“Someone With Skin On”

Isaiah 7:10-17

Matthew 1:20-23

God is with us to calm our fears.

In Person

Rev. Bud Reeves

Offertory

Anne and Elizabeth Rosenberg, Handbell duet

Organist: Benjamin Henderson  

11:00 am Connexion

In Person, 6pm Premier Monday on Facebook and YouTube

Rev. DeeDee Autry

“Angels From the Realms Of Glory” (Emmanuel)

“O Come, O Come Emmanuel”

“One Of Us”

“Waiting Here For You”

11:00 am Sanctuary

In Person,Facebook Live,

YouTube and FM 103.5

Rev. Bud Reeves

Anthem “Joseph Dearest, Joseph Mine”

Offertory “Song of Mary and Joseph”

Chancel Choir

Gaye Mings, Chancel Choir Director

Benjamin Henderson, Organist

We’ve been hearing it blare over the loudspeakers in the stores for weeks: “It’s the most wonderful time of the year!” And it is, in many respects. We enjoy the trappings of the Christmas season–the lights, the food, the presents, the special activities, the family get-togethers. It makes the end of the year very special. Maybe that’s why so many holidays happen in December. I recently read that there are 11 religious or semi-religious holidays in December; not only several branches of Christians, but Jews, Buddhists, African-Americans, pagans, and Zoroastrians (Look that one up!) all have significant holidays at the end of the year.¹ That’s why it’s OK to say, “Happy Holidays!” because there is more going on, globally speaking, than just Christmas.

But for Christians, Christmas is the thing. We have the season of Advent to prepare our hearts to celebrate the birth of Jesus again this year on December 25, a date which was chosen by the Emperor Constantine in 336 C. E. Whether or not it is the actual day Jesus was born, it is a great day to celebrate the coming of the Son of God, the Incarnation of God, in the Babe of Bethlehem.

Celebrating Christmas kind of puts a bow, so to speak, on the year. It’s the biggest cultural celebration we have, and it is a chance to pull things together and make things right before we turn the page on a new calendar. There are many things to get done in December, but I want to suggest four that might make this the best Christmas ever, and will certainly enhance the spiritual meaning of the holiday for you and yours at home.

1. Remember Advent. The season is about more than decorations and parties. It is a time to prepare spiritually for the birth of Christ. Truly, Jesus isn’t born for real until he is born in our hearts. So take time to pause and reflect on the miracle of the Incarnation. Read the Scriptures related to the birth of Jesus. Read some good devotional material. Pray for a new birth in your soul. 
2. Show up. We have great things going on at the church during Advent. Being present with the church family is important for engaging the joy of the season. Come hear the music ministry do their awesome work on December 17; the Lessons and Carols always delight. The Longest Night service is also a profound moment, too. We are sponsoring the train at Creekmore on the 19th; come mingle with the community. Pacesetters, Widows’ group, women’s ministry, and Sunday School classes all have special functions. And we have three wonderful services on Christmas Eve. Be a part of church at Christmas; that’s what it’s all about!
3. Finish your 2023 giving to the church. If you made a commitment to support the church financially, I hope you can complete it by December 31, if you haven’t already. If you have already, nobody says you can’t also give an extra gift to make even more good things happen! 
4. Help us plan our ministry for 2024. We know what we will be able to do for the cause of Christ next year based on the estimates of giving we receive from the congregation. If you haven’t turned in a commitment card yet, there is still time. Doing this will help your spiritual commitment, and it will make our church stronger.

I hope you have a blessed remainder of Advent and a glorious celebration of Christmas, and may God give you peace and prosperity in the New Year!

¹https://time.com/6242283/december-global-holidays-christmas-hanukkah-yule/

MUSIC DEPARTMENT

On Thursday, December 14, 2023, at 7:30 p.m., First UMC will host the Hendrix College Choir in our sanctuary as they present their annual Candlelight Carol Service. Hendrix is a United Methodist-affiliated college in Conway, and a number of the school’s alumni live and work in the Fort Smith area (and at First Church!). We expect to welcome guests in the congregation as well as in the choir loft.

In the early 1960s, the Hendrix College Choir began presenting its service of lessons and carols modeled after the annual Christmas Eve service at King’s College in Cambridge, England. Six decades later, the Candlelight Carol Service remains a cherished Hendrix tradition. Each year over 1,000 people attend one of the four on-campus services during the last week of classes. Then, immediately following final exams, the Choir tours the region, performing the service at United Methodist churches in Arkansas and neighboring states. Selections featured in the Candlelight Carol Services include a variety of music from the 15th century to the present day. You won’t want to miss this celebration of Christmas in story and song!

