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Fast Facts
an e-update on life at
First Presbyterian Church
December 23, 2021
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Please join us as we celebrate the arrival of the Christ Child
Friday, December 24
4:00 A Celebration with Candlelight for Families and Children
5:30 A Celebration with Candlelight and Communion
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Worship - Sunday, December 26, 2021 | |
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First Sunday of Christmas
Christmas Hymn Sing!
(Please "come as you are," and enjoy this casual celebration of favorite Christmas hymns.)
This week's lectionary texts:
1 Smauel 2:18-20;
Psalm 148;
Colossians 3:12-17 ;
Luke 2:41-52
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Join us for worship this Sunday, December 26 at 10:55 am on Facebook Live. You do not have to have an account to join us. The video will go live on the church's public Facebook group. If you do not have a Facebook account, a message will pop up asking if you wish to join. Simply click, "not now" at the bottom of that message and it will go away. You may then enjoy the video as it plays live. | |
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Holiday Office Hours
The church office will be closed to celebrate the Christmas holiday on Friday, December 24 and Monday, December 27
The church office will be closed to celebrate the New Year on Friday, December 31. Normal office hours will resume on Monday, January 3.
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Seasonal greenery and berries date is available on January 2. To provide flowers or seasonal greenery and berries in honor or in memory of a loved one, contact Margaret Fancher at [email protected] or call 234-1359. Contributions to the Flower Fund are greatly appreciated.
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I can hardly believe this concert series has come to an end! It was a joy to host my friend, Dr. Elizabeth Moak, who played a stunning piano recital. Thank you, Dr. Moak, for sharing your gifts with our church and community! And thank you to all of you that helped to make this series a success. I'm looking forward to even more music in the New Year.
Merry Christmas!
Creighton
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FPC Children
An enormous THANK YOU to the Children and Youth Faith Formation team for putting together a fabulous Advent full of activities for our younger disciples! Ornament, cookie, and gingerbread house decorating, crazy reindeer games, and boisterous Christmas caroling made for some truly special memories being created and some new and fun friendships being forged.
Also, THANK YOU to the Membership and Hospitality team for planning the incredible caroling event this past Sunday! Two caroling teams visited Notting Hill, Oxford Wheel Estates, the Magnolia, and the Square.
The growth of this season has been a wonderful thing to behold!
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Changes to Sunday Morning Schedule
On Sunday mornings, 12/26 and 1/02, there will be no Sunday school or Children's Craft Time during the service. There will still be a nursery provided for our youngest disciples during the 11:00 service.
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Looking for a mid-week Book Study?? You’ve come to the right place! From Wednesday, January 5th through February 23rd, we’ll study Convictions: How I Learned What Matters Most, by Marcus Borg. You can either meet in the Fellowship Hall at 12 noon, or join us on Zoom at 7:00 p.m. You may pick up a copy of the book from the church office during business hours. Donations towards the cost of books are always appreciated. Click here to follow the link. | | |
Beginning, Sunday, January 9th, join us in the Fellowship Hall for an informal discussion on the lectionary passages for the day. All you need to bring is your curious mind, open heart, and a willingness to delve into what the scriptures might have for us. No preparation required, and you can drop in any given Sunday without losing the thread. If you’ve got a favorite translation of the Bible, bring it. If not, don’t worry. We’ll have fun and learn from each other as listen for the Spirit in each other’s voices. | |
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PYF
(Presbyterian Youth Fellowship)
PYF will be starting back on January 9th, with 7th and 8th graders meeting from 5:00-6:00 and 9th-12th graders meeting from 6:30-7:30. Dinner for all will be from 6:00-6:30! If you have a youth in this age range, please email Lindsay at [email protected] or Feagin at [email protected] to be added to GroupMe.
Sunday school will also resume on January 9th, from 9:45-10:40 in the PYF Annex Building.
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2022 Confirmation Class
We're thrilled to be offering our first confirmation class since the spring of 2020! We will have a confirmation class for all current 8th and 9th graders, as well as any current 10th graders who have not yet been confirmed. If your child is interested in being in this year's confirmation class, please contact the church office by email at [email protected] or by phone at (662)234-1757 so we can make sure he/she receives information about this year's class.
Additionally, we are seeking anyone interested in being a confirmation mentor to this year's confirmation class. We will need LOTS of volunteers, so please also contact the church office if you would like to serve in this incredibly important role. We're looking forward to an incredible year!
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UKirk Ole Miss extends an enormous "THANK YOU!" to all of you who have served as Tuesday night meal providers! We will soon be gearing up for our Spring semester, so if you are interested in providing meals for our gatherings, the sign-up calendar will soon be available on the ukirk website. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please email Allison at [email protected]. Again, thank you, and Merry Christmas!
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We are all aware of the devastating news from western Kentucky after last Friday's tornados. FPC has donated $5,000 to the newly created St. Andrew Presbytery Kentucky tornado relief fund. Individuals are invited to donate as well. Make checks payable to St. Andrew Presbytery and note "tornado relief." Mail your donation to Presbytery of St. Andrew, 24 County Road 231, Oxford, MS, 38655. As needs evolve and the long-term recovery picture becomes clearer, teams of FPC volunteers will be needed to go to Kentucky for the rebuilding effort. Stay tuned to this column as plans are developed to assist our stricken sisters and brothers. Please continue to hold them in prayer. | |
Oxford First United Methodist Church and FPC are planning a five-week seminar for a dialog in racial healing this spring. Approximately ten members from each congregation will meet weekly to faithfully explore together what it means to be a more whole and united community in Christ. The seminar will be led by Dr. Cade Smith, the University's Assistant Vice-Chancellor for Community Engagement. If you would like to volunteer to participate in the seminar or have questions, please email [email protected] or call the church office. Thank you for your prayerful consideration. | |
The Family Crisis Services of Northwest Mississippi is a comprehensive victim services organization. It is the only nonprofit in Oxford that specifically addresses and provides services to victims of interpersonal violence--sexual assault, domestic violence, homicide, etc. Staff and volunteers are available 24/7 to provide crisis intervention services. Recently, Family Crisis Services experienced a $200,000 cut in federal funding. Six staff members, including their intervention child psychologist, were laid off. Interested in helping? Current needs include monetary donations, cleaning supplies, basic office supplies, paper toiletries, and new stuffed animals for each child that the facility receives. If you would like to donate any of these supplies, please drop them by the church office. More information is available at oxfordadvocacy.org or call 234-9929. | |
Haven House, our resident recovery facility for people with substance abuse, appreciates the donations of Bibles, study materials, and daily devotional booklets. If you have some religious books to share, please bring them to the church office. | |
Curious about the various FPC mission activities? A new email account has been created specifically for keeping FPC members abreast of mission plans, outreach programs, committee minutes, etc. If you would like to be kept in the mission loop, contact the Mission Team at [email protected]. Your name will be placed on Mission Ministry's contact list. We look forward to keeping everyone informed of FPC's outreach opportunities. | |
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Lovepacks provides supplemental food for school age children in need, on weekends and holidays. We can stop hunger!
We are always in need of non-perishable, kid-friendly food donations to fill Lovepacks! These can be dropped off 8:30 am-4:30 pm Monday-Friday at the church office or in the narthex on Sundays!
Here is a list of needed items:
- Pop Top cans of Chicken Noodle or Vegetable Soup
- Pop-Top cans of Ravioli
- Peanut Butter Crackers
- Ramen Noodles
- Cheese Crackers
- 16 oz. Jar of Peanut Butter
- Non refrigerated Pudding
- Apple sauce pouches
- Granola, Breakfast, or Protein bars
A huge THANK YOU to those who have donated. FPC and Oxford Lovepacks appreciates you!
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New Member Class in 2022
A new member class will begin this coming January! Please contact Barrett if you are interested in becoming a member of our church family!
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Remember in Prayer
FPC Members: J.T. & Barbara Davis; Tommy Patrick; Marianna Ochs; Family of Lynton Dilley; Max Williams; Louise & Nolan Waller; Porter Callery; Teresa Flautt; Lydia Moak; Susan & Tom Meredith; Michele Howie; Margaret Fancher; Family of Betty Mullen White; Joe Murphey
Family and Friends: Family of Lauren "Lo" Chastain; Peter C. Wood; Doors of Hope Families; Bob Flautt; Family of Elise & William Winter; Parchman Prison inmates; Haven House residents; Our Haiti partners; Oxford & Lafayette County First Responders; Community leaders
U. S. Military: SSgt Jason Freeland, USAF 4th Air Support Operation
Please pray, too, for those with unspecified needs.
If you wish to have a name removed or added to this list, please contact the church office.
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The FPC prayer chain is ready if you or someone you know is in need. This is a confidential list that is independent from the names listed above. Please contact Carlisle Wood at [email protected] or 662-832-8606. All requests are held in strict confidence.
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Upcoming Birthdays and Anniversaries | |
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December Birthdays
23 Jack Hill, Robert Lake, Liza Orrell, Entje Webb
24 Lee Mize, Alissa Davis
25 Marjorie Selvidge, John Atkinson
26 Luke Gibbs
27 Cliff Smith
28 Lainey Schuesselin, Allison Crawford, Lu Brock
29 Noah Flechas, Seth Johnson, Kristen Phillips
December Anniversaries
24 Monte and Marianna Ochs
28 Sam and Mary Haskell
29 Monte and Joyce Gibbs, Bruce and Trenia Reynolds
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If we've overlooked your birthday or anniversary and you wish to have it included in Fast Facts, please contact the church office.
These announcements are sent weekly from the church. If you don't want to receive them, or if your email address has changed, please send a message to the church office at [email protected].
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