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Upcoming Dates
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12/06 @ 6:15pm
Potluck & Advent Wreath Making Party.
12/07 @ 9:45am
Congregational meeting.
12/07 @ noon
Parents Day Out.
12/24 - Christmas Eve Worship Services @ 5pm, 7:30pm & 11pm.
12/28
No Sunday School.
2/27
Women's Retreat begins.
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Worship Schedule
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Saturday 5:00pm - contemporary worship Sunday 8:30am - worship 9:45am - Sunday school11:00am - worship Wednesday prayers noon Christmas Eve
Candlelight Services5:00, 7:30 & 11:00pm |
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Hope Rising
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If ever there was a time when God's people needed to
hear a word of comfort, it is now. So many parallels can be drawn
between Israel's shocked predicament and those that we face in today's
flood-soaked, war-torn, debt ridden world. We all know what it is like
to be tested in the wilderness, longing for a word of hope. Both John
the Baptist and the prophet Isaiah remind us that we are not forsaken,
and that Hope is on the Way, proclaiming: "Here is your God".
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Christmas Miracle Offering
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"Comfort, oh comfort my people," says your God. - Isaiah 40:1
Don't these words resonate with us today? In these troubling economic times,
we see and sometimes experience first-hand those desperate situations where
support, encouragement, reassurance and relief is needed. Sometimes receiving
even the smallest gesture of kindness is all it takes to make it through the
day. Other times the needs are much greater. How are we as Christians and more
specifically as members of this community of Peace to respond to the call to
comfort those in need? Unfortunately - there's no easy answer.
One of the ways Peace has tried to provide comfort is through the
Christmas Miracle Offering. This challenge began 4 years ago when some
members from Peace attended a conference where they saw another church with a
similar program called "Christmas is not your birthday". From the first year of
our challenge, we've been encouraged to consider our Christmas spending habits
and to try to spend half as much on gifts as normal, giving the rest to the
Christmas Miracle Offering.
Through the years, proceeds from this offering have provided the miracles of
land for a church in Togo, salaries for teachers and school materials in
Honduras, heating and food for families in and around Charlottesville, a
dormitory built in India and a playground for the local Salvation Army Daycare.
This year, proceeds from the offering will go to 2 local and 2 global
recipients.
As we take up the Christmas Miracle Offering challenge again, we find the
needs growing larger and more complex. Especially locally, we are experiencing a
growing number of requests for help. Partly, this is due to the economy and
partly, this is due to the relationships we are forging in our community. From
our involvement with Bridge Ministry, PACEM, Hollymead school, JABA, IMPACT,
AIM, Habitat, Salvation Army and the Food Bank we are learning about local needs
first hand. This year, the local recipients for the Christmas Miracle Offering
will be the Bridge Ministry and Peace's Family Needs Fund.
The Bridge Ministry works in Central Virginia to transform the lives
of troubled men with life controlling issues. It helps them and their families
through a faith-based program and provides the mentoring, skills, education, and
relationships they need to bridge the gap from bondage to productive community
and family life. Their miracle request: "We have the contracted work to train
on. We have the building. We have the manpower. BUT, due to the recession
money/grants are tight. We do NOT have the work stations. We do NOT have the
tools. The men at The Bridge have been prayerfully asking Our Lord to help. They
are asking for another miracle."
Peace's Family Needs Fund has been in place to help families in need
at Peace and for those that find themselves on our doorstep. It has been used to
provide emergency assistance like temporary lodging, pay electric bills, help
with rent/mortgage, buy food & gas. It's been funded on an as needed basis
through individual donations. We are receiving steady and increasing requests
for help, including several needs identified through the Christmas Miracle
Offering nomination process. A Family Needs Ministry team recently formed to
begin putting a more formalized process and tracking mechanism in place to
address these requests. They'll also be working with local agencies such as AIM
and CARES to help ensure appropriate coverage. We may not feel like we are
qualified or equipped to deal with people in desperate economic situations and
so we continue to pray for guidance as we go about comforting God's people.
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Other Events
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Congregational Meeting, December 7 at 9:45am
Don't forget to attend the Congregational Meeting this Sunday. This is a great way to find out what's happening "behind the scenes" that keeps Peace going and to have input into where we'll be heading in the future. In particular, we'll be discussing the Proposed Constitutional Revisions as well as the pros and cons of incorporation.
Thrivent Economic Update & Market Outlook Seminar
You are invited to attend this seminar featuring Chuck Etzweiler, MBA, CFP®, Region Vice-President, Thrivent Investment Management. Seminar brochure.
Where: 1554B Insurance Lane
When: Wednesday, December 10, noon to 2:00pm
RSVP: Ed Lewis, 434-962-8449 or ed.lewis@thrivent.com
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Advent Happenings
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Advent Wreath Making Party & Hanging of the Greens
When: Saturday, December 6 after the Saturday potluck
Who: Everyone! This is a cross-generational event!
Cost: $5.00 to cover expenses
RSVP: Beth Williams, 973-5341 or jbeg.williams@comcast.net
Parents Day Out
Need
an afternoon to do some holiday shopping or just relax? On 12/7
the Senior High youth will host a Parents Day Out. Drop off your kids
at Peace anytime during those hours and we'll provide an afternoon of
fun!!
When: Sunday, December 7 from 12-5pm
Contact: Sarah Krell, plcyouth@gmail.com or 531-2711
Sunday School during Advent!
Our Intergenerational programming is cancelled, therefore we will instead have our regular class schedule - with lots of fun added in!
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