SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 16TH - FOOD PANTRY COLLECTION

Donations to our food pantry outreach will be gathered during worship this Sunday. Please bring along items below or monetary gifts as you are so led. Thank you!

We have been busy at the Food Pantry. We can use the following items:

•Canned chicken •Pasta sauce •Spaghetti •Elbow macaroni

•Salad dressing •Cooking oil •Cheese and crackers •Granola bars •Boxed cereal •Bags of sugar •Rice •Pickles •Pancake mix

•Pancake syrup •Canned chili & beans •Canned corn •Onions •Ketchup •Mayonnaise •Fruit juice •Toilet paper

Grocery gift cards are also welcome.

Thank you for your generosity, Mary Esther Anderson, Witness Team

November is for Fighting Hunger

at First Church!

Our church family is always generous in supporting our Food Pantry! Your donations are very much appreciated by the clients and volunteers. This ministry is now more important than ever. More and more members of our community are facing food insecurity with loss of assistance and increased prices for groceries. This month we want to make a special effort to help those who visit our Food Pantry. We are collecting Meals in a Bag and pantry items on the second, third and fourth Sundays of November. (Meals in a Bag are made up of economical ingredients for a meal to feed 4-6 people. The recipes do not require ingredients other than what are provided in the bag.). The recipes are available in the Gathering Space. 

November 16 

November 18^th is the last time the Food Pantry will be open before Thanksgiving, so on November 16^th we will be collecting Turkey Dinner in a Bag. Once again, use the ingredients listed in the recipe as your shopping list and follow the directions above for putting together the bag. 

November 16 is also the regularly scheduled collection for the Food Pantry. Monetary donations are very much appreciated as the shelves empty quickly.

November 23 

November 23 is the last Sunday of our Food Pantry focus since the 30^th will begin the Advent season. On the 23^rd we are hoping to collect pantry staples. Sugar, flour and cooking oil are always in demand. We also have a need for manual can openers since some of the clients are unhoused.  

From our recent Congregational Forum,

attached are Slate Ballot results

and the approved revisions to our Congregational Structure.

Please click on the button to view.

CALENDAR OF CHURCH EVENTS/ACTIVITIES

Sunday, November 16

9:00 am  Sunday School

10:30 am  Worship Service – Sanctuary (with Food Pantry Collection)

12:00 pm  Deacon Meeting – Anna Mow Room

4:00 pm  Youth Group/Dodgeball – FH

Monday, November 17

6:00 pm  CDC Ministry Team – Multi-Purpose Room

6:45 pm  Worship Team – Anna Mow Room

Tuesday, November 18

10:00 am  Prayer Shawl – Anna Mow Room

4:00 pm  Food Pantry Open 4:00 to 5:30 pm

Wednesday, November 19

9:30 am  Staff Meeting – Multi-Purpose Room

11:30 am  Lunch Bunch – Stonybrook Restaurant – East York

Thursday, November 20

6:30 pm  Chancel Choir Practice – Sanctuary

Sunday, November 23

9:00 am  Sunday School

10:30 am  Worship Service – Sanctuary

4:00 pm  Youth Group/Dodgeball – FH

Click on this button to view the full calendar

Additions and updates for prayer list or calendar of events are welcome by contacting the church office.

Special note for all Ministry Teams: Please notify the church office with any upcoming meetings or events for your team so we can add these dates to the calendar.

In addition to this prayer request list contained within each Friday's e-newsletter, we also have a "prayer chain" email list. We occasionally send immediate prayer requests to those who have opted in to receive the prayer chain and are committed to praying for each concern as they come. If you would like to be added to the prayer chain list, please notify the church office by email at secretary@yorkfirst.org or by phone (717) 755-0307. If you have a prayer request and desire it to be sent to this group, feel free to contact the church office anytime. Thank you!

Sunday School News

*Junior High Youth Membership Class*

9:00 AM in the Multi-Purpose Room. Teacher Pastor Joel Gibbel. The class will be learning about the concepts of "faith" and "knowing God" this week in class.

Children's Sunday School Classes

9:00 AM in Rooms 151, 152, and 153. Children grades PreK (age 4) and up will have class lessons. Children ages 3-4 and younger are welcome to attend nursery care.

Senior High Youth Sunday School Class

9:00 AM in Room 155. Teacher Dave Witkovsky. Youth in grades 9-12 are welcome.

Vine & Branches Class

The class will be joining with the Lamplighter's Class for the fall season. Please see below.

Lamplighters Class

9:00 AM in Room 145. Teacher Lyn Miller. The class is now studying

“12 Daring Women of the Bible," this week - Ruth

Homebuilders Class

Mondays - 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM by conference call. To join, contact Mike Martin at

717-840-4184 or Caretaker@TwinBrookFarm.com and leave a phone number.

The class studies lessons from the "Guide for Biblical Studies" curriculum. 

2025 ADVENT DEVOTIONAL

"Word Among Us" by John Fillmore

Advent devotional books are available for pick up in the gathering area. Please take one per household and let it guide you this Advent Season.



