PHILADELPHIA and surrounding area. Located in suburban Wyndmoor, PA
CURRENT CHURCH NEWSLETTER
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FIRST LIGHT
November 2008
Volume I, Issue 4
First Church Schedule
Every Sunday:
Prayer Time: 9:00 A.M.
Sunday School: 9:45 A.M.
Worship: 11:00 A.M.
Every Wednesday Evening:
Bible Study: 7:00 P.M.
November Schedule
2 – Standard Time Begins
4 – Election Day
Aid for Friends Cook-In at 9:30 A.M.
5 – Options Committee Meeting at 7:30 P.M.
9 – Keystone Hospice Service of Remembrance at 4:00 P.M.
11 – Veterans Day
13 –Keystone Hospice Auction
Preview: 6:00 P.M.
Auction: 6:30 P.M.
16 – Pastoral Committee Meeting after Morning Worship
17 – Wyndmoor Women’s Club at 12:00 noon
18 – Day Care Board Meeting at 7:30 P.M.
19 – Top of the Hill Thanksgiving Feast at 11:30 A.M.
25 – Springfield Township Community Thanksgiving Service
At Holy Martyrs in Oreland at 7:30 P.M.
27 – Happy Thanksgiving!
20 – Church Decking Party
30 – First Sunday in Advent
Avery Ramsey Baby Dedication during the Morning Worship Service
Mitten Tree Arrives!
Aid for Friends Cook-In
Tuesday, November 5
Starting at 9:30 A.M.
Everyone is welcome to help fill the trays and spend time socializing!
Keystone Hospice Auction
Thursday, November 13
“Make It”, “Bake It”, Sew It”, “Grow It”
In the First Church Social Hall
Preview: 6:00 P.M.
Auction: 6:30 P.M.
Springfield Township Community Thanksgiving Service
Tuesday, November 25
At Holy Martyrs, Oreland
7:30 P.M.
Church Decking Party
Saturday, November 29
3:00 P.M.
We will be decorating the church building this year on Saturday, November 29, starting at 3:00 P.M. The deckers will make preparations around the building for Christmas and the first Sunday in Advent, which begins the next day.
After decorating, the group will share a soup and salad supper. There will be a sign up sheet on the narthex table to indicate whether you will be able to help. Please join us for the beginning of this year’s Christmas season!
Avery Ramsey Baby Dedication
Sunday, November 30, during the Morning Worship Service
Please come and participate in this special event!
Board Reorganization Meeting
Sunday, December 7
After the Morning Worship Service
The Church Board Organization Meeting will be held on Sunday, December 7, after the Morning Worship Service. The agenda will be:
1. Election of Church Board Chairperson
2. Announcement of tentative Commission assignments
3. Election of Commission Chairpersons
4. Election of Board Vice Chairperson and Church Secretary
After the reorganization, the regular Church Board Meeting will be held. It is important that both 2008 and 2009 board members be present. Thanks!
November Birthdays
11 – Bradley Pursel
17 – Becky Bisset
22 – Eli Hall
23 – Craig Bracy
November 2008 PREACHING SCHEDULE
November 2: Micah 6:1-8
“God’s Case”
November 9: Micah 6:9-16
“Guilt and Punishment”
November 16: Micah 7:1-7
“Misery”
November 23: Micah 7:8-20
“Rising and Praise”
November 30: Mark 13:24-37
“Seeing the Son of Man”
Annual Mitten Tree
Our annual Mitten Tree will be located in the church narthex from Sunday, November 30, through Sunday, December 21. The Mitten Tree is used to collect warm winter articles of clothing, such as mittens, scarves, hats, socks, etc. to be distributed to people who have need of them.
Make sure that you stock up on your Mitten Tree items now! Thank you!
Christmas Poinsettias
Christmas poinsettia plants will be used to decorate the sanctuary during the month of December. The price per plant will be posted at a later date. If you order a poinsettia, you will be able to take it home with you after the Christmas Program on December 21. A bulletin insert for ordering the plants will be issued later in the month.
Christmas Carry-In Dinner and White Gift Service
Sunday, December 21
Carry-In Dinner: 5:00 P.M.
White Gift Service: 7:00 P.M.
More information will be forthcoming, but please save this date!
