First United Methodist of Redondo Beach’s Weekly News - Wednesday,
25 December 2013 – MERRY CHRISTMAS
Sunday, December 29
1st Sunday after Christmas
one, combined worship service at 10:00am
Rev. Nicole Reilley,
preaching
Jeanette Louise Yaryan,
piano & organ
Kevin Hwang, guitar
Sunday's
Scripture:
Matthew 29: The Escape to Egypt
13 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to
Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to
Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the
child, to destroy him.” 14 Then Joseph[a] got up, took the child and his mother
by night, and went to Egypt, 15 and remained there until the death of Herod.
This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of
Egypt I have called my son.”
The Massacre of the Infants
16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men,[b]
he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around
Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had
learned from the wise men.[c] 17 Then was fulfilled what had been spoken
through the prophet Jeremiah:
18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,
wailing and loud
lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be
consoled, because they are no more.”
The Return from Egypt
19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a
dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, 20 “Get up, take the child and his mother,
and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are
dead.” 21 Then Joseph[d] got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the
land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in
place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in
a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. 23 There he made his home in
a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might
be fulfilled, “He will be called a Nazorean.”
Footnotes:
a. Matthew 2:14 Gk he
b. Matthew 2:16 Or astrologers; Gk magi
c. Matthew 2:16 Or astrologers; Gk magi
d. Matthew 2:21 Gk he
-------
John Wesley’s Notes-Commentary for Matthew 2:13-23
Verse 15. That it might be fulfilled - That is, whereby was
fulfilled. The original word frequently signifies, not the design of an action,
but barely the consequence or event of it. Which was spoken of the Lord by the
prophet - on another occasion: Out of Egypt have I called my Son - which was
now fulfilled as it were anew; Christ being in a far higher sense the Son of
God than Israel, of whom the words were originally spoken. Hosea xi, 1.
Verse 16. Then Herod, seeing that he was deluded by the wise men
- So did his pride teach him to regard this action, as if it were intended to
expose him to the derision of his subjects. Sending forth - a party of
soldiers: In all the confines thereof - In all the neighbouring places, of
which Rama was one.
Verse 17. Then was fulfilled - A passage of Scripture, whether
prophetic, historical, or poetical, is in the language of the New Testament
fulfilled, when an event happens to which it may with great propriety be
accommodated.
Verse 18. Rachel weeping for her children - The Benjamites, who
inhabited Rama, sprung from her. She was buried near this place; and is here
beautifully represented risen, as it were out of her grave, and bewailing her
lost children. Because they are not - that is, are dead. The preservation of
Jesus from this destruction, may be considered as a figure of God's care over
his children in their greatest danger. God does not often, as he easily could,
cut off their persecutors at a stroke. But he provides a hiding place for his
people, and by methods not less effectual, though less pompous, preserves them
from being swept away, even when the enemy comes in like a flood. Jer. xxxi,
15.
Verse 22. He was afraid to go thither - into Judea; and so
turned aside into the region of Galilee - a part of the land of Israel not
under the jurisdiction of Archelaus.
Verse 23. He came and dwelt in Nazareth - (where he had dwelt
before he went to Bethlehem) a place contemptible to a proverb. So that hereby
was fulfilled what has been spoken in effect by several of the prophets,
(though by none of them in express words, ) He shall be called a Nazarene -
that is, he shall be despised and rejected, shall be a mark of public contempt
and reproach.
-------
Please Note: The church office will be closed December 25 -
January 4, 2014. Phone messages will be
checked during this time. Happy New
Year!
In This Issue:
eScrip
Advent Events
In January...
Marriage Class
Lay Looker
Prayer Quilting
Special Thanks: Trey Kyle
Gardeners WANTED
Youth Flashmob
This Week at Church...
-------
Adult Bible
Study
You are welcome to join our regular Thursday Bible Study with
Pastor Molly, each week at 11:00am in May Day Parlor. (Please note: there will
be no Bible Study on December 26 or
January 2.)
A Church That Responds to the Needs of the Community
Shared Bread
Every Wednesday, with help from neighbor congregations and many
volunteers, we host Shared Bread, a free meal for the community.
(Click the logo for more information.)
escrip
Groceries =
$$$ for Church
Looking for an easy way to support our church? Now you can do
your grocery shopping and the store will give a percentage back to FUMCRB!
