Parkway United Church of Christ  E-news
December 29, 2017
 
Worship with Us this Weekend!

We Are Three +...
Parkway UCC enews 1-1-18

The Twelve Days of Christmas are ending... the Wisemen are arriving to see and experience the Holy Family. Join us as we celebrate Epiphany this Sunday at 9:30am Traditional Worship and/or 11am Informal Worship. Our scriptures are 
Isaiah 60:1-6 and Matthew 2:1-12 with a sermon entitled 'We Are Three +'. 
We are light, gold, frankincense, myrrh. We are Herod. We are wise ones. We are 
rising, sent, overwhelmed, stopped, entering... returning by a different road!
 
We will share the sacrament of communion at our open table.
 
Give-A-Meal Sundays will be these next two weeks as we all get focused again after the holidays. Please bring gifts of non-perishable food items for those in St Louis who are hungry. Thank you for your generosity! 
Isaiah 58 Ministries (http://www.i58ministries.org/), our partner in providing nurture to our neighbors, has a list of suggested items per month - though any/all donations are very much appreciated. January includes peanut butter & jelly, canned pears, spaghetti-o's, canned carrots, pancake mix and toilet paper.

Prayer List Update:
Marvin Herpel - back surgery asap - he is hospitalized now.
Cheryl Schrenker - add'l knee surgery on Monday (ski accident Dec '16).
Roger Pleis - dealing with shingles
Kenton Eiffert - son-in-law of Marion/Roger Pleis complications with ALS
Jerry Debandt - receiving rehab therapy at Brooking Park.
Ron Wilbois - healing from recentpacemaker surgery.
Family/friends of Russ Gieselmann - grieving and giving thanks.
Brooke - healing from open heart surgery (Eggebrecht daughter).
Ron Marchand - complications from cancer (Donna Ruzicka's father).

MONTH OF GRACE + PRAYER 
A Retreat in Everyday Life
Tuesday Evening Dialogue resumes Jan 9
2nd & 4th Tuesdays | 6:00-8:30pm | Heritage Room | Potluck & Discussion
Contact Karen Boyd for more information at [email protected]
 
Start the new year by joining Tuesday Evening Dialogue (TED)-a twice monthly potluck/book discussion that is informal, open, and fun! Books are available in the church office for purchase or you may order your own.
 
The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World   by Dalai Lama and Desmund Tutu
 
Two spiritual giants. Five days. One timeless question.
 
Nobel Peace Prize Laureates His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have survived more than fifty years of exile and the soul-crushing violence of oppression. Despite their hardships-or, because of them-they are two of the most joyful people on the planet. In April 2015, Archbishop Tutu traveled to the Dalai Lama's home in Dharamsala, India, to celebrate His Holiness's eightieth birthday and to create what they hoped would be a gift for others. They looked back on their long lives to answer a single burning question: How do we find joy in the face of life's inevitable suffering? They traded intimate stories, teased each other continually, and shared their spiritual practices. By the end of a week filled with laughter and punctuated with tears, these two global heroes had stared into the abyss and despair of our time and revealed how to live a life brimming with joy. This book offers us a rare opportunity to experience their astonishing week together.



Inspiration 
We must approach our meditation realizing that 'grace,' 'mercy,' and 'faith' are not permanent inalienable possessions which we gain by our efforts and retain as though by right, provided that we behave ourselves. They are CONSTANTLY RENEWED GIFTS. The life of grace in our hearts is renewed from moment to moment, directly and personally by God's love for us. -  Thomas Merton

Humor
If the sun shines while it's snowing, what should you look for?   Snowbows. 

Video of the Week
Keeping the Christmas LOVE alive! Share it!