Dec 28 email

I want to remind you that we will be having one service this Sunday at 10:00. We will not be having Sunday School nor will we be celebrating communion. We will be having a special “Lessons and Carols” service with a sermon.  We will have fun being together.

Thanks to everyone who made our Christmas Eve services so meaningful.  Such a celebration will linger long in our memories. It will be especially heartening to see so many families worshiping together.

This Sunday I will be continuing preaching the Christmas Gospel of God’s presence with us. My sermon will be about the great truce of God and the peace that Christmas gives to us.

Be sure to pick up your 2009 stewardship packet in the narthex beginning Jan 4. We are looking forward to a wonderful January.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday!

Pastor Tart

Advent Conspiracy Video

Share with me your comments

http://www.adventconspiracy.org/resources/advent_conspiracy_promo_video/

email for Dec 21

Weekly email

We now have reached our last Sunday in our journey of Advent. I came across an interesting online video that I thought you might enjoy. The video makes a point that advent calls into question the materialism that grips the hearts of us this time of year.  If you have a few minutes I encourage you to watch it.

The link is on the blog for this Sunday. If you want please share a comment on the blog about it. 

My sermon this Sunday is about the mystery of the incarnation and how this mystery of Christ is the source of the true joy of this season.  I hope that you enjoy it.

The big news is our upcoming services on Christmas Eve. Remember the times:

4:00 family service with communion. We will be involving the children who attend in the service. This should be a lot of fun

7:30 Communion with candlelight and will feature our Spirit of Peace musicians and vocalists. We thank them for sharing their service to our community

11:00 Communion with candlelight and will feature our choir and musicians with a special violinist. We thank them also for their service to our community.

We should have a special evening and I hope you can attend one of the services.

Remember also that we are going to have one service on Dec 28 at 10:00. There will be no Sunday School or communion. We will also be celebrating the baptism of Kara Grace Gregory this morning.

We will begin our annual stewardship appeal on January 4. Please be sure to pick up your packet in the narthex on that Sunday. We will end the appeal on Jan 25 with a dinner and a talent show. 

Also note that in January we have moved the Worship Workshop to Sunday, Jan 18 after the 11:00. Service. The workshop is open to anyone interested in improving our worship life at Peace. We will have lunch and should be done by 3:00. This is a great opportunity to get involved in your church.  We will be planning our lent and Easter services.  We will also be discussing our current liturgies and worship practices.

Sunday Dec 14 Sermon

For something different and also because I am a bit home bound due to laryngitis I developed this PowerPoint for my sermon. Let me know what you think. 

Trying Times Sermon Presentation

weekly email for Dec 7

To my friends and partners in the Gospel,

We continue our Advent Journey this Sunday with our second Sunday. Two candles will be lit on our wreath reminding us of the coming light of celebration of Christmas Eve and the coming light of Christ's return. I will preaching this Sunday on preparing for the coming of Christ and how John the Baptist invites us to "cross the river Jordan' to a new beginnings in life.  The best way to prepare for Christ's coming is to step forward in faith.

We will also be celebrating the baptism of Kara Grace Gregory at the 11:00 service. We look forward to her big day. Proud parents are Kevin and Kellli Gregory. 

The big event for this Sunday is the annual meeting after the 11:00 service. There will be no meal. The main agenda items are the approval of the 2009 Mission and Ministry Spending Plan(budget) and the election of council leaders. The nominees are Mary King as President, Bob Wells as president, Darla Haygood as Personnel and Policy, Sandee Page at member at large and Joe DeKunder as Financial Secretary. Nominations are open from the floor.

We will also have an update on refinancing, roof replacement, and insurance from Kenny Sanders. 

As with every meeting we will also have a time for "The Good of the Church" when members can celebrate what is going well with our church and make suggestions for improving our congregation's mission and ministry work.  We hope to complete our work in an hour.

I will also at the meeting be showing a 10 minute presentation about our January Stewardship Appeal, "Stories to Tell and Gifts to Share".  This presentation is now available on line at   http://newvinelearning.com/aPLiteFlash/index.swf

The presentation will also be playing in the narthex beginning Dec. 14. I am excited about January.

Don't forget our Christmas Schedule:

Dec. 14, 5:00 Sunday School Christmas Program

Dec 24: 4:00 Family Christmas Eve Service- We will be involving the children in the service, We ask that children bring a bell from home if they can. If not, we will have some to handout. 

             7:30 Our usual Christmas Eve candlelight communion service featuring "Spirit of Peace"

            11:00 Our usual Christmas Eve candlelight communion service featuring our choir. We will also have violin accompanying our carols and our special music. 

