Dec 22, 09

You and your family & friends are invited to spend Christmas Eve in worship. There is sure to be a service to satisfy your Christmas Eve schedule. We'd love to have you share in the celebration of the birth of our Savior. Worship times are as follows on Thursday, December 24^TH :

5:00 P.M.- UCC Family Service with special music by Christine Brauer, Adam Buer, Karin Buer, Coltan

Eastman, Zoie Koostra, Katrina Petersen, and Ray Young. There will also be a story for the children.

10:00 P.M.- UCC Traditional Service of Scripture & Carols with special music from our Chancel and Cantabell�

Choirs. We'll light up this service with our new, battery operated, hand held candles.

We will receive our special Christmas Eve offering which serves the needs of children, including The Salvation Army Christmas baskets, Children's Receiving Home, Mercy Home, and Intermountain Children's Home inHelena. Nursery care will be provided for each service. We look forward to seeing you and yours this Christmas Eve.

If these times do not fit your schedule, Christ United Methodist is having a worship service at 7:30 P.M.

SUNDAY SCHOOL NEWS & ROOM PICK UP

Children begin in Worship this Sunday before being dismissed to a Christ United Methodist Sunday Special. We continue to collect aluminum cans in Fellowship Hall as a fund raiser for Christhoper Mongeopa, our Global Ministries child who lives in the Philippines. Thank you for the generous donations we have received so far! Here is an exciting letter we received from him, along with a new picture that is displayed on the kiosk:

Dear Sponsors at First Congregational Church, UCC,
Hi! How are you? I am glad to receive your letters for me. You have been mentioning about Spring, where you plant and play soccer. We don't have spring here, we don't have snow. We only have Sunny and rainy seasons, but mostly the sun came out every day except for heavy rainy days. Yes, last Sept. to October 4 strong typhoons devastated our country. We only experienced slight rains and winds. Here at the center, we collected used clothing and canned goods for the typhoon victims. Many have lost their lives and home. About my studies, I have good grades in English which is 80% and Science, math are quite low. I hope that I can improve my grades in the next grading period. Advanced merry Christmas to all of you.
Love, Christhoper

A quote from Rev. Jim's pastoral prayer last Sunday: "The noted UCC preacher of our Riverside Church in NYC, William Sloane Coffin, now deceased, defined faith as, "faith is not believing without evidence, but trusting without reservation." This is the faith of Mary, and Abraham and Sarah. Not blind faith, but a trusting faith that 'nothing is impossible with God.' Which means we live with hope. See the pink candle in the Advent wreath. It stands for hope, one of the themes of Advent."

FIRST SUNDAY OF CHRISTMAS DECEMBER 27, 2009

11:00 A.M. Joint Worship Service, Sunday Special, Nursery

After all the hustle and bustle of preparing, buying, wrapping, baking, cleaning? we will pause and reflect with "Songs & Stories of Christmas" facilitated by Jim Holcomb & Karen Smith

- Scripture: Psalm 148, Colossians 3:12-17

- Children begin in Worship

12:00 P.M. Coffee Fellowship

Tellers: Bev Mathis, Bill Walters

2009 CHRISTMAS FUND OFFERING Thank you to everyone who donated to this year's Christmas Fund Offering, one of five Special Mission Offerings of the United Church of Christ. Your generosity and thoughtfulness totaled $342!

NAMETAG DRAWING WINNERS

Congratulations to our latest round of nametag drawing winners from last Sunday: Shirley Jacobsen won a gift certificate to Five Loaves Bakery, Lola Kosmerl won a gift certificate to Five Loaves Bakery, Duella Olson won a gift certificate to Family Affair Restaurant, and Lois Ressler won a gift certificate to Morning Light Coffee.

The Rocky Mountain Dust Devils 4H group is collecting coats for their annual coat drive. Please drop off used or outgrown coats at the church from now until January 15^th. Coats will be picked up and distributed to area schools for children in need.

A FEW OF MY

FAVORITE THINGS?

(as written at the Thanksgiving Potluck, November 2009)

"Cantatas! The UCC Church, Jim's sermons."

"Friendly people, good preaching, nice social events."

"I have lots of new friends."

"Friendly folks, pertinent, punchy preaching, community caring and involvement, a fun and caring fellowship."

"Chili."