First Presbyterian Church, MissionDECEMBER VOLUME 1, ISSUE 4 JOY TO THE WORLD!...anotherRGV ConnectionspublicationWhere God’s love makes all the difference! Where God’s love makes all the difference! Where God’s love makes all the difference! Grace, Mercy & Peace to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ! There’s a new shepherd on the job in Bethlehem, but he’s got a problem: He’s allergic to sheep! Meanwhile, a MIRACLE is about to happen up the street in a local stable. This unforgettable musical will delight everyone – the story is wonderful and our SonShine Players are ador able. This year, our young troupe of students would like to invite you to share a bit ofChristian lov e with the children at Su Casa de Esperanz a. Although ther e is no admission charge to enjoy “Aaron, the Allergic Shepherd,” we would invite you to bring a gift to donate to the Su Casa kids – these are children under 5 years old and anything you can give will make their lives a little bit better. The list below provides a few suggestions. Thanks & see you there!! “Aaron, the Allergic Shepherd” Presented by the FPC Mission — SonShine Players Sunday December 5 6:30 PM Baby cereal Pampers —Newborn Paint Brushes & paints Baby Clothing size 0-4T Pampers–Crusiers all sizes Graduates Smart Sips Gerber—beverage Baby food–fruit & veggie Tricycles Children’s Books, 1-3 yr. Baby Shoes & socks Wet Ones–(wipes) Toys–ages 0–4 years Caps / Hats / Booties Infant Swing Jumbo Crayons Car seat for newborn Puppets / Pull toys High ChairEnfamil baby formula Puzzles / Balls Infant Activity Gym Receiving Blankets Painting Aprons Playpen Onesies–size 0-24months Jumbo Coloring Books StrollerPacifiers Easel for painting Blocks / Dolls / Cars FPC—WORSHIP SCHEDULE:8:30am Worship 9:30am Sunday School Adult Education 10:30 am Worship
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DECEMBER 2010First Presbyterian Church, Mission A Word From Pastor Dave
Adventures in AdventI don‘t know about you but I get to this time of year and wonder, ―How did Advent get here without merealizing it?‖ I guess Advent‘s arrival should notsurprise us because the word ―Advent‖ comes fromthe Latin for ‗coming‘… So we are in a constant time
of preparation and expectation of the coming of the Christ Child and also for the Second Coming of Christ.
Advent originated as a time of preparation for people entering the churchfamily, prior to their baptism on Epiphany, January 6th. Now, sometimebetween the 4th and 7th centuries, the season of Advent varied betweenthree to seven weeks in different parts of Christendom. The Churcheventually set the season‘s length at four Sundays, emphasizing the OldTestament prophecies of the coming of the Messiah.
The lighting of the Advent wreath is a familiar custom during this season in churches and inhomes. A wreath is usually made of evergreenbranches and adorned with three purplecandles and one rose pink candle, with asingle white candle in the middle.
On each Sunday in Advent a candle is lit until,
at last, all four candles are burning. Theincreasing light shed by the candlesrepresents our increasing joy as the day of Jesus‘ coming approaches. The rose is lit onthe third Sunday of Advent, known as GaudeteSunday- ―Let us rejoice‖.
As the candles are lit over the four weekperiod, we are reminded of the four centuriesof waiting between the prophet Malachi and the birth of Christ, it alsosymbolizes the darkness and fear and hopelessness receding and theshadows of sin falling away as more and more of Christ‘s light is shed intothe world.
Finally, during the Christmas Eve Service, the white candle is lit to proclaimthat Jesus, the Light of the World has come and we rejoice because thelong held promise of God, has been realized… Please join us during this Advent Season to prepare your heart and life for the coming of Jesus… Blessings, Pastor Dave +
David Diercksen & Pam Sherwood, narratorsPat Hudsonpillar, director
December 128:30 & 10:30 worship services
CELEBRATION SUNDAY CONCERT SERIES
December 19th willmark the nextinstallment in the 13
th
Annual CelebrationSunday ConcertSeries at FPC!
These concerts are sponsored by the church as a community service – free of charge and open to the public.
Our December Celebration Sunday Concert will feature the Sweet Adelines.The award winning Magic Valley Chorus is a proud member of Sweet AdelinesInternational, the largest international organization of women singers committedto the preserving and performing the art form of barbershop harmony. Thisexuberant group performs around the Rio Grande Valley – don‘t miss thisperformance, which is guaranteed toput you in the Christmas Spirit!