Top of the Hill Day Care News
Top of the Hill will be holding its annual Thanksgiving Feast on Wednesday, November 19, at 11:30 A.M. Our friends from the Senior Adult Center in Wyndmoor, along with parents and other family members, will be our guests. The children will be preparing the various dishes on the menu. This event always proves to be an opportunity to share good food and good times.
All of us at Top of the Hill wish First Church a very blessed and happy Thanksgiving!
First Church Facts
Worship Attendance for
October: 27
First Church of the Brethren Church Officers, Board Members, Auditors and Day Care Board and Treasurer for 2009
Moderator: John Hoover (2009)
Church Clerk: Joan Reese (2009)
Book Keeper: Tom Riethof (2009)
Assistant Treasurer: Derek Ramsey (2009)
Mission Treasurer: Edie Brown (2009)
Poor Fund and Mite Society Treasurer: Bud Quay (2009)
Church Board
Carol Johnston (2013)
Karen Quinn (2013)
Derek Ramsey (2013)
Julie Ramsey (2013)
Auditors
Edie Brown (2013)
Bud Quay (2013)
Day Care Board
Bill Brown (2013)
Pat Derr (2013)
Jennifer Daugherty (2013)
Day Care Treasurer
Tom Riethof (2009)
FIRST LIGHT
October 2008
Volume I, Issue 3
October 2008 Schedule
5- Love Feast and
Communion at 11:00 A.M.
7- Aid for Friends Cook-In at 9:30 A.M.
8- Wyndmoor Women’s Club at 12:00 noon
Top of the Hill Open House at 7:00 P.M.
Bible Study at 7:00 P.M.
10-11– Atlantic Northeast District Conference at Leffler Chapel, at Elizabethtown College
15– Congregational Business Meeting at 7:30 P.M.
22– Wyndmoor Women’s Club at 12:00 noon
29– Options Committee Meeting at 7:30 P.M.
31– Top of the Hill’s Halloween Parade in the Social Hall
LOVE FEAST AND COMMUNION
Sunday, October 5
During the morning Worship Service
On Sunday, October 5, Love Feast and Communion will be held as part of the morning Worship Service. Worship will begin as usual at 11:00 A.M. in the sanctuary. At the conclusion of the Morning Service, the Communion Service will begin, followed by the Feet Washing Service.
A Communal Meal will then be held in the Social Hall. The Bread and Cup Communion will conclude the Love Feast.
Aid for Friends
Cook-In
Tuesday, October 7
9:30 A.M.
Everyone is welcome to help fill the trays and spend time socializing!
District Conference 2008
42nd Annual
Church of the Brethren
MID-ATLANTIC
DISTRICT CONFERENCE
October 10-11, 2008
Elizabethtown College
Surrendered
to GOD
Transformed in CHRIST
Empowered by the SPIRIT
Our First Church District Conference Delegates are: Kevin Derr, Walter Eckenrode and Tom Riethof
Congregational Business Meeting
Wednesday, October 15
7:30 P.M.
Please come and take part in the business of First Church!
Options Committee Meeting
Wednesday, October 29
7:30 P.M.
The Paradoxes of Life
When I spend myself—body, soul and strength—I find replenishment within.
When I extend kindness freely, I find kindness growing abundantly within.
When I give abundantly to God and charity, I find my resources increasing instead of diminishing.
When I exhibit happiness, I find mostly happy responses.
When I give or serve or share or provide, I receive or am served or shared with or provided for in return.
When I offer peace of mind to another, I discover it growing within myself.
When I feel at peace with God, I discover I am at peace with the world.
October Birthdays
1 Jeanne Brown
2 Henry Eckenrode
2 Aleta Matthews
3 David Quinn
10 Ruth Hackman
16 Pat Derr
23 Karen Quinn
27 Shelia Hall
October 2008 PREACHING SCHEDULE
5 Micah 4:1-5
“The Lord’s Plan”
12 Micah 4:6-14
“God’s Promise”
19 Micah 5:1-8
“The Day of the Lord”
28 Micah 5:9-15
“God’s Case”
Top of the Hill Day Care News
Top of Hill will be holding its annual Open House on Wednesday, October 8, at 7:00 P.M. Parents and prospective day care parents will have the opportunity to meet in an informal setting. The curriculum and various activities will be explained, as well as tours of the classrooms
Our annual field trips to Merrymead Farm are already scheduled for the month of October. Everyone enjoys the various activities and ice cream at Merrymead.
