Announcements 11/19/2023
Today’s altar flowers are given by Sookim in Thanksgiving and Celebration of birthdays of members and friends in November including her own.
Stewardship Campaign 2024
It is not too late to submit your pledge card!
“Building Tomorrow, Together!”
Thank you to all those who prayerfully considered your family’s generosity plan for supporting our 2024 ministries and submitted your pledge cards. We have received 66 pledges thus far, including 4 new pledges and 20 increases and 2 decreases compared to 2023. Because of your faithful giving, the Finance Committee and Ministry Leaders will be meeting together today to reconcile our 2024 budget as we prepare for our year ahead. Thank you again for your prayers surrounding this process and for “Building Tomorrow, Together!”
Even though we are trying to reconcile the budget today, it is still not too late to send in your pledge for next year. We are estimating the amount of those pledges we have not yet received, and need to have the actual pledges before we can finalize the budget. Please submit your pledge by mailing it to the church office, dropping it in the mail slot at the ramp entrance to the church or emailing Financial Secretary Kelly Mongiovi at kmongiovi@aol.com advising her of your pledge for 2024. Thank you!
Christmas Faire and Festival is December 1 and 2
Our annual Christmas Faire and Festival is on Dec 1, 1:00 pm – 8:00 pm and Dec 2, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. The Faire is an important fellowship and financial event, and we need everyone’s help to make it a success! Please share your plans for donations or volunteering to staff a table on the sign-up sheets in the Welcome Area. Contact Bonnie Marden at BonMarden@gmail.com or 978-846-1260 if you have questions.
Santa Fund
The Santa tree will be up Today November 19th and Presents need to be in by December 10th. Thank you all for making Christmas special for all the kids.
ADVENT MISSION PROGRAM
Sunday, November 26th 9:30 – 10:30 a.m.
Fellowship Hall
Everyone is invited to join us as we prepare for the season of Advent!
Each of our activities will be connected to one of our church’s outreach focus areas and the Advent Conspiracy program of: Worship Fully, Spend Less, Give More and Love All.
We will also reveal our Church Wide Advent Mission Focus – come find out what program we will be supporting during Advent!
We are also asking families to bring their favorite holiday goodie to share – each family will have a special card to write their name on, and the item of food they brought. Everyone is encouraged to enjoy this special day together as a family!
CHURCH SCHOOL CLASSES WILL BE UPSTAIRS ON THIS SUNDAY
Hats, Gloves, Mittens, Socks, and Toiletries for St. Paul’s
Outreach will be collecting items for St. Paul’s by the 17th of December. Please bring in hats, gloves, mittens, socks, and mittens as well as toiletries. There is a box in the welcome area.
Prayer Wall in Fellowship Hall
The Church Council recently created a prayer wall on a rolling partition in the Fellowship Hall, asking you to post prayers of what our church will look like as a result of the on-going Inclusion discussions. The Council recently decided to expand the purpose of the wall and we invite you to post prayers on any topic that you wish to have other members of our church family pray about.
Sponsor a book for our College Students!
Adult Ed in partnership with Cheryl O. and Pastor Bob, would like to give a copy of Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman to our college students. The books are $20 and we would like to gift them over the Winter Break when they all gather together again. You can sponsor a book and create a link to the next generation! You can find a donation envelope by the literature rack in the lobby.
Early Bird Bible Application
Early Bird reconvenes on Tuesday morning at ten o’clock. This week will focus on Romans 14:1-23. In that passage Paul admonishes us to ‘Live in harmony with one another.’ He gave the church some practical instructions on how to do we. Let’s examine his instructions and explore how they might assist us in living in harmony with one another. Join in this discussion via Zoom on Tuesday morning. All are welcome.
Adult Study Opportunities
Join us today at 10:00 am in the Concord Room for faith filled conversation led by Charles McCrea. From Charles –On Thanksgiving, many will gather with family and friends to celebrate. While this is a celebratory time, it can also be a time of some tension and stress when discussions of varying topics are held. The levels of engagement can range from indifferent to passionate. Sometimes those conversations can result in anger. This Sunday we will pause briefly to ‘Understand Christian Anger.’ The Scriptural context for the discussion is Ephesians 4:26
Next week, we will participate in the Advent Workshop between the services. Dec 3, we begin our Advent Study.
The Thursday Morning Bible study will not meet for the next two weeks because of Thanksgiving and the Christmas Faire. We will meet again on December 7 to begin our Advent Study The Heart That Grew Three Sizes by Matt Rawle.
Advent Study Begins December 3!
This year, we take a deeper look at a children’s book that delights all ages in the Christmas season. The Heart That Grew Three Sizes: Finding Faith in the Story of the Grinch by Matt Rawle will be the Advent material for the Adults AND some of the kids Sunday School classes.
Rediscover the gift of Advent that comes without packages, ribbons, and bows. We don’t know why the Grinch hated Christmas. We just know he did. If we’re being honest, there’s probably something within the Christmas season celebration that awakens a Grinch within all of us. Maybe the gift we unwrap was all wrong, or memories that were supposed to be joyful never were. When everything seems wrong in the world, even joyful celebrations are much too loud. We don’t know why the Grinch hated Christmas. We just know he did. In this new Advent study, Matt Rawle explores the faith themes in the Christmas classic, How the Grinch Stole Christmas! including, how did the Grinch’s heart grow three sizes come Christmas morning? How did Christmas save the Grinch? Could it be that the very thing we think we hate is the one thing that changes our lives? This Advent and Christmas season, look at a familiar classic through the lens of faith and see how Christ speaks to us through our culture.
Be a Grinch and get your copy of the book at your favorite bookseller before December! We will save a place around the circle for you.
Request from Ken Bair
I am asking for help in providing items to my grandson and some of his soldiers who don’t have a home support network.
His address:
1Lt Swan, Jasper
Task Force Wolverine
A Btry, 5/5 ADA
CMR 1782
APO AE 09807
APO boxes can be had for free from the US Post Office.
If you would like to contribute but aren’t able to fill an entire box, you can give your items to Kim or Dan Ward to collect. They can also help you with questions or ideas of items to include.
First the prohibited items: alcohol, flammable items, lithium batteries, perishable food, and plants.
Acceptable items: cards, clothing (socks, shoes, etc.), games, homemade nonperishable food, photos, snacks (ground coffee, gum, oatmeal, tea,) and toiletries – bar soap, deodorant, floss, shampoo, razors, tooth brushes, tooth paste, etc.
Travel time is now 2-3 weeks but will increase to 4-5 weeks during the
Holidays. Any time is a good time.
Aldersgate Ringers at the Tyngsborough Festival of Trees
A group of our ringers will perform at 216 Meeting House this Friday, November 24, at 2pm for the Tyngsborough Festival of Trees. Come support our ringers as you enjoy this beautiful celebration! For more information about the festival, visit https://
Lobby Window book display
The books in the lobby windows are available for you to borrow and return at your leisure. You will find books on prayer, books that discuss Christian LGBTQ+ folks and books on creating deeper community. We welcome you to spend some time this summer expanding your faith and understanding of God’s church.
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