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December 2019 Volume 25, Issue 12 CENTRALIA FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH Caring & Sharing Advent season ne- ing, and show the world cessitates waiting. It the good news of the can be uncomfortable. gospel. We don’t have to Yet in that space of be trapped in the system discomfort lies hope. of status and consumer- There is freedom in ism! waiting: slowing down from a fast paced so- This Advent, each week Vangie’s Voice ciety, we can sit in will be centered on the peace and gratitude. Inside this issue: “Christmas” explodes Advent Conspiracy ten- into stores earlier and Each week, a candle ets: Worship Fully, Lions Club Glasses 2 earlier each year. It’s a is lit waiting for Love Spend Less, Give More, little jarring when we Incarnate to appear. In and Love All. We will get Covenant Sunday 2 have our late summer comparing our Chris- creative with practices tian practice to socie- Outreach 2 heatwave and Santas and awareness to avoid Opportunity are already on display ty, it’s evident that fol- the bondage of consum- at Costco or Walmart. lowing Jesus means erism. We wait for God December 2 being countercultural. Birthdays Our culture is increas- to appear in the flesh, ingly run by this drive Emmanuel, God with us. Our theme this year December 2 for immediate gratifica- Waiting, we feel the Calendar tion. Why not have the is Advent Conspiracy, heaviness of the current holidays sooner? which began a bit over state of affairs: increasing Sermon Texts 3 ten years ago in a few homelessness and pov- We are no longer evangelical churches. erty, climate change, and Christmas Eve 3 used to waiting. We Many evangelical a general unkindness in don’t need to plan as churches do not have the air. This only high- Community Dinner 3 much to travel to a much of an emphasis lights our shared desire store and peruse their on Advent. I never of God’s renewed Earth: Greeter/ Coffee goods. Amazon deliv- celebrated Advent un- bellies filled, people in Hour Schedule 3 ers to your door in two til I became a Method- homes, the land vibrant days, and you don’t ist 11 years ago. For and healthy, lonely hearts me, it made the sea- Advent Conspiracy 4 need to deal with sales- to be befriended, the re- men or cashiers. I ad- son tolerable again. demption and renewal of Celebrating Advent Hub City, these people Newsletter 4 mit that I’m spoiled by Deadline convenience. I don’t enables us to boldly and this land. like dealing with sales claim the Reason for people, so I do a lot of the Season, assert the shopping online. I season’s true mean- watch what I want, Let’s share a when I want through blessed Advent Netflix. If there is a together! song I want to listen to, I no longer have to go to a record store to by the cd; I use the Spotify app. I like my comfort and conveniences. Page 2 Lion’s Club Eyeglass Recycling Do you have one or two old pairs of eyeglasses that you can no longer use? We have a wonderful use for them. 11 a.m. December 29 The Lion’s Club can repur- pose them for children and John Wesley and the early Methodists stayed up all adults around the world who night on New Year’s Eve for something called a ordinarily have no access to Watchnight Service. It was a time of repentance and eyeglasses. Bring your old renewal. While we won’t be up all night , we will read eyeglasses to the church and and say the words as these early Methodists did. It will drop them off into the recy- be a time of reflection on the past year and committing cling bin in the hallway by the to what God will do through us this coming year. sanctuary. And thank you in advance for your donation. Bring your reading glasses! Outreach 2019 Turkey Luncheon/ Bazaar Opportunity: 10a.m.– 3p.m. International Stu- Lunch is served 11– 2. dent Host We would appreciate help on Thursday for set-up Centralia College is try- and Friday for serving, tear down, etc. ing to expand the num- ber of international stu- dents they have, but this comes with a need for more families who are willing to host one of these students. If you December Calendar are interested in this Dec 2 Quilting 10-12noon opportunity, you must meet a couple require- Dec 4 Directory Photos 1-8pm December ments: you must provide Birthdays Membership interest Class a private room for the Dec 5 6pm student, comfortable Dec 3 Margie Joy Murray bed and bedding, a clos- Dec 6 UMW Turkey Luncheon et and drawers to store and Bazaar clothing and personal Dec 11 Sandy Rydell items in, and a desk and Dec 16 Quilting 10– 12noon chair with a suitable Dec 18 UMW Birthday Luncheon lamp for study periods. Dec 26 McCartney Hull @ Church 12 noon Each host family receives a stipend from the col- Dec 24 Christmas Eve Service 7pm Dec 29 Jacob Wegener lege. Host periods can be from a single quarter, Dec 25-26 OFFICE CLOSED to a whole year. If you Dec 27 Friday Small Group are interested in this, contact Denise Costello. Her email address is Dec 29 All Church potluck and denise.costello@ Business Meeting centralia.edu Dec 30 Community Dinner? Page 3 Sunday Scriptures for December We strive to make worship meaningful, relevant, and Dec 8: Peace challenging each and every Mark 1:4 Sunday. You are challenged to make worship a regular Dec. 15: Joy part of your life. You are Isaiah 35:1 invited to take some time to read the Scripture and re- Dec. 22: Love flect on the passages before Isaiah 9: 6-7 each worship service. Dec 29: Wesleyan Dec 1: Hope Covenant Renewal Service Isaiah 60:2-3 Community Dinner December 30? Free Meals with Christian Fellowship 5:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols WE WELCOME ALL Christmas Eve Service 7:00 p.m. EAT WITH FRIENDS! In 1880 E. W. Benson, then Anglican Bishop of Truro, England, composed a Please Sign up to help in Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, based on ancient sources, for Christ- the kitchen or with mas Eve. The Nine Lessons have been customarily used in recent years at food purchases King's College. Be sure to join us as we too participate in this English tradi- tion filled with carols and candlelight. Greeter/ Coffee Hour Schedule For December It is so vitally important to be a church that practices radical hospitality, from the moment a person enters our doors to the time they exit the building. Dec. 1: Friday Small Group (Phyllis Schweisow) Dec. 8: Christ and Community (Contact Steve Koreis-MacLeod) Dec. 15: Finance and Facilities Team (Contact Charlie Boyd) Dec. 22: Gifts and Graces Team Dec. 29: All Church Potluck and business meeting. There is a template in the office that can help groups plan for their turn in the rotation. Caring &SharingPage 4 *** Please note: If you have any information that needs to get into the newsletter, any events that need to be announced, the deadline for the January newsletter is Friday, December 27. Please have your information to the office by then, thanks! (You can email the office at [email protected] or call 360-736-7311) CENTRALIA FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 506 South Washington Ave. Centralia, WA 98531 360-736-7311 Pastor Evangeline Rand Worship Fully pastorvangie@umcch Spend Less urches.com Give More Love All We are on the Web! Centralia First United Methodist Church Www. Centraliaumc.com Www.adventconspiracy.org First United Methodist Church 506 S. Washington Ave. Centralia, WA 98531 (360) 736-7311 Caring &Sharing Return Service Requested .
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