On fields o'er which the reaper's hand has pass'd
Lit by the harvest moon and autumn sun,
My thoughts like stubble floating in the wind
And of such fineness as October airs,
There after harvest could I glean my life
A richer harvest reaping without toil,
And weaving gorgeous fancies at my will
In subtler webs than finest summer haze.By: Henry David Thoreau
Prayer for Peace
Lead me from death
To life, from falsehood to truth.
Lead me from despair to hope, from fear to trust.
Lead me from hate to love, from war to peace.
Let peace fill our heart, our world, our universe.
Amen.
First Church Facts
Worship Attendance for
September: 25
(Sept. 19, 2008) -- Mission staff of the Church of the Brethren are planning a meeting with RECONCILE, a peace and reconciliation organization in southern Sudan, to continue building relationships to consider places of partnership. Brad Bohrer, director of the Sudan Initiative, will travel to southern Sudan from Sept. 29-Oct. 11, during which time he will meet with RECONCILE leaders and also provide leadership for two events sponsored by the organization. “The Sudan Initiative recently has gone through a clarifying time,” Bohrer said. “With staff changes came a period of stepping back from the direction we were going, a time of reevaluation and discernment. The vision and call continues for us to go to Sudan, but we are going with a clearer, deeper call from Sudanese leaders to partner with them in the rebuilding of the country after the civil war.” RECONCILE was formed in 2003 out of the work of the New Sudan Council of Churches (NSCC), Bohrer reported. The Church of the Brethren has been involved with the NSCC since its inception, and has in the past provided staff as well as financial and other support. Merlyn Kettering, a Church of the Brethren member who served for a time as a church consultant for economic and social development in Sudan, wrote most of the organizing documents for the creation of RECONCILE and also trained its early leadership. RECONCILE is currently involved in workshops for church and community leaders to foster peace on a local level, as well as training for reconciliation, participation in local and national government through elections, and empowering the population to be in healthy communities, Bohrer reported. “My trip will be to deepen our partnership with RECONCILE and define some long- and short-term positions that we will try to fill to strengthen their program and create sustained presence in Sudan,” Bohrer said. During his trip, Bohrer also will provide a leadership training event for the RECONCILE staff, and give a workshop for church and community leaders on the importance of participating in elections.
“I'm excited that we can walk along with RECONCILE in this way,” Bohrer said. He added that conversations are in progress with other Sudanese organizations and churches to explore further partnering relationships that the Church of the Brethren can establish.
FIRST LIGHT NEWSLETTER
September 2008
Volume 1, Issue 2
First Church Schedule
1 Labor Day
NOAC, September 1-5,
Lake Junaluska, NC
7 Springfield Township
Community Day
11:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M.
9 Aid for Friends Cook-In
9:30 A.M.
Day Care Board Meeting
7:30 P.M.
10 Wyndmoor Women’s
Club
12:00 noon
14 Deacon’s Meeting
Review of Mission Statement after Worship
17 Options Committee
Meeting
7:30 P.M.
21 International Day of
Prayer for Peace
Rally Day Breakfast
9:00 A.M.
Return to Regular
Worship Schedule
11:00 A.M.
22 First Day of Fall
24 Biblical Archeology Lecture
7:00 P.M.
26-27 32nd Brethren Relief
Auction, Lebanon Area
Fairgrounds
27 Pennsylvania Music
Teachers’ Recital
28 Special Congregational
Business Meeting
After the Morning Worship
Service
FIRST CHURCH SCHEDULE CHANGE!
Sunday September 21
On Sunday, September 21, we will return to our normal schedule. It will begin with a Rally Day Continental Breakfast at 9:00 A.M. Everyone is invited to participate! Please sign the sheet in the narthex if you will be able to attend. The Sunday School year will begin that day at 9:45. Prayer Time will begin at 9:00 A.M.
The Morning Worship Service will revert to its pre-summer schedule of 11:00 A.M.
Weekly Wednesday Bible Study will begin on October 1, at 7:00 P.M.
A Prayer for Perspective
Eternal God! Grant us gratitude enough to look backward and be thankful;
courage enough to look forward and be hopeful;
faith enough to look upward and be humble;
kindness enough to look outward and be helpful.
Amen.
Aid for Friends
Cook-In
Tuesday, September 9
9:30 A.M.
