First Presbyterian Church has plans for the Christmas holiday, and we hope you will join us!

This Sunday, December 18, at 4:00 p.m., we will gather in the Fellowship Hall to go Christmas Caroling, then come back to a light supper of soup and sandwiches. Please bring soup!

Also this Sunday, at 7:00 p.m., Elizabeth Patrick will lead a service of remembrance and evening prayer in our Chapel. Everyone is welcome.

Our Christmas Eve service will begin at 8:00 p.m. in the Sanctuary. Come to worship and to hear a variety of instruments and voices sharing the music of the season.

Next Sunday is Christmas Day, and we will have a single combined worship service at 10:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary. The church offices will be closed for the Christmas holiday on Monday, December 26.

The following Sunday, January 1, we will return to our regular Sunday schedule of services and events. The church offices will be closed on Monday, January 2, for the New Year holiday.

We are delighted to welcome Jeni Hunt to our church staff to serve in the vital role of receptionist. Jeni works in the front office from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Sara Reuning continues to serve as our financial secretary and afternoon receptionist on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and Kathy Acuff as our membership secretary and afternoon receptionist on Mondays and Thursdays.

Jeni is a native Bristolian who studied elementary education at ETSU and also has experience as a church secretary. Her husband, Michael, works at Bank of America and will graduate from King College this Friday with a degree in business. For eight years the couple owned and operated the Treasure Hunt toy store. Jeni and Michael have two children, Tyler, 8, and Emily, 6. They attend Addilynn United Methodist Church.

Please stop by and introduce yourself when you have a chance.

The Session has called a meeting of the congregation for this Sunday, December 18, at 10:30 a.m., in the Fellowship Hall.  The purpose of this meeting is to receive the report of the Officer Nominating Committee and to elect the church's officers for the Class of 2014. The slate of those to be nominated by the committee is as follows:

ELDERS, Class of 2014

Chris Blankenship

Jackie Burt

Kevin Crutchfield

Peggy Hill

Jennifer Kennedy

DEACONS, Class of 2014

Toni Corder

Sandi Nelson

Stuart Parker

Tina Witcher

Ann Woods

TRUSTEE, Class of 2014

Gene Haskins

In addition, the congregation will elect the officers for 2012 of the corporation of First Presbyterian Church of Bristol Inc.

The Christmas season is rightfully a time of great cheer, but for some people, it can also be a time of great sorrow. The emphasis on family togetherness can make you feel the loss of someone you love even more profoundly. The challenges of the poor and those who struggle during these tough economic times may be overlooked in the frenzy to give and get.  During this time of holly-jolly, the inability to acknowledge other challenges, pain, or sorrow may prevent us from claiming the comfort and guidance offered by the Prince of Peace.

If you would like to acknowledge your own pain this Advent or pray for others facing challenges at this time, please join us for Evening Prayer and Service of Remembrance, led by Elizabeth Patrick, this Sunday, December 18, at 7:00 p.m., in the Chapel.  For more information, contact Gordon Turnbull (gturnbull@fpcbristol.org) or call (423) 764-7176.

So long ago that none of us can remember the date, although it may have been in the 1950s, the women of First Presbyterian Church introduced the chrismon tree into our Advent worship environment, and it has been a tradition with us ever since.

An evergreen tree, symbolizing the eternal life that our Savior won for us, forms the background for tiny white lights and gold designs. The lights speak of Him who is the light of the world; the designs, called chrismons (from the Latin Christi monogramma, monogram of Christ), proclaim the name, the life, and the saving acts of Jesus Christ. A great many of our Presbyterian Women made chrismons for our first tree, working together at the church for several weeks. When the original ornaments became worn, a second group of women was organized to make new ones.

Some chrismons are simple copies of symbols of Christianity from its earliest days; others are new explanations of God's constant presence in our ever-changing world. Still others combine several elements old and new. The symbols are interdenominational and the heritage of all Christians. Readers with Internet access might want to take a look at the list of chrismon symbols in Wikipedia, found at this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrismon.

Help us keep our children safe! Please remember to sign your child in and out of Sunday School. Sign-in sheets are located at the Children's Ministries' registration table before Sunday School and will be in the classrooms afterwards. If you have not registered your child for Sunday School, you will find the necessary form at the registration table.

The Children's Ministry cordially invites all children of the church and their friends to a Christmas Celebration this Sunday during the Sunday School hour. We will host our friends from the Friendship Class, and have planned special music and activities.  We will begin our festivities in the third- and fourth-grade classroom and end our celebration in the first- and second-grade classroom. Come join us as we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ!