DECEMBER 2005
“SOMETHING IS COMING”
“Almighty God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness and put upon us the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which thy son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility…………” And so the new year begins; our Christian year begins with the First Sunday of Advent. The long Season of Pentecost is complete. The word “advent’ means something is coming. The promise of Advent is…..that which is coming is an unimaginable invasion of holiness……. “CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT” What is coming upon the world is the light of the world—it is Christ. That is the comfort of it. The challenge of it is that it has not yet come, only the hope for it, the longing for it. In the meantime, we are in the dark, and the dark……...God knows, is also in us. “FAITH IS THE CONVICTION OF THINGS NOT SEEN.” That means that faith is what we live by in the darkness. Faith is a way of seeing in the dark. Faith is what makes the darkness endurable. The language of faith itself can be rather dark and full of shadows. It is certainly full of poetry and symbol. Like the Advent collect, with its “armor of light.” Or, like Isaiah talking about “the wolf dwelling with the lamb, the calf and lion and the fatling together, a little child leading them…….” So we live out our days between the fact of darkness and the hope of light. If Today is the first day of the rest of our lives, as the saying goes, today is also the last day of this much of our lives. So, I have an Advent question for you: WHAT, IF ANYTHING, HAVE YOU (and I) DONE TO DO BATTLE AGAINST THE GREAT DARKNESS OF THINGS? Advent is the place to stop and also the place to start. It is the place to stop and think…..think back, think ahead, think deep…..THAT IS WHAT ADVENT IS ABOUT. The Reverend Richard H. Elwood
AROUND THE PARISH WITH BOB GATES
There were lots of people in the Parish Hall Sunday, November 20th, for the making of Advent Wreaths.( see pictures on page 2 thanks to Richard Mickelson). Advent Activity Books were for sale ($3.00 per copy) and it was nice to see so many young children there with their parents. The Advent Activity Book is presented to the honor and glory of God, with contributions by Evelyn Burns, Chica Greenlee, Martha Lane, Lianne Mercer, Karen Poidevin, Gwen Dugat (Cover Art), Anne Eppright (Line Drawings), and Marilee Pankratz (Layout and Design). The books are available in the office and are a wonderful devotional guide for the Season of Advent…….The Parish Hall was bulging with shoppers at the Ten Thousand Village sale. Nancy Kimbrell and Barbara Johnson were manning the register when I was there and business was brisk. The sale ran through Sunday and according to Barbara it was a huge success…….Our annual parish meeting has been set for Sunday, January 15th at 11:00 AM in the parish hall following the 10:00 o’clock service. At that time we will elect a new slate of four vestry persons to serve three year terms. The next issue of the Bugle will have pictures and biographic data on the candidates who have been nominated thus far. The candidates are Barrett Burns, Jane Good, Charles Green, Karla Man, Jim Spruiell, and Shirlee Thompson. Nominations may also be made from the floor……..Delegates and Alternate delegates to Diocesan Council will also be elected at the parish meeting. They are Bob Gates, Charlene Gish, Molly Martin, and Morey Weldon for Delegates and Mickey Hayes, Barrett Burns, and Regina Harbison as Alternate Delegates…... Good news to report! Jack Oates is back at home after his stay in the hospital and doing extremely well…..Kep Johnson is back at home and on the mend after his hospitalization…..Jim and Nancy Steinbach are back home from a terrific trip to Germany visiting children and grandchildren…..We were saddened at the deaths of Hugo Werner who died on November 3rd………...and Marilynne (Cox) Ransom who died on November 14th. Our prayers of sympathy and support are extended to their families…….It was a joyous celebration at the nine o’clock service on November the 13th when Carlos Luke Sawtelle was baptized. Luke is the son of David and Tina Sawtelle and grandson of Hector and Cynthia Pedregon……...On Wednesday, December 7th, at 7:15 p.m. in the church Jane Elwood will present Elizabeth, the Mother of John the Baptist and Mary, mother of Jesus. On Sunday, December 18th at 10:00 a.m. she will be performing Mary, Mother of Jesus for the whole parish family (children and adults). This should be an awesome presentation. Don’t miss it………….A lot of planning and preparation has been put forth to make this season of Advent a special and spiritually rewarding occasion. Make sure that you and your family take advantage of this blessing…….Thanks for the compliments on the last edition of the Bugle. I am particularly grateful to Stirling Greenlee for the photography of the “Blessing of the Animals.” Have a safe and very Merry Christmas……….RHG!!!