Due to those attending NOAC this year, the Cook-In will be held on the second Tuesday of September.
Everyone is welcome to help fill the trays and spend time socializing!
First Church Facts
Attendance for July and August
27
Review of First Church Mission Statement
On Sunday, September 14, after the Morning Worship Service there will be a review of First Church's Mission Statement. Please try to attend in order to have a say in this matter. Thank you!
Options Committee Meeting
Wednesday, September 17, at 7:30 P.M.
Our next Options Committee Meeting will be held on September 17. We hope to have more of a turn out than we have had in the summer months. Please come!
International
Day of Prayer for Peace
September 21, 2008
On Sunday, September 21, 2008... hundreds of thousands of people from churches, synagogues, and mosques around the world will join together in the International Day of Prayer for Peace.
September Birthdays
3 Kevin Broderick Derr
4 Angela Finet
5 Luke Finet
6 Joan Reese
7 Betty Reber
8 Jamie Cooper
29 Larry Hoover
Atlantic Northeast
District
32nd
Disaster Relief Auction
September 26 and 27
Lebanon Area
Fairgrounds
For more information about this worthwhile event, please check the auction information in the narthex.
Special Congregational Business Meeting
Sunday, September 28
After the morning Worship Service.
The purpose of this meeting will be to hear the report of the Church Board Nominating Committee.
September 2008 Preaching Schedule
September 7 I Corinthians 16:1-24 "Personal Notes"
September 14
Micah 1:1-7 "Judgment"
September 21
Micah 1:8-16
"Weeping"
September 28
Micah 2:1-13
Love Feast and
Communion
Sunday, October 5
During the morning
Worship Service
District Conference 2008
42nd Annual
Church of
the Brethren
MID-ATLANTIC
DISTRICT CONFERENCE
October 10-11, 2008
Elizabethtown College
Surrendered
to GOD
Transformed
in CHRIST
Empowered
by the SPIRIT
Our First Church District Conference Delegates are: Kevin Derr, Walter Eckenrode and Tom Riethof
Top of the Hill Daycare News
Top of the Hill’s Inservice Days were held on August 29 and 30. This allowed the teachers to thoroughly prepare their rooms and curriculum for the new school year.
We are looking forward to cooler weather, as well as welcoming back the children and the teachers who have been away for the summer. We are also excited about the new families joining us at Top of the Hill.
Witness Update
$400 was given to Church World Service to equip 8 buckets to be used for clean up at disaster sites. Many items were collected to be distributed to the Homeless Shelter run by Project Home in Philadelphia. We thank everyone who contributed to these worthy projects.
Brethren Missionary Pilot Killed In Indonesia
Our sympathy and prayers go out to the family of David Clapper, missionary pilot, who died in a crash in Indonesia. David is the son of Brethren minister David Clapper of the Falling Spring (Hade's) Church of the Brethren near Greencastle, PA. The younger David Clapper and his family moved to Indonesia to serve as a
jungle/missionary pilot approximately 11 years ago. He mainly flew humanitarian and medical missions to remote villages in this country. They lived in the far eastern province of Papua, Indonesia.
On Saturday morning, David's life was returned to his Maker when his plane crashed into the side of the mountain. The geography of the region is steep mountain & valley terrains. The winds currents can make the flights very treacherous at times. It appears that the winds sucked the plane into the side of the mountain.
Beth, his wife, said that he died "with his boots on. He was serving the people he loved, doing what he loved to do." His body will be laid to rest in Indonesia. It was recovered on Monday morning.
August Birthdays
1—Jean Coleman
14—Soo Young Ko
16—David Cooper
16—Carol Johnston
16—Gail McFarland
19—Tim Bisset
28—Edie Brown
Top of the Hill Daycare
News
Both teachers and children are enjoying their summer routines and activities at Top of the Hill. There is a more relaxed schedule and a lot of outdoor fun, including water play, when the weather permits.
Our annual Teacher Inservice days will be held on August 28 and 29.
Top of the Hill wishes everyone a safe and fun summer season!
First Church Facts
Average Worship Attendance in June 2008: 28
July and August 2008 Preaching Schedule
July 7
1 Corinthians 12:1-11
“Abuses”
July 13
1 Corinthians 12:12-31
“Gifts”
July 20
1 Corinthians13:1-13
“Unity and Diversity”
Crai