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Weekly Update for December 13, 2019

This Sunday we enter the third week of Advent, and on Sunday we will celebrate the Third Sunday of Advent with the Moravian Love Feast in the Chapel. If you have not been to this special service, you are in for a real treat and a very meaningful way to enter into this Advent season. See below for service times and much more happening in the life of the church!

Order Christmas Poinsettias by TODAY
Would you like to order poinsettias in memory of or in honor of loved ones? Order online at www.fpcspartanburg.org/grow/event-registrations or fill out the form available in the church office. Please make checks payable to “First Presbyterian Church,” Attn: Lynise Clarke, 393 East Main St, Spartanburg, SC 29302. The cost per plant is $15.00 and orders are due by Friday, December 13. You may pick up your plants in Fogartie Hall anytime after MorningSong on Sunday morning, December 22. If you do not plan to do so, we would appreciate your giving us permission to use your gift for the purchase of cut flowers or greenery to enhance our Christmas arrangement.

THIS SUNDAY
8:45am MorningSong* and Sanctuary Worship Services
9:45am Sunday School for All Ages
11:00am Sanctuary* Worship Service
4:00pm Moravian Love Feast* (Chapel)
5:00pm Youth Progressive Dinner
6:00pm Moravian Love Feast (Chapel)

(* Services with asterisks will be livestreamed at www.fpcspartanburg.org/live. Bulletins, scripture readings, manuscripts, and video archives can also be found on that page.)

Moravian Love Feast
4pm and 6pm in the Chapel
This annual service features music from the Chamber Singers. Traditional coffee (decaf) and buns will be served with the help of members of the Palmetto Moravian Fellowship.

Sign up for the Youth Progressive Dinner
5-7pm
All middle and high schoolers are invited to the Youth Progressive Dinner and Ugly Sweater Contest Sunday, December 15 from 5-7pm. Please plan to drop off at the Hallenbeck's at 5pm and pick up at the Johnson's at 7pm. We will walk from house to house!
5:00pm - Appetizers at the Hallenbeck's; 203 Dares Ferry Road
5:45 pm - Main course at the Elliott's; 440 Old Iron Works Road
6:15 pm - Dessert at the Johnson's; 532 Old Iron Works Road

Sign up for the Youth Progressive Dinner at : https://www.evite.com/event/0094X452HDVQQE2ZQEPKCB72NL6K7U/rsvp

Sign up by Sunday for the Haiti Mission Trip
February 29 – March 7, 2020
The international missions committee is exploring the possibility of a combined mission trip to Haiti Feb. 29 - March 7, 2020 with Mt. Pleasant Presbyterian Church. This trip will focus primarily on medical and construction missions, but is open to anyone with a willingness to help. If you would like to learn more about this opportunity, please contact Emily Neely at eneely@gmail.com by December 15, 2019.

NEXT WEEK
No WAF until January 8
There will be now WAF dinner or programming until January 8. But be sure to come on January 8 as we welcome Pano Stathakis as our new Director of Hospitality and begin to offer our well-wishes to Jane Mullins for her upcoming retirement.

Service of Comfort and Light - December 18
6pm in the Chapel
Are the holidays made more difficult this year because of a loss or sadness in your life? You are invited to join us for an intimate time of worship on Wednesday, December 18, at 6:00pm in the Chapel. This "Service of Comfort and Light," which includes communion and candle-lighting, is especially for those who struggle during the Christmas season. The Health Committee will host a time of refreshments and fellowship following the service in the Parlor.

MorningSong Lessons and Carols Service – Sunday December 22
8:45am in Fogartie Hall
Come be a part of this contemporary adaptation of the traditional service of lessons and carols, as together we remember the promise of God’s Messiah through scripture readings and music.

College and Young Adult Breakfast – Sunday, December 22
9:45-10:45am in the Parlor
Will you or one of your young adult or college children be home for the holidays on December 22? If so, make sure the College and Young Adult Breakfast is on your calendar! This will be a time for old friends and new to reconnect with each other. Please RSVP with Carrie Coleman in the church office so that we can be sure to have the seating and food needed (ccoleman@fpcspartanburg.org / 864-209-2129).

Be a Part of the Christmas Eve Choir!
Rehearsals December 22 & 23
Anyone high school age and up is invited to be a part of the Christmas Eve Choir. There are only two rehearsals, Sunday, December 22 at 12:00pm and Monday, December 23 at 5:30pm. The rehearsals will be relatively brief, efficient, and fun. One great perk of being a part of this choir--you will have a spectacular view of the candle lighting during the services!

