Friday, December 16, 2016
Greetings Resurrection Blue Springs,
This is another busy weekend for our church. This afternoon we’re going to be hosting the Annual Joy Parties for the children and teachers at Phillips@Attucks Elementary School! We’ll be joining our RezDT volunteers to participate in the fun and watch the excitement as the kids open the small gifts donated through Resurrection’s JOY in Serving. These will brighten their day and hopefully help them to know they are valued children of God! I want to thank you all for your generosity in donating to the many JOY projects we have sponsored this season. Our volunteers have been busy every week since Thanksgiving transporting the gifts you have given to our partnering organizations.
Saturday we head downtown to serve a Christmas meal and offer the gift socks that our children assembled to the sojourners at Lazarus Table. This is one of the favorite serving opportunities of our community and we have a great group of volunteers ready to go. We’ll be carpooling from our parking lot at 9:00 am and would appreciate anyone who has a 4-wheel drive offering to transport as we’re expecting some snow tomorrow later in the morning.
This Sunday in worship we’ll be celebrating the 4th weekend of Advent, a time to celebrate the love of God as seen through the promise of Christ. We’ll continue our focus on Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father. Then Sunday night at 5:00 pm while the world around us is caroling about the most wonderful time of the year, we’ll be creating a space and time to acknowledge that Christmas can be a tough time for some as the nights grow darker and longer. Join us for this honest time of reflection and worship as we seek God in the darkness, acknowledge our losses and share Holy Communion together. Consider inviting a friend who’s been through a loss or a difficult season, or a caregiver or first responder who encounters difficult situations at work all year long, This is going to be an opportunity to find solace in this busy season! Our Rezlife will be celebrating after this service with a White Elephant Christmas party at 6 pm in Fellowship Hall. Finally, I want to remind you of the Christmas service times and schedules coming up in the next week.
Candlelight Christmas Eve Worship Schedule. We are thrilled to be offering four Candlelight Christmas Eve Services, December 24th at 3, 5, 7 and 9pm. We are asking our church members who are able and willing to consider worshiping at the later services, if possible, as a way of making room for our first time visitors this time of year. Historically our earlier services have had the largest attendance and our expectation is that our 3pm service will be attended by many of our families with young children. Please know that kids are welcome at every worship service as we’ll have a gift and activities to share with every child who walks through the doors! There will be a nursery available for the 3, 5 & 7 pm service for 4yrs and younger as well.
Worship with Us on Christmas Day! Celebrate and honor the birth of our Savior with a service of Scriptures and Carols at 10:45 am. You can even come in your jammies, if you want! We’ll be sharing some of our pictures from the Holy Land trip that correspond with the stories of Christ’s birth. This 10:45am service will NOT be the same as the Christmas Eve services so come celebrate Christ’s birth with your community!Last week you should have received your December offering statements. We are grateful to our community for your faithful giving and thankful for the yearend gifts. Those who have made renovation pledges, note that we have three months left in the “Let Your Light Shine” capital campaign in 2017. We still have a few projects on our wish list yet. If you have any questions, please contact our finance office at 913-232-4118.
I can’t wait to see you this weekend and make sure to take a look at what's coming up . . .
Share Your Resurrection Hospitality! Resurrection is known for being an inviting, welcoming congregation. The hospitality shared by our volunteers is a key component of helping our members and guests experience God’s love when they come to worship. These teams are critical to making worship happen each week, and we have some open positions in our worship services. Will you help us continue to shine the light of Christ to those who come by serving once a month? A great time to start is for our Candlelight Christmas Eve worship services! Serve at 3, 5, 7 or 9 pm (especially 9). Ushers, greeters, hospitality and parking attendants needed. Sign up at Guest Services or contactStephanie.Weigel@cor.org.
Donate a Poinsettia in honor or memory of someone special. Use the order form found in the attendance notebooks or stop by Guest Services. Place your order by Dec. 21, for your dedication to be included in Pastor Penny’s eNote and on our website.
2016 Joy In Serving Opportunities
Select a bucket and provide much needed cleaning supplies to meet needs in our community through JOY partner organizations.
Donate toys (that don’t require batteries).
Change lives of children in need – Provide food, medical care and education by sponsoring a child through Compassion International. Sign-up packets at the JOY table or visit www.compassion.com
COR Blue Springs Singles – Join us Sunday, December 18 after the 10:45 am worship service for lunch out together and a matinee movie. You can choose from couple of choices of movies with similar start times. Come enjoy the fellowship and take a little time to relax during this busy time of year.