Click the image on the left to learn how you can sign up for this easy giving
program. Our Stewardship Team can answer
any questions!
WANT TO STAY CURRENT ON
ANNUAL
CONFERENCE NEWS?
CLICK THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT TO LINK TO THE CAL-PAC WEBSITE.
-------
As Christmas Continues...
Along with a small group of youth, volunteers and parents, I
went on a little Christmas caroling adventure last Sunday, stopping by the
homes of some of our homebound members and others who've had a hard year; we
sang the medley of songs our youth put together for their Flashmob, and dropped
off poinsettias from church. It seemed like such a small thing to do--just a
few hours in an afternoon--but more than once, tears shared in those visits
reminded me how important it is to care for one another. And how much it means
when we make time to share in friendship with those who are easily ignored or
forgotten.
Christmas, after all, isn't about bringing joy to the
already-joyful, or about shining light into bright rooms; it's about
celebrating God's promise of joy to those who've been in sorrow, of light in
the midst of darkness, or comfort for
our grief. Though we will have shared Christmas Eve worship together last
night, the work of Christmas begins as we chop vegetables and set out dinner
tonight at Shared Bread. It begins as we take time to visit the lonely,
encourage those who struggle, and offer love to anyone who's been denied it.
This week, I share another poem from Cheryl Lawrie--a piece she
wrote to use in worship in a prison at Christmastime:
We gather in
the aftermath
of Christmas
to pray for
the miracles that the world is still waiting for:
we gather in
faith
that from
ripped up wrapping paper
and torn up
dreams,
God can build
a world that keeps hope alive
we gather in
faith
that from the
Christmas leftovers
and our
remaining scraps of goodwill
God can make a
world of justice for all
we gather in
faith
that among the
discarded presents
and the faded
declarations of love
we will find a
place where all will know home.
Welcome to
worship
where we
practice the love, hope and joy of Christmas
in the faith
they will become real in our world.
may it be so,
Pastor Molly
My thanks to Rev. Nicole Reilley who will preach and lead
communion this Sunday in our one, combined worship service. I will have the joy
of traveling to Nebraska and Colorado to be with my extended family for some
Christmas celebrations and vacation.
Contact Info
Pastor Molly Vetter
PastorMolly@BeachFaith.com
(310)372-8445 x 102
-------
ALL-CHURCH COMBINED WORSHIP SERVICE
Join us for ONE worship service on Sunday, 29 December 2013
Worship with Us at Christmas!
This Sunday, December 29: One Combined Worship Service at
10:00am.
Rev. Nicole Reilley will be preaching, as we consider the
"Cost of Christmas." Dr. Jeanette Louise Yaryan will be with us
leading music on piano and organ, as well as some special music from Kevin
Hwang and Pauline Tamale. Children will be with us in worship, and we encourage
you to bring your Advent Imagine No Malaria Change Jars with you!
Image No Malaria
Imagine Saving Billions of Lives
People of the United Methodist Church
Stories of our young people inspired to "Imagine No
Malaria"
*Brooke Miller took her "Imagine No Malaria" change
jar to school--and raised over $47 from her classmates! (She did that without
emails to parents--just by talking with the other kids!!)
* Wendy Stanfill reached out to friends and family via snail
mail and collected enough money to buy 26 of our Mosquito ornaments and become
members of her "Mosquito Club".
The suggest donation for each ornament (handmade by our FUMCRB families) is $10
apiece (the cost of a mosquito net). Pick one up this Sunday! -or you can
contribute by gifting someone a donation in their name, visiting our church
display and by continuing to collect coins at home.
There will be a special blessing for our Jars on Sunday,
December 29th at our combined service. Bring yours back on this day or during
the month of January.
Imagine what a difference our change will bring!
-------
Would You Like
a Box of Offering Envelopes for 2014?
Our Finance Committee has boxes of dated offering envelopes
available for anyone who would like them--you can pick them up on the patio on
Sunday, or in the church office. Visit our fabulous volunteer Finance
Secretaries, Sammie Kaiser and Marilyn Smalley, to get your box. We are
switching to a new program for keeping our giving records, and we will no
longer need envelopes numbers (please just write you name on your envelope).
