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November 22, 2009
Advent is Coming
Greetings!
Pastor Vickie here on Thanksgiving Eve to promote the season of Advent at Irving Park UMC.
Shopping for Christmas starts this Friday (or earlier for some of us), but in the Christian tradition, Christmas is still a ways off. This Sunday begins the season of Advent, a time of preparation and waiting for Christ to be born. Don't miss our four-part series, "Finding Our Way Home" beginning this Sunday, November 29th.
Henri Nouwen captured it beautifully when he wrote:
"The place of our true belonging is not a place made by human hands. It is fashioned for us by God, who came to pitch his tent among us, invite us to his place, and prepare a room for us in his own house."
Make worship a priority and join me this Advent as we journey alongside our ancestors of the faith who believed God's promises, followed God's leading, and ultimately discovered that God was not that far away! This Sunday, we'll travel with our ancestors of the faith, Abraham and Sara.
HELP ... HELP ... I NEED YOUR HELP ... LOOK FOR SIGNS ...
Many of you will be on the road this week. When you take a road trip, you look for signs indicating you're still on the right road, when to turn off, and when you arrive at your destination. The same is true for our spiritual journey. We might think the signs aren't there. But if we have the mindset that we use when we're on a road trip – when we intentionally look for spiritual signs – we begin to see them at every turn. This is where I need your help.
This Advent season, be on the lookout for signs that God is leading and directing your life. Each week comes with a different theme. Look for signs that match the theme and then report on how you witnessed the sign. back to me by a specific date (see the schedule below).
If you have kids, get them to help too! Email your stories to me at hadvl@comcast.net. One story will be selected to guide the worshipping community each Sunday morning (that's all I'm going to share about this), but all will be mentioned in some way during the worship service. So get your stories in early and often. Tell your story by pictures, words, poem, whatever! Be creative. I would imagine there will be a hopeful sign at your Thanksgiving gathering ...
Here are the weekly themes:
Advent 1: November 29 – Hope (report signs of Hope by Friday, 11/27)
Advent 2: December 6 – Peace (report signs of Peace by Thursday, 12/3)
Advent 3: December 13 – Joy (report signs of Joy by Thursday, 12/10)
Advent 4: December 20 – Love (report signs of Love by Friday, 12/18)
God came and pitched his tent among us. Find your way to worship so you'll be prepared to welcome the Christ child again!
SERVING OUR NEIGHBORS
Jesus asked us to serve and love our neighbor. No time is more appropriate to do this than Advent. Each week in Advent we will highlight a specific mission. Support one or all of these missions. It's up to you.
Note the three hands-on opportunities to serve:
1. Help at Christmas Distribution of food Pantry, Tues. Dec. 15 evening set up or Wed. Dec. 16 9:00am distribution
2. Deliver collected hats, scarves, gloves, warm clothes to Humboldt Park Social Services, Thurs. Dec. 17, evening
3. Christmas Caroling in West Walker neighborhood and raise money for Hands to Help, Tues. Dec. 22 at 7:00 pm
I look forward to seeing you this Sunday as we begin our Advent Journey together. Please note that we are decorating the church on Saturday, December 5th and having a cookie/treat exchange that weekend. We also have a Community Chorus event in our sanctuary on the 6th at 3. Our Christmas meal is Dec. 13 after service and we have a Winter Solstice Service the evening of Dec. 20th. See the calendar for more details on these events – and more.
With thanksgiving,
Pastor Vickie
Posted by vickie at 02:19 AM
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