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This Week at
St. Paul's Lutheran Church-Lionville
December 21, 2025
"Grow in Faith, Serve with Love, Invite into Fellowship"
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Fourth Sunday of Advent
Sunday, December 21
8:00 am Traditional Service
10:30 am Contemporary Service
Attend in person or worship online
Everyone is welcome!
Second Sunday of Every Month:
4:00 pm - Rejoicing Spirits Service
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Our Prayer List.
We pray for Matt, Luke, Carson, Brenda, Linda, George, Ben, Belinda, Fran, Keith, Deb, Mary, Diana, Corky, William, Nancy Jane, Melissa, Jerry, Diana, Janet, Eamon, Arthur, Kim, Sue, Samantha M., Gene, Anne, Samantha S., Helene M., Samantha, Steven, Rick, Lucy, Janet K., Amy C., Pat, Marlene, Garnet, Chip, and Jean. We lift up in grief the Powers family on the death of Bill's sister, Liz. We pray that your comforting Spirit be present with Mandy and Ben Young as they grieve the death of Ben's grandmother, Lynn. We lift up Bianka, Liam, Daniel, Zach, and Alistair in the military. We pray for peace in Sudan, Ukraine, and the Middle East. We pray for those we now name aloud or lift up quietly in our hearts.
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Christmas Eve Service Schedule
We will offer three services on Christmas Eve, Thursday, December 24:
- 4:00 pm - Children's Service
- 7:30 pm - Contemporary Service
- 10:00 pm - Traditional Service
Please note that there will only be one combined service at 9:30 am on Sunday, December 28.
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Year End Giving Deadline
Please note that all offering must be received by the church office by Sunday, December 28 in order to be credited towards your 2025 giving. If you are able to complete your estimate of giving or even be a little extra generous, this will help us end the year with a balanced budget! Thanks so much for all you give to empower the ministry that takes place at St. Paul's!
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Sunday School Christmas Pageant
On Sunday, December 21 at the 10:30 am service, our children will share a wonderful presentation to get us ready for the coming joy of Christmas. We are sure their portrayal of the story of Christmas will delight everyone! Even if you normally attend the early service, you might want to come back and enjoy the children sharing their faith and talents with the congregation!
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Staff Christmas Gift
Dear Members of St. Paul's,
As we approach the Advent and Christmas season, we are reminded of the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As in years past, Mutual Ministry will be collecting donations from the congregation for staff Christmas gifts. We invite you to prayerfully consider expressing your gratitude to our staff for their dedication and service over the past year.
We are truly blessed to have a great group of talented staff members who have been instrumental in strengthening our relationship with the Lord. Let us show our appreciation for their hard work and commitment by contributing generously to this gift.
Ann Byer, Mutual Ministry Chair, will collect your gifts and distribute them to our staff before the New Year. Please send your gift (as a check made payable to Ann Byer) to Ann at 112 Crump Road, Exton, PA 19341. We request that you send your gift via check, not cash. Please consider dropping the check at the Post Office to prevent fraud which is happening more and more with mailed checks. If you prefer to use Venmo, you can send your gift to @Ann-Byer.
Thank you for your support and generosity,
St. Paul's Mutual Ministry Committee
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Youth Ministry "Alumni" Open House
WE WILL HAVE A SPECIAL YOUTH MINISTRY 'ALUMNI' OPEN HOUSE on Sunday, January 4 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at St. Paul's! College students home on break and other young adults from St. Matthew's and St. Paul's are invited to come for an informal opportunity to reconnect and catch up with your faith friends from high school, and to put your mark on our new youth room. Food and drinks will be provided Please RSVP here if you would like to attend: January 4th Alumni Open House.
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No Sunday School December 28
Please note there will be no Sunday school on Sunday, December 28. The normal schedule will resume on Sunday, January 4.
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Inviting for Christmas!
As mentioned in the Pastor's page of the December newsletter, the simple act of inviting someone to join us for services and making them feel welcome can be a big help in letting them learn more about St. Paul's. We would like to encourage our members to invite others to join us for our Christmas Eve services, and there are two simple ways to do this. As in past years, 18x24" lawn signs announcing our service times are available in the narthex, and we would love you to place one in your yard if you live on a high-traffic street. The second method anyone can use. It's a simple Christmas themed postcard listing our Christmas Eve services. Please give them out to friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, and anyone you think might be interested. Every year there are people who visit St. Paul's for the first time at Christmas and this becomes their new church home. What a joy that your simple invite could bless their faith journey!
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Church Office Holiday Hours
Please note that the church office will be closed on Thursday, December 25 and Friday, December 26 in observance of the Christmas holiday, as well as Thursday, January 1 in observance of New Year's Day. In addition, the staff may not be working in the church office as regularly during the holiday period, so if you plan to stop by, please call first (610-363-6264) to ensure someone will be there to greet you. Thanks so much and Merry Christmas!
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Family Movie Night
We’re having a family movie night on Saturday, January 3 at 6:00 pm. Feel free to wear your jammies and bring your favorite Christmas cookies to share as we gather for a fun movie night in the Fellowship Hall for a classic Christmas movie!
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Chat and Chews Book Club
The Chat and Chews Sunday School Book Club meets on the THIRD Sunday of each month, after the late service in the Lounge next to the Hospitality Room. Our next meeting will be on Sunday, December 21, and we will discuss 2 books: "Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop, by Jenny Colgan, and we will continue "Prayer--Does it Make a Difference" (Part 2), by Philip Yancey. You do not have to finish the book or even read it to join us in a lively and faithful discussion. Please contact Gwen Werner at ggwerner@verizon.net or call the church office for more information. Happy Reading!
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Crafters' Meeting Schedule
The crafters are taking a break for the holidays but will return to their usual schedule in 2026. Meetings occur on Wednesdays at 10:00 am in the downstairs area. All are welcome!
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One Service Sunday, December 28
Please note that there will only be one combined service at 9:30 am on Sunday, December 28. We will return to two services on Sunday, January 4.
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Anxious Generation Book Study
OUR NEXT "THE ANXIOUS GENERATION" BOOK STUDY will be on Sunday, January 11 from 3:00 to 4:30 pm at St. Paul's. Parents with children in preschool through fifth grade are welcome to join us as we talk about issues around children and social media. Even if you haven't been able to attend until now, you are still invited to participate; December's session was cancelled by the snow, so you won't have missed as much as you think! This month's conversation will focus on the third section of the book, The Great Rewiring: The Rise of the Phone-Based Childhood. For questions, contact Craig Miller at craigyouthmin@gmail.com or 484-320-0785.
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Thank You for Your Prayers!
Sandy Lopacki recently shared the following message of appreciation:
"To Fellow Members of St. Paul's,
I want to thank all fellow members of St. Paul's for all your thoughts and prayers over the past 3 1/2 years.
My health currently is still not 100% but very close. Thank you all once again. Prayers really work and I am a prime example of them.
Sincerely,
Sandy Lopacki"
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Youth Ministry News
For the most up-to-date event information and signup links,
go online to the Youth Ministry web page at StPaulsLionville.org/youth.
THE MIDDLE SCHOOL MANIA! CHRISTMAS PARTY will be on Saturday, December 20 from 4:00 to 5:30 pm at Pastor Stuart's house. Come have a fun, festive afternoon with plenty of food, games, and our traditional gift exchange! Be sure to bring an inexpensive ($5 or less), WRAPPED gag gift. All 6th through 8th graders are invited, including friends. Sign up here to join the merriment: Dec. 20th Middle School MANIA! Christmas Party.
OUR HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH CHRISTMAS PARTY will be on Sunday, December 21 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at Pastor Stuart's house. Spend an evening with friends having fun, playing games, and of course taking part in our annual gift exchange! (Bring an inexpensive, WRAPPED gag gift for the exchange.) All 9th through 12th graders are invited, including friends. Sign up here: Dec. 21st High School Christmas Party.
COLLEGE PANEL FOR HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH AND PARENTS - On Sunday, January 4, from 4:00 to 5:30 pm at St. Paul's, we will provide another opportunity for older high school youth to sit with current college students and learn from their experiences. This year, we will also offer a chance for high school parents to talk to college parents to get their advice on how to navigate the process of preparing for college with their student. Sign up here to participate: January 4th College Information Panel.
THE FIRST HIGH SCHOOL OASIS BIBLE DIVE will be on Sunday, January 11 from 6:30 to 8:00 pm at St. Matthew's. Spend an evening unwinding from the stress of everyday life while finding rest in God's Word to us. Advance sign-up isn't necessary; just show up!
THE WINTER-SPRING YOUTH EVENT SCHEDULE is now posted and available on the church website's youth page; be sure to check it out and block out dates for upcoming activities!
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SCAN QR CODE TO SIGN UP FOR YOUTH EVENTS
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Quiet Christmas Offerings
The Exton-Lionville Ministerium is offering two additional Christmas events to bring the hope of Christmas to all people, especially this in the midst of grief.
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A Quiet Christmas Worship will be held on Sunday, December 21 at 3:00 pm at Grove United Methodist Church (490 Boot Road, West Chester). This event will be a peaceful time to bring all you carry with you to God.
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A Candlelit Musical Solstice Celebration will be held on Sunday, December 21 at 7:00 pm at St. Matthew's Lutheran Church (2440 Conestoga Road, Chester Springs). This celebration will feature contemplative music with the band Hinton Bower Jones.
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December Pave the Way Parking Lot Update
To learn more about this project and be part of God leading us forward, check out StPaulsLionville.org/parkinglot.
Project Finances as of 12/02/25:
Pledges: $101,425
Given: $94,295
The drawing to the left shows our parking lot with a little over 100 spots.
- Each red car represents $1,000 in pledges.
- Each green car represents $1,000 in received funds.
- As the parking lot fills up with cars, we get closer to our goal of $100,000.
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