Dec 28: ONE SERVICE at 10:00. This will be a lessons and carols service. No communion will be offered since we offered on Christmas Eve.

For Nov 30

My fellow members of Christ’s Body, the Church,

I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and hope that you find the next few days a joy. God is good and God is good all the time!

This Sunday we begin our Advent journey and a new year with the Gospel of Mark. Mark’s main emphasis in his telling the story of Jesus is the cross. For him the death of Christ defines his mission and his ministry and so defines those who follow him.  We will see this year the power of suffering love and how suffering love transforms lives.

We will begin our traditional Wednesday Advent soup suppers followed by a prayer service. I hope that you will plan on attending.

We are also inviting people to wear blue during this season as we clothe ourselves in the hope of Jesus Christ.

On December 7 following the 11:00 service we will have our annual meeting. Everyone should have received a notice in the mail with the agenda. If you did not, contact the church office. Copies of the annual reports and 2009 Spending plan (budget) are available in the narthex. 

Weekly Email for Nov 23

This Sunday we will be celebrating “Christ the King” Sunday and the conclusion of our church liturgical year. We have been reading from the Gospel of Matthew, and in many ways I am reluctant to tell Matthew goodbye. He has taught us much about the compassion and mercy of God and our call to embody this compassion in our community. Learning what it means to be merciful is hard work, for it calls us to see the vulnerabilities of others. Yet, for Matthew this is the curriculum of the church.  We are to be known by our kindness to strangers, our feeding the hungry, our caring for the sick and our clothing the naked. This Sunday the title of my sermon is “A Fitting Conclusion” and I will be preaching about the centrality of compassion in our lives and community.

 

The main event for this Sunday is our annual Thanksgiving Dinner in the fellowship hall after the 9:45 and 11:00 services.  We will be having a potluck, so bring something to share.

 

Advent begins the following Sunday, November 30, and we want to invite everyone to wear blue during this season to Sunday worship. Blue is the color of hope and we will spend the next few Sundays learning what it means to hope in Christ and to be conveyers of hope. With all the news about the economy, Advent season takes on even more added meaning.

 

This advent I will be preaching a sermon series of sorts entitled, “Christ is Coming”

The Sermon Titles are:

             Nov 30 “Plead for Coming”

            December 2 Prepare for Coming

            December 14 Proclaim the Coming

            December 21  Participate in the Coming

 

We will also have our Advent Soup Suppers and Prayer on Wednesdays. As something new we are inviting participants to stay for a few minutes after the prayer service as we decorate our tree and sanctuary each Wednesday in preparation for Christmas. Members of Peace will be sharing a devotion at these meetings.  We will begin at 6:00 with the suppers and be done by 7:45.  Come and enjoy.

 

Our annual meeting is December 7 after the 11:00 service. The annual report and the 2009 Mission and Ministry Spending Plan (budget) are available in the narthex (1 packet per family, please). If you would like one mailed to you, please contact the church office. As soon as the annual reports are approved we will post them to our website.

 

Just to let you know, our refinancing with Thrivent has been approved. This means we can move forward with the roof repair and parking lot. We are still awaiting word from the insurance company.

Worship Assistants Needed: Our December calendar is on the bulletin board in the narthex, and waiting for volunteers to sign up. Training is available. If possible please sign up in advance for our Christmas Eve services at 4:00, 7:30 and 11:00.  We are also still in need of assisting ministers and lectors. Thanks for all of your hard work.

Robin Wilkerson 281-867-0069

Soup Supper – December 3: The men of the Brotherhood will be supplying the soup for our first soup supper. We need 7 more pots of soup. If you would like to bring a pot, please call Gene Hlavaty at (713) 305-0315.

Bazaar News: We have several pairs of Christmas Skis left from the bazaar that we would rather not have to store. They will be on display in the narthex.  We sold them at the bazaar for $20.00 but will sell for $15.00. If you would like a pair, please remove the attached envelope to enclose your money in and put in the provided marked box on the table in Narthex.  If you write a check please make check out to Women of Peace and mark for skis. Thank you, Jany

Lutherhill Advent Retreats Are Coming! Come join us as we travel to Lutherhill for Advent Retreats! 3rd graders through 12th graders are welcome as we spend an overnight retreat at Lutherhill filled with campfire worships, s'mores, Bible studies, games, great food, canoeing, crafts, high ropes for older youth and inflatable playgrounds for younger kids All in the beauty of a cool, Texas winter The cost is only $50, scholarships are available and time is running out! If you have questions contact David Booher.

HAVE A GOOD WEEKEND! If you're planning to leave town for Thanksgiving, be safe.

See You Sunday!

Pastor Tart