Christmas Eve Services – Tuesday, December 24 in the Sanctuary
Family Worship (4:00pm)
Come, all you angels, shepherds, farm animals, and kings. Join us on Christmas Eve for our family nativity pageant. Any child may come dressed as the part he or she wants to play from those listed above.

Candlelight Services (6:00 and 11:00pm)
These services, a tradition in our church, feature music by the Christmas Eve Choir. A special message will be delivered and the services will conclude with the Sanctuary bathed in candlelight. Childcare will be available at the 6:00pm Candlelight Service.

SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES
Find all sorts of ways that you can serve in the Ministry Finder section of the website (under the “Serve” menu). There you can search for service opportunities that match your interests and schedule, and with one tap make contact with someone who can tell you more and/or help you to get involved.

Here are a few of the newest opportunities available within Ministry Finder:

SPIHN – January 26-February 2, 2020
Our next opportunity to host Spartanburg Interfaith Opportunity Network children and their families is coming up at the end of January. For more information or to sign up to volunteer to prepare a meal, visit with families for an evening, provide snacks, or help set up or clean up, please visit www.fpcspartanburg.org/spihn.

Nap Boule! Hot Sauce (Benefiting Haiti Outreach Ministries)
We are partnering with a sister church to raise money for Haitian Missions. On Wednesdays and Sundays in December, we will sell hot sauce to raise money for our Haitian Mission Project. The Vienna Presbyterian Church (Vienna, VA) began this project by purchasing peppers grown in Haiti, and using their own recipe, bottled the hot sauce for sale. There are four different flavors, and the bottles are $7 each. These make great Christmas gifts, and again, the proceeds will go toward Haiti Outreach Ministries. Please see Leslie Lang or Caroline Goodman at the church if you would like to purchase a bottle (or a case!)

The Red Coats Are Coming?
We are in need of church members to serve as red coat ushers at the 6:00 pm and 11:00 pm candlelight services on Christmas Eve! If you would like to be part of this special tradition, please contact Peter Neidenbach or Beau Shuler. Our supply of red jackets also needs to be replenished! If you have a red men's sport coat or comparable women's jacket that you could donate to the church, please also contact Peter or Beau.

OTHER NEWS
Year-End Giving
Contribution Deadlines: For credit as 2019 contributions, donations must be received in the church financial office by 5:00pm on Tuesday, December 31, 2019 or postmarked by December 31, 2019. Any contributions received or postmarked on or after January 1, 2020 will be considered as 2020 contributions.
Year-End Stock Contributions: By giving appreciated stock to the church for your pledge, you can receive a tax advantage. Please notify Lynise Clarke in the church financial office at the time you notify your broker with the name of your broker and the particular stock that is involved, the year (or years) in which to apply your gift, and/or whether any special funds are involved. Please allow 2-3 weeks for completion of stock transactions. For information, contact Lynise Clarke (lclarke@fpcspartanburg.org / 208-2130).

Memorial Arrangements in the Sanctuary for January and February
There are Sundays available in January and February 2020 for flower memorial arrangements in the Sanctuary. For further information, contact LeAnne Thurmond (leanne.thurmond@gmail.com 864-621-0213).

Recommendations Needed for the Congregational Nominating Committee
The Congregational Nominating Committee is seeking a slate of nine members from the congregation to replace members who will rotate off the CNC on December 31, 2019. Members will serve for one year and will be charged with the nomination of Church officers.Please email your nomination(s) to Michael Pack (mpack@dsdlegal.com).

Presbyterians for Earth Care
This past Fall our church began the process of obtaining the PC(USA) designation as an Earth Care Congregation. The goal of the program is to inspire churches to care for God’s earth in a holistic way, through integrating earth care into all aspects of church life. We have already been doing many of these things, but we can do so much more! In 2020 we will begin pursuing new ways that our church can integrate environmental practices and thinking into our congregational life including worship, education, facilities and outreach. If you know of a way in which you or someone else at FPC has been positively impacting the environment through a particular program or action please let us know by contacting Laura Henthorn (laurab449@gmail.com). Together we can fulfill our mission as “servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God” (1 Cor. 4:1).

LOOKING AHEAD
(Full Calendar)
December 15 – Moravian Love Feast
December 18 – Service of Comfort and Light
December 22 – MorningSong Lessons & Carols
December 24 – Angel Tree Distribution
December 24 – Christmas Eve Services (4pm, 6pm, 11pm)
December 25-26 – Church Closed for Christmas
December 29 – One Worship Service (No Sunday School)
February 1-8 – Dominican Republic Mission Trip

Find out more in First News: www.fpcspartanburg.org/firstnews