in electronic form, you can click here to sign-up online. Thank you! #1: I can meet once a month to help set direction and plan mission opportunities #2: I can help plan and/or run event-specific mission opportunities, such as Food 4 Kids, Filling the Gap, GraceMed 5k, Peterson Elementary end-of-school events, etc. #3: I can help with communications, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, email, weekly church bulletin, visual displays, LOGOS articles, website maintenance, etc. Thank You! It was a chilly night, however, everyone turned out for our largest Trunk or Treat event ever. We gave away lots of candy and books, served lots of hot dogs, chips and hot chocolate and had a wonderful evening. It was successful because of all the donations, volunteers, trunks that were provided, staff members and the Membership and Evangelism Committee mem- bers. We heard many words of appreciation from children and their parents. We very much appreciate the generosity and support of this congregation. Betty Taylor and Judy Rainer Co-Chair of the Membership and Evangelism Committee Longest Night Service: December 21 As the holidays approach many people find grief is just below the surface. A favorite song of a loved one is heard on the radio. A movie reminds us of a friend who has died. Gift wrapping reminds us of someone who we loved giving a gift to, but can no longer do so.