| Additional Study Quick Links |
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Important Dates |
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Sun. Dec. 21: Fourth Sunday of Advent No ABF or Sunday School for children and youth today!
Wed. Dec. 24: No Frontline
Wed. Dec. 24: Christmas Eve Candlelight Services 5, 7 & 11pm
Sun. Dec. 28: Sunday Worship No ABF or Sunday School for children and youth today!
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| New! Al-Anon Group Coming Soon |
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Beginning early January 2009, Al-Anon will be meeting in the upper room on Friday mornings from 8:30-9:30am. Al-Anon is a 12 step program for anyone who has been affected by someone else's addiction. Members give and receive comfort and understanding through a mutual exchange of experiences, strength and hope. Look for more information in up coming weekly newsletters or contact Martha Becker at 966-4458.
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| Unclaimed Dishes |
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Did you bring a dish to the Thanksgiving Feast and go home without it? We have several dishes in the church office.
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A TFal Pot with lid
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A large glass bowl
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A large wooden bowl
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Several casserole dishes
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A few glass platters
If you would like to claim any of these items, please contact the church office at 965-1338 or stop by. Items left unclaimed at the end of the year will be donated to the goodwill.
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| Attention all 6th-12th Graders |
BIG BEAR CAMP for 6th - 12th graders, February 13-16, 2009. It is not too early to put this on your calendar and not too early to save. Cost: $200(appr.). Save a little each week and you're there!!! More details coming soon. Questions? Contact Doug Ranck, 965-1228 x224 or dranck@fmcsb.org
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| Perspectives |
Beginning Tuesday, January 13, 2009, "Perspectives on the World Christian Movement" will be hosted at Reality Carpinteria Church. This is a 15-week long course that studies the power and furtherance of the Gospel from its Biblical basis, through the history of the church, through cultures around the world and through strategic ministry partnerships today. We have several people from our church who have completed this course and loved it.
The course will go from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm on successive Tuesday nights. On Sunday, December 7th, Amber Smith, coordinator for these classes, will be with us to answer questions and give further information. They are offering an early registration discount of $50 off when one registers before December 14. For more information about Perspectives you can go to www.perspectives.org.
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Memory Verse of the Week
Our verses for this week:
10He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God- 13children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. 14The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only,[d] who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:10-14 Our verses for this Christmas Season so far:
1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning.
3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
6There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.
10He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God- 13children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.
14The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only,[d] who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
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| Thank You From Your Pastors
On behalf of your pastoral team, I want to thank all of you for your generous expression of love to all of us this Christmas. Although we experience your love all year long, this tangible expression allows us to celebrate together with our families in wonderful ways. THANK YOU!
Denny and Cheryl
Doug and Nancy
Colleen and Mark
Dennis and Kyle
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ABF - Adult Bible Fellowship
No ABF December 21st & 28th
Classes resume January 4th
"Statistics in the Christian Church"
Presented by Mark Bates
4 Sundays in January
9:30 am in the SHIFCO Recreation Room
This class will explore the many uses of statistics in research and media as they pertain to the Christian church and will examine some ground-breaking surveys and studies.
January 4-"What Do We Believe?"
We will begin this series by discussing how statistics is used in modern culture and examine a number of findings regarding the landscape of American beliefs today. We will also discuss the concept of "faith segments," the meaning of "evangelical," and the variety of belief trends among gender, income level, and location.
January 11-"How Do We Grow?"
In this class, we will examine how to measure church data, and discuss what it means for a church to "grow." We will examine some of the barriers to effective data collection, and debate to what extent numbers can truly tell the story of the health of a church, conference, or denomination.
January 18-"What Do We Tolerate?"
This third class will look at some surveys that focus on a Christian's tolerance of a number of moral issues. We will discuss how those numbers have changed over time, as well as what makes "Christian belief" different from the world's.
January 25-Conclusion
Our last week will be spent discussing issues that have not been addressed and to answer questions upon which statistics has shed light.
Mark Bates is a mathematics professor at Oxnard College where he has taught for the past 10 years. During his last three years of teaching, he has specialized in the field of statistics. He and wife, Colleen Hurley-Bates, have attended our church for 20 years and are the parents of Olivia. Mark has served as a delegate for the Free Methodist General Conference.
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Did You Know?
Direct Contributions From Your IRA
The IRS has recently extended for 2008 and 2009 last year's provision which permits IRA owners who are 70 ½ or older to make contributions directly from their IRA account to one or more charities. Such contributions, count toward your Required Minimum Distribution, are not counted as income and, therefore, are not taxable. However, they cannot be used as a charitable deduction item if you itemize on your tax return. As you would expect, there are some requirements - the gift(s) can not exceed $100,000 per year in total, they must be made to a public 501 (c) (3) charity, they must be made directly from either a traditional IRA or a Roth IRA to the charity (or charities) and the transfer must occur by December 31st. of the year in question. To take advantage of this provision, contact your IRA custodian and ask for an IRA Charity Rollover form.
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Read Through the Bible in a Year
One of the best ways to learn more about God, His character and His ways is to read His word, The Bible! We encourage you to take a life-transforming one year journey through the Bible. You can pick up booklets at the church that will take you through this one year journey or you can visit online resources. If you would like an online resource that will send you daily email reminders click HERE or if you would like an more interactive resource that gives you the opportunity to check off readings as you go along click HERE. Below are the URL's you can type into your browser to reach these sites as well.
http://www.bibleinayear.org/Index.asp
http://bible.christianity.com/readingplan/
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Advent Conspiracy
Promo Video
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