DISCIPLEVolume 17, Issue 11 St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church November 18, 2012

November Theme: Imagine - Praise and Thanksgiving!

St. Paul EvangelicalLutheran Church

402 S. Ballenger Hwy.

Flint, MI 48532810-239-6200School Office:810-239-6733stpaulflint.com

Email:Churchoffice

@stpaulflint.com

Upcoming Events

Family NightEachWednesday

Dinner, 5:00-6:00Bible Studies for all ages,

6:00-6:45No Family Night 11/21

Thanksgiving Eve Worship

Wednesday, November 21, 7:00 pm

Thanksgiving Day Worship

Thursday, November 2210:00 am

Christmas DecoratingPotluck Lunch

Saturday, December 19:00 am

Christmas ShopDecember 2

Advent WorshipWednesdays

December 5, 12, 1910:00 am & 7:00 pm

School Christmas Program

Thursday, Dec. 13, 10:00Saturday, Dec. 15, 6:00

Giving Thanks”Oh, give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good. His steadfast love endures forever.” Psalm 107:1

As the Thanksgiving season approaches, I would again like to express my sincere ap-preciation for the generous congregational support provided to our Christian Day School. Your contributions are helping to sustain this important educational ministry and provide an outreach to families throughout Genesee County. We are offering a safe place for children to learn about their world from a Christian perspective and are celebrating God’s “steadfast love” every day. We recently celebrated a “Thanksgiving Chapel” which was led by our third grade class. What a wonderful opportunity to thank God for all the gifts we have received! School chapel offerings for November and December are dedicated to our St. Paul Food Pantry. Last year, our school helped assemble more than 200 food baskets for needy families throughout our community. This is an important mission project for the students and provides another opportunity for the school to serve others and pro-claim Christ.

Our school Christmas program, “Back to the Manger,” is scheduled for Saturday, De-cember 15th at 6:00 p.m. and will feature our younger students from preschool through fifth grade. The program reveals the true meaning of Christmas and shares important Biblical truths through songs such as, “Let Us Love” and “Peace on Earth.” A special Thursday morning performance for church members is scheduled for December 13th at 10:00 a.m. Please join us as we celebrate God’s gift of grace.

St. Paul School continues to be a “Great Place to Grow.” Please continue to support the school with your offerings and prayers. The school’s mission is to “make disci-ples of our Lord Jesus Christ” and your support is needed more now than ever before! We have currently collected more than $15,000 for our 2012 St. Paul School Annual Fund. Please consider using the attached envelope to make a special tax-exempt do-nation to this important school mission through 12/31/12. Your gifts are truly chang-ing lives and are helping our little ones “come to Christ.”

With Thanks,

Mary Lynn BuckPrincipal

Advent by CandlelightAdvent by Candlelight will be held Monday, December 3 at 7:00 p.m. in the St. Paul gym. This is an evening to pre-pare our hearts for the Advent season through God’s Word, music, and fellow-ship. It is free and all women are in-vited to attend. This is the perfect event to invite a friend, neighbor or family member. Christmas desserts, cookies

and appetizers will be served.  You may attend as a table hostess or as a guest. We need women willing to host a table of 8-10 women. We also need behind-the-scenes help with easy jobs such as greeting guests, preparing beverages, set-up and tear down. Please contact Becky Belill at 810-424-3421 or Diane Martin at 810-733-1495. Sign-up begins today.

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We have added another Adult Bible Class opportunity for Sun-day mornings. Today a study of the book of Hebrews began. Bring your Bible and come to the Teachers Resource Room – last room on the right past the School office – to join other adults in study of God’s Word.

Help Us Welcome our Guests - If you are interested in volun-teering as a entrance Greeter, at our Welcome Center or Informa-tion Center on Sunday mornings and our special services, please contact Cheryl Pelc, 810-659-2175.

2013 Offering Envelopes are available on the table in the hall-way. If you would like a box and don’t see yours, please contact the church office.

The History of Flint Churches will be presented by Bob Florine at the Prime Timers’ meeting on Tuesday, November 20 at 10:30 am. Sixty houses of worship that started before 1930 are included in the powerpoint presentation. A potluck will begin at noon. Ham will be furnished. Please bring a dish to pass. We are inviting members from area Lutheran churches.

Recipes Needed for a New St. Paul Cookbook! See information in the hallway. Help support our 18 youth attending the National Youth Gathering in San Antonio, TX in July 2013.

It’s That Time of Year Again - Time to prepare for our Christ-mas Basket distribution to families in need. Our pantry needs any canned meats, soup, pasta, sauces, vegetables, gravy, cheese, PB & J, boxed cereal, oatmeal, jello, muffin mixes, crackers. Baskets will be assembled on December 21 and distributed on the 22nd. New and gently used blankets are being collected to distribute with the food baskets.

