The following resources are available on the table in the Gathering Area:

Click for Calendar of Events, Friends to Remember in Prayer, & Sunday School

Children's Ministry Schedule

Thank you to all who assist with Children's Ministry. Your time, energy, and dedication are appreciated. If you need to make a schedule change or would like to serve as a teacher or in the nursery, please contact Michele Gibbel (717)318-5442 or mgibbel@yahoo.com     

Nursery Caregivers Needed!

In the recent weeks we have experienced a boom of young ones in the nursery during both Sunday School and Worship. This is so exciting! But to care for these little ones, we need more help. There are between 16-20 volunteer slots to fill each month. How can you help out?  

        Qualifications:  

        * A love for children 

        * A desire to support and encourage parents of young children 

        * An interest in seeing our congregation grow 

         * Background checks are required.  

Please contact Michele Gibbel ( mgibbel@yahoo.com ) to be added to the rotation or with any questions. Thank you. 

J.A.M. Choir News

Children ages 4 to 6th grade J.A.M. (Jesus And Me) Choir is practicing Sundays from 9:50 am to 10:10 am in the basement choir room. For those children in Sunday school you will be escorted to the choir room and return to the Sunday school room to meet your parents after practice each week. J.A.M. Choir is scheduled to sing in worship every 2nd Sunday of the month. We will be singing, moving, using puppets, and playing musical instruments. Join us every Sunday as we make music for our Lord!

A WISH LIST for Heather Gibson and her 5 children that have been displaced due to a failed electrical inspection where they were told to leave quickly and was only able to take a few things from the house. These are the children that come to church with

Diane Gibble.  If you have any of the small items new or used you can give them to Diane. Thank you so much for helping and showing God's love. Pray they will find affordable housing. Please click on the tab for what they will need once they get housing.

If you wish to begin contributing to the church using online giving, please visit our website at: yorkfirst.org and click on the Online Giving link or go directly to the Online Giving website t:  www.acionlinegiving.com/4706 .

For assistance setting up your account, call Donor Support at:  800-348-2886 – Option 2 – Online Giving Questions? Contact Sheryl Leaman if necessary, and thank you for your support!

Thank you for your many cards and emails that we’re received over the past few weeks as we continue our new journey with Leukemia. At this point, we do not know what is right around the corner, but our faith and your support are helping us along.  Thank you so much for being so supportive a congregation, and for which we are very deeply indebted. Larry and Pat Gibble

THANK YOU to all the folks that have provided casseroles for Our Daily Bread soup kitchen in 2019. And to those that transport and serve the casseroles. We have been providing 9 to 12 casseroles of baked spaghetti to Our Daily Bread the 2 ^nd Friday of each month to feed those less fortunate. It is one of our ways to help fight hunger in York. If you would like to help ….

1.You can make a casserole at your convenience. (pans & recipe available)

2. Put your casserole in the freezer in the church kitchen anytime during the month.

OR 3. Bring your casserole to the church by 8:30 a.m. the 2 ^nd Friday of each month.

Please add your name to the sign up sheet so we can tell Our Daily Bread how many casseroles to expect. Your help is needed and very much appreciated.

Audrey Ginder (717-755-6785)

A BIG thank you to everyone who once again helped to make "The Cookies for Truckers Project" a terrific success! Glenn and Anna Miller delivered 202 bags of cookies to the

Carlisle Truck Stop Ministry. Many hands make light work and that is so true in this outreach ministry. You certainly made many people happy by providing them with a yummy taste of the Holidays. Spreading God's love to others is what Christmas is all about. Thanks again to all who made it happen!! Elizabeth Eisenhart

SUGGESTIONS FROM THE CAPITAL CAMPAIGN STEERING COMMITTEE

“Catch the Spirit, Build for the Future” has been chosen as the theme for our Capital Fund Campaign. As we prepare to launch the campaign, we want to share with you two tax saving options that may be available to you as you consider your pledge to the campaign. You will need to complete these transactions prior to December 31 ^st for the 2019 tax year. These options are qualified charitable distributions and donation of appreciated securities.

Qualified Charitable Distribution

If you are age 70½ or older, IRS rules require you to take required minimum distributions (RMDs) each year from your tax-deferred IRA’s. This additional taxable income may push you into a higher tax bracket and may also reduce your eligibility for certain tax credits and deductions. For example, your taxable income helps determine the amount of your Social Security benefits that are subject to taxes. Keeping your taxable income level lower may also help reduce your potential exposure to higher Medicare premiums. To eliminate or reduce the impact of RMD income, you may want to consider making a qualified charitable distribution (QCD). A QCD is a direct transfer of funds from an IRA custodian, payable to a qualified charity. Amounts distributed as a QCD can be counted toward satisfying your RMD for the year and can also be excluded from your taxable income. This is not the case with a regular withdrawal from an IRA, even if you use the money to make a charitable contribution later on. In this scenario, the withdrawal would be counted as taxable income. You must be at least 70½ years old at the time you request a QCD. If you process a distribution prior to reaching age 70½, the distribution will be treated as taxable income.

Funds must be transferred directly from your IRA custodian to the qualified charity. This is accomplished by requesting your IRA custodian issue a check from your IRA payable to the charity. You can then request that the check be mailed to the charity, or forward the check to the charity yourself.

Donation of Appreciated Securities

With the stock market setting all-time record highs, many investors are holding securities in their taxable accounts that have appreciated in value. Appreciated securities are investments that have increased in value from the time they were purchased, and can take the form of publicly traded stock, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closely held stock, or mutual funds. For example, if a stock was purchased for $30 per share and sold for $50 per share, the stock has appreciated by $20 per share. When appreciated stock is sold, the owner generally realizes capital gains equal to the appreciation and may be liable for either short-term or long-term capital gains taxes. With a charitable gift of appreciated securities, the donation you make and the deduction you get are greater than they would be if you were to sell the shares and donate the cash proceeds instead. That is because when you donate shares, you avoid paying the capital gains tax. The church will receive the full market value of the securities donated.

We encourage you to take advantage of these tax saving measures as you finalize your year-end giving.

"Notes from the Console," Article 21, By Mike Frock

"Editor’s Claim Debunked"

 

The postlude this Sunday is a piece titled “Song of the Watchman” by Grieg. Edvard Hagerup Grieg was a Scandinavian composer and pianist born in Norway who lived from 1847-1907. He is remembered as one of the leading Romantic composers. His use of Norwegian folk songs as the inspiration for many of his pieces helped to create a national identity for the country. Grieg’s family name was originally spelled Greig. He studied at the Leipzig Conservatory and married his first cousin, Nina Hagerup, in 1867. He became the music director of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra from 1880-1882. Throughout his life, Grieg met Liszt, Tchaikovsky, and Percy Grainger. He received two honorary doctorates, one from the University of Cambridge in 1894 and the other from the University of Oxford in 1906. Grieg is probably best known for his Peer Gynt Suite (1875), music he composed for a play by the same name. This Suite includes the famous “In the Hall of the Mountain King” and “Morning Mood.” The composer is most known for his compositions for piano and orchestra, and wrote a symphony, a piano concerto, piano sonata, violin sonatas, and cello sonata. In 1903, Grieg made nine 78-rpm gramophone recordings and some live-recording player piano rolls of his piano music, all of which exist today.

 

“Song of the Watchman” (“Vektersang”) is the from Grieg’s “Lyric Pieces” (“Lyriske stykker”) Book 1, Opus 12, Number 3. The “Lyric Pieces” are a collection of 66 pieces contained in 10 books written and published between 1867-1901. All the pieces are written for solo piano; however, Grieg orchestrated or helped orchestrate 6 of the 66 pieces. “Song of the Watchman” was composed in 1866 or 1867 and published in 1867.  The editor of the book from which I am playing this piece lists it as a Christmas piece, which is why I programmed it in December. However, truth be told, the piece was written after the composer watched a performance of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” It is really a character piece supposed to paint the picture of the watchman from the play. The piece is in ABA form where the chordal texture of the A sections represents the watchman on look-out, and the arpeggios of the B section represent the watchman shivering. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the music and feel free, like the editor, to picture the Watchman in Bethlehem instead of Scotland.

LAST SUNDAY IN WORSHIP

Scripture Lesson: Isaiah 11:1-10, Romans 15:4-7,12-13

Message:     “Where the Spirit Rests”

Worship Attendance: 100

If you need to reach the pastor outside of office hours, his home phone number is

(717)318-5442, and his cell number is (717)271-4888 . You can also email him at pastor@yorkfirst.org. Note that laws prevent hospitals from contacting a pastor without your permission when you are admitted, so you will need to let hospital staff know that you would like the hospital to contact your pastor.