The Longest Night Worship Service – Sunday, Dec. 18, 5 pm. For many people, Christmas is a time of loneliness, sorrow, alienation or sadness. This worship service is offered near the winter’s solstice, the darkest 24 hours of the year, as a way for people to claim those feelings and still feel surrounded by the compassionate love of God.
Youth White Elephant Christmas Party, Sunday, December 18 at 6pm! Bring an inexpensive gift from home and bless someone else with it. Also, bring a dessert to share with your friends. It will be a fun night of pizza, desserts, gift exchange, and games!
Sign Up Soon to Serve in Dallas March 13-17 may seem far away, but if you’re interested in joining our first trip to Dallas to serve with Connect to the Kingdom (aka C2K ministries), you should sign up before January 5. A brief team training is required onTuesday, January 10. For more information on this ministry setting, the training, trip details and costs, go to cor.org/USservetrips or email Mark.Maschger@cor.org. Partial scholarships available. Timed to match spring break, this trip is for young and old, for individuals and families – but is limited to 12 people, so hurry!
Student Ministry Program Director Needed - We are excited to be adding a new part-time (10-15 hours) position to our staff. The Student Ministry Program Director will plan and implement student ministry goals and programming and establish new ministry opportunities. This person will recruit, manage and equip volunteers and student leaders. We are looking for someone with exceptional interpersonal skills, previous experience working with youth and the ability to create and/or modify curriculum. Visitcor.org/employment for more information and to apply.
Mini Music & By Request – Stephanie Myers will host two music events each Thursday from Jan. 5 – Feb. 23, 2017, at Benton House, 1701 NW Jefferson St., Blue Springs. Preschool Mini Music class for toddlers, preschool children and their families. Features singing, movement, instruments and storybooks. E-mail Stephanie Myers atstephaniemyers62@gmail.com to register so she can bring enough instruments.
By Request – From 7-7:30 pm, Stephanie will play the grand piano at Benton House and take requests from residents. If you would like to perform with Stephanie (either singing or with another instrument), email her at stephaniemyers62@gmail.com.
Mark your calendars for “The Moore Organized Life” with organizing expert Melodye Moore: Tuesday, Jan. 10, 6:30 pm. More information is at cor.org/bluesprings/getconnected.
The Marriage Course – Tuesdays, Jan. 10 – Feb. 21, 6:30 pm. The greatest achievements in life take practice, training and dedication. It is the same with marriage. A strong, loving and lifelong relationship doesn’t happen by chance. It takes effort and dedication to keep the fun and romance alive. We can all learn how to make even the happiest marriage better. The Marriage Course is seven sessions designed to help strengthen relationships. Join other couples in a relaxed atmosphere as you listen to practical talks that are informative, fun and will equip you to have a healthy marriage. Whether you’re newly married or have been together for a long time, this course is designed for any couple who desires a long joyful relationship. Cost for materials $15. Register online now. For questions, contact Mike.Ash@cor.org.
Jesus Apprentice – Sundays, Jan. 15 – Feb. 5, 6:30 pm. When Jesus taught the disciples, his message was simple and clear. This illuminating 4-week study by Resurrection pastor Jeff Kirby and led by Mike Ash sweeps aside the clutter of our daily lives and takes us to the heart of Jesus’ message. With Jesus as our teacher, we’ll explore Christian belief through Christian action, following in the footsteps of our Lord. Cost for materials $10. Register online now. For questions, contact Mike.Ash@cor.org.
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I am grateful to serve in such an amazing community and look forward to serving and worshiping with you this weekend.
Abundant blessings,
Penny
For our Resurrection Blue Springs Campus Calendar: click here
Contact Our Staff
Church Office Phone: (816) 389-8900
Rev. Penny Ellwood, Campus Pastor penny.ellwood@cor.org
Mike Ash, Worship Leader/Director of Community mike.ash@cor.org
Mark Maschger, Ministry Associate mark.maschger@cor.org
Diane Enlow, Director of Children's Ministry diane.enlow@cor.org
Riley Ledford, Technical Producer riley.ledford@cor.org
Heather Sooley, Operations Coordinating Assistant heather.sooley@cor.org
Stephanie Weigel, Guest Services Coordinating Assistant stephanie.weigel@cor.org
Caitlin Willis, Nursery Coordinator caitlin.willis@cor.org
Lori Wolverton, Nursery Staff lori.wolverton@cor.org
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Blue Springs
601 North Eeast Jefferson Street
Blue Springs, Missouri 64014, United States
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