We also are working to have two new options for giving your
tithes and offerings in 2014: a paper form to fill out to arrange regular,
automatic gifts to be transferred from your checking account and online fund
transfers (either automatic or one-time) through a new website option. Please
watch for more information about these options in upcoming weeks!
Before-the-Year-Ends
Finance Update
We want to remind you that now is the time to make year-end and
Christmas contributions to the church for 2013; if you would like to claim
charitable deductions for your gifts, and have them credited to you 2013 giving
statement, they need to be brought to the church or postmarked by December 31.
(Please note that our church office will not be open for regular office hours
between Christmas and New Years.)
For our 2014 goal in pledged giving to the budget, we have now
received 65 pledges, totaling $289,910. We celebrate that this represents
nearly 90% of our goal. You may still turn in your pledge for 2014; pledge
cards are available in the sanctuary or church office. You can see more
information about our budget and this pledge campaign on our website; you can
also watch the video we shared in worship in November (celebrating our rich
ministries) by clicking here.
Our 2013 giving has been steady; with generous contributions
here at the end of the year, we hope we can end the year with the ability to
meet our obligations and askings.
Coming in the
New Year...
On January 5, as we start 2014 in worship, we will join United
Methodists across our region in a special time of discernment about our vision
and mission together. There will be a chance in worship for each of you to
share in prayer and conversation about this.
We look forward to receiving new members during all our worship
services on January 12--contact Pastor Molly if you are interested in joining
or knowing more about membership. Also, Pastor Molly will have two new sermon
series:
a fresh start
Sermons for a new beginning
Sundays in January
Sermon on the Mount
Hearing Jesus’ words as we seek to follow His ways
Sundays in February
-------
Making Good Marriages Better: a workshop
Led by Rev. Virgil and Elaine Brady, in Epworth Lounge from
12:30-3:30pm (optional light lunch at noon) on Sunday, January 12
Bring your spouse and join us for this an afternoon for
conversations about things that matter in marriage as we work together at
making our marriages healthier. The workshop will include presentation of 6 big
ideas, with time after each for one-on-one conversation with your partner.
Please RSVP for the class and for a $5 lunch beforehand
(optional) by emailing the church office. The class is free; couples are
encouraged to read Dr. Brady's book, "Kiss and Tell," before or
after. Copies are available in the church office for $10.
Rev. Dr. Virgil Brady is a retired United Methodist pastor; he
and his wife, Elaine, married for 50 years, live in Lawrence, Kansas. We are
pleased to welcome Virgil and Elaine to our church, and count them as extended
family--especially because their son and daughter-in-law, Kip and Gina Brady,
are members of our congregation!
-------
Lay Looker by
Bob Peterson
Read Bob Peterson's column here and on our website!
"Christmas at The Redondo Beach First United Methodist
Church has been a remarkable experience for all of us, or at least most of us.
The sanctuary has been decorated with the beautiful Christmas tree, about a
hundred poinsettias and other items to celebrate the birthday of Jesus. Last
Sunday the nativity scene was beautiful, with Isla portraying baby Jesus, her
mother Penny Hamann as Mary, dad Jason Hamann as Joseph and young Graeson as a
brother. Well, it's not the first time a
girl baby has been Jesus for Christmas..."
[Read the rest of the Lay Looker by clicking here!]
How Time Flies by Bob
Peterson
Christmas at The Redondo Beach First United Methodist Church has
been a remarkable experience for all of us, or at least most of us. The
sanctuary has been decorated with the beautiful Christmas tree, about a hundred
poinsettias and other items to celebrate the birthday of Jesus. Last Sunday the
nativity scene was beautiful, with Isla portraying baby Jesus, her mother Penny
Hamann as Mary, dad Jason Hamann as Joseph and young Graeson as a brother. Well, it’s not the first time a girl baby has
been Jesus for Christmas. We loved their portrayal and took our offerings to
the manger scene in a procession that has been our long time tradition.
The music was special with the choir in full force singing
beautifully accompanied by Dr. Jeanette Louise Yaryan on the organ/piano and
flutist Rachel Mellis adding beautiful color to the various music and songs of
the season. This all made Pastor Molly Vetter’s sermon very special as she
detailed what Joseph may have felt as an angel explains the miracle of Jesus’
birth. I, for one, was privileged to attend and recall the many Christmases in
this same sanctuary, none more beautiful than this year’s 2013 event.
By way of explanation, I will be taking a holiday from writing
the Lay Looker for December 29 and plan to be back with my words for Sunday,
January 5th, a very meaningful day in my life, though it will remain unexplained.
There will be more in 2014. 2014? Yikes! How time flies…
-------
Prayers and Squares
Sponsor a
Quilt for Someone in Need of Prayer
Our prayer quilt ministry is ready to share prayers and
quilts--if you would like to sponsor a quilt for someone you know, we simply
ask that you ask the recipient's permission, and then be here on a Sunday to
help people tie knots and say prayers. Request forms are available in the
church office or on our website.
Our January quilting meeting will be Saturday, January 25--from
10am-noon at the church (hosted by Carol Walter). To participate in our January
group quilt, we invite you to make a square in pastel floral fabrics, using the
directions on our website!
-------
Special Thanks to Trey Kyle for our New Sound System
At our 9:30 worship on Sunday, December 22, Trey Kyle was
honored with a special recognition by our Board of Trustees Chair, Don Burrows,
and Pastor Molly Vetter. For well over a decade, Trey has been involved in
discussions about a new sound system; in early 2012, when we began to design
and get bids for the system, he jumped in, making it possible to redo the
sanctuary audio for $30,000 less than the lowest bid. Many people have been
involved in the work--crawling under the sanctuary and into the attic and
more--but we are especially grateful to Trey for coordinating and planning the
project. Without his leadership, we could not have done it. Thank you, Trey!!
Thanks also to those who contributed memorial funds for the
project. We are blessed to have been able to make such an improvement to our
audio.
Now that the system installation is basically done, we are ready
to train new volunteers in how to operate it. We are particularly eager to
recruit more volunteers who come to the 11:00 service for this work. If you are
interested, please contact the church office.
-------
GARDENERS
WANTED!!
If you enjoy being outdoors, and can give any time-one hour, two
hours, one time only, or weekly- to assist our volunteer gardeners in
maintaining our church campus, your help would be welcomed. NO experience
necessary! Please call the office for more info.
(310)372-8445
--------
Operation
Flashmob: Success!
The youth had a great time last weekend spontaneously bursting
into Christmas Carols last weekend at the Torrance Farmer's Market and at the
Southbay Galleria. Hopefully, we also
shared a little more Joy this holiday season.
Thanks to all of the youth who participated. Also, we noticed several church friends in
the crowd...thanks to those who came out to support us!
If you'd like to view photos or a video clip, visit our flickr
page!
-------
Thanks to everyone who make our children's pageant such a joy!
A COSMIC CHRISTMAS
(It really was Out of This World!!)
Check out lots more pictures here; the video is streaming on our
website, too!
-------
Like us on FacebookLike us on Facebook!
Visit the page and "like" us so you can see and share
the latest photos, news and links from the church.
-------
This Week at Church...
Nursery
The Nursery is open all three services for ages 6 weeks to 4 yrs
old. Located right off of the parking lot across Epworth Lounge. Any questions
email the Nursery Coordinator: Adriana Hwang
Children's Ministry
This Sunday kids will be with us all in worship; there will be a
special Time with Children. Bring your Imagine No Malaria change jars with you
to worship!
Church R Us (4th and 5th grade):
Join us for Sunday School at 9:30 am. This week we will review our unit on the
Early Life of Jesus!
Youth Group (6th-12th grade):
A big "THANKS" to all who helped with the
Flashmob. Hope everyone had a fun
time!
We will not meet again as a group until January 5th.
--Have you RSVPd for the Winter Retreat on Jan 10-12?
--Middle School Sunday School will resume on Jan. 26th!
Adult Sunday School: Join
us every Sunday at 9:30am for study and discussion of this week's scripture
lesson. (May Day Parlor)
Men's Breakfast: Our next breakfast is Monday, January 6 at
7a.m. All men of the church and their friends are welcome to join us for
fellowship. At Billy's Deli, 5160 W 190th St, Torrance, CA 90503.
-------
First United Methodist Church of Redondo Beach
(310)372-8445 main
310-372-5696 fax
Reverend Molly Vetter, Lead & Teaching Pastor
PastorMolly@beachfaith.com
-------
No comments:
Post a Comment