I once read a disturbing report about a department store which sold Jesus dolls one Christmas season. The “Baby Jesus” dolls came complete with a manger, straw, and the infant Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes. Unfortunately, the dolls were not highly favored among the busy Christmas shoppers, and the department store was left holding a large surplus of the dolls. The store was forced to drastically reduce the price of the “Baby Jesus” dolls in order to liquidate their stock. Shoppers were greatly taken aback the day after Christmas when they were greeted by a sale notice posted in the front door of the store: “Jesus reduced by 50%.” It seems sort of callous— actually sacrilegious—to even think about reducing the value of Jesus, doesn’t it? That story gives me the same feeling I get when I read the word “X-mas,” rather than Christmas, on a storefront, a sign, or an advertisement. It seems as though Jesus is being methodically excluded— devalued—more and more each Christmas season. We get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of the celebration of the season, that we often bypass the real Reason for the Season! Christmas is a festive time of the year. It’s truly a time to celebrate! Birthday parties are supposed to be that way…but unfortunately, the Guest of Honor—Jesus—is often uninvited to the celebration! What can we do to make this Christmas different? Here are several suggestions. 1. Celebrate Advent in your home. Check online Christian bookstores for good Advent resources, such as Advent calendars, etc. 2. Read and re-read, tell and re- tell the story of Christmas in your home. (It’s found in the Bible in Matthew 1 & 2 and Luke 1 & 2.) 3. Give a Christmas gift to the world. You can make a donation to The United Methodist Children’s Home, to the Salvation Army or to some other very worthy local organization that ministers to the needs of hungry, homeless, hurting, and helpless people, for example. Parents, try letting your children participate in choosing which cause to support. 4. Set up a nativity scene in your home, and if you have children in your home, describe to your children the role each character in the nativity scene played in the very first Christmas story. 5. If you send Christmas cards, send cards with a Christian religious message, mailed in envelopes using stamps with a distinctive Christian emblem. 6. Sing Christmas carols in your home and listen to Christmas music with a Christian flavor in your home and vehicle. 7. Watch Christmas movies and programs with a Christian theme in your home. 8. Decorate your home emphasizing a Christian, rather than secular, Christmas theme. 9. Share the Christmas story with someone else this season. You’ll be surprised to discover how many people don’t know the biblical Christmas story of the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, the Son of God! 10. Attend worship services and special events, such as Christmas Eve “Come and Go” Holy Communion (masks and social distancing required) here at Epworth on Christmas Eve. Wishing you a Christ-filled and Merry Christmas! Brother Grant . “Baby Jesus For Sale” by Rev. Grant Parker Epworth United Methodist Church www.epworth-pc.org December 2020 Volume 9, Issue 12
Transcript
I once read a disturbing report
about a department store which
sold Jesus dolls one Christmas
season. The “Baby Jesus” dolls
came complete with a manger,
straw, and the infant Jesus
wrapped in swaddling clothes.
Unfortunately, the dolls were not
highly favored among the busy
Christmas shoppers, and the
department store was left holding
a large surplus of the dolls. The
store was forced to drastically
reduce the price of the “Baby
Jesus” dolls in order to liquidate
their stock. Shoppers were greatly
taken aback the day after
Christmas when they were greeted
by a sale notice posted in the
front door of the store: “Jesus
reduced by 50%.”
It seems sort of callous—
actually sacrilegious—to even
think about reducing the value of
Jesus, doesn’t it? That story gives
me the same feeling I get when I
read the word “X-mas,” rather
than Christmas, on a storefront, a
sign, or an advertisement. It
seems as though Jesus is being
methodically excluded—
devalued—more and more each
Christmas season. We get so
caught up in the hustle and bustle
of the celebration of the season,
that we often bypass the real
Reason for the Season! Christmas
is a festive time of the year. It’s
truly a time to celebrate! Birthday
parties are supposed to be that
way…but unfortunately, the
Guest of Honor—Jesus—is often
uninvited to the celebration!
What can we do to make this
Christmas different? Here are
several suggestions.
1. Celebrate Advent in your
home. Check online Christian
bookstores for good Advent
resources, such as Advent
calendars, etc.
2. Read and re-read, tell and re-
tell the story of Christmas in your
home. (It’s found in the Bible in
Matthew 1 & 2 and Luke 1 & 2.)
3. Give a Christmas gift to the
world. You can make a donation
to The United Methodist
Children’s Home, to the Salvation
Army or to some other very
worthy local organization that
ministers to the needs of hungry,
homeless, hurting, and helpless
people, for example. Parents, try
letting your children participate in
choosing which cause to support.
4. Set up a nativity scene in your
home, and if you have children in
your home, describe to your
children the role each character in
the nativity scene played in the
very first Christmas story.
5. If you send Christmas cards,
send cards with a Christian
religious message, mailed in
envelopes using stamps with a
distinctive Christian emblem.
6. Sing Christmas carols in your
home and listen to Christmas
music with a Christian flavor in
your home and vehicle.
7. Watch Christmas movies and
programs with a Christian theme
in your home.
8. Decorate your home
emphasizing a Christian, rather
than secular, Christmas theme.
9. Share the Christmas story with
someone else this season. You’ll
be surprised to discover how many
people don’t know the biblical
Christmas story of the birth of our
Savior, Jesus Christ, the Son of
God!
10. Attend worship services and
special events, such as Christmas
Eve “Come and Go” Holy
Communion (masks and social
distancing required) here at
Epworth on Christmas Eve.
Wishing you a Christ-filled and
Merry Christmas!
Brother Grant
.
“Baby Jesus For Sale” by Rev. Grant Parker
Epworth United Methodist Church
www.epworth-pc.org
December 2020 Volume 9, Issue 12
Quiet Prayer Time on
Wednesday
Everyone is welcome to a "Quiet
Time of Prayer" in our sanctuary
starting on Wednesday evening
December 2, until December 16,
from 5:30 pm to 6:00 pm. A time
for your individual prayers in a
spiritual and meditative
setting. Please, we are asking for no
talking in the sanctuary only
praying. We will wear our masks,
social distance 6 feet
apart and have our
cellphones off to not
disturb anyone’s
prayers. We seldom
take the time to just
pray so come have a
wonderful
experience silently
spending time with
our God in
prayer. Come away
from the world for a
time of peace with
our Lord and Savior to be
refreshed. You may come and go
anytime during the 30 minutes
spending the time you would like in
prayer. When you come on
Wednesday night enter the church
by the gathering room door under
the awning. There will be a small
sign on the right hand door entering
the sanctuary giving explanation on
where to sit and reminders of masks
and social distancing.
If you have a prayer request to share
with others, please e-mail the
request to keith.badowski@epworth
-pc.org. It will be shared with
others for prayer.
Angel Tree
Epworth will be participating with
the Angel Tree program again this
year but it will be a little different
due to the current situation. We
will not be asking you to sponsor a
specific child, buy and wrap
presents and deliver them to the
church. Several options were given
from Prison Fellowship Ministries
and it has been decided that we will
provide gift cards to each child. We
are asking for donations so that we
can provide a $25.00 gift certificate
to each child on behalf of their
incarcerated parent. We feel this is
the safest way to be able to carry on
this worthwhile program.
You have always been a very
generous and loving church and I
look forward to us being a part of
Angel Tree again this year and
praying for those we serve.
Pam Shores, Your Angel Tree
Coordinator
Backpack Buddies
Needs your Support
This ministry provides food for
elementary aged students who do
not have enough to eat on the
weekends. Working in conjunction
with Feeding the Valley we are
providing backpacks of food for 52
students (45 at Ridgecrest and 7 at
Lakewood Primary – Epworth is a
Partner in Education to both
schools). Please support this
worthwhile cause with your year-
end giving. It costs about 120
dollars to feed one child for the
whole school year. You can
sponsor a child or you can donate
any amount to help the program.
You may give online on the
Epworth website or send a check
to the church made to “Epworth
UMC” with “Backpack ministry”
noted on the check.
Thank you, Gail Hogge UMW
Program Representative
Yard Sale
There will be a Yard Sale to benefit
Communities of Transformation
on Saturday, December 5, 2020 at
Summerville United Methodist
Church, 1201 32nd Street, Phenix
City, Al. 8:00 am – 1:00 pm..
Books, appliances, knick knacks,
cookbooks, dishes, kitchen utensils,
Christmas items and much more!!!!
Page 2 Epworth United Methodist Church
Anniversaries
Dec 11 Ed & Debbie Duke
Dec 14 Seabo & Vickie Griggs
Dec 17 Gentry & Belle Lee
Todd & Twila Schneider
Dec 19 David & Carrie Jones
Dec 23 Chuck & Sandy Clay
Johnny & Connie Burell
Dec 29 Lance & Carmen Brooks
Dec 30 Mark & Daina Wooten
Dec 31 Criss & Linda Fuller
Jerry & Vivian Obert
Jimmie & Cathy Self
Our Faithfulness
Total Annual Budget: $961,418.56 Budget YTD: $850,485.72 Actual Contributions: $753,961.48
PLEASE DONATE YOUR
BOTTLES FOR MOBILITY
CARTS
We need your help with empty 2-liter bottles, ½ gallon milk jugs, or same size juice type bottles. Please rinse & include tops. We use these for packing the mobility carts and they save on the cost of bubble wrap.
There is a designated drop off area
behind the old youth house, located at
the Price Road entrance to Epworth
UMC.
Page 3 Epworth United Methodist Church
Birthdays
Dec 1 Billy Ray Head Robert Meacham Cindy Cameron Daryl Griggs Marie Culpepper Haley Clay Wyatt Wilkerson
Dec 3 Jason Yohn Marina Meacham
Dec 4 Cody Townsend Wynn Bradley
Dec 5 Jason Sparks Richelle Sanders
Dec 7 Carol Griffis Ricky Stone Chami Storey
Dec 8 George Gatewood Perry Holton Callie Gatewood
Dec 9 Gloria Griggs Carol Stanton Andrea Gil Jay Baker
Dec 10 Sloane Moss
Dec 11 Donna Zeigler Janie Marie Messer
Dec 12 Rich Coreno Steve Lake James Brooks
Dec 13 Malinda Register Libby Clay
Dec 14 Elizabeth Bennett Joshua Caldwell
Dec 15 Carol Martin Vicky Moss Susan Riepe
Dec 17 Cathy Sharpe Jonathan Lobley
Dec 18 Ronnie Rice Mallory Redmond Megan Redmond Zane Parrish Marley Hamilton
Dec 20 Emily Wallace Maria Chedrick Taylor Riddle
Dec 21 Pat Roberts
Dec 22 Judy Burkes
Dec 23 Jean Harbuck
Dec 24 J.W. Martin
Dec 25 Bill Watson Emma Wilson
Dec 27 Erica Warren Tyler Findlater
Dec 28 Taylor Duke Mia Bell
Dec 29 Rob Linsley Madison Shields
Dec 30 Jeanette Kersey
Page 4 Epworth United Methodist Church
December 2020 SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SAT
1 8:45 am
Preschool
9:00 am
MDO
9:30 am
Bible study
online (Zoom)
2 8:45 am
Preschool
5:30 pm
Prayer
6:30 pm
Pastor’s Bible
study - Sanctuary
Small Group Bible
study - Youth
Room
3 8:45 am
Preschool
9:00 am
MDO
4
5
6
7 Newsletter
Deadline
8 8:45 am
Preschool
9:00 am
MDO
9:30 am
Bible study
online (Zoom)
9 8:45 am
Preschool
5:30 pm
Prayer
6:30 pm
Pastor’s Bible
study - Sanctuary
Small Group Bible
study - Youth
10 8:45 am
Preschool
9:00 am
MDO
11
12
13 11:00 am Baby’s
First Christmas
14
15 8:45 am
Preschool
9:00 am
MDO
9:30 am
Bible study
online (Zoom)
16 8:45 am
Preschool
5:30 pm
Prayer
6:30 pm
Pastor’s Bible
study - Sanctuary
Small Group Bible
study - Youth
17 8:45 am
Preschool
9:00 am
MDO
18
19
20
21
22 No Bible Study
Office Closed
23
Office Closed
No evening
activities
24 Christmas Eve
5:00 - 7:30 pm
Come and Go
Communion
25 Christmas Day
26
27
28
29 No Bible Study
30 31
Sundays
8:30 am & 11:00 am
Traditional Services
9:45 am
Contemporary Service
Nursery also available at 9:45 am
The COT Central Office is preparing for the upcoming Giving Tuesday for 2020. GivingTuesday was created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Over the past eight years, it has grown into a global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity. This global generosity movement unleashes the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world. Giving Tuesday was meant for organizations like Communities of Transformation and matches the vision of our founders, Fred & Laurel Blackwell. Giving Tuesday falls on the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving. Please mark your calendar for December 1st, GivingTuesday, an annual tradition for COT. To our organization, this is a time of giving thanks for everything that we have received and reaching out to those we have served previously with our love.
