CHILI SUPPER

December 3, 2011

from 4:00p.m. until we are out of food!

Warm up before or after the Siloam Springs Christmas Parade with

all the chili you can eat,

and homemade desserts!

Tickets are $6.00 for adults,

and $3.00 for kids under 12.

Tickets are available in the church office,

at the door,

or from a FUMC Youth

Christmas is on Sunday this year.  Without Jesus there is no reason for the holiday.  Will our neighbors see us walk the talk to worship on Jesus’ birthday, Sunday December 25?  “The ones you love make sure they know it,” the song says.  Will Jesus know we love Him?

There will be one worship service at 10:30 Christmas.  It is a time to kneel at the cradle with family and friends from both worship services, from Siloam Springs and other towns, enjoying traditional and contemporary Christmas music.  The ebb and flow of Christmas worship will give other elements of your holiday celebration substance and value.

If ever there was a time to invite someone to worship it is Christmas; even those who do not have a vital relationship with Jesus.  People are more likely to worship at Christmas than ANY other time of year.  Eighty to eighty-five percent of people said they would come if someone they knew asked them.

Is there anything more thrilling than helping another person walk into a Christ-filled eternity?  Is anything easier than inviting someone to join you for a worship moment that will touch their heart?

“Presence of the Heart” is a Christmas drama on Wednesday, Dec.  21 from 6:30-7:30pm.  The message will be the drama written by Billie Stone.  We’ll sing Christmas favorites and experience liturgical dance for the first time in worship for several years.  If you are traveling out of town for Christmas, this will enable you to share Christmas with your local family and friends.

The traditional service of Candles, Carols, and Communions will be Saturday, December 24 from 5:30-6:30.  Feed your soul in the sanctuary then feast on fellowship at home.

To get started, go to http://www.youversion.com/reading-plans/rediscovering-the-christmas-season. (by clicking the link or typing it into your browser window). The link will take you to a page that gives you a brief overview as well as the options to either view a sample of the plan or start the plan. By clicking the green box that says “Start the Plan” you will be taken to a page where you are asked to log in. If you have not already created an account, you will be asked to create one at this time. Once you are logged in or your account is created you’re ready to go!

So how do you use this reading plan? Each day provides daily reflection questions and often a suggested activity to help you center that day on Jesus. You can go in order or you can skip around and pick a day that you feel would be the most beneficial. You can go through the plan as an individual, but you might also think of ways to do them in groups or as a family.

YouVersion is also available as an app for smart phones. Just click on the link at the top of any page on the YouVersion site to find out more about how to access the reading program from your particular device.  For those who do not have daily access to the internet, hard copies will be available in the Narthex on Sunday.

More pictures coming soon!

Instantly the businessman’s attitude changed from annoyance to deep sympathy.  Nothing changed physically, but this new insight changed him completely internally.  He experienced a paradigm, pronounced “pair of dimes” shift.

A paradigm is “a theoretical framework of any kind” or “a theory or a group of ideas about how something should be done, made, or thought about”. As we begin to reflect on the year past and look ahead to the coming year, maybe it’s time for a paradigm shift; a shift from stewardship to generosity.

Stewardship is most closely identified with a task.  For example, we are called to be good stewards of the earth (Genesis 1). Employers expect employees to be good stewards of the time while at work.  Society expects parents to be good stewards of their children, etc. Generosity, however, is a mark of character.  Stewardship needs to be defined for many, whereas generosity is readily recognized.

“Give away your life; you’ll find life given back, but not merely given back—given back with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity” (Luke 6:38 MSG). Giving a gift of time, ability, or physical item doesn’t take away from life, it enriches it.  Some people are born with personalities that are more generous than others.  Nevertheless, everyone grows in generosity through practice.

Sharing with others through the United Way, a church, or special appeal is laudable. When it comes from the heart in response to a need and one’s character instead of as an obligatory task, it blesses both the receiver and the giver.