The season of Advent reminds us of God’s choice to enter into human experience in a physical way, by sending Jesus. Jesus has some borders to cross in order to “become flesh and live among us,” as John’s Gospel tells us. Because of the tangled mess we have created with our desire to fence off the world, Jesus must continually challenge and even cross our hurtful attempts to section off this from that, and us from them. Yet rightly ordered borders, laid gently by our Creator, can bring us life. Advent is an invitation to witness again the way Jesus navigates the landscape of our human division, tearing down the dividing walls and calling us back to a rightly ordered relationship with him.

Upcoming Events

UPCOMING DATES TO REMEMBER:

Sunday November 30 - First Sunday of Advent

Sunday December 7 - Advent Breakfast, Caroling

Sunday December 14 - Holiday Concert

Sunday December 21 - Christmas Cantata, Longest Night Service

Wednesday December 24 - Christmas Eve Candlelight Service

ADVENT WILL BE HERE IN NO TIME AND THAT MEANS IT IS TIME FOR POINSETTIAS AGAIN!

2025 Christmas Poinsettia Orders

6 1/2” pot (5+ blooms) - Cost per flower: $10.00

Deadline for Orders is November 23rd

We will begin taking orders for poinsettias this Sunday. You may purchase them “in honor, in memory, or in appreciation” of loved ones. Orders can be received in the offering plates during the worship or in the church office any time. Payment must accompany the order form (unless paying online).

Flowers will be displayed in the sanctuary on Sunday morning, Dec. 21 and during the Christmas Eve service on 12/24. Please pick up your flowers no later than the evening of 12/24 after worship. You may also take them before then if necessary or you can leave them for Sunday, Dec. 28 worship and then pick them up.

Thank you for your order which will contribute to the beauty of the sanctuary this Advent season! Blessings!

CARLISLE

TRUCK STOP MINISTRY

COOKIE BAKERS NEEDED!

♦ DUE IN CHURCH LOUNGE – DECEMBER 7TH

♦ PLEASE LABEL YOUR CONTAINER IF YOU WOULD

LIKE IT RETURNED.

Christmas & cookies all go together, Sunshine or rain, no matter the weather. So, bake those cookies for Christmas now, Freeze for Truck Stop Ministry’s chow.

Truckers on the road all night, Need a lift and something bright. So, bake those cookies because the clock is ticking, Bring to the church lounge for the truckers picking, And know the job of giving something so small, Is a job that is BIG and appreciated by ALL!

CAMP EDER

CHRISTMAS TREE FESTIVAL

December

12th & 13th

5pm - 9pm

Come join us for a evening of family festive fun! The woods will be illuminated with lots and lots of Christmas Lights, warm fires, hot cocoa and children activities will be happening each night. This is a beautiful festival you most certainly will not want to miss! 

(All information will be posted on the bulletin board)

✦Christmas Lights & Music

✦Hay Rides -Friday & Saturday Night 5-9pm

✦Delicious Turkey Dinner & Soup (per donation) ✦Luminary Garden (honoring our loved ones) ✦Decorated Trees ✦Warm Drinks & Lots of Cookies (free) ✦Bake Sale ✦Kid's Activities ✦Cozy Fires & S’mores ✦Live Music

✦TREE DECORATING CONTEST

Have some fun decorating a tree at Camp Eder. Everyone is invited to compete in the tree decorating contest. Voting will be during the Christmas Tree Festival December 12 - 13. The Christmas Tree Festival is a great opportunity to get involved with Camp Eder and our surrounding community.

Trees are limited, so you will want to sign up soon.

Church of the Brethren News

Southern PA District/Denomination

Denominational news and information is always available by visiting brethren.org

Read news updates by clicking the link below

Please subscribe to receive COB Newsline via email if you wish

Online Giving is safe, easy, and convenient. Sign up by going to our church website at: www.yorkfirst.org and click on the Online Giving Link or go directly to the Online Giving website at: http://www.osvhub.com/york-first/funds.

For assistance setting up your account,

call Donor Support at:  800-348-2886 – Option 2 – Online Giving Questions? Contact Sheryl Leaman - Thank you for your support!

NOTE: Online giving can be used for regular weekly or monthly offerings, special offerings, and capital campaign contributions, as well as many other specific outreach ministries that we sponsor.

Lehman Center "Wish List"

Items for donation to the Lehman Center are being collected in the basket in the Gathering Area. Due to changes in the food pantry operations, these must be collected separately from food pantry supplies.

Here are some items that are needed at

Lehman Center:

Instant pudding (chocolate, banana)

Instant jello (orange, blue, green, grape, cherry)

Can fruit (pears, pineapples, fruit cocktail)

Applesauce (individual or jar)

Can vegetables (lima beans, peas, green beans)

Baby food - all stages

Baby snacks

Patricia Carey is the Witness Team appointment for the Cash for Causes program. Please see Patricia before or after worship to purchase your Giant or Weis gift cards. Patricia will be at the table under the bulletin board in the Gathering Space.

You may purchase the cards in amounts of $100, $50, $25, or $10. The cards make great gifts, especially at holidays. Consider donating cards to the Food Pantry or using them yourself any time you shop at Giant or Weis.

Since 2011, through the Cash for Causes program, the church has received 5% of sales to support various COB and local ministries. In 2024 the gift card sales supported The Lehman Center, New Community Project and the Carlisle Truck Stop Ministry with each receiving $233.08. For 2025, the Witness Team will review past giving and determine which agencies we will support this year. 

LAST WEEK IN WORSHIP