Dinner Planned for December 3rd
The last ECW program for the year is an Advent Evening, Saturday, December 3rd, at 6:30 p.m. in the Parish Hall. The church wide celebration features a dinner (Mexican), music by Dr. Michael Fontenot, and entertainment by Suzie Humphrey-Mayo. Tickets are $20.00 each and may be obtained at the church office or from ECW Officers.
Reflections from Morey Weldon
It is that time of year. Merchants love it. Credit card companies wait for this time of year with baited breath and eager anticipation of increased interest payments to come. Children (and grandchildren) hit the fast forward button of "Santa, I want_____." Adults (myself very much included) look at the calendar and despair of not enough hours in the day for work, family, extra parties, extra shopping and good cheer. Patience is not always present. It is that time of year. A secular time in which we are given an opportunity to loose sight of what is really important in our daily lives. It is that time of year. Extra activities are planned at church (any church) which take preparation and time in order that we may experience this season more profoundly. We have wreaths to make, carol singing and wassailing to participate in, decorating the church, erecting and decorating the Angel Tree, gifts for neighbors in need. We become very busy going about the business of preparing for the birth. It is that time of year. A sacred time in which we are given an opportunity to loose sight of what is really important in our daily lives. It is that time of year. Advent - a time of coming - a time of preparation and expectation for the coming celebration of the birth of Jesus. It is that time of year. We are given a third opportunity - given by our Lord - to be mindful of what is really important about Advent, the season of preparation. For I believe it is not the "things" which matter to God; what really matters are the opportunities given to each of us to not loose sight of Jesus, to not loose God in the secular and sacred business of the season. Material possessions and activities do not support our daily lives. Our relationship with our Lord is the foundational support for all which we do. Our relationship with God and His Son, Jesus, is what we ought, should, and must hold most dear. Material possessions go away, activities are briefly experienced, but our love for God, and more importantly, His love for us, is enduring, everlasting. It is that time of year. We are given an opportunity to rediscover what we hold most dear in this life, what we love most, what has the deepest meaning in our lives, what truly touches our souls. We are given an opportunity (again) in which to see our future. Our future is with God now and forever.
Monthly Financial Report
October, 2005 Jan - Oct, 2005 Total Offerings Total Expenses 25,693 21,671 $ 249,714 237,723 11,991 $ 516,262 $ 476,689 39,573 14,241 14,500 10,831)
Income over Exp 4,022 Parish Hall Loan Owed January 1, 2005 Owed on October 31, 2005 Paid on loan (10 monthly payments Bequest Designated
Vestry Report November 21 Voted to purchase a trailer for Boy Scout Troop 137 to be used for camping and storage of that equipment. Web page is now on line at htpp:/www.stbarnabasfbg.com Renovation of CEB is progressing - new roof will be finished by the end of November; interior is underway. As of this report we have received 119 pledges for a total of $225,185 to the General Fund for 2006.
“Help Make a Parishioner Sparkle”
Contributed by Susan Kimbrell
On Saturday, December 3rd, the Oasis and Outreach Committee members will be working together in helping some of our Parishioners sparkle. The sparkle will come from the church volunteers putting up the parishioner’s outside Christmas decorations as well as change out the smoke alarm batteries and covering outside water faucets. We will meet at the Parish Hall at 8:00 AM for a continental breakfast and then divide up into teams and go to the parishioners’ homes by 9:00 AM. Since this activity could take more than 3 hours to complete, brown bag lunches will be provided to finish the tasks. If you’d like to help with this activity, please contact the church office and sign up. The team would appreciate donations of empty metal coffee cans, old rags, and fresh smoke alarm batteries. Just drop off your donations in the Christmas wrapped box in the Parish Hall. If you know of senior parishioners who would like this kind of assistance with their outside decorations, please contact the church office (997-5762). Please remember that this activity is to help our senior members sparkle a little bit more during this holiday season.
Announcement from Mom’s Morning Off
Mon’s Morning off has begun an ongoing aluminum can recycling project to benefit our Earth Environment Program. Receptacles are located on the parking area near the playground. We earn .28 cents per pound for collected cans.