Church Christmas Decorating - Saturday, December 1, 9:00 - noon, followed by a potluck lunch. Sloppy joes will be provided. Please sign up on the sheet in the hallway. Join us for this fun activity and help beautify our church for Christmas!

Christmas Shop—Our annual Christmas Shop will be held in the Art Room November 26—December 2. Handcrafted items may be put in the shop on consignment. St. Paul uses 15% of the sales for our Christmas Care program. Crafters receive 85% of the sales. Items may be brought to school November 19 and 20 or on Sunday, November 25 (1:00-2:00). An inventory sheet must be included with the items. Students will shop Monday—Thursday. The shop will be open to adults all day Friday and on Sunday, December 2 following the church services. Call the church or school office for more information.

The 2013 National Youth Gathering Committee is sponsoring a Christmas Cookie Sale on Sunday, December 16. Cookies will be sold by the pound. We are seeking donations of unpackaged, homemade cookies. Sign-up sheet is in the hallway. Contact Chris Garcia with any questions.

Men’s Bible Study meets the 1st & 3rd Thursday each month. Jerry Schlieger leads this group which is now studying the topic of Fear. Come join them!

Senior Trips - Bill Storm is planning two bus trips for seniors, one to Historic Trinity in Detroit on Wednesday, December 12 and one to Chicago, May 20-24. There are just a few open spots. See the sign-up sheet in the hallway for more information.

So Much to be Thankful For - As you make your list, add our Enrichment Library! It is a source of enlightenment, encour-agement, and confidence. Ready for guidance and change? New perspectives encourage action. Be thankful!

Lutheran Worship - For centuries, Lutherans have been gather-ing to hear the preaching and proclamation of God’s Word, receive the body and blood of Jesus Christ in the Lord’s Supper, offer prayers for the Church, and sing praises to the Triune God. Each week during the month of November, several elements of our services will be highlighted to enable us to reflect on the true meaning of what our praise and worship are all about—the gifts we receive from God in His Word and Sacraments, and our re-sponses of thankfulness and praise. It is important to understand that these elements are based on the Bible, God’s unchanging Word that guides our faith and daily life.This week’s elements are from the second part of the Service of the Sacrament.

The Peace of the Lord (Pax Domini) In the sharing of the peace with one another, the Pastor and congregation are proclaiming the peace and unity we have through faith in the real presence of Christ as we approach the altar to receive the Sacrament.

Lamb of God (Agnus Dei)

When John the Baptist pointed his fol-lowers to Christ, he said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” The Agnus Dei (Latin for “Lamb of God”) is a hymn sung to Christ, a plea that He would grant us His mercy and peace; in confident faith, we know that He will provide what we pray for.

The Distribution

As we come to the Lord’s Supper, we have op-portunity to consider our need for forgiveness, and our sure trust that we are receiving Christ’s body and blood for our benefit.

Post-Communion Canticle

“Thank the Lord,” “Lord, Now Let Your Servant Depart in Peace (Nunc Dimittis),” or or an appropri-ate hymn is sung. The purpose is to offer our thanks to God and to express our faith in what He has done for us and has promised to do in the future.

Post-Communion Prayer Once again we thank God for His gifts we’ve received in the Sacrament, and ask that He lead us into our daily lives refreshed and empowered by His presence.

Benediction (Blessing) The Aaronic Benediction spoken by the Pastor is the blessing God first gave to Aaron and the other priests to speak to the children of Israel (Numbers 6:24-26). Jesus Christ, our great High Priest, has come to us in a special way through the Sacrament. We have the assurance that He will go with us as we leave the service and return to the world.

Calendar of Church Events Week of November 18TODAYNYG Parent Mtg. 12:15 pmSr. Youth 6:00 pm

MONDAY, November 19Bd. of Christian Ed., SC 6:30 pm

TUESDAY, November 20School Chapel 8:30 amPrime Timers, DR 10:30 amZumba, Cafe. 6:30 pm

WEDNESDAY, November 21Thanksgiving Eve Worship 7:00 pm

THURSDAY, November 22Thanksgiving Day Worship,10:00 am

FRIDAY, November 23Church Office Closed

SUNDAY, November 25Traditional Worship 8:30 amBible Class, SS, CIC, Conf. 9:45 amContemporary Worship 11:00 am

Christmas Poinset-tias (red only) will decorate our chancel for Christmas. Or-ders will be taken starting November

25 through December 9 at the table in the hallway. Plants are $6 each and may be taken home following the Christmas Day service. Please enclose payment with your order.

NOVEMBER 18 PAGE 2 DISCIPLE VOLUME 17, ISSUE 11