This concert is on Sunday, December 19th and begins at 6:30 PM. Please
join us for this very entertainingevening of music!
CELEBRATION SUNDAYCONCERT SERIES:
December 19: The Sweet AdelinesJanuary 16: Julie McClaren, pianistFebruary 20: Alta Uhrmacher, organ
CHRISTIAN EDUCATION: Elder Nicole CruzDeveloping in Christ’s Love
Christian Education at First Presbyterian Churchfocuses on the development of your walk with Christ.As Christians and children of Christ, we love oneanother and provide the caring environment where westudy scripture and grow in our discipleship.For more information on opportunities to get involvedwith Christian Education, talk to Nicole Cruz—584-1948or [email protected].
YOUTH & YOUNGADULT FELLOWSHIP
- Elder John Cain -
The goals of Youth & Young AdultFellowship are twofold:1. Provide an opportunity for junior high and high school kids toparticipate in activities such asservice/mission projects, devotionalstudies, Presbyterian meetings (Mid-Winter Meeting), as well as funactivities.
2. Give these young adults a time tovisit in a setting just for them.
Some of the activities planned for 2011 include:-Super Bowl Party-Valentine's Day Dinner -Tailgate for Vipers/Killer Bees game-Roadrunner Baseball GameFor more information on youth &
young adult activities and events, contactJohn Cain — 581.6861.
FELLOWSHIP- Elder Mike Manuel -
Fellowship is animportant part of First PresbyterianChurch and wehope to providemany opportunities
for fellowship outside, as well as insidethe sanctuary.
From providing coffee and lemonade
for Sunday School and after servicesto fellowship breakfasts and specialactivities, our goal is welcoming friendsnew and old to join us at FPC.
If you would like more information ongetting involved in this ministry, talk toMike Manual—583-1756.
STEWARDSHIP REPORT — Bill EllisorThis is the time we ask our people to take a step of faith
and make a pledge of time and money to God’s work at FPC.
We have problems in our lives and in our Church
Community . Praise God for our problems. Praise releases
God’s power into our situation and puts us in the will of
God. We need to continue to praise God for our situation asit is. Trust God to make it happen. Live your Faith.
How to live by Faith. Hebrews 11:6 –―And without faith
it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe
that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.‖
Praise God for all of our Members, Winter Texans and Friends that are giving
their tithe, time and offerings to our Church Ministries. Praise God for the
volunteers and staff working together with God to make it happen.
Special thanks to our Pastor Dave for his teaching and preaching. Thanks also to
Elder Nicole Cruz and Elder Don Badgley for speaking on stewardship inChurch.
Congregational Care: A Note from Judy November has been an exciting month for congregationalcare. We put out the list of items requested by the troops and, asusual you came through with flying colors. On November 10,Linda Ingram, Sue Leerhoff, and I packed Thanksgiving boxesfor the troops sent them in time to be received by the holiday.Your response was terrific. We had many items — more thanwould fit in the boxes. We decided to also send a box for
Christmas. The Christmas boxes will be sent out on December first. They willinclude home baked cookies as well as other donated items.A huge thank you to all of you who donated items, baked cookies, or helped withthe postage. Without our working together we could never have made the projectsuch a success.If you have questions or are interested in more information about getting
involved with this committee, please call Judy Alexander at 580-0712. Thank you!
TWO THINGS TO BELIEVE
1. God is our Total Resource – He
can be, He wants to be.
2. God is a Rewarder – of needs, concerns, desires.
OUTREACH COMMITTEE—Judy MayesDecember is here and, as usual, it‘s a very busy
time of the year. We are traveling, Christmas shoppingfor that special gift for those special people in your life,
and cooking the delicious holiday treats. Well there isone more thing we do here at First Presbyterian Churchin Mission that needs to be added to the list. This is thetime we give Christmas Food Baskets to low incomefamilies. In the past several years we have collectedenough money to give 40 families enough groceries tohelp out for the holidays.
This is where you come in. We at FPC cannot do it without your help.We will be asking for your generous donations of money, time and talent. Wewill be meeting at Sam‘s in Pharr on Thursday, December 16 th to shop,Friday, December 17th at the Church to sort and pack and Saturday,December 18
thto deliver. If you would like to participate in any or all of these
events, please contact Judy Mayes, 956-343-8716 (cell), 956-585-1198(home) or by email at [email protected].
Thank you for all of your help in the past and hope to see you for thismost joyous time!