Christmas Eve Services

A very special invitation to join us on Christmas Eve:

Wednesday, December 24

• Family Service, 4:00 p.m.
• Candlelight Services, 6:00 & 8:00 p.m. (prelude will begin 30 minutes before)

Please note that all children are invited to take part on worship on Christmas Eve. Childcare will be provided between 3:30-7:30 p.m.

Please bring a box of diapers (infant or adult) to benefit the Athens Area Diaper Bank. We will receive an offering to support The Table at UGA.

The Table at UGA (formerly known as Presbyterian Student Center) is a Christian based student group on campus. They seek to create a community of unqualified belonging, spiritual growth, and compassionate service.

The Athens Area Diaper Bank began in 2015 with the goal of ensuring that no baby goes without clean diapers. The Diaper Bank serves a six-county area and projects to provide more than 850,000 diapers to 19,000 children in 2025.

Stewardship: An act of joyful worship

Dear Friends,

As we approached Generosity Sunday, we asked you to consider how you would answer this question: “What does your gift mean to you?” For the church, our financial commitments mean the lights stay on, our staff gets paid, and we are able to share the love of Christ with Athens and the world. But what, we asked, does your gift mean to you? What does your giving say about your relationship with our creator God?

Stewardship is an act of joyful worship that is grounded in the words of Psalm 24: “The earth is the Lord’s, and all that is in it.” That worship lives in the giving, not the gift. In giving, we respond to the love of God made manifest in Christ. In giving, we acknowledge the source of all good gifts.

We are grateful for the 150 households that have provided an Estimate of Giving. If you have not, please prayerfully consider doing so. Having a reliable estimate of your financial gifts allows the Session to prepare an accurate budget for 2026.

You may fill out a commitment card (available in Fellowship Pads, Narthex, or Atrium), or online. If you have any questions about setting up an automatic gift through your bank, please contact the church accountant, Jennifer Adams, at jadams@firstpresathens.org or call 706-543-4338.

Chuck Toney

Generosity Team

Intergenerational Sunday School Christmas Social

Sunday, December 21, 9:45 a.m.

Join us on Sunday, December 21 as children, youth, and adult Sunday school classes gather in Fellowship Hall for a churchwide Christmas social. All are welcome!

Service of the Longest Night

Sunday, December 21, 7:00 p.m.

Join us for the Service of the Longest Night. The service takes its name from the fact that in the Northern Hemisphere in December, there are more hours of darkness than light, and this service acknowledges that many in our community do not find this to be “the most wonderful time of the year.” We will pray with and for those in our community who may be hurting and grieving, while remembering that the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

Christmas Joy Offering

December 21

On December 21, we will have the opportunity to join with congregations from around the United States and give to our annual Christmas Joy Offering which will help support past, present, and future leaders in the Presbyterian Church. Please give generously ("Joy Gift" under "Select a fund" drop-down menu).

Holiday Meals on Wheels

Every Christmas Day and New Year’s Day volunteers from First Presbyterian Church deliver nutritional meals to homebound seniors. FPC also pays for the meals on these three days. The cost is generally around $1,500. Volunteers meet at the Athens Community Council on Aging at 135 Hoyt St. at 10:00 a.m. The routes take 30 minutes to an hour to complete.

If you are interested in being a backup drive to deliver meals, please contact John Turner at johnlovickturner@yahoo.com. Donations can be made by writing a check to FPC (noted “MOW”) or give online at FirstPresAthens.org/giving and select “Meals on Wheels” under “Select a fund.”

Click here to read Season of Wonder@First.