King of Peace MCC Matters

November 23, 2022

Sunday, November 27th, 2022

1st Sunday of Advent


Sermon Title:

"Our Great Hope"


Sacred Text:

Ephesians 2:1-10


Worship (in-person and online): 11:15 AM


A Word from Renae

Happy Thanksgiving! We will gather tonight to celebrate as a church community and count our blessings. Wherever you celebrate this year, I hope you wake giving thanks to God for loving us and sending Jesus to show us the way, the truth, and the life.


This Sunday we will begin the season of Advent, a time of waiting and preparation for the celebration of the birth of Christ at Christmas and the waiting and preparation for the Second Coming of Christ. We will look at the hope, peace, joy, love, and light Christ brings into our world and the ways we are to share those gifts with others. We hope you will join us as we celebrate the coming of Christ!


Blessings,

Rev. Renae

Safety Protocols for In-person Worship
Masks are optional for all those fully-vaccinated. If you have not been fully-vaccinated, we ask that you please continue to wear your mask.

In terms of physical contact, please be sensitive and respect everyone's personal wishes.

If you don't feel well, we ask you to please stay home. This includes fever, cough, and shortness of breath.

Become a Covenant Keeper

Covenant Keepers is our Stewardship program for 2023. It provides an opportunity for you to make a covenant with God through King of Peace MCC in six areas of your life: Presence, Spiritual Growth, Prayer, Financial Support, Witness, and Service. This program is designed to help us grow as individuals and together as a Church.


Our theme this year was "More Than Enough." This Sunday we will pray over all the Covenant Keeper Cards that have come in. If you haven't yet filled one out, you can get your Covenant Keeper Commitment Card here. Email melanie@churchstpetersburg.org with any questions.


****


As of 11/20/2022, we have received the following:


55 covenant cards representing 66 people

Presence- 66

Spiritual Growth-63

Prayer- 65

Financial Support-66

Witness- 64

Service- 62


Total pledge amount as of 11/20/2022--$162,232.00

Pastoral Search Team Update

You can find any regular updates from our Pastoral Search Team here in King of Peace Matters or our website here.


As part of their work, the Pastoral Search Team is finishing up the City profile and putting together the history of King of Peace. We need your help. We need pictures and video clips of our city/area and all the fun and interesting places that would make you want to move to this area. So take out your phone, open the camera, and start taking photos/videos of the beaches, restaurants, LGBTQ friendly places around. We want anything that you think is fun or interesting and shows off how great it is to live in the St. Pete area. Also, if you have any pictures/videos of activities or events from King of Peace past (it doesn't matter how old!), send those along too. You can email these to pastoralsearch@churchstpetersburg.org.


Be on the lookout soon for a survey to help us create our congregational profile!

Upcoming Activities

We hope you'll join us for our Thanksgiving Eve Service and Potluck Dinner tonight, Wednesday, November 23rd at 6 pm in the Fellowship Hall. Bring a side dish to share, and the church will be responsible for the turkey!

Join us in the Fellowship Hall each Sunday from 10:30-11 am for coffee and refreshments! If it's your week to bring something to share, our Hospitality Team would greatly appreciate it.

Thank you so much for your generosity towards the donation of gift cards for the Gift Card Bouquet. Starting this Wednesday, November 23rd at our Thanksgiving Service and Potluck Dinner and every Sunday before and after worship through Dec. 18th, we will sell tickets for a chance to win this bouquet just before the Christmas holiday. If you are the winner, you will receive $700 worth of gift cards.


Tickets are:

1 for $5

3 for $10

10 for $20


If you have any questions, email melanie@churchstpetersburg.org.

If you'd like to help deck the hall of King of Peace, join us on Saturday, November 26th at 11 am. We will help members of Lakewood United Methodist Church decorate the building and make it ready for Christmas!

Is redemption possible for Ebenezer Scrooge? Pastor and author Matt Rawle believes so as he discovers the teachings of Jesus in the words of the Charles Dickens classic, "A Christmas Carol". Rawle dives deep into the dark, sad, greedy world of Scrooge and discovers a man in dire need of a second chance. Along with Scrooge, we meet the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future and in the process learn about living with and for others in a world blessed by Jesus. Rediscover and reinvigorate your Christian faith this Advent and Christmas season and look at this familiar classic through the lens of faith. Starting Wednesday, November 30th, Rev. Lorraine will offer this study at two different times and two different ways. There will be an in-person class at 11 am at King of Peace. Then there will be an online version at 6:30 pm. (Both classes will be held on Wednesdays.) Sign up in the foyer or by emailing melanie@churchstpetersburg.org. Books will be available and a $10 donation would be appreciated.

Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, we haven't had a Christmas concert since December 2019. That's why it will be so good to be Together Again for Christmas this year! Mark your calendars for our combined Christmas concert with Church of the Trinity MCC (Sarasota). We will offer the concert at both locations. Saturday, Dec. 10th at 5 pm you can join us at King of Peace. Sunday, Dec. 11th at 5 pm, you can join us at Church of the Trinity (7225 Lockwood Ridge Rd., Sarasota). This will be a free concert, but there will be a freewill love offering received. The monies received at the concert at King of Peace will go to our Music Fund. We hope you'll make plans to join us. Tell all your friends and family. This will be a great way to get into the Christmas spirit.

Buy a Poinsettia and help us make the sanctuary even more beautiful for Christmas. Poinsettias are $15 (per poinsettia) and can be purchased in honor or memory of a loved one(s). Fill out the form and put it in an offering plate with the payment. Last day to place an order is Sunday, Dec. 11th. You can find the form here. If you have any questions, call the church office or email melanie@churchstpetersburg.org.

It's that time of year again! Dust off your ugly sweaters and wear them to church on Sunday, Dec. 18th. The person who wears the ugliest sweater of them all wins a prize!

Every year, we help provide some Christmas cheer for a local organization. The men and women at Turning Point, a local drug rehab center, are always quick to help us whenever we need help with moving furniture, putting up ceiling tiles, decorating for Christmas. Turning Point is always there to help out! So, this Christmas we want to say thanks to them for all they have provided for us.


We are hoping to provide for 40 Turning Point residents. The following items are things that we need:


  • Small Duffel bags
  • Tooth brushes and Tooth Paste
  • Conditioner
  • Deodorant
  • Bars of Soap
  • Wash Cloths
  • Travel Soap Container
  • Combs and Brushes
  • Composition Books
  • Note Pads
  • Ballpoint Pens


Please drop off all your donations to the church by Sunday, Dec. 18th. Thank you in advance! If you have any questions, email melanie@churchstpetersburg.org.


Starting this Sunday, if you would like to give an extra Christmas Offering to the church this year, we would like to invite you to pick up a stocking, put your offering in the envelope, fill it out and put it back in the stocking and drop it in the offering plate. We will hang the stocking on the mantle to represent each Christmas gift we receive.

As you finalize your holiday plans for this year, we hope you'll include worship at King of Peace. We will have a weekend filled with worship to usher in the Christ child and celebrate that silent and most holy night. We'll have our annual Christmas Eve Candlelight Service on Saturday, Dec. 24th at 8 pm. Then, since Christmas Day falls on a Sunday this year, we will gather again on Christmas morning (Sunday, Dec. 25th) at 11:15 am. There's no better place to be than King of Peace and we hope you'll join us to declare, "Joy to the world, the Lord is come."

Do you know of anyone within our congregation who might need some congregational care or for us to offer their name in prayer during Sunday service? If so, please email revlorraine@churchstpetersburg.org.

EPIC (Empath Partners in Care), a member of Empath Health has a group of 55+ LGBTQ individuals who do activities together, such as outings to local museums, Coffee Hour, Trans Social Hour, Friendsgiving. If you would like to find out more information about the outings or how to volunteer, contact Jessie at their St. Pete Campus by emailing jessicawingar@EmpathHealth.org or call 727.328.5518.

Buy from Amazon, Give Back to King of Peace

If you are someone who likes to shop on Amazon, did you know that you could purchase things and have King of Peace receive a percentage of donation based on your purchase? Go to smile.amazon.com and fill out the information to have King of Peace MCC be your charitable organization.

Total Monthly Budget for 2022: $21,667

Total Income for October 2022: $20,664.63


Total Weekly Budget for 2022: $5,000

Total Income for week of 11/13-11/19: $9,267.06


In-Person attendance for 11/13: 117

Facebook Live attendance for 11/13: 12

Online Views: 265


Class/Event Attendance: 132

Donate to King of Peace here

Remote Giving Options

with VANCO Mobile


In our continual effort to make giving easy for you, we are offering VANCO Mobile. This mobile app is accessible on your phone or tablet anywhere you are! Best yet, it is easy to use! Or you can access their website at Vancopayments.com. For instructions on how to do this, click here.


If you have any questions about this or need some help, call the church office and ask for Melanie or send her an email at melanie@churchstpetersburg.org.


Here are a few other ways to give your tithes/offerings to King of Peace:


  • Call in your contribution to VANCO Client Services 800.675.7430


  • Mail your contribution to King of Peace MCC (5995 Dr MLK Jr St. S, St. Petersburg FL 33705) or you may drop it by the church office Monday - Thursday 9:30 AM - 4PM.



Here's what's happening around

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(Click on the link to find out more information)


Connect with MCC


MCC Council of Elders Advent Reflection-Hope


Announcing 2022 MCC Awards

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