Thanksgiving Eve Pie Fest
Saint Matthew Online Newsletter
Weekly Good News
December 1, 2017
In This Issue
Pledge Cards
Email your pledge to Paula in the office, include your name(s) and the weekly, monthly or annual dollars you are pledging.
Calendar This Week
Dec 1-10

12/10  Annual meeting
12/10  Hope & Healing
Birthdays & Anniversaries

Birthdays This Week

12/4  Ron Hoyle
12/4  Karin Wood
12/5  Darlene Hromatko
12/7  Pat Fabsits
12/8  Grete Egan
12/8  Linda Van Brocklin
12/8  Steve Willis
12/9  Therese Long
12/10  Jane Powell
12/10  Linda Towson
 
Anniversaries This Week

12/5  Jerry & Christine Benoit
12/6  Les & Susan Hansen

Church Council Members
Pres: Art Fabsits  
Vice Pres:  Joanna Aragon 
Sec:  Sherry Whitmarsh 
Treas: Rob Anderson
Pastor Andy Smith 
Dave McCargar
Gail Dutcher 
Dave Rower
Karen Ball
Donna Noonan
Bill Stark
Therese Long 

Questions or Comments?
Quick Links

"When God Shows Up...We Hope Again"
Sunday Sermon

The Christmas story is about God showing up in our world at the most unexpected time in the most unusual circumstances, through the most unlikely people. God shows up in the life of an unmarried teenager from a poor family so that the world can hope again, trust again, sing again, rejoice again, and dream again. This week we take a look at the story of Elizabeth and Zechariah, a barren couple, and examine how God can bring hope to a hopeless situation.

Isaiah 64:1-9; Luke 1:5-11
Worship: 9:00 & 10:30 a.m.    
Advent Calendar of Kindness

Advent is derived from the Latin adventus meaning "coming". As we anticipate Christmas in the weeks ahead, we invite you to download this calendar and engage in a daily act of kindness. It is through our small acts made with great love that God Shows Up for others.
Council Members Available
Welcome Center between services

Church Council members will be available at the Welcome Center between services this Sunday to answer questions and hear ideas and concerns. In addition, Council members are available at any time via email (see link in black box on left) or in person at church.  We look forward to hearing from you!
Hope & Healing in the Holidays
Sunday, Dec. 10

Hope & Healing in the Holidays will be next  Sunday, Dec. 10. This is a time we are setting aside as a community to acknowledge the pain and suffering that is present amid the joy and busy-ness that happens during the holiday season. Immediately following the 10:30 a.m. worship service, we'll serve a homemade meal of soup and bread, followed by a reflective worship service and communion. Please sign up at the Welcome Center if you are interested in coming, or contact Tami Gomez in the office. Everyone is invited to come and set aside some quiet reflection time. We recognize that some people might be experiencing specific challenges right now such as grief or job loss, and for others, this can just be a difficult time of year due to financial strain, broken relationships and other seasonal challenges. All are welcome at this service. 
Special Appeals for Advent
Gift cards and Coats for Strategic Partners

Since we are God's hands and feet, He shows up at Advent time for His children though us. Help us bless some of our strategic partners this Advent by bringing specific gifts on Dec. 10 and 17 as follows:

Dec. 10  Bring $20 gift cards for Target or Safeway to benefit YEAH, homeless teenagers in Berkeley and Derek Silva, under-resourced families in San Francisco struggling with the effects of HIV/AIDS.

Dec. 17 Bring warm, winter coats, new or lightly used, preferably water-resistant to benefit Love-a-Child, temporary housing for homeless families with children in Pittsburg, and the Trinity Center ministry with the homeless in Walnut Creek.
Annual Congregation Meeting
Sunday, Dec. 10

Our annual Congregation Meeting will be Sunday, Dec. 10. The meeting will convene immediately after the 9:00 a.m. service and will conclude shortly after the 10:30 a.m. worship. This is your opportunity to vote on the 2018 budget and for leadership positions. Ballots have been sent to all voting members in the mail. Ballots can be brought this Sunday and placed in the offering plate or mailed to the office or brought to the meeting on Dec. 10. Only ballots received prior to the close of the meeting will be counted. Please return your marked ballot, we need everyone's votes in order to meet our required quorum number.
Christmas Eve-Eve Father & Son Breakfast
At El Tapatio in Pleasant Hill

Come enjoy a casual holiday breakfast with other Saint Matthew men and their sons. If your father and/or son aren't around or you don't have any - invite someone to be your son or father for the day. Breakfast is on December 23 at El Tapatio restaurant, 40 Golf Club Road, Pleasant Hill, starting at 8:15 a.m. The cost is $12 per person, payable at the door, and includes tip. Please sign up at the Welcome Center or with Tom Aragon or Scott Gallagher.
Christmas Eve Worship
10:30 a.m., 4:00, 7:00 & 9:00 p.m.

Christmas Eve falls on a Sunday this year and so our worship will be a little different. We will have only one service at 10:30 a.m. which is our regular Sunday morning worship time with Mike Basil giving our message, "When God Shows Up...We Rejoice Again." Then we change gears and celebrate Jesus' birth with worship at 4:00, 7:00 and 9:00 p.m. with a message by Pastor Andy, "When God Shows up...We Dream Again."
Nursery Help Needed
Volunteer & Paid

We are looking for teens (at least 15 years old) and adults who love our little disciples and want to have some fun hanging out with them on Sunday mornings. We have paid positions as well as volunteer positions if you are looking for a cool way to give back to your church family while making an impact on our kid's lives. Care is provided during both Sunday morning services and occasional weekday offerings and holiday services. For more information and to be considered for this opportunity, please contact Angie at Angiek@saintmatthew.org 
Thanksgiving Offering & Pie Update

Our Thanksgiving offering collected $6,817, which will be divided between Trinity Center Homeless Outreach and the Redwood Gospel Mission in
Santa Rosa.

We received a thank you from Carolyn Mueller, the Coordinator of  Thanksgiving for Everyone. Carolyn writes, "We were blessed with good weather and served 246 meals to guests, plus gave 70-80 take-outs. Most of the 50 pies were eaten, with the remaining few given to late-comers who arrived during clean up. Everyone said they were delicious! Thank you to everyone at Saint Matthew who contributed to this successful event!"
The Weekly Good News is published by Saint Matthew Lutheran Church. Items may be submitted for publication by emailing Gail (click on the link below). Submissions are subject to editing or exclusion.

 

Phone: 925-932-1955 x106

 

Saint Matthew Lutheran Church
399 Wiget Lane
Walnut Creek, California 94598
925-932-1955
Website: www.saintmatthew.org