Saturday, December 14th 

at Saint Andrew's-in-the-Valley

"The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, 
the desert shall rejoice and blossom; 
like the crocus it shall blossom abundantly, 
and rejoice with joy and singing." Isaiah 35: 1-2

Take a little time out in Advent to contemplate the joy-filled mystery that lies beneath all the busyness of the weeks before Christmas. "Blooming in the Wilderness," an Advent Quiet Day, will gather us into periods of silent prayer and invite the Spirit into our midst through a variety of creative expressions. It will be led by The Rev. Susan Ackley, who has explored the relationship between prayer and creativity in a variety of quiet days and other venues. Last spring she served as Priest-Artist-in-Residence at Emmanuel Church in Boston. The Quiet Day will begin at 9:00 at St. Andrew's-in-the-Valley in Tamworth. We will conclude with an informal Eucharist and a simple soup lunch and finish at 1:00. Please let us know by December 10th if you are coming so that we can provide the appropriate materials. You may call the St. Andrew's Church office at 323-8515 or email office@standrewsinthevalley.org to RSVP.

The All Saints' ECW still have a few bags of pecans left and some bean soup. Please consider purchasing some to support the outreach programs of our ECW. It will be on sale each Sunday between services during December. Thank you. 

Please remember! Friday, December 13th from 10 am to 1:30 pm to stop by the bake sale being held at the Senior Center in the parish hall as ECW will be selling pecans and bean soup. 

Cornerstone Christian Academy of Ossipee invites you to "The Forgotten Gift" schoolwide Christmas program, Friday, December 13, 6 p.m., First Congregational Church of Ossipee. Also from Cornerstone is Living Nativity: Please come to a reverent depiction of the Nativity of Jesus by Cornerstone Christian Academy's 1st-3rd graders in the Gridley  Gallery, Monday through Thursday, December 14-19, 2:50-3:15. 

Please do not forget to place your request for flower memorials for Christmas. Slips are in the back of the church. 

The parish office is calling out to all church groups regarding ordering of supplies for year end and beginning of 2014 with Donna going on leave as of 12/17. Please check with your committees and groups to be sure you will be all set with supplies for this time frame. Thank you.

The newly formed Branding/Marketing Team from the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire invites your participation in the early stages of our discernment process. During 2014 we will host conversations around the diocese for  sharing perceptions and opinions about our values and attributes as a diocese. This year-long project is intended to improve and refine our communications and enable us to match our messaging to our mission. Information and updates will be posted periodically on the diocesan website. The team welcomes your responses to a very brief survey https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ZLYNZV7