CHILD ENRICHMENT CENTER TO CLOSE DECEMBER 22

The Child Enrichment Center (CEC), the full-time daycare ministry located on our church campus, will be ceasing operations on December 22. Faced with inevitable economic realities, the Board of the CEC (a separate 501(c)(3) corporation) made the decision in October to close at the end of the semester. Since the CEC operates under church supervision and is considered a ministry of FUMC, church leaders on the various administrative committees were informed at the time of the decision. The CEC was started in 2004, and with its limited enrollment (49 maximum licensable capacity) depended on an annual $75,000 grant to break even. When that grant ended in 2019, the center was sustained by pandemic-related grants from the government. When those ended in early 2023, the Board explored other grant funding and cut costs while trying to maintain excellent services. Unfortunately, the CEC became an unsustainable operation.

This decision does not affect our other two weekday children’s ministries, the Weekday School and Children’s Day Out. We thank all the parents over the years who have trusted the CEC with their children, the dedicated and loving staff, and the church members who have served on the Board and worked hard to keep it going. Moving forward, the leaders of the church will make plans for how to use the CEC building to further support the mission of the church. 

FUMC KIDS

As we begin our final month of 2023, we have lots to be thankful for and anticipate. In November we concluded our Fall Wednesday Kids Activities. This semester we learned how to be a friend from people in the Bible. From Johnathan and David to Ruth and Naomi, even Jesus, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, all taught us important lessons about what true Christ-like friendship looks like. It was a blessed time!

In Sunday school we made turkeys and shared what we were thankful for. It was so cool to see the differences and similarities in their thankful lists.

Angel Tree is currently in FULL swing. I’m so proud to be a part of a congregation that values children from all walks of life. Everyone deserves love and kindness. Our church gets to sprinkle a little kindness each year through our Angel Tree. Remember, all gifts are due by December 8th. If your gift will be late, or you haven’t had time to shop this year, please let me know. You are also able to donate on our website to help support this ministry!

Wonderland Wednesday is going to be so much fun this year! Last year we made nativity sets. This year we are switching things up and building upon our sermon series Incarnation. There are activities and crafts planned that make each Bible lesson come alive. The kids are sure to love it! Be sure to let me know if I can expect your kiddo.

For Sunday school this month we are discovering the gift of Christmas that is too wonderful for words- Jesus! We will be “joining” the set of a special holiday cooking show called Holly Jolly Kitchen. Through videos, activities, Bible stories, and games we will explore the true meaning of Christmas.

Our third annual Cookies for Santa event will be the Friday before Christmas. Each year we’ve had a blast decorating cookies, playing games, doing crafts, and HAVING FUN! This year is sure to be even better!

OUTREACH

November was a busy month for outreach. We started with giving Thanksgiving food items out to our Neighborhood Eats families. Each grocery bag included dressing, gravy, green beans, corn, yams, pie shells, pumpkin puree, roll mix, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, cranberry sauce, and chicken broth. We participated in the River Valley Food Bank Turkey Drive. We had over 30 turkeys donated that we gave out to Neighborhood Eats families. Thank you to those who volunteered and donated. 

The Ingathering Service happened in November as well. Our church came together on a Saturday morning and made 40 birthday cake kits and 37 containers of vegetable soup. The birthday cake kits will go out to Neighborhood Eats recipients around their birthday month. The birthday cake kits include an aluminum pan, cake mix, frosting, sprinkles, candles, and a can of Sprite to replace the oil and eggs. The vegetable soup is for Neighborhood Eats families, River Valley Widows, and social workers for school families. 

Coming up in December is the Holiday Express train at Creekmore Park. We’re hosting on Tuesday, December 19th, 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm. We’ll give out hot cocoa, cookies, coffee cups, and glow sticks. Most importantly, we’ll be inviting people to attend our Christmas services. If you would like to volunteer, please let me know. It will be a fun night!

The Ingathering Service happened in November as well. Our church came together on a Saturday morning and made 40 birthday cake kits and 37 containers of vegetable soup. The birthday cake kits will go out to Neighborhood Eats recipients around their birthday month. The birthday cake kits include an aluminum pan, cake mix, frosting, sprinkles, candles, and a can of Sprite to replace the oil and eggs. The vegetable soup is for Neighborhood Eats families, River Valley Widows, and social workers for school families. 

Coming up in December is the Holiday Express train at Creekmore Park. We’re hosting on Tuesday, December 19th, 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm. We’ll give out hot cocoa, cookies, coffee cups, and glow sticks. Most importantly, we’ll be inviting people to attend our Christmas services. If you would like to volunteer, please let me know. It will be a fun night!

FIRST YOUth 

We had a great group that went to Refuge, a statewide United Methodist Youth event Nov. 10-12 at Shepherd of the Ozarks in Harriet, AR. All reports were that they had a great time and really enjoyed the times of worship. Big thanks to Jen Faldon, Trevor Hardcastle, and Kim Weiler for driving/chaperoning!

In addition to Refuge, our Sunday nights have consisted of part 1 of a Pineapples and Power theme night, a fun night at The Arcade here in Ft. Smith, and a mission night making Christmas cards and doing some work and purging in The Loft.

Our confirmation class also kicked off with an overnight retreat here at the church. They will have a couple of Sunday morning classes in December and we will have another retreat in January.

Veritas Registration is open and the Early bird cost is $75 (meals and tshirt included in cost), if you register by Dec.18, and then the cost increases to $90. Friends are welcome to attend.

Our group last year loved it and hopefully we can have even more go to the next one!

Veritas is a statewide United Methodist youth event for both Middle School and High School students. It is a big atmosphere event that brings together all youth in grades 6-12 together for a weekend to celebrate, worship, learn, experience, and be energized by the presence of one another to serve God. And it’s in Fort Smith this year!

Register here: https://bit.ly/firstyouthveritas24

As of December 4, we have received 156 estimates of giving for 2024, totaling $978,000-plus in commitments. If you have not yet turned in your estimate of giving card (or filled one in online at fsfumc.org), there is still time. Our current totals are about 75% of where we ended up last year, so every commitment we receive makes a difference. Help us get there by the end of the year!

Pacesetters meet the first and third Friday mornings at 10:00 in the FLC Fireside Room for programs, singing, devotional, fun, food and fellowship. Everyone is welcome to join us and stay for lunch.

“When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder’s in the shock, And you hear the kyouck and gobble of the struttin’ turkey cock...” These lines from American poetJames Whitcomb Riley’s 1883 poem always flash into my mind in early November. This year Tiffany Pierce was thinking right along with me. November 3 she visited Pacesetters, bringing supplies to make perfectly delightful pumpkins to take home.Each person placed a roll of toilet tissue in the center of an 18” square of fall fabric, pulled up the fabric into the center hole, tucking it in tightly before inserting a dry ribbon-bedecked twig for the stem. These little pumpkins now adorn Thanksgiving tables all across town.

I made my first trip to the Day Springs Annual Warehouse Sale in Siloam Springs with Pacesetters November 17. Rosemary Ayers drove the church van to haul us shoppers, while Pastor Dee Dee drove her vehicle to haul our purchases. Once I overcame being totally overwhelmed by the height of the shelves bearing boxes of inventory, I focused and found boxes of cards, devotional books, calendars, and date books to load into Dee Dee’s SUV. The group completed the day with a late lunch at Cracker Barrel in Springdale.

Our church music department under the direction of Ben Henderson presents the annual Pacesetters Christmas program in the sanctuary at 10:00 December 15. This much-anticipated program includes handbells, vocal solos, piano medleys, and lessons and carols. We invite everyone to join us for this Christmas gift of music. DeeDee plans to serve lunch in the Parlor, enabling us to enter and leave from the main building. -- Louise Finney

https://bit.ly/fsyouthsupper2324

or email Brandon at bbates@fsfumc.org

All Widows are Invited!!

Next Gathering

Brunch and Bingo 

Saturday, December 9 @ 10am  

We will play Bunco on 

Thursday, December 14 from 2:30-4:30pm 

Deadline to sign up is Monday, December 11 

January Gathering will be January 11, 2024.

Drew Harmon, a local attorney will be our speaker.

Do you have everything in order? 

We would love for you to come and bring a widow friend. 

For more information email Gail Oakes at rvwidowsgroup@gmail.com

Or call 479-459-0479

IN OUR PRAYERS

Loss of Loved One:

• Warren John Upchurch - son of Whitney (Foster) and Patrick Upchurch, great grandson of Wanda Foster and great nephew of Jane Stauffer (John).

Bob Sickman by

Jack & Louanna Green

Geraldine S. Barnes by

Sharon Stiles

Peggy Putnam by

Jimmie Lou Sagely

David & Darrin Hutcheson by

Karen Hutcheson

Ron Yates by

Massard Creek Animal Hospital

James & Barbara Saviers

Jerry Pruitt by

James & Barbara Saviers

Floyd & Judy Bradberry & Laura Cunningham

Nelson Kimes by

Gary & Cindy Peevy

Jerry & Jane Hartfield

Floyd & Judy Bradberry & Laura Cunningham

John Lane by

Lynn Lane 

Pat & Annette Phillips by

Kevin & Sumer Phillips

Frankie Brown by

Kevin & Sumer Phillips

Janice Powell by

Kevin & Sumer Phillips

Nadine Hardin Miller by

Kevin & Sumer Phillips

Mary Ellen Jesson by

Kevin & Sumer Phillips