First Presby’s Weekly News
December 10, 2017
Sunday Worship 10:30 a.m.
Worship is broadcast at 11:00 a.m. on WCHS-580AM
304-343-8961
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Congratulations to:
–Mose and Sharon Winkler on the birth of their great-grandson, Grayson Jacob Dunmire. Proud grandparents are Joe and Kristy Zak, proud parents are Dennis and Barbara Dunmire and proud siblings are Eli, Adele and Edith Dunmire.
-Jason and Joann Conley on the birth of their great-granddaughter, Julia Elizabeth Zegafuse. Proud uncle is Marvin Conley, proud parents are Mitchell and Susan Zegafuse and proud siblings are John and Josie Zegafuse.
About the Advent Wreath: During the four weeks leading up to Christmas, we use our Advent wreath to help us celebrate a special season called “Advent.” We light a new candle on the wreath each week as we move from darkness into light. The four candles on the outside of the wreath remind us of the four thousand years from Adam to Jesus, when humanity was waiting for a Savior. Some Lutheran Christians call their candles the Prophecy Candle (Hope), the Bethlehem Candle (Preparation), the Shepherd Candle (Joy), the Angel Candle (Love). Some Reformed Christians use them to represent Faithfulness, Hope, Joy, and Love, or sometimes Prophets, Angels, Shepherds, and Magi. Some Catholic Christians use the candles to represent Hope, Faith, Joy, and Peace. If a fifth candle is placed in the center of the wreath, it represents the Light of Christ. At First Presby, our first four Advent wreath candles represent Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. Last Sunday, the Hawkins Family—Les, Dawn, and Courtney—lit our Candle of Hope as we prayed for Christ’s hope to reach every corner of our world. This morning, the Presbyterian Women light our Candle of Peace as we pray for Christ’s peace to enter our hearts, our family of faith, our city, and every corner of our troubled world.
Christmas Cookies? Yes please! Following worship today, we are continuing the fun with a time of hot chocolate, Christmas cookies and carols in the Dining Room. Our new Director of Communications, Laura Hedrick, will be playing the piano for us to sing along.
What’s Coming Up?
Preschool Christmas Worship Service: The Preschool Weekday School children cordially invite you to their Christmas Worship service in the Sanctuary on Wednesday, December 13 at 12:00 p.m. Come and enjoy wonderful sounds of the season from the children of the Preschool.
The Presbyterian Women luncheon will be on Thursday, December 14 at 12:00 p.m. in the Dining Room. This month’s presentation will be “The Spirit of Christmas” by Mary Odin.
Movie Night: We’ll bring the popcorn; all you have to bring is yourself! Fellowship & Rec invites children and youth grades K-12 to join us for a Holiday Movie Night on Friday, December 15 from 6:00-8:30 p.m. We will watch 2 Christmas movies and have a popcorn bar. Parents are invited to use this as a chance to have a dinner out, go Christmas shopping or just have a night off during the Christmas Season. If you have any questions please call Payne at 304-343-8961 ext. 119, or email him at youth@firstpresby.com.
Cookies, Cakes and Pies – Oh My! Manna Meal’s annual Christmas Party is December 16 and the First Presby family has a long tradition of providing desserts for this event. This year 200 guests are expected and your help is greatly needed. Desserts can be dropped off in the Manna Meal kitchen located at St John’s Church on Thursday or Friday, December 14 & 15 between 7:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. or Saturday, December 16 between 7:30 – 10:00 a.m. Please use disposable baking or serving dishes.
Christmas Eve Services: This year’s Christmas Eve services will take place at 10:30 a.m. (Worship), 4:00 p.m. (Tableau Service) and 7:00 p.m. (Candlelight Service) in the Sanctuary. For more information, call the church office at 304-343-8961.
In Other News
Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University, a nine week course, is coming the First Presbyterian Church beginning January 16th. The classes will be held on the first and third Tuesday of each month (January through May), run from 6:45 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., and require pre-registration. Please call the Church to register for the course or for more information.
Make sure your face is in the First Presby Directory! Lifetouch will be at First Presby January 4-6 and 11-13 to take photos for the 2018 directory. You can register for a time slot by going to www.firstpresby.com and clicking on “Register for Directory Photo” or visiting the bulletin board in the hallway after worship today.
Hospice Care is hosting its annual Kids Ornament Workshop on Thursday, December 14, from 6:00 to 7:30 pm. Children who have lost a loved one will be able to create their very own personalized Christmas ornament to capture their loved one’s spirit and memory through creative art expression. The workshop is FREE! Registration is required, as seating is limited. Please register your child for this workshop by calling Hospice Care at 304-768-8523. Help a grieving child make a special memory by passing this information along!
Tableau Rehearsal is Sunday, December 17 from 2:00-4:30 p.m. in the sanctuary. The Christmas Tableau will take place at 4:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve. All participants need to meet in the chapel 3:00 p.m. prior to the Tableau.
LOGOS begins the winter/spring semester on Wednesday, January 10 at 5:00 p.m. Registration forms are in the main hallway for pre-k through high school students. Please call Janet Chambers or email janet@firstpresby.com.
Youth Group has a change in schedule today: The high school youth are meeting Payne in the Dining Room at 12:30 to go shopping for gifts for the Angel Tree Project. All youth are invited to join us at 6:00 p.m. at Rock Lake Presbyterian Church to wrap gifts for the Oakwood Terrace Christmas Project. Next Wednesday, Youth Group will meet in the Rec Room from 5:00-7:00 p.m. to finish the Angel Tree Project preparation, dinner and Bible Study.
More about the music: Below is an excerpt from “Glory to God: A Companion” about this morning’s hymn, “O Little Town of Bethlehem”: “Though he was famed during his lifetime as a great preacher, no sermon Phillips Brooks ever preached has been heard or read by as many people as have sung his Christmas carol. He wrote it in 1868 for the children of the Sunday School at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Philadelphia, where he was then rector. In writing it, he may well have had in mind his own visit to Bethlehem on Christmas Eve 1865. Traveling there from Jerusalem by horseback, he and his companion made a point of visiting the fields outside town where, according to tradition, the shepherds heard “the Christmas angels/the great glad tidings tell.” The text also gains great immediacy because all its verbs are in the present tense, giving the singers and hearers a keener sense of being able to see and hear everything as it is described. It is clear that Brooks’s rhetorical gifts did not desert him when he turned to poetry.” For more tidbits about our music and hymn texts, visit a church copy of “Glory to God: A Companion” by Reverend Carl P. Daw, Jr. M.A., M.Div., Ph.D in our church library, or look through the copy on the piano at the front of the sanctuary after worship.
Hope Village is open for all of your Christmas shopping needs! Clothing, household goods, jewelry, baskets, nativity sets, olive oil, purses, scarves, the list goes on and on! Every single item has a story behind it–a story of how lives are being transformed and hope is provided by your purchase. Hope Village is a mission outreach of First Presby-100% of the proceeds go back to the artisans. Share the good news of what First Presby is doing to provide help and hope throughout this world. Store hours are Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, from 10:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m. and after worship on Sunday.
Do you love working with children and babies? If so, there is an opportunity for you to serve! First Presby is looking for childcare volunteers to help with the nursery, toddler and preschool rooms. If you are interested in volunteering, call the church office at 304-343-8961.
In Case You Missed It
Christmas Memorials: Envelopes are in the pew racks for contributions to our Worship Memorial Fund in honor or memory of loved ones. Names will be printed in a special insert for the Christmas worship bulletins. Deadline is December 17. These Christmas Memorials are given to enrich worship at the church.
Buy a Chair! – Help us reach our goal of 100 chairs to refurbish the sanctuary of 1st Presbyterian Church of Dickinson: We are currently half-way to our goal of 100 chairs. We would like for them to have all of the chairs in time for Christmas Worship services. Each chair costs $40. Sign up to purchase a chair using the bulletin board in the church hallway, or simply place a check made out to First Presby (note: “Chairs”), and place it in the offering plate.
There’s an app for that!: Did you know you can access our hymnal from your mobile device using the free mobile edition? Versions of Glory to God: The Presbyterian Hymnal are available from Google Play and also from the App Store for your Apple device. The free versions will give you all the public domain hymns, including favorites such as “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling,” “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing,” and “Take My Life and Let It Be.” In-app purchases will give you copyrighted as well as public domain hymns. There are powerful search capabilities, sample piano recordings of hymns, interesting information about hymns and their authors, and the ability to access several different versions of hymns including pew, accompaniment, large print, lead sheet and instrumental (strings, brass and woodwinds). Check it out!
Support First Presby by shopping at AmazonSmile: Are you looking for a way to give back this holiday season? By selecting First Presbyterian Church Charleston, WV as your charity of choice, Amazon will donate 0.5% of your purchase to First Presby! To find out more information, visit our website at www.firstpresby.com.
This week’s food pantry needs: